How to Become a Notary in Missouri (2026): Requirements, Cost & Steps

Requirements verified July 19, 2026 against Missouri Secretary of State (Commissions Division)

Missouri makes you study before you apply: every applicant must read the state's notary handbook or take the free Secretary of State training course and score at least 80% on the state's exam. After that it's a $25 application, a $10,000 surety bond, and a swearing-in at your county clerk's office for a four-year commission.

Missouri is one of the minority of states that checks whether you actually learned the rules before commissioning you. Since the notary law was rewritten in 2020 (HB 1655, effective August 28, 2020), every applicant attests to reading the Missouri Notary Public Handbook or completing the Secretary of State's training — a free online course or a written version — and must score at least 80% on the state's exam. It sounds heavier than it is: the course is short, free, and the quiz is open-book.

The money side is ordinary: $25 to the state, a $10,000 surety bond for the four-year term, and a seal and journal. The step people miss is the finish line — approval from the SOS doesn't make you a notary. You have 60 days to appear at your county clerk's office with the bond, take the oath, and leave a specimen signature; under RSMo 486.615 the commission only becomes effective once the clerk has your oath and bond in hand.

Missouri caps notarial fees at $5 per signature, so single documents are pocket change — signing agents and remote online notaries are where commissions earn. RON has been live since August 2020: it takes a second state-approved course and exam plus a registration with the Secretary of State, and you must be standing on Missouri soil for every remote session.

Who can become a notary in Missouri?

• Age: at least 18 years old.
• Residency: You must live in Missouri or have a regular place of work or business in the state. Non-residents who work in Missouri can be commissioned (using the non-resident application, Comm. 53) if they will use the seal in the course of that employment and authorize the Secretary of State to accept service of legal papers for them.
• Background: Under RSMo 486.605 the Secretary of State may reject applicants for a material misstatement on the application, for felony convictions or offenses involving dishonesty (a five-year waiting period applies), for civil findings involving deceit, or for prior discipline against a notarial or professional license. It is a case-by-case review rather than a lifetime ban — contact the SOS Commissions Division if you have a record.
• Able to read and write English.
• Must reside legally in the United States.
• Must pass the Secretary of State's examination with a score of 80% or better (RSMo 486.630).

How to apply: step by step

1. Read the Missouri Notary Public Handbook, then complete the state's training: the free online notary training course on the Secretary of State's website or the written course (Comm. 59). The law requires you to attest to having read the handbook or received the prescribed training.
2. Pass the Secretary of State's examination — the quiz that follows the course — with a score of at least 80%. You attest to this on the application.
3. Submit the Application for Commission as a Notary Public (Comm. 51 for residents, Comm. 53 for non-residents who work in Missouri) online through the SOS notary portal or by mail, with the $25 non-refundable fee payable to the State Director of Revenue.
4. Wait for the SOS to approve the application and send your commission paperwork to your county clerk. The SOS instructs you to appear at the county clerk's office within 60 days of approval — confirm your deadline in your approval notice.
5. Buy a $10,000 surety bond from a Missouri-licensed surety covering the four-year term, and take it to the county clerk. The clerk administers the oath of office, takes your handwritten specimen signature, and you receive your commission — it isn't effective until the oath and bond are presented to the clerk (RSMo 486.615). Counties may charge a small swearing-in fee.
6. Order your official seal (rectangular or circular, with your name, commission number, 'Notary Public,' 'Notary Seal,' 'State of Missouri,' and your expiration date) and a journal — Missouri requires a journal of every notarial act (RSMo 486.700).

How long it takes: The Secretary of State doesn't publish a fixed turnaround for approving applications, but the commission isn't active until you complete the county clerk swearing-in — and the SOS gives you 60 days from approval to do that, so the overall timeline is partly in your hands.

What it costs in Missouri

Exam and training

Exam: Yes — but it's an open-book quiz, not a proctored sitting. RSMo 486.630 requires a score of 80% or better on an examination administered by the Secretary of State, taken after the state's online or written training course. Most applicants pass on the first try.

Required course: Required. Every applicant must attest to having read the Missouri Notary Public Handbook or completed training prescribed by the Secretary of State — in practice, the SOS's free online course or its written course (Comm. 59) — before the exam and application.

Can you notarize online in Missouri? RON allowed

Yes — Missouri authorizes remote online notarization (RON). Authorized by HB 1655 (2020), effective August 28, 2020 (RSMo 486.1100–486.1205). The remote registration must be renewed when the underlying commission is renewed.

To add RON to your commission: You must be a commissioned Missouri notary, complete an additional SOS-approved course of instruction on remote online notarization and pass its exam (RSMo 486.1125), and register your remote capability with the Secretary of State before performing any remote acts — you can file the RON registration together with a new commission application. You must be physically inside Missouri when performing a remote act, use compliant technology with a registered electronic signature and seal, and keep an electronic journal. Any registration fee or approved-course pricing isn't spelled out in the statute — confirm details with the SOS Commissions Division.

Full guide: how to become a remote online notary.

After you're commissioned

Get your stamp and journal. Required on every certificate. Under RSMo 486.730 the seal must be a sharp, legible, permanent, photographically reproducible image placed near your signature, with a rectangular or circular border no thicker than 1/16 inch, showing: your name exactly as commissioned, your commission number, 'Notary Public,' 'Notary Seal,' 'State of Missouri,' and 'My commission expires [date].' An embosser may be used only in addition to the inked seal, never instead of it, and the seal can't be placed over writing. See the new-notary supplies checklist and Missouri stamp requirements before you order.

What you can charge: Missouri caps notary fees at $5 per signature. RSMo 486.685 caps charges at $5 per signature for acknowledgments, jurats, and signature witnessings, and $1 per certified page (with a $3 minimum total). Charging less or nothing is allowed. Travel fees are permitted if agreed in advance. Electronic notarizations follow the separate fee provision in RSMo 486.960.

E&O insurance: Not required. The bond exists to compensate the public for notary misconduct, and the surety can recoup payments from the notary, so optional errors-and-omissions insurance is what protects you.

Earning more with your commission

Most new notaries who turn the commission into real income do it through loan signings — notarizing mortgage document packages for title companies. If that interests you, start with what a loan signing agent actually does and earns. Loan signing agent guide

Missouri notary FAQ