Notarial deeds

Overview

In every person's life, there are a number of events for which the individual must turn to a notary (e.g., marriage contract, amendment of marital property arrangements, cohabitation agreement, donation, purchase and sale of real estate, mortgage loan, a notarized will or international will, the settlement of an estate, etc.).

Belgians residing abroad can always turn to the competent local authority for procedures related to property or family law.

Belgians with ordinary residence in Hong Kong or Macau can also contact the Belgian consular representative in Hong Kong.

Based on the principle of 'Belgian interest,' Belgian representatives abroad are allowed to draw up notarial deeds in the same capacity as a notary in Belgium, provided that a draft deed from a Belgian notary is submitted to them in advance.

They may refuse to act as a notary if a legal or factual difficulty prevents them from doing so.

Additional information is available on the website of the Royal Federation of Belgian Notaries. 

Read more on the website of the FPS Foreign Affairs. 

Practicality

The Consulate General is not allowed to accept draft texts for notarial deeds directly from the notaries or their clients. All draft texts must be sent by the notary to the Notarial Service of the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, which coordinates the preparation of the deed.

The address for sending draft deeds and any practical questions is notaribox@diplobel.fed.be

In collaboration with the Notarial Service, the Consulate General prepares the deed. This process takes approximately two weeks.

Once the Notarial Service gives its approval, we invite the parties involved to sign the deed together with our consular officer.