North Carolina Notary Requirements

ACCEPTABLE IDs FOR A NORTH CAROLINA NOTARY

N.C. Gen. Stat. § 10B-3

N.C. Gen. Stat. § 10B-3 ('Satisfactory evidence' definition). Satisfactory evidence. Identification of an individual based on either of the following: a. At least one current document issued by a federal, state, or federal or state-recognized tribal government agency bearing the photographic image of the individual's face and either the signature or a physical description of the individual. b. The oath or affirmation of one credible witness who personally knows the individual seeking to be identified.

N.C. Gen. Stat. SS 10B-3(17) (Personal knowledge definition). Personal knowledge or personally know. - Familiarity with an individual resulting from interactions with that individual over a period of time sufficient to eliminate every reasonable doubt that the individual has the identity claimed.

STATE IDs

North Carolina requires a current, state-issued document bearing a photograph and either a signature or physical description.

North Carolina Driver's License
Out of State Driver's License
North Carolina State Issued ID
Out of State State Issued ID
North Carolina License to Carry/CHL
Out of State License to Carry/CHL*
North Carolina Voter ID Card
Out of State Voter ID Card**

*Acceptable only if the License to Carry/CHL card bears a photograph and either a signature or physical description - verify on the card presented; some states' License to Carry/CHLs do not.

**Acceptable only if the Voter ID card bears a photograph and either a signature or physical description - verify on the card presented; some states' Voter IDs do not.

FEDERAL IDs

North Carolina requires a current, federally issued document bearing a photograph and either a signature or physical description.

U.S. Passport Book
U.S. Passport Card
U.S. Military ID
U.S. Military Dependent ID
Permanent Resident Card
Employment Authorization Card
VA Health ID Card
Social Security Card
Certificate of Citizenship
Certificate of Naturalization
Veteran ID Card

GOVERNMENT EMPLOYMENT IDs

North Carolina requires a current, government-issued document bearing a photograph and either a signature or physical description.

State Government Employee ID*
County Government Employee ID
Municipal Government Employee ID
Federal Government Employee ID*

*Acceptable if the card bears a photograph and either a signature or physical description - verify on the card presented.

INMATE IDs

North Carolina does not accept inmate identification.

State Inmate ID
County Inmate ID
Federal Inmate ID

FOREIGN IDs

North Carolina does not accept foreign identification.

Foreign Passport
Consular/Matricula ID
Foreign Driver's License

CREDIBLE WITNESS(ES)

North Carolina (G.S. 10B-3(22)(b)) accepts the oath or affirmation of one credible witness who personally knows the individual; the credible witness (10B-3(5)) must be personally known to the notary; the oath is the act. (N.C. Notary Public Act, ch. 10B).

One Credible Witness
Personally known to the notary

Is the witness unaffected by - that is, having no interest in - this document or transaction? North Carolina law (NC G.S. § 10B-3(5)(b)) requires the notary to believe the credible witness is not a party to or beneficiary of the transaction.

PERSONAL KNOWLEDGE

Personally Known*

*Personal knowledge means familiarity with individual over period of time sufficient to eliminate every reasonable doubt

OTHER IDs

Tribal ID*

*Federally and State Recognized; card must bear the photographic image of the individual's face and either the signature or a physical description

Last verified: July 2026

Journal Rules

N.C. Gen. Stat. § 10B-38

N.C. Gen. Stat. § 10B-38 (JOURNAL): Each notary may maintain a journal of all notarial acts performed in the manner required for that type of notarial act and in accordance with rules adopted by the Secretary. (2023-57, s. 4(f); 2023-124, s. 4.1.)

Journal required?
✗
Bound paper journal required?
✗
Wet signature required in journal?
✗
Wet thumbprint required?
✗
Digital journal allowed?
✓
Journal format
Optional
Last verified: July 2026

Notary Fees

N.C. Gen. Stat. § 10B-31

N.C. Gen. Stat. § 10B-31 (FEES FOR NOTARIAL ACTS): The maximum fees that may be charged by a notary for notarial acts are as follows: (1) For acknowledgments, jurats, verifications or proofs, ten dollars ($10.00) per notarized principal signature. (2) For oaths or affirmations without a signature, ten dollars ($10.00) per person, except for an oath or affirmation administered to a credible witness to vouch for the identity of a principal or subscribing witness. (5) For any notarial act under this Chapter, actual mileage at the federal business mileage rate if the travel reimbursement is agreed to by the principal in writing prior to the travel.

Acknowledgment (max)
$5.00
Jurat (max)
$5.00
Additional signature (max)
$5.00
Travel fee capped?
✗
Travel fee disclosure required?
✓
Last verified: July 2026

Notarial Acts

Acknowledgment
Jurat
Oath / affirmation
Certified copy
Signature witnessing
Protest
Last verified: July 2026

Certificate Language

N.C. Gen. Stat. § 10B-41
Acknowledgment · Individual · safe-harbor wording
I, {notary_name}, a Notary Public for {county}, {state}, do hereby certify that {signer_name} personally appeared before me this day and acknowledged the due execution of the foregoing document.

Witness my hand and official stamp or seal, this {date_day} day of {date_month}, {date_year}.
Jurat · Individual · statutory form
Signed and sworn to before me this {date_day} day of {date_month}, {date_year}, by {signer_name}.

Bracketed {tokens} are placeholders the app fills in (venue, names, dates) when it generates a certificate.

Last verified: July 2026

Source Documents

Full statute and (where published) the commissioning authority’s notary handbook. Download links appear here once the documents table is populated.

📄 Full notary statute (coming soon) 📄 Notary handbook (coming soon)