Legal

Legal Disclaimers and Notices

Effective September 12, 2026. Last updated September 13, 2026.

The disclaimers on this page apply to every page of this website, to every quote we issue, and to every service we perform. They exist so that you know exactly what a notary public can and cannot do for you, and so that you can seek the right professional when the question in front of you is a legal question.

1. NOT A LAW FIRM AND NOT LEGAL ADVICE

Illini Notary and Signing Services is not a law firm. Our notaries are not attorneys licensed to practice law in the State of Illinois. We are not permitted to draft legal documents, to give advice on legal matters, to explain the legal effect of a document, to select a notarial certificate for you, to advise which notarial act you need, or to charge a fee for any of those activities. Content on this website is general information about process, not legal advice, and reading it does not create any relationship between you and us other than the service relationship described in our Terms of Service.

If you need to know what a document means or what it will do, consult a licensed attorney.

2. WHAT A NOTARIZATION ACTUALLY DOES

A notarial act confirms the identity of the signer, the signer's acknowledgment or oath, and the notary's performance of the act as Illinois law requires. A notarial act does not verify that the contents of a document are true, that a document is legally sufficient, that a document is enforceable, or that a document is appropriate for your purpose.

3. NOTARIZATION IS NOT AUTHENTICATION AND NOT AN APOSTILLE

A notarization and an apostille are separate steps performed by separate authorities. A notary public performs the notarial act. Authentication is performed by a government authority, in Illinois usually the Office of the Illinois Secretary of State Index Department, which verifies the notary's commission and issues the apostille or certificate of authentication. Notarizing a document does not create an apostille, and not every document is eligible for an apostille in its current form.

Documents issued by a federal agency, documents issued by another state, consular records, and foreign documents follow different chains of authentication and are not processed by the Illinois Secretary of State.

4. NO GUARANTEE OF ACCEPTANCE

We do not guarantee that any document will be accepted by a court, agency, consulate, embassy, university, employer, foreign government, or any other receiving party. Receiving parties set their own requirements, apply them at their discretion, and change them without notice. Confirm the receiving party's requirements before ordering service.

5. PROCESSING TIMES

Statements about turnaround describe our handling time, not government processing time. Authentication and apostille handling is always subject to Illinois Secretary of State processing times, counter hours, and submission cutoffs. Statements about expedited handling are not guarantees of a completion date.

We may notarize signatures on documents and facilitate authentication where Illinois law permits. We do not provide immigration advice, do not select or prepare immigration forms, do not advise on eligibility or procedure, and do not represent anyone before any immigration authority. We are not notarios and we do not offer any service that the term notario público implies in other countries. In the United States, a notary public has no authority to give legal advice or to represent another person in an immigration matter. Immigration questions must go to a licensed attorney or to a representative accredited by the United States Department of Justice.

7. REMOTE ONLINE NOTARIZATION

Remote online notarization is performed under Illinois law using an electronic notarization system provider approved for that purpose. A remote session requires successful identity verification, a working camera and microphone, and a stable connection. The session is recorded as Illinois law requires. Some documents and some receiving parties do not accept remotely notarized signatures. Confirm with your receiving party before scheduling a remote session.

8. WEBSITE INFORMATION AND EXTERNAL LINKS

Information on this website about fees, procedures, office hours, agency requirements, and country requirements is provided for general information and was accurate to the best of our knowledge on the date indicated. Requirements change. Verify current requirements with the responsible agency before acting. We link to government and institutional resources for convenience and do not control or endorse their content.

9. NO AFFILIATION WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS OR ANY GOVERNMENT AGENCY

Illini Notary and Signing Services is an independent private business. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, sponsored by, or authorized by the University of Illinois, the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, the Illinois Secretary of State, the United States Department of State, or any other government agency or public institution. References to those entities on this website describe procedure and service context only.

10. FEES

Illinois law sets maximum fees for certain notarial acts. Fees shown on this website for travel, wait time, courier and shipping, after-hours service, expedited handling, and professional coordination are separate from the notarial act fee and are not subject to the notarial fee maximum. Government fees are passed through at cost.

11. TESTIMONIALS AND RESULTS

Any client comment published on this site is an individual experience and is not a promise of a particular result or turnaround. We do not publish testimonials, reviews, ratings, or counts that we have not received from an identified client.

Illini Notary and Signing Services is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. Notarial acts are performed in accordance with the Illinois Notary Public Act.