Ohio Notary Acknowledgment: Free Fillable Form, Wording & Certificate Rules
This content is educational and informational, not legal advice. The wording reflects Ohio Revised Code sections 147.55 and 147.542, but the law can change and other forms are permitted. Confirm the current form with the Ohio Secretary of State before relying on it.
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Fillable Ohio acknowledgment certificate
Enter the details and the certificate updates live with the statutory Ohio wording. Copy or print it, then attach it to your document. The notary completes and signs the final certificate after verifying identity; this tool just prepares the correct form.
What is the exact Ohio acknowledgment wording?
Ohio's short form under ORC 147.55, for an individual acting in their own right, keeps the traditional "foregoing instrument" phrasing and the older "ss." venue mark.
State of Ohio
County of ______, ss:
The foregoing instrument was acknowledged before me this ______ (date) by ____________ (name of person acknowledging).
(Signature of notary public)
____________ (printed name, below the signature or stamp)
(Notarial seal)
My commission expires: ______
Can an Ohio notary use an acknowledgment after taking an oath?
No, ORC 147.542 forbids it: a notary may not use an acknowledgment certificate for an act where an oath or affirmation was administered, and may not use a jurat certificate where one was not. The certificate has to describe what actually happened. That means the notary decides the wording based on the act performed, not on habit or on whichever block is already printed. If a signer swears the contents are true, the act is a jurat and needs jurat wording; if they only acknowledge the signature, it is an acknowledgment. Mismatching the two is a statutory violation in Ohio, not a technicality.
What did Ohio change about acknowledgment certificates in 2023?
House Bill 567, effective April 6, 2023, removed the requirement that acknowledgment certificates state that "no oath or affirmation was administered to the signer." Before that change, drafters had to include that sentence, or something substantively similar, in the notary block, and many pre-printed Ohio forms still carry it. The plain acknowledgment statement is now sufficient on its own. The same bill also codified a short form acknowledgment for limited liability companies, which the earlier list did not cover.
What must an Ohio notarial certificate contain?
Under ORC 147.542 a certificate must show the state and county where the act was performed, the acknowledgment or jurat language, the date, the notary's signature exactly as on the commission, the printed name below the signature or inked stamp, the notarial seal, and the commission expiration date. Using one of the ORC 147.55 short forms is an accepted alternative to adding that language separately. If the act was an online notarization or an electronic document signed in the notary's physical presence, the certificate must say so.
| Element | What goes there |
|---|---|
| Venue | State of Ohio and the county, often followed by "ss:" |
| Date and signer | Date of the act and the person acknowledging |
| Printed name | Below the notary's signature or inked stamp |
| Seal | Notarial seal plus the commission expiration date |
What does an Ohio acknowledgment actually certify?
Ohio defines an acknowledgment more broadly than most states: the signer acknowledges that they signed the document, that they understand it, and that they are aware of the consequences of executing it. That definition sits in ORC 147.011, added by the Notary Public Modernization Act that took effect September 20, 2019. It goes beyond the usual "signed voluntarily" formula, because the signer is also confirming comprehension. A notary who senses the signer does not understand what they are signing has grounds to pause the act.
Ohio acknowledgment: frequently asked questions
- What statute governs Ohio acknowledgment forms?
- ORC 147.55 sets the statutory short forms of acknowledgment, and ORC 147.542 sets what a notarial certificate must contain.
- Can an Ohio notary use an acknowledgment after taking an oath?
- No. ORC 147.542 forbids using an acknowledgment certificate when an oath was administered, and a jurat certificate when one was not.
- Did Ohio remove the "no oath" statement from certificates?
- Yes. House Bill 567, effective April 6, 2023, removed the requirement to state that no oath or affirmation was administered to the signer.
- Must an Ohio notary print their name on the certificate?
- Yes. The notary's printed name must appear below the signature or inked stamp, and the signature must match the one on the commission.
- Does the signer sign in front of the Ohio notary?
- Not for an acknowledgment. The document may be pre-signed, but the signer must appear before the notary and acknowledge the signature as their own.
Published June 13, 2026 by the Trámites Notariales US editorial team. Sources: Ohio Revised Code sections 147.011, 147.542 and 147.55 (Ohio Laws and Administrative Rules); the Notary Public Modernization Act and House Bill 567. Confirm current wording before relying on it.