A New York notary acknowledgement is a certificate in which an officer, usually a notary, records that a person personally appeared and acknowledged signing a document. The officer also records that they knew the person or had satisfactory evidence of who they are.[1.2] For a conveyance or other instrument about New York real property, the certificate must conform substantially to the form in N.Y. Real Property Law Section 309-a.[1.1] Create the free form online or download it as a PDF or Word file.
Last Updated: October 2026. This guide is reviewed and updated regularly to reflect current New York law. If you notice an error or outdated information, please contact us.
Build Your Document
Answer a few simple questions to make your document in minutes
Save and Print
Save progress and finish on any device, download and print anytime
Sign and Use
Your valid, lawyer-approved document is ready
New York sets the wording of a certificate of acknowledgment in Section 309-a of the N.Y. Real Property Law. For a conveyance or other instrument about real property in New York, the certificate must conform substantially to the statutory form, with the blanks properly filled.[1.1] Section 309 adds a separate rule for acknowledgments made for a corporation.[2]
An individual acting in his or her own right may acknowledge a document. The officer then certifies the acknowledgment in writing with this wording:
The certificate of an acknowledgment, within this state, of a conveyance or other instrument in respect to real property situate in this state, by a person, must conform substantially with the following form, the blanks being properly filled: State of New York }ss.: County of ........} On the .......... day of ........ in the year ..... before me, the undersigned, personally appeared ........, personally known to me or proved to me on the basis of satisfactory evidence to be the individual(s) whose name(s) is (are) subscribed to the within instrument and acknowledged to me that he/she/they executed the same in his/her/their capacity(ies), and that by his/her/their signature(s) on the instrument, the individual(s), or the person upon behalf of which the individual(s) acted, executed the instrument. (Signature and office of individual taking acknowledgement.)
In plain words, the certificate records these points:
The downloadable FormsPal template uses its own acknowledgment wording. It also adds a closing line that names the state. If the office receiving your document asks for the statutory certificate, compare the template with the wording above.
In practice, signers often bring a driver's license or passport so the notary can confirm who they are. Ask the notary ahead of time which ID they accept.
When a corporation signs, the acknowledgment must be made by an officer or an attorney in fact duly appointed. An attorney in fact is a person formally appointed to act for another. For a dissolved corporation, an officer, director or attorney in fact can make it. That person must be duly appointed and authorized to execute the instrument by the corporation's board of directors.[2]
The certificate must then conform substantially with one of the alternative forms set out in the same section.[2]
| Who signs | Who makes the acknowledgment | Certificate wording |
|---|---|---|
| An individual signing a real property instrument | The individual, acting in his or her own right | Must conform substantially with the form in Section 309-a[1.2] |
| A corporation signing a conveyance or other instrument | An officer or an attorney in fact duly appointed | Must conform substantially with one of the alternative forms in Section 309[2] |
Getting a document notarized in New York usually takes one short visit to a notary public. The steps below walk you through that visit. The next section shows how the acknowledgment template itself is filled in.
The free FormsPal template for a New York notary acknowledgement is a one-page certificate with eight fields. The top part covers the state, the county, the date, the notary's name, the signer's name and the state on the last blank. The bottom part holds the signature line and the title of office, which are for the notary to complete.
The screenshots under each step show the FormsPal New York 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.
To type the entries on a downloaded copy, you can open the PDF in our online PDF editor.
The FormsPal template is one of our printable notary forms.
These questions cover the certificate wording New York law gives for an individual and who may make an acknowledgment for a corporation. The answers follow the statutes listed in the Sources section at the end of this page.
Yes. Section 309-a of the N.Y. Real Property Law gives a certificate form for an individual acknowledging a conveyance or other instrument about New York real property. The form records the place, the date and the person who appeared. It also records that the person was known to the officer or proved by satisfactory evidence, and that the person acknowledged signing.[1.2]
An officer or an attorney in fact duly appointed can make it. For a dissolved corporation, an officer, director or attorney in fact duly appointed and authorized by the board of directors can.[2]
General information, not legal or tax advice.
