General Affidavit

Generally, a person who is 14 or older, mentally capable of understanding the oath or affirmation, and able to communicate the truth may swear an Affidavit. Anyone swearing an Affidavit must understand that they are making a sworn statement of truth.

An Affidavit should include all the necessary details required to support your claim or statement of facts.

If a judge will be reviewing your Affidavit, include the relevant details they would need to make a decision about the matter. If applicable, it should also specify whether you’re writing it on behalf of the claimant or the defendant.

All the information in an Affidavit must be true, accurate, and complete to the best of an affiant’s knowledge. Telling the truth is critical, as knowingly providing false information in an Affidavit is considered perjury, which is an indictable offence. Beyond perjury, if your Affidavit is found to contain false information, it can hurt your chances in court.

Below are some of the key elements that should be included in your Affidavit:

• Affiant''s Statement: This includes the affiant’s full name and location. They must identify as the person making the Affidavit, e.g., “I, Joe Smith, make Oath and Say”.
• Knowledge Statement: This is the first paragraph of the Affidavit; it explains how the affiant acquired personal knowledge of the facts they describe.
• Body of the Affidavit: An outline of evidence and explanation of certain facts or claims.
• Recipient of Your Affidavit: States where the Affidavit is going (e.g., court, government organization, etc.) and that it wasn’t made for unlawful purposes.
• The Jurat: This is the section that the notary or commissioner signs, stamps, and dates the Affidavit. It’s used to confirm that the affiant swore or affirmed the Affidavit before them, and the affiant also signs this portion.

For more tips on how to structure and word your Affidavit, see our blog, How to Write an Affidavit.

You can attach relevant evidence to your Affidavit if it supports the facts you’ve stated. Evidence attached to an Affidavit is called an exhibit; this evidence can include a document, photograph, or record.

If you’ve stated in your Affidavit that you earn an annual salary of $65,000, you can attach a recent tax slip to your Affidavit. Each piece of evidence is labelled as an Exhibit and identified by letter or number (for example, Exhibit “A”, Exhibit “B”).

In the Affidavit, you''d write, “Attached to my Affidavit as Exhibit ‘A’ is a true copy of my 2025 T4 tax slip”. Each exhibit must be clearly labelled so decision-makers understand what the document is and how it relates to your Affidavit.

When the Affidavit is commissioned, the notary or commissioner marks each exhibit, usually by:

• Signing or initialling each exhibit
• Adding a brief exhibit declaration or stamp confirming it’s attached to the Affidavit

The exhibit is usually stapled or securely fastened to the Affidavit and becomes part of the sworn document. Once commissioned, you shouldn’t remove or alter any exhibits — doing so may raise tampering concerns.

Clear, relevant exhibits can strengthen your Affidavit by providing concrete support for your claims. This can make it easier for decision-makers to rely on the information you’ve provided.

In Canada, Affidavits are typically required when an individual must provide evidence of a claim or to support facts in legal proceedings. Courts can require you to submit an Affidavit as evidence and may accept one instead of in-person testimony.

At a high level, you might need to create an Affidavit for the following purposes:

• Civil litigation;
• Family law;
• Criminal law;
• Commercial law;
• Business law;
• Property law; and
• Canadian immigration procedures.

More specifically, you may need an Affidavit in the situations outlined below:

• Contract Breach Disputes: To outline the terms and conditions of a contract, and how it was allegedly breached (e.g., a landlord-tenant dispute).
• Property Disputes: To help prove ownership of property. In land disputes, an affiant can present evidence to support the locations of boundaries and property lines.
• Estate administration: To outline debts, assets, and a distribution plan.
• Divorce Cases: To present facts relevant to their case, such as debt, assets, and income details.
• Immigration Applications: To support various immigration applications, such as spousal sponsorship or permanent residency.
• Criminal Proceedings: To outline facts in a criminal case, support bail, or justify a search warrant.
• Child Access Disputes: To explain a parent’s involvement in their child’s life and their ability to provide for the child.
• Administrative Law: To present relevant facts to appeal a decision made by the Canada Revenue Agency or the Canadian Government.
• Will Contestations: To detail the circumstances surrounding the creation of a person’s Will
• Personal Injury Claims: To detail the events leading up to an accident.
• Educational Loans: To prove a certain status (e.g., relationship status) when applying for post-secondary educational loans.
• Proof of Vehicle Ownership: To prove that you own a vehicle or other asset when you’ve lost its original Bill of Sale.
• Real Estate Transactions: To affirm property ownership and the absence of legal claims, disputes, or liens against the property.
• Visa applications: Sometimes an employer or sponsor drafts an Affidavit to confirm employment or the purpose of a visit.

Affidavits and Statutory Declarations are written statements of fact that present information with numbered sentences and paragraphs. Both can be used as evidence and must be affirmed to be true before an authorized official, like a notary public.

Further, both documents must be witnessed, signed, and stamped by an authorized official. Lastly, Affidavits and Statutory Declarations are subject to the rules of evidence in provincial and federal Canadian courts. This means that providing false information in either document can be considered a criminal offence.

However, there are some differences between an Affidavit and a Statutory Declaration. A Statutory Declaration is usually used outside of court, while an Affidavit is typically used for legal proceedings. Another difference is that a person making a Statutory Declaration is known as a declarant; they declare facts to be true. A person who files an Affidavit is called an affiant, and they swear or affirm facts to be true.

An Affidavit must be commissioned by an authorized official, like a notary public or commissioner of oaths, to be valid.

During commissioning, a witness swears or affirms that the contents of their Affidavit are true before the official. They’ll sign the Affidavit while an official witnesses their signature, and the official will sign it as well. See our blog to learn more about the process of commissioning.

Swearing involves taking an oath on a religious text, while affirming is a solemn promise without religious content. Courts treat both methods exactly the same, so you can choose the one that works best for you.

You can meet with a notary public online to have your Affidavit commissioned in 7 minutes, from anywhere.