Arkansas Notary cheat sheet

The Arkansas Secretary of State appoints and commissions notaries public; the commission is the sole source of a notary's authority to act.

An applicant must be at least 18 years old, able to read and write English, and a resident of Arkansas or a resident of an adjoining state regularly employed in Arkansas.

A notary commission runs for a term of ten years from issuance; acts performed after the expiration date are not valid notarial acts.

Core notarial powers include administering oaths and affirmations, taking acknowledgments and verifications on oath, taking affidavits and depositions, and protesting instruments.

Jurisdiction is statewide: an Arkansas notary may act anywhere within Arkansas and has no notarial authority outside the state's boundaries.

Before certifying, the notary must verify the signer's identity by personal knowledge or satisfactory evidence and must confirm the signer's willingness and competence.

Ongoing duties include keeping the official seal under the notary's sole control, recording notarial acts as required, and notifying the Secretary of State of name or address changes.

Every certificate identifies the State of Arkansas and the county where the act is performed, the date, the signer, the act performed, and the notary's signature and seal.

Acknowledgment: the signer appeared, was identified, and acknowledged signing voluntarily for the document's stated purpose; no oath is administered.

Jurat: the signer appeared, was identified, and swore or affirmed to the truth of the document, shown by wording such as 'subscribed and sworn to before me.'

The certificate wording must match the act actually performed; an acknowledgment certificate may not be attached to an oath-based act, or the reverse.

For a traditional paper notarial act, the signer must appear physically before the notary at the time the certificate is executed.

A notary may decline to act when identity, willingness, or competence is doubtful, or when the request is unlawful or beyond notarial authority.

Signing by mark, or by another person at the signer's direction, requires the notary to record the circumstances as the Act provides.

A notary certifies only that the required formalities were performed, never the truthfulness, accuracy, or legal effect of the document's contents.

The official seal must show the notary's name, the words 'Notary Public,' 'State of Arkansas,' the commission number, and the commission's expiration date.

The seal must produce a legible impression capable of photographic reproduction, so a stamp bearing the required information is the standard device.

The notary keeps sole custody of the seal and must report a lost, stolen, damaged, or misused seal to the Secretary of State.

Journal entries are made at or near the time of the act and record the date, type of act, signer's name, identity-verification method, and any fee charged.

The journal and related records remain in the notary's safekeeping and are produced for inspection by the Secretary of State upon request.

Electronic notarization requires a tamper-evident electronic seal and an electronic journal that protects entries from alteration after they are made.

A certificate is never pre-signed or pre-sealed on a blank form; signature and seal are applied only when the notarial act is actually performed.

The journal entry and the certificate serve different purposes; both are maintained, and neither substitutes for the other.

Prohibited: notarizing the notary's own signature, or any document in which the notary is a party or holds a direct beneficial interest.

Prohibited: acting when a family, employment, or financial relationship creates a conflict that could bias the notary or benefit the notary.

Prohibited: giving legal advice, explaining a document's legal effect, or selecting forms for parties, which is unauthorized practice of law for a non-attorney notary.

Prohibited: charging more than the statutory maximum fee for a notarial act.

Prohibited: performing notarial acts after the commission expires or while suspended or revoked, or while outside Arkansas.

Prohibited: using a false or non-compliant seal, and certifying an act when the signer did not personally appear.

Consequences of violations include criminal penalties, personal civil liability, claims against the surety bond, and suspension or revocation of the commission by the Secretary of State.

Application: a signed application is filed with the Secretary of State, accompanied by the required fee and supporting information.

Bond: a surety bond must be filed with the Secretary of State before the commission issues; the bond backs claims by members of the public harmed by official misconduct.

Oath: the newly appointed notary takes and files the oath of office as the Act requires before performing notarial acts.

The Secretary of State assigns a commission number and expiration date, both of which must appear on the official seal and in the notary's records.

A notary who changes name or address must notify the Secretary of State so the commission record and seal information remain accurate.

Continued authority requires reapplication or renewal before the ten-year term expires; an extension is never automatic.

Keeping the bond in force and commission records current is a condition of holding the commission; a lapsed bond or unreported change can jeopardize it.