So You Want To Be A Notary Public? – Obtaining your Commission
In Part 1 of “So You Want To Be A Notary Public”, I discussed the required classes, that you must attend either online or in person, as well as the California state mandated test. After taking the 6 hour class and taking the test your next step is to…… wait….
The Wait….
The State of California doesn’t often get in too big of a hurry when processing the Notary Public tests. As such you may get your test results in 1 week or you might have to wait up to 1 month. In most cases you will receive your test results within about 10 business days and even faster if you provide the testing facility with your email address.
Unfortunately, while you’re waiting for your test results there isn’t much else you can do to help the Notary commission process move along. So wait you must.
The Big Day!
You’ll know that your test results are on their way when you start receiving Notary Public supply offers from various vendors in the mail. You will normally receive these materials the day *BEFORE* you receive your actual test results.
Selling Notary Public supplies is big business and there are no lack of vendors to choose from when buying your supplies – but we’ll talk about that a bit later (in part 3)…
The day has arrived and there it is, sitting in your mailbox – the non-descript white envelope from the California Secretary of State with your Notary Public test results.
Congratulations! You’ve passed the Notary Public Exam and now it’s time to get your background check completed.
Along with the test results will be instructions on where to obtain the Live Scan Form for your background check. You’ll need to print out the Live Scan Form and locate a finger print “rolling location” near you. Many local police or sheriff stations offer Live Scan services and many offer or require an appointment.
I suggest obtaining an appointment as many of the Live Scan locations have limited hours and tend to get very busy with walk-in traffic.
What does the background check cost?
To complete your Notary Public background check, you will need both a State of California and a Federal (FBI) background check. You’ll pay a separate fee for each of these checks. In addition, each Live Scan location may charge a service fee for providing the fingerprinting service.
As of early 2011 when I last has my background check completed the fees were as follows:
- State of California Fee: $32.00
- Federal / FBI Fee: $19.00
- Fingerprint Service Fee: $20.00
- Total Fee: $71.00
After completing your finger printing, you’ll again get to wait while the background checks are completed. This too will take about 10 business days on average, before your results will be forwarded to the California Secretary of State.
Once the Secretary of State has received and reviewed you fingerprint / background check results they will forward your Notary Public Commission to you in the mail.
In the next installment of “So You Want To Be A Notary Public”, I’ll show you how to complete the application process and give you some tips on how to get your business off to a quick start.
Stay tuned…
At Bay Area Mobile Notary, I stay up to date on the latest changes and legal requirements with regard to document and signature notarization within the state of California. If you ever have a question about document notarization – please give me a call, I’m here to help. While I am unable to give legal advice, I never charge for phone consultations for determining the best course of action to help you get your document notarized in the quickest an most efficient way possible.
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