California Proofs of Service

What a Proof of Service Does

Service and proof of service are two different things. Service is complete when the statute for the method says so: on delivery for personal service, on the 10th day after mailing for substituted service (CCP § 415.20) and for mail to a defendant outside California (§ 415.40), and on the date the Notice and Acknowledgment of Receipt is signed for service by mail within the state, if it’s returned (§ 415.30). The proof of service is the evidence that it happened, and the court relies on it before it enters a default.

A few rules apply to every proof of service of the summons:

• One proof for each party served. Form POS-010 says so at the top. Two defendants served at the same door need two proofs.
• Signed under penalty of perjury. The person who served the papers signs it. A registered process server’s return creates a presumption that the facts in it are true (Evidence Code § 647). For service on or after January 1, 2027, a party who moves to set aside a default and offers evidence that service wasn’t lawful rebuts that presumption (CCP § 473.2).
• Filed on time. In general civil cases, the proofs of service on the named defendants have to be filed within 60 days after the complaint is filed (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 3.110(b)).

Which Form Fits Which Papers

The Judicial Council publishes all of these at courts.ca.gov. POS-010 and POS-015 are mandatory; the forms for other papers are optional.

• POS-010, Proof of Service of Summons. The summons and complaint in a civil case, including an unlawful detainer. Rule 2.150 of the California Rules of Court allows a computer-generated or typewritten version instead, as long as it copies the form’s wording, order and item numbers.
• POS-015, Notice and Acknowledgment of Receipt. Sent with the summons for service by mail under CCP § 415.30. Service is complete only if the person served signs and returns it, and the signed form goes with the POS-010.
• POS-020, Proof of Personal Service. Papers other than a summons, handed to the person.
• POS-030, Proof of Service by First-Class Mail. Papers other than a summons, served by mail.
• POS-040, Proof of Service. Papers other than a summons, served by personal delivery, mail, overnight delivery, messenger or fax. It isn’t meant for electronic service.
• POS-050/EFS-050, Proof of Electronic Service. Papers served electronically. Our article E-Filing Is Not E-Service covers when electronic service is required.
• FL-115 and SC-104. Family law and small claims cases have their own proofs of service, and both were revised for 2027.
• SUM-300, Declaration of Lost Summons After Service. Filed in place of the original summons when the original is lost after service.

What the Proof of Service of Summons Shows

On the form or in a computer-generated version, a proof of service of summons answers the same questions:

• which papers were served: the summons, the complaint, and anything that had to go with them, such as the civil case cover sheet or the court’s ADR information package
• the party served, named exactly as on the summons, and for a business or public entity, the person who received the papers and that person’s title or role
• the address, the date and the time
• the method: personal delivery, substituted service (with the date and place of the mailing and a declaration of diligence), mail with a signed acknowledgment, mail to an address outside California, or another method the law allows
• how the Notice to the Person Served on the summons was completed: as an individual, under a fictitious name, or on behalf of an entity under the code section that applies
• the server’s name, address, phone number and fee, and whether the server is a registered process server, exempt from registration, or not registered
• the server’s signature under penalty of perjury, and the date

A registered process server also lists the registration number and, until the end of 2026, the county of registration. For service on or after January 1, 2027, the proof shows the registration number assigned by the county clerk and no longer has to name the county (CCP § 417.40).

The New Forms for Service in 2027

AB 747 (Stats. 2025, ch. 563) and AB 2042 (Stats. 2026, ch. 379) change how a summons is served and proved, for service on or after January 1, 2027. For personal delivery, substituted service and posting, the proof includes photos of the site of the service or attempt (CCP § 417.10), and substituted service on an individual requires at least three attempts at personal delivery, on three different days, at three different times (§ 415.20(b)). The Judicial Council approved matching rules and forms at its October 16, 2026 meeting, effective January 1, 2027:

• POS-010, revised. A new item for the photo of the location of service, with the photos on a separate page labeled as an attachment. The mailing after substituted service can go by first-class mail, Priority Mail with tracking, or Certified Mail with a return receipt, and a new item covers posting and mailing in an unlawful detainer under CCP § 415.45.
• POS-012, Declaration of Diligence, Service of Summons (new, optional). A separate item for each attempt, with the date, time and address, information about the photo, and what happened. It shows diligence before substituted service, or supports a request to post the papers in an unlawful detainer. Servers can still attach their own declaration of diligence instead.
• CIV-100, Request for Entry of Default, revised. A new item states that the proof of service of the summons has been filed. A copy doesn’t have to be attached. The debt buyer version, CIV-105, has the same statement.
• Where the photos aren’t required. Papers served the same way as a summons under the rules for preliminary injunctions (rule 3.1150), civil harassment and similar protective orders (rule 3.1160), and petitions for relief from financial obligations during military service (rule 3.1372) don’t need the photos in their proofs of service.

The photo rules themselves come from the statute. Each photo has a readable stamp that automatically records the date, the time and GPS or equivalent coordinates, taken as close as practicable to the service or attempt. It shows the door of the home or business, or the entrance if the door can’t reasonably be reached, with an explanation. The server, the person served and anyone else can be left out of the picture. When taking a photo would compromise the server’s safety, or there’s no signal for the stamp, the server explains why instead.

Which attempts need photos? In its report to the council, the advisory committee read the attempt photos as required when the proof shows that a method was unsuccessful, such as the attempts behind substituted service or a request to post. That’s the committee’s reading, not a court decision, so ask for a photo of every attempt. Until January 1, 2027, the current forms stay in use; download the new versions from courts.ca.gov once they’re posted. Our article on what changes on January 1, 2027 covers the rest of the new law.

Other Proofs of Service Changing in 2027

The same meeting approved new and revised proofs of service for other kinds of cases, also effective January 1, 2027. Until then, the current versions stay in use.

• Family law. FL-115, Proof of Service of Summons, adds the photo items for personal and substituted service, and a new optional FL-116, Declaration of Diligence for Substituted Service of Summons, goes with it. FL-985 becomes Proof of Service of Summons in a Different Way and covers electronic service as well as posting. The proof of service of summons for gestational carrier agreement cases (SUR-115) was revised too.
• Domestic violence restraining orders. When the person to be restrained is avoiding service, the protected party can ask the court to allow service another way (DV-205), and a new optional DV-217, Proof of Service of Papers in a Different Way, proves that service.
• Civil harassment and elder abuse restraining orders. A new POS-060, Proof of Alternative Service, Restraining Order, proves service by a method the court orders, such as substituted service or email. The elder abuse proofs of personal service and service by mail (EA-200 and EA-250) were revised, and EA-260 was revoked.
• Probate. A new optional DE-126/GC-326, Proof of Service of Citation/Summons, Probate, with a declaration of diligence attachment (DE-123). The proof of service of a notice of hearing becomes DE-120(P)/GC-020(P), Proof of Service (Personal or Substituted), Notice of Hearing, for estates, trusts, guardianships and conservatorships, with one form for each person served.
• Small claims and name changes. The small claims proofs (SC-104 and SC-104A, and the SC-104B information sheet) and the name change proofs of service (NC-121 and NC-221/NC-321/NC-521) were revised.
• Forms that carried their own proof. The Statement of Damages (CIV-050) and the notices for sister-state and tribal court judgments (EJ-110 and EJ-115) lose their built-in proof of service pages. Service of those papers is proved on POS-010 or another proof of service.

What to Check Before You File It

• The name of the party served matches the summons, and for an entity, the person served is someone the law allows to receive the papers for it.
• The address, date and time are complete. For substituted service, the mailing date and the declaration of diligence are there, with each attempt listed.
• The Notice to the Person Served on the summons matches how the party was served.
• The server’s name and address are filled in, and for a registered process server, the registration number.
• It’s signed and dated, with one proof for each party served.
• For service on or after January 1, 2027: at least three attempts on three different days at three different times before substituted service on an individual, the photos attached and labeled, and an explanation for any entrance photo, missing stamp or safety exception.

If something looks wrong, call the server before you file. When the facts support it, an error can be fixed with an amended proof of service. Our article Before You Request Default, Check the Proof of Service goes step by step through the review.

How Our Proofs Come Back

Every Direct Legal process serving order in California includes up to 4 to 6 attempts at a single address, made at different times of day, and a signed proof of service when service is complete. The proof of service is emailed to you, and the status updates our servers post from the field carry the date, time and GPS location, so the attempt history is there when you review the proof. For service on or after January 1, 2027, the photos the law requires are part of the proof.

To have us e-file the proof once the server signs it, check the eFile Proof box when you order process serving (an added fee). Rates for every California city and every state are on our process serving page.

About This Article

Sources

• Code of Civil Procedure section 415.10
• Code of Civil Procedure section 415.20
• Code of Civil Procedure section 415.30
• Code of Civil Procedure section 415.40
• Code of Civil Procedure section 415.45
• Code of Civil Procedure section 417.10
• Code of Civil Procedure section 417.40
• Code of Civil Procedure section 473.2
• Evidence Code section 647
• California Rules of Court, rule 2.150
• California Rules of Court, rule 3.110
• Judicial Council of California, October 16, 2026 meeting, item 26-132: Rules and Forms to Implement Changes in Law Regarding Civil Summons (report)
• Judicial Council of California, October 16, 2026 meeting, item 26-149: Family Law Rules and Forms to Implement Assembly Bill 747 and Senate Bill 85
• Judicial Council of California, October 16, 2026 meeting, item 26-155: Probate Law and Procedure, Forms to Implement Assembly Bill 747 (report)
• Judicial Council of California, October 16, 2026 meeting, item 26-119: Protective Orders, Rules and Forms to Implement Assembly Bill 561 (report)
• Judicial Council form POS-010, Proof of Service of Summons
• Judicial Council form POS-015, Notice and Acknowledgment of Receipt, Civil
• Judicial Council form POS-040, Proof of Service, Civil
• Judicial Council form POS-050/EFS-050, Proof of Electronic Service
• Judicial Council form SUM-300, Declaration of Lost Summons After Service
• AB 747 (Stats. 2025, ch. 563), chaptered text
• AB 2042 (Stats. 2026, ch. 379), chaptered text

Keep Reading

• Before You Request Default, Check the Proof of Service2026 · Service of Process
• What Changes for Service of Process in California on January 1, 20272026 · Service of Process
• Substitute Service of Process in CaliforniaUpdated 2026 · Service of Process

See all 31 articles on the Direct Legal blog

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