Mississippi Notary Application

The Mississippi notary application looks straightforward — one form, one fee — but the details around commission names, oath notarization, and the bond deadline trip up applicants regularly enough that the Secretary of State's office fields the same questions every week.

Getting Form NP-001

Download the Notary Public Commission Application (Form NP-001) from the Secretary of State's Fees & Forms Directory at sos.ms.gov. The form combines the application with the oath of office, so you'll handle both in a single document.

The $25 state filing fee is non-refundable. Pay by check or money order made out to the Secretary of State. The division does not accept credit cards or online payments for notary applications.

Commission Name Rules

Your commission name is what appears on every notarial act you perform, so get it right the first time. Mississippi requires:

• Your last name in full — no abbreviations
• At least your first name or middle initial
• No nicknames, stage names, or business names
• Suffixes like "Jr." or "III" are the only allowed abbreviations

The signature you put on the form becomes your registered signature. Every notarization you perform for the next four years must match it, so pick a version you can replicate consistently.

The Oath of Office Requirement

Form NP-001 includes an integrated oath of office that follows the language of Section 268 of the Mississippi Constitution. You cannot simply sign this at home and mail it in.

The oath must be administered and witnessed by a currently commissioned Mississippi notary public. This notary will verify your identity, watch you sign, and affix their official seal to the document. If you don't know an active notary, banks, law offices, and UPS stores often have notaries available for a $5 fee.

After the oath is notarized, mail the original form (not a copy) and your $25 fee to the Business Services Division in Jackson.

What Happens After You Submit

The Business Services Division reviews your application and forwards it to the Governor for approval. Processing takes roughly 3 to 7 business days.

Once approved, the state emails you a pre-commission letter with your assigned commission start and expiration dates. Mississippi stopped mailing paper notices, so check your email and spam folder if a week has passed without a response.

This pre-commission letter identifies the most critical deadline in the process: you have 60 calendar days from the preliminary approval date to purchase a $5,000 surety bond, execute it on Form NP-002, get the oath notarized, and mail everything back to the Secretary of State. Miss this window and the state permanently rejects your application. You'll need to submit a new NP-001 and pay another $25.

Common Application Mistakes

Sending a copy instead of the original. The state requires the original notarized form with wet-ink signatures. Photocopies and scans are rejected.

Using the wrong payment method. The state directs applicants to pay by check or money order made out to the Secretary of State.

Forgetting to update your address. If you move after submitting the application but before receiving your commission, your pre-commission email goes to the address on file. File a change-of-address notice with the Business Services Division within 30 calendar days.

Applying from outside Mississippi. The state requires 30 consecutive days of residency in your county of application. There is no exception for out-of-state workers employed in Mississippi.

The Mississippi notary commission guide includes a step-by-step application tracker that walks you through Form NP-001 field by field and monitors every deadline from submission through active commission.

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