RON Will NOT Replace In-Person Notarization — Here’s Why Our Industry Is NOT Dying (And Why We Must Stand Together)

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RON Will NOT Replace In-Person Notarization — Here’s Why Our Industry Is NOT Dying (And Why We Must Stand Together)

There’s a persistent myth floating around — even among some long-time Notaries — that “traditional notarization is a dying industry” and that RON is going to wipe out in-person Notaries across the country.

With respect, that’s simply not true.
Not legally.
Not practically.
Not economically.
Not operationally.

Below are the actual facts, backed by state law, industry data, and lender policies — and they show clearly why in-person notarization is NOT disappearing and why RON will never replace physical presence nationwide.

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  1. MANY documents are legally forbidden from being notarized remotely.

In RON-authorized states, these documents often still require in-person notarization:
• Wills
• Trusts
• Power of attorney
• Advance healthcare directives
• Adoption paperwork
• Court documents
• Apostilles
• Marriage documents
• Certain recordable real estate documents

These are core, high-stakes documents — and states will never allow them to be notarized over a webcam.

  1. Major states have rejected RON or significantly limited it.

The idea that “RON is taking over the country” ignores the reality that:
• California has rejected multiple RON bills
• New York, Massachusetts, and Georgia maintain strict in-person requirements
• Oregon and Rhode Island have extremely tight restrictions
• County recorders across the U.S. REFUSE certain RON documents

If RON were “taking over,” the largest states (and their Secretaries of State) wouldn’t be fighting it.

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  1. Lenders and title insurers do NOT trust RON for all transactions.

This is a major point most people miss.

Many lenders, underwriters, and title companies still reject RON for:
• purchase loans
• trust property transactions
• commercial loans
• certain refinances
• high-liability instruments

Why?

Because RON increases:
• identity fraud
• deepfake ID attempts
• coercion risk
• signer misrepresentation
• recording errors
• investor rejection

RON is allowed, but not trusted — and not universally accepted.

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  1. RON usage in real estate is STILL under 10% nationwide.

According to ALTA and MISMO data, the overwhelming majority of real estate signings are still in-person, wet-signature closings.

After more than 10 years of RON availability, adoption has remained:
• slow,
• inconsistent,
• and heavily lender-dependent.

A “takeover” would show exponential adoption.
Instead, the curve is flat.

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  1. A large segment of the population CANNOT use RON.

RON discriminates — unintentionally — against:
• elderly signers
• low-income families
• rural communities
• people without high-speed internet
• people without a computer
• people who are not tech-savvy
• hospital patients
• nursing home residents
• individuals needing jail/prison notarizations

These groups make up millions of notarizations annually.

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  1. In-person notarization is essential for fraud prevention.

A webcam cannot detect:
• tension between signers
• coercion or duress
• impaired signers
• unseen individuals in the room
• physical intimidation
• body language red flags
• nervous behavior
• incomplete understanding

We are more than stampers — we are the front-line fraud prevention mechanism in the American legal system.

No software can replicate what a live human Notary sees.

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  1. The idea that “Notaries are dying because of RON” is a fear narrative — not a fact-based one.

What is harming Notaries is:
• low-ball fees
• massive printing demands
• free rescans
• unpaid cancellations
• lack of fee standards
• signing services taking large cuts
• Notaries undercharging due to misinformation
• organizations pushing RON for profit

In-person notarization is NOT dying.
Fair compensation, transparency, and standards are what need protecting.

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  1. What we DO need is unity, education, and standard-setting — not fear.

We need to:
• Stand together
• Stop accepting excessively low fees
• Demand proper compensation for large packages
• Require cancellation fees
• Set expectations on printing
• Push for transparent page counts
• Uphold professional standards
• Stop allowing signing services to exploit us
• Build a centralized resource outside the NNA

This industry survives when Notaries stop racing to the bottom and start supporting each other through consistent standards.

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Final Point

RON is a useful tool — but it is not the future of everything.
In-person Notaries will continue to be:
• necessary
• legally required
• preferred by lenders
• safer for consumers
• essential for fraud prevention

Our industry is NOT dying.
But we DO need to raise our standards collectively — because no one is going to protect Notaries except Notaries.

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I agree with most of your statement, Ron will never replace a live notary.

In Florida,

Key Considerations for Specific Documents

Document Type General RON Status Specific Considerations
Wills & Trusts Generally permitted in RON states. Some states initially excluded them, but many, including Florida, now allow them with strict remote witnessing and storage requirements (e.g., use of a “qualified custodian” for electronic wills).
-— -—
Power of Attorney Widely accepted for RON. Florida law has specific rules regarding the remote grant of certain significant powers (“superpowers”) within a POA, which might require the witnesses to be in the physical presence of the principal.
-— -—
Advance Healthcare Directives Often permitted. Laws typically require witnessing or notarization; RON can facilitate this process where authorized.
-— -—
Real Estate Documents Widely accepted for RON. Real estate transactions are one of the most frequent uses for online notarization. Connecticut is an exception, specifically excluding real estate finance transactions from its RON law.
-— -—
Court Documents & Adoption Paperwork Varies, but many affidavits and motions are accepted. Some records, like those relating to the electoral process or the creation of vital records, may be excluded.
-— -—

I do agree we should unite with caution…..

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@antonio would you please cite your reference for this information? I suspect I know the answer but would appreciate your input.

Thank you.

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@Ntrylsa84 just so you’re aware, CA has passed a bill for RON but it’s not effective until 2030

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Good Morning Linda

Basically Chapter 117 - Florida Statutes Law.

I am a RON notary with over 3K sessions and most of the documents highlighted above I have done online with exception of Marriages (Not Allowed) and Apostilles (needs additional steps to complete).

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Good Morning Antonio

Nowhere in F.S. 117 does it itemize what docs can and cannot be remotely notarized. I concede to your experience as I am not a RON notary, but the info you posted previously is not elicited in the Florida Statutes. And that’s why I asked you for the source of this particular information.

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Linda,

You should take the additional courses to become an Online Notary it’s actually fun and stress free. No traffic, No printing, No Scanning, No Dropping off packages and I get paid the next day for ALL WORK completed the following day.

You can pull out the information to support my run down. yes it’s not that easy since it’s all legal wording and some of the information above was given to me by NNA and others by calling the state department to clarify.

Are you a “Notary Singing Agent”? If not I suggest to join.

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To reply to your question…used to be a Signing Agent…still a notary but no longer doing loan signings - but keep up with notary law. Not interested in RON - IMO (a) no market where I am for it and (b) don’t trust it so have no interest.

Best of Luck to you

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Sing for your supper, Girl. LOL.

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@johnsonps306 okay, guess joke’s on me cuz I have no idea what you’re talking about.

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Thanks for the comment, Linda. Just to clarify the California RON situation accurately:

Yes — California did pass Senate Bill 696 in 2023, which authorizes the framework for future RON in the state. But that does not mean California notaries can perform RON right now, nor does it mean traditional notarization is going away anytime soon.

Here are the actual details from the Secretary of State and multiple industry sources:

  1. SB 696 does not become fully operative until January 1, 2030 — or later.
    The law requires the California Secretary of State to build and implement a full technical system before RON can go live. That system is not built yet.
    (Source: CA Secretary of State, National Notary Association) THIS IS A BIG IF !

Linda, you also have to look at this from a practical and regulatory standpoint. This is the California real estate and financial market we’re talking about — the most heavily regulated, highest-volume, highest-fraud-risk market in the country. There is no world where California rolls out a brand-new RON system without years of testing, revision, compliance audits, and fraud-prevention safeguards.

Even once the law becomes “operative,” the technical system itself has to be:
• built
• tested
• audited
• certified
• integrated with county recorders
• integrated with lenders
• integrated with escrow and title systems

That alone is a multi-year process in a state as large, litigious, and regulated as California.

But beyond the technical side, there’s the human factor California cannot replicate in software:
• detecting coercion
• identifying duress
• observing impaired behavior
• noticing who else is in the room
• catching fraudulent or altered IDs
• spotting hesitation or unwillingness
• preventing elder financial abuse

A webcam cannot replace those judgment calls.
Every Secretary of State knows this.
Every title insurer knows this.
Every fraud investigator knows this.

And yes — if RON were rolled out irresponsibly, organized fraud would absolutely exploit it. That’s exactly why California has been slower and more cautious than other states.

So while the law is technically on the books, the idea that RON is “replacing” in-person notarization in California ignores the real-world obstacles, the fraud concerns, the lender restrictions, and the sheer complexity of the California real estate ecosystem.

In-person notarization isn’t dying here — it’s still the backbone of fraud prevention, and it will be for a very long time.

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I was approved as a RON notary years ago in PA. As far as I know, it’s not being used for refis, except for hybrids where the borrower signs certain docs online and then I go out and do the usual stuff.

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Throughout my life, I’ve come to embrace the wisdom embedded in the saying, “never say never.” Observing the world around me, and reflecting on the profound changes witnessed, especially over the past six decades, serves as a compelling testament to the incredible transformations that have unfolded. Among these transformations, technological advancements undeniably stand out as one of the most remarkable and pervasive forces shaping our present reality. Consider, for example, how online shopping has fundamentally reshaped and redefined the retail industry, moving it far beyond its traditional confines. Similarly, online transactions have not only revolutionized but have also become the very backbone of how we conduct banking, insurance, and investment transactions, significantly altering the landscape of these critical financial sectors and the processes associated with them. Given these precedents and the accelerating pace of technological evolution, it is, in my opinion, only a matter of time before we witness analogous shifts and transformations within the realm of notary services, demanding our attention and strategic adaptation. While acknowledging the undeniable march of technological progress and its potential to reshape various aspects of our lives, I remain unconvinced that in-person notarizations are destined for complete obsolescence. Instead, I anticipate that as technology continues to advance, we will likely see evolving methodologies and innovative approaches to how notarization services are delivered, rather than a total replacement of the traditional in-person model. It is my belief that the human element, the ability to observe nuances, and the capacity for real-time assessment will remain essential components of ensuring the integrity and security of notarization processes, particularly in contexts where fraud prevention and the safeguarding of vulnerable individuals are paramount. Therefore, while I foresee changes and adaptations driven by technological innovation, I am not prepared to accept the notion that the core function of in-person notarization will become entirely redundant, but I will not say “never”.

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I tend to agree that it will not replace in-person notarization. Some lenders will always want to do hybrid closings, which still involves in-person notary, and some will probably always prefer all documents be signed in-person.

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I can not 100% agree with your post. I agree that in person notary is here for now. My generation now age 45-50 are the first to grow up in our teen years with a PC at home. I highly suspect as time goes on, RON will become more widely accepted as the baby boomer generation is fully retired. As younger, more electronically advanced generations take over, things such as RON may very well become the norm. Same as with any other invention. I’m sure it took years for it to be normal that almost every family in America have electricity, then a car, then a phone, TV. On and on.

The people who are still being so strict about the in person laws and such will also slowly be replaced with a younger generation. Not saying it will happen in the next few years, but maybe in the next 15 years, we will be seeing something very different than today.

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Hands down, this is the best synopsis of what has been happening in the notary world. I see AI creations and scratch my head at the ease of which a RON situation can be manipulated by some very bad people. I couldn’t bring myself to take that path simply because my training said to look for coercion and protect those who would be taken advantage of. I will continue with the old school approach and show up in person every time. It’s my small way to do the job the way it was intended to be done.

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Yes, I agree that you bring up some very insightful and valid points regarding how each generation’s acceptance of technological changes and advancements seems to differ, and how that could impact the future of our industry..

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Yes, I appreciate you highlighting the contrast between the “old school” methodologies and the “new school” approaches, particularly concerning the acceptance and integration of technological advancements within our profession and how that dynamic is shaping the future landscape of notarization services.

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There’s still a misunderstanding when it comes to RON (Remote Online Notarization) notifications, so here’s my perspective. The biggest difference between “old-school” notaries and newer technology is that traditional notaries still provide a human touch and can handle many requests that RON platforms legally cannot. For example, weddings cannot be performed online in the state of Florida.

In-person notaries are also essential in hospitals, jails, and hospice facilities, especially when assessing the signer’s mental capacity is critical.

However, when it comes to security and verifying identity, Remote Online Notarization has strong advantages. RON platforms don’t just check IDs — they use knowledge-based authentication with questions only the signer should know, along with facial recognition and other security measures.

Another key difference: with traditional notarization, there is no recording to review later. But a RON session is fully recorded, providing a secure, court-acceptable audit trail of exactly what took place.

Both options have their place, but understanding the differences helps people choose the right service for their situation.

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Here is a through for the future. What if all the title companies has a room with 10 or 20 in house notaries to handle all their business, where will standard notaries be in those days?