Frequently Asked Questions

Only Arkansas notaries who are also certified court reporters may partake in depositions as a duty of their notarial office pursuant to Rule 28 of the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure. Depositions not attested to by a certified court reporter will not be accepted in Arkansas courts.

Yes, you will need to get a new stamp that includes your new notary name and/or your new county of commission. Make sure to effectively destroy the old stamp to prevent accidentally using it or anybody else from obtaining it and using it.

The notary’s certificate should always be completed by the notary before the certificate is signed and sealed by the notary. This prevents somebody else from inserting false material into the certificate after it has left the notary’s possession.

In this example, you will list your county of commission in the blank as this statement is where you are stating your credentials as a notary. You are a notary commissioned in the State of Arkansas and the county of your personal residence, which is the county printed on your stamp.

If a notary’s seal is lost or stolen, he or she need to contact the Office of the Secretary of State in writing explaining the situation. The Office will make a notation in their record and also issue the notary a new commission number.

A stamp with the new commission number should be purchased and used from that point forward.

The Secretary of State’s Office recommends using a government-issued identification card that includes the client/signer’s picture and signature, such as a driver’s license or passport. What you will accept as proper identification is up to you, but it must satisfactorily prove the client/signer’s identity.

No, all documents and equipment for your notary public commission are your property and should not be surrendered to an employer upon termination of employment.

No, you are not required to notarize every document that comes before you.

This is the county in which you are standing when you notarize the document.

No. The definition of a notary is an “unbiased witness” and you cannot be unbiased towards yourself; therefore, you may not notarize your own signature.

Yes, one of those completed certificates needs to be returned to the Office of the Secretary of State as soon as possible. Not until the Office has received this certificate is the notary commission placed into “good standing” and a commission number issued.

Yes, for a notarization to be complete, it must have some form of an acknowledgment statement that gives a narrative of the act that was witnessed: where, when, who signed it, what the notary witnessed, and what credentials the notary has.

No. As of 2013, all signatures of the notary public must now be done with blue or black ink.

Generally, changes to Arkansas notary law can occur every two years (odd-numbered years) when the Arkansas General Assembly meets for a regular session. The last changes to Arkansas notary law went into effect in 2021.

No, you will need to restart the application from the beginning in Arkansas.

Complaints against an Arkansas notary will need to be made in writing and sent to the Secretary of State’s Legal Division. The letter must be original and contain the signature of the person filing the complaint. A copy of the document containing the notarization in question should be included with the written complaint.

If somebody wishes to have a notary investigated for criminal matters such as forgery or fraud, he or she will need to contact an attorney and pursue those types of complaints through the judicial system.

Yes. To resign a notary commission, please send to the Secretary of State an original signed letter stating your intentions to resign. Also, if possible, send one of your certificates of commission along with your letter.

Arkansas Secretary of State John Thurston
Business & Commercial
Services Division
1401 W. Capitol, Suite 250
Little Rock, AR 72201

or

300 North College, Suite 201F
Fayetteville, AR 72701

Your original bond will be filed with the Recorder of Deeds/Circuit Clerk and you do not want to risk the original getting lost in the mail.

To make any changes to your record, you will need to use the notary management system to file an amendment form: http://bcs.sos.arkansas.gov.

When making changes to your name, you must also submit a certified copy of the public document designating the name change such as a marriage certificate, divorce decree, or other court order. Certified copies will be issued at the courthouse where the document is stored, and will include a raised, embossed seal of the county.

Yes, you will just need to attach an acknowledgment to the document. You can do this by handwriting one (sample text can be found in the Notary Public Handbook or the Appendix in this document), or using a rubber stamp that contains text for the acknowledgment, within which the notary completes the proper fields by hand.

Yes, Arkansas law does not allow notaries to have the Great Seal of the State of Arkansas or an outline of the State of Arkansas on their seals. Additionally, abbreviations are not permissible (ex: “AR” or “Ark.” in lieu of “Arkansas”).

Yes, all notary seals of office must be able to be photocopied and must use blue or black ink. This applies to rubber stamps as well as embossers.

If possible, simply make a clear impression near the smeared one. If there is no room, you will need to draw up a separate acknowledgment statement with the same wording as the original document and include the signer’s signature again. Make a notation on the original document that the completed acknowledgment is attached.

Mistakes should be corrected using an ink pen. When at all possible, the person who made the mistake should add a correction line through the mistake and then initial the corrections. Do not use white-out type products as those changes are harder to attribute to the person who made the correction.

Yes. Since notaries are not generally concerned with the content of the document, you may notarize a document in a foreign language. However, your acknowledgment statement must be in English. As a reminder, if the document will later need an Apostille or Certification, it will need to be translated to English before the Office of the Secretary of State can process the request. More information about Apostilles and Certifications webpage.

Yes. Notaries are generally not concerned with the contents of the document, only the identity of the signer. In addition, your acknowledgment statement may be handwritten if one is not originally included as part of the document. Be sure to use ink for handwritten documents.

In some situations. If you have familiarity with the signature, (for example, if you have seen it many times before and know it is genuine) you may notarize that document. This document must still be presented to the notary by the signer of the document. A wife cannot bring her husband’s signature to you to notarize without him present. However, if you do not have a prior relationship to that signature, the signer will need to sign the document again in your presence and only the signature performed in your presence is eligible to be notarized.

No. In order to notarize a document, the signer and the notary must be physically in each other’s presence. In other words, you must be able to physically touch the other person as well as the document being signed and notarized. This also applies to electronically notarized documents.

While Arkansas law does not expressly prohibit notarizing for a relative, many notaries who do so might violate statues regarding a direct or indirect financial benefit from the document in question.

No. As of 2013, all stamps must use blue or black ink.

Arkansas notaries are not required by law to keep a record of their official acts, but it is highly recommended. A journal will help you recall past notarial acts if you ever have to appear in court to testify regarding a notarization.

You may notarize documents within the borders of the State of Arkansas. Your jurisdiction is not limited to your county of commission.

Yes, Arkansas notary laws require stamps to include the notary public’s commission expiration date. Since your expiration date will change each time you renew, you must get a new stamp that reflects this date.

No, you are commissioned as an Arkansas notary as an individual and all property associated with the commission belongs to you even if somebody else paid for it.

Your county of commission is your county of residence. Your jurisdiction as a notary is statewide. Please note that even if you are becoming a notary for work purposes, and you work in a different county in which you reside, your county of commission will still be your home county. You can notarize in any county in the state of Arkansas. If you live in an adjacent state your county of commission will be the county of your Arkansas employer.

No. Arkansas law does not allow notaries to make and certify copies of birth certificates, other vital records and public records. Copies of birth certificates will need to be obtained through the vital records division of the Health Department.

First, you will need to take both certificates and your original bond to the Recorder of Deeds in your county of commission. Most often, the Recorder of Deeds is your Circuit Clerk. Second, the Recorder of Deeds will swear your oath of office and sign both certificates. You will then file one completed certificate and your original bond with the Recorder of Deeds. Third, you will return one completed certificate to the Secretary of State’s BCS office. When your certificate has been processed by the Secretary of State, you will receive the oath back along with your notary public identification card and commission certificate and be placed into “good standing.” Lastly, you may then purchase your stamp and begin notarizing.

There are many reasons why an application may be rejected. Here are some of the most common reasons:

i.An outdated paper application is submitted instead of one completed using the notary management system. Applications completed through the notary management system will have a barcode at the top which indicates the notary successfully passed the required exam.

ii. The name of the applicant on the application is not the exact same name that is on the bond. If you list your middle name or middle initial on your bond, that exact same name must be used on the application. You may use any variant of your legal name. Example: If your name is Jane Ann Doe and you put that name on your bond, you cannot list only Jane Doe or Jane Doe on your application.

iii. The name the applicant signs on the application is not the exact same name that is printed on the bond and application. Example: Jane Doe is the printed name on the bond and application, but the applicant only signs J. Doe.

iv. The application is not properly notarized.

1. The signature of the applicant must be witnessed by a notary public. The affidavit at the bottom of the application must be correctly completed in its entirety by a notary or authorized official other than the applicant.
2. The notary who notarizes your application must be an Arkansas notary in good standing. You may check their record here: http://bcs.sos.arkansas.gov.
3. The notary must sign their name the same way as it is in their official signature – this signature will be checked against the signature we have on file. They must enter their commission expiration date even though it is on their seal.
4. The notary’s seal must meet all the requirements set forth by Arkansas notary law, including the requirement that “Arkansas” is stated on the seal. Abbreviations (“AR” or “Ark.”) are not permissible.

v. The $20 application fee is not enclosed.

vi. A copy of the surety bond is not enclosed.

vii. A physical residential street address must be entered on the application. Please note that Arkansas residents are commissioned as an individual by their home
address. An employer’s address should not be listed as the notary’s commission address. For out-of-state notaries, you must list your physical residential address in your home state as well as your employer’s physical address in Arkansas.

viii. The bond is issued for the wrong county. The county printed on your application should be the same county printed on your surety bond. Your bond is to be issued for your personal residential county if you are an Arkansas resident. Note: Even if your employer is purchasing your bond and their office is located in a different county in which you reside, you must still be bonded by your home county. If you are a resident of an adjacent state your bond must reflect the county of your Arkansas
employer.

1. A legal resident of Arkansas OR a resident of a state that borders Arkansas, but is employed in Arkansas
2. A United States citizen or permanent resident alien
3. At least eighteen (18) years of age
4. Able to read and write English
5. A prior notary public commission has not been revoked in the past ten (10)years
6. Has not been convicted of a felony
7. Has reviewed the law concerning notaries public and understands the duties of a notary public.

Currently, training is not required for traditional notaries (those that use paper, pen and ink) in Arkansas, but it is required for eNotaries. However, free training is available online by clicking here.

No, you are responsible for obtaining your own notary seal. Rubber stamp companies and office supply businesses are the most common sources of notary seals. You will need to have your notary public identification card to ensure all your information (name, commission date, commission number, and county) are properly contained in your stamp.

Many local insurance providers, such as the ones you use for your car, home or renters insurance also provide surety bonds. You may also search online for insurance companies authorized to do business in Arkansas.

Applications for renewal cannot be submitted earlier than 60 days before the date of your current commission’s expiration. You will receive an alert if you try to renew earlier than 60 before expiration. You will also receive an alert if you try to renew a commission more than 60 days after expiration. If you do not renew your commission within 60 days of its expiration, you will need to complete a new (rather than renewal) application.

No, while our notary management system requires an online application, you must still print the final version and submit it to BCS with your original signature and the original signature of the notary who notarizes your application. You may either mail your application or bring it in person to the office located at

1401 W. Capitol
Suite 250, Little Rock, AR 72201

or

300 North College
Suite 201F
Fayetteville, AR 72701

Yes. All new and renewing notaries must complete an online exam before they are allowed to access the new or renewal application. The exam consists of 30 questions and at least 24 must be answered correctly to obtain a passing score. All answers can be found in these FAQs, the Arkansas Notary Handbook, or by viewing the online training.

If you are renewing a commission, your commission number is helpful but not required. If you are a new notary applicant you will not have one yet.

The system allows users to complete new notary applications, renew notary commissions, make changes to notary commissions (e.g. name or address) and apply to be an eNotary. The online system includes the notary exam as part of the application process. You will need to mail the properly notarized application after you have submitted online. There is a User’s Guide at http://bcs.sos.arkansas.gov.

eNotary abides by all of the same rules and regulations as those that apply to “traditional” notaries. The only difference is the way in which the signature of the client and notary are applied to the document. eNotary uses a digital form of signature capture (keyboard, touchscreen, signature pad, etc.) rather than an ink pen. https://www.sos.arkansas.gov/business-commercial-services-bcs/enotary