Notarization and Coronavirus

You may notarize in-person, because COVID-19 mitigation measures have been lifted in Pennsylvania.

The masking order will be lifted on June 28 or when 70 percent of adults are fully vaccinated, whichever comes first.

Fully vaccinated Pennsylvanians may choose not to wear a mask, unless they are required by a business or organization.

No, PennDOT’s temporary expiration date extensions have ended.

Use an email address on your notary application that you monitor regularly. Check your spam folder for emails from [email protected]. Add the [email protected] email to your safe sender list.

The Montgomery County Recorder of Deeds office has partnered with the Montgomery County Prothonotary to swear in notaries using video conferencing. To make an appointment, notaries need to have a completed bond, power of attorney and Driver’s License. Click here to make an appointment. You will receive confirmation of your appointment by email. The day before your online video conference, you will receive an invitation to join your meeting at the time you reserved.

If you have questions about this temporary process, call the Montgomery County Recorder of Deeds office at (610) 278-3289.

Yes, the Department of State began appointing and reappointing notaries again in mid-May 2020.

The Department of State does not have the authority to extend notary commission expiration dates. Notaries should stop notarizing if their commission expires, regardless of where they are in the reappointment process.

Yes, notaries are being given extra time to complete the commissioning process. Before setting out, the notary should contact the Recorder of Deeds and Prothonotary to see if they are open.

If the county offices are open on the notary’s 45th day, the notary will have an additional 30 days from the 45th day to record their bond, oath and commission with the Recorder of Deeds and to register their signature with the Prothonotary.

If the county offices are closed on the notary’s 45th day, the notary will have an additional 30 days from when the county offices reopen to record their bond, oath and commission with the Recorder of Deeds and to register their signature with the Prothonotary. The extension also applies to any subsequent closures of the county offices due to COVID-19. If the county offices are closed on the notary’s 75th day (45 + 30 day extension,) no further extension will be granted. If this happens, the notary has until the next business day after the reopening of the county offices to record their bond, oath and commission with the Recorder of Deeds and to register their signature with the Prothonotary. If the notary doesn’t meet the deadline, they will need to begin the application process from the beginning.

Note: The extension applies to all notaries whose 45 days expired or will expire from March 1, 2020 until the expiration of this waiver.

The COVID-19 commission mail-in process is no longer in use.

The Records Department in the City of Philadelphia is providing in-person services for notaries Monday-Friday by appointment only. To schedule an appointment, email [email protected].

Note: On Tuesday, July 6, 2021, the Records Department in the City of Philadelphia will fully reopen to the public. Appointments will not be necessary for notaries to get sworn in and record their paperwork. On the same date, the Prothonotary’s Office will fully reopen to the public. Appointments will not be necessary for notaries to fill out their signature cards.

Use the Pearson VUE website to create an account. Then schedule a date, place and time to take the exam. The exam cannot be taken online. You must go to a testing center.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Pennsylvania Department of State is granting an exam authorization extension. Any applicant whose exam authorization has expired or will expire between March 1, 2020 and June 29, 2021 will have until June 30, 2021 to take and pass the notary public examination.

Follow any health and safety guidelines listed on the Pearson VUE website.

Dealers may sell vehicles in-person.

COVID-19 mitigation measures have been lifted in Pennsylvania. Fully vaccinated Pennsylvanians may choose not to wear a mask, unless they are required by the dealership. The masking order for unvaccinated Pennsylvanians will be lifted on June 28 or when 70 percent of adults are fully vaccinated, whichever comes first.

Dealerships are encouraged to follow CDC safety guidance.

Full agents and messengers may be open.

COVID-19 mitigation measures have been lifted in Pennsylvania. Fully vaccinated Pennsylvanians may choose not to wear a mask, unless they are required by the business. The masking order for unvaccinated Pennsylvanians will be lifted on June 28 or when 70 percent of adults are fully vaccinated, whichever comes first.

Full agents and messengers are encouraged to follow CDC safety guidance.

No, the temporary expiration date extensions have ended.

Access to the messenger room on the 4th floor at the Riverfront Office Center (accessed through the employee entrance) is permitted via messenger badge. Calling in advance is not required.

Please review the following updates for messenger room access:

• Messengers must wear masks within the Riverfront Office Center
• We encourage Messengers to sort their work before coming to the Riverfront Office Center
• Messengers should drop off and pick up work as promptly as possible
• Cubicles are available for use
• The 6 messenger limit no longer applies
• Messengers should self-screen for COVID-19 symptoms and stay home if they are sick
• Work for other motor vehicle areas should still be dropped off in the messenger room
• Messengers are limited to accessing the 4th floor messenger room only

If you have issues with access using your messenger badge, call the messenger room.

Form MV-351, “Application for Temporary Registration Plates by Motor Vehicle Dealers and Full Agents”, was revised (revision 6-20) to allow agents to choose to pick up a temporary plate order or have PennDOT mail a plate order. When an agent chooses to pick up an order, a PennDOT employee will contact the agent, after the order has been processed, to arrange a date, time and place the agent may pick up the temporary plate order at the Riverfront Office Center. Health concerns will be discussed during the call.

Orders that are not picked up will be mailed Priority through the United States Postal Service.

To check the status of a plate order email:
[email protected]

No, you are not required to become an electronic notary or remote online notary.

No, but recorders may accept a paper copy of a remotely notarized document, if the notary certifies that the paper copy is a true and accurate copy of the electronic record.

No, the notary fees are set by the state. You may charge additional clerical and administrative fees, if they are recorded separately in your notary journal.

Yes, there are fees for the vendors. Contact the vendors for their fee schedules.

There is more than one law that affects wills and powers of attorney. PAN recommends seeking the advice of an attorney-at-law.

Certificates of title may not be notarized remotely, until PennDOT decides how electronic titling will be accomplished in Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania notaries who are court reporters or stenographers who participate in criminal, civil and administrative proceedings may administer oaths and affirmations by video conference as part of those proceedings. Because of the limited nature of these proceedings, where there are many safeguards in place to ensure the identity of the witness, court reporters and stenographers do not need to apply and become remote online notaries or use approved remote technology to administer oaths and affirmations remotely.

Proceedings include depositions, arbitrations and hearings that occur as part of any criminal, civil and administrative proceeding. For more information, see this announcement from the Pennsylvania Department of State.

No, your $10,000 notary bond meets the requirement of the notary law for standard face to face notarizations, electronic notarizations and remote online notarizations.

Yes, the notary needs to be physically located in Pennsylvania when performing a remote online notarization.

It is PAN’s and the Department of State’s understanding that all approved vendors use or include digital certificates in their products. However, we’ve had members tell us that they’ve needed to buy one separately. That will be between you and your vendor.

Yes, your approval expires at the end of your four-year notary commission or when the technology solution expires, whichever happens first. If you want to continue to notarize electronically, remotely or both, you must apply to renew that approval with the Pennsylvania Department of State. You also need to renew your agreement with an approved technology solution provider.

Learn more from the Pennsylvania Department of State website.

Witnesses may be located remotely, but they must be identified in the same manner as the remotely located customer. Also, the notary, customer and witnesses need to be able to communicate in real time using the approved audio-visual technology.

Processing times vary. If you haven’t received a response in one week, contact the Department of State.

The Pennsylvania Notary Law (RULONA) has been amended to make remote online notarization permanent.

E&O policies that cover notarizations are “silent” on how the notarization is performed. The E&O policies sold by PAN cover notarial acts if they are performed according to current notary law, rules and regulations.

No, you may only use technology that has been approved. Skype and Zoom are not approved technology.

Personal appearance is always required.

Traditional paper notarizations and electronic notarizations are conducted in-person. The notary and the customer need to be able to exchange identification and documentation.

For remote online notarizations, the personal appearance requirement is met when the approved notary meets online with the remotely located customer using state-approved audio-visual technology.

There are a few things to consider. Does your business:

• Need to notarize documents that are in an electronic format
• Need to notarize for customers who are not in the same location as you are
• Have the hardware and software to create, validate and distribute electronic documents
• Have the resources to make an agreement with one of the electronic/remote technology providers

With eNotarization, the notary and the customer are in the same room, within arm’s reach. They use the same computer to sign an electronic document. Remote online notarization also involves an electronic document, but takes place over the internet, using approved audio-visual technology. The notary is in one location, the customer is in another location.

To learn more, watch this YouTube video.

“This notarial act involved the use of communication technology.”

The law states, the audio-visual recording must contain “all the interactions between the notary public and the remotely located individual.” Some vendors are also including the Knowledge Based Authentication and Identification scanning that takes place before the notary and customer connect.

The customer needs to have a camera, microphone and internet access that allows them to communicate with the notary in real time.

You are not required to use an electronic journal. The law allows you to keep a separate journal for paper and electronic/remote notarizations. Those journals may be paper or electronic.

Visit the Department of State’s website. Then scroll down and click on the “List of Approved Electronic and Remote Notarization Solution Providers.”

The Department of State’s “The Steps to Becoming an Electronic or Remote Notary in Pennsylvania” states, the approved electronic notary logs onto the Department of State’s website to select approved electronic/remote notary technology provider(s.)

The law allows the notary or an entity acting for the notary to make and keep the audio-video recording. The approved remote online notary vendors must have the ability to keep the recordings for 10 years.