Notary public (Virginia)

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Note: The General Assembly has established changes regarding the laws pertaining to Notary Publics, some of which take place on July 1, 2007 and some which take place on July 1, 2008. See the bottom of the article for more details.

A notary public in Virginia is authorized to acknowledge signatures, take oaths, and certify copies of non-government documents which are not otherwise available, e.g. a notary cannot certify a copy of a birth or death certificate since a certified copy of the document can be obtained from the issuing agency. A notary may only authenticate a person based upon that person's documentation of their identity (such as a driver's license or identification card), or by the notary's own personal knowledge of the person appearing before them, use of witnesses to identify an individual is not permitted. A notary may not authenticate their own signature or that of their spouse, nor may a notary authenticate any document to which they or their spouse are a party. An example given is that a notary could authenticate a will, even if they are an executor, but could not do so if they are a beneficiary of that will.

An individual who is a resident of Virginia (or a resident of another state who normally works in Virginia) may become a notary public. They must be at least 18 years of age, have no unpardoned felony convictions, be able to read and write, and fill out an application (which itself must be notarized) which is sent to the Secretary of State. The application used to require the applicant obtain signatures of two Virginia voters attesting to the honesty and character of the applicant; this provision has been eliminated effective July 1. The application to become a notary points out that since the persons who sign the application as voters are parties to the document, the notary who authenticates the applicant's signature cannot be either of those persons. Virginia officials request, but do not require, that the applicant include their social security number (they have also accepted Virginia drivers license numbers) on the form, for use as a unique identifier. The applicant may, by checking a box on the application, choose to remove the words "in the year of Our Lord" which normally appear before the year the commission is issued. While the applicant must swear that they have read the notary laws, there is no test or special knowledge required.

A seal is not required (but if one is used, new rules apply), but as most people expect seals, and because documents to be used in other states may require them, most notaries do carry and use seals. No bond is required, and a Virginia notary is not required to keep a log of their official acts.

Beginning July 1, 2007, the law in Virginia changes; The Secretary of the Commonwealth has also mailed out a letter dictating these changes, some of which include:

  • All notorial statements require that the notary's registration number appear on the document. This is a serial number that appears at the bottom of the commission and has been on commissions issued since at least 2006.
  • Seals are still not required, however if a seal is used, it must be sharp, legible, permanent and photographically reproducible.
  • The law now makes it clearer that the signer of a document must do so "in the presence of the notary at the time of signing and notarization."
  • The notorial certificate must be on the same page as the signatures being notarized.
  • The application must be approved by certain officials, including a clerk or deputy clerk of a general district court, a commonwealth's attorney or assistant commonwealth's attorney, the Attorney General or an assistant attorney general or a member of the General Assembly. Previously, judges and clerks or deputy clerks of circuit courts were also eligible to sign the form, they now are no longer eligible to do so.

New provisions effective July 1, 2008 permit authentication of documents for electronic commerce; those provisions will be explained in later correspondence to be issued by the Secretary of the Commonwealth.