Remote Online Notarization and Required Training
What the domain covers
Remote online notarization (RON) is a separate authorization in Iowa, not an automatic add-on to a paper commission. The exam tests the registration step, the required training, identity proofing, recording, and the electronic journal.
Core rules
- You must first hold an Iowa notary commission, then complete the Secretary of State-approved RON training course and pass the related examination before registering.
- Register as an online notary with the Secretary of State and use a RON platform that meets Iowa's technical requirements.
- The notary must be physically located in Iowa when performing the online notarial act; the signer may be elsewhere.
- Verify the signer's identity through approved identity proofing and, where required, credential analysis.
- Create an audio-video recording of the act and maintain an electronic journal. Keep the recording and journal for the retention period required by Iowa rules; treat them as confidential records.
- The electronic certificate and seal must contain the same identifying information as the paper stamp.
Worked example
A commissioned Iowa notary wants to notarize a deed for a signer in another state. She has not registered for RON. She may not use an ordinary video call and her paper stamp. She must complete the RON training and exam, register, use an approved platform, verify identity, record the session, and enter the act in her electronic journal. Only then may she perform the remote act.
Traps
Treating a paper commission as RON authority; skipping the training because you have years of paper experience; using a consumer video app that does not record or identity-proof; failing to keep the recording; and notarizing while physically outside Iowa. Also watch the date: the RON authorization must be active on the day of the act.