§ 10B-10.  Commission; oath of office.

(a) If the Secretary grants a commission to an applicant, the Secretary shall notify the appointee and shall instruct the appointee regarding the proper procedure for taking the oath at the register of deeds office in the county of the appointee's commissioning.

(b) Except as provided in subsection (b1) of this section, the appointee shall appear before the register of deeds no later than 45 days after commissioning and shall be duly qualified by taking the general oath of office prescribed in G.S. 11-11 and the oath prescribed for officers in G.S. 11-7.

(b1) A register of deeds may administer the required oath to such appointee using video conference technology provided the appointee is personally known to the register of deeds or the appointee provides satisfactory evidence of the appointee's identity to the register of deeds. As used in this subsection, video conference technology and satisfactory evidence are as defined in G.S. 10B-25.

(c) After the appointee qualifies by taking the oath of office required under subsection (b) of this section, the register of deeds shall place the notary record in a book designated for that purpose, or the notary record may be recorded in the Consolidated Document Book and indexed in the Consolidated Real Property Index under the notary's name in the grantor index. The notary record may be kept in electronic format so long as the signature of the notary public may be viewed and printed. The notary record shall contain the name and the signature of the notary as commissioned, the effective date and expiration date of the commission, the date the oath was administered, and the date of any restriction, suspension, revocation, or resignation. The record shall constitute the official record of the qualification of notaries public.

(d) The register of deeds shall deliver the commission to the notary following completion of the requirements of this section and shall notify the Secretary of the delivery.

(e) If the appointee does not appear before the register of deeds within the time prescribed in this section, the register of deeds must return the commission to the Secretary, and the appointee must reapply for commissioning. If the appointee reapplies within one year of the granting of the commission, the Secretary may waive the educational requirements of this Chapter. (Code, ss. 3304, 3305; Rev., ss. 2347, 2348; C.S., s. 3173; 1969, c. 912, s. 2; 1973, c. 680, s. 1; 1991, c. 683, s. 2; 2005-391, s. 4; 2006-59, s. 4; 2020-3, s. 4.1(b); 2020-74, s. 27(a); 2020-80, s. 2.9(a); 2022-54, s. 3(a); 2023-57, s. 1(c).)