Remote online notarization (RON)

Remote online notarization, usually shortened to RON, is a way to get a document notarized without being in the same room as the notary. The signer and a commissioned notary meet over a live audio-video connection, the document is signed electronically, and the notary applies an electronic seal and certificate. Some people call it online notarization or virtual notarization, though those terms are sometimes used loosely.

A typical RON session runs on a platform approved under the notary's state rules. The signer usually goes through identity proofing, which often combines knowledge-based authentication with a scan of a government ID. The notary watches the signing happen on camera, completes the notarial certificate electronically, and the session is often recorded and retained for a period set by state law.

Most US states have now authorized RON in some form, but the details vary: which platforms qualify, how identity must be checked, how long recordings are kept, and whether a notary commissioned in one state can serve a signer located elsewhere. Anyone relying on RON for a real estate closing or a court filing should confirm that the receiving office accepts it.

Consider an HR manager who needs a relocating employee to sign a notarized affidavit while the employee is already across the country. Instead of hunting for a local notary, the employee joins a RON session from a laptop, verifies their identity, and signs within an hour. The employment agreement itself, by contrast, needs no notary at all and can go out as an ordinary electronic signature request.

People often assume RON is just an e-signature with a video call attached. It is not. RON is a notarial act governed by notary law, while a standard electronic signature relies on the ESIGN Act and UETA and involves no notary. RON also differs from traditional notarization only in the medium, not in the notary's legal duties.

Before starting a RON session, have a valid government ID ready, a device with a working camera and microphone, and a quiet space. Sessions can fail on something as mundane as a poor connection or an expired license, so it helps to test the setup first.

Our take: RON is a genuinely useful modernization for documents that truly require a notary, and it spares people a lot of driving. It is also heavier, slower and costlier than a regular signing flow, so reserve it for the documents that legally demand it.

eSignSimple does not offer remote online notarization. What we do offer is simple electronic signatures with signing order, reminders, an audit trail with timestamps, IP and device details, a certificate of completion, and a public verify page. For RON, pair us with a specialist provider.