Once the Application to Qualify has been approved by the Secretary of State’s Office, the applicant must register for and take the online Notary Exam Pre-Assessment. After receiving a score for the pre-assessment, the applicant can register to take the state notary exam by filling out the Examination Registration. The deadline to register for the state notary exam is 30 days prior to the exam. The applicant must both qualify and complete the pre-assessment at least 37 days prior to the exam. Please allow 7 days for LSU to grade and transmit the Pre-Assessment score prior to exam registration. Pre-Assessment scores never expire.

The secretary of state, in conjunction with LSU Office of Testing and Evaluation Services (LSU OTES), has made available a test that will aid the applicant in the decision to take the Louisiana Notary Public Examination. Act 610 of the 2014 Regular Session made this test mandatory for non-attorney applicants.

 

This pre-assessment is designed to help an applicant make an informed decision about pursuing a notary commission in Louisiana. The work of Louisiana notaries is deeply rooted in Louisiana law--particularly the Louisiana Civil Code, the Code of Civil Procedure, and the Louisiana Revised Statutes. Like these codes and statutes, the official study guide is written at a reading level that corresponds to Level B on this assessment. Our research shows that the closer to Level A one scores, the greater one’s likelihood of success on the exam. When considering what a pre-assessment score may suggest about one’s prospects for passing the state notary exam, one should note that each level is based on averages and thus provides only a general estimate of an applicant’s reading comprehension ability. Again, the score on the pre-assessment is provided with the intent of assisting an applicant in making an informed decision about pursuing a Louisiana notary commission. Regardless of the score or indicated reading level, applicants are not prohibited from taking the state notary exam any time it is administered and as many times as they wish to take the exam. Once an Application to Qualify has been approved, the applicant can login and register for the Notary Exam Pre-Assessment.

 

Act 793 of 2006 Regular Session

• Provides for statewide jurisdiction for notaries who have taken and passed the state notary exam.
• Provides for any regularly commissioned notary public who was commissioned before the state exam was instituted to qualify for statewide jurisdiction by taking and passing the state exam.

To register for the examination, the applicant completes an Examination Registration Form and sends it to the Secretary of State’s Office before the examination registration deadline, along with the $100 examination registration fee.

Failure to pass the examination shall have no effect on the status of the commission of the notary.

Pursuant to Act 145 of the 2018 Regular Louisiana Legislative Session, the state notary exam will be administered by the secretary of state not less than twice per year. All available administrations of the examination are listed on the top of this page.

The Secretary of State’s Office must receive the Notary Examination Registration and the $100 examination fee 30 days prior to the date of the examination. Registration for the Notary Exam Pre-Assessment will be closed 37 days prior to the date of the examination.

The examination is administered by computer in a four-hour sitting. It measures the applicant’s practical comprehension of Louisiana notarial law, including specific notarial acts and related instruments. Applicants respond to two types of items: (1) items that address general knowledge of notarial law and procedures, and (2) scenario-based items that require critical application of notarial law and processes that inform practice.

All items are based on information in The Louisiana Notary Public Examination Official Study Guide 2025—Fundamentals of Louisiana Notarial Law and Practice—published by the Secretary of State. Applicants may bring the official 2025 study guide into the testing room for reference during the examination. Please note that substantive information in earlier editions of the study guide may no longer apply to informed and accurate practice. Using any reference materials other than the 2025 edition of the study guide is considered an act of cheating and constitutes grounds for dismissal from the examination.

To pass, applicants must achieve a scaled score of 70 (of 100) on the examination.

If applicants elect to use the study guide during the examination, the pages may be marked up, highlighted or annotated. Attachments and inserts are not allowed, but pages may be tabbed. Examples of attachments and inserts are: (1) loose paper or similar material stored within the study guide, and (2) paper or similar material attached to any sheet of the study guide with staples, adhesive, etc.

Applicants are allowed to tab pages of the study guide, but these tabs must meet strict requirements. Tabs must be self- adhesive and must permanently attach to the edge of a page. Only one tab is allowed per page. Tabs must be no longer than two inches in length and must be of the clear plastic type (view an image). Labels may be inserted into the plastic of the tab to detail page content. Non-permanent, repositionable, or removable tabs are not allowed. Post-its, “sticky” tabs, “gummy” tabs, and sheet protectors are also not allowed.

Eating, drinking, and the use of tobacco or reading materials are not permitted in the testing room. The use of timers, cell phones, smart watches, pagers or electronic devices of any kind is strictly prohibited. Any such device must be turned off and not accessed until after testing concludes. If an applicant’s phone or other communication device is activated (rings, vibrates, or its alarm goes off) or if an applicant uses such a device at any time during the test, including the break, the applicant will be dismissed and his or her answer documents will not be scored. No refund of testing fees will be issued. Any applicant exhibiting disruptive behavior may be dismissed.

Special accommodations requests may be approved for candidates who meet the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Supporting documentation from an attending physician or medical specialist is required. A request for a special accommodation must be submitted for each test date. A candidate who has acquired prior approval for a particular test date that has passed may not rely on that approval, but must re-apply for each separate test date for which the accommodation is requested. All medical documentation supporting the request must be received in the LSU Office of Testing and Evaluation Services (OTES) at least three weeks before the date of examination. Accommodation testing will only be held on Saturdays.

The documentation, which must be presented on letterhead stationary from the doctor, must specifically describe the accommodation request for the examinee. The medical documentation must be updated by the attending physician within the previous six months. The information should be emailed to OTES or faxed to 225.578.1162, and should include the applicant's email address, applicant ID number, and telephone number. LSU OTES will evaluate all requests duly submitted by the three-week deadline and inform the candidate of the decision via email. A candidate approved for an accommodation must bring a copy of the approval email to the assigned test site on the day of the examination in order to receive the accommodation. Candidates who have not been approved for a particular test date may not receive the requested accommodation. Please note, a refund will not be provided if the requested accomidation is not approved.

La. R.S. 35:191.1 (A)(3) makes a provision for review of examinations.

All items presented on the test undergo post-test statistical analysis that may provide a basis for adjustments to the passing score. Additionally, at the test administration, applicants may request a form on which they may challenge the validity of any item as written.