The digital notarial act sounds tempting: both clients and notaries benefit from more efficient, faster processes and location-independent advice. However, many notaries have concerns about whether their services can be transferred to the digital world securely, in compliance with data protection laws, and easily. In this article, you will find out everything you need to know about video identification procedures, data rooms, NEIV regulation & Co. So that the digital notarial act is also a complete success for you.
Digitization is advancing steadily and - spurred on by the Corona pandemic - has now also created the legal and technical conditions for notaries to offer many services digitally. These are increasingly in demand from clients.
No wonder, after all, the digital notarial act means many simplifications. From time savings and accessibility for clients who are not mobile to the fact that the consultation is completely independent of location. Whether the client is at his or her desk at home, in the office or on vacation in the Canary Islands is completely irrelevant. This is also more environmentally friendly due to the elimination of travel costs.
Digitization yes - but what does it look like in the day-to-day work of a notary's office?
But: 83% of all notaries are currently still undecided. Why? There are concerns about security, DSGVO compliance, or the user-friendliness of digital tools - especially for older clients. And last but not least: The service of a notary is characterized by careful examination of all concerns and competent advice. Transferring these values, which are particularly important for clients, into the digital world is a challenge.
The development towards pure processing orders, the dependence on mediation platforms, the outsourcing of process steps to external service providers - in short, having to give up sovereignty over the notarial process... all these are justified objections of many notaries.
Later in this article, you will learn that there are proven solutions that notaries can use to avoid these problems. First, let's clarify the current state of the facts: Which services can notaries currently offer digitally at all, and which cannot? What are the prerequisites for this and how does it work?
Types of digital services and their requirements
In the wake of the ongoing Corona pandemic, the 2020 legislature expanded the scope of notarial services that can be provided digitally. These are:
- Digital notarization of signatures
- Digital notary file
- Digital general meetings or notarial minutes of meetings
Incidentally, wills and testamentary dispositions must still be drawn up physically. It is also not possible to produce a certified copy digitally.
Before a digital notarial act can be digitally certified, the identity of the client must first be digitally verified. The Notary-E-Identification Ordinance (NEIV) specifies which requirements the identity check must fulfill. According to this, all parties must go through a so-called video identification procedure (Video-Ident-Verfahren). In this procedure, the identity of the persons is established online by means of photo ID and cell phone signature.
Here is an overview of the most important requirements that clients must meet:
- Smartphone and valid cell phone signature
- Official photo ID (passport or identity card)
- Laptop/PC with integrated webcam, speakers and microphone
- Good internet connection
Process of the digital notarial act
If these prerequisites are met, a digital notarial service basically runs as follows:
In the first step, the client completes the video identification procedure. For this, the client usually has to book an online appointment with an external service provider and go through the procedure independently.
After a certain waiting period for data processing, the notary and client:in exchange the required documents and document via a secure data room. These are securely encrypted virtual rooms where the documents can be uploaded online for the various parties.
This is followed by the actual video conference between the notary and the client, in which the document in question is signed. The client uses the qualified electronic signature for this purpose. The notary applies his or her official electronic signature to the document.
What would it be like if this process could be even simpler? Without additional workflows, new process steps and external service providers? IURIO offers all of that.
Advantages of the digital notary's office with IURIO
The IURIO Collaboration Suite enables notaries to perform the sovereign tasks assigned to them digitally, as simply and time-savingly as possible. With IURIO, the entire process of the digital notarial act, unlike usual, runs completely within IURIO and without third-party service providers. Of course, IURIO also fulfills all legal and data protection requirements.
IURIO benefits at a glance:
- 100% DSGVO compliant
- 100% compliant with the Notary-E-Identification Ordinance -NEIV
- Highly secure data upload and exchange (A-Trust Alternative)
- Encrypted on the client side
- No outsourcing of identity verification to third-party service providers
- Saves clients extensive preparations
- Includes a convenient online meeting tool
- Europe-wide online signature for documents
- Easy to use
- Developed together with notaries
- Individual pricing model depending on the notary's office (more info on pricing here)
Currently, there are already notaries working successfully with the IURIO Collaboration Suite. IURIO user notary Dr. Gerhard Knechtel:
"Our aspiration is to be and remain the leader in digital applications for performing our notarial tasks. With our partner IURIO, we achieve exactly that. We have the entire digital process in our hands, without being dependent on third-party service providers or on mediation or advertising platforms. With IURIO, we can work with our clients as directly and personally as usual, even online. That's why IURIO has quickly established itselfas a convenient and professional solution for us in daily practice."
Thanks to IURIO, notaries can transfer their familiar processes 1:1 to the digital world and continue to pass on their most important value to their clients: Competent, speedy and thorough advice.
Comparison: Process of a digital notarial act with and without IURIO
Conclusion
Notaries cannot avoid dealing with the digitization of their services. The digital notary's office offers numerous advantages, such as independence in terms of time and location, and is being demanded by more and more clients.
When selecting the appropriate technical solution, notaries should ensure that all legal requirements, such as the video identification procedure in accordance with the NEIV Regulation, are met. In addition, digital solutions are particularly efficient and time-saving if the entire notarial act takes place within a platform and there is no need to resort to third-party service providers or time-consuming additional process steps. In this way, notaries can continue to concentrate on the central core of their work and provide their clients with comprehensive advice.
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