Eligibility, Application, and Commissioning Requirements
Arizona sets baseline eligibility and a defined application path. A candidate must be at least 18 years old, a legal resident of the United States (Arizona does not require state residency), and able to read and write English. Applicants must complete a required notary education course and pass an examination before submitting an application to the Secretary of State with the required fee and a surety bond; the bond is a condition of commissioning and protects the public, not the notary.
The application requires disclosure of certain background information, and the Secretary of State may deny, refuse to renew, revoke, suspend, or impose conditions on a commission for specified grounds such as fraud, dishonesty, or a disqualifying criminal history. The commission term is four years. A notary must obtain and use a seal, and must file an official signature with the Secretary of State as part of the process.
Traps: test writers like to insert a state-residency requirement (there is none - U.S. legal residency suffices), shorten or lengthen the term, or suggest the exam and course are optional. Another frequent trap is confusing the bond amount with a fee, or implying the bond pays the notary's own losses - it does not. Questions may also test that the commission is personal and non-transferable and that a notary may not perform acts before the commission is issued or after it expires.
Rule of thumb: memorize the four eligibility pillars (age, U.S. legal residency, English literacy, course-plus-exam) and the four-year term, and treat any answer that adds a state-residency rule or skips the exam as wrong.