How to Swear an Affidavit in Nigeria — Magistrate Court, High Court, and What the Downstream Verifier Reads

An affidavit is the general-purpose sworn-statement document in Nigerian documentary practice. It is a written record of facts the deponent has personal knowledge of (or believes on credible information to be true), made on oath before a Commissioner for Oaths at a Nigerian court, and stamped by the court's registry. Its evidentiary weight at every downstream-verifier surface comes from the oath and the court's seal, not from the content itself — the court is not vouching for the truth of the facts asserted, only for the fact that the deponent swore to them on oath. The deponent carries the responsibility for the content; the perjury exposure under the Criminal Code Act (or the state penal codes in northern states) is the legal backstop.

Two federal statutes frame the document. The Evidence Act 2011 governs admissibility, content, and form across sections 109 to 119: section 109 covers affidavits sworn in Nigeria; section 113 covers an affidavit defective in form; section 114 provides for amendment and re-swearing; section 115 restricts the content to facts the deponent knows or believes to be true; section 117 prescribes the jurat form. The Oaths Act Cap O1 LFN 2004 governs the form and administration of the oath itself, including the authority of Commissioners for Oaths to administer it and the schedule of statutory oaths. Together the two Acts produce a document the federal and state courts recognise across Nigeria and that downstream verifiers — banks, NIMC, NIS, NPC, employers, embassies, courts in subsequent proceedings — read as the formal documentary record of a sworn statement.

An affidavit is a sworn statement of facts made on oath before a Commissioner for Oaths at a Nigerian court, used as documentary evidence at downstream surfaces that read a deponent's oath rather than a personal claim. The Magistrate Court typically suffices for lighter-stake uses (bank-record amendments, signature variation, common-statement declarations); the State High Court bears for higher-stake uses (court proceedings, immigration applications, will-related declarations, affidavits for use abroad). Confirm the receiving authority's published court-tier requirement before swearing — Magistrate Court fees commonly fall in the ₦200 to ₦500 band and High Court fees in the ₦500 to ₦1,500 band, with state-by-state variance.

The two Acts cover complementary ground. The Evidence Act 2011 is the admissibility-and-content statute: it tells the court reading the affidavit at trial (or the downstream verifier reading it at counter) what an affidavit must contain to be admissible. The Oaths Act Cap O1 LFN 2004 is the oath-administration statute: it tells the Commissioner for Oaths who may administer which oaths and in what form, and it carries the schedule of statutory oaths the courts and statutory office-holders take.

Section 115 of the Evidence Act 2011 is the content-restriction anchor: an affidavit must contain only a statement of facts and circumstances to which the witness deposes, either from their own personal knowledge or from information they believe to be true. Opinion, legal argument, and inference do not belong; a deponent who slips an opinion or a legal conclusion into the affidavit content invites a defective-affidavit objection at the court reading or a rejection at the downstream-verifier counter. Section 117 prescribes the jurat — the closing formula at the end of the affidavit recording the place and date of swearing, the name of the Commissioner for Oaths, the signature of the deponent and the Commissioner, and the court's stamp. The Oaths Act Cap O1 LFN 2004 specifies who counts as a Commissioner for Oaths — the Chief Judge of the High Court, judges of the High Court, magistrates, notaries public registered with the Supreme Court, and court officials (typically court registrars not below grade seven) designated to administer oaths in the public interest.

Two further sections bear on the day-to-day case. Section 113 allows the court to receive a defective affidavit in evidence by leave despite the defect, where re-swearing is impracticable. Section 114 covers amendment and re-swearing of a defective affidavit at the original court. A recent amendment to sections 109, 110 and 119(2) (in the Evidence Act (Amendment) Act 2023) opens the door to oath-taking through audio-visual means in specified cases — relevant where the deponent is outside the court's physical jurisdiction and the receiving authority will read a remote-sworn affidavit. The standard route for almost every routine case remains in-person attendance at the court registry.

Every Civil Documents transaction runs on the three-actor model the cluster carries across every article. For an affidavit the registrar role sits with the court (Magistrate Court or High Court depending on stake) rather than NPC or any other administrative registrar; the applicant is the deponent — the person whose facts are being sworn to; the downstream verifier is the institution that will read the affidavit at the next step and make a decision against it.

For this article the registrar is the Magistrate Court or the State High Court (and exceptionally the Court of Appeal or Federal High Court where the case is on appeal or sits in federal jurisdiction). The deponent is the citizen — most often the subject of the affidavit's content, occasionally a parent or guardian deposing on behalf of a child or a person of unsound mind, occasionally a corporate officer deposing on behalf of an entity. The downstream verifier is most often the bank's CDD desk (at name correction, signature variation, BVN-related matters), NIMC (at NIN-record modification), NIS (at passport name change), an embassy (at visa supporting documentation), NPC (at birth-certificate correction or late-registration), an employer's HR records desk, a school registrar, a court reading the affidavit as part of pleadings in subsequent proceedings, or a regulator at a sector-specific declaration.

The choice of Magistrate Court or High Court is the single most consequential decision the deponent makes before swearing. The choice is not at the deponent's discretion in the way it might appear: the downstream verifier's published documentary requirement decides which tier carries acceptance weight at that verifier's review desk. A deponent who chooses the wrong tier carries a defective document to the verifier and returns home for a re-swearing.

The Magistrate Court is the typical venue for lighter-stake uses. Most bank-record amendments (a name typo at the savings-account record, a signature variation following a stroke or hand injury, a common-statement declaration of single status for a routine document) sit comfortably at Magistrate level. Employer HR records at confirmation of identity or address, school admission supporting affidavits, routine declarations of common occurrence — all sit at Magistrate level at most receiving authorities.

The State High Court is required for higher-stake uses where the receiving authority's documentary chain reads against the High Court tier specifically. Court proceedings — civil pleadings, contentious matters, applications for letters of administration, motion-supporting affidavits — require High Court swearing because the High Court is the court at which the case sits. Immigration applications at certain embassies (notably the US and several European missions) read against High Court-sworn documents only at certain documentary surfaces. NPC late-registration and Attestation of Birth applications under the Births, Deaths, etc. (Compulsory Registration) Act Cap B9 LFN 2004 read the upstream affidavit from the High Court. Will-related declarations and probate-supporting affidavits at the State High Court probate registry are High Court-only. Affidavits intended for use abroad through the legalisation chain at the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs Authentication and Legalisation Department in Abuja read against the State High Court tier; the destination embassy's verification chain reads against a State High Court signature and stamp rather than a Magistrate Court one.

The discipline is confirming the receiving authority's published documentary requirement before drafting the affidavit. Where the requirement is not published, ring or visit the receiving authority's documentary-review desk before swearing — a single trip to the verifier's office to confirm the tier saves a wasted swearing fee and a wasted trip back to the court.

1. 1
   Confirm the court-tier requirement with the downstream verifierRead the verifier's published documentary requirement or ring the verifier's documentary-review desk. The verifier specifies whether a Magistrate Court affidavit suffices or a High Court affidavit is required. This step is the single most important pre-swearing decision; the wrong tier produces a rejected document and a re-swearing.
2. 2
   Draft the affidavit content as a statement of factsUse a typed A4 document with the court's heading at the top (the registry has the template), the deponent's biographic details (full name, occupation, residence, nationality, age), the numbered facts the deponent knows or believes to be true, and the prescribed jurat at the foot. Restrict the content to facts under section 115 of the Evidence Act 2011; remove opinion, legal argument, and inference. Where the affidavit is high-stakes (court proceedings, immigration, probate), engage a legal practitioner to draft.
3. 3
   Attend the court registry with the draft and supporting documentsBring the typed draft, the deponent's NIN slip, a current government photo ID (international passport, driver's licence, or voter's card), a recent passport-style photograph for affixing to the front page, and any supporting documents the affidavit attests to where the verifier will read both together.
4. 4
   Pay the affidavit-swearing fee at the registry's finance departmentMagistrate Court fees commonly fall in the ₦200 to ₦500 band; State High Court fees commonly fall in the ₦500 to ₦1,500 band; the printed figure at the registry on the day is the binding one. The finance department issues a receipt the swearing officer reads at the next step.
5. 5
   Appear before the Commissioner for Oaths in personSection 117 of the Evidence Act 2011 and the Oaths Act Cap O1 LFN 2004 both anchor the in-person requirement. The Commissioner for Oaths reads the affidavit, asks the deponent to swear or affirm to the truth of the content (Christian deponents typically swear on the Bible; Muslim deponents on the Qur'an; others affirm), watches the deponent sign, signs the jurat, applies the court's stamp, and dates the document.
6. 6
   Collect the stamped affidavit and any additional certified copiesMost registries certify a fixed number of stamped copies on the first fee (typically one to three copies) and charge extra for further copies. Collect enough copies for the immediate downstream verifier and any anticipated second verifier in the same documentary chain.
7. 7
   Present the stamped affidavit to the downstream verifierThe bank's CDD desk, NIMC's modification portal, NIS's passport-renewal desk, the embassy's documentary-review window, NPC's correction or attestation desk, the employer's HR records office, or the school registrar — whichever receiving authority the affidavit was drafted for. Where the verifier reads the affidavit and asks for re-swearing on a defect, return to the original court and use the section 114 amendment route.

The affidavit content varies by the downstream verifier's review pattern. Naming the verifier on the front of the document (in the heading line or in a preliminary recital) is what aligns the content with what the verifier reads. The most common uses across the Nigerian bureaucracy and what each verifier looks for:

• Bank-record amendments at the CDD desk. A name correction (typographical error on opening documents), a signature variation (declaration of variant signature following a stroke or hand injury), an address change supporting affidavit, or a single-status declaration. The bank's CDD desk reads the affidavit against the customer's existing account record and looks for the deponent's full name as the bank holds it, the specific field being declared, the corrected or declared value, and the supporting reason. Magistrate Court typically suffices.
• NIMC NIN-record modification. A name correction, address change, or supporting affidavit for a date-of-birth modification (where the modification fee under the May 2025 NIMC schedule applies separately). NIMC's documentation guidance reads a court-sworn affidavit alongside the corrected NPC document and the newspaper publication where name change is involved. The NIN name correction guide covers the NIMC-side procedure end to end.
• NIS passport name change. A surname adoption after marriage, a surname reversion after divorce, or a name correction. The Nigeria Immigration Service reads the affidavit alongside the marriage certificate or divorce decree absolute, the newspaper publication where applicable, and the deponent's existing passport. The change name on Nigerian passport walkthrough covers the documentary stack.
• NPC birth-certificate correction and Attestation of Birth. A late-registration supporting affidavit attesting to the date of birth (signed by a parent or significantly older sibling as declarant for the NPC Attestation route) or a correction-supporting affidavit at the NPC state office. The High Court tier is the typical requirement for the Attestation route. The birth certificate correction covers the upstream NPC procedure; the birth certificate for adult covers the late-registration and Attestation sub-routes.
• Embassy documentary supporting submissions. A visa-supporting affidavit (declaration of relationship, declaration of intent to return, declaration of source of funds, declaration of single status for marriage abroad). The receiving embassy's published guidance specifies the court tier and the affidavit content; State High Court swearing is typical, sometimes with the legalisation chain at the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
• Employer HR and school records. A confirmation of identity, a declaration of dependants for tax purposes, a parental consent for a minor's school admission, a supporting affidavit for a name on academic records. Magistrate Court typically suffices.
• Court proceedings as supporting evidence. A motion-supporting affidavit, a counter-affidavit responding to an opposing motion, a reply affidavit, a verifying affidavit attached to a petition. The court at which the case sits is the swearing court; a Federal High Court matter sits at Federal High Court, a State High Court matter at State High Court, a Magistrate Court matter at Magistrate Court.

A note on the loss-of-document case the police report for civil documents article covers separately: a lost civil-registry document (birth certificate, marriage certificate, death certificate, dissolution decree) typically requires both a police extract from the Divisional Police Officer at the Division covering the location of loss and a separate affidavit of loss sworn at a High Court. The two documents sit alongside each other in the NPC or court-registry re-issuance application; they are not interchangeable.

The court reading the affidavit at the swearing step does not check the truth of the content; the Commissioner for Oaths reads the document for form, watches the deponent sign, and applies the court's stamp. The deponent's signature on the jurat is the deponent's affirmation that the content is true to the best of the deponent's knowledge. The court holds the deponent to that affirmation through the criminal law.

False statement on oath is perjury — a criminal offence under sections 117 to 124 of the Criminal Code Act (in southern states) and the corresponding sections of the state penal codes (in northern states), carrying imprisonment on conviction. The consequence does not arise at the swearing step but at any later proceedings (or downstream-verifier review) at which the affidavit content is read against contradictory evidence. Use of a fraudulent affidavit at the downstream surface — a bank account opening, an NPC application, an immigration filing, an employer's records — compounds the perjury exposure with the offences associated with that surface (false declaration for the bank, false claim for an identity document, immigration-related offences).

The honest rule is to swear only to facts the deponent has personal knowledge of, or believes on credible information to be true. Speculation, opinion, and legal argument do not belong in the affidavit content under section 115 of the Evidence Act 2011, and including them undermines the affidavit's admissibility at any subsequent court reading. Where the deponent is uncertain whether a fact is true, the proper route is to qualify the statement as belief based on stated information (with the information source named) rather than to assert the fact as known.

The affidavit landscape carries enough variance — court tier by stake, content restrictions under section 115, fee variance by state — that three defensive moves keep the deponent on safe ground.

• Do NOT swear an affidavit at the wrong court tier. Confirm the downstream verifier's published documentary requirement before drafting; Magistrate Court for lighter-stake uses, State High Court for higher-stake uses. The wrong tier produces a rejected document at the verifier and a re-swearing.
• Do NOT include opinion, legal argument, or inference in the affidavit content. Section 115 of the Evidence Act 2011 restricts the content to facts the deponent knows or believes on credible information to be true. A defective content invites a section 113 objection at any subsequent court reading.
• Do NOT pay the affidavit-swearing fee outside the court's finance department or accept any informal facilitation arrangement. The prescribed fee is paid at the registry against a printed receipt; do not present cash to any court officer outside the finance counter.
• Do NOT use a stale affidavit at a verifier reading against a recency window. Some downstream verifiers (banks at name correction, embassies at visa supporting documentation) read affidavits older than three to six months as stale and ask for a fresh one. Swear close to the date of presentation at the receiving authority.

The connected articles open downstream once the affidavit is in hand: age declaration walks the specific affidavit subset that substitutes for a birth certificate where no NPC registration is available; birth certificate correction covers the NPC-side correction route where the affidavit is part of the documentary bundle; birth certificate for adult covers the late-registration sub-routes where the High Court affidavit sits at the start of the NPC Attestation documentary stack; NIN name correction is the downstream NIMC route where the affidavit is part of the modification bundle; change name on Nigerian passport is the NIS surname-change route reading the affidavit alongside the marriage certificate or divorce decree absolute.