Document Certification

Toronto Region Board of Trade's signature on Certificates of Origin and other export shipping documents is recognized worldwide wherever certification by a chamber of commerce is required.

Service is provided for the following documents: Certificates of Origin, Commercial invoices and other shipping documents; Agent/Representation Agreements; Business Visas.

Click below for more information:

Document certification clients are required to fill out a "Letter of Waiver" PDF (82kb) that will be kept in a secure file at Toronto Region Board of Trade. Please note:

• The Letter of Waiver must be notarized. A Toronto Region Board of Trade Commissioner of Oaths cannot sign the waiver.
• The company's signing officer cannot notarize/commission his/her own signature.
• The company is required to supply a copy of either the company's "Articles of Incorporation" OR a "Business Licence".
• If the company has moved, we require a copy of a government document that confirms the new address (e.g. Revenue Canada tax form cover page) or a lawyer should provide a letter/amendment of why the address on Articles/Licence is different to the firm's current address.

Contact: bizservices@bot.com or call 416.862.4533

• You must provide the Board of Trade with one additional copy of all documents presented for certification. Each copy must be originally signed by a company officer or duly authorized agent and a Commissioner of Oaths, Notary Public or Justice of the Peace.
• The documents need to have two original signatures, in blue ink: the exporter's and the Notary Public's/Commissioner of Oaths'.
• All signatures must be original. Photocopied signatures will not be accepted.
• These two signatures need to be from two different people. The exporter cannot notarize/commission his/her own document.
• Toronto Region Board of Trade requires an original copy of all documents to keep on file.
• Any Certificate of Origin that refers to a "Free Trade Agreement" (e.g. NAFTA) cannot be certified.
• If the document is written in a foreign language, it must be accompanied by an English translation signed by a signing officer of the company.
• If the exporter is not a Canadian company, a Canadian representative's (e.g. freight forwarder's) company name and address must be specified on the Certificate of Origin.
• The Consignee's (or Notify Party's) full company name and address must be included on the Certificate of Origin.
• Toronto Region Board of Trade's template for a Certificate of Origin is available in "pdf" format or in "excel" format available from Document Certification Officers.

All documents requiring certification by Toronto Region Board of Trade must first be sworn to by a Commissioner of Oaths, a Notary Public or a Justice of the Peace. For your convenience, a Commissioner of Oaths is available at Toronto Region Board of Trade. All documents must be signed in front of our Commissioner, and a valid ID (such as a driver's license) must be on hand. There are some documents that require a Notary Public's signature and cannot be signed by Toronto Region Board of Trade's Commissioner of Oaths. Toronto Region Board of Trade's Commissioners of Oaths are only able to witness signatures on the following types of documents:

• Certificate of Origin
• Business Visa Letter
• Government-issued Manufacturer's Declaration

To have signatures witnessed on other documents, please refer to the Notary Public / Commissioner of Oaths of your choice.

A certificate of origin is a document stating the origin of goods being exported. Whether the exporter requires a certificate of origin depends on a variety of factors: where the goods are being shipped, what the goods are, if it is requested by the bank or financial institution involved in the export sale.

The Board of Trade requires the following to be completed on the certificate of origin:

• Complete Address of the Exporter- (if not Canadian a complete address of the Forwarder must be specified on the document)
• Consignee's/Notify Party's complete address
• Description of Goods, quantities and weight
• Country of Origin
• Place and Date
• Company's official Signature (original signature required on all documents)
• Notary, Commissioner of Oath, or Lawyers Signature (original signature required on all documents)

Business Visa Letters for Saudi Arabia

These are letters written by the company on letterhead, stating that the individual is a member of their company and will be doing business while in Saudi Arabia. The company's president, with a company seal should sign them if possible. They should also be notarized/commissioned. The Board of Trade retains an original notarized copy.

The letter should include the following information:

• Name of applicant
• Nationality
• Religion
• Passport #
• Date of issue of passport
• Expiry date
• Place of birth
• Date of birth
• Occupation
• Name of inviting company
• Period of Stay
• Company official's signature

The client is required to a complete a visa application form from the Embassy of Saudi Arabia.The client will be required by the embassy to provide a valid passport for at least 6 months from current date and will be asked for two passport size photos.

Government-issued Certificates

We will attach a short letter on Toronto Board of Trade letterhead to the effect that, based upon our examination of the certificate, we believe it to be genuine. This letter can be stamped, signed and sealed.

Hours, Location and Fee Schedule 

1 First Canadian Place

77 Adelaide Street West, Toronto, ON M5X 1C1 (south-west corner of Bay and Adelaide)
Ground Floor

(For First Canadian Place parking, enter off Adelaide or York Streets)

Click here to request an afternoon appointment**

Tel: 416.862.4533

bizservices@bot.com

FEE SCHEDULE

A "set" is a group of documents with the same invoice number belonging to an individual shipment not requiring more than 12 signatures. There is a further charge for additional signatures.

Repeats of certification due to loss of documents, change of information, or for any other reason, will be charged an additional fee.

Payment

Members

Members can charge their Toronto Region Board of Trade club account number.

Non-Members

Non-members are required to pay by cash, credit card or by company cheque, payable to The Toronto Region Board of Trade, at the time of certification.