Don’t Sign Before the Notary Arrives: The Most Common Appointment Mistake

Of all the small mistakes I see at appointments, this is the most common by a wide margin, and it’s almost always well-intentioned: someone signs the document ahead of time, thinking they’re saving everyone a step, and it does the opposite.

Why this is a problem

Most notarial acts — acknowledgments and jurats alike — require the signer to either sign in the notary’s physical presence, or personally acknowledge to the notary that the signature is theirs and was made knowingly. If a document arrives already signed and there’s no way to properly verify that signature was made under the right circumstances, I generally can’t complete the notarization on that copy as-is.

What has to happen instead

• For a document requiring a jurat (where the signer swears to the truth of its contents), it typically needs to be signed again, this time in my presence — which usually means a fresh, unsigned copy
• For a document requiring an acknowledgment, there’s sometimes more flexibility — the signer may be able to acknowledge an existing signature as their own, depending on the specific document and state rules — but this isn’t guaranteed and shouldn’t be assumed

What this costs you

At best, a short delay while a fresh copy is printed. At worst, if a fresh copy isn’t available at the appointment, a rescheduled visit entirely — which is a frustrating outcome for something that’s completely avoidable with one simple habit.

The instinct to “have it ready” before the notary shows up is generous, and it’s backwards. Bring the document unsigned, and let the signing be the part that happens together.

The easy fix

Simply hold off signing until I’m there. If you’re not sure whether a specific document requires signing in my presence versus acknowledging an existing signature, ask when you book — it’s a quick question that avoids the entire issue.

A related habit worth building

The same logic applies to any co-signers on the same document — if one person signs early without the others, it can create the same problem for that signature specifically, even if everyone else signs correctly at the appointment.