2020 Georgia Code
Title 45 - Public Officers and Employees
Chapter 17 - Notaries Public
Article 1 - General Provisions
§ 45-17-2. Qualifications of Notaries

1. Any individual applying for appointment to be a notary public shall:
   1. Be at least 18 years old;
   2. Be a United States citizen or be a legal resident of the United States;
   3. Be a legal resident of the county from which such individual is appointed;
   4. Have, and provide at the time of the application, the applicant's operating telephone number; and
   5. Be able to read and write the English language.
2. The qualification of paragraph (3) of subsection (a) of this Code section shall not apply to any nonresident individual applying for appointment as a notary public under the provisions of Code Section 45-17-7.

(Orig. Code 1863, § 1449; Code 1868, § 1506; Code 1873, § 1500; Code 1882, § 1500; Civil Code 1895, § 501; Civil Code 1910, § 619; Code 1933, § 71-102; Ga. L. 1947, p. 1108, § 1; Ga. L. 1949, p. 1940, § 2; Ga. L. 1953, Nov.-Dec. Sess., p. 330, § 1; Ga. L. 1984, p. 1105, § 1; Ga. L. 1985, p. 1469, § 1; Ga. L. 1986, p. 1446, § 2; Ga. L. 2007, p. 221, § 1/HB 274.)

OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

Duration of residency unspecified.

- This section states that a person must be a resident of Georgia, but does not specify any particular length of time for such residency; therefore, the question of residence is one which must be determined from the facts and circumstances in each particular case. 1958-59 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 60.

Notaries public for the state at large are no longer in existence, but under present law notaries public are commissioned by the clerk of the superior court in the county of their residence. 1952-53 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 387.