Digital notary services

Fundamentals of legislation of the Russian Federation on notaries have been amended, which will enter into force in 2020. The major changes include:

• Notary will be able to accept documents for storage not only in paper form, but also in electronic form. Materials will be stored in the Unified Notary Information System.

• Federal Notary Chamber will be able to provide information on the opening of a hereditary case via Internet at request of any person formed on its official website.

• Notary will have right to establish identity of citizen in absence of identity document through unified information system of personal data.

• Notary will be able to receive information free of charge in electronic form from information systems of the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation and Tax authorities.

• Federal Notary Chamber will establish requirements for application form for performing a notarial act remotely.

Certain provisions of law that also entered into force in December 2019 expand powers of notary, giving him right to refuse to execute an executive inscription if there are sufficient grounds to believe that executive inscription can be used to legalize (launder) criminally obtained income, or to finance terrorism.