|
Notary Public
Complete Mandatory Education
All persons seeking appointment as a notary public on or after July 1, 2005, must satisfactorily complete a Secretary of State approved six-hour course of study prior to appointment (Government Code section 8201). Please note that all persons being appointed, no matter how many commission terms that person has held in the past, are required to take the six-hour course of study.
Current California notaries public with a valid commission and who have completed a six-hour course of study at least once must satisfactorily complete an approved three-hour refresher course prior to reappointment. Important! a three-hour refresher course is only acceptable if the notary public applies for reappointment before expiration of the current commission. If the commission expires before course completion and a completed application is received, the person must take another approved six-hour course before being reappointed as a notary public.
The Secretary of State will review and approve all courses of study submitted by notary education vendors. (Government Code section 8201.2.) To locate vendors who have been authorized to provide the mandatory notary education, please refer to our list of approved notary education vendors.
| The goal of mandatory education is to: |
| |
- provide proper training for all notaries public;
- provide a full understanding of the duties and responsibilities of a notary public;
- standardize knowledge for all notaries public; and
- reduce complaints and lawsuits due to negligence or misconduct by a notary public.
|
Upon satisfactory completion of an approved course of study, a student will receive a Proof of Completion certificate. A Proof of Completion certificate evidencing completion of a 6-hour course is valid for a period of two years from the date of issuance. If a person seeking appointment does not pass the notary public examination before expiration of the Proof of Completion certificate, that person will have to satisfactorily complete another six-hour course.
A Proof of Completion certificate evidencing completion of a three-hour refresher course is also valid for two years from the date of issuance. However, a person seeking reappointment must apply and take the notary public examination before expiration of their certificate and before expiration of their commission.
| Once you have obtained your Proof of Completion certificate of the required notary education course, you will need to do the following: |
| |
- Register for an exam by contacting CPS; and
- Take with you to the exam site your completed notary public application with the Proof of Completion certificate of the mandatory education and a 2" x 2" color passport photo of yourself (stapled to your application).
|
Back to the  List
|
