What is Notary / Notarization?

A formal certification by a public officer that a signer's identity is verified and the document was executed willingly.

A notary public is a state-appointed officer who verifies a signer's identity, witnesses the signing, and applies a notarial seal to the document. Notarization is required for transactions where the law demands a higher level of identity assurance than a witness provides, typically real-estate transfers, powers of attorney, certain affidavits. Remote Online Notarization (RON) is now legal in over 40 U.S. states and several EU jurisdictions. PDF Verified supports RON workflows via partner integrations on Enterprise.

Drop your document here and sign it now. PDF, Word and Excel all work: a .docx or .xlsx is laid out in your browser exactly as it was written, so there is nothing to convert first. Add a signature, a date, a company stamp or a watermark, then download it sealed. Free to start, no account, and the file is never uploaded to open it.

In-person vs remote notarization

Traditional notarization requires the signer to appear before the notary physically with government ID. Remote Online Notarization (RON) lets the signer appear via video, with the notary using identity-proofing tech (KBA + ID document analysis + credential analysis) to verify the signer remotely.

When you need a notary

Real-estate deeds (in most U.S. states), powers of attorney, affidavits, statutory declarations, and certain corporate filings. Most commercial contracts don't need notarization.

PDF Verified notarization

Available on Enterprise via U.S. RON partners (Notarize, Proof, Stewart) and EU notary directories. The notary's seal and electronic journal entry are appended to the PDF Verified audit certificate.

What PDF Verified is, and what it is not

Electronic signature law is settled in broad terms and specific in the details. The ESIGN Act, UETA, eIDAS and their equivalents recognise electronic signatures across more than 190 countries, and what decides a particular case is intent to sign plus evidence connecting the signature to the signer, which is what the audit certificate records. Certain document types carry their own formalities wherever you are: deeds, wills, some property instruments, and anything requiring a witness or a notary. Sign only what you are authorised to sign, since applying another person signature without their authority is forgery whatever tool is used.

PDF Verified is a tool for preparing, signing, stamping and checking documents. It is not a law firm, a compliance service or a forensic examiner, and nothing here is legal, financial or compliance advice. Requirements differ by country, by document type and by the party asking, so check what applies to your document before you rely on it, and take advice where the document matters. You are responsible for the documents you create, sign and send, and for having the authority to do so: signing or stamping in somebody else name, or as an organisation you do not represent, is forgery whatever tool is used. To the extent the law allows, we accept no liability for how a document made with this tool is used or relied on. The full position is in our terms of service.