Notary Provided Certified Copy versus Copy Certification by Document Custodian

First, it is important to mention that there are two different notarial acts that a licensed notary pubic may carry out when a Certified Copy request is made here in the state of California. A licensed California notary public is technically only able to provide certified copies of Power of Attorney documents. If a certified copy of any document other than a Power of Attorney is requested, the notary public must provide an alternative Copy Certification by Document Custodian.

Now that we’ve established the two different notarial acts pertaining to certified copy requests, let’s expound a bit on exactly what they are, and what differentiates the two from one another.

A Certified Copy of Power of Attorney, or copy certification of Power of Attorney, is a notarial act carried out by a licensed notary public in which they (the notary public) certify, verify, and acknowledge that a copy or reproduction of the original Power of Attoreny, is a correct and accurate copy of the original documents that were presented. In order to carry out this notarial act, the possessor - also referred to as the custodian - must physically appear before the notary public and present: the original Power of Attorney, a copy of the original, and some form of notary approved identification (state issued drivers license, non-driver ID, passport, etc.). Once the notary public examines both sets of documents and verifies that the copy is a true and genuine reproduction of the original, they will proceed to complete the State Approved Certified Copy of Power of Attorney Acknowledgement form, which substantiates that both the original Power of Attorney, and its copy have been examined and verifed by a licensed notary public. This special acknowledgemnt form will be given to the possessor of the power of attorney as proof of the document’s notarization.

Copy Certification by Document Custodian consists of the same aforementioned steps; however, the special acknowledgement form that is completed by the notary public is slightly different, and this notarial act shall only be carried out when a copy certification is being requested for any document other than a Power of Attorney. Common Copy Certification by Document Custodian requests include: domestic and foreign Visas, Drivers License, Utility Bills, and other important documents.

Hopefully this deep dive into Certified Copies and Copy Certification by Document Custodian has provided clarity and understanding for these two very similar notarial acts. As the only 24-hour traveling mobile notary public servicing the Bay Area, Silicon Valley, and surrounding cities, The Bay Area Notary provides both Certified Copies and Copy Certification by Document Custodian. If your notary needs entail either of these two notarial acts, please feel free to reach out, or give us a call at (209)534-0100 for immediate service.

As always, thank you for reading; hope this was helpful!