Notary Public Educational Information

The following educational materials are provided to you in accordance with Tex. Gov't Code Ann. §406.008(b).

This information should be kept for reference throughout your four-(4) year term. Please read through this information at least once before you begin to perform your notarial duties.

THE STATUTES REFERRED TO IN THESE MATERIALS ARE SUBJECT TO LEGISLATIVE CHANGE. The Secretary of State will provide a copy of these changes only upon request. Contact the Secretary of State, Notary Public Unit, P.O. Box 13375, Austin, Texas 78711 3375 or call (512) 463 5705 following each legislative session.

The Secretary of State's office would like to thank the Texas Young Lawyers Association for permitting us to use excerpts from their former publication, Texas Notary Public Handbook.

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• Statutes
  • Record Book and Public Records
  • Notary Seal
  • Change of Address
  • Unauthorized Practice of Law
  • Revocation or Suspension of Commission by the Secretary of State
  • Fees Posted
  • Fee Book
  • To Itemize Costs
  • Fees

  Introduction

  A Notary Public is a public servant with statewide jurisdiction who is authorized to take acknowledgments, protest instruments permitted by law to be protested (primarily negotiable instruments and bills and notes), administer oaths, take depositions, and certify copies of documents not recordable in the public records.

  A Notary Public is, in the true sense of the word, "a public servant" and "an officer of the State of Texas", conveniently located in the community so that the notary may be of service to the public. Each Notary Public takes an official oath of office to faithfully perform the duties of the office, and to insure such performance, a notary public is required to post a $10,000.00 bond with the Secretary of State.

  The primary duty of a Notary Public is to show that a disinterested party (the Notary Public) has duly notified the signer of an instrument as to the importance of such document, and the signer of such document has declared that the signer’s identity, signature, and reasons for signing such instrument are genuine. The signature and seal of a Notary Public do not prove these facts conclusively, but provide prima facie proof of them, and allow persons in trade and commerce to rely upon the truth and veracity of the Notary Public as a third party who has no personal interest in the transaction.

  A Notary Public is personally liable for negligence or fraud in the performance of the duties of the office. The bond is to insure that the person injured can recover at least $10,000.00, but this does not protect the Notary Public from personal liability for the full extent of damages caused by a breach of official duty. In addition to civil liability, Notaries Public may be subject to criminal prosecution and the revocation or suspension of their notary public commission by the Secretary of State's office.

  Statutes

  Record Book and Public Records

  Tex. Gov't. Code Ann. § 406.014 requires that a Notary Public maintain a record book. This record book must be maintained whether or not any fees are charged for your notary public services.

  A notary public other than a court clerk notarizing instruments for the court shall keep in a book a record of: (1) the date of each instrument notarized; (2) the date of the notarization; (3) the name of the signer, grantor, or maker; (4) the signer's, grantor's, or maker's residence or alleged residence; (5) whether the signer, grantor, or maker is personally known by the notary public, was identified by an identification card issued by a governmental agency or a passport issued by the United States, or was introduced to the notary public and, if introduced, the name and residence or alleged residence of the individual introducing the signer, grantor, or maker; (6) if the instrument is proved by a witness, the residence of the witness, whether the witness is personally known by the notary public or was introduced to the notary public and, if introduced, the name and residence of the individual introducing the witness; (7) the name and residence of the grantee; (8) if land is conveyed or charged by the instrument, the name of the original grantee and the county where the land is located; and (9) a brief description of the instrument.

  NOTE: 1 T.A.C. §87.40 prohibits a notary from recording in the notary's book of record the identification number that was assigned by the governmental agency or by the United States to the signer, grantor or maker and that is set forth on the identification card or passport; or any other number that could be used to identify the signer, grantor or maker of the document. Section 87.40 does not prohibit a notary from recording a number related to the residence or alleged residence of the signer, grantor or maker of the document or the instrument.

  Entries in the notary's book are public information. A notary public shall, on payment of all fees, provide a certified copy of any record in the notary public's office to any person requesting the copy.

  A notary public who administers an oath pursuant to Article 45.019 of the Code of Criminal Procedure is exempt from the requirement of recording that oath in the notary public’s record book.

  Notary Seal

  Tex. Gov't. Code Ann. § 406.013 requires a Notary Public to use a seal of office to authenticate the Notary Public’s official acts. Section 406.013 states:

  1. A notary public shall provide a seal of office that clearly shows, when embossed, stamped, or printed on a document, the words "Notary Public, State of Texas" around a star of five points, the notary public's name, and the date the notary public's commission expires. Notaries public commissioned for the first time on or after January 1, 2016, and notaries public renewing their commissions on or after that date must have their notary ID number on their seal of office. See Section 406.013 of the Texas Government Code as amended by HB 1683 (PDF). The notary public shall authenticate all official acts with the seal of office.
  2. The seal may be a circular form not more than two inches in diameter or a rectangular form not more than one inch in width and 2½ inches in length. The seal must have a serrated or milled edge border.
  3. The seal must be affixed by a seal press or stamp that embosses or prints a seal that legibly reproduces the required elements of the seal under photographic methods. An indelible inkpad must be used for affixing by a stamp the impression of a seal on an instrument to authenticate the notary public's official act.
  4. Subsection (c) does not apply to an electronically transmitted authenticated document, except that an electronically transmitted authenticated document must legibly reproduce the required elements of the seal.

  Change of Address

  Tex. Gov't. Code Ann. § 406.019 requires a Notary Public to notify the Secretary of State of any change of address within ten (10) days of the date on which the change is made. You may fill out a Notary Public Change of Address form or send a letter with your name, social security number, old address, and new address to: Secretary of State, Notary Public Unit, P. O. Box 13375, Austin, Texas 78711-3375. You may also file your change of address online. The failure to update your address may result in revocation of your commission if you fail to respond to a complaint or a request for information (1 TAC §87.50(b)).

  Unauthorized Practice of Law

  An attorney or similar trained legal professional often holds the position of a Notary Public in Mexico and many foreign countries. To avoid deception by such persons and to dispel erroneous assumptions, the Texas Legislature enacted § 406.017 of the Government Code. Section 406.017 states:

  1. A person commits an offense if the person is a notary public and the person:
     1. states or implies that the person is an attorney licensed to practice law in this state;
     2. solicits or accepts compensation to prepare documents for or otherwise represent the interest of another in a judicial or administrative proceeding, including a proceeding relating to immigration to the United States, United States citizenship, or related matters;
     3. solicits or accepts compensation to obtain relief of any kind on behalf of another from any officer, agency, or employee of this state or the United States;
     4. uses the phrase “notario or “notario publico” to advertise the services of a notary public, whether by signs, pamphlets, stationary or other written communication or by radio or television.
     5. advertises the services of a notary public in a language other than English, whether by signs, pamphlets, stationary or other written communication or by radio or television; if the person does not post or otherwise include the notice with the advertisement a notice that complies with Subsection (b).

     "I AM NOT AN ATTORNEY LICENSED TO PRACTICE LAW IN TEXAS AND MAY NOT GIVE LEGAL ADVICE OR ACCEPT FEES FOR LEGAL ADVICE."

     Revocation or Suspension of Commission by the Secretary of State

     Tex. Gov't Code Ann. § 406.004 requires that if the secretary of state discovers, at any time, that an applicant to be a notary public or a commissioned notary public is not eligible to serve as a notary public, the secretary of state shall:

     1. reject the application; or
     2. revoke the commission.

     Tex. Gov't. Code Ann. § 406.009 gives the Secretary of State the authority to reject an application, or suspend or revoke the commission of any Notary Public for "good cause".

     1. The secretary of state may, for good cause, reject an application or suspend or revoke the commission of a notary public.
     2. An action by the secretary of state under this section is subject to the rights of notice, hearing, adjudication, and appeal.
     3. An appeal under this section is to the district court of Travis County. The secretary of state has the burden of proof, and the trial is conducted de novo.
     4. in this section, "good cause" includes:
        1. a false statement knowingly made in an application;
        2. the failure to comply with Section 406.017;
        3. a final conviction for a violation of law concerning the regulation of the conduct of notaries public in this or another state;
        4. the imposition on the notary public of an administrative, criminal, or civil penalty for a violation of a law or rule prescribing the duties of a notary public;
        5. performing any notarization when the person for whom the notarization is performed did not personally appear before the notary at the time he notarization is executed.

        Fees Posted

        Section 603.008 of the Government Code requires a Notary Public to keep posted the fees that a notary is authorized by law to charge.

        A county judge, clerk of a district or county court, sheriff, justice of the peace, constable, or notary public shall keep posted at all times in a conspicuous place in the respective offices a complete list of fees the person may charge by law.

        Fee Book

        Section 603.006 of the Government Code requires a Notary Public who charges a fee for notary services to keep a fee book.

        An officer who by law may charge a fee for a service shall keep a fee book and shall enter in the book all fees charged for services rendered.

        To Itemize Costs

        Section 603.007 of the Government Code states that a Notary Public must itemize or be prepared to itemize the fees that the notary charges for performing notarial services.

        A fee under this chapter is not payable to a person until a clerk or officer produces, or is ready to produce, a bill in writing containing the details of the fee to the person who owes the fee. The bill must be signed by the clerk or officer to whom the fee is due or who charges the fee or by the successor in office or legal representative of the clerk or officer.

        Fees

        Tex. Gov't. Code Ann. § 406.024 sets out the maximum fees a Notary Public, or their employer, may charge for notary public services. A Notary Public who charges more than the maximum set out below subjects the notary to possible criminal prosecution and suspension or revocation of the notary’s notary public commission by the Secretary of State's office.