Electronic witnessing of documents under COVID-19

Further to our earlier article on the subject of electronic signatures, New South Wales is the first state in Australia to enable the electronic witnessing of documents in response to the COVID-19 crisis.

The Electronic Transactions Amendment (COVID-19 Witnessing of Documents) Regulation 2020 (NSW) was published on 22 April 2020, and will be in force up to six months from the date of publication.

The Regulation was made under s 17 of the Electronic Transactions Act 2000 (NSW), the provision itself having recently been introduced by the COVID-19 Legislation Amendment (Emergency Measures) Act 2020 (NSW).

The Regulation includes provisions that allow a person to witness a document, including a will, a power of attorney, a deed or agreement, an affidavit and a statutory declaration, by "audio visual link", easing the unique circumstances brought about by the social distancing restrictions imposed on NSW in response to the coronavirus pandemic.