How To Become A Notary (2024)

If you’re considering a career as a Notary in the future, you’ve come to the right place. Being a Notary is a respected and well-paid job that you can enjoy. In this article, we’ll guide you through the process of becoming a Notary in your state. So, let’s delve into it.

What is a Notary?

A Notary public is appointed by the state government, typically through the Secretary of State’s office. The role of a Notary involves verifying the identity of individuals signing legal documents. Notarizations help prevent fraud and ensure that legal documents are signed voluntarily. These are some of the primary responsibilities of a Notary public. Now, let’s explore how you can become one too.

1. Review the Basic Eligibility Requirements

Since there is no formal education required to become a Notary, there are a few eligibility criteria that one has to meet to become a notary in their state.

Some of the criteria are:

• You must be 18 years old
• You should be a citizen of the country (state in some cases)
• You should be able to read and write English

Where some states only accept you as notary if you are a citizen of the state, there are a few states which would accept candidates from neighboring states too. So you may as well check that before applying.

Overall, you should check the basic eligibility criteria list before you apply for the job and see if you are eligible to become a Notary.

2. Complete a Notary Education Course

One of the things that you need to do to become Notary is to complete a Notary Education Course. Infect many of the states have made it a requirement too. It would be a 3 to 4 hour course that would go over the duties and responsibilities of a Notary public. You will also learn about the state laws associated with a notary public job and how you can do notarization of documents.

Some of the states offer this course for free and others might charge you. It won’t be expensive so anyone can take it. Even if your state hasn’t made it a requirement, it would be good if you take the course and learn more about being a notary public.

3. Take Out a Surety Bond

All the states would require you to give them a surety bond which would protect your  customers from any of the mistakes that you might make while performing your duties. The bond can range from $5000 to $10,000. It may sound a lot of money now, but given your status and job and the kind of mistakes you can make while performing your duties, it is justifiable.

4. Get Errors and Omissions Insurance

Not all the states would require the Errors and Omissions Insurance but you should still get it, especially if you are offering independent services to the general public. It would be the opposite of a surety bond, as this one would protect you from any of the mistakes or errors you made while performing your duties. You will have to pay a monthly amount.

5. Fill Out the State’s Application

To become a notary, you will have to fill out the application which you will get from your State’s office.  Each state has their own application, which you will have to fill out and submit. This application would require you to fill out your personal information and other credentials.

You can either fill and submit the application online or you can download the application form and send it to the office. Fill the form carefully and try not to make any mistakes. After you have completed you should double check it as well. Because it might get denied if there are some silly mistakes that you have made.

Also check – How To Become Politician In India / How To Become Radiologist

6. Gather Necessary Documents

One of the other things that you need to do is to gather all your necessary documents. These documents would be required by the state to confirm the information that you have provided in your form.

It would include the photocopy of your ID that has been issued by the Government, you might also be asked to attach the notary course completion document and so on.

You may also need to take the written exam to become a notary office. The duration of this exam would vary from one state to another. Some would take the exam before you submit the application and others would take the exam after you have submitted your application.

7. Complete a Background Check

Next, you will have to complete the background check. In this, you must confess or disclose every vital information about you, like if you have ever been arrested or convicted for a crime. There would be a fingerprint check too, if you have failed to disclose this kind of information, your application would be denied.

8. Pass the Written Exam

You must pass the written exam to become a notary public. Only after you have gained a good mark in your exam, you would be selected to become a notary.

9. Take an Oath

Once you have passed the exam, you would receive your commission letter via mail. After that you will need to take the oath of the office. The oath would state that you would perform your duties faithfully and act with honesty and integrity.

10. Advertise Your Notary Services

If you are practicing independently then you should advertise your notary services as well. Advertise via the social media as well as in the local TV channels or newspapers as well. This would bring you customers and more people know about, the better it would be for your business.

Conclusion:

That wraps up our discussion on becoming a notary public. It’s important to review the specific requirements and eligibility criteria based on the state in which you plan to apply. We hope this article has been informative and has provided you with the information you needed. Thank you for reading!