Arizona Notary Rules: Bond, Seal, Fees, and Penalties

Arizona notary rules cover who can hold a commission, how to identify signers, what your seal and journal must contain, what you can charge, and where the line falls between notarizing a signature and practicing law. As of July 1, 2025, every applicant, new or renewing, must also pass a competency exam through Prometric before a commission is issued.¹ The rules below reflect current statute and Secretary of State administrative rules.

Who Qualifies for a Commission

You must be at least 18, an Arizona resident who claims the state as your primary residence on tax returns, and able to read, write, and understand English. U.S. citizenship or lawful permanent residency is required.² A felony conviction disqualifies you unless your civil rights have been restored, and a lesser conviction involving dishonesty or conduct incompatible with notary duties can also be grounds for denial.³

Register with Prometric to schedule the competency exam and receive a Candidate ID Number, which goes on your application. Your application, a notarized surety bond with the oath of office signed on the bond itself, and a $43 filing fee all go to the Secretary of State’s Phoenix office together; incomplete packages are not processed.⁴

The Surety Bond and Your Personal Liability

Arizona requires every notary to file a surety bond before the commission takes effect.⁵ The bond protects the public, not you. If a signer suffers financial harm from your error or misconduct and files a claim, the bonding company may pay it, and then you owe the bonding company that money back.⁴

Errors and omissions (E&O) insurance is separate and optional. It covers your defense costs and damages from an unintentional mistake. Arizona does not require it, but without it a successful claim leaves you personally responsible for the full amount.

What Your Notary Seal Must Contain

Your seal must be a rubber stamp that produces a legible, photographically reproducible image in dark ink. An embossed seal alone does not satisfy Arizona law.⁶ The stamp must include six elements:

Your name exactly as it appears on your commission certificate
The words “Notary Public”
Your commission county
The Great Seal of Arizona
Your commission number
Your commission expiration date

You are personally responsible for keeping the seal secure. If it is lost, stolen, or compromised, notify the Secretary of State within 10 days.⁶

Maximum Fees You Can Charge

Arizona caps notary fees. The maximum is $10 per notary signature for an acknowledgment, $10 per page for a copy certification, and $10 for an oath or affirmation. Jurats are capped lower, at $2 per signature.⁷ You can charge less or nothing, but you must be consistent and post your fee schedule where signers can see it. Charging more than the authorized fee is grounds for discipline.³

Verifying the Signer’s Identity

Before any notarial act, you must have “satisfactory evidence” of who the signer is. That means either your own personal knowledge of the signer, or a government-issued, current identification document with a photograph.⁸ An Arizona driver’s license, U.S. passport, or military ID are common examples.

If the signer has no acceptable ID, a credible witness can vouch for them. For remote notarizations, the credible witness must have personal knowledge of the signer, and you must either know the witness personally or verify the witness through multi-factor authentication.⁹

You also have to assess whether the signer is willing and aware. If someone seems coerced, confused, or impaired, refuse the act. You are an impartial witness, and notarizing under duress defeats the point.

Signers Who Cannot Sign or Do Not Speak English

A thumbprint or an “X” counts as a valid signature in Arizona, even when the signer can physically write. No witness is required for a signature by mark, and you do not need to write the signer’s name near the mark. When someone cannot sign at all, they can direct another person to sign for them; you then add a notation such as “Signature affixed by [name] at the direction of [name of signer].”⁶

Arizona expressly allows a translator to bridge communication with a signer. The translator must be physically present with both you and the signer and must communicate directly with each of you in languages the translator understands. The notarial certificate itself must always be in a language you can read and write. You can also notarize a translation of a foreign-language original if the translator signs an affidavit swearing the translation is accurate and complete, and both are attached to the original.¹⁰

Journal Entries and Recordkeeping

Arizona requires a paper journal for notarial acts on tangible records. For acts on electronic records, you can use a paper journal or an electronic one. Only one paper journal at a time, and entries must appear in chronological order.⁸

Each entry must include, at minimum:

The date of the notarial act
A description of the document and the type of act
The signer’s full name and address
The type of identification used, including issuing agency and expiration date, or a note that personal knowledge was used
The signer’s signature, if the journal is paper

A thumbprint is optional; Arizona does not require one, though some notaries collect it as an added safeguard.⁶ While your commission is active, keep journal records for at least five years after the date of each act.¹¹

Impartiality and Conflict of Interest

You cannot notarize your own signature or the signature of a relative, and you cannot have any financial or beneficial interest in the transaction, no matter how small.⁶ If you stand to gain anything from the document being notarized, decline and refer the signer to another notary.

Remote Online Notarization

Arizona permits remote online notarization (RON), where the signer appears through audio-video technology. RON authority is separate from a regular commission and requires additional training and a second exam beyond the general competency exam.¹² Sessions must use an approved platform with multi-factor authentication and tamper-evident protections, and the full audio-video recording must be retained for at least five years, along with the electronic journal.¹³

Identity verification is stricter than for in-person work: the signer must pass credential analysis of a government-issued ID, and if you lack satisfactory evidence of identity, multi-factor authentication as well.⁹ One boundary worth knowing: RON applies only to electronic documents. You cannot use it for a paper record.

What a Notary Is Not Allowed to Do

A commission does not authorize you to draft legal documents, give legal advice, or practice law. The prohibition is especially strict in the immigration context: you may not act as an immigration consultant, represent anyone in immigration proceedings, or accept payment for those activities.¹⁴

If you advertise notary services and are not a licensed attorney, you must prominently display this disclaimer, in every language used in the advertisement: “I am not an attorney licensed to practice law in this state. I am not allowed to draft legal records, give advice on legal matters, including immigration, or charge a fee for those activities.”¹⁴ The rule exists because “notario público” in many Spanish-speaking countries refers to a licensed legal professional, and that confusion has been used to exploit immigrants.

Penalties for Breaking the Rules

The Secretary of State can deny, refuse to renew, suspend, revoke, or place conditions on a commission for any act showing you lack the competence or reliability to serve. Revocation carries a one-year bar on reapplying.³

Immigration-related violations carry the heaviest consequences. Performing unauthorized immigration law services triggers a civil penalty of up to $1,000 and permanent revocation. Violating the advertising disclaimer requirement is a class 6 felony, also with permanent revocation.¹⁴ Note the split: giving unauthorized immigration advice draws a fine, but failing to post the disclaimer when advertising is a felony.

Administrative action does not shield you from other consequences. Injured parties can file against your surety bond, and if the loss exceeds the bond, sue you personally for the difference. Separate criminal charges are also possible.³

Ending Your Commission

Whether your commission expires, you resign, or it is revoked, you must deliver your stamping device, journal, and records to the Secretary of State by certified mail or another method that provides a receipt. The same rule applies if you simply choose not to renew.¹¹ Keeping the seal after your authority ends creates a risk of unauthorized use, which is why the law requires you to turn it in.

1
Arizona Secretary of State. Notary
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Arizona Secretary of State. Become a New Arizona Notary
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Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 41-271 – Grounds to Deny, Refuse to Renew, Revoke, Suspend or Condition Commission of Notary Public
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Arizona Secretary of State. Notary Resources
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Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 41-315 – Bond
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Arizona Secretary of State. Arizona Notary Public Reference Manual
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Legal Information Institute. Arizona Admin Code R2-12-1102 – Notary Public Fees
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Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 41-319 – Journal
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Legal Information Institute. Arizona Admin Code R2-12-1305 – Standards for Identity Verification
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Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 41-313 – Duties
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Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 41-317 – Resignation, Delivering Notary Seal, Notarial Journal and Records
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Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 41-376 – Remote Online Notarization Procedures
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Arizona Secretary of State. Remote Online Notary Rules
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Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes 41-273 – Prohibited Acts, Civil Penalty, Violation, Classification