SCENARIO: A New Jersey Notary Public's commission is expiring. The notary obtains a renewal commission and takes the oath of office. The notary has not yet received or obtained an updated Notary Stamp (seal) bearing the new commission expiration date. The notary continues to notarize documents using the old stamp with the now-expired expiration date. The notary strikes through the expired date and hand-writes the updated commission expiration date. NJNA DETERMINATION: This is not an allowable practice. The act of crossing out an old commission expiration date on a notarial stamp and handwriting a new one is not permitted under New Jersey law. This practice violates the statutory requirements for an official notary stamp and undermines the integrity of the notarial act. The specific legal mandates are found in both the New Jersey Revised Statutes and the New Jersey Administrative Code. 1. THE STATUTE REQUIRES THE EXPIRATION DATE TO BE PART OF THE OFFICIAL STAMP New Jersey law explicitly requires that the commission expiration date be a physical component of the official stamp itself, not a notation added later. The primary statute governing this, N.J.S.A. 52:7-10.5, states unequivocally: "The official stamp of a notary public shall: (1) include the name of the notary public, the title 'Notary Public, State of New Jersey,' and the notary public's commission expiration date; and (2) be capable of being copied together with the record to which it is affixed or attached or with which it is logically associated." The key word in this statute is "include." The expiration date must be part of the stamp's pre-designed, permanent impression. A handwritten alteration is not part of the official stamp and therefore fails to meet this requirement. 2. THE ADMIN CODE REINFORCED THE REQUIREMENT The requirement is further reinforced by the New Jersey Administrative Code. N.J.A.C. 17:50-1.8(g) repeats the mandate from the statute, stating: "The official stamp of a notary public shall: 1. Include the name of the notary public, the title 'Notary Public, State of New Jersey,' and the notary public's commission expiration date; and 2. Be capable of being copied together with the record to which it is affixed or attached or with which it is logically associated."