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NOTARIAL SEAL

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA

NOTARIAL SEAL SUSAN A. JOHNSON, Notary Public City of Philadelphia, Phila. County My Commission Expires July 1, 2016

The Notary Public’s rubber stamp seal must contain the words “Notarial Seal”; the name and surname of the notary and the words “Notary Public”; the name of the municipality (not political subdivision) and the county in which the notary maintains an office; and the date the notary’s commission expires. (Section 12 of the NPL)

The seal shall have a maximum height of one inch and width of three and one half inches with a plain border. No other language or text is permitted to appear on the Notary Public’s rubber stamp seal. (Section 12(b) of the NPL)

NOTE: At the printing of this course material, the new notary public law contains a discrepancy regarding the contents of the rubber stamp seal. The required wording for a legal rubber stamp seal does not include the word “Pennsylvania” within the borders of the seal. Until legislation is passed to correct this discrepancy, it is suggested that you continue to use an embossing seal along with the rubber stamp seal or type the word “Pennsylvania” above the rubber stamp seal but not within the borders of the rubber stamp seal.

It shall be stamped in a prominent place on the official notarial certificate near the notary’s signature in such a manner as to be capable of photographic reproduction. (Section 12(b) of the NPL) Note that the rubber stamp is not a substitute for the notary's signature and the signature must be an original unless signed electronically when permitted by law or regulation.

The notary public seal is the exclusive property of the notary public to whom it is issued, the notary public to whom it is issued is responsible for the custody, care and control of the seal and a notary public shall not permit the use of his/her seal by another person. The notary seal does not belong to your employer, even though the employer may have paid for the seal. It is your responsibility to keep it in your care, custody and control. (Section 12(d) of the NPL)

A notary cannot delegate their notarial authority. The use of a notary public seal by a person who is not the notary public named on the seal shall be deemed an impersonation and shall be subject to criminal penalties for impersonating a notary public. (Section 12(e) of the NPL)

The use of an embosser seal is no longer required and its use is optional. Even though an embossing seal is no longer required, the use of an embosser seal can eliminate potential problems when documents are sent to other states or foreign countries. Foreign countries, in particular, attribute a great deal of importance to the ceremonial aspects of documents and the absence of an embossed impression could cause a rejection of the document.

 

SAMPLE NOTARY PUBLIC EMBOSSER SEAL

 

 

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