New York Notary Exam Online?

Will the New York Notary Exam be Done Online?

We are often asked if we think the New York Notary Exam will eventually be done online. Certainly, it makes sense that the state could reduce its costs by eliminating in-person exams. Basically, they have to pay people to be monitors. Further, they must have a lot of printing done, and numerous other costs come into play.

Consequently, to date there has been no announcement regarding the transition of the exam to an online procedure. Currentlty, there is no official announcement that New York will make the written notary exam fully online. This is what we know now.

Current Notary Exam Structure

A New York Notary Exam Online Does Not Exist
The exam is done in person on a walk-in basis. Not long ago, the exam was by appointment.
The exam is given at specific New York State notary exam sites. For a list of these sites, please read our blog article, linked in the previous sentence.

Notary Exam Fees
There is a fee ($15) for taking the written exam. This is non-refundable. Currently, it can be paid by check, money order, Master Card, or Visa.

What is Online
Despite the fact that the exam is in-person, some facets related to your commission are performed online.
Renewing your notary commission is now done through the New York State Business Express. As of January 2023, Electronic Notarizations can now be performed online.
However, certain conditions must be met.

What is Uncertain

• As of now, there is nothing that says the State has decided, or will decide to provide the test exclusively online.
• Indeed, there are training courses, such as ours, which are performed online. But these courses are separate from the State’s exam.

What Would Need to Happen for an Online Test

To make the exam totally online, several things would need to occur.

• A complete set of new regulations would have to be implemented by the state. These rules would have to address such topics as:
• Identity Verification
• Exam Monitoring to prevent cheating
• Numerous technical Issues must be resolved to ensure integrity.

Our Assumption

Accordingly, we believe that, at least in the short-term, the New York Notary exam will not be completely online. Albeit, what could change this would be for the state to see a cost benefit to online implementation. As computer technology advances, it seems to make sense that the exam will eventually be provided online.  Additionally, you may wish to read our article about Why people fail the NY Notary Exam.

At Notary New York, we train individuals who wish to prepare to pass the Notary Exam. As such, we are proud to state that 97% of our enrolled members pass the exam on their first attempt. We have an excellent blog article that asks the question, “Will AI Become a Substitute for Notaries?” Feel free to read it.