An overview of the new Illinois Notary journal requirements

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Part 2 of our series of articles on the new Illinois Notary laws and how they affect Notaries in the state. Part 1 can be found here.

Updated 12-8-23 with new election document journal requirements.

Illinois’ new journal requirement that took effect on June 5, 2023, is the single most important consumer protection and safeguard for Notaries in Illinois’ new Notary laws. But despite the numerous and recognized protections of Notary journals, not everyone is happy with the new journal requirement.

Illinois Notary journal basics

The new law requires Notaries and Electronic Notaries to keep a paper or electronic journal record of every traditional paper, remote, and electronic notarization the Notary performs for at least 7 years after the last notarial act recorded in the journal. The Notary must always retain exclusive control of the journal and keep it in a locked location that only the Notary can access.

The Notary may use a paper journal, provided it is securely bound and has consecutively numbered pages with printed page and entry line numbers. Or, a Notary may use an electronic journal designed to prevent the insertion, removal, or substitution of journal entries. The electronic journal must be capable of producing copies of journal entries as a PDF (Portable Document Format) file.

In each paper or electronic journal, a Notary must include the Notary’s name, signature, commission number, expiration date, and office address of record with the Secretary of State, along with a statement that in the event of the death of the Notary, the journal is to be delivered or mailed to the Secretary of State, and the meaning of any abbreviated words or symbols used in the journal.

UPDATE 12-8-23: Under a new law that took effect November 17, 2023, Illinois Notaries are not required to record a journal entry when notarizing the following election documents filed by or on behalf of a candidate for public office: nominating petitions; petitions of candidacy; petitions for nomination; nominating papers or nomination papers (5 ILCS 312/3-107[f]).

For each notarial act recorded in the journal, the Notary must record the following information:

The name of the principal (signer or person requesting the notarization), any credible witness who identifies the principal and any other person who signed for the principal
The title or a description of the document notarized
The date of notarization
Whether the notarization was conducted in person, remotely, or electronically
The fee charged (if any)
The physical location of the Notary and the signer.

If a Notary performs multiple notarizations for the same principal, the new rules allow certain information to be abbreviated. Optionally the Notary may require the principal’s signature in a paper journal and any other information that might assist the Notary in recalling the notarization.

The new law prohibits Notaries from recording a principal’s personally identifiable information, such as an ID identification number or any other number that could identify a principal, a biometric identifier (for example, a thumbprint), and for electronic notarizations, the electronic signature of the principal. If the Notary forgets and records any prohibited personally identifiable information, the Notary must redact it.

The new statutes and rules require a Notary to allow inspection of the journal by any person who provides certain information that will enable the Notary to find the entry or entries sought. The Notary also must comply with subpoenas and investigative requests for the journal. Because the journal is so valuable to the public, the courts, and the Secretary of State, Notaries must report a lost, compromised, destroyed, or stolen journal the next business day in writing or electronically.

Key Notary journal protections

The new journal requirements summarized above are comprehensive and detailed for a good reason: The journal is a valuable public record that protects principals, parties relying on notarizations, and especially the Notary.

There are many benefits to Notaries keeping a journal. A properly completed journal:

Deters forgers and impostors who realize that leaving evidence in a journal could incriminate them.
Discourages groundless lawsuits by showing that a principal appeared before the Notary.
Protects the Notary from baseless allegations of wrongdoing by demonstrating that the Notary exercised reasonable care in performing the notarial act.
Helps a Notary recall the details of a notarization long after it is performed when the Notary must testify about a contested notarization in court.
Provides authoritative evidence to resolve a disputed fact about a notarization when the document is lost or fraudulently altered.
Assists law enforcement authorities in prosecuting fraud.

Dissenting Voices

Despite the proven protections of journals, only some believe the journal is necessary. Some legal services and title insurance professionals sought exemption from the new journal requirement. The Secretary of State included a provision in the final rules exempting Notaries employed by an attorney or law firm from keeping a journal of notarizations performed during their employment if the attorney or law firm maintains a copy of the notarized documents instead.

The NNA urged the Secretary of State to drop this exception in its comments on the rules, but the Secretary declined. Although the Secretary of State granted an exception for law firm Notaries, it denied a similar carve-out for title insurance company Notaries.

Bill Anderson is Vice President of Government Affairs for the National Notary Association.

108 Comments

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Betty

02 Dec 2024

The new Illinois laws area troubling to me. I have entered all cells in my journals since I began as a Notary Signing Agent in 2013. Now Illinois law isays that I cannot write in any identification information. Apparently, just my Word that I identified a signer is good ENOUGH for the State of Illinois. As I have understood it, MY PRINCIPAL JOB is to prevent fraud. What could be more fraudulent than to assume I examined someone's government issued ID. How about I just examined, as one of the examples, a paper copy of an ID, like Illinois residents are given while waiting on the plastic driver's licenses we get? How can anybody prove/disprove my identification?!?!? Although my husband, an attorney, is benefitting from the new law that enables all Illinois attorneys who are also Notary Public(s) to be automatically recertified in January, 2025, without taking the new Illinois test, I think the new laws are the Illinois General Assemblymen and friends scratching each other's backs.

Danielle

14 Nov 2024

Do governmental employees have to keep a journal of documents they sign for the governmental entity during their employment?

National Notary Association

11 Dec 2024

Hello. Illinois Notaries are required to keep a journal of their acts with the following exception: “Notwithstanding any other subsection of this Part to the contrary, a notary employed by an attorney or law firm is not required to keep a journal of notarizations performed during the notary’s employment if the attorney or law firm maintains a copy of the documents notarized. No attorney or law firm shall be required to violate attorney-client privilege by allowing or authorizing inspection of any notarizations that are recorded in a notary’s journal. Journals of notarizations performed solely within the course of a notary’s employment with an attorney or law firm are the property of the employing attorney or firm” (IAC 176.900 f)).:

Jerry Kryska

26 Apr 2024

What is being said about not requiring a ID# or finger print for Illinois’NAS’s contradiction Illinois notary law that states otherwise you may look it up it is 5ILCS 312/3-102

06 May 2024

Hello and thank you for contacting us. We forwarded your question to our Government Affairs team. According to them, 5 ILCS 312/3-102 applied to a pilot program in Cook County that was discontinued on July 1, 2018. Current administrative rules in Illinois prohibit Notaries from recording a biometric identifier such as a fingerprint in the Notary journal.

Merry Shane

09 Apr 2024

I reiterate this comment: This log journal process is overly cumbersome and not worth the weight in paper it will be wasted being written on. I can't believe this association pushed so hard to support this. Disappointed to say the least. Just like everything else with our government, they just made it more difficult to execute a simple public service task. Bureaucracy. So cumbersome!!!

Noah H.

19 Mar 2024

Are we required to redact personally identifiable information in our journals for notarizations that took place before the laws changed?

No, you do not need to redact the previously obtained ID numbers in your journal prior to the law taking effect.

Kim Link

16 Feb 2024

Is the law retroactive? Meaning, do I need to go back through my log and redact previously obtained ID numbers from before the new law came into effect?

Bobbie Mignin

06 Feb 2024

If you read above, they took away the requirement for notarizing election docs; nominating petitions, petition of candidacy, petition of nomination, etc etc. more fraud ensues In IL. . Don't forget, you need an ID to travel, go to a concert, etc etc etc but not to vote!

Allie

04 Dec 2023

I am not yet a notary so pardon me if my question is ignorant. If I am doing a electronic signing where does the witness fall into place? Are they with me? With the signer? Please explain and than you in advance.

Based on what you’ve described, we think it would be best if you contacted our Hotline team by phone and provided them with a more detailed description of the situation. The NNA Hotline: 1-888-876-0827 Mon – Fri: 5:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. (PT) Saturday: 5:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. (PT) If you’re not an NNA Member or Hotline Subscriber, they will provide you with a one-time courtesy call.

K. Palmer

16 Nov 2023

If an Illinois Notary records an ID number in error, I understand that it must be redacted. How do we correctly redact the information? I have seen on some notary websites where they suggest using a Sharpie marker. Is that acceptable?

09 Jan 2024

Yes, using a Sharpie markers and similar methods are acceptable. Remember not to use correction fluid or correction tape.

Shawn

04 Nov 2023

If I don't make a journal entry for a document, does that make it invalid?

06 Nov 2023

Hello. We're sorry, but that's a legal question that would need to be answered by an attorney.

Julita W .

26 Oct 2023

I am a notary public at a hospital. Patients or families often ask to notarize their signatures on for example, Health Power of Attorney. Do I as an employee of a hospital need to enter each notary to a ledger?

27 Oct 2023

Hello. To help us answer your question, can you please confirm if you are commissioned in Illinois or a different state?

Mary Beth

18 Oct 2023

When I apply to become a Notary Public, does my "business address" and "home address" on the application become part of a public record for anyone wishing to verify the legitimacy of my notary? Is this information accessible to the public and/or could be accessed via a FOIA form??

31 Oct 2023

Hello. Information about commissioned Illinois Notaries Public is available to the public and searchable through the Illinois Secretary of State's website here: https://apps.ilsos.gov/notarysearch/notarysearch

Brett

26 Sep 2023

Hi - I am wondering about how to reconcile 5 ILCS 312/3-102 and subsection (c)(6) which seems to say the notary must take a thumbprint in the journal for conveyance documents in Cook County with, as you’re noting here, the new regulation, Section 176.910(c) which prohibits the notary from obtaining a “fingerprint.” Is the idea that a thumbprint is not the same thing as a fingerprint? Or what am I missing?

13 Nov 2023

The thumbprint requirement for Cook County documents was a law that has since been repealed and is no longer required.

Kristy Edgar

25 Sep 2023

Can we use excel to create an electronic notary journal? If not, where do we find the acceptable format of software? Thank you.

An Excel spreadsheet or other type of spreadsheet cannot be used to create a Notary journal. This is because Illinois law regarding electronic Notary journals (see below) indicates that the software used to keep the journal must prohibit the Notary or any other person from deleting the entry once it has been recorded. It also must be stored in a secured manner. We do not recommend a specific type of e-journal software to use. You can find many from which to choose by performing an internet search. Format of Electronic Journal: “An electronic journal kept by a notary public or an electronic notary public under 5 ILCS 312/3-107 must comply with the requirements of [IAC 176.900] subsections (a) and (b) and must also: “1) Prohibit the electronic notary public or any other person from deleting a record included in the electronic journal or altering the content or sequence of such a record after the record is entered into the electronic journal except to redact personally identifiable information as required by Section 176.910(d); “2) Be securely backed up by the electronic notary public and the electronic notarization system provider whose electronic notarization system was used by the electronic notary, if applicable; and “3) Omit all personally identifiable information, as defined in Section 176.10” (IAC 176.900 d)). “b) A journal maintained in an electronic format must be designed to prevent the insertion, removal, or substitution of an entry. “c) A journal maintained in an electronic format must be securely stored and recoverable in the case of a hardware or software malfunction. “d) Entries from the notarial journal must be available upon request by the Secretary of State in a PDF format” (IAC 176.930 b)-d)).

KCS

29 Aug 2023

Regarding the attorney/law firm exemption, can the document copies be kept in electronic form or does the law firm have to maintain hard paper copies of the documents notarized?

08 Sep 2023

“A notary or electronic notary may maintain his or her journal in either paper form or electronic form and may maintain more than one journal or electronic journal to record notarial acts or electronic notarial acts” (5 ILCS 312/3-107[c]).

Karyl DeMonte

28 Aug 2023

I haven’t received anything from the state of Illinois explaining the new rules. Shouldn’t they be sending something listing the new rules? Also can I create my own journal or must I purchase one made specifically for this purpose? I’ve been a notary for many years and now I’m reading that I will need to take some kind of test by the end of the year. Is this true and if so how do I get more information on that.

Hello. More information on the new Illinois commission process can be found here: https://www.nationalnotary.org/notary-bulletin/blog/2023/07/new-illinois-rules-for-traditional-and-electronic-notary-commissions

Ashley Wright

24 Aug 2023

I'm still confused. Maybe I'm not phrasing my question correctly. If I am notarizing multiple copies of the same document, all signed by the same principal, do I need to make separate journal entries for each document notarized or can I include them all in a single journal entry. (For example, if I notarize ten identical transcripts each signed by the same principal, can I make just one journal entry or do I need to make ten.)

Hello. You must make separate journal entries, but after the first entry, subsequent entries for notarizations performed for the same principal at the same time may be abbreviated as described in our previous response.

23 Aug 2023

I'm a little confused about the rule for multiple notarizations for the same principal. The rules state "A notary public who performs multiple notarizations for the same principal within a single transaction may abbreviate the entry of those notarizations in the notary journal after first including all the information required by the Act. The abbreviated entry must indicate the type of transaction and the number of documents notarized as part of that single transaction." Does this mean if I notarize multiple copies of the same document for the same principal, can I make just one entry and indicate how many copies I notarized? (For example, if I notarize 10 identical transcripts, can I make just one entry and write the description as "10 transcripts"?)

Hello. When recording multiple notarizations for the same customer in Illinois, the journal entry for the first notarization must include all information required by state law. When recording the additional notarizations for the same customer, the subsequent entries may be abbreviated but must include the type of transaction and the number of documents notarized as part of that single transaction (IAC 176.920 f); see also IAC 176.930 f)).

Lynette Lopez

10 Aug 2023

I work at a Credit Union and we notarize home equity loan documents as part of our loan procedures when closing home equity loans. Do these documents still need to be entered into the journal though it is part of our business practice? If there are documents that require a notary as part of our business, is this still required to be entered into the journal? If a member brings a document into the Credit Union, I am assuming this type of notary transaction requires to be entered into the journal. Is this correct?

02 Oct 2023

Entries are required to be made for all notarizations regardless of the nature or origin of the document be notarized. “Notary Journals Journal of Notarial Acts: Notaries Public are required to keep a journal of notarial acts for all notarial acts they perform. Electronic Notaries Public also must keep a journal (5 ILCS 312/3-107[a]).”

Kim T

Can a notary that resides in one county, notarize documents at work in a different county than what is on their certificate? Or can they notarize anything in the whole State of Illinois?

Hello. Illinois Notaries have statewide jurisdiction, as long as the Notary continues to reside in the same county in which commissioned or, in the case of an out-of-state resident, continues to maintain a principal place of work or business in the same county (5 ILCS 312/3-105). Provided the Notary meets those conditions, an Illinois Notary can notarize in any county in the state.

Bethany Howe

09 Aug 2023

I cannot believe this association agreed to this. It is a complete waste of everyone's time. As if we didn't have enough to do already. Absolutely ridiculous.

Jan

08 Aug 2023

These answers are so confusing and not clear at all. I purchased an official journal of notarial acts Illinois edition book. Some of their examples contradict what is written here. Neither that book nor what is given as answers above are clear. Illinois government at its best....again.

Shelley

02 Aug 2023

I work in an Illinois prison and I am required to notarize hundreds of documents for inmates. Will I be required to keep a journal? This will be a monumental task. When does this requirement go into effect? I have only found the public act and not the statute incorporating the journal requirements.

04 Aug 2023

Hello. The new journal requirements are in effect as of June 5, 2023. All Illinois Notaries are required to keep a journal with the following exceptions: “Notwithstanding any other subsection of this Part to the contrary, a notary employed by an attorney or law firm is not required to keep a journal of notarizations performed during the notary’s employment if the attorney or law firm maintains a copy of the documents notarized. No attorney or law firm shall be required to violate attorney-client privilege by allowing or authorizing inspection of any notarizations that are recorded in a notary’s journal. Journals of notarizations performed solely within the course of a notary’s employment with an attorney or law firm are the property of the employing attorney or firm” (IAC 176.900 f)).

Lacee

01 Aug 2023

I work for the Court Services Department and do multiple court notices per week to mail out. I notarize the bottom portion as it is an Affidavit of Mailing Notice. Is this act stating that I have to document each notice I send out?

Maureen

If the signer is personally known to me do I need a witness signature? Also, do I need a new journal each time my commission expires? Or, can I change the expiration date on the journal?

07 Aug 2023

Donna Adler

31 Jul 2023

The State of Illinois sent me a journal with my commission that started almost 1 year ago. Am I required to get a new journal since the columns don't line up perfectly with the new requirements. One column states: City and State of Principal, but there is no column that says "address of where the notarization took place" unless I add that in the notes section. How do I proceed? Do I use that column and rename it or add to the notes section?

Hello. You can use the city and state column to record the entire address or you can use the additional information column. Which to use would be up to you.

Carolynne

28 Jul 2023

I’m a new notary. I had to submit a copy of my drivers license in order to get my notary commission & stamp. If I’m going to be checked on, or ever have to go to a court of law because of something I signed, you can bet I want proof of the person I notarized for. You had to have proof of my license, we should be able to have proof of theirs. Also, there’s nothing stating we can’t copy their license and keep it in the journal. Thank you.

Hello. As stated in the article, the new law prohibits Notaries from recording a principal’s personally identifiable information, such as an ID identification number. Retaining a copy of a signer's ID identification number would violate this rule and potentially subject you to disciplinary measures from the state.

Emily Foster

27 Jul 2023

Our current notary journals have a place for the person's address and phone number. Is this considered PII and should not be included?

The signer’s address and phone number do not need to be entered in your journal, as they are not required journal elements to be recoded. The required elements are: Required Entries: “Each entry shall contain at least the following information: “1) The name of the principal; “2) The name of each credible witness relied upon to verify the identity of the principal; “3) The name of any other person that signed for the principal; “4) The title or a description of the document notarized; “5) The date of the notarization; “6) Whether the notarization was conducted in person, remotely, or electronically; “7)The fee charged, if any; and “8) The physical location of the notary and the principal” (IAC 176.910 a)).

Erin Czerniejewski

26 Jul 2023

I work in a medical office, I have to notarize liens, records requests from attorneys, and collection agency documents. I know I need to journalize everything but can I create my own electronic journal with an excel spreadsheet? I have a paper journal but it is so old and with the collection agency documents it can be between 20-40 at a time. Please advise where I can either purchase an electronic journal or if I can create my own on excel and just print to PDF if the need arises. Thank you!

Hello. Any electronic journal you use must be designed to prevent the insertion, removal, or substitution of journal entries. The electronic journal must be capable of producing copies of journal entries as a PDF (Portable Document Format) file

A J

24 Jul 2023

This log journal process is overly cumbersome and not worth the weight in paper it will be wasted being written on. I can't believe this association pushed so hard to support this. Disappointed to say the least. Just like everything else with our government, they just made it more difficult to execute a simple public service task. Bureaucracy.

Tammy Ryan

We only use our notary for payment purposes on waivers in office. do these still need to be recorded in the journal?

Hello. Yes.

Melinda Bogda

21 Jul 2023

Do you have to file the journal yearly? or is it for just in case someone needs to see it?

“The notary public must maintain custody and control of the journal at all times during the term of the notary public’s commission. When not in use, the journal must be kept in a secure location and accessible only to the notary public. A secure location includes the notary public’s sole possession or a locked location to which only the notary public has access” (IAC 176.940 a)).

Kim Holmes

If you notarize hundreds of documents weekly for the same principals and you know them personally and keep copies of these documents, for instance, surety bonds, is the log required? I'm a surety bond agent and I see that attorneys do not need to keep a log but we notarize hundreds of bonds each week. Thank you.

Illinois Notaries Public are required to keep a journal of notarial acts for all notarial acts they perform. Electronic Notaries Public also must keep a journal (5 ILCS 312/3-107[a]).

Beth

20 Jul 2023

Are we still supposed to use their license to identify them if we do not know the signer? Do we just look at it and not make any note of it in our journal whatsoever leaving no information in our journal about how we identified them?

Hello. A signer may be identified in Illinois through the Notary's personal knowledge of the signer, the oath or affirmation of a credible witness personally known to the Notary, or identification documents that are valid at the time of the notarial act, issued by a state agency, federal government agency, or consulate, and bearing the photographic image of the individual’s face and signature of the individual (5 ILCS 312/6-102[d]). When making a journal entry, you must record the names of the signer or person requesting the notarization, the names of any credible identifying witnesses and any person who signed on the person's behalf in the journal entry. Illinois Notaries are not permitted to include a principal's personal identifying information, such as an ID identification number or any other number that could identify a principal, in the journal entry.

Joanne Miller

If I know the signer, do I need an additional witness or can I just record my name?

C Wilson

I work at a supply house and am doing dozes and dozens of material waivers each and every day, Does this new law apply to each and EVERY type of document notarized?

THOMAS J KNUTH

18 Jul 2023

The Illinois provision that prohibits retention of personal ID numbers, prints et al is beyond stupid, and will only encourage more fraud. Thank You Illinois, may I have another ?

crawlnotaryservices@gmail.com

17 Jul 2023

Hello. The prohibition applies to both traditional and electronic Notaries.

matylda@altimatitle.com

hi Is the principal's physical signature in the paper journal entry is required?

Hello. No. The principal's name must be recorded in the journal entry, but the principal is not required to sign the journal entry.

M wybes

14 Jul 2023

Are you asking if law enforcement personnel who have notarial powers have to keep a journal? yes, exactly 👍 Do they?

19 Jul 2023

If law enforcement personnel must obtain a Notary Public commission, then they must keep a journal (see the definition of "Notary Public" in 5 ILCS 312/1-104). If they are ex-officio notarial officers who have notarial authority that derives from their position, they are not Notaries Public with a commission and the journal provisions do not apply to them.

Nick Colvill

This is a clarifying comment. Susan Barucca commented on July 11 regarding the ability to capture the signature of the principal in an electronic journal for in-person, tangible notarizations. The reply from the NNA is incorrect in stating that "If you choose to keep an electronic journal, you are not permitted to record the electronic signature of a principal in your electronic journal entries". You are only prohibited from capturing the electronic signature of a signer for whom you performed an ELECTRONIC notarization, and this seldom happens. I just wanted to clarify so everyone is on the same page. Thanks!

Hello and thank you for bringing this to our attention. We've updated our response to Susan to clarify the point about electronic notarizations.

Susan J. Barucca

Under the new Illinois Law and the rule for the physical location of the notary and the principal: Does this mean only the City and State for the location or the complete address of the location (including city, state and zip code) should be written down in either an electronic or paper journal? Thank you very much for your response.

The NNA advises that you record the actual address of the physical location, including city and zip code.

13 Jul 2023

Does this new law pertain to law enforcement as well when notarizing court documents?

Hello. We apologize, but we weren't clear about your question topic, could you please explain further? Are you asking if law enforcement personnel who have notarial powers have to keep a journal?

Voytek R.

Where can I buy a Notary Journal that has only the fields for the information required by Illinois, preprinted page numbers, and nothing that else that is not required by Illinois?

Hello. We're sorry, but the NNA does not provide advice on journal products other than our own.

Christine

12 Jul 2023

Two questions. I'm confused by the law saying, "the new Illinois law prohibits Notaries from recording a principal's personally identifiable information, including biometric information such as a thumbprint or fingerprint, in the journal entry" when isn't their name identifiable information? Also, what are the consequences for not following the law?

Hello. As stated in the article above, under the new law, Illinois Notaries are required to record the name of the person signing or requesting the notarization in each journal entry. However, Notaries are prohibited from recording certain other types of information, such as thumbprints, fingerprints or an ID serial number. Failure to comply with journal rules could lead to suspension or revocation of a Notary's commission.

Denise DeYoung

I'm still confused about how to record the loan documents for each closing that you've notarized on 2 lines in the journal. Even abbreviating them, there are over 15 documents typically which is too many to record in the section where it says document kind or type. What do you suggest?

Illinois law requires a Notary to keep a journal of each notarial act performed so a separate entry must be created for each individual notarial act. If the Notary uses the NNA journal, they can use shortcuts. The law allows abbreviations, provided in the first pages of the journal you specify the abbreviations you will use. For example, you can use "Ack" for acknowledgment, etc. Then, if you have 8 journal lines on one full 2-page spread that are dedicated to the same transaction, complete the first entry on the page completely and use ditto marks in the successive lines where the information is the same (Date and time, name of principal, in-person, electronic, or remote notarization, etc.) and complete the columns with the information that is different (for example, the type of document, such as "Mortgage," Signature Affidavit," "Compliance Agreement," etc.) If the same transaction contains more than 8 notarizations and the Notary has to turn the page in the journal to add additional entries for the same transaction, complete the first line of the next page completely and resume to use abbreviations and ditto marks as described above.

11 Jul 2023

As far as capturing the signature of the Principal: Can the Principal sign an electronic journal just the same as if it were a paper journal when the signing itself is either paper or electronic or hybrid, and conducted in person using a traditional notary public seal? I am reading the Article where it states that ..."Optionally, the Notary may require the principal's signature in a paper journal...." and for clarification of that specific point, please confirm the Principal's signature in the journal can still be obtained under the new Illinois Rules. Thank you very much for your response to this message.

(Response updated for clarity 7-14-23.) Hello. An Illinois Notary may choose to keep either a paper or electronic journal. If you choose to keep an electronic journal, you are not permitted to record the electronic signature of a principal for electronic notarizations in your electronic journal entries. If you keep a paper journal, the Notary is permitted to record the principal's physical signature in the paper journal entry.

charlene rosa

I guess I'm confused when you say no identifying information, so wouldn't a fingerprint be identifying. So do we need to get a fingerprint in the journaling log? Thank you.

No, as stated in the article above, the new Illinois law prohibits Notaries from recording a principal's personally identifiable information, including biometric information such as a thumbprint or fingerprint, in the journal entry.

Gunjan Parikh

10 Jul 2023

From the previous comments I understand that we cannot record the ID number but my question is should we record the type of ID used for identification?

Hello. The required information for a journal entry in Illinois is as follows: 1. The name of the principal (signer or person requesting the notarization), any credible witness who identifies the principal and any other person who signed for the principal 2. The title or a description of the document notarized 3. The date of notarization 4. Whether the notarization was conducted in person, remotely, or electronically 5. The fee charged (if any) 6. The physical location of the Notary and the signer.

Anita L Martin

I record as proof/type an ID was presented in my journal (DL-IL26) using the expiration year. Is this considered personal information that might identify the signer?

Hello. If you recorded any information such as an ID identification number or any other number that could identify a principal, a biometric identifier (for example, a thumbprint), and for electronic notarizations or the electronic signature of the principal you would need to redact that information from the journal entry.

Rebecca Kennedy

My specific question is when a loan package has 15 documents that need to be notarized, do all those documents need to be listed? Or can the notary simply write “loan documents” under the title of documents notarized?

Please see our previous response to your question. You must create a separate journal entry for each notarization you perform.

When closing a loan package, does each individual document that's notarized need to be listed or can I simply indicate “loan documents” under the description of the document notarized?

Hello. For each notarial act recorded in the journal, the Illinois Notary must record the following information: 1. The name of the principal (signer or person requesting the notarization), any credible witness who identifies the principal and any other person who signed for the principal 2. The title or a description of the document notarized 3. The date of notarization 4. Whether the notarization was conducted in person, remotely, or electronically 5. The fee charged (if any) 6. The physical location of the Notary and the signer.

07 Jul 2023

Can we record the information abType of ID

Hello. The new Illinois journal law prohibits recording ID identification numbers or any other number that can identify a principal.

Chris M.

06 Jul 2023

Can a law firm have 1 journal for multiple notaries or must each notary have a separate journal?

Hello. Each Notary is required to maintain their own journal. Sharing a journal among multiple Notaries is not permitted.

Rob

If the new law states keeping an identification number or indicator of the principle is prohibited, is a principals name suffice alone in our log book? From what I recall from one of the training slides a licenses m number was written in a log.book for proof of verification? My understanding is also that many title companies require a photo of an i.d., would this then be prohibited?

National Notary Assocation

Hello. The new Illinois journal law requires recording the name of the signer or person requesting the notarization in the journal entry. The new law also prohibits Notaries from recording a principal’s personally identifiable information, such as an ID identification number or any other number that could identify a principal, a biometric identifier (for example, a thumbprint), and for electronic notarizations, the electronic signature of the principal. If the Notary forgets and records any prohibited personally identifiable information, the Notary must redact it.

Cathy

05 Jul 2023

For this Illinois law - we are NOT to record a DL#, etc in the journal of the person signing?

Hello. The new law prohibits Notaries from recording a principal’s personally identifiable information, such as an ID identification number or any other number that could identify a principal, a biometric identifier (for example, a thumbprint), and for electronic notarizations, the electronic signature of the principal.

JODY DOWELL

30 Jun 2023

Thank you!

29 Jun 2023

Does the "physical location of the notary and the principal" mean their location at time of notarizing the document, or their home physical addresses?

Hello. The location at the time of notarizing the document.

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Illinois Notary journal basics

Key Notary journal protections

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