HI I’m a new signing agent and I’m pulling my hair and spending alot of money on the wrong things apparently. I applied with the state to be a electronic notary and didnt realize i had to buy an electronic seal. I signed up with Docusign and my notary stamp was on there but couldn’t figure out how to use it. Anybody willing to be a mentor to me before i go through my whole life savings! LOL
Unless you tell us which state you are a notary in, no answers are possible. Even the definition of basic phrases such as “notary stamp” and “electronic notary seal” vary from one state to another.
You don’t have to buy an electronic seal to be an eNotary.
Apparently, you are looking at two different things. An eNotary completes hybrid or electronic face-to-face signings with borrowers/buyers/sellers. Typically, these signings require a mix of wet signatures (on paper documents) and edocs (signed electronically on your device). You notarize the paper docs using your regular stamp. The signing is initiated by the title company - you sign into their software and establish your identity with them ahead of time. At the table, you sign in again, load the package, and go through the signing with the borrowers.
Remote Online Notarization (RON) allows a notary to forgo the personal appearance requirement and allows us to oversee a signing and notarize docs via a webcam. It requires an electronic certificate and seal, available through several companies (Notarize, Pavaso, Clear Sign, etc.) Here in the State of Washington, a notary must have both an electronic records endorsement AND a remote online notarization endorsement.
I prefer Pavaso. Pavaso requires that all notaries be certified through their eNotary process first, to establish your credentials. This process costs $99, with a renewal of $59 per year. Once that is completed, you request training for RON. You must pass with a certain percentage. Once you do so, you will be issued an electronic seal. You will pay a monthly fee of $69 to retain your seal. This fee is in addition to the fees for eNotary. If your eNotary status lapses, so does your electronic seal.
When you sign up with a company, be certain to make sure you stress your status as an independent single notary, so you will not be quoted fees for a signing service or company. Those run in the thousands of dollars.
State of Washington just endorsed RON for an emergency period of 3/27 through April 25. (We now expect it to be extended to permanent status prior to April 25.) I have had my electronic records endorsement since 2018, but just received my RON endorsement. Pavaso is backed up with applications for RON training right now, but hopefully I will be able to certify by the end of next week.
I hope this helps.
Thank you so much. I am in PA. I just ordered an electronic seal for $15 dollars. If I’m signing the docs electronically don’t I have to have an electronic seal? RON is not legal in my state yet even temporarily. So I just want to be able to sign things electronically as a notary.
I set up a DocuSign account years ago just to see how it worked. I poked around a bit and found out a few things.
Have you seen this page from the PA DOS? Among other things, they have a FAQ. The FAQ has an interesting passage:
Finally, the eNotary’s official stamp may be attached to or logically associated with the certificate. It may be the stamp information in text form or an electronic image attached to or logically associated with an electronic record.
From what I read, DocuSign prefers to generate their own version of your seal (which Pennsylvania and my state, Vermont, call an “official stamp”). Since the passage says as long as the certificate has text giving the information from your official stamp, I’ll bet DocuSign will generate your stamp and won’t make use of the $15 item you bought. Perhaps you can contact the company you got it from and get your money back, since it’s pretty much useless and/or unnecessary.
It looks like the DocuSign platform leaves marketing pretty much up to you. You would have to somehow attract the attention of someone who wants an in-person electronic notarization. I don’t think there’s much demand for that. The main situation I could imagine it being useful is if someone wanted to get a document notarized and then send it immediately, so they wouldn’t have to wait for FedEx or UPS to deliver it.
Thank you for responding. I’m flying blind here not sure what I need and don’t need.
Another blind flyer here. I, too, am trying to wade through what to do, not to do, and with whom to do it. Texas has its own unique qualifications. I obtained a certificate, then a supposed signature stamp. When I submitted it to the Texas SoS, they rejected it. Said I need a T-569 (or some such #) signature. Have no idea where to get that. It really is frsutreating
Is there a difference between a notary “signature” and the notary “stamp.”?
rwalker05, Texas distinguishes between in-person electronic notarizations and what they call “online notarizations”.
See the Texas notary FAQ page. Any Texas notary can perform an in-person electronic notarization, where the notary and the signer meet in the same physical place, at the same time, with their computers. The oral part of the notarization ceremony is done as usual. The notary asks something appropriate for the act being performed, such as “Did you sign voluntarily for the reasons given in the document?” or “Do you swear you are familiar with the contents of this document and it is true, so help you God?” and the signer says “Yes.”
Instead of signing pieces of paper, the electronic documents are signed with computers. The electronic part seems to have very little in the way of rules; looks like the signer and notary can use whatever technology they feel is sufficiently secure.
What Texas calls an “online notary” does notarizations without being in the physical presence of the signer; an audio-video connection is used instead. That has a whole different set of rules. See the Texas online notary getting started guide.
Which of these are you interested in doing?
Hi @judikidd I know is an old post, but can you please answer me what kind of device is needed to do Pavaso or RON?
IPad? Regular laptop?.. I have an HP old laptop, and would like to know if that would be enough.
Thanks in advance 
Has anyone used this website to generate their Custom Digital Notary Seal? They charge $3.99.
https:// digitalnotaryseal .com/
If not, what would you recommend?
I wouldn’t offer a recommendation without knowing which state you are commissioned in. Also, it depends on what method you intend to use for in-person electronic notarization or remote online notarization.
To be ready when Vermont finally issues rules, I created a round image of my stamp using PowerPoint. Since Vermont allows a rectangular stamp, I could have used dozens of different programs to create an image.
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