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UT Administrative Rules (2026)

Rule/Regulation

State: Utah

Effective: June 08, 2026

Summary

Utah’s new County Recorder Standards Rule establishes recording standards that modernize how county recorders handle notarized documents, including hybrid wet/electronic notarizations, name discrepancies, and minor notarial errors.

Affects

Adds Sections R255-30-101- R255-30-502 to the Utah Administrative Code.

Changes
  1. Defines “a.k.a,” “jurat,” “remote online notarization,” “satisfactory evidence of identity,” and “blended Notary method” by reference to governing statutes.
  2. Defines “blended Notary method” as a notarized document containing both a wet signature and an electronic signature.
  3. Provides that a county recorder may accept a document executed using a blended Notary method if the document satisfies statutory requirements and prescribed conditions.
  4. Requires that a paper document bearing a wet ink signature be properly notarized before conversion to electronic form in a blended Notary method.
  5. Requires that each additional electronic signature in a blended Notary method be accompanied by a remote online notarization and notarial acknowledgment certificate.
  6. Allows acceptance of counterpart documents in a blended Notary method if each counterpart is properly notarized and combined into a complete electronic document.
  7. Authorizes a county recorder to accept a document where the Notary acknowledgment or jurat certificate contains a name variation that is expressed using “also known as” or “a.k.a.” formatting.
  8. Authorizes acceptance of a Notary acknowledgment or jurat certificate where the name of the grantor as printed or typed by the Notary does not exactly match the name in the document but is substantially expressed in an approved clarifying format.
  9. Allows acceptance of a document where the executing individual has not signed exactly as the individual’s name is printed or typed in the document, if supported by the notarial act.
  10. Requires that satisfactory evidence of identity be presented where a trustee’s signature does not exactly match the trustee’s name as printed or typed in the document.
  11. Provides that a Notary acknowledgment or jurat certificate may include clarifying language identifying a grantor or trustee by current name, former name, or erroneous prior name.
  12. Authorizes use of specified “formerly known as,” “f.k.a.,” or equivalent formulations within the Notary acknowledgment or jurat certificate to address name changes or discrepancies.
  13. Requires consistency between the grantor name in the grantor line, signature block, and Notary acknowledgment or jurat certificate, except as otherwise permitted by approved clarifying formats.
  14. Provides that a county recorder may rely on the Notary acknowledgment or jurat certificate to establish substantial identity consistency notwithstanding minor discrepancies.
  15. Requires a county recorder to accept an affidavit of correction to correct a minor error in a Notary acknowledgment or jurat certificate, including an incorrect Notary date, misspelled name, or missing initial.
  16. Limits correction of Notary acknowledgment or jurat certificate errors to minor errors and prohibits correction of substantive deficiencies through an affidavit of correction.
  17. Integrates compliance with statutory notarization requirements, including remote online notarization, as a condition of acceptance of a document for recording.
  18. Recognizes the Notary acknowledgment or jurat certificate as a required component for establishing alignment between the identity of the executing party and the record owner.
Analysis

Utah’s new County Recorder Standards Rule is significant for Notaries because it formalizes how recorders will treat notarial acts at intake and creates clearer pathways for both acceptance and correction. Most notably, the new rules expressly recognize the “blended Notary method” that is defined as documents executed partly with a wet ink signature and paper notarization and partly with a remote online notarization (RON) signature and RON acknowledgment certificate, including a detailed counterpart workflow. This gives Notaries and RON platforms a recorder-sanctioned framework for hybrid execution of real property documents that few states have addressed at this level. The new rules also give recorders explicit authority to accept documents where the Notary’s typed name in the acknowledgment or jurat certificate does not exactly match the name in the document, provided prescribed a.k.a./f.k.a. constructions are used, and they permit reliance on the Notary’s “satisfactory evidence of identity” determination to resolve trustee signature mismatches, effectively reinforcing the evidentiary weight of the Notary's identification process. Finally, the rules establish a clear remedy for common Notary-attributable defects such as an incorrect notarial date, a misspelled signer’s name, or a missing initial by execution of an affidavit of correction, reducing the risk that minor jurat or acknowledgment certificate errors will derail a recording.

Read the text of the new rules.

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