California Notary Public Requirements

• The California Secretary of State creates and appoints California Notaries Public in accordance with California Government Code section 8200
• Notaries Public are appointed as needed, as determined by the California Secretary of State, as per California Government Code section 8200

Eligibility for Appointment

To be eligible for appointment you must:

• Be a California resident at the time of appointment, unless appointed to serve on a military or naval reservation
• Be at least 18 years of age
• Complete a course of study approved by the California Secretary of State
• Pass a written, proctored, closed-book examination
• Pass a background check
• These conditions are listed in California Government Code sections 8201, 8201.1 and 8203.1

Residence/Citizenship Requirement

• Notaries need to be a resident of California at the time of appointment except those serving at military and naval reservations
• This as described in California Government Code sections 8201(a)(1) and 8203.1
• Notaries need not be US citizens unless serving at a naval reservation
• California Government Code section 8203.1 indicates those serving at naval reservations must be US citizens

Age Requirement

• All applicants must be 18 or older, as described in California Government Code sections 8201(a)(2) and 8203.1

Course of Study Requirement

• All applicants must satisfactorily complete a six-hour course of study approved by the California Secretary of State about Notary Public duties, described in California Government Code section 8201(a)(3)
• If holding an active commission and already completing a six-hour course, applicants need a three-hour refresher course prior to reappointment, in accordance with California Government Code section 8201(b)(2)
• Anyone whose commission expires before applying for a new one must retake the six-hour course in accordance with California Government Code section 8201(b)(2)

Examination Requirement

• All applicants must pass a written, proctored, closed-book exam prescribed by the California Secretary of State, as described in California Government Code section 8201(a)(4)

Background Check Requirement

• All applicants must submit fingerprints to the California Department of Justice (DOJ) within one year of completing the examination as described in California Government Code Section 8201.1(a)
• The DOJ then compares the prints and data with California conviction records
• Fingerprints and other information then go to the FBI, which advises the California Secretary of State whether the applicant has a criminal history anywhere in the United States
• Anyone convicted of a disqualifying crime may be denied appointment pursuant to California Government Code Section 8214.1(b)

Details on "Disqualifying Crime"

• A disqualifying crime includes any felony or lesser offense involving moral turpitude or is of a nature incompatible with the duties of a notary public as described in California Government Code section 8214.1(b)
• Notary Public Disciplinary Guidelines can be found at www.sos.ca.gov/notary, and California Code of Regulations, title 2, section 20804

Application Requirements

• All applicants must complete the Notary Public Application form. whether or not they currently hold a commission
• An application form can be found on the California Secretary of State's website at www.sos.ca.gov/notary
• Per California Government Code Section 8201.1(a) the California Secretary of State must determine that an applicant possesses the honesty, credibility, truthfulness and integrity to fulfill the responsibilities of the office of notary public
• All applicants must disclose any arrest for which a trial is pending per California Government Code Section 8201.1(a)
• All applicants must disclose any conviction per California Government Code Section 8201.1(a)
• All applicants must disclose any convictions dismissed under California Penal Code sections 1203.4 and 1203.4a per California Government Code Section 8201.1(a)
• Any failure to disclose can be grounds for denial of an application per California Government Code Section 8214.1(a)

Commission Term of Office

• A Notary Public's term of office is 4 years per California Government Code section 8204
• This is effective the date stated on their commission certificate per California Government Code section 8204
• This does not refer to date issued, date mailed, or date received per California Government Code section 8204
• Candidates cannot perform duties until they file an oath of office and a bond with the county clerk per California Government Code section 8213

Oath And Bond Filing Details

• The oath and bond must be be filed within 30 days of the commencement date per California Government Code section 8213
• If the oath and bond are not filed within this period, the commission is rendered invalid per California Government Code section 8213

Geographic Jurisdiction

• Authority to perform notarial acts exists only within California borders by California Government Code section 8200
• Notaries assigned to military or naval bases can only perform acts within the boundaries of the reservation

Example of Jurisdiction

• Maria Mobile's principal place of business is in Truckee, California, and she files her oath and bond in Nevada County
• Maria cannot perform notarial acts for Patrick Pressure in Stateline, Nevada so documents can be filed in El Dorado County
• Maria can only request Patrick meets her in El Dorado County to legally perform the acknowledgement

Bond Requirements

• A Notary Public must obtain a $15,000 bond from a California admitted surety insurer per California Government Code section 8212
• The bond must be filed with the county clerk where the Notary's principal place of business is located per California Government Code section 8212
• The bond provides public members with a limited fund with which to be reimbursed it damaged by notarial misconduct
• The notary and surety is liable in civil action for the full damages sustained from any Notary misconduct or neglect per California Government Code section 8214

Best Practices Tip

• Notaries may be found personally liable to the surety for damages paid out; errors and omissions insurance, or other liability insurances can cover damages that occur

Public Employee Notaries Public

• Per California Government Code section 8202.5 the California Secretary of State can appoint employees of a California state, city, or county public agency or school district as Notaries Public
• The aforementioned notaries can only perform acts for and on behalf of their public entity employer
• They are not authorized to notarize for the general public on their own time
• Employees still maintain personal control of their journal and the public employer covers costs of the bond and supplies, the Notary is not required to remit fees to their agency

Termination or Resignation Considerations

• Per California Government Code Section 8202.5, if the notary is terminated or resigns, it is considered a resignation of commission as well
• 1. Written notice of resignation must be sent to the Calfornia Secretary of State immediately
• 2. All notarial records must be delivered to the county clerk with 30 day
• 3. The notary public seal must be defaced or destroyed

Information on Federal Employees serving as Notaries

• Per California Government Code sections 8203.1 and 8203.3 the Secretary of State can appoint federal civil service employees to serve as notaries public for military and naval reservations within the State of California
• The federal civil service notary must be a US citizen per California Government Code Section 8203.1
• These notaries may only perform notarials acts on the reservation for which they were appointed and cannot collect fees for service per California Government Code sections 8203.2 and 8203.6
• These notaries must maintain personal control of their journal
• In the event the federal civil service employee becomes terminated, the Commanding Officer of the military must notify the California Secretary of State per California Government Code Section 8203.4., and the termination acts as a resignation
• All records must be delivered to the county clerk within 30 and the seal defaced per California Government Code section 8209

Filing the Oath And Bond

• A notary public's commission takes effect upon their oath of office and a surety bond for $15,000 are documented with the county clerk per California Government Code section 8213
• Failure to file renders the commission invalid per California Government Code section 8213
• The oath and bond must be filed with the county clerk in the county where the notary public maintains his or her principal place of business
• With a new commission they can take and subscribes the oath before another notary public in the same filing county
• Completed oaths and bonds must then be sent by certified mail to be registered for filing

Best Practices Tip

• Take the oath of office in person at the county clerks office and avoid delays
• Proof of identity is required at this stage in accordance with Civil Code section 1185(b)(3)(A) or (B) or Civil Code section 1185(b)(4)(A) or (E)

Address Change Guidance

• Per California law, a notary must make address changes to keep the Secretary of State notified of how authorities can get in touch per California Government Code section 8213.5
• Notifications must occur within 30 days via certified mail per California Government Code section 8213.5
• Failure to notify means a fine of up to $500 per California Government Code sections 8201.5 and 8213.5

Address Considerations

• A notary must provide both a business and residence address on Notary Public Application in accordance with California Government Code Sections 8201.5 and 8213.5
• A notary may provide a mailing address if different from their business address California Government Code Sections 8201.5 and 8213.5
• The notary public must state the name of their business, per California Government Code Sections 8201.5 and 8213.5
• When not employed, the term "Self" can be used, rather than the employer per California Government Code Sections 8201.5 and 8213.5
• If services do not occur at a central location, business address may be where they spend the most time or where commission mail comes in
• A notary public cannot use a private mailbox in lieu of their residence for business or residence purposes per California Government Code Section 8213.5
• The California Secretary of State must have record of a notary public's address per California Government Code Section 8213.5
• Mailing can be different but requires a postbox per California Government Code Section 8213.5

Details on Address Change Procedures

• Any address change for a Notary must be reported to the California Secretary of State
• Any change to the application or address change notification must be reported to the California Secretary of State
• If they performed services under the employer's location, they must report terminations to the Secretary of State
• The same is necessary for if a post office box location to receive mail is canceled

What the notifications should include

• The name of the notary exactly as what is on the commission
• Commission number
• Specification as to if this change relates to business or residence
• Should the location change, specify the name, if doing business there

Name Change Procedure

• The Notary must complete a form to send the Secretary of State per California Government Code Section 8213.6 for the name change
• There are no fees for name changes to the California Secretary of State
• Upon the change, the notary will then receive an amended commission from the Secretary of the State
• The commission number and commission expiration date will remain the same per California Government Code Section 8213.6
• The notary must then file the new oath for amendment with the county clerk within 30 days per California Government Code Section 8213.c

Responding to written requests from the California Secretary of State

• A notary public has two separate duties:
• The Notary must respond within thirty calendar days of receiving a written request
• Certified copies must be furnished, and a specified time given

Details on Agreements with Private Employers

• The notary may provide notarial services as part of service, with agreements with a private employer
• Employers cover and pay premiums on surety bond, costs, and all other supplies
• Payments may be made as part of employment, and remitted as such per California Government Code Section 8202.7
• If agreement between the employer and employee exists, the employer can limit to transactions relating to business only
• The Notary can still perform acts on their personal time regardless
• A Notary is responsible for their actions regardless of what the employer mandates
• Any employer asking for violations of California State law may be guilty of a misdemeanor per California Government Code Section 8225
• For example, Perry Paralegal is authorized to perform notary functions in the course of their employment by Adam Attorney, however outside of those actions the money does not go to adam attorney's account

Essential Tools to Function as a Notary

• Notarial Journal
• Seal

The Notarial Journal Guidance

• All duties must be recorded in the official journal according to time of performance per California Government Code section 8206(a)(1)
• One journal must be used at a time where services are performed
• The journal must be stored in a locked and secured area per California Government Code section 8206(a)(1)
• Only certain people have access to the journal, and not the employer, for example
• Notary Public is guilty of a misdemeanor if willfully fails to properly maintain his or her notarial journal per California Government Code sections 8206(a) and 8228.1(a)

One who makes a copying and inspection request.

Per California Government Code Section 8206(c); Civil members of the public can make photostatic requests to the journals entries, containing:

• Names of parties
• The type of document
• And the month and year in which the act occurred
• The fee is thirty cents per page
• Only the line item needs to be dislcosed, be careful to ensure that only the rquested elements of the lines are given
• Requests must be filled in 15 days per California Government Code Section 8206.5
• If it can't be found, a simple acknowledgement is sufficiant

Employers and Copying/Inspection

• If employed the employer or employer's agent/auditor can view and copy journal entries
• The presence of the Notary must be provided and copying must be related to business only
• On requests, the Notary must offer plain copies per California Government Code Section 8206(d)

Subpoenas and Courts

• Upon receipt with the court or tecum, the Notary must provide an examination and copy while remaining present, and must certify copies if requested per California Government Code Section 8206(e)

Journal Property and Release

• A Notary journal is exclusive to the Notary Public and cannot be released to anyone, employee or employer
• Even if the job and all materials were covered, the book remains the asset of the Notary Public

A Notary must surrender a journal immediately if:

• Peace officer asks per Section 8206.d
• If surrendered, send a proper and certified receipt to the California Secretary of State in 10 days with coverage dates journal, commission number and receipt

Loss of Journal

• If stolen, lost, or otherwise unusable, certified/registered mail must alert the California Secretary of State to the loss
• The notification must include coverage dates, commission number, and the date with specified theft
• After the official journal is unusable the Notary must obtain a new journal per the government sections
• If a Notary resigns/disqualified/or removed from office, within 30 days the county clerk has to receive all records of the office
• Within 30 days if all expirations are obtained there is a requirement to deliver a proper journal and all proper documents, non delivery causes a misdeamenor per government section 8209.a

Seal Requirements

• It is required that for every notarial act done, the seal should be in place per 8207, 8207.2,.3
• It should be photograph reproducible, with serrated or milled edge borders
• Seal should list State Seal, Notary Public, name of public, expiration date, the county in which the bond with oath of office is filed, the number of the commisison and the seal production identifier per 8207
• The round seal cannot exceed two inches, or if rectangular must not exceed an inch by two and one half inch

Best Practices Tip

• Rubber stamps are nearly universal for photographic reproduction per guide and embossers must be used with ink per guidelines in certification

Obtaining a Seal

• You must contact vendor for purchase, per 8207.2 and 8207.3 of government guide
• Certificates are required from the California Secretary of State before seals per 8207.2 and 8207.3 can be ordered

Securing Seals

• Locked and secure for all access per 8207, must be kept in Notary's exclusive custody
• No one but Notary can ever have access

Seal - Considerations

• Failure to secure may result in license suspension/revocation
• Exclusive property of the Notary always

Use of Seal Considerations

• 8207 states that a Notary can only use the seal to carry out and perform duties as are officially stated
• On California maps the actual seal needs not be included, so long as proper identification is given by the person in office, name of the county, and such elements are identified in signature per code
• If the seal itself lacks proper readability/clarity, then the elements are acceptable

Lost or Damaged Seal

• For lost, misplaced, unreadable/unworkable type elements there must be a certified letter to the California Secretary of State and an application or request within 5 state days must occur per government code
• In cases of termination, resignation, or death elements must be destroyed per code

Perform The Acts - Basic Requirements

• Can only use office seal and official Notary Public guide to perform services in conjunction with the stated government guide for such
• If a code's use is prohibited, or lacks the wording for compliance, the office seal must be excluded as civil penalties can apply
• Acts as relating to an original person verifying documents should relate to another and Notary must notarize the correct signature
• The Notary always cannot acknowledge their personal signature nor transactions that relate to the party

Examine Every Document for General Basics

• A signing cannot occur to non specific parties in government code without proper completion
• Visually scan all signature locations across the parties that need signature
• All foreign language elements are acceptable, if and only if, the Notary can communicate with and access such code references as 1189 and 1195, 8202, 8205, 8206 for Civil and Government guidance
• All must be completely readable in language for access, and identified per official records

Verify Identity of the Signer

• Satisfactory evidence must exist per sections 1185.A and and California Government Code section 8202
• This refers absence of any such evidence, to assume signer is not of individual status
• If any identification exists at all, it's considered in the absence of that form to be acceptable
• 1185B states with regards to the above, that two such witnesses and that all are in accordance
• Since 2008, knowledge of parties is not used to establish identity fully

What Documents Accept Identity

• Driver's ID or license, for CA, in the form of driver's verification
• United States/Federal passport or ID, per California Civilian code verifications
• Military ID or local detainee, for correctional facility only with correctional facility IDs and California laws in place per 1185B of government reference
• Federally certified tribal entities.

Oath or Affirmation Details with Verified Witnesses

• With no data that says otherwise to the Notary, use of witness can still allow for identity verification by proper swearing of oath/affirmation
• The Notary guide must know the witness and ID presented
• Currently this element may not be defined, so see West California code 1185 - Volume 8/63
• A chain that allows belief would allow you to know someone for personal knowledge, or having them around friends
• A notary public must still confirm the witnesses name with codes listed in 1185(b)(3) and (b)(4)
• A Notary must administer with the proper oath as guide, or the affirmation that witness is correct, based on Civilian and Government codes

Oath/Affirmation Verified Requirements

Under truth codes, reference from the official civil listings that the individual:

• Is showing and has the person's name in description of documents
• The official truth or witness knows and verifies the signer
• A person with truth status, verified states the signer or signers cannot get another verifiable government identification
• The reference that lacks signature does not own means for signatures authorization under law, or signatures cannot be seen
• Cannot express ownership, verification

Two Witness Types

• For civilian codes, the use of double status cannot indicate the signees lack proper official ID
• Each must offer truth for their statements for code references

A Credible Witness must provide

• That all details shown are names as properly referenced The office knows the party well
• The office knows the details well
• ID is verifiable
• Lacks the ability with the signor to perform
• The witness is authorized
• And is absent from data relating to them the ability to extract code from the party

Journal Entries

• All official acts must be documented, and if in a position to lack codes, that must be fully explained
• Time, date, type of action must be listed as code element
• All photo copy and actions should all be code complete
• Full characters must be in agreement, or if disagreement/unknown the exact issue must be fully detailed and coded - code note
• Description must include government listing with codes/signature- all signed signatures must be properly witnessed -code note
• Fees must all be correctly attributed to source, all other comments, must also refer to codes.
• Right thumb must be signed.

Acknowledge Details: Signees

• All signees as code elements must be completely readable, in person or with proper forms
• Every part must follow code per Civilian codes of truth
• Each line as codes must be exactly matched and be correct, be it by thumb or signature, or be called as such

Certificate of Authentication

• Proper form and signee certification, or all forms must be fully verified and signed
• After all actions, there can be no alterations
• Since after 2006 , the required form code must be exactly matched

Form Disclaimer from Civilian and Government guides to use properly

• Verify the identity of the signee which is attached and verified during the process
• State the state, and document exactly as written and as code
• Ensure that all attestations and proper legal certification elements are in effect
• With code signatures in effect

Penalties for Non Compliance

• If you know this is fake, than you may be susceptible to administrative, or forgeries and felony
• False statements in said guide equals civil penalties/perjury etc
• All noncompliance or non entries into said journals equals later prosecution

On January 5 2016 Code Reference

• ABE signer signs the statement in his corporate office for code tracking
• His known signatures all must be verified, and if not must be referenced
• The log must detail the act, and be signed and the journal signed
• Details of actions listed from signets and ID and expiration/date or issuing must reference codes
• Fees are collected now, last the authentication must be set, with proper codes as verified

Jurats

• Code elements with date and oath must be followed, also known affirmation of the jurat element
• Each code certification is certified in the code format exactly

Jurat - Code Listing Element Requirements

• Signing has to be present
• In the correct county
• And oaths done or in process for the affirmation with government and civilian codes
• This verification of code compliance also references: code compliance and 8206A

Examination, Confirm Identity, Administration, Entries and Certificates

• See civil/government references, there can not be signets until after all duties and steps listed are complete
• Affirm or oath must be seen/done to be officialized
• Best practices should be used to verify completeness, you are certifying a government document
• All parts must be listed for record to apply, or action will be negated
• By design non compliance, the parts now known to be true can be negated if the code signature is false

Jurats for Documents with Birthdates and Age

• A Notary can't certify any copies of vital codes
• However, the Notary can administer actions to documents showing age, etc