Can a PE3 Be Witnessed Online, and Will the TEC Accept It?

Can a PE3 be witnessed online?

For a PE3, in-person witnessing is the safe route. A PE3 is a statutory declaration and must be sworn before an authorised person: a Commissioner for Oaths (for example a solicitor), a Justice of the Peace, or an officer of the county court. Remote or video witnessing carries a real rejection risk.

This page explains the position honestly. General online statutory declaration services do exist. But a PE3 is a specific form filed at the Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC), and its acceptance when witnessed remotely is not clearly established. When your challenge depends on it, guessing is not worth it.

If you are filing late, the TE14 that goes with your PE3 is different. It is signed with a statement of truth and needs no witness at all.

Why does the TEC expect a PE3 sworn in person?

A PE3 is a statutory declaration, a formal legal document made before an authorised person. The form directs you to make it before a Commissioner for Oaths, a Justice of the Peace or a county court officer, with the original printed form. You must not sign it beforehand.

A statutory declaration is not just a signature on a page. The authorised witness confirms your identity, watches you sign and takes your declaration, so that it carries legal weight.

Making a false statutory declaration is a criminal offence under section 5 of the Perjury Act 1911, carrying up to two years in prison. The seriousness of the document is exactly why the witnessing is formal, and why doing it properly in person removes any argument about whether it was validly made.

What about online fixed-fee witnessing services?

Online witnessing services exist for general statutory declarations, and they are convenient. However, they are not PE3 specialists, they cannot guarantee the TEC will accept a remotely witnessed PE3, and they will not necessarily check that a PE3 is the right form for your case.

These services are built for the general statutory declaration market, such as change of name or lost documents. A general remote provider has no particular reason to know what the TEC expects.

The gap is acceptance risk. If the TEC declines a remotely witnessed declaration, you have lost time you may not have. An in-person declaration closes that risk before it can arise.

Do I even need a witnessed PE3, or a TE13?

It depends on the penalty. If your Order for Recovery names an old form, use its replacement: a TE9 is now the TE13, and a TE7 or PE2 is now the TE14. Since October 2026 the TEC uses a TE13 for parking PCNs, moving traffic contraventions outside London, and Dart Charge, Mersey Gateway or clean air zone PCNs. A TE13 is signed with a statement of truth and does not need a witness.

If you only need a TE13, you do not need this service. You can sign it yourself and send it, and we would rather tell you that plainly than sell you something you do not need. Parking Ticket Pal at parkingticketpal.com can help with a TE13.

A PE3 is used for a moving traffic contravention in a London borough, such as driving through a restricted junction or making a banned turn, and for a low emission or clean air zone PCN. That is where the in-person witnessing requirement applies, and that is what this service is for.

What does in-person PE3 witnessing cost?

TEC guidance says swearing a PE3 is free at most county court hearing centres, by appointment. A solicitor or other Commissioner for Oaths charges the prescribed fee of £5 per person declaring plus £2 per exhibit. Our booked service is £49.

The free county court route means booking, travelling there and fitting court hours. A solicitor you find yourself means finding a firm that offers it when you need it, and they will not necessarily check your form.

Our £49 covers a booked appointment with a qualified solicitor and Commissioner for Oaths who checks your PE3 is correct before you sign and witnesses it in person, usually in about ten minutes.

What is the safe route to a witnessed PE3?

The safe route is an in-person appointment before an authorised person. Bring the original printed PE3, unsigned, and sign in front of the witness. You leave with a properly sworn form ready to send to the TEC.

Our witness is a qualified solicitor and Commissioner for Oaths in Crystal Palace, London. Appointments are subject to availability. The accuracy check happens before you swear, not after the TEC rejects a mistake.

Remember the clock. You usually have 21 days from the Order for Recovery to file. If your PE3 succeeds, the Order for Recovery is withdrawn. If you are late, send a TE14 with it.

Frequently asked questions