AZ Notary Journal and Seal Requirements 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: An Arizona notary moves to a different county within Arizona. What must happen to their official seal?
- The seal remains valid; the notary must update their address on file with the Secretary of State
- The notary must immediately purchase a new seal reflecting the new county (Correct answer)
- The seal is automatically voided and the commission is suspended
- The notary must stop all notarizations until the Secretary of State issues a new commission
Correct answer: The notary must immediately purchase a new seal reflecting the new county
The Arizona notary seal must display the notary's current county, so a new seal showing the updated county is required after moving.
Question 2: Under what circumstance may an Arizona notary refuse to show their journal to an authorized law enforcement officer presenting proper credentials?
- When the journal contains entries from other clients who did not consent
- When an attorney is not present during the inspection
- When the notary's employer has prohibited outside access to the journal
- There are no lawful grounds to refuse an authorized inspection (Correct answer)
Correct answer: There are no lawful grounds to refuse an authorized inspection
An Arizona notary cannot lawfully refuse inspection of the journal by an authorized government official with proper credentials.
Question 3: What type of journal is an Arizona notary required to maintain?
- An electronic-only digital journal stored in a cloud database
- A tangible, bound journal with sequentially numbered pages (Correct answer)
- Either a loose-leaf binder or a digital spreadsheet at the notary's preference
- No journal is required for in-person notarizations, only for remote ones
Correct answer: A tangible, bound journal with sequentially numbered pages
Arizona requires a tangible, permanently bound journal with numbered pages to prevent removal or insertion of pages.
Question 4: A notary's commission expires and they are renewing. What should the notary do with the old seal?
- Keep it as a backup in case the new seal is delayed
- Destroy it so it cannot be used after commission expiration (Correct answer)
- Return it to the Secretary of State for official decommissioning
- Donate it to another notary who needs a seal quickly
Correct answer: Destroy it so it cannot be used after commission expiration
Upon commission expiration or replacement, the old seal should be destroyed to prevent its unauthorized use.
Question 5: An Arizona notary journal entry must record how the signer's identity was verified. Which method is NOT an accepted means of identification to record?
- Personal knowledge of the signer by the notary
- A credible identifying witness vouching for the signer
- The signer's employer verbally confirming their identity over the phone (Correct answer)
- An acceptable government-issued photo ID presented by the signer
Correct answer: The signer's employer verbally confirming their identity over the phone
A telephone confirmation from an employer is not an approved means of identity verification under Arizona notary law.
Question 6: An Arizona notary performed 50 notarizations over two years but their journal is lost in a fire. What should the notary do?
- Recreate the journal from memory to the best of their ability
- Notify the Arizona Secretary of State of the journal loss (Correct answer)
- Do nothing, since reconstructing records is impossible
- Request copies of all notarized documents from the signers to rebuild records
Correct answer: Notify the Arizona Secretary of State of the journal loss
Loss or destruction of the notary journal must be reported to the Arizona Secretary of State.
Question 7: Where must an Arizona notary store their official journal when not in use?
- In a shared office filing cabinet accessible to all staff for convenience
- In a secure location under the notary's exclusive control (Correct answer)
- At the Secretary of State's regional office for safekeeping
- With the employer's legal department for liability protection
Correct answer: In a secure location under the notary's exclusive control
The journal must be kept in a secure location under the notary's exclusive control to prevent unauthorized access or tampering.
AZ Notary Journal and Seal Requirements 5
An Arizona notary moves to a different county within Arizona.
What must happen to their official seal?