Is Remote Online Notarization Legal in Minnesota? (2026)

Remote online notarization is legal in Minnesota under Minn. Stat. §358.645. Fee provisions changed after January 1, 2023 — notaries should verify current rates through the Secretary of State before pricing remote services. All standard notarial acts are authorized under the Minnesota RON framework.

Is remote online notarization legal in Minnesota? Yes — Minnesota authorizes remote online notarization under Minn. Stat. § 358.645. Minnesota’s fee provisions changed effective January 1, 2023 — notaries should verify current rates through the Secretary of State’s office before pricing remote services. All standard notarial acts are authorized under Minnesota’s RON framework. Notaries must register for RON authority before conducting remote sessions.

Minnesota’s RON Authorization Under § 358.645

Minnesota’s remote online notarization is authorized by Minn. Stat. § 358.645. The statute covers all standard notarial acts for remotely located individuals and establishes the core technical and procedural requirements: real-time two-way audio-video communication, identity verification through credential analysis and knowledge-based authentication (or personal knowledge or credible witness), electronic journal maintenance, and session recording retention.

Minnesota notaries must register for RON authority with the Secretary of State before conducting remote sessions. Holding a standard Minnesota notary commission does not automatically authorize RON — the registration step is a required threshold before performing any remote notarial acts.

Fee Changes in 2023: Verify Current Rates

Minnesota’s RON fee structure changed as of January 1, 2023. Notaries who were pricing services under the prior fee provisions need to confirm current rates with the Secretary of State’s office or current statutory text — not based on pre-2023 guidance that may be outdated. The fee change is one of the more important compliance checkpoints for Minnesota notaries entering or re-entering the RON market after the 2023 effective date.

All fees — notarial and technology/platform — should be disclosed to signers before each session begins. Transparent advance disclosure is a consistent requirement of Minnesota’s notarial framework and best practice regardless of specific fee structures.

The Twin Cities: A Major Professional Services Market

The Minneapolis-Saint Paul metropolitan area is one of the country’s most economically productive metros relative to its size. The Twin Cities host the headquarters of companies including Target, Best Buy, UnitedHealth Group, 3M, General Mills, and Cargill — creating a dense concentration of corporate activity that generates ongoing demand for notarized corporate governance, financial, real estate, and employment documents. UnitedHealth Group alone — one of the country’s largest companies — employs tens of thousands of workers in the metro area.

The Twin Cities real estate market has been active, with significant suburban development and urban core revitalization driving transaction volume. Out-of-state buyers and corporate relocations contribute to remote transaction needs that RON serves directly.

Minnesota’s Rural Landscape and Agricultural Economy

Outside the Twin Cities metro, Minnesota is an overwhelmingly rural state with a significant agricultural economy — corn, soybeans, sugar beets, and dairy among the leading sectors. Farm sales, agricultural leases, estate planning documents, and rural real estate transactions are consistent notarization demand drivers in greater Minnesota. RON provides residents in rural counties — particularly in the Iron Range, the Red River Valley, and the southwestern farming region — with professional notary access without requiring drives to regional centers.

Getting Started in Minnesota

For Minnesota notaries pursuing RON authorization under § 358.645 — including SOS registration, current fee schedule verification, platform selection, and step-by-step guidance — see the Minnesota RON notary how-to guide.