On July 1, 2012, Virginia became the first state to authorize a signer to be in a remote location and have a document notarized electronically by an approved Virginia electronic notary using audio-visual conference technology by passing the bills SB 827 and HB 2318.
They must be at least 18 years of age, have no unpardoned felony convictions, be able to read and write, and fill out an application (which itself must be notarized) which is sent to the Secretary of the Commonwealth.
While the applicant must swear that they have read the notary laws, there is no test or special knowledge required.
Changes included: The new provisions effective July 1, 2008 also permitted authentication of documents for electronic commerce.
In addition, the 2007 change requiring that the notarial certificate appear on the same page as the signatures being notarized was significantly limited to apply only in cases where the "notarial certificate does not include the name of each person whose signature is being notarized", per Virginia Code Title 47.1.