I teach the notary certification course a few times a year, and the remote online notarization section always gets the same reaction: relief that it exists, followed immediately by "wait, so I can just do this over Zoom?" Not quite. RON is real, it's legal in Kansas, and it can genuinely save you a trip — but it's a specific, regulated process with its own equipment and identity requirements, not a video call with extra steps.
What RON actually is
Remote online notarization lets a commissioned notary notarize a document for someone who isn't physically in the room, using audio-video technology instead. But "video call" undersells what's happening technically. A proper RON platform handles a few things a regular video chat doesn't:
- Identity proofing — beyond just showing your ID to the camera, RON platforms typically run credential analysis on your ID and knowledge-based authentication questions pulled from public records, to confirm you're who you say you are.
- A tamper-evident electronic seal and signature — not a scanned image of a stamp, but a cryptographically secured notarial certificate.
- A recorded session — the audio-video recording of the notarization itself is retained, on top of the notary's usual journal entry.
All of that runs through approved RON platforms, not a general-purpose video call app. That's also why RON notarizations tend to run a slightly different fee than an in-person signing — there's technology and record-keeping behind it that a standard notarization doesn't require.
What RON is not
It's not the same as emailing someone a scanned, signed document and calling it notarized — that's not a notarization at all, remote or otherwise. It's also not universally accepted. Some receiving parties — certain courts, certain out-of-state institutions, certain international recipients — don't accept RON documents, or have their own rules about it. If you're not sure whether the party receiving your document will accept a remote notarization, that's worth confirming before you schedule one, the same way I'd tell you to confirm whether a document needs notarizing at all.
When RON actually makes sense
In my experience, RON earns its keep in a few specific situations: you're out of state or out of the country and need a Kansas notarization, you need something notarized outside normal business hours and can't wait, or you're simply more comfortable handling it from home and your document and its recipient both accept a remote notarization. For a lot of everyday, local notarizations, though, an in-person or mobile appointment is just as fast and doesn't require you to set up recording software and pass a knowledge-based ID check first.
What you'll need if you go this route
- A device with a working camera and microphone, and a stable internet connection
- A valid, government-issued photo ID that can be scanned or photographed clearly
- Enough privacy during the call to answer identity verification questions honestly without someone else in the room prompting you (this one catches people off guard — the notary has to be reasonably confident you're not being coached)
The technology changes what "in the room" means. It doesn't change what a notarization actually certifies — that you appeared, were identified, and signed willingly. RON just moves the "appeared" part onto a screen, with extra safeguards to make up for it.
Wondering if RON is right for your situation?
Tell us what you need notarized and where you're located — we'll tell you honestly whether remote works or whether an in-person appointment is the better call.
Where the rules currently stand
Kansas is one of the states that has authorized remote online notarization, as part of its broader notarial-acts law, but the specifics — which platforms are approved, what identity verification standards apply, what fees are permitted — are the kind of detail that gets updated periodically. If you want the current, official word on any of that, the Kansas Secretary of State's office is the authoritative source, not a blog post, even one written by someone who teaches the certification course. I keep up with it because I have to for my classes; I'd still send you to the primary source before you rely on any specific technical requirement I mention here.
RON vs. in-person electronic notarization — a distinction worth knowing
Students in my course often mix these two up, so let me untangle it. Remote online notarization (RON) is what this article is mainly about — the signer and notary are in different physical locations, connected by audio-video technology. In-person electronic notarization (sometimes called IPEN) is different: the signer and notary are in the same room together, exactly like a traditional notarization, but the document itself is signed and sealed electronically rather than on paper. Some notaries offer one, the other, both, or neither, depending on their equipment and the platforms they're set up on. If a document you're dealing with specifies one or the other, it's worth confirming which your notary actually offers before you assume.
Why the distinction matters practically
Certain receiving parties — particular lenders, particular courts — have preferences or outright requirements about which method they'll accept, separate from whether Kansas law permits it in the first place. This is another version of the advice I keep repeating throughout these articles: the receiving party's requirements and the state's legal permissions are two different questions, and you need answers to both before you pick a method.
Common questions
Is a RON notarization treated differently by courts than an in-person one? A properly executed RON notarization carries the same legal weight as an in-person one under Kansas law. Acceptance by a specific receiving party is a separate, practical question worth confirming.
Can I use RON for a document that also needs an apostille? This gets complicated fast, since apostille processes were largely built around paper documents and physical seals. If your document needs to travel internationally, I'd lean toward an in-person notarization unless you've specifically confirmed the receiving country accepts an electronically notarized, apostilled document.
What happens to the video recording afterward? It's retained as part of the notary's official record, consistent with Kansas's recordkeeping requirements for notarial acts.
If you're choosing between notaries offering RON
Not every notary who's authorized to perform RON uses the same platform, and the experience can differ — some platforms are smoother than others, some integrate better with certain title companies or lenders, and processing speed for the identity verification step can vary. If you're shopping around, it's reasonable to ask a notary which platform they use and whether it's one your receiving party has worked with before. A notary who's done dozens of RON signings on a particular platform will generally move you through the technical steps faster than one who rarely uses it, the same way any tool gets easier with repetition.
I'd also gently suggest doing a test run of your camera and microphone before the actual appointment, especially if you're not particularly comfortable with video call technology. It's a small thing, but it's the difference between spending your appointment on the document and spending the first ten minutes troubleshooting audio.
My honest take, after twenty years of doing this the traditional way
I don't think RON replaces in-person notarization, and I don't think it's meant to. It's another tool in the kit, useful in specific circumstances and unnecessary in most everyday ones. Judge each situation on its own, not on which method sounds more modern.