Notary Public Permit Requirements in Bowling Green, KY

1. EIN (Employer Identification Number)

   Required if you operate as an LLC/corporation or have employees. Sole proprietor notaries with no employees may use their SSN.

   Official government source

   Free·Immediate (online)

   Free

   Immediate (online)

1. Kentucky Notary Commission

   Apply for a Kentucky notary commission through the Secretary of State (online portal or mailed form). After the Secretary of State approves the application, you have 30 days to complete the appointment by taking the oath of office and providing surety at your county clerk's office, which records the filing and oath under KRS 423.400. Must be 18 or older and a Kentucky resident or work in Kentucky; the commission lasts four years.

   Official government source

   $10 application fee payable to the Kentucky State Treasurer, plus county clerk recording fee and surety bond·Not published by the Secretary of State; the county clerk oath and surety must be completed within 30 days of approval

   $10 application fee payable to the Kentucky State Treasurer, plus county clerk recording fee and surety bond

   Not published by the Secretary of State; the county clerk oath and surety must be completed within 30 days of approval

2. Kentucky Notary Public — Mandatory $1,000 Assurance (Errors and Omissions Insurance Is Optional)

   Kentucky notaries are commissioned by the Secretary of State under the Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts, KRS 423.300 to 423.455. Errors and omissions insurance is nowhere required by that chapter — it protects the notary's own wallet, not the public — but a surety assurance is mandatory and is the requirement a notary actually cannot skip. KRS 423.390(2) requires an applicant to be at least eighteen, a U.S. citizen or permanent legal resident, a resident of or employed or practicing in the county where the application is made, able to read and write English, not disqualified under KRS 423.395, and to submit proof of the surety bond plus the fee under KRS 423.430. KRS 423.390(4) then requires the applicant, within thirty days of receiving the commission, to appear in person before the county clerk named in the application to take the oath of office, submit the assurance in the form of a surety bond, and file the commission. KRS 423.390(5) fixes the assurance at one thousand dollars, issued by a surety licensed in Kentucky, covering acts performed during the commission term and in the form prescribed by the Secretary of State; a notary may perform notarial acts only during the period a valid assurance is on file with the county clerk, and the surety must give the Secretary of State thirty days' notice before cancellation. Performing electronic or online notarial acts requires a separate registration with the Secretary of State under KRS 423.390(10) on top of the commission.

   Official government source

   Secretary of State application or renewal fee $10 (KRS 423.430(3)(a)); $10 for a replacement commission and $10 to update commission or registration information. County clerk fees under KRS 64.012: $10 to record the bond (subsection (1)(h)) and $5 for administering the oath and certificate (subsection (1)(k)). The $1,000 assurance itself is a surety bond whose premium is set by the bonding company, not by statute. Errors and omissions insurance is optional and carries no statutory amount or fee·Commission term is four years (KRS 423.390(3)). The oath, assurance and filing must be completed before the county clerk within thirty days of receiving the commission from the Secretary of State, and the commission is not effective until that is done

   Secretary of State application or renewal fee $10 (KRS 423.430(3)(a)); $10 for a replacement commission and $10 to update commission or registration information. County clerk fees under KRS 64.012: $10 to record the bond (subsection (1)(h)) and $5 for administering the oath and certificate (subsection (1)(k)). The $1,000 assurance itself is a surety bond whose premium is set by the bonding company, not by statute. Errors and omissions insurance is optional and carries no statutory amount or fee

   Commission term is four years (KRS 423.390(3)). The oath, assurance and filing must be completed before the county clerk within thirty days of receiving the commission from the Secretary of State, and the commission is not effective until that is done

1. Bowling Green Business License (if operating a notary business)

   If you operate a standalone notary business in Bowling Green, you generally must register with the City's Office of Occupational License (Finance Department) — a one-time $50 registration, not an annually-renewed flat fee — and pay the 2% Occupational License Tax on net profits. If notarization is incidental to another profession (e.g., attorney, bank teller), a separate registration may not be required.

   Official government source

   $50 one-time registration fee; ongoing 2% Occupational License Tax on net profits·Processing time not published by the city

   $50 one-time registration fee; ongoing 2% Occupational License Tax on net profits

   Processing time not published by the city

Official Sources

• Kentucky — Notary Public Requirements
• Kentucky Secretary of State

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