Tennessee Notary Seal Stamp

State law requires that all notaries use an official seal prescribed and designed by the secretary of state. The notary must purchase the official seal at his or her own expense. At the notary’s request, the county clerk may obtain an official seal for the notary, and the county clerk may charge a fee for this service not to exceed 20 percent of the cost of the seal. T.C.A. § 8-16-114.

The current design prescribed by the secretary of state is a circular seal with the notary’s name (as it appears on the commission) printed at the top, the county of election printed at the bottom, and the words “State of Tennessee Notary Public” or “Tennessee Notary Public” printed in the center. Notaries commissioned on or after July 1, 2004, must use a rubber or other type stamp (not an impression seal), and the stamp must be imprinted in some color, not black or yellow, that is clearly legible and appears black when copied on a non-color copier. Notaries who were in office before July 1, 2004, may continue to use their seals until the expiration of their current term, but thereafter must use the rubber or other type stamp as described above. T.C.A. § 8-16-114.

Additional information concerning the seal may be obtained from the secretary of state’s division of business services, which can be accessed from the secretary of state’s Web site at www.state.tn.us/sos.

The seal must be surrendered to the county legislative body (through the county clerk) upon expiration of the notary’s term of office or resignation, and the personal representative must surrender the seal in the event of the death of the notary. T.C.A. § 8-16-114.

A notary public commissioned on or after July 1, 2004, shall use a notary seal that substantially conforms to the following design: a circular seal with the notary public’s name as it appears on the commission printed at the top, the county of election printed at the bottom, and the words “State of Tennessee Notary Public” or “Tennessee Notary Public” printed in the center.
Effective July 1, 2004, and until the expiration of his/her current term of office, a notary public commissioned prior to July 1, 2004, shall use either the notary seal design identified in section (1), or a notary seal that substantially conforms to the following design: a circular seal with the notary public’s name as it appears on the commission printed at the top, the county of election and state printed at the bottom, and “Notary Public at Large” printed in the center. A sample seal format appears below.

The secretary of state shall prescribe and design an official seal to be used by a Tennessee notary public. The seal of office may be imprinted by a rubber or other type of stamp. Such stamp shall imprint the seal of office in any color other than black or yellow, provided the color used to imprint the seal shall be clearly legible and appear as black when photocopied on a non-color copier. Nothing in this subsection (a) shall be construed to require a notary public to procure such a rubber or other stamp or to use a particular color of ink with the stamp prior to the expiration of the notary's term of office, and all impression notary seals shall be valid for use until the end of the notary's term of office. Notwithstanding any other provision of law or provision of this subsection (a) to the contrary, the use of an embossed notary seal after May 12, 2003, shall not render such an acknowledgement defective. No person shall incur any civil or criminal liability for failure to imprint the seal of office in a color required by this subsection (a) nor shall any document or title imprinted with a seal of the wrong color be invalid because of such failure.
Every notary public shall, at such notary's own expense, procure a seal of office, which the notary shall surrender to the county legislative body when the notary resigns, or at the expiration of such notary public's term of office, and which such notary's representatives, in case of such notary's death, shall likewise surrender, to be cancelled.
At the notary public's request, the county clerk may obtain an official seal or any part thereof for the notary public. Any county clerk providing this service may charge a fee not to exceed twenty percent (20%) of the cost of the seal or part obtained for the notary public.