Yes, a CPA can be a notary public. The two credentials come from different state authorities and never conflict, so a licensed CPA who wants to notarize documents applies for a notary commission the same way anyone else does and then operates under both sets of rules at once. The practical questions worth answering are how to get commissioned, what the commission actually lets you do, and where the professional overlap creates traps that a non-CPA notary would never face.
The Two Credentials Do Not Overlap
A CPA license comes from a state board of accountancy after the Uniform CPA Examination, education requirements, and supervised work experience.1AICPA & CIMA. Everything You Need to Know About the CPA Exam A notary commission comes from a separate state authority, usually the secretary of state’s office. Holding one has no bearing on eligibility for the other, and the skill sets barely touch: CPA work is financial analysis and tax compliance, while notarial work is verifying identity and witnessing signatures.
The point matters because some CPAs assume the license buys a shortcut. It does not. You submit the same application, sit for the same training where required, and post the same bond as any other applicant.
Getting the Notary Commission
Steps vary by state, but the general path is an application to the state’s commissioning authority, a background check, a surety bond, and in roughly half the states a mandatory training course or exam. About 21 states plus the District of Columbia require notary training before commissioning.
The surety bond protects the public if you make a costly error. Bond amounts run from as low as $500 to as high as $50,000 depending on the state, and the premium you actually pay is far less than the face amount, often around $30 to $50 for the full commission term. Terms typically last four to ten years before renewal.
Application fees generally fall between $20 and $75. You will also need a notary stamp or seal that meets your state’s specifications. Application to commission usually takes a few weeks, longer if the background check drags.
What You Can Do Once Commissioned
A CPA-notary performs the same acts as any other notary. The core functions are taking acknowledgments, where you witness a signature and confirm the signer acted willingly; administering jurats, where the signer swears or affirms under oath that the document’s contents are true; and administering oaths or affirmations in other contexts.
The practical payoff for a CPA practice is efficiency. Financial engagements produce documents that need notarization: affidavits supporting tax positions, powers of attorney authorizing someone to act with the IRS or a financial institution, partnership agreements, corporate resolutions. Handling the signature witnessing in the same appointment beats sending a client down the street, especially near a filing deadline.
Identity Verification Every Time
Before any notarial act you must verify the signer’s identity, generally through a current government-issued photo ID such as a driver’s license, passport, or state ID card. Some states also accept the oath of a credible witness who personally knows the signer, or the notary’s own personal knowledge of the individual. You cannot skip the ID check because the signer is a long-time tax client whose face you know. Follow your state’s rule every time.
Remote Online Notarization
As of 2025, 47 states and the District of Columbia have enacted laws authorizing remote online notarization, where the signer appears by live audio-video connection rather than in person.2NASS.org. Remote Electronic Notarization Those laws typically require identity verification through multiple methods, including knowledge-based authentication questions and credential analysis, along with a secure recorded video session. For CPAs who already meet with clients online, RON is a natural extension. Rules remain state-by-state, so a remote notarization performed under one state’s law may not be recognized in a state that has not adopted RON. A federal bill, the SECURE Notarization Act, has been introduced to create uniform standards and interstate recognition but as of mid-2025 sits with the Senate Judiciary Committee and has not passed.3Congress.gov. S.1561 – 119th Congress (2025-2026): SECURE Notarization Act of 2025
Conflicts of Interest Hit CPA-Notaries Harder
Every state prohibits a notary from notarizing a document in which the notary has a direct financial or beneficial interest.4National Notary Association. What Notaries Need To Know About Disqualifying Interest For most notaries this rule is easy. For CPA-notaries the analysis is harder because you almost always have a professional and financial relationship with the person across the desk.
The most common trap: you prepared or helped prepare the document the client now wants notarized. If you drafted the partnership agreement, prepared the affidavit, or created the financial statements the transaction rests on, your involvement in creating the paper puts your impartiality as a witness in question. Some states explicitly prohibit notarizing what you prepared; others reach the same result through the financial-interest rule, since your fee for the preparation ties your compensation to the document’s completion. The safe move is to decline and refer.
Never notarize when the underlying transaction directly affects your own compensation. A contingent advisory fee on a deal closing, or an audit conclusion that a signed document turns on, is a textbook financial interest. Step aside.
CPAs employed by firms or corporations face an added wrinkle. If notarizing is part of the job, make sure your notary work is not tied to performance evaluations, compensation, or advancement, and be alert when the employer benefits from the transaction you are being asked to witness. The test is whether a reasonable outsider would question your neutrality.
A workable rule of thumb: if the client is paying you for anything beyond the notarization itself in connection with the same document, refer them to an outside notary. A five-minute detour is trivial next to a challenged notarization that voids the document and exposes you on both sides of your practice.
The Unauthorized Practice of Law Line
This is where CPAs get into trouble more than they expect. A notary cannot give legal advice, explain what a document means, choose the type of notarization for a client, fill out forms on the client’s behalf, or provide legal templates such as wills or powers of attorney. All of that is the unauthorized practice of law regardless of what other license you hold.
Financial expertise makes the line tempting to cross. You may know exactly what the document does, what it means for the client’s tax picture, and which notarial certificate fits. When you are acting as the notary, that knowledge stays in your pocket. The signer tells you what act they need; if they do not know, send them to their attorney rather than deciding for them. The notary role is ministerial: verify identity, witness the signature, apply the seal.
Fees, Journals, and Insurance
Every state caps what a notary can charge per act, and the caps are modest. For standard acknowledgments and jurats, maximums range from $2 in states like Georgia and New York to $25 in Rhode Island. Remote online notarizations carry somewhat higher caps, typically around $25, with a few states allowing additional technology fees on top. Your CPA status does not entitle you to charge more. Many CPA-notaries absorb the cost into the overall engagement rather than billing it separately. Bundling is generally fine; adding a “convenience” or “administrative” fee on top of the statutory notary fee is prohibited in most states.
A significant number of states require a journal documenting every notarial act, and even where it is not mandated it is a widely recommended practice. Record the date, type of act, document description, signer’s name, identification method used, and any fee charged. If a notarization is later challenged, the journal entry is your primary defense.
Your CPA professional liability insurance typically covers errors in accounting, auditing, and tax work. It generally does not cover mistakes made while performing notarial acts. The surety bond you are required to carry protects the public, not you: if a flawed notarization triggers a lawsuit, the bond pays the injured party and the bonding company then comes after you for reimbursement. A separate notary errors and omissions policy fills the gap and is inexpensive relative to CPA coverage. For a CPA-notary handling high-value financial documents regularly, it is worth carrying.