Notary Public

Clerk Hours & Contact Info

Notary Renewal Changes

All notary renewals received by the Clerk's Office prior to July 1st, 2023 have been processed and sent to the NYS Department of State. If your information is not yet available in the State's online portal, we encourage you to contact NYSDOS before submitting a second renewal at 518-474-4429 from 8:45 am until 4:30 pm Monday through Friday.

On June 30th, 2023 Governor Hochul signed A7755, Chapter 188 into law, moving notary renewal responsibilities to the New York Department of State and away from County Clerks. Effective July 1st, 2023, this law has taken effect and therefore you can no longer renew through the Monroe County Clerk’s Office. You must follow the process outlined by the State of New York:

  1. Access to online system at https://businessexpress.ny.gov; then click on ‘Search Applications’ and search for ‘Notary’.
  2. Sign in or create a NY.gov account.
  3. Find your notary record.
  4. Go to ‘My Dashboard’ to start your renewal. You will be able to log in to your account of view the status of your application.

Requesting a NotaryPicture of notary paperwork.

Our office has notaries on staff who can notarize documents free of charge. Our office hours are Monday-Friday 9:00am-5:00pm.

Notarial Certificate and Apostille

Upon request, County Clerks will authenticate the signature of the notary on a document and will attest to the notary’s authority to sign. This is normally obtained when the documents will be used outside of the State of New York. Notaries who expect to sign documents regularly in counties other than that of their residence may elect to file a certificate of official character with other County Clerks in the State of New York.

At times a document that is being used outside of the United States may require an apostille. The New York Secretary of State authenticates public documents. Information on this process can be obtained from New York State's Department of State website, NYS Division of Corporations, State Records & UCC.

Notary Public Exam Information

For up-to-date information on the Notary Public Exam, including fees, regulations, test sites and times, please visit the New York State Notary Public License Law website.

Notary Public Renewal

Effective July 1st, 2023 all notary renewals are done with New York State not the County Clerk's Office. Follow the process below for notary renewal.

  1. Access to online system at https://businessexpress.ny.gov; then click on ‘Search Applications’ and search for ‘Notary’.
  2. Sign in or create a NY.gov account.
  3. Find your notary record.
  4. Go to ‘My Dashboard’ to start your renewal. You will be able to log in to your account of view the status of your application.

We encourage you to contact the NYS Department of State with questions and concerns. They can be reached at 518-474-4429 from 8:45 am until 4:30 pm Monday through Friday.

Out-of-State Residents

Attorneys, residing outside of the State of New York, who are admitted to practice in the State of New York and who maintain a law office within the State are deemed to be residents of the county where the office is maintained. Nonresidents other than attorneys who have offices or places of business in the State of New York may also become notaries. The oath of office and signature of the notary must be filed in the office of the County Clerk of the county in which the office or place of business is located.

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