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

Requirements verified July 19, 2026 against North Carolina Department of the Secretary of State

North Carolina requires a six-hour community-college course and an 80% exam before you can apply (licensed NC attorneys are exempt from the course), a $50 application to the Secretary of State, and an oath at your county register of deeds within 45 days. No bond is required and the commission lasts five years.

North Carolina makes you earn the commission in a classroom: a six-hour course at a community college, a written exam with an 80% passing bar, and a mandatory purchase of the state's own Notary Public Manual — with licensed NC attorneys the only ones excused from the course. It's one of the most education-heavy commissioning systems in the Southeast, and the trade-off is that no surety bond is required at any point.

The sequence matters more than the money here. Finish the course, pass the exam, apply to the Secretary of State within three months ($50, plus $3 online), then watch the calendar: your commission is delivered to your county register of deeds, and you get exactly 45 days to show up, pay $10, and swear your oaths, or the whole thing resets. Total cost with tuition, manual, and seal typically runs $150–$250 for the five-year term.

Two things shape the work itself. Fees rose in 2022 to $10 per signature — decent by regional standards — but North Carolina is an attorney-closing state, so residential real estate signings run through law firms rather than independent escrow. And remote notarization is still in transition: the permanent RON law exists on paper at $25 per signature, while Emergency Video Notarization, extended through July 1, 2027, is what actually keeps video notarization legal in the meantime.

Who can become a notary in North Carolina?

• Age: at least 18 years old.
• Residency: You must be at least 18 or legally emancipated, reside legally in the United States, and either live in North Carolina or have a regular place of work or business in the state.
• Background: The Secretary of State screens every applicant's record and may deny a commission over felony convictions or crimes involving dishonesty; North Carolina law generally looks for restored citizenship rights and a clean stretch of time after a felony. Disclose everything — an omission on the application is itself grounds for denial.
• You must be able to speak, read, and write English.
• You need a high school diploma or the equivalent.
• You must purchase and keep the current North Carolina Notary Public Manual as your reference.

How to apply: step by step

1. Enroll in the six-hour notary education course at a North Carolina community college. Licensed members of the N.C. State Bar skip the course but still must buy the manual.
2. Buy the current North Carolina Notary Public Manual — the course and exam are built on it, and keeping it is a statutory requirement.
3. Pass the written exam with a score of 80% or better at the end of the course.
4. Within three months of finishing the course, submit your application to the N.C. Department of the Secretary of State with the $50 non-refundable fee — online through the SOS notary portal (a $3 transaction fee applies) or by mail to the Notary Public Section in Raleigh. Your application signature must be made before a person authorized to administer oaths.
5. When the Secretary of State approves you, your commission is issued through the register of deeds in your county. You have 45 days to appear there, pay the $10 statutory fee, and take your two oaths of office. Let the 45 days lapse and you start over with a new application and another $50.
6. After you're sworn in, order your official seal — circular (1.5 to 2 inches across) or rectangular (up to 1 by 2.5 inches) — and start notarizing.

How long it takes: The Secretary of State doesn't publish a standard approval time; commissions are transmitted to your register of deeds, who notifies you to come take the oath. Ask your course instructor or the Notary Public Section about current backlogs.

What it costs in North Carolina

Exam and training

Exam: Yes — a written exam with an 80% passing score, taken with the six-hour course. Reappointment applicants generally must pass the exam again at each five-year renewal unless exempt (for example, licensed NC attorneys); confirm current recommissioning rules with the Secretary of State.

Required course: Mandatory: a Secretary-approved course of at least six hours of classroom instruction, delivered through North Carolina community colleges. Licensed members of the N.C. State Bar are exempt from the course but not from buying the manual.

Can you notarize online in North Carolina? RON allowed

Yes — North Carolina authorizes remote online notarization (RON). Check the Secretary of State's notary pages before building plans on remote work here — the permanent RON program's registration process and effective rules were still in transition at last verification, with emergency video notarization as the operating stopgap.

To add RON to your commission: Two different tracks exist. Electronic notary (eNotary) registration — $50 fee, a three-hour electronic notarization course at a community college, and an 80% exam — lets you e-sign, but the signer must still appear before you face to face. For notarizing people over video: North Carolina's 2022 law created a permanent remote online notarization framework with a $25-per-signature cap, but its rollout has been delayed; in the meantime the state has repeatedly extended Emergency Video Notarization, currently authorized through July 1, 2027.

Full guide: how to become a remote online notary.

After you're commissioned

Get your stamp and journal. Choose circular or rectangular: circular seals must be 1.5 to 2 inches in diameter, rectangular ones no more than 1 inch high by 2.5 inches long, each with a visible border. The seal must show your name exactly as commissioned, the words 'Notary Public', your county of commissioning, and 'North Carolina' or 'N.C.'. The seal is your exclusive property — an employer can't keep it when you leave. See the new-notary supplies checklist and North Carolina stamp requirements before you order.

What you can charge: North Carolina caps notary fees at $10 per principal signature (acknowledgments, jurats, verifications). G.S. 10B-31, as raised in 2022: $10 per principal signature for acknowledgments, jurats, and verifications or proofs, and $10 per person for oaths or affirmations without a signature. Electronic acknowledgments and jurats can run $15 per signature, and remote notarizations under the RON law are capped at $25 per signature.

E&O insurance: Optional. With no bond in the picture, errors-and-omissions insurance is the only financial protection an NC notary carries if a mistake leads to a claim.

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. That path is limited in North Carolina (see the callout above), so weigh it before investing in training. Loan signing agent guide

North Carolina notary FAQ