HI Notary cheat sheet

A Hawaii notary applicant must be at least 18 years old, a Hawaii resident, and of good moral character.

The application is filed with the Hawaii Attorney General, who appoints notaries public for the State.

A notary commission lasts four years unless the appointment specifies a shorter term.

Before performing official duties, the appointed notary must take and file the required oath of office.

The notary must file a surety bond with the Attorney General in the statutory amount, commonly $1,000.

The bond is conditioned on faithful performance of notarial duties and protects members of the public.

A commission is not active for official acts until the oath and bond requirements are satisfied.

A notary may not perform notarial acts after commission expiration, revocation, or resignation.

Authorized notarial acts include acknowledgments, jurats, oaths, affirmations, signature witnessing, and copy certification where permitted.

The signer must personally appear before the notary at the time of the act, except when remote online notarization is authorized.

The notary verifies identity by personal knowledge or satisfactory evidence, such as government-issued photo identification.

The notary must determine that the signer is willing and has the capacity to execute the document.

A notary certifies that the notarial act was performed, not the truth, accuracy, or legal effect of the document.

The notarial act must be evidenced by a certificate signed and sealed by the notary.

A notary may refuse to perform an act when identity, presence, willingness, or capacity cannot be established.

A notary may not perform an act outside the authority granted by Hawaii notary law.

An acknowledgment requires the signer to appear, be identified, and acknowledge signing the document voluntarily.

For an acknowledgment, the signer need not sign in the notary's presence but must personally acknowledge the signature.

A jurat requires the signer to appear, sign in the notary's presence, and swear or affirm the truth of the document.

An oath invokes a deity as witness to truthfulness; an affirmation is a nonreligious promise with the same legal effect.

The jurat certificate states that the oath or affirmation was administered to the signer.

A notary must actually administer the oath or affirmation before completing a jurat certificate.

The certificate should identify the venue, date, signer, and specific notarial act performed.

The notary's signature and official seal authenticate the acknowledgment, jurat, oath, or affirmation.

The official seal must include the notary's name and the words "Notary Public, State of Hawaii."

The seal must be legible and capable of photographic reproduction.

Every notarial certificate must be authenticated by the notary's signature and official seal.

A notary must not affix a signature or seal to a blank, incomplete, or unattached document.

The notarial certificate must be attached to or logically associated with the document being notarized.

The certificate must be completed at the time of the notarial act and state the act performed.

A notary journal records the date, signer, document type, notarial act, identification method, and fee.

Notarial records must be retained and made available as required by Hawaii law and enforcement authorities.

A notary must use the same name on the seal, signature, and commission.

Electronic notarization uses an electronic signature and electronic seal on an electronic document.

Remote online notarization uses real-time audio-video communication for the signer's appearance before the notary.

The notary must verify the remote signer's identity through personal knowledge or approved identification and credential analysis.

A remote online notary must retain the audio-video recording and related records for the period required by Hawaii law.

An electronic notarial certificate must be linked to the electronic document in a tamper-evident manner.

A notary must be authorized to perform remote online notarization before conducting remote acts.

The notary must comply with Hawaii location, technology, and recordkeeping rules when performing remote acts.

Electronic journals and records must be maintained in a form that preserves the integrity of the notarial act.

A notary must not notarize the notary's own signature or a document in which the notary is a party or has a beneficial interest.

A notary must not give legal advice, explain legal effect, or engage in the unauthorized practice of law.

A notary must not affix a seal to a blank or incomplete document.

A notary must not make a false certificate or use an unapproved identity-verification method.

A notary must not charge fees exceeding the amounts authorized by Hawaii statute.

A notary must not perform a notarial act when the signer is not present, except under authorized remote online notarization.

Violations may result in denial, suspension, revocation, or nonrenewal of the commission, plus civil or criminal penalties.

The Hawaii Attorney General enforces notary laws and may investigate complaints against notaries.

The notary bond may compensate harmed members of the public up to the bond amount but does not protect the notary from personal liability.