Part 176: NOTARY PUBLIC RECORDS

Section 176.10 Definitions For purposes of this Section, all words and terms shall have the same meanings as set forth in 5 ILCS 312/1-104: "Act" means The Illinois Notary Public Act. [5 ILCS 312] "ARDC" means the Illinois Attorney Registration and Discipline Commission. "Biometr…

Section 176.100 Appointment and Reappointment of Notaries Public a) Every applicant for an initial appointment or reappointment as a notary public must present satisfactory evidence of the applicant’s identity as set forth in the Act at 5 ILCS 312/2-102. b) Before issuance of an …

Section 176.1000 Definitions "Act" means the Illinois Notary Public Act [5 ILCS 312]. "Contested case" means an adjudicatory proceeding conducted by the Department of Administrative Hearings in which the individual legal rights, duties, or privileges of a party are required by la…

Section 176.1005 Right to Counsel a) Attorneys Must be Licensed or 711 Students. Any party may appear and be heard through an attorney at law licensed to practice in the State of Illinois, or any law student licensed under Supreme Court Rule 711, in any hearing in any matter invo…

Section 176.1010 Appearance of Attorney An attorney appearing in a representative capacity shall file a written notice of appearance with the Department of Administrative Hearings office where the formal hearing is requested or pending, providing a name, address, email address, w…

Section 176.1020 Special Appearance Before filing any other pleading or motion, a special appearance may be made either in person or by an attorney for the limited purpose of objecting to jurisdiction. Every appearance not expressly designated a special appearance will be conside…

Section 176.1030 Substitution of Parties A hearing officer shall, upon motion, rule on a request for the substitution of parties in cases in which a party has died, resigned, been moved, or otherwise succeeded to the interest of a previously named party. (Source: Added at 47 Ill.…

Section 176.1040 Commencement of Actions − Notice of Hearing a) Notice of Hearing. A contested case is begun when the Office of the Secretary, upon either the written request of the petitioner or its own initiative, serves a Notice of Hearing upon the respondent. "Written request…

Section 176.1050 Motions a) Form of Motions. All motions must be made in writing and must set forth the relief or order sought and must be filed with the Department of Administrative Hearings at the earliest time to be considered by the hearing officer. Motions may be hand delive…

Section 176.1060 Form of Documents Filed − Original Documents Required a) Form of Papers 1) All papers filed in any proceeding must: A) be clearly written or typewritten; B) contain a caption showing the title of the proceeding with a case number: C) be signed or verified by the …

Section 176.1070 Conduct of Formal Hearings a) All hearings conducted in any proceeding will be open to the public. b) Every hearing will be presided over by a hearing officer duly appointed by the Secretary. The hearing officer will have the authority to conduct the hearing, rul…

Section 176.1080 Orders, Notifications, and Time Limits on Obtaining Relief a) The Department shall prepare a written order for all final determinations, which shall include the Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law, Recommendations of the hearing officer, and the Order of the Sec…

Section 176.1090 Record of Hearings a) The record of the hearing in a contested case shall include: 1) All pleadings (including all pre-hearing and post-hearing notices and responses thereto, admissions, stipulations of facts, motions, and rulings thereon); 2) All documentary evi…

Section 176.1095 Invalidity If any portion of this Subpart shall be held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, that holding shall not affect the remaining portions. (Source: Added at 47 Ill. Reg. 8640, effective June 5, 2023)

Section 176.11 Record Contents, Request Procedures, and Fees a) The Secretary maintains Illinois Notary Public appointment records in its computer database. The computer records contain the notary's name, address, city, state, zip code, county, commission number, and the date the…

Section 176.110 Term of Commission The term of a notary public or electronic notary public commission begins on the date that the notary is commissioned by the Secretary of State and not the date the bond was obtained. The electronic notary public commission, if any, will have th…

Section 176.120 Requirements to Qualify as a Resident of the State of Illinois An applicant must be a resident of the State of Illinois pursuant to 5 ILCS 312/2-101 before applying for a notary public or electronic notary public commission, unless applying for a nonresident appli…

Section 176.130 Nonresident Application for Appointment The form in Illustration A must be used by an applicant for notary public who resides in a state bordering Illinois whose place of work or business is within a county in Illinois, but only if the laws of the applicant's stat…

Section 176.200 Definitions Unless otherwise noted, the following definitions apply to this Subpart only: "Applicant" means a person or entity applying for certification as a notary public course of study provider and examination provider. "Certification" means a document issued …

Section 176.205 Course of Study and Examination a) Beginning January 1, 2024, applicants seeking a commission as either a notary public or an electronic notary public must first successfully complete a course of study and acquire a passing score on the examination, as required by…

Section 176.210 Course of Study and Examination − Provider Certification Required a) No person, firm, association, partnership, or corporation may operate as a provider or engage in the business of providing a notary public course of study and examination unless the provider hold…

Section 176.215 Applicants’ and Providers’ Requirements for Notary Public Course of Study and Examination a) The Secretary will deny, suspend, or revoke a provider certification when: 1) The Secretary determines that the applicant/provider is not of good moral character. In deter…

Section 176.220 Notary Public Course of Study and Examination − Provider Names a) No provider may adopt, use or conduct any business under a name that is not distinguishable upon the records of the Department from a name used by another provider, as distinguishable is defined in …

Section 176.225 Notary Public Course of Study and Examination − Required Instruction and Content a) Providers must provide 3 hours of notary public instruction in accordance with the course content requirements set forth in subsection (e) in addition to the following requirements…

Section 176.230 Notary Public Course of Study and Examination − Student Contracts a) Before instruction begins and any fees are collected, each student shall be informed of the amount of all fees or charges relative to the notary public course of study, including but not limited …

Section 176.235 Course Provider Verification of Student Identity and Course Completion a) Before being certified, providers must submit procedures to the Secretary of State for verifying the identity of the student taking the course, which may include, but are not limited to, the…

Section 176.240 Notary Public Course of Study − Provider Website and Security Requirements a) Each provider’s website must display the following information on its homepage: 1) the provider’s Secretary of State certification number; and 2) a statement that complaints regarding th…

Section 176.245 Enforcement a) Duty to Respond to the Secretary of State’s Written Request. Any person or entity providing courses of study or examinations must respond in writing within 10 business days of receiving a written request from the Secretary of State for any informati…

Section 176.250 Hearings a) Before denying the certification of an applicant or existing provider, the Department will send written notice to the provider. If a formal hearing is requested in writing under 92 Ill. Adm. Code 1001.Subpart A, the denial shall stand pending the outco…

Section 176.255 Denial, Suspension, and Revocation of a Notary Public Course of Study and Examination Provider Certification The Department may revoke the certification of a course of study when the Department finds that a course of study or a course provider has failed to comply…

Section 176.300 Application for Notary Public and Electronic Notary Public Commissions a) Applications for a traditional notary public commission. All individuals applying for a traditional notary public commission shall use the application prescribed by the Secretary of State an…

Section 176.310 Approval of Application, Authority of Secretary of State to Deny Commission, and Effective Date of Commission a) If an applicant who is applying for an electronic notary public commission satisfies all of the requirements for such a commission pursuant to this Par…

Section 176.320 Appointment Fee a) No commission will be issued until the fee required by 5 ILCS 312/2-103 has been paid in full. b) Authority of the Secretary of State to deny or revoke commission if payment is dishonored or stopped. If any method of payment submitted by an appl…

Section 176.330 Oath a) Notaries public and electronic notaries public must file an oath of office with the Secretary of State, affirming the notary’s or electronic notary's intent to follow the laws and constitutions of the United States of America and the State of Illinois. b) …

Section 176.340 Bond a) Applicants for a notary public commission or electronic notary public commission must indicate at the time of application whether the applicant will perform only traditional in-person notarizations or remote notarizations. b) An applicant for a notary publ…

Section 176.350 Reappointment a) A current notary public and a current electronic notary public may apply for reappointment 60 days before an existing commission expires. The date of the new commission will be the date immediately after the expiration date of the current commissi…

Section 176.400 Definitions For purposes of this Subpart, the following definitions apply: "Applicant" means a person requesting that a remittance agent license be issued in the applicant’s name or the name of a business entity the applicant controls. "Department" means the Secre…

Section 176.410 Application for Remittance Agent’s License and Renewal a) If a person wishes to become a remittance agent, an application and bond as described in subsection (c) must be filed with the Office of the Secretary of State in accordance with subsection (e). b) The appl…

Section 176.420 Denial of Application for Remittance Agent’s License a) Pursuant to 5 ILCS 312/2-107, the Department will deny an application for a remittance agent’s license unless the applicant complies with that Section. If a person’s application is denied, the person will be …

Section 176.430 Suspension and Revocation of Remittance Agent’s License a) The Department shall suspend a remittance agent’s license under the following circumstances: 1) the licensee fails to keep records detailing transactions with the Secretary of State; 2) the licensee fails …

Section 176.440 Processing Transactions a) All applications for notary public or electronic notary public commissions submitted to the Department by persons acting as remittance agents must be submitted electronically or by regular mail. b) All transactions must be submitted to t…

Section 176.450 Recordkeeping Requirements a) Each person licensed as a remittance agent as defined in 5 ILCS 312/2-107 must maintain for three years a record of each transaction. b) The records must be maintained in ledger form or be computerized. All records should be available…

Section 176.460 Severability Clause If any clause or Section of this Part or the application of any provision of this Part to any person or circumstance is rendered unconstitutional, the remainder of this Part or its application to other persons and circumstances shall not be aff…

Section 176.500 Use of Official Seal and Electronic Seal a) A notary public must use the notary public’s official seal, affixed using a rubber stamp, to perform a notarial act. An electronic notary public must use the electronic notary public's electronic seal, affixed using a me…

Section 176.510 Acquiring the Official Seal and the Electronic Seal a) A notary public may purchase an official seal, and an electronic notary public may purchase an electronic seal, only after receiving a commission certificate from the Department under Section 176.550(a), and p…

Section 176.520 Description of the Official Seal and Electronic Seal a) The reasonably legible imprint of an official seal of a notary public must contain: 1) A serrated or milled edge border in a rectangular form not more than one inch in height by two and one-half inches in len…

Section 176.530 Replacement of Lost, Compromised, Destroyed, or Stolen Official Seal or Electronic Seal a) When a physical official seal is lost or stolen, the notary public must notify the Department in writing the next business day after discovering the seal was lost or stolen.…

Section 176.540 Notary Public and Electronic Notary Public Fees a) A notary public or electronic notary public may charge the fees prescribed in 5 ILCS 312/3-104. b) Neither a notary public nor an electronic notary public is required to charge a fee. A notary public or electronic…

Section 176.550 Commission Certificate a) Upon appointment as a notary public or electronic notary public, the Secretary of State shall send a commission certificate to the person appointed as a notary public or electronic notary public, with which the person appointed may obtain…

Section 176.600 Notarial Certificates a) Minimum requirements. For a notarial certificate to be sufficient, it must contain the information required under 5 ILCS 312/6-103. b) Additional Information. A notarial certificate may contain additional or other information as may be req…