• Acknowledgments: Verifies the identity of the signer(s) and their willingness to sign without coercion. Common for real estate deeds, powers of attorney, and trusts.

• Jurats: Administers an oath or affirmation, requiring the signer to swear or affirm the truthfulness of the document (e.g., affidavits and sworn statements).

• Oaths and Affirmations: Notaries administer verbal oaths (sworn promises) or affirmations (non-religious promises) for affidavits, testimonies, and other documents.

• Signature Witnessing: Witnesses a document’s signing and verifies the identity of the signer(s) often used in estate planning and business documents.

• Apostille Facilitation: This service assists clients in preparing documents for the apostille process, ensuring they are notarized and ready for certification by the state, typically for international use (notaries do not issue apostilles themselves).

• Parental Consent for Travel: Provides notarization for parental consent letters, typically for minors traveling internationally without one or both parents.

• Loan Signings: Notaries, often with additional certification as Loan Signing Agents, assist in mortgage, refinance, HELOC, and other real estate loan signings, ensuring all required signatures and initials are completed correctly.

• Medical Authorization for Minors: Notarizes authorization forms allowing caregivers or family members to make medical decisions on behalf of minors. 

• Note: It is important to note that notaries cannot provide legal advice, but they are responsible for ensuring that the document is properly executed and that the signers understand its purpose.

• Vehicle Title Transfers: Verifies the signatures on vehicle title transfers to prevent fraud, which is commonly required for title changes in some states.

Note: Notaries can notarize signatures on vehicle title transfer documents if required by the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) or the involved parties. Notarization is typically requested to verify the seller or transferor and to help prevent fraud.

However, it’s worth noting that California’s DMV itself doesn’t require notarization on standard title transfers, although it’s a common requirement in some other states. Notarization of a vehicle title in California is generally performed only if specifically requested by the buyer, seller, or lender.

• Certified Copies: Notaries are permitted to certify copies of only two types of documents:
• Powers of Attorney (as permitted under Probate Code section 4307).
• Notarial Journal Entries (upon request by the Secretary of State or court order and limited to line-item entries, not the entire journal).

Note: These are the only certified copies California notaries can legally provide. Vital records like birth and death certificates must be certified by the issuing government agency, not a notary.