To become a notary in Connecticut, you must meet the following eligibility requirements:
Approximately ninety days before your commission expires, you will receive a letter from the Connecticut Secretary of State’s office, either by mail or email, letting you know that your notary commission is about to expire. The notice will provide you with a PIN to access your notary renewal application online at fast-track renewal. Email the state at bsd@ct.gov if you do not receive the notification email. After successful completion of your notary renewal application, you will be prompted to pay a $60 filing fee. A new Certificate of Appointment will be issued, and, as with an original appointment, you must take the oath of office and record your notary commission and oath of office with the town clerk.
Note: If your notary public commission has been expired for more than ninety days, you will need to request a reinstatement by emailing the Connecticut Secretary of State’s office at bsd@ct.gov.
The Connecticut Secretary of State appoints notaries public. The secretary of state’s notary public unit oversees the applications for appointment and reappointment of notaries public and administers the commissioning process.
Yes. A nonresident can apply to become a notary public in Connecticut. To qualify, a nonresident must meet the same eligibility requirements as a Connecticut resident, setting aside the residency requirement, and maintain a principal place of business in the state of Connecticut at the time of application and appointment.
The term of office of a Connecticut notary public is five years. A notary cannot notarize documents after their notary commission expires without first renewing their notary commission with the secretary of state.
Yes. A new applicant seeking appointment as a Connecticut notary public is required to complete and pass (with a score of 100%) the exam that is incorporated into the online notary public application. The exam is intended to be a comprehensive test of the applicant's knowledge and ability to perform their duties and responsibilities as a notary public.
The cost to become a notary in Connecticut includes:
A notary errors and omissions (E&O) insurance policy is not required to become a Connecticut notary public or to renew your notary commission. However, the American Association of Notaries strongly recommends that every Connecticut notary obtain a notary E&O insurance policy. This insurance protects you from a claim if a client sues you as a notary. A notary E&O policy covers unintentional notarial mistakes and pays for legal fees and damages based on the coverage you select as a Connecticut notary public.
No. New and renewing notary applicants are not required by the state notary statute to procure notary bonds to be appointed as notaries public in the state of Connecticut.
Note: A notary public is liable to any person for damages that result from their negligence, errors, official malfeasance, or omissions. Connecticut notaries are encouraged to purchase a notary E&O insurance policy to insure themselves against such claims.
The Connecticut notary statute does not require Connecticut notaries public to authenticate the notarial acts they perform with an official notarial seal. The use of an official notarial seal is optional.
If a notary public utilizes a notary seal, the following information is required:
The American Association of Notaries offers quality notary stamps and seals at savings of up to 40% or more compared to the same products elsewhere. Click here to order your Connecticut notary stamp, complete notary package, and other notary supplies.
If your Connecticut notary stamp is lost or stolen, you must notify both the local police and the Office of the Secretary of the State. You should also notify the Department of Motor Vehicles, Dealer, Repairers & Emissions Division, in writing, at 60 State Street, Wethersfield, CT 06109. The Secretary’s Office will record the loss or theft to protect the notary.
The maximum allowable fee that a Connecticut notary public may charge for any notarial act performed is $5 plus an additional $0.35 for each mile traveled.
Notary Journal requirements for each type of notarization in Connecticut:
For traditional notarizations and remote notarizations - Connecticut notary law does not require notaries public to maintain a journal of their notarial acts. However, the secretary of state strongly recommends that all Connecticut notaries public maintain a chronological journal of their notarial acts. A journal can be kept in a tangible medium or in an electronic format. If a journal is maintained in a tangible medium, it should be a permanent, paper-bound journal with consecutively numbered pages.
A notary journal (also known as a record book, log book, or register book) is your first line of defense in proving your innocence if a notarial act you performed is questioned or if you are requested to testify in a court of law about a notarial act you performed in the past. A properly recorded notarial act creates a paper trail that will help investigators locate and prosecute signers who have committed forgery or fraud. Properly recorded notarial acts provide evidence that you followed your state laws and notary’s best practices.
The American Association of Notaries offers notary journals in tangible and electronic formats.
Click here to purchase a tangible notary journal.
Click here to become a member and access our electronic notary journal.
The Connecticut Secretary of State recommends that notaries record the following information:
For traditional notarizations:
For remote notarizations:
Since notary journals are optional, Connecticut notary law does not address this question. We recommend you contact the appropriate law enforcement agency and the Connecticut Secretary of State to report your lost or stolen journal.
Connecticut notary law does not address this question because notary journals are optional. We recommend that you keep your notary journal indefinitely.
Connecticut notaries public have statewide jurisdiction and may perform notarial acts in any county of Connecticut. A notary public must be physically present in Connecticut regardless of whether the notarization is performed in-person or remote.
A Connecticut notary public is authorized to perform these notarial acts (CGS §§3-94a and 1-57):
Note: It is also important to know which notarial acts are allowed by statute but which you should not perform unless you have received specific legal guidance.
Connecticut law allows the following two types of notarizations:
Traditional notarizations – This type of notarization requires the signer and the notary to meet physically in the same room within face-to-face proximity of one another. Traditional notarization involves an individual signing a tangible document with an inked pen and a notary public signing and affixing an inked notary stamp impression to the tangible notarial certificate.
Remote notarizations – The signer appears before a notary via audio-video communication technology. This type of notarization requires the signer and the notary to send the document to each other and for the online notary public to use their physical stamp to notarize the document without the aid of an electronic seal or electronic signature.
Important: The Connecticut Secretary of State’s office is researching whether the Act can be interpreted as allowing a notary and signer to execute the document electronically. Until this issue is resolved, the secretary of state strongly recommends that all remote notarizations be done on paper and that the notary sign and certify the document by hand. For more information on performing notarizations on electronic documents, visit the Connecticut Secretary of State’s website.
As of October 1, 2023, Public Act 23-2, authorizes a Connecticut notary public to notarize a document for a person who is not in the notary’s physical presence under specific conditions. These conditions must be followed for a remote notarization to be effective.
A remote notarization involves the following conditions:
Notaries are not required to offer remote notarization but may choose to do so in compliance with Public Act 23-2.
If your address changes during your term, you must notify the Connecticut Secretary of State within thirty days of the change. Non-resident notaries must maintain a principal place of business in Connecticut and must report any change in the address of their business or residence. Address changes may be reported using the online eLicense system on the secretary of state’s website for a fee of $15.
If you need assistance logging in, you may email the Connecticut Secretary of State Notary Public Licensing Department at bsd@ct.gov.
If you change your name during your term, you are required to notify the Connecticut Secretary of State within thirty days of the change by completing the Change of Name form and emailing it to bsd@ct.gov. Once the change is processed, you will receive an invoice for the $15 name change fee. A replacement certificate of appointment will be emailed to you by the secretary of state once payment is received.
Note: It is not necessary for the notary public to take an oath of office upon receiving a replacement certificate of appointment, but if the notary public has relocated to a new town of residence or principal place of business, the replacement certificate must be recorded with the town clerk of that new town.
Legal disclaimer: The information provided on this page is for general informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as legal advice. We do not claim to be attorneys and we do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information provided. You should always seek the advice of a licensed attorney for any legal matters. It is your responsibility to know the appropriate notary laws governing your state. In no event shall the American Association of Notaries, its employees, or contractors be liable to you for any claims, penalties, losses, damages, or expenses, howsoever arising, including, and without limitation, direct or indirect loss, or consequential loss, out of or in connection with the use of the information contained on any of the American Association of Notaries website pages. Notaries are advised to seek the advice of their state’s notary authorities or attorneys if they have legal questions.
Notary bonds and errors and omissions insurance policies provided by this insurance agency, American Association of Notaries, Inc., are underwritten by Western Surety Company, Universal Surety of America, or Surety Bonding Company of America, which are subsidiaries of CNA Surety.