Statutory Declaration Form given update

An updated Statutory Declaration Form has been published this week for use in Queensland.

The Department of Justice reviewed the form and consulted with legal stakeholders during 2023 and 2024, to develop a new form that reflected the amendments to the Oaths Act 1867.

The new Statutory Declaration Form complies with the requirements of the Oaths Act 1867.

It can be used to make any type of statutory declaration whether it is signed physically or electronically, witnessed by someone in person or via audio visual link, or signed by the signatory or a substitute signatory.

Key changes to the Statutory Declaration Form include:

• Streamlined form in plain English, with guidance materials in the margins and footnotes;
• Accompanying fact sheets that assist the signatory and witness, that are separate from (and reduce the length of) the form; and
• Inclusion of a prompt that advises the signatory and witness that the address of the signatory, and place of signing, can be expressed in a method that is the least revealing, if there are concerns or it would be unsafe to reveal this information, for example due to domestic, family or sexual violence.