Data & Privacy

What NotariseIt holds about you, how long it is kept, and what you can ask us to do with it. Everything here is reached from Profile → Manage data & privacy.

How long things are kept

Different artefacts have genuinely different lifespans, because they serve different purposes. This is the whole picture:

What	How long	Why
An uploaded document not yet used	About 24 hours	If you upload something and do not book with it, it is removed.
A notarised original	Deleted within the hour of sealing	Once the sealed copy exists, the unsealed original is a liability, not an asset. The sealed version and its certificate remain in your account.
Identity documents (yours and your witnesses')	Deleted when the session completes	They exist to prove who was present. Once that is recorded, the images are not needed.
Session portal access	About 14 days after the session	Download your documents and certificate within this window.
The notarial record	6 or 7 years, as the regulations require	The register of notarial acts is a statutory record and is not yours or ours to delete early.
Identity verification (KYC)	Until your next annual re-verification	Verified identity is re-checked once a year, on the anniversary of your verification. We email you when it is due — you do not need to watch for a date on screen.

Download your documents before portal access ends

The notarial record persists for years, but your direct access to the session page does not. Download your notarised document and certificate soon after the session. If you leave it too late, use Request a copy on the session — a retrieval fee may apply.

Export your data

Profile → Manage data & privacy → Request data export.

We assemble everything we hold about you and email you a download link. This is your right of access under the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023.

Deleting your account

There are two different routes, and they are not the same thing.

Account deletion

Closes your account. There is a 7-day grace period during which you can change your mind and reactivate — after that it proceeds.

Erasure request (NDPA section 34)

A formal request to erase your personal data, reviewed within 30 days.

Erasure cannot remove the notarial record

A notarial act is a statutory record with a retention period set by regulation, not by us. An erasure request removes what the law allows us to remove; the register of acts performed stays for its required term. The review will tell you exactly what can and cannot be erased in your case.

The certificate is public by design

Anyone you send a notarised document to can verify it — that is the point of the certificate. Verification confirms the document is genuine and unaltered. It does not expose your account, your other documents, or anything beyond the act itself.

Questions

For anything about your data, use Report an Issue → Platform / General Issue, or read the Privacy Policy.