2.5 Changes During Commission & Renewals
Key Takeaways
- Notify the Secretary of State within 30 days of any change to your filed information, including name, address, or email
- A legal name change requires a new seal/stamp, but your commission number stays the same
- A conviction for a felony or a crime of fraud, dishonesty, or deceit must be reported within 30 days
- Renewal mirrors a new application: 4 hours of education (or the 3-year alternative), a passing exam, a new $25,000 bond, and the $25 fee
- If your commission lapses before renewal is complete, you must stop notarizing until a new commission issues
Changes During the Commission and Renewals
A Montana commission carries ongoing duties. The two numbers the exam hammers are the 30-day reporting deadline for changes and the fact that renewal repeats education and the exam — it is never a rubber-stamp.
Reporting Changes (within 30 days)
You must notify the Secretary of State (SOS) within 30 calendar days of any change to your filed information:
| Change | Required action |
|---|---|
| Name change | Notify SOS and obtain a new seal/stamp with the new name |
| Address change | Notify SOS; replace the seal if it shows a city/town that changed |
| Email change | Update through the SOS Notary Portal |
| Disqualifying conviction | Notify SOS within 30 days (see below) |
Name Changes — the Details
If you legally change your name mid-commission:
- Notify the SOS within 30 days.
- Obtain a new seal/stamp bearing your new name.
- Your commission number stays the same — you are not re-commissioned.
- Use the new name on all notarial acts going forward.
Common trap: A name change does not shorten or reset your 4-year term, and it does not change your commission number. Only the seal and your signature change.
Criminal-Conviction Reporting
If you are convicted of — or plead guilty or nolo contendere (no contest) to — either:
- any felony, OR
- any crime involving fraud, dishonesty, or deceit,
you must notify the SOS within 30 days of the conviction or plea. Failure to report is itself grounds for discipline under MCA 1-5-621.
Renewal Process
Renewal repeats the new-applicant requirements — there is no "grandfathering."
| Renewal requirement | Detail |
|---|---|
| Education | 4 hours in the 12 months before applying, OR 2 hours in each of the 3 years before renewal |
| Examination | Pass within the 6 months before applying |
| Bond | A new $25,000 bond for the next 4-year term |
| Application | Online via the SOS Notary Portal |
| Fee | $25 (non-refundable) |
Suggested Renewal Timeline
| When | Action |
|---|---|
| ~6 months before expiration | Complete any needed education |
| ~3–4 months before expiration | Take and pass the exam |
| ~2–3 months before expiration | Purchase a new $25,000 bond |
| ~1–2 months before expiration | File the online renewal application |
Warning: If your current commission expires before the renewal is approved, you must stop performing notarial acts until the new commission's effective date. There is no grace period that lets you keep notarizing on an expired commission.
Why Renewal Is Not Automatic
Montana treats each commission as a fresh four-year grant rather than a rolling license. Re-running education, the exam, and a new bond ensures every active notary has demonstrated current competence and carries valid financial protection for the next term — the old bond covered the old term and does not extend. A frequent misconception is that long-serving notaries are "grandfathered" out of the exam; they are not. The only concession to experience is the 2-hours-per-year education alternative, which lets diligent notaries satisfy the requirement gradually instead of in one 4-hour block.
The Lapse Problem
The single most consequential renewal mistake is letting the commission expire before the new one issues. There is no grace period and no provisional authority. If your old commission expires on a Tuesday and your renewal is approved the following Monday, every "notarization" you performed in between is unauthorized — potentially exposing you to liability, voiding the affected documents, and triggering discipline. The suggested timeline above (start education ~6 months out, test ~3–4 months out, bond ~2–3 months out, file ~1–2 months out) exists specifically to build a buffer so processing time never pushes you past expiration.
Resignation or Cessation of Service
| Obligation | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Journal | Keep it secure for the required retention period, or transfer it to the SOS |
| Seal/stamp | Destroy or deface it so it cannot be misused |
| Commission certificate | May be retained for your own records |
The overarching duty when you stop serving — by resignation, expiration without renewal, or revocation — is to prevent misuse. A live seal in a drawer is a forgery risk, so it must be defaced or destroyed. The journal, by contrast, is a permanent record of acts you performed and must be preserved or surrendered so that past notarizations can be verified long after you leave the office.
Worked Example
A notary marries on June 1 and changes her surname. She must notify the SOS by about July 1 (within 30 days) and order a new seal showing her married name. She keeps the same commission number and the same expiration date — marriage did not re-start her term.
Exam Focus
- 30 days is the deadline for reporting changes and disqualifying convictions.
- A name change → new seal, same commission number and term.
- Renewal repeats education + exam + new bond + $25 fee.
- An expired commission means no notarizing until a new one issues.
A Montana notary legally changes her last name when she marries. What must she do?
What is required to renew a Montana notary commission?