MS Notary Document and Identification Verification 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A signer presents an expired Mississippi driver's license as identification. What should the notary do?
- Refuse it and request a current, valid form of identification (Correct answer)
- Accept it if the photo still resembles the signer
- Accept it if it expired less than five years ago
- Accept it with a witness's verbal confirmation
Correct answer: Refuse it and request a current, valid form of identification
Identification used for notarization must be current and valid, so an expired license should not be relied upon as satisfactory evidence of identity.
Question 2: Which of the following is generally acceptable as satisfactory evidence of a signer's identity?
- An unexpired passport issued by the U.S. government (Correct answer)
- A birth certificate
- A Social Security card
- A credit card with the signer's name
Correct answer: An unexpired passport issued by the U.S. government
A current passport is a government-issued photo ID and qualifies as satisfactory evidence, while birth certificates, Social Security cards, and credit cards lack photographs or physical descriptions.
Question 3: A notary may identify a signer without physical ID if the signer is identified by:
- A credible witness personally known to the notary who also knows the signer (Correct answer)
- A neighbor who has seen the signer around town
- A phone call from the signer's employer
- A photocopy of the signer's old license
Correct answer: A credible witness personally known to the notary who also knows the signer
A credible witness who is personally known to the notary and who personally knows the signer may vouch for the signer's identity under oath.
Question 4: Before notarizing, a notary reviews the document and notices several blank spaces. What is the proper course of action?
- Ask the signer to complete or line through the blanks before notarizing (Correct answer)
- Notarize anyway since blanks are the signer's responsibility
- Fill in the blanks personally with reasonable guesses
- Notarize and note the blanks in the journal only
Correct answer: Ask the signer to complete or line through the blanks before notarizing
Notaries should not notarize documents containing blank spaces because they could be fraudulently completed later.
Question 5: What does 'personal knowledge' of a signer's identity mean for a notary?
- Familiarity with the individual through dealings sufficient to provide reasonable certainty of identity (Correct answer)
- Having met the person once at the signing
- Recognizing the person's name from social media
- Knowing a relative of the signer
Correct answer: Familiarity with the individual through dealings sufficient to provide reasonable certainty of identity
Personal knowledge means the notary knows the individual through an ongoing acquaintance sufficient to establish identity with reasonable certainty.
Question 6: A signer's name on the document reads 'Jonathan A. Smith,' but his ID reads 'John Smith.' What is the safest practice?
- Require identification or evidence that reasonably links the signer to the name on the document (Correct answer)
- Refuse notarization permanently for this signer
- Notarize since the last names match
- Change the document name to match the ID
Correct answer: Require identification or evidence that reasonably links the signer to the name on the document
The notary must be reasonably certain the person signing is the person named in the document, so the ID must reasonably support the document name.
Question 7: Which detail on a photo ID should a notary compare against the person standing before them?
- The photograph and physical description (Correct answer)
- The issuing office's address
- The barcode format
- The card's font style
Correct answer: The photograph and physical description
Comparing the photo and physical description to the person present is the core step in verifying that the ID belongs to the signer.
MS Notary Document and Identification Verification 2
A signer presents an expired Mississippi driver's license as identification.
What should the notary do?