Kentucky Jurat Certificate Form: Wording After the 2020 Notary Overhaul

This content is educational and informational, not legal advice. Requirements reflect Kentucky Revised Statutes chapter 423, but the law can change. Confirm current requirements with the Kentucky Secretary of State before relying on this.

Open the free fillable certificate ↓

Fillable Kentucky jurat certificate

Enter the county, the date, and the signer, and the certificate updates live with the Kentucky wording. Copy or print it and attach it to the affidavit; bring the document unsigned.

What is the Kentucky jurat wording?

Kentucky uses the modern uniform phrasing, and the venue says Commonwealth rather than State.

What changed in Kentucky notary law in 2020?

Kentucky repealed KRS 423.010 through 423.080 and rebuilt its notarial framework in KRS 423.300 to 423.455. That matters when you find an old Kentucky form: a certificate citing one of the repealed sections is pointing at nothing. The replacement sections cover the ground modern notaries need, including electronic records, online notarization, prohibited acts, and what happens with a tangible copy of an electronic record. The older short-form acknowledgment sections, KRS 423.130 to 423.190, survived the overhaul and still sit in the chapter.

Can someone else sign for you in Kentucky?

In defined circumstances, yes, and Kentucky gives it a section of its own: KRS 423.335, signature by proxy. It applies when the individual is physically unable to sign, and it sets out how another person signs at their direction and what the record must show. Having the rule in a titled statute rather than buried in guidance matters at a hospital bedside, where a notary needs an answer quickly. The signer still has to appear, be identified, and direct the signing themselves.

Can a Kentucky notary refuse to notarize?

Yes. KRS 423.330 is a standalone section on refusal to perform a notarial act, which puts declining on statutory footing rather than leaving it to nerve. The usual grounds apply: doubt about identity, a signer who does not seem to understand the document, or a document with blanks that a jurat cannot cover. A notary who is unsure is better placed refusing than completing a certificate describing something that did not happen.

Who else can notarize in Kentucky?

County clerks retain notarial powers, and KRS 423.340 addresses them directly alongside the question of who may perform a notarial act and the effect of an officer's signature and title. That is why a Kentucky document may come back signed by a county clerk rather than a notary public without anything being wrong. Kentucky also has a separate route, the Notary Public-Special Commission, applied for through the Secretary of State and appointed by the Governor, which serves a narrower purpose than a general commission.

Which county goes on a Kentucky commission?

Either your county of residence or the county where your place of employment is located, which the application lets you choose. The commission itself is issued for the state at large, so a Kentucky notary may act anywhere in the Commonwealth regardless of which county is named on it. The venue on the certificate still names the county where the act actually happened. Keep the two ideas separate: the county on your commission identifies you, while the county in the venue identifies the act.

Published June 13, 2026 by the Trámites Notariales US editorial team. Sources: Kentucky Revised Statutes chapter 423, including sections 423.110, 423.130 to 423.190 and 423.300 to 423.455; Kentucky Secretary of State notary commission application forms. Confirm current requirements before relying on this.