Quick summary: An acta notarial is the document in which a notary records facts the notary witnesses and circumstances known to the notary, when acting by operation of law or at a party’s request (Código de Notariado, Art. 60). It must record the place, date and time, who requested it, who else takes part and a detailed account of the proceeding (Art. 61), and the notary numbers, seals and signs every sheet (Art. 62). Unlike the escritura pública (public deed), Art. 8 does not include it in the protocol. It carries a Q10 notarial stamp (Decreto 82-96, Art. 3).
For a sworn statement (declaración jurada), see our Spanish declaración jurada template, which comes with a Word model, or, if you are in the United States, a Guatemalan sworn declaration from the USA. This page covers the acta in general and how it differs from the escritura.
Acta notarial vs. escritura pública
| Acta notarial | Escritura pública | |
|---|---|---|
| What it records | Facts the notary witnesses and circumstances known to the notary (Art. 60) | An act or contract that the parties execute (Art. 29, numeral 7) |
| Where it is drawn up | Outside the protocol: Art. 8 defines the protocol as the collection of escrituras matrices (original deeds), actas de protocolación and razones de legalización (legalization notes), without including actas notariales | In the protocol, on special stamped paper for protocols (Arts. 8 and 9) |
| Minimum content | The 5 items of Art. 61 | The 12 items of Art. 29 |
| Sheets | The notary numbers, seals and signs every one (Art. 62) | Protocol formalities: cardinal numbering, amounts in words, no abbreviations (Art. 13) |
| Witnesses | Not required in protests, inventories and judicial proceedings (Art. 61) | The notary may bring in witnesses (Art. 51); required for wills and gifts in contemplation of death (Art. 51); a witness signs for a party who cannot or does not know how to sign (Art. 29, numeral 12), and two witnesses are one of the ways to identify a party the notary does not know (numeral 4) |
| Nullity for formalities | — | Omitting an essential formality (Art. 31) allows a claim for nullity within 4 years (Art. 32) |
| Copy | — | Testimonio: a faithful copy of the escritura matriz (Art. 66) |
| Notarial stamp (Decreto 82-96) | Q10 | Two per thousand (minimum Q1, maximum Q300) if the value is determined; Q10 if undetermined |
For a property sale deed, see property sale deed: draft and requirements.
If you are a foreigner signing an escritura: for public instruments, Art. 29 lets the notary identify a party the notary does not know “por medio de la cédula de vecindad o el pasaporte” [by means of the cédula de vecindad or the passport], or by two witnesses known to the notary, or both. If a party does not know Spanish, Art. 29 requires an interpreter named by that party who, where possible, should be a sworn translator (traductor jurado); see sworn translator costs. These are rules for escrituras; Arts. 60-62 contain no such rule for actas notariales.
What the Notary Must Record (Art. 61)
- Place, date and time of the proceeding.
- Name of the person who requested it.
- Names of the other people who take part in the act.
- Detailed account of the proceeding (relación circunstanciada): what the notary saw, heard or knows, in order.
- Value and serial number of the stamped paper on which the sheets before the last one are written.
Under Art. 60, the notary draws up the acta “en los actos en que intervenga por disposición de la ley o a requerimiento de parte” [in the acts in which the notary takes part by operation of law or at a party’s request]. Names such as acta de presencia (record of presence), de requerimiento (of request) or de notificación (of notice) do not appear in Arts. 60-62. What Art. 60 distinguishes is the origin of the notary’s involvement: the law, or a person’s request.
When special rules apply: in protests (protestos), inventories and judicial proceedings, the notary follows the special provisions of the law for each case, “sin que sea obligatoria la concurrencia de testigos” [without the presence of witnesses being required] (Art. 61, second paragraph).
When a Private Document Becomes Part of the Protocol: Protocolization
Art. 8 does not list actas notariales in the protocol, but a document can be protocolized with an acta de protocolación (Código de Notariado, Arts. 63-64), which carries a Q10 notarial stamp (Decreto 82-96, Art. 3, letter b). Which documents can be protocolized and who must appear is covered in notarial protocolization.
Notarial Stamps (Decreto 82-96, Art. 3)
| Document | Notarial stamp | Where it is affixed |
|---|---|---|
| Actas notariales and the legalization of signatures or documents | Q10 | On the first sheet of the document or in the margin of the acta, as the case may be |
| Contracts of undetermined value and protocolizations | Q10 | First sheet of the special testimonio sent to the Archivo General de Protocolos (General Protocol Archive) |
| Contracts of determined value | Two per thousand; minimum Q1, maximum Q300 | First sheet of the special testimonio |
| Wills and gifts in contemplation of death | Q25 | On the plica containing the last will (open wills and gifts in contemplation of death), or on the special testimonio of the notarial note for a closed will |
| Procedural resolutions in voluntary jurisdiction (jurisdicción voluntaria) | Q2 each; Q10 for the one that ends the matter | In the margin of the resolution |
Text of the Ley del Timbre Forense y Timbre Notarial (Decreto 82-96) from the copy hosted on Guatemala’s eRegulations portal. The notarial stamp is separate from the per-sheet tax stamp (timbres fiscales), explained on our tax stamps page. Notary fees are on Guatemala notary fees.
Model Acta Notarial for Recording Facts
A guidance model built on the items of Art. 61; the notary drafts the final text. The parts marked (práctica común, common practice) are not required by Arts. 60-62: identifying the person requesting it, the final reading and ratification, and the signatures of the requester and the other participants. This page does not include a Word file.
ACTA NOTARIAL DE [OBJETO: por ejemplo, constatación del estado de un inmueble]
En [municipio], departamento de [departamento], siendo las [hora] horas
del día [fecha en letras], yo, [nombre del notario], Notario, me
constituyo en [dirección exacta], a requerimiento de [nombre completo
del requirente], quien se identifica con [documento y número] (práctica común).
Intervienen además: [nombres de otras personas presentes, si las hay].
PRIMERO: [Objeto del requerimiento: qué pide el requirente que se haga constar].
SEGUNDO: [Relación circunstanciada: lo que el notario observa, en orden
cronológico, con horas, medidas, descripciones y fotografías que se agreguen].
TERCERO: [Otros hechos o manifestaciones de los intervinientes].
CUARTO: Se da por terminada la presente acta en el mismo lugar y fecha, siendo
las [hora] horas, contenida en [número] hojas; las hojas anteriores a la última
son de papel sellado número de orden [número] y valor [valor].
(Práctica común:) Leído lo escrito a los intervinientes, lo ratifican, aceptan
y firman.
(Práctica común:) [Firma del requirente] [Firmas de los intervinientes]
[Firma y sello del notario en cada hoja]
What the bracketed fields mean: OBJETO is the purpose of the acta (for example, recording the condition of a property); the opening paragraph gives the place, time, date, the notary and the requester; PRIMERO states what the requester asks the notary to record; SEGUNDO is the detailed account of what the notary observes, in chronological order; TERCERO covers other facts or statements by the participants; CUARTO closes the acta with the time, the number of sheets and the serial number and value of the stamped paper of the sheets before the last one.
Related Procedures
- Declaración jurada template (in Spanish): sworn statement with a Word model
- Guatemalan sworn declaration from the USA: consular or US notary route
- Property sale deed: the 12 items of the escritura
- Guatemala notary fees: the statutory tariff
- Colegiado activo (in Spanish): checking a professional’s active bar membership
- Carta poder (simple power of attorney): a private document with a legalized signature
- Notarial power of attorney from the USA
- Notarial protocolization: when a document is incorporated into the protocol
- Sworn translator costs
General guidance, not legal advice. Código de Notariado as published by CENADOJ (Organismo Judicial), and Ley del Timbre Forense y Timbre Notarial (Decreto 82-96) from the copy hosted on Guatemala’s eRegulations portal.