Electronic Notarization: Electronic Acts and Remote Appearance
A notarial act involving electronic records and signatures, distinct from ordinary electronic signing and from remote online appearance.
- Notarization is an authorized legal act: a stamp image or ordinary e-signature is insufficient.
- Electronic is not necessarily remote: in-person electronic signing and RON are different methods.
- Rules are jurisdiction-specific: notary authority, technology, appearance and record requirements must be checked.
What is electronic notarization?
Electronic notarization is a notarial act performed using electronic records and electronic notarial signatures or seals under applicable law. It requires an authorized notary and the conditions for the particular act. A visible notary-stamp image on a PDF does not establish that those conditions were met.
Is electronic notarization the same as online notarization?
Electronic describes the medium; remote describes the appearance. The signer and notary may use an electronic document while being physically together. Remote online notarization, often called RON, uses an authorized audiovisual process for a remotely located signer.
For example, Michigan’s official notary guidance distinguishes in-person electronic notarization from remote notarization and requires approved systems for those methods. Kansas’s RON guidance describes its own authorization and audiovisual requirements. These are state-specific examples, not one national platform-approval rule.
What must be checked?
- Authority and jurisdiction: whether the notary is authorized for the proposed method and act.
- Appearance and identification: the applicable personal-appearance or authorized remote process, and required identity checks.
- Act and certificate: whether the required acknowledgment, oath or other act and notarial certificate are completed.
- Technology and records: applicable platform, seal, journal or recording requirements.
A general signing link or video meeting does not independently satisfy those requirements. The document’s eligibility and any receiving authority’s conditions also matter.
What is different from an ordinary signature?
An ordinary witness and a notary do not automatically perform the same legal function. Similarly, the ESIGN Act’s electronic-form rule is not a substitute for a properly performed notarial act. Deed formalities or an attorney’s authority may require separate analysis.
Use the applicable official notary rules to select an authorized notary and the required process for the intended act.
A Common Case: Choosing the right notarial process
Suppose a Michigan insurance agency needs an electronically notarized document for a transaction. Its staff can confirm the required notarial act and approved process with the notary, keeping an in-person electronic appointment distinct from an authorized remote session and from ordinary client e-signing.
FAQs
Can a document be notarized electronically in person?
Yes, where the applicable law authorizes that method. Electronic notarization can involve an electronic document while the signer and notary are physically together.
Does any video call qualify as remote online notarization?
No. RON requires compliance with the applicable authorization, appearance, identity, technology and recordkeeping rules; a video call alone does not establish compliance.
Does an electronic signature mean a document is notarized?
No. A valid notarial act requires an authorized notary and the applicable act-specific process, not simply an electronic signature or seal image.
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