PA Notary common mistakes
PA Notary · Understand the traps and how to avoid them.
On a jurat, the candidate has the affiant sign and then signs and seals without administering an oath or affirmation and without watching the affiant sign.
Jurat and acknowledgment certificate wording look similar, and candidates focus on the seal instead of the required spoken oath and personal appearance.
What to do instead
Memorize the distinction: a jurat requires the affiant to swear or affirm the truth of the statement and to sign in the notary's presence; an acknowledgment only requires the signer to acknowledge a signature already made.
Accepting an expired driver's license, a photocopy of an ID, or a non-government-issued card as satisfactory evidence of identity.
Candidates treat any photo ID as sufficient and do not check issuance source, expiration, or signature.
What to do instead
Use only current, government-issued identification containing both a photograph and a signature; otherwise rely on a credible witness personally known to the notary or the oath of a credible witness.
Notarizing a document for a signer who is not physically present because the signer mailed it or appeared by video.
Convenience and confusion about remote notarization lead candidates to overlook the personal-appearance requirement.
What to do instead
Require the signer to appear personally before the notary; use remote online notarization only if the notary is properly authorized and registered for it.
Leaving the commission expiration date off the seal impression, or using an embosser alone when an inked stamp is required.
Candidates memorize that a seal is needed but not the required contents of the impression.
What to do instead
Verify the seal contains the notary's name as commissioned, the words 'Notary Public,' 'Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,' and the commission expiration date, and use the required stamp format.
Skipping the journal entry, or recording only the signer's name and date while omitting the act type, identification type and number, and other required details.
The journal is treated as optional paperwork rather than a statutory record.
What to do instead
Record every notarial act at the time it is performed with all required fields, and retain the journal for the required retention period.
Charging more than the statutory maximum for an acknowledgment or adding a separate 'seal fee' or 'oath fee.'
Candidates do not memorize the fee schedule and assume market rates apply.
What to do instead
Know the statutory maximum fee per notarial act and that no extra charge may be added for the seal, oath, or certificate.
Notarizing a document signed by the candidate's spouse, parent, or business partner, or notarizing the candidate's own signature.
Relationship and convenience create a perceived harmless exception to the conflict-of-interest rule.
What to do instead
Decline any notarial act in which the notary is a party, has a beneficial interest, or is related to the signer, and explain the conflict.
Treating a verification or certification as an acknowledgment and using acknowledgment certificate language for it.
Candidates blur all notarial acts together instead of matching the act to its certificate.
What to do instead
Match the act to the certificate: verification requires an oath or affirmation of truth, copy certification requires a certified-copy certificate, and protest requires the statutory protest steps.
Giving legal advice by telling the signer which certificate to use, how to complete the document, or whether the document is legally valid.
Candidates want to be helpful and do not recognize where notarial authority ends.
What to do instead
Limit assistance to identifying and performing the notarial act; refer legal questions and document drafting to an attorney.
Leaving the certificate incomplete-missing county, date, notary signature, or blank spaces to be filled in later-or pre-signing and pre-sealing certificates.
Rushing and copying forms leads candidates to defer completion or sign in advance.
What to do instead
Complete every certificate at the time of the act, fill all required blanks, and never sign or seal a certificate before the signer appears.