Contact: Susan Churchill, Deputy Secretary of State (608) 266-3470
Online webcam notarization is invalid and illegal in the State of Wisconsin, according to a formal statement by Wisconsin Secretary of State Doug La Follette.
“Wisconsin law requires a person to appear personally before a Notary Public to obtain notarial acts such as acknowledgments or jurats,” La Follette said in the message posted on the agency Website. “This means the party must be physically present before the Notary Public at the time of the signing.”
La Follette went on to say that video images or other forms of non-physical representation do not meet personal appearance requirements before a Notary under current state or federal laws.
The full text of Secretary La Follette’s statement follows:
Consumer Alert – Online Notarization Services Are NOT legal in Wisconsin.
Online webcam notarization is invalid and illegal in the State of Wisconsin. A private company claims to have the first online notarization website and has sent misleading information and made false claims to Wisconsin Notaries Public concerning a new online notarization service. The web-based platform purports to allow a person to submit copies of identification over the Internet and to use a webcam in lieu of a personal appearance in front of a Notary Public. Appearance via webcam does not meet the requirements for notarization in Wisconsin.
Wisconsin Notaries Public are authorized under current law to perform notarizations as long as all the requirements for a notarial act are met, including the use of a seal. Wisconsin law requires a person to appear personally before a Notary Public to obtain notarial acts such as acknowledgments or jurats. This means the party must be physically present before the Notary Public at the time of signing. A video image or other form of non-physical representation is not a personal appearance in front of a Notary Public under current state or federal laws. The technology solution offered by this private company does not comply with Wisconsin law.
Consumer Alert available via Wisconsin Office of the Secretary of State web site: http://www.sos.state.wi.us. Questions may be submitted by email to statesec@Wisconsin.gov.
