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    FAQ / Do I have to personally appear before a Notary in order to notarize a document?

    Both signers and Notaries have asked the NNA over the years whether notarizations can be performed if the signer is not actually present before the Notary. "Maybe," these people might say, "the signer and Notary could communicate over the phone or online, or base the notarization on the Notary's familiarity with the signature."
    The way modern technology has simplified communication is phenomenal, except when it leads to the notion that personal appearance during a notarization should be left by the wayside. If the signer does not personally appear before the Notary with the document in hand, the entire notarization is meaningless, even if the document is faxed or e-mailed to the Notary.
    For one thing, the Notary has absolutely no way of knowing whether the signer willingly signed the document. Think about it: If the Notary is on the phone with the signer, how is the Notary to know whether there isn't a third party with the signer coercing the notarization? How is the Notary to know whether the signer is looking at a document copy that is slightly but significantly different?
    Also, how can the Notary make a journal record of the notarization when the signer isn't there to provide a signature, thumbprint and identification information? Personal appearance by the signer is crucial if the Notary is to record the notarial act in a journal, which is mandatory in many states.
    "Personal appearance is the backbone of notarization," Faerber said. "The Notary simply cannot do his or her job properly if the signer is not physically present."
    The same is true even if the Notary personally knows the signer, Faerber added.
    "Personally knowing the signer over a long period of time gives the Notary no additional insight as to whether the signer has willingly signed a particular document," he said.
    If for some reason the signer cannot appear before the Notary, the use of a subscribing witness is allowed in some states. A subscribing witness is someone who has seen the principal signer sign the document or has taken the principal's acknowledgment of the signature and appears before the Notary on behalf of the absent principal. The Notary would then give an oath or affirmation to that subscribing witness.
    There must always be someone physically present before the Notary for the notarization to take place.

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