Updated 1-13-22. Whether you’re looking for a way to work from home or a part-time job to get you out of the house, you should consider becoming a Notary first.
A Notary commission can open the door to more than a dozen additional money-making opportunities. Being a Notary shows that you have integrity and it establishes a level of trust that gives you a leg up on your competition — even if you’re not directly using your commission for every freelance job that comes your way.
Here’s a list of 14 side gigs where your Notary skills will help you succeed.
Work-from-home jobs for Notaries
Virtual Assistant: Offer virtual assistant services as an independent contractor or apply with a virtual assistant company for work-at-home jobs. Your clients may need administrative support, creative services or technical support and you’ll be able to provide it from the comfort of your couch. Virtual assistants take on a wide range of tasks from data entry, transcriptions and proofreading to event planning, online research and website maintenance projects.
Authorized Representative: Market yourself as a dependable resource for businesses that use authorized representatives to verify employment eligibility for their remote workers.
As an authorized representative, you’ll certify that the employee presented appropriate ID and complete the Form I-9 on behalf of their employer. Even U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services thinks Notaries are a good fit for the authorized representative role. (The California Secretary of State's office has said that California Notaries who are not qualified and bonded as immigration consultants may not complete or make the certification on Form I-9, even in a non-notarial capacity. The Secretary’s office considers Form I-9 to be an immigration form.)
Fingerprinting Service Provider: Learn how to take fingerprints using Live Scan technology. For stay-at-home jobs like this one, you’ll need a computer, a device to capture fingerprints electronically, a digital camera and a signature pad. Most U.S. law enforcement agencies use Live Scan for background checks. Fingerprint submissions are also required by many licensed professions including teachers, doctors, nurses and caregivers.
Bookkeeping Clerk: Brush up on your basic math skills so you can provide a variety of freelance financial services to individuals and local businesses. Bookkeeping services include recording transactions such as billing clients and entering customer receipts, as well as updating statements, checking the accuracy of financial records and overseeing payroll. While a degree isn’t required, many businesses look for bookkeepers with professional certifications.
Part-time jobs away from home
Administrative Assistant: Tap into your communication, general office and organizational skills as an administrative assistant. Busy executives always seem to need another pair of hands to take care of their routine clerical tasks like scheduling meetings, filing, data entry, and possibly getting business documents notarized. In that case, your Notary commission would be a valuable asset on top of your detail-oriented approach to assigned tasks.
Personal Concierge: Expand your assistant work by offering personal concierge services. Those busy executives you’re helping around the office probably have a laundry list of personal errands you can handle for them, too. Whether it’s booking reservations and travel or picking up dry cleaning and groceries, you can turn these everyday errands into opportunities to make a few extra dollars.
Mystery Shopper: Double down on your everyday errands by becoming a mystery shopper. While you’re taking care of personal concierge tasks, you may be able to report back on certain shopping experiences with companies seeking customer feedback. Like Notaries, the demand is high for mystery shoppers who are punctual, observant and detail-oriented.
Rideshare Driver: Hop in your car and join the growing network of rideshare drivers. Because you set your own driving schedule, you can make some cash during the downtime between Notary assignments. Uber and Lyft are the two most common app-based ridesharing services. And new competitors roll-in regularly, like RideAustin, a non-profit service currently being tested in Austin, Texas.
Field Inspector: Sign up to work for national field service firms. Field inspectors are used in a variety of industries to take photos and verify information like accurate addresses or real estate occupancy or that a business has its license. You can create your own field inspector starter kit with a few simple items: A smartphone with a good camera and internet access, a tape measure, a clipboard and a pen or two.
Exam Proctor: Get a background check and register as a mobile exam proctor. Proctors meet up with students who need to take tests at a location outside of their home. As a proctor, you identify the student to make sure they are who they say they are, and supervise the exam to make sure the student doesn’t cheat. This process creates a level of trust in the test results similar to the kind of trust Notaries bring to the records they notarize.
Remote Testimony Witness: Put your Notary skills to work as a remote testimony witness. Some small claims courts allow phone testimony in certain cases where a witness cannot be present — for example, people who are suffering from an illness or disability or can’t take time off work to appear. Notaries are a great fit for the remote swearing-in process because they’re appointed by the state to properly identify people, serve as impartial witnesses and administer oaths.
DNA Witness: There’s no need for lab goggles or a science degree…just your stellar identification skills and ability to be an impartial witness. DNA collection and testing is necessary in situations ranging from routine paternity issues to establishing people are biological relatives in certain immigration cases. As a DNA witness, you verify the client’s identity, witness them swab their own mouth using a DNA collection kit and mail the sample to the contracting company.
Wedding Officiant: Keep something old, new, borrowed and blue on hand for your client’s special day. As a wedding officiant, you perform the ceremony, help complete the wedding documents and file them with the right vital records division afterward. You’ll need a separate license to perform marriages in most states, but some states list it as one of a Notary’s official duties. The requirements may also vary for religious, non-denominational and civil ceremonies.
Process Server: Stop watching Law & Order and help deliver justice in real life. As a process server, you’ll deliver documents, such as subpoenas, to people involved with court-related matters. You’ll need to do some research into your state’s current laws because you may need to get a background check, file a surety bond, take a test, pay an application fee or pay for a process server license.
As always, review your state’s laws. Don’t forget to check your state, county and city rules about business licenses and operating a business out of your home or working as a freelancer. You may also want to consult an accountant about your home office setup to make sure you’re following IRS guidelines.
If you’re still on the fence, there are more reasons why you should become a Notary. As a state-appointed public official, you protect consumers by witnessing and authenticating the signing of mortgages, adoption papers and several other crucial transactions. You may find the part-time work so rewarding that you want to transition into offering full-time Notary Public services. Watch the video below or check out our free, step-by-step guide to learn how to become a Notary in your state.
View the steps to become a Notary Public as an infographic, or download the file if you'd like to print it out.
Kat Garcia is the Senior Content Strategy Manager with the National Notary Association.