2.1 Eligibility Requirements
Key Takeaways
- An applicant must be at least 18 years old, an Arizona resident for income-tax purposes, and able to read and write English
- You must be a U.S. citizen OR a legal permanent resident (a Permanent Resident Card holder qualifies)
- A felony conviction disqualifies you unless your civil rights have been restored under A.R.S. \u00a7 41-312
- A conviction for a lesser offense involving moral turpitude (fraud, forgery, perjury, theft) can also disqualify you
- Residency means your primary home is in Arizona and you claim it as your residence on state and federal tax returns
Eligibility Requirements for Arizona Notaries
Before you spend a dollar on the exam, the bond, or a stamp, confirm you legally qualify. Arizona's eligibility rules live in Arizona Revised Statutes (A.R.S.) \u00a7 41-312 and are summarized in the 2025 Notary Public Reference Manual. The exam tests these directly, often as "Which of the following would disqualify an applicant?" questions, so you must know not just the rule but the exceptions attached to it.
The Five Gateway Requirements
To be commissioned by the Arizona Secretary of State, you must meet all of the following at the time you apply:
| # | Requirement | Statutory Detail |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Age | At least 18 years old (not 21) |
| 2 | Residency | An Arizona resident for income-tax purposes |
| 3 | Citizenship status | U.S. citizen OR legal permanent resident |
| 4 | Language | Able to read and write English |
| 5 | Character | No disqualifying felony or moral-turpitude conviction |
These are gateway, not preference, requirements. Missing even one means the Secretary of State will reject the application no matter how high you score on the competency exam.
Age: Exactly 18
The minimum age is 18. Arizona does not require any maximum age, and there is no separate "experience" requirement. Your date of birth is verified against the government-issued ID you present and the information on your application. A common trap on the exam is an answer choice of "21" \u2014 the correct minimum is 18.
Residency: Income-Tax Resident of Arizona
Arizona requires genuine residency, not merely a connection to the state. The statute ties residency to taxation: you must be a resident of Arizona for income-tax purposes and claim your Arizona home as your primary residence on your state and federal tax returns. Your commission is issued in and for the county where you reside, so your home address must sit inside an Arizona county.
| Counts as Residency | Does NOT Qualify |
|---|---|
| Primary dwelling located in Arizona | Owning Arizona property but living out of state |
| Claiming Arizona on state/federal tax returns | Working in Arizona while residing elsewhere |
| Intent to remain in Arizona | Holding only a P.O. box in Arizona |
| A physical home address in an Arizona county | A vacation home you visit occasionally |
Unlike a handful of states that commission non-resident notaries who merely work in the state, Arizona has no employment-based pathway. If you move out of Arizona during your term, you must resign your commission.
Citizenship or Legal Permanent Residency
You must be a U.S. citizen or a legal permanent resident (LPR). An LPR \u2014 someone holding a valid Permanent Resident Card ("green card") \u2014 qualifies just as a citizen does. A naturalized citizen born abroad is fully eligible. Temporary visa holders and undocumented residents do not qualify.
English Literacy
You must be able to read and write English. This is functional, not academic: you must read a document well enough to identify which notarial act it calls for, complete the notarial certificate in English, and read the Arizona statutes and the Reference Manual (which is the open-book exam's only source). No language test is administered; the requirement is self-attested on the application.
Criminal-History Disqualifiers
Character is the requirement most heavily tested because it has built-in exceptions. Under A.R.S. \u00a7 41-312, two categories of conviction can bar an applicant:
- A felony conviction \u2014 unless the applicant's civil rights have been restored.
- A conviction for a lesser offense involving moral turpitude, or a conviction of a nature incompatible with the duties of a notary public.
The key insight is that a felony is not an automatic, permanent bar. If your civil rights have been restored (through completion of sentence and the statutory restoration process, a set-aside, or a pardon), you may still qualify. By contrast, a fresh felony with no rights restoration is disqualifying.
What Is "Moral Turpitude"?
Moral turpitude describes conduct that is inherently dishonest or base \u2014 exactly the traits that undermine a notary's role as an impartial fraud-deterrent. Classic examples:
- Fraud and false-pretenses crimes
- Forgery and document falsification
- Perjury (false swearing under oath)
- Theft and embezzlement
- Bribery
Minor offenses such as a routine traffic citation do not involve moral turpitude and do not disqualify an applicant.
Example: Maria, age 34, is a lawful permanent resident living in Tucson, claims Arizona as her tax residence, and reads and writes English. Eight years ago she was convicted of a felony but completed her sentence and had her civil rights formally restored. Maria qualifies. Her age, residency, LPR status, and English literacy are all satisfied, and the restoration of her civil rights removes the felony bar. If her rights had not been restored, she would be ineligible until they were.
Eligibility Self-Check
Work through this checklist before applying:
- Am I at least 18?
- Is my primary home in an Arizona county, claimed on my tax returns?
- Am I a U.S. citizen or green-card holder?
- Can I read and write English?
- Do I have any felony (without rights restoration) or moral-turpitude conviction?
If the answer to items 1\u20134 is "yes" and item 5 is "no," you clear the eligibility gate and may register for the Prometric competency exam.
On the Exam
Expect eligibility questions framed as disqualifier scenarios. Remember: minimum age 18, real Arizona residency tied to taxes, citizen or LPR, English read/write, and a felony bar that lifts once civil rights are restored. The most-missed point is treating a felony as a permanent, no-exception disqualifier \u2014 it is not.
What is the minimum age to become an Arizona notary public?
An applicant has a felony conviction from several years ago but has since had their civil rights restored. Under A.R.S. \u00a7 41-312, are they eligible to become an Arizona notary?
Which residency situation satisfies Arizona's notary eligibility requirement?
Match each eligibility element to its correct standard under A.R.S. \u00a7 41-312.
Match each item on the left with the correct item on the right
A conviction for a lesser offense involving ___ \u2014 such as fraud, forgery, or perjury \u2014 can disqualify an Arizona notary applicant.
Type your answer below