California Notary Change of Address: Form, Deadline, and Filing

To complete a California notary change of address, mail a signed written notice to the Secretary of State’s Notary Public Section within 30 days of the move, using certified mail or another delivery method that produces a receipt. The requirement covers your business address, your residence address, and your mailing address, and it applies whether you move across the street or across the state.

The 30-Day Deadline

Government Code section 8213.5 gives you 30 days from the date the change takes effect to notify the Secretary of State in writing.¹ The clock runs from the day you actually move, not the day you sign a lease or decide to relocate.

You must provide a physical street address for both your business and your residence. A P.O. box or commercial mail receiving agency can sit on file as a mailing address, but only alongside a real street address.¹

Willful failure to report a new address within 30 days is an infraction carrying a fine of up to $500.¹ The statute targets willful conduct, so an honest oversight corrected quickly is treated differently than deliberate silence. Prepare the notice as soon as you have the new address.

What Goes on the Form

The Secretary of State publishes an official Notary Public Address Change Form. A plain letter containing the same information is also acceptable, but the form prompts you for everything the office needs.² Include:

Your commission name, exactly as it appears on your commission certificate
Your commission number and expiration date
Old and new addresses, broken out by business, residence, and mailing (if the change is for a business, include the business name)

Your signature has to match the signature on the oath of office already on file with the Secretary of State. Digital signatures are not accepted, and the form is signed under penalty of perjury.³

There is no online portal for this. The statute requires certified mail or another traceable physical delivery, so electronic submission is not an option.¹

Where to Send It

Mail the completed form or letter to:

Secretary of State, Notary Public Section
P.O. Box 942877
Sacramento, CA 94277-0001⁴

Use certified mail or a delivery service that provides a receipt, and keep that receipt with your notary records. It’s your proof that you met the 30-day deadline if anyone ever asks.

An address update is administrative. You do not need a new oath of office, a new bond, or an amended commission, and your commission number stays the same. You can keep notarizing while the Secretary of State processes the update.

If You Moved to a Different County

An out-of-county move still requires the same address change form. Beyond that, you have a choice. The Secretary of State’s office states plainly that “you may choose to file a new oath of office and bond in the county to which your business has moved, however, a county transfer is not required.”² Your commission lets you notarize anywhere in California regardless of where the oath and bond are filed.

The reason to transfer is your seal. Your notary seal must display the county where your most recent oath and bond are filed.⁵ Move from Sacramento County to San Francisco County without transferring, and your seal keeps saying “Sacramento.” That is legal, but many notaries prefer the seal to match where they actually work.

How to Transfer the Filing

Request an oath of office form from the Secretary of State. The form will show your original county, but you take and file the oath in the new county and check the county transfer box at the bottom. Along with the oath, file either a new $15,000 surety bond or a duplicate of your original bond with the county clerk of the new county.²

County clerks charge filing and recording fees for processing the oath and bond. These vary by county but generally run roughly $40 to $55 combined. A new $15,000 four-year surety bond, if you need one rather than a duplicate, typically costs around $35 to $50.

Ordering the New Seal

You cannot order a new seal on your own after transferring. The Secretary of State will send you a certificate of authorization to manufacture a new notary seal once your oath filed in the new county has been received and processed.² Have the new seal made promptly, and stop using the old one as soon as the new seal is ready.

If Your Name Is Changing Too

Do not use the standard address change form if you also have a legal name change. The Secretary of State has a separate Notary Public Name Change Application that captures both the new name and updated business and residence addresses on a single form, with no fee.⁶⁷

The name change timeline is stricter. After the Secretary of State issues an amended commission, you have 30 days to file a new oath of office and an amendment to your bond with the county clerk. Miss that window and the name change is voided entirely, reverting your commission to your old name. You then have another 30 days after filing the oath and bond to obtain a new seal reflecting the updated name.²

The mailing address for the name change application is different from the address change form’s:

Notary Public Section
1500 11th Street, 2nd Floor
Sacramento, CA 95814⁶

What Your Address Change Does Not Affect

Your journal stays with you. An address change does not require you to surrender it, and if you’re leaving an employer who required you to notarize, the journal still goes with you. Your employer has no legal claim to it.²

1
California Legislative Information. California Government Code 8213.5
2
California Secretary of State. Notary Frequently Asked Questions
3
California Secretary of State. Notary Public Address Change Form
4
California Secretary of State. Contact Information – Notary Public
5
California Secretary of State. Procedures and Guidelines for the Issuance of Notary Public Seals
6
CA.gov – Secretary of State. Notary Public Name Change Application
7
California Secretary of State. Forms, Services, and Fees