Important: If you cannot take the oath of office within the allowed time, your notary commission will be voided, and you will need to file a new application.
To become a notary in New Jersey, you must meet the following eligibility requirements:
If you are an active notary public and need to renew, you are not required to take the notary public exam and are only required to submit your notary renewal application.
If it has been over 30 days since your notary commission has expired, you will be considered a new notary applicant and you will be required to retake the notary public exam.
The state treasurer appoints and commissions New Jersey notaries. The Department of the Treasury’s Notary Public Unit receives the applications for appointment and reappointment as a notary public, administers the commissioning process, and maintains an electronic database of active notaries.
Yes. A person who is not a resident of New Jersey may apply for a commission if they meet one of the following conditions:
A qualified non-resident applicant may apply by completing the steps outlined in the “To become a notary in New Jersey” section.
Note: The oath of office of a non-resident notary public shall be taken and subscribed before the clerk of the county in which the non-resident notary public maintains their office or the county in which they are an employee of a business with its domicile or primary place of business in New Jersey.
The term of a New Jersey notary commission is five years, commencing on the date specified in the notary public’s commission certificate. Notaries cannot notarize documents after their notary commissions expire without first renewing their notary commissions.
Yes. New Jersey notary law requires new notary applicants to complete a six-hour course of study and pass the exam approved by the state treasurer. However, at the time this section was updated, the State Treasurer accepted reading the New Jersey Notary Public Manual in lieu of the six-hour course. Visit the state’s website for new course requirement updates.
The cost to become a notary in New Jersey includes:
A notary errors and omissions (E&O) insurance policy is not required to become a notary in New Jersey or to renew your notary commission. However, the American Association of Notaries strongly recommends that every New Jersey notary obtain a notary E&O insurance policy. A notary E&O policy covers unintentional notarial mistakes and pays for legal fees and damages based on the coverage you select as a New Jersey notary public.
New Jersey does not require a notary applicant to provide proof of a notary bond when applying to become a notary public or renewing their notary public commission.
Note: A notary public is liable to any person for damages that result from their negligence, errors, or omissions. New Jersey notaries are encouraged to purchase a notary E&O insurance policy to insure themselves against such claims.
Yes. A New Jersey notary must obtain a notary seal or stamp to authenticate every notarial act they perform.
The stamp or seal must be capable of being copied and include the following information:
Note: The New Jersey notary statute does not provide information on the ink color, shape, and dimensions of a notary seal.
The American Association of Notaries offers quality notary stamps and seals at savings of up to 40% compared to the cost of the same products elsewhere. Click here to order your New Jersey notary stamp, notary seal, complete notary package, and other notary supplies.
Within ten calendar days of the loss or theft of your notary seal, you must use the revenue general inquiry form (select “notary public application” under the service category) to notify the New Jersey State Treasurer of the loss or theft.
A New Jersey notary may collect the following fees:
Notary journal requirements for each type of notarization in New Jersey:
For traditional notarizations, electronic notarizations, and remote online notarizations – A notary public is required to maintain a journal of all notarial acts performed. The journal may be created and maintained on a tangible medium or in an electronic format. A notary public shall maintain only one journal at a time to chronicle all notarial acts, whether those notarial acts are performed regarding tangible or electronic records. If the journal is maintained on a tangible medium, it shall be a permanent, bound register with consecutively numbered lines and consecutively numbered pages. If the journal is maintained in an electronic format, it shall be in a permanent, tamper-evident electronic format complying with any rules and regulations promulgated by the New Jersey State Treasurer.
In lieu of maintaining a notary journal, an attorney admitted to practice in New Jersey can maintain a record of notarial acts in the form of files regularly maintained for the attorney’s law practice or the title insurance company’s business activities, as the case may be.
A notary journal (also known as a record book, log book, or register book) is your first line of defense in proving your innocence if a notarial act you performed is questioned or if you are requested to testify in a court of law about a notarial act you performed in the past. A properly recorded notarial act creates a paper trail that will help investigators locate and prosecute signers who have committed forgery or fraud. Properly recorded notarial acts provide evidence that you followed your state laws and notary’s best practices.
The American Association of Notaries offers notary journals in tangible and electronic formats.
Click here to purchase a tangible notary journal.
Click here to become a member and access our electronic notary journal.
New Jersey notaries must record the following information in their notary journals when performing traditional, electronic, or remote online notarizations:
Note: The above requirements apply to both tangible and electronic notary journals.
Within ten days of the loss or theft of your notary journal, you must use the revenue general inquiry form (select “notary public application” under the service category) to notify the New Jersey State Treasurer of the loss or theft.
As a New Jersey notary public, you have two options for retaining your notary journal when your notary commission expires:
On resignation from, or the revocation or suspension of, a notary public’s commission, the notary public shall either:
You may perform notarial acts while you are physically present anywhere within the geographic borders of the state of New Jersey.
A New Jersey notary public is authorized to perform the following notarial acts:
New Jersey law allows the following four types of notarizations:
Traditional notarizations – This type of notarization requires the signer and the notary to meet physically in the same room within face-to-face proximity of one another. Traditional notarization involves an individual signing a tangible document with an inked pen and a notary public signing and affixing an inked notary stamp impression to the tangible notarial certificate.
Electronic notarizations – This type of notarization requires the signer and the notary to meet physically in the same room within face-to-face proximity of one another. However, the notarization is performed on an electronic document using electronic signatures, an electronic notary seal, and an electronic notarial certificate.
Remote online notarizations – The signer appears remotely before a notary via audio-visual communication technology. The notarization is performed on an electronic document using electronic signatures, an electronic notary seal, and an electronic notarial certificate. Remote online notarizations exclude the creation and execution of wills or codicils.
Remote inked notarizations - The signer appears before a notary via audio-video communication technology. This type of notarization requires the signer and the notary to send the document to each other and for the online notary public to use a physical stamp to notarize the document without the aid of an electronic seal or electronic signature.
To become an electronic notary in New Jersey, you must:
For more information on how to become an electronic notary in New Jersey, visit the New Jersey Secretary of State’s website.
To become a remote online notary in New Jersey, you must:
For more information on how to become a remote online notary in New Jersey, visit the New Jersey Secretary of State’s website.
If a New Jersey notary’s address on file with the state treasurer changes, they must update the information online on the New Jersey State Treasurer’s website.
If a New Jersey notary undergoes an official name change, they must notify the state treasurer by completing the name change online on the New Jersey State Treasurer’s website.
Legal disclaimer: The information provided on this page is for general informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as legal advice. We do not claim to be attorneys and we do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information provided. You should always seek the advice of a licensed attorney for any legal matters. It is your responsibility to know the appropriate notary laws governing your state. In no event shall the American Association of Notaries, its employees, or contractors be liable to you for any claims, penalties, losses, damages, or expenses, howsoever arising, including, and without limitation, direct or indirect loss, or consequential loss, out of or in connection with the use of the information contained on any of the American Association of Notaries website pages. Notaries are advised to seek the advice of their state’s notary authorities or attorneys if they have legal questions.
Notary bonds and errors and omissions insurance policies provided by this insurance agency, American Association of Notaries, Inc., are underwritten by Western Surety Company, Universal Surety of America, or Surety Bonding Company of America, which are subsidiaries of CNA Surety.