What is a Notary Public?
A Notary is a person of proven integrity appointed by the government to serve the public as an impartial witness in to the identity of a person who is signing a document by administering an oath and/or affirmations, and performing other acts authorized by law.

Why are documents notarized?
To deter identity theft and fraud. A Notary ensures that the signers of documents are who they say they are and not imposters. The Notary makes sure that signers have entered into agreements knowingly and willingly.

Can I come to your location?
Yes. Our office is located at: 21 Yost Blvd, Suite 120, Pittsburgh PA 15221 in the Forest Hills Plaza Shopping Center. Our exterior signage says “IPV Litigation Services”. Our Steel City Notary signage can be seen on the window.

How soon can you have a notary here?
As long as we have availability, we can be there as quickly as Pittsburgh traffic will allow. For best results, appointments should be scheduled at least 24 hours in advance. We will make every attempt to honor any scheduling requests we can, but we cannot guarantee any appointment with less than 24 hours notice.

What is a mobile notary?
A mobile Notary Public is a notary willing to travel to the location of the client in order to fulfill his or her duties. A mobile Notary Public makes the process of notarizing documents a great deal easier for individuals or corporations to procure. Hiring a mobile Notary is essential for companies looking for services such as loan signings or notarized documents outside of regular business hours or locations.

Can a notary public practice law?
It is important to remember that a notary public is not licensed to practice law, prepare documents or provide any legal counsel. Their role is primarily that of an impartial witness to the signing of various documents and legal forms. While some attorneys are also notaries public, no one at Steel City Notary is a licensed attorney. As such, we cannot give legal advice of any kind.

Can a notary perform a marriage?
In the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, notary publics cannot perform marriages. For a full explanation of what a Pennsylvania notary public can do, consult the PA Department of Labor Notary Information page.

Why are there two rate schedules?
In the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the cost of notarial acts is regulated by the PA Department of State. Separate from the notarial act, a notary public may charge an administrative or convenience fee, and in the case of mobile notaries, a travel fee, where applicable. These administrative, convenience, and travel charges are not regulated by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and as such, may vary from notary to notary.

Can you issue a license plate and registration?
Steel City Notary is currently applying for our ability to issue plates and registrations with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. As soon as PennDOT approves us to be a “Full Agent” notary and provides us with the appropriate materials, we will update this section and our rates section to let you know of our ability to perform these services.

We can, however affix the notarial seal to a vehicle title, transferring ownership. You would still need to then take the title to a Full Agent to pay the taxes & get plates & registration.

What is the difference between an eNotary and a Virtual Notary?
an eNotary has the ability to digitally sign and notarize documents, but all parties to the notarial act must still be physically present in the same room as the notary, and ID verification must take place in person, not on the computer.

A virtual notary or “Remote Online Notary” (RON) has the ability to digitally sign and notarize documents and any or all parties to the notarial act may be elsewhere; their presence before the notary facilitated by state-sanctioned video and audio software. ID verification takes place digitally, and the parties may be anywhere in the world, as long as they are each calling in on a separate device (two people cannot appear before the RON on the same tablet, even if they are in the same room as each other). The RON must be in Pennsylvania.

Does Pennsylvania allow eNotary and a Virtual Notary transactions?
Pennsylvania permits eNotary transactions. All parties to the notarial act must be physically present in the same room as the notary, and ID verification must take place in person, not on the computer.

Pennsylvania law presently does NOT permit “Remote Online Notary” (RON) transactions except a very short list of approved notarial acts during the COVID-19 crisis as long as the Commonwealth is under a Governor-ordered State of Emergency. 60 days after the State of Emergency has been declared over, RON transactions will not be permissible in Pennsylvania, unless the law is changed.