Remote notarization for signers outside the US
A signer in Lisbon or Singapore can appear on your screen as easily as one across town. Whether you may notarize for them is your state's call, not the platform's, and most states that allow it attach two conditions: the record must have a US link, and the act must not be barred where the signer is. Then the practical test: whether the platform can identify someone with a foreign ID. Each state's own rule page is under state rules and approved lists.
Checked
Fig. 1Five questions before you start the session
- Are you in your commissioning state?Most of the rules we read put you in your state for every remote act, wherever the signer is.
- Does your state allow a signer outside the US?Most rules we read do, often on conditions; some set no limit, and a few say nothing either way.
- Does the record have a US link?A US court or agency, US property, or a transaction substantially connected with the US.
- Is the act prohibited where the signer is?The rules differ on what you must know: some ask that it is not prohibited, some that you have no actual knowledge it is.
- Can the platform identify this signer?Credential analysis and identity proofing still apply; ask the platform how it handles a foreign ID.
What each state allows
| State | In short | The rule |
|---|---|---|
| Colorado CO | anywhere, with conditions abroad | The notary must be in Colorado. The signer may be anywhere in the United States; outside the U.S., the notary must not know the act is prohibited there and the record must relate to a U.S. matter, property or transaction. C.R.S. § 24-21-514.5(2)(a), (4)(a) |
| Kansas KS | anywhere, with conditions abroad | The notary must be physically in Kansas. A signer outside the United States is allowed if the record relates to a U.S. matter, property or transaction and the act is not prohibited where the signer is. K.S.A. 53-5a15(b)(4) |
| Louisiana LA | Not found | Not found in the sources we read; check your state's current rule. |
| Maine ME | anywhere, with conditions abroad | The notarial officer must be located in Maine. The signer may be in another state or outside the United States; abroad, the record must relate to a U.S. matter, property or transaction and the act must not be prohibited where the signer is. 4 M.R.S. § 1915(3)(D) |
| Maryland MD | anywhere, with conditions abroad | The notary must be located in Maryland. A signer outside the United States is allowed if the record relates to a U.S. court or entity, U.S. property or a transaction substantially connected with the U.S., and the notary has no actual knowledge that the act is prohibited where the signer is. Md. Code, State Gov't § 18-214(a)(4) |
| Missouri MO | anywhere, if not prohibited abroad | The notary must be physically in Missouri. The signer may be in Missouri, elsewhere in the United States, or outside the U.S. if notarization is not prohibited where the signer is. RSMo § 486.1155 |
| Nebraska NE | Not found | Not found in the sources we read; check your state's current rule. |
| Pennsylvania PA | anywhere, with conditions abroad | The notary must be in Pennsylvania. The signer may be in Pennsylvania, another state or U.S. territory, or abroad; abroad, the record must relate to a U.S. court or agency, U.S. property or a transaction substantially connected with the U.S., and the act must not be prohibited where the signer is. 57 Pa.C.S. § 306.1 |
| Florida FL | signer anywhere; notary in Florida | The online notary must be physically in Florida; the principal and witnesses may be anywhere. For a principal outside Florida, confirm (verbally or in writing) that they want a Florida notary under Florida law. A principal outside the United States may use a foreign passport as ID. §§ 117.201(6), 117.209(3), 117.265(1), (3), Fla. Stat. |
| Texas TX | signer anywhere; notary in Texas | The principal may be anywhere; the online notary must be physically in Texas at the time of the notarization. Tex. Gov't Code § 406.110(a); 1 TAC § 87.41(b) |
| Virginia VA | See the rule | The Code sections read set no limit on where the signer is. An electronic notarial act is deemed performed in Virginia and governed by Virginia law, and the certificate names the Virginia county or city where the notary was physically located. Va. Code §§ 47.1-13(D), 47.1-16(A) |
| Washington WA | signer anywhere (outside-US conditions); notary in Washington | The notary must be located in Washington; the remotely located individual may be elsewhere. For an individual outside the United States, the record must relate to a US court or government matter, or to US property or a transaction substantially connected with the US, and the act must not be prohibited where the individual is. RCW 42.45.280(3), (3)(d) |
The US link
Most of the rules we read that set conditions share this one for a signer abroad: the record must have a link to the United States. Maryland's wording is typical. The record must be filed with, or relate to a matter before, a US court, public official or other body under US jurisdiction, or it must involve US property or a US transaction:
“involves property located in the territorial jurisdiction of the United States or involves a transaction substantially connected with the United States”
In practice most of what a signer abroad needs notarized passes: a deed or a power of attorney for a house in Ohio, an affidavit for a US court, closing papers for a US loan. What fails is a record that is purely foreign, say a contract between two parties abroad about property abroad, where your state has no reason to lend its seal. Write in your journal entry what the US link is; it is the question anyone checking the act will ask.
Fig. 2Prohibited where the signer is
The second condition is about the signer's country. The wording matters: Maryland asks only that you have no actual knowledge that the act is prohibited there, while other rules state that the act must not be prohibited where the signer is. Missouri, for instance: The notary must be physically in Missouri. The signer may be in Missouri, elsewhere in the United States, or outside the U.S. if notarization is not prohibited where the signer is.
You are not expected to research foreign law for every session, but you should ask. Put the question to the signer before the session (where are you, and is there any rule there against signing this?), note the answer, and decline if you learn the act is barred.
Identifying a signer abroad
Identity proofing does not relax for a signer abroad, and it is often where the session fails. Credential analysis must read the signer's ID, and the identity quiz must have records to draw on. Florida speaks to the ID directly: A principal outside the United States may use a foreign passport as ID. Virginia allows other routes besides the quiz: Live video and audio, with identity confirmed by personal knowledge, a credible witness, or at least two of: credential analysis of a photo ID; antecedent in-person proofing; another method under § 2.2-436; a digital certificate accessed by biometrics or a PIV card; a knowledge-based authentication quiz (five questions, five choices, 80% to pass, two minutes, up to two more quizzes within 48 hours).
Ask the platform, before you book the session, whether it can proof a signer with a foreign passport and no US address history, and what it offers if the quiz cannot run. The checks are explained in identity proofing in RON; platforms are compared in RON platforms for solo notaries.
Fig. 3When the answer is no
When a step fails, the signer still has routes: a US embassy or consulate's notarial service (check the State Department for what the post offers), a local notary under the law of the country the signer is in, with whatever authentication the receiving party asks for, or, for a paper document, a remote ink session if your state provides for one (remote ink notarization). Ask the party that will receive the document which it accepts before the signer spends money on any of them. When the act does go ahead, the certificate still carries the remote line your state sets; see remote certificate wording by state.
Questions notaries ask
Can I notarize remotely for a signer in another country?
In most of the states whose rules we read, yes, if you are in your commissioning state and the state's conditions are met: usually a US link for the record and no prohibition where the signer is. Check your state's current rule.
What counts as a US link?
In the rules that set this condition, a record to be filed with or relating to a matter before a US court, official or body, or one involving US property or a transaction substantially connected with the US.
Does the signer need a US ID?
Not always. Florida's rule lets a principal outside the US use a foreign passport. Whether the platform's credential analysis and identity quiz can handle that signer is a question for the platform.
Related
- Identity proofing in RON: credential analysis and KBAWhat the two checks are, what states require of each, and what the notary still decides.
- Remote ink notarization vs RONRemote ink-signed notarization and remote online notarization, from the notary's side of the call.
- Florida online notary requirementsThe path to a Florida online notary commission and what the state asks of the notary and the RON service provider.
- What state rules ask of a RON platformThe requirement rows every comparison on this site uses, explained once, with the state source for each.
- Maryland's authorized RON vendorsThe Secretary of State's authorized list, and what being on it does and does not mean.