Notary application

A notary public is an officer commissioned by the Michigan Secretary of State to serve as an unbiased and impartial witness on business, public and other documents. The most common function of the notary is to prevent fraud by attesting to the identity of a person signing a document. A notarization on a document certifies that the person whose signature is entered on the document personally appeared before the notary, established their identity, and personally signed the document in the presence of the notary.

You must:

• Be at least 18 years old;
• Be a Michigan resident or maintain a place of business in Michigan;
• Be a U.S. citizen or possess proof of legal presence;
• Be a resident of the county (or maintain a principal place of business) in which you request appointment;
• Read and write in the English language;
• Be free of any felony convictions within the past 10 years;
• Have not been convicted of 2 or more misdemeanor offenses involving a violation of the Michigan Notary Public Act within a 12-month period while commissioned, or 3 or more misdemeanor offenses involving a violation of this act within a 5-year period regardless of being commissioned;
• Have filed with the appropriate county clerk a proper surety bond in the amount of $10,000 and taken the oath of office as prescribed by the State Constitution;
• Sign a declaration that all information on application is correct, that you have read the Michigan Notary Public Act, and that you will perform all notarial acts faithfully.
• Any individual currently serving a term of imprisonment in any state, county or federal correctional facility is prohibited from being appointed or serving as a notary public.

Yes. As with any notarization of documents you must remember to include your name as it appears on your notary public certificate, the county of appointment, date of expiration, and "Acting in the County of ____________."

No. You can only notarize in Michigan. This has not changed.