Tennessee Notary Requirements

Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-22-106 (Postponement pending identification / acceptable identification). If the clerk or deputy clerk does not know, is not personally acquainted with, or does not have satisfactory evidence of a person wishing to make acknowledgment of the execution of an instrument, the clerk or deputy clerk shall file it, and note, on the record of the probate of deeds, the date of the presentation of the instrument, and the reason of the postponement of the acknowledgment; and then, within twenty (20) days, the party may produce witnesses before the clerk or deputy clerk, to prove the identity of the person so offering to acknowledge the same; and the deed, when acknowledged after such proof, shall take effect from the filing with the clerk. (b) For purposes of this chapter, "know" or "personally acquainted with" means having an acquaintance, derived from association with the individual in relation to other people and based upon a chain of circumstances surrounding the individual, which establishes the individual's identity with at least reasonable certainty. (c) For the purposes of this chapter, "satisfactory evidence" means the absence of any information, evidence, or other circumstances which would lead a reasonable person to believe that the person making the acknowledgment is not the individual such person claims to be and any one (1) of the following: (1) The oath or affirmation of a credible witness personally known to the officer that the person making the acknowledgment is personally known to the witness; (2) Reasonable reliance on the presentation to the officer of any one of the following, if the document is current or has been issued within five (5) years: (A) An identification card or driver's license issued by the department of safety; or (B) A passport issued by the United States department of state; or (3) Reasonable reliance on the presentation of any one (1) of the following, if the document is current or has been issued within five (5) years and contains a photograph and description of the person named on it, is signed by the person, bears a serial or other identifying number, and, in the event that the document is a passport, has been stamped by the United States immigration and naturalization service: (A) A passport issued by a foreign government; (B) A driver's license issued by a state other than this state; (C) An identification card issued by a state other than this state; or (D) An identification card issued by any branch of the armed forces of the United States.

Tenn. Code Ann. SS 8-21-1201 (Fees for services - When recordation required - Notaries employed by financial institutions): (b) If the notary or the notary's employer demands and receives a fee, the notary shall keep a record, either in an appropriate electronic form or in a well-bound book, of each of the notary's acts, attestations, protestations, and other instruments of publication. (c)(1) If the notary or the notary's employer does not demand or receive a fee for the notary's services, no recordation of the notary's acts, attestations, protestations, and other instruments of publication is required. (c)(2) If the notary or the notary's employer demands and receives a fee for one (1) or more services but does not separately charge a fee for the notary services, then no recordation of the notary's acts, attestations, protestations, and other instruments of publication is required.

Tenn. Code Ann. SS 8-21-1201 (Fees for services - When recordation required - Notaries employed by financial institutions): (a) A notary public or the notary's employer is entitled to demand and receive reasonable fees and compensation for the notary's services. (b) If the notary or the notary's employer demands and receives a fee, the notary shall keep a record, either in an appropriate electronic form or in a well-bound book, of each of the notary's acts, attestations, protestations, and other instruments of publication. (c)(1) If the notary or the notary's employer does not demand or receive a fee for the notary's services, no recordation of the notary's acts, attestations, protestations, and other instruments of publication is required. (c)(2) If the notary or the notary's employer demands and receives a fee for one (1) or more services but does not separately charge a fee for the notary services, then no recordation of the notary's acts, attestations, protestations, and other instruments of publication is required.