(1) If authorized or required by law, by rule of an administrative agency, or by rule or order of court that a document be verified by a person, the verification may be accomplished in the following manner:
(a) Under oath or affirmation taken or administered before an officer authorized under s. 92.50 to administer oaths;
(b) Under oath or affirmation taken or administered by an officer authorized under s. 117.10 to administer oaths; or
(c) By the signing of the written declaration prescribed in subsection (2).
(2) A written declaration means the following statement: “Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have read the foregoing [document] and that the facts stated in it are true,” followed by the signature of the person making the declaration, except when a verification on information or belief is permitted by law, in which case the words “to the best of my knowledge and belief” may be added. The written declaration shall be printed or typed at the end of or immediately below the document being verified and above the signature of the person making the declaration.
(3) A person who knowingly makes a false declaration under subsection (2) is guilty of the crime of perjury by false written declaration, a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.
(4) As used in this section:
(a) The term “administrative agency” means any department or agency of the state or any county, municipality, special district, or other political subdivision.
(b) The term “document” means any writing including, without limitation, any form, application, claim, notice, tax return, inventory, affidavit, pleading, or paper.
(c) The requirement that a document be verified means that the document must be signed or executed by a person and that the person must state under oath or affirm that the facts or matters stated or recited in the document are true, or words of that import or effect.
History.—s. 12, ch. 86-201; s. 1, ch. 2015-23.
Structure Florida Statutes
Chapter 92 - Witnesses, Records, and Documents
92.05 - Final Judgments and Decrees of Courts of Record.
92.06 - Judgments and Decrees of United States District Courts.
92.07 - Judgments and Decrees of This State.
92.08 - Deeds and Powers of Attorney of Record for 20 Years or More.
92.09 - Effect of Reversal, etc., of Judgment or Successful Attack on Deed.
92.13 - Certified Copies of Records of Certified Copies.
92.14 - United States Deeds and Patents and Copies Thereof.
92.141 - Law Enforcement Employees; Travel Expenses; Compensation as Witness.
92.143 - Compensation to Traffic Court Witnesses.
92.151 - Witness Compensation; Payment; Overcharges.
92.153 - Production of Documents by Witnesses; Reimbursement of Costs.
92.17 - Effect of Seal of Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund.
92.18 - Certificate of State Officer.
92.20 - Certificates Issued Under Authority of Congress.
92.21 - Certificate as to Sanitary Condition of Buildings.
92.23 - Rule of Evidence in Suits on Fire Policies for Loss or Damage to Building.
92.231 - Expert Witnesses; Fee.
92.233 - Compensation of Witness Summoned in Two or More Criminal Cases.
92.24 - Certain Tax Deeds Prima Facie Evidence of Title.
92.25 - Records Destroyed by Fire; Use of Abstracts.
92.251 - Uniform Interstate Depositions and Discovery Act.
92.26 - Records Destroyed by Fire; Use of Sworn Copies.
92.27 - Records Destroyed by Fire; Effect of Abstracts in Evidence.
92.28 - Records Destroyed by Fire; Land Title Suits; What May Be Received in Evidence.
92.29 - Photographic or Electronic Copies.
92.295 - Copies of Voter Registration Records.
92.30 - Presumption of Death; Official Findings.
92.31 - Missing Persons and Persons Imprisoned or Interned in Foreign Countries; Official Reports.
92.32 - Official Findings and Reports; Presumption of Authority to Issue or Execute.
92.38 - Comparison of Disputed Writings.
92.39 - Evidence of Individual’s Claim Against the State in Suits Between Them.
92.40 - Reports of Building, Housing, or Health Code Violations; Admissibility.
92.50 - Oaths, Affidavits, and Acknowledgments; Who May Take or Administer; Requirements.
92.52 - Affirmation Equivalent to Oath.
92.525 - Verification of Documents; Perjury by False Written Declaration, Penalty.
92.56 - Judicial Proceedings and Court Records Involving Sexual Offenses and Human Trafficking.
92.561 - Prohibition on Reproduction of Child Pornography.
92.565 - Admissibility of Confession in Sexual Abuse Cases.
92.57 - Termination of Employment of Witness Prohibited.
92.60 - Foreign Records of Regularly Conducted Business Activity.
92.605 - Production of Certain Records by Florida Businesses and Out-of-State Corporations.