We cannot officiate if the document signer is not physically present.

We cannot sign and seal a blank notarial certificate.

We cannot give you any advice or opinions that should be given by an attorney—this is unlicensed practice of law.

Notaries in New York State have no authority to certify copies of documents (for instance, "I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy...," ). However, we may sign a form of an affidavit on a copy where the document's custodian signs and swears to the authenticity of the document (usually a government-issued picture ID). This can suffice as a "notarized copy" in most instances but is not a certified copy.

We may not certify the accuracy of a translation - we may take the oath of a person who swears the translation is accurate.

We cannot insert or fill in information for the signers.

We cannot advise the signer as to exactly what their answers should be to questions.

We cannot backdate or forward the date of notarization.

We cannot proceed with notarization if the signer cannot be positively identified through personal knowledge or satisfactory evidence of identification.

We cannot prepare or choose the documents for signing.