Is Online Notary Legal?

Yes!

In 2011, the Commonwealth of Virginia enacted Senate Bill 827 and House Bill 2318, allowing appropriately commissioned Virginia notaries to complete remote online notarizations via live video call for signers in all 50 states.

Since then, more than 30 states have passed remote online notarization bills that allow the notaries of its state to serve signers – completely online.

No matter where you're located, Notarize can connect with a commissioned remote notary who can help you notarize most documents. Using digital tools, you will sign before the notary during the audio-video conference. The notary public will then affix their signature, seal and other notarial information to the document.

Every state provides legal authority for recognition and acceptance of common out-of-state notarizations when validly performed by the notary in accordance with his or her own state's laws, and our notaries perform their notarizations in accordance with their state's laws. The Full Faith and Credit Clause of the United States Constitution may provide an additional bases for states to accept out of state notarizations.

Notarize has identified examples of state statues in each state that provide for recognition and acceptance of common out-of-state notarizations.

Please note: Documents signed on our platform are electronically signed by you and our notary. Certain states and public agencies impose specific additional requirements, limitations, and conditions for accepting electronically-signed documents, and not all documents may be electronically-signed or notarized. It's up to you to make sure your document is acceptable for its intended use, so always check with your intended recipient. We'd like to help with general information whenever we can, so let us know of any questions at support@notarize.com.

Other Resources

The Property Records Industry Association (PRIA) is the leading resource for the property records industry. In January 2016, the eNotary Work Group of PRIA released a paper on “Traditional Assurances for Electronically Recorded Documents.” The intent of the paper was to provide all recording jurisdictions with confidence that electronic notarization is valid and acceptable for recording documents in the public record. The paper states that documents that are notarized remotely and electronically are given the same legal treatment as paper documents.

PRIA - Electronic Notarization - Traditional Assurances for Electronically Recorded Documents

Disclaimer: Notarize is not a law firm or a substitute for an attorney or law firm. We and our notaries are not licensed to provide and do not provide any legal advice, and we do not accept any legal fees. While we provide general information throughout the website, we cannot provide any kind of advice, opinion, or recommendation about your specific legal situation, including whether any particular document may be electronically signed or whether an electronically signed or notarized document will be valid for your intended use or accepted by your intended recipient. If you have any questions at all about validity or acceptance of your document by the intended recipient, please check with them first. We encourage all our users to seek legal advice for any questions about your documents or the transactions they relate to. Please review our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, which govern your use of our app, services and site.