A student who is told to send OSAP "an affidavit" usually goes looking for a box on the form where a commissioner signs. On the income verification forms there is no such box. The form itself is signed by the student, or the spouse, under a printed declaration. The affidavit is a separate document that goes in with the form, and OSAP asks for one only in a few defined situations. Knowing which situation applies decides what the affidavit has to say before anyone reaches a commissioner's desk.
The form is signed; the affidavit is sworn
The 2026-27 Student Income Verification: Canadian Non-Taxable and/or Foreign Income form is used when the ministry could not verify income with the Canada Revenue Agency, or when it has asked for information so that non-taxable or foreign income can be verified. Its instructions describe the signature plainly: it is required "to confirm that you agree with the declaration statement". The same form tells a student completing it electronically to use the "Fill & Sign" feature or a digital ID in a PDF program to add the signature.
That is an ordinary signature under a statement, not an oath. No commissioner is involved, and nothing on the form records that it was sworn before anyone. The declaration does carry weight of its own — it states that the ministry may verify the information with the government, the employer or the source of the income, and that the Ontario Student Grant may be converted into a loan if the income cannot be verified to the Minister's satisfaction — but it is not an affidavit.
The affidavit is defined on the same form. It is "a sworn document that is signed before a lawyer, a commissioner of oaths (who may not be a lawyer), or a notary public, swearing or affirming that the contents of the affidavit are true." A notary public in Ontario has all the powers of a commissioner for taking affidavits, so either title satisfies that definition. The OSAP affidavits page covers the appointment itself.
The three situations that call for an affidavit
The form's Section B, "Required documentation", ties the affidavit to specific answers. Reading the form, there are three.
| The situation on the form | What the affidavit has to cover | Alternative the form allows |
|---|---|---|
| No income received in 2025 | Where the person resided in 2025, the dates in Canada and outside Canada, and why there was no income | A letter from a Band Council official, for persons registered under the Indian Act |
| Child support received, with no separation agreement or court order available | The value, reason and total of all payments received during 2025, alongside documents confirming the payments, such as bank statements | A dated and signed letter from the payor confirming the same figures |
| Foreign income not reported to the CRA, where the documents cannot be produced by the deadline | The reasons the documents cannot be provided, and the amount, currency and sources of the 2025 foreign income | None named; the primary route is government or tax-agency documents and employer letters |
Two points in that table are easy to miss. The child-support affidavit is one of two options, not a requirement; the form accepts a signed letter from the payor instead. And the foreign-income affidavit is a fallback for documents that cannot be obtained in time, not a replacement for them. The form states that working copies of tax documents and tax returns are not acceptable as proof of foreign income, which is a separate rule from the affidavit.
The form adds a note that reaches the no-income case: a person with a Social Insurance Number who did not file taxes is to include the reason, which can include confirmation of residential ties such as a lease, mortgage documents or utility bills. A person who had no SIN is to show when they came to Canada or when the SIN was issued. Those are supporting documents rather than contents of the affidavit, but they are usually gathered at the same time.
A spouse's affidavit follows the same pattern
The companion form, Spouse Income Verification: Canadian Non-Taxable and/or Foreign Income, has three sections instead of two. The student signs a declaration in Section A acknowledging that the application will be assessed on the spouse's income. The spouse completes Section B and signs a separate declaration. Section C lists the required documents, and it mirrors the student version: an affidavit from the spouse where the spouse received no income, where child support is shown without an agreement or order, or where foreign-income documents cannot be produced in time.
The practical consequence is that the person who swears the affidavit is the person whose income it describes. A spouse's no-income affidavit is sworn by the spouse, not by the student on the spouse's behalf, and the spouse attends the commissioning with their own identification. The same logic applies to any parental income form a financial aid office sends: the deponent is the parent whose income is in question.
What happens at the commissioning
The affidavit arrives written and unsigned. OSAP does not print one on the income verification form, so its contents are the deponent's own statement of the facts the form asks for — and the table above is the checklist the form itself sets. Commissioning then follows the ordinary steps for any affidavit:
- The deponent is identified from current government-issued photo identification in the name on the affidavit.
- The deponent swears an oath or makes an affirmation that the contents are true. Ontario's Evidence Act gives an affirmation the same force and effect as an oath, so the choice carries no difference in weight.
- The deponent signs in front of the officer, who completes the jurat recording where and when the affidavit was sworn or affirmed.
- Any document referred to in the affidavit as an exhibit — bank statements supporting a child-support figure, for example — is marked as an exhibit by the officer.
The officer confirms who swore the document and that it was sworn. The officer does not verify the income figures, decide whether the affidavit satisfies OSAP, or choose which situation on the form applies. Those decisions sit with the financial aid office and the ministry. The difference between an affidavit and a statutory declaration explains why the wording of the jurat matters, and what to bring to a notary appointment covers identification in more detail.
Deadlines, submission and what an unverified figure costs
The 2026-27 forms set one deadline for the form and every required document: they must be received no later than 12 months after the start of the 2026-27 study period. The consequence of missing verification is stated on the first page — Ontario Student Grant funding received may be converted to a loan that has to be repaid, under the terms of the Master Student Financial Assistance Agreement.
Submission runs through one of two routes. The completed form and attachments can be uploaded from the student's OSAP account using the "Print or upload documents" button on the application. On paper, a student attending an Ontario school sends them to the school's financial aid office; a student attending a school outside Ontario sends them to the Student Financial Assistance Branch of the ministry in Thunder Bay. An affidavit is an attachment like any other, and it travels with the form rather than on its own.
The forms are dated and tied to a study year. The 2026-27 versions are dated March 26, 2026, and refer throughout to income received in 2025. A form for a different year refers to a different income year, and an affidavit written against it answers the wrong question.
What the affidavit does not do
- It does not make the figures verified. The declaration on the form already states that the ministry may check the information with the government, employers and income sources, and that a discrepancy leads to reassessment.
- It does not replace documents the form lists as primary. Where the form asks for statements from the paying agency or a foreign tax authority, the affidavit is the route only where the form names it as one.
- It does not settle eligibility. How income affects the amount and type of funding is decided in the assessment, not at the commissioning.
- It is still sworn evidence. A false statement in an affidavit falls under the perjury provisions of the Criminal Code, whatever the document is used for.
Where the form, the written affidavit and photo identification for each deponent are ready, the commissioning itself is brief. The commissioning page describes the service generally, and booking a time is the straightforward end of the process.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the OSAP income verification form itself have to be notarized?
No. The 2026-27 income verification forms are signed under a printed declaration, and the instructions allow an electronic signature through Fill & Sign or a digital ID. The affidavit is a separate document attached to the form in the situations Section B names.
When does OSAP ask for an affidavit with an income verification form?
The 2026-27 forms name three situations: no income received in 2025, child support received without a separation agreement or court order, and foreign income where the required documents cannot be provided by the deadline. Each situation lists what the affidavit must cover.
Who can swear an OSAP affidavit?
OSAP's definition on the form is a lawyer, a commissioner of oaths who may not be a lawyer, or a notary public. A notary public in Ontario holds all the powers of a commissioner for taking affidavits, so either title meets that definition.
Who swears the affidavit when it is about a spouse's income?
The person whose income the affidavit describes. On the Spouse Income Verification form, the affidavit is listed as coming from the spouse, so the spouse attends the commissioning with their own photo identification rather than the student swearing on their behalf.