California · Gov. Code §§8231–8231.20California remote online notarization: why California notaries can't do it yet, and what applies when they can

California's Online Notarization Act bars a California notary from performing online notarization, and bars any online notarization platform from being authorized for use, before the notary registers with the Secretary of State and before the Secretary of State completes the technology project needed to implement it – which must be done no later than January 1, 2030, unless the Secretary of State tells the Legislature and the Governor in writing by January 1, 2029 that it's incomplete (Cal. Gov. Code §8231(b)). Once it's available, a registered notary physically in California may notarize online for a signer in California, elsewhere in the United States, or outside the United States if the act isn't prohibited where the signer is, and appearing by continuous, synchronous audio-video satisfies a requirement to appear before the notary; the session is recorded (§8231.4). The Secretary of State sets the standards, including identity proofing at least at NIST Identity Assurance Level 2 (§8231.2). Separately, a certificate of acknowledgment taken in another place is sufficient in California if it was taken in accordance with the laws of that place (Cal. Civ. Code §1189(b)).