Does Georgia Allow Online Notarization? HB 289 and RON Rules

Online notarization in Georgia sits in an unusual spot: the state’s own temporary rules expired in December 2021, and no permanent Georgia law has replaced them yet. You can still get a document notarized online, but the notary has to be commissioned in a state that authorizes remote online notarization (RON), not in Georgia. A bill that would create a permanent Georgia framework, House Bill 289, received a favorable committee report in early 2026 and is pending in the General Assembly.

What Georgia Allows Today

Georgia authorized RON on an emergency basis during the pandemic through executive order, and those provisions ended on December 27, 2021. Since then, no Georgia-commissioned notary has had state authority to perform remote online notarizations.

Remotely notarized documents themselves are not treated as invalid in Georgia. The Georgia Department of Revenue has stated it accepts remote notarizations performed by notaries commissioned in states where RON is legal, treating them the same as in-person notarizations for tax filings.¹ Other Georgia agencies and courts generally follow the same principle under the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, O.C.G.A. § 10-12-1 et seq.

How to Get a Document Notarized Online Right Now

The practical route is to use a platform staffed by notaries commissioned in a state with a permanent RON law. Many national platforms operate out of Virginia, Florida, or Texas. You upload the document, verify your identity through the platform, meet the notary by video, and receive the executed document electronically.

For real estate closings on Georgia property, ask your title company whether they work with an out-of-state RON provider. Many already do, and most national platforms handle Georgia transactions as a routine matter.

Expect the platform to charge between $25 and $50 per session. That covers the notarial act and the technology on top of it. Under current Georgia law, a Georgia notary’s fee for a notarial act is capped at $2.00, with an optional additional $2.00 for a certificate of commission effectiveness from the Clerk of Superior Court,² but that cap governs Georgia notaries and does not apply to out-of-state RON providers.

House Bill 289 and What It Would Change

House Bill 289 would amend Article 1 of Chapter 17 of Title 45 to establish a permanent legal framework for remote online notarization in Georgia.³ If enacted, a notarization performed under its rules would carry the same legal weight as an in-person notarization, including for real estate documents like deeds and mortgages. The bill also provides that a RON performed by a notary commissioned in another state would have the same effect under Georgia law as one performed by a Georgia-appointed notary.

What a Georgia RON Notary Would Need

A notary wanting to perform RON in Georgia would need to hold an active Georgia commission, complete specialized training approved by the Georgia Superior Court Clerks’ Cooperative Authority (GSCCCA), and register as a remote online notary through that same agency.⁴ The notary would also have to use a technology platform meeting GSCCCA standards. A Georgia-resident RON notary must maintain a residential domicile and physical presence in Georgia.³

Identity Verification for Signers

HB 289 would require two layers of identity checking before a notary could proceed. The notary first performs credential analysis of a government-issued photo ID that the signer holds up to the camera or uploads. The signer then completes knowledge-based authentication (KBA), answering computer-generated questions drawn from personal credit and financial history.³

If the signer fails KBA on the first attempt, industry-standard platforms usually allow a second attempt with different questions. A second failure ends the session with no override available; the document has to be notarized in person instead.

On the signer’s side, the equipment is ordinary: a computer or tablet with a working camera and microphone, a stable internet connection, and a valid government-issued photo ID.

Where the Signer Can Be

The notary must be physically located in Georgia, but the signer has considerable latitude:

Anywhere in Georgia.
Anywhere else in the United States.
Outside the United States, if the notary has no reason to believe signing is prohibited in the signer’s location and the signer confirms the document relates to a U.S. court proceeding, property in the United States, or a transaction with a substantial connection to the United States.³

Wherever the signer is, the notarization is legally deemed executed in Georgia, which matters for recording and for determining which state’s law governs the act.

Documents That Cannot Be Notarized Online

HB 289 excludes wills, codicils, and testamentary trusts. The bill states that neither electronic in-person notarization nor RON may be used for any notarial act governed by the laws on creating and executing those estate planning documents.³ A will still requires an in-person notary.

Otherwise the scope is broad. Real estate deeds, mortgage documents, powers of attorney, affidavits, and other instruments that normally need notarization would qualify. The bill defines “real estate document” to include any instrument entitled to recording in county real property records, plus any document executed in connection with a land conveyance whether recorded or not.³

Recording and Journal Requirements

Under HB 289, the notary would have to create an audiovisual recording of every RON session as evidence of participant identity, the type of ID presented, and the validity of the act.³

The notary would also maintain a secure, tamper-evident electronic journal, with an entry for each notarization covering the type of act, a description of the document, the signer’s name and address, the type of ID used in credential analysis, and the results of identity proofing. Both the journal and the recordings must be kept for at least ten years after the last notarial transaction.³

Fees If HB 289 Passes

The bill does not appear to set a separate, higher fee for remote online notarization. If it passes without a RON-specific fee provision, the existing $2.00 cap on the notarial act would apply, while RON platform providers would continue to charge their own service fees on top, which are not regulated by the state cap.

1
Department of Revenue. ADMIN-2025-03 – Acceptance of E-Signatures, Remote Notaries, and Electronic Filings
2
GSCCCA. Georgia Notary Law
3
Georgia General Assembly. House Bill 289 – Remote Online Notaries Public and Remote Online Notarizations
4
Fulton County Superior Court, GA. Apply to Become a Notary