A notary, no matter in which state a notary is licensed, is one who officially witnesses signatures in an attempt to reduce and prevent fraud.
Notaries, however, do not attest to the truthfulness, accuracy, or completeness of an underlying document.
Rather, they attest that the person who signs the document is, in fact, the person who is signing the document.
Notaries in New Mexico are licensed and regulated by the New Mexico Secretary of State.
Notary licenses are issued for a period of 4 years after completion and acceptance of a qualified application.
As of this writing (2018), there is no qualifying examination for a New Mexico notary license.
Although an applicant for a New Mexico notary license is not required to undergo an exam, applicants will nonetheless want to have a complete understanding of their professional notarial duties.
The New Mexico Secretary of State offers a handbook which New Mexico notaries should completely familiarize themselves with before engaging in any notarial acts.
Some of the qualifications to become a notary in New Mexico include the following:
* Being 18 years old and a resident of New Mexico;
* Being able to speak English;
* Having two persons attest to the good character of an applicant who are also residents of New Mexico;
* No felony convictions;
* No notary license revocations within the last 5 years;
* Obtaining a New Mexico Notary Bond for $10,000;
* Purchasing a $10,000 New Mexico notary bond
The New Mexico Secretary of State requires notaries to purchase a $10,000 surety bond before a license is granted.
AmeriPro Surety Bonds offers this bond for $50.00.
The bond is issued instantly.
This means that once the application is completed, you pay the $50 fee and the bond is issued to you immediately.
Once issued, we will send you a copy of the bond by email, and an original of the notary bond will be mailed to your designated address.
You will need to file the bond with the New Mexico Secretary of State.
The New Mexico notary bond is not an insurance policy for the notary.
This surety bond is a financial guarantee that the New Mexico notary will abide by all laws involved in notarial acts.
The bond, then, protects others, that is, the public, from wrongful, fraudulent, or criminal acts that a notary may commit in the performance of their duties.
The bond may be thought of as a policy that the notary purchases to protects others from wrongful acts that a notary may commit.
Unlike with an insurance policy, if there were any claims paid on a notary bond, the notary would be obliged to reimburse the surety in full.
Like all surety bonds, a New Mexico notary bond will have three sides or three parties:
* The principal is the New Mexico notary who is purchasing the bond
* The obligee is the entity who requires the bond and on whose behalf the bond is issued. For the New Mexico notary bond the obligee is the New Mexico Secretary of State. The Secretary of State requires this bond to be issued on behalf of the people of the state of New Mexico.
* The surety is the company who is issuing the bond and who has the financial wherewithal to pay for any claims on the bond.
AmeriPro Surety Bonds is your agent for the surety.
While the notary bond protects others from wrongful acts which may be committed by a New Mexico notary, New Mexico notary errors and omissions insurance is insurance for the notary and which protects the notary.
New Mexico notaries are not required to maintain an E&O policy; however, notaries whose duties ---either part time or as a profession include acting as a mortgage loan signing agent will want to purchase E&O insurance.
In almost all cases, loan signing agents are required to purchase E&O insurance.
But, to be sure, this is not a requirement for the New Mexico notary license.
Other notaries ought to seriously consider the purchase of this insurance as well since it is insurance, subject to certain restrictions, which can protect and save a notary many thousands of dollars.
AmeriPro Surety Bonds is a nationwide surety bonding-only company which provides surety bonds of all types throughout New Mexico.
We look forward to making your surety-bond purchase experience as enjoyable as possible.
We look forward to speaking with you today.