To become a notary in Guam, you must be 18 or older, hold U.S. citizenship, live on Guam and read and write English, then pass the Attorney General's written exam and apply with a $100 fee and evidence of a $1,000 bond. The Attorney General of Guam issues four-year commissions. After commissioning you need two devices: an inked rectangular stamp and an embosser. Below are the steps, fees, seal rules, journal duties and recommissioning.
Engineer Seal Stamps compliance desk. Checked against the Office of the Attorney General of Guam notary program page and 5 GCA Chapter 33, Guam's Model Notary Law. Sources read September 2026.
| Requirement | Guam answer | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Who can apply | At least 18, living on Guam, able to read and write English, and a U.S. citizen | 5 GCA § 33201(b) |
| Grounds for denial | A crime involving dishonesty or moral turpitude, a revoked or restricted commission or professional license, or official misconduct | 5 GCA § 33201(c) |
| Exam | Written exam for first-time applicants; Guam attorneys and others authorized to administer oaths are exempt | 5 GCA § 33212 |
| How to apply | Attorney General forms with a qualifications statement, notarized declaration, fee and bond evidence | 5 GCA § 33210 |
| Application fee | $100, non-refundable, paid to the Treasurer of Guam; waived for government employees | 5 GCA § 33214; Attorney General notary program page |
| Criminal history clearance | $20 fee | Attorney General notary program page |
| Bond | $1,000, in force on commissioning and running the full term | 5 GCA § 33203 |
| Commission term | Four years | 5 GCA § 33202 |
| Stamp and embosser | Black-ink rectangular stamp with name, territory legend, expiration and address, plus an embosser. See our Guam stamp and embosser guide | 5 GCA § 33412 |
| Ordering the seal | The vendor needs a photocopy of your commission with a notarized declaration | 5 GCA § 33413 |
| Journal | Chronological, permanently bound, numbered pages, signed by each person served | 5 GCA §§ 33401 to 33403 |
| Recommissioning | A new application under Article 2, and a new inked seal for each commission | 5 GCA §§ 33204 and 33411 |
| Remote online notarization | Registration, an approved course and an exam under Article 10; the Attorney General's page lists its remote forms as no longer available | 5 GCA § 33803; Attorney General notary program page |
For journal and remote notarization rules beyond Guam, compare the 54-jurisdiction journal table with the 54-jurisdiction remote notarization table.
Who can become a notary public in Guam?
Section 33201 lists four personal qualifications: you must be at least 18, live on Guam, read and write English, and be a U.S. citizen. You also need a passing exam, unless exempt, and an application without significant misstatements.
The Attorney General must commission a qualified applicant who applies properly, but may deny one with a conviction for a crime involving dishonesty or moral turpitude, a revoked, suspended or restricted notary commission or professional license from Guam or any state, or a record of official misconduct.
Government employees can be commissioned too. Under § 33220 they pay no application fee, may notarize only during their hours of employment, and may not charge for notarial services.
How do you apply to the Attorney General of Guam?
Use the Attorney General's application forms, which § 33210 says must include a statement of your qualifications, the exam when required, a notarized declaration, the fee and evidence of the bond. The notary program page posts the current form.
- Download the Notary Public Application Form from the Attorney General's Guam Notary Program page, and check the posted examination schedule.
- Complete the statement of personal qualifications: age, residence and business address on Guam, English ability, criminal convictions, and any earlier commissions, denials or revocations.
- Sign the declaration before a notary, swearing or affirming under penalty of perjury that the application is true and that you have read the materials on notary duties.
- Pay the $100 application fee to the Treasurer of Guam, plus the $20 criminal history clearance fee the Attorney General's office lists.
- Sit the written exam, unless you are exempt as a Guam attorney or another official who can administer oaths.
- Arrange the $1,000 bond so it is in force on commissioning, and give the Attorney General evidence of it.
- Receive your commission, then order the stamp and embosser with a copy of it.
The chapter's short title is the Model Notary Law, and the full text of 5 GCA Chapter 33 is published by the Guam Compiler of Laws.
What is the Guam notary exam, and who is exempt?
Every first-time applicant takes a written exam on Guam notarial law and procedure, based on materials the Attorney General hands out with the application forms. Attorneys admitted to practice in Guam and people already allowed by Guam law to administer oaths are exempt.
The notary program page links an examination schedule, currently the 2026 file, so check the dates before you file. Chapter 33 sets no separate training course for a standard commission; the distributed materials and the statute are what the exam draws on.
A course does apply to remote online notarization, which Article 10 conditions on an approved course and a separate exam, covered near the end of this page.
What fees does a Guam notary applicant pay?
The government charges are a $100 non-refundable application fee paid to the Treasurer of Guam and a $20 criminal history clearance fee. Government employees skip the $100 fee. The bond premium, stamp, embosser and journal are paid for separately.
- Application fee: $100, deposited in the Notary Public Revolving Fund that supports the notary program.
- Criminal history clearance: $20.
- Bond: the premium for $1,000 of coverage is set by the surety.
- Stamp, embosser and journal: bought from vendors after the commission issues.
- Certificate of Authority: $50, if a document you notarized later needs one.
How does the $1,000 notary bond work in Guam?
The Attorney General cannot issue a commission unless your application shows that a $1,000 bond will be in force when you are commissioned. A surety executes it for the full commission term, and it pays out for the notary's misconduct.
The bond cannot be canceled, revoked or modified without the Attorney General's express written authorization, which § 33203 reserves for extraordinary circumstances. If your name changes mid-term, § 33551 requires telling the surety in writing before you sign under the new name.
Which stamp and embosser does a Guam notary need?
Guam requires both. The inked stamp prints in black inside a rectangular border and shows your commissioned name, the Guam notary legend, your expiration date and your business or residence address. The embosser is used in addition to it, never instead.
Neither device can be bought before commissioning. Under § 33413, a vendor may supply a notary seal, inked or embossing, only after receiving a photocopy of your commission attached to a notarized declaration that gives your commission start date, expiration date and commission number, and the vendor keeps those papers for three years.
The expiration date must be an integral part of the stamp, not written into the impression afterward, and illegible details may be typed beside the impression but not within it. Our Guam notary stamp and embosser guide sets out each element. The seal is your exclusive property and may not be handed to an employer when a job ends.
What must a Guam notary record in the journal?
Guam requires a chronological, permanently bound journal with numbered pages, kept as a public record. For every act you make the entry before notarizing, and the person served signs the journal at the time of the notarization.
- When the act took place, by date and time of day
- What kind of notarial act you performed
- What the document or proceeding was
- Signature, printed name and address of each person served
- Evidence of identity: the ID's description, issuing agency, serial number and issue date if expired, or a note that you know the person
- The fee charged, if any
- The place of notarization, when it is not your business address
Keep a photocopy of each certified copy you make, and write down your reasons when you refuse an act for anything other than missing identification. The journal stays in your exclusive custody and may never be destroyed except at the Attorney General's direction. A requester pays no more than $5 for a photocopy of an entry.
How long does a Guam commission last, and how do you recommission?
A commission lasts four years unless it is revoked or resigned. There is no shortcut renewal: under § 33204, recommissioning means a new application that satisfies the Article 2 commissioning requirements again.
Each new commission also needs a new inked stamp, since the old one shows the old expiration date, while § 33411 lets you keep the embosser when no time passes between commissions. When a commission ends with no new one, destroy the seal as soon as reasonably practical and send your journal and records to the Attorney General within 30 days.
Section 33212 applies the exam to first-time applicants, so confirm with the notary program whether your recommissioning file needs one. For how the date on a seal relates to the commission, see our guide to notary seal expiration dates.
What do you report after a move, a name change or a lost seal?
Send the Attorney General a signed notice with both addresses within 30 days after a business or residence address change, by certified mail or another method that gives a receipt. Because the address prints on the stamp, a move also means a new stamp.
A name change takes four steps before you sign under the new name: deliver a signed notice with the old and new names, receive a Confirmation of Notary's Name Change from the Attorney General, obtain a new seal in the new name, and inform your surety in writing. The vendor accepts that Confirmation in place of the usual seal declaration.
If a journal or seal is lost or stolen, deliver a signed, receipted notice to the Attorney General within 10 days, and report a theft to the appropriate law enforcement agency.
Can Guam notaries perform remote online notarizations?
Guam law provides for them. Article 10 of Chapter 33, added in 2020, has a notary apply to the Attorney General, identify the technology, complete an approved course and pass an exam before notarizing remotely.
In September 2026, however, the Attorney General's notary program page lists its remote online notary requirements, checklist and registration form as no longer available. Ask the notary program about current status before you plan remote work.
Frequently asked questions
Can a Guam notary notarize outside Guam?
Only in a narrow case. Section 33202.1 lets a notary who lives on Guam, when authorized by the Attorney General, notarize in foreign countries for Guam residents or for documents to be recorded in Guam, limited to real estate transactions.
How much can a Guam notary charge?
Section 33310 sets $10 for taking an acknowledgment or proof of a deed or other instrument, and $8 for each additional signature. Government employee notaries may not charge at all.
Can my employer keep my seal or journal when I leave?
No. Sections 33404 and 33411 bar surrendering the journal or the seal to an employer when employment ends; both stay with you.
What ink color must a Guam notary stamp use?
Black. Section 33412 calls for a sharp, legible, photographically reproducible impression in black ink.
Is there a public list of Guam notaries?
Yes. The Attorney General's notary program page posts directories of government notaries and private notaries.
Do attorneys need the Guam notary bond?
Yes. The exam exemption in § 33212 covers only the examination; § 33203 bars any commission without evidence of the $1,000 bond.
With a copy of your commission and the signed declaration ready, choose a rectangular stamp and embosser from the ESS Guam stamps and seals collection. For how Guam's black-ink rule compares with other jurisdictions, read our notary seal requirements by state guide.
