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Qualifications Applicants for the office of notary public must meet the following criteria: Be at least 18 years of age or legally emancipated as defined in Article 35 of Chapter 7B of the General Statutes Reside or have a regular place of work or business in this state Reside legally in the United States Speak, read and write the English language Possess a high school diploma or equivalent Pass the course of instruction described in Chapter 10B, unless the person is a licensed member of the North Carolina State Bar, including a written examination Purchase and keep as a reference, the most recent manual approved by the Secretary that describes the duties and authority of notaries public. Go to North Carolina Notary Pubic Manual for 2016 to purchase a copy. This should be done before progressing with any of the steps listed below. Submit an application containing no significant misstatement or omission of fact. Every application shall include the signature of the applicant written with pen and ink. The applicant shall then acknowledge the signature before a person authorized to administer oaths. Obtain the recommendation of one publicly elected official in North Carolina and submit the recommendation with the application. The requirement of this subdivision shall not apply to any applicant who seeks to receive the oath of office from the register of deeds of a county where more than 15,000 active notaries public are on record on January 1 of the year when the application is filed. Term of Office 5 years Appointment Secretary of State Notary Education Required - 6 hour course Notary Exam Required and must be passed by 80% Study Course "Notary Public Education Course" (this is not the state approved training course) FREE when you purchase a Notary Supply Package at The Notary's Store Bond Not required by state law Seal of Office Rubber Stamp Seal with reproducible ink required by state law, or Embossing Seal Notary Journal Officially recommended by the state E & O insurance Not required - Errors and Omissions Insurance is recommended for notary protection

Application Procedures Step 1: Download and complete the North Carolina Notary Public Application Initial North Carolina Notary Application Download the application and complete it according to the instructions provided. You will need to leave the mandatory education information blank until you complete step 2 and have your instructor complete their section of the application. Be sure to follow all instructions, as any incomplete or incorrect information will cause a delay in the commissioning process if not outright rejection of the application. You will need to make arrangements to have a notary public take your acknowledgment under oath or affirmation that the information provided in the application is true. The Find a Notary feature from Notary Rotary can be helpful in contacting a notary public. Simply enter your home ZIP code, and click search for a list of notaries public in your area. If you have questions concerning this application you should contact the notary public section. The Notary Public Section is available for assistance from 8:00am to 5:00pm, Monday through Friday, with the exception of holidays. You may contact us by phone at 919-807-2219, by e-mail. Step 2: Complete the mandatory notary public course of study and pass the required written examination An applicant must satisfactorily complete a course of study that is approved by the Secretary of State consisting of not less than six hours of classroom instruction provided by a community college in North Carolina, unless the person is a licensed member of the North Carolina Bar. Initial applicants, excluding licensed members of the North Carolina Bar, must also pass a written examination approved by the Secretary of State with a score of 80% or better. You will need to locate a college offering these classes and complete the mandatory education before moving on to step 3. Step 3: Send the completed application packet to the Notary Public Section You will need to send the completed application and a non-refundable $50.00 application fee payable to "NC Secretary of State" to the Secretary of State office, notary public section at the following address. Notary Public Section Department of the Secretary of State PO Box 29626 Raleigh, NC 27626-0626 The Secretary of State's office will process your application within 72 hours of receipt. Please allow two weeks to receive your notice. Step 4: Take the Notary Public Oaths of Office The Notary Public Section will process your application and return to you an oath notification letter. When you receive the oath notification letter, go to the Register of Deeds in the county in which the commission is issued to take the Oaths of Office. The oaths must be taken within 45 days of the issue date listed on the oath notification letter. If 45 days lapse before the oaths are taken, a new application and $50.00 fee must be resubmitted. Notary appointments are NOT valid until the oaths of office are taken. The oaths must be taken with each appointment of commission. The Register of Deeds fee for administering the oaths is $10.00 New and Renewing Notary Packages Renewing Notary Packages do not come with a notary journal Step 5: Order your notary supplies from The Notary's Store Please visit The Notary's Store you will be entering the North Carolina section for your official notary supplies. We offer a New Notary Supply Package and Renewal Notary Supply Package that includes your required North Carolina notary seal/stamp, North Carolina Notary Journal, and other needed notary supplies at a special reduced price. North Carolina law does not require a notary to keep a record of his/her official acts, but it is recommended to do so. A record book will offer an excellent way of recalling past notarial acts. If a notary is called upon to testify in court, a record book may help establish what actually took place. The North Carolina Notary Journal, also available in the online store, functions perfectly as a North Carolina notary journal, and was specifically designed for this purpose, and contains many elements not available in other registers. To order, enter the required information, scroll down through the page to locate the notary packages or purchase any other products you desire, and follow the instructions through checkout. Once you have your seal and journal you are ready to perform notorial acts. Note: An Errors and Omissions insurance policy is not required by law, but may be purchased as it protects the notary public and pays for any charges the notary might owe for legal fees and costs should the notary be sued.