March, 2023

Save the Date, Notaries!

I want to personally invite you to join us at the Fourth Annual eMortgage conference this October in Greensboro! Can you believe we are on number four?

I was pleased to meet so many of you last year in Charlotte and look forward to you joining us at the Grandover Hotel on October 24 and 25, 2023.

Last year's conference was such a success, and we have YOU to thank for it! Look for more content regarding eMortgage strategies.

Registration opens next month on our website (with a tentative agenda), and we encourage everyone to make their hotel reservations at the Grandover as our room block will sell out quickly. We have negotiated a great rate of $229 per night, and we will provide a list of local hotels in the area as well.

We are bringing the fun to the conference too by hosting a "playdate" on October 23 for those who want to enjoy all of the amenities that the Grandover has to offer. Look for more details about this day over the next couple of months.

If you have any questions, email us at econf@sosnc.gov.

See you in Greensboro!

Thank you to the staff at Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte for hosting our FIFTH Notary Chat last month. And a big thank you to everyone who joined us at CPCC and brought their great questions. We appreciate you!

Secretary Marshall and Ozie with CPCC Dean of Business Rinav Mehta, Notary Director Mona Rabon (who helped us put this great event together) and Notary Instructors Shavon Bowser and Alisha DeBerry.

EVN Is Back and REN Is On The Way

With the signing of House Bill 776 into law, Emergency Video Notarization (EVN) is restored until the end of June while work on Remote Electronic Notarization (REN) rules are underway. In the meantime, here is what you need to know now:

• Emergency Video Notarizations have resumed as a stop-gap measure to allow video notarizations while permanent REN procedures are being put in place. EVN expires on June 30, 2023 at 12:01am.

• There are new or increased fees that notaries public across the state can charge now. The maximum fee that can be charged per principal signature is now $10 for acknowledgments, jurats, and verifications or proofs. For oaths or affirmations without a signature, the maximum fee is now $10 per person, except for the identity of a principal or subscribing witness. The fee for electronic notarizations under G.S. 10B-188 is $15.

• For any notarial act under 10B, actual mileage at the federal mileage rate can be charged if the travel reimbursement is agreed to by the principal in writing prior to travel. (The State of NC uses the federal mileage rate of 62.5 cents per mile.)

• The new Remote Electronic Notarization fee will be $25 per principal signature when REN becomes effective.

There are a lot of things that the Secretary of State's Office will have to work out over the coming months to get ready for REN. We are asking for your patience as we navigate this new law, and we are excited about the new opportunities that REN will open up for our notaries and our state.

Here is a link to EVN resources available on our website: North Carolina Secretary of State Notary Emergency Video Notarization (sosnc.gov)

If you have any questions for us, please reach out to the Department at notary@sosnc.gov. We are always happy to help.

Fast Five Q&A

Q: From our Notary Chat: I've noticed some NC government forms do not have notarized wording or spaces for my stamp. How do I notarize this document?

Most "Government" forms that require notarization will have the language pre-printed on them, which is the indicator of what type of notarial act needs to be performed. If you are presented with a government form lacking notarial language you should ask the signer to verify with the requesting or receiving agency what type of notarial act is needed.

Once they request a specific notarial act, likely an acknowledgment or an oath or affirmation, you can staple the appropriate notarial certificate to the back of the signature page. You can find downloadable NC notary certificates here.

Q: From our FB Group: Can I do a remote oath if the witness in a deposition is not in North Carolina?

The answer is no.

Both you and the witness must physically be in the state of North Carolina.

Q: From our email: Will I need to be an electronic notary to conduct Remote Electronic Notarizations when the law becomes effective?

Yes, you will. In order to be able to perform Remote Electronic Notarizations or (REN) as they are commonly called, a NC traditional notary would need to first register as an electronic notary.

You can find an eNotary course near you at your local community college. You will need to reach out to them to see if this course is offered in-person or online: https://www.nccommunitycolleges.edu/about-us/main-campuses.

Q: From our email: I have a car title to notarize, but the seller filled out the date, county and state where their names should have gone. Can I cross out the information and write over it?

No. Notaries should NEVER make any corrections to the text of ANY document. The full document text is off limits to the notary. 

There are things that can be corrected by the principal on title paperwork, but they should be referred to the Department of Motor Vehicles to determine how to correct mistakes to ensure that they will be acceptable.

Q: From our email: Do I need to notarize a document with a seal onIy, or is a stamp okay too?

You may use both or either. A seal leaves a blind raised or embossed impression on the document, while a stamp leaves an inked impression which is photographically reproducible. 

Either are acceptable to use as long as they have the following four elements contained within a border: the notary name, the words NOTARY PUBLIC, the county of commission, and NC, N.C. or State of North Carolina.

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Do you have a question that you’d like us to answer for the Fast Five? Please send in your tips, practice ideas, and questions for us at notarynews@sosnc.gov. 

Get To "Know" Our Notaries!

Notaries, we know you are doing great things all over North Carolina, and we want everyone else to know it too. Every month, we will feature our notaries (as long as we have submissions). We want to feature YOU!

We'll make it super easy. Just send us a picture of yourself, along with your name, where you are from, the number of years (or months) you have been a commissioned notary, and one fun fact that you want us to know about you.

Email us at notarynews@sosnc.gov.

NC Notary Facebook Group

Have you joined our notary Facebook group yet?

The North Carolina Notary Network

Well, what are you waiting for? More than 15,510 notaries around the state are in the group. If you haven't joined yet, click the link and come on in! 

The purpose of the group is to connect NC notaries as well as to give notaries an opportunity to share information, tips and ideas with one another.

When answering questions for fellow notaries, we encourage sharing page numbers, statutes or even pictures of citations from the 2016 NC

Notary Public Manual.

Click here to join today!

Easter Brunch Ideas

What should be on our Easter Brunch menu this year? We know you are making preparations now. Whether you are entertaining at home, eating alone while watching Netflix, or dining out at a restaurant with friends and family, your Easter brunch should be yummy, colorful and fun!

Here are some fun food ideas and recipes that might tickle your fancy:

Chicken and Waffles: https://www.sweetteaandthyme.com/fried-chicken-waffles-spicy-honey-sauce/

Breakfast Potatoes: https://www.wellplated.com/crockpot-breakfast-potatoes/

Eggs Benedict: www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/eggs_benedict/

Cinnamon Sour Cream Coffee Cake: https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/cinnamon-sour-cream-coffee-cake

Mimosas: https://thesweetestoccasion.com/2016/03/10-mimosa-recipes-for-easter/

Quiche: https://bluebowlrecipes.com/perfect-breakfast-quiche/

Fruit Salad:https://www.theconsciousplantkitchen.com/breakfast-fruit-salad/