How long does the Illinois notary course take?

At least 180 minutes of instruction, which rule 176.225 describes as three hours, and the provider must give you no more than 30 days to finish it.

Can I take the Illinois notary exam without the course?

No. The final exam is part of the certified course of study, and a provider may not let you open it until the required instruction time is complete.

How many questions do I need right?

The exam has 50 questions and the passing score is 85 percent, so you need at least 43 correct.

Do renewing notaries take the exam again?

Yes. Section 2-101.5 applies to renewals too. Attorneys in good standing, sitting Illinois or federal judges, and their employees may renew without it by signing the Secretary's statement.

Is there a separate exam for electronic notaries?

The Act requires proof of training on electronic notarization and a qualifying exam with an electronic notary application. A standard certified course covers electronic notarization unless the provider states that it does not, so confirm this before enrolling if you plan to notarize electronically.

The Illinois Notary Exam Explained

Updated 2026-09-28

Illinois has no statewide notary testing center. The exam comes at the end of the mandatory course of study, and each course provider certified by the Secretary of State gives its own final exam under rules the Secretary adopted in 2023. Those rules, found in Subpart C of Part 176, are the best official description of what the test looks like.

Below is what the rules require of every provider, what the course must teach, and how to prepare. Your provider's own policies on price, scheduling and proctoring sit on top of the rules, so read the enrollment contract before you pay.

Who gives the exam

Section 2-101.5 of the Notary Public Act requires applicants to complete the course of study the Secretary requires and pass an examination at its end, and it lets the Secretary approve course providers. Rule 176.210 then bars anyone from running a notary course of study and examination without the Secretary's certification. Certification lasts one year, and providers resubmit their course for approval each year.

Every provider must show its Secretary of State certification number on its homepage, next to a statement that complaints may be sent to the Index Department (rule 176.240). Looking for that number, and checking the provider against the Secretary's published list, is a quick way to confirm you are enrolling in a course that counts.

The Secretary keeps close watch on course providers. Under rule 176.245, the Secretary or a designee may sit in on any certified course, in person or online, without notice and at no charge, and a provider must answer the Secretary's written questions about a complaint within 10 business days. Student contracts must state that disputes go to the Secretary of State (rule 176.230). If a course misstates a notary's duties or claims the Secretary endorses its products, its certification can be suspended or revoked (rule 176.215(b)). Written complaints go to the Index Department, 111 E. Monroe Street, Springfield, IL 62756.

Exam format fixed by the rules

Rule 176.235(c) sets the same core format for every provider:

50 questions pulled at random from a bank of at least 100
Multiple choice, true/false, or a mix, with no more than half true/false
A passing score of 85 percent, which means at least 43 correct
Given at the end of the course, after the required instruction time is logged

What the rules leave to the provider

Providers may deliver the final on paper or online, and rule 176.215(g) makes them keep several versions of the test so no single exam circulates. The rules do not say whether the exam is open or closed book and set no statewide time limit for the final itself, so ask your provider about both before test day.

The course you finish first

Rule 176.225 requires three hours of instruction, measured as at least 180 minutes, and gives each student no more than 30 days to finish. Online courses must use timers that keep you from skipping ahead or opening a quiz or the final before the minimum time has passed, and a check question follows any video longer than 60 seconds. If your provider verifies identity with challenge questions, expect at least two per hour at random points, each with a 60-second limit.

The course must build respect for a notary's duties under the Act, show the losses notarial misconduct can cause, and give working knowledge of the Act, Part 176 and related laws. A provider may leave out electronic notarization only if it says so conspicuously, and that kind of course will not support an application for an electronic commission.

Retakes and failing

If you score under 85 percent, the provider must retest you with different questions from its bank. You do not repeat the course, though you may review it first, and you and the provider agree on when the retake happens. Three failed attempts at the final exam count as failing the course, and rule 176.235(c)(5) lets a student who fails switch to another provider's course before testing again.

Enrolling and paying

You register with the provider, not with the Secretary. Before you pay, the provider must list every charge, including tuition, materials and any required software, and its contract may not carry a flat no-refund policy (rule 176.230). Providers may not ask for your Social Security number except through an outside identity-verification service that does not pass it to them (rule 176.240). The state does not set tuition, so prices differ from one provider to the next.

When you pass, the provider issues a completion certificate. You then have two years from the exam date to apply, and that certificate stays valid for the four-year commission it supports.

Topics worth studying

Each provider writes its own bank from the Act and Part 176, so study the law itself. Areas that recur in the Act and the handbook include:

Eligibility, the $15 fee, the $5,000 and $30,000 bond amounts, and the four-year term
Seal contents, black ink, and signing exactly as commissioned
Satisfactory evidence of identity under Section 6-102(d)
The short-form certificates in Section 6-105
The prohibited acts in Section 6-104 and the $5 fee cap in Section 3-104
Required and forbidden journal entries in rule 176.910
Remote notarization under Section 6-102.5 and electronic notarization under Article VI-A

How to prepare

Read the Secretary's Illinois Notary Public Handbook once before the course, then again afterward with a pen. Drill the numbers that are easy to mix up: the $5 and $25 fee caps, the $5,000 and $30,000 bonds, and the one-year and four-year terms. For timed repetition, NotaryPrepHQ has Illinois practice questions, a diagnostic and practice exams that end with a readiness score.

Common questions

How long does the Illinois notary course take?: At least 180 minutes of instruction, which rule 176.225 describes as three hours, and the provider must give you no more than 30 days to finish it.
Can I take the Illinois notary exam without the course?: No. The final exam is part of the certified course of study, and a provider may not let you open it until the required instruction time is complete.
How many questions do I need right?: The exam has 50 questions and the passing score is 85 percent, so you need at least 43 correct.
Do renewing notaries take the exam again?: Yes. Section 2-101.5 applies to renewals too. Attorneys in good standing, sitting Illinois or federal judges, and their employees may renew without it by signing the Secretary's statement.
Is there a separate exam for electronic notaries?: The Act requires proof of training on electronic notarization and a qualifying exam with an electronic notary application. A standard certified course covers electronic notarization unless the provider states that it does not, so confirm this before enrolling if you plan to notarize electronically.

Keep reading

Sources

General information, not legal advice. Confirm current requirements, fees and forms with the Illinois Secretary of State (Index Department, Notary Division).