What is the status of my notary public application?
How long does it take to be approved by the Secretary of State?
Recently the notary application process is between 4-6 weeks from the day the State Exam is taken. In the past, it has taken up to 16-18 weeks to hear back from the Secretary of State.
Below is what you will see from the Secretary of State's website:
- The notary public application processing time varies depending on when we receive your correctly completed notary public application and when we receive your background check information from the California Department of Justice for your Live Scan fingerprints. Please refer to our Processing Times webpage for daily updated processing times.