Free New Jersey Notary Acknowledgement Form

What Does New Jersey Require for a Notary Acknowledgement?

A New Jersey notary acknowledgement follows the notarial law in N.J.S.A. 52:7-10.1 et seq. That law covers how the certificate is attached to a record, where the notary's official stamp goes, and when the notary may refuse to act.^[1] Separate statutory short form certificates set the wording for an acknowledgment.^[2]

Statutory Notary Acknowledgment Wording in New Jersey

The statute's short form certificates are sufficient for the purposes indicated, if the requirements of section 10 of P.L.1979, c.460 (C.52:7-19) are satisfied.^[2] An individual acting in their own right may acknowledge a document. The officer then certifies the acknowledgment in writing with this wording:

For an acknowledgment in an individual capacity: State of ________________________________________ County of ___________________________________ This record was acknowledged before me on __________ (date) by __________________________________ (Name(s) of individual(s)) __________________________________ Signature of notarial officer Stamp __________________________________ Title of office (My commission expires: _________)

A document signed for another person or an entity can be acknowledged in a representative capacity. The statute's wording for that case adds the signer's type of authority, such as officer or trustee, and the name of the party on whose behalf the record was executed.^[2]

Certificate and Official Stamp for Paper and Electronic Records

The rules differ for a tangible record, such as a paper document, and an electronic record.

Grounds for Refusing an Acknowledgment

A notarial officer may refuse to perform a notarial act if the officer is not satisfied that:

• the individual executing the record is competent or has the capacity to execute it
• the individual's signature is knowingly and voluntarily made
• the individual's signature on the record or statement substantially conforms to the signature on a form of identification used to determine the individual's identity
• the physical appearance of the individual signing the record or statement substantially conforms to the photograph on a form of identification used to determine the individual's identity^[1]

In practice, many notaries ask to see a current photo ID at the appointment, so bring one with you.

How to Notarize a Document in New Jersey

Getting a document notarized in New Jersey usually takes one short visit to a notary public. The steps below walk you through that visit. The next section shows how the acknowledgment form itself is filled in.

1. Choose a notary in New Jersey. Many people take the document to a bank, a credit union, a shipping store or a private notary office. Call ahead to ask whether they will notarize your type of document and which photo ID they accept.
2. Wait to sign until you meet the notary. You can fill in most of the document before the visit. Many notaries prefer to watch you sign, so leave the signature line blank unless the notary tells you otherwise.
3. Bring a photo ID. Bring a current photo ID. A notarial officer may refuse to act if not satisfied that your signature and your appearance substantially match the signature and photograph on the ID used to identify you.^[1]
4. Acknowledge your signature. Sign in front of the notary if you have not signed yet, and tell the notary that the signature is yours. The New Jersey short form for an individual states that the record was acknowledged before the notarial officer on a stated date by the named individual.^[2]
5. Let the notary complete the certificate. The notary may not sign the certificate until the notarial act has been performed. On a paper document, the certificate must be part of the record or attached to it.^[1]
6. Pay the fee and take both papers. Notaries usually charge a fee for their service, so ask about it when you call. Leave with the original document and the completed acknowledgment, and give both to the office that asked for the notarization.

How Do You Fill Out the New Jersey Notary Acknowledgement Template?

The free FormsPal template for a New Jersey notary acknowledgement is a one-page certificate with seven fields. They cover the state, the county, the date, the notary's name, the signer's name, the state on the penalty-of-perjury line, and the notary's signature line. Fill in the first six and leave the signature and seal for the notary public.

The screenshots under each step show the FormsPal New Jersey notary acknowledgement template filled with sample entries in blue, so you can see where each answer goes. The names, addresses, dates and amounts are examples only.

1. Complete the acknowledgment on page 1. Fill in STATE OF and COUNTY OF, then the date after On, the notary's name after before me, and the signer's name after personally appeared. Enter the state on the penalty-of-perjury line. The Signature line at the bottom, with the (seal) mark, is for the notary public to complete.

   

To type the entries on a downloaded copy, you can open the PDF in our online PDF editor.

In practice, people often have a New Jersey power of attorney or a New Jersey bill of sale notarized this way. The FormsPal template is one of our printable notary forms.

Frequently Asked Questions

These two questions cover how a notary signs the certificate and what happens when a signer is unable to sign the record. Both answers follow the statutes cited in the Sources section at the end of this page.

When must a notarial officer affix their signature to a notarial certificate under New Jersey law?

A notarial officer may not affix the officer's signature to, or logically associate it with, a certificate until the notarial act has been performed.^[1] The notary signs the certificate only after the act is done.

What if a signer is physically unable to sign a record?

If an individual is physically unable to sign a record, two steps apply:

• The individual may direct an individual other than the notarial officer to sign the record with the individual's name.
• The notarial officer then inserts "Signature affixed by (name of other individual) at the direction of (name of individual)" or words of similar import.^[1]

General information, not legal or tax advice.

Sources

The certificate wording, stamp rules and refusal grounds on this page come from the state statutes listed below. Each numbered marker in the text points to one of these two sources, so you can check the exact language.

1. N.J.S.A. 52:7-10.1 et seq. (RULONA).
2. N.J.S.A. 52:7-10.12.

Mara Erlach

Writer & Attorney

Mara has been practicing estate planning and trust law in California since 2003, taking pride in helping clients of all backgrounds and asset profiles form a complete and customized estate plan. Her specialties are: estate planning, wills and trusts, trust and probate administration.