If your commission expires within the next six months, it’s time to start working on your reappointment.

The reappointment process is the same whether you are completing your first, fifth or tenth term of office. You must submit an application along with an appointment fee of $40, secure a new $10,000 notary bond, and obtain a rubber stamp seal showing the expiration date of your new commission.

Even with PAN’s expert assistance, this process takes time.

With nearly 90,000 notaries in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, as many as 1,900 appointments (new and renewal) may be processed in a month. If your application for reappointment arrives in Harrisburg close to your commission expiration date, it is possible that your reappointment may not be processed and sent to you before your current commission expires.

PAN submits reappointment applications to the state according to the Notary Public Law, Title 57 of the Pennsylvania Statutes. Section 152 states that applications for reappointment shall be filed with the Department of State at least two months prior to the expiration of the current commission. This allows the application to be processed in a timely fashion, while minimizing the chances that the application will be lost or misplaced. But once an application leaves our office, PAN cannot control how soon you will receive the notice of appointment from Harrisburg. When you receive your notice of appointment, you have 45 days from the date of appointment to have the bond executed and take the oath of office.

PAN offers a notary reappointment package with education* for $306.28. You get PAN's step-by-step help in renewing your commission, including a line-by-line review of your application, the $40 state application fee, a fouryear $10,000 notary bond, a self-inking rubber stamp seal, four years of PAN membership, and a four-year subscription to Notary Notes Digital.

If you are within six months of the end of your commission, contact PAN today and begin your reappointment process. Call 800-944-8790 or visit www.notary.org. * If you were not a commissioned notary public on July 1, 2003, you must take three (3) hours of approved notary education in the six months prior to your application for reappointment.