How to Complete and Notarize a Signature by Mark in California

To notarize a signature by mark in California, the signer places a mark — usually an “X” — on the signature line while two witnesses watch, one of those witnesses writes the signer’s full legal name next to the mark, both witnesses sign the document, and the notary repeats the same mark-and-name procedure in the notary journal before completing the certificate and seal. The authority comes from Civil Code Section 14 and Code of Civil Procedure Section 17, and the California Secretary of State’s Notary Public Handbook spells out the steps.¹ Done correctly, the finished document has the same legal force as one bearing a handwritten signature.

Who Can Sign With a Mark

The statute allows a mark whenever a person “cannot write.”² In practice that covers a broken or injured hand, a physical condition that prevents gripping a pen, a neurological condition affecting fine motor control, and illiteracy. The reason doesn’t matter; what matters is that the signer genuinely cannot produce a written signature at the time of the appointment.

Physical inability is not the same as mental incapacity. The signer still has to understand what the document does and sign voluntarily. If the notary has reason to believe the signer cannot grasp the nature or consequences of what they’re signing, the notary should refuse the act entirely. The mark procedure substitutes for a hand that cannot write; it does not substitute for a mind that cannot consent.

What to Have Ready Before the Appointment

Three things need to be in place: identification for the signer, the document itself, and two witnesses who will watch the mark being made.

Signer Identification

The notary verifies identity through “satisfactory evidence” under Civil Code Section 1185.³ The common forms:

California driver’s license or ID card issued by the DMV
U.S. passport issued by the Department of State
Out-of-state driver’s license or ID card showing a photo, physical description, signature, and serial number
Foreign passport or consular ID meeting the same photo-and-description requirements
U.S. military ID from any branch

The ID must be current or issued within the last five years.³ If the signer has no qualifying photo ID, credible witnesses personally known to the signer can establish identity under oath, but that is a separate workaround from the two mark witnesses described below.

The Two Mark Witnesses

Code of Civil Procedure Section 17 requires two witnesses to observe the mark being made.¹ One of the two takes an extra job: writing the signer’s name next to the mark. The statute does not expressly require the witnesses to be disinterested, but anyone with a financial stake in the document or named within it is a poor choice because it invites a later challenge. The notary is not required to verify the mark witnesses’ identities unless they are also serving as credible witnesses for the signer’s ID.⁴

Placing the Mark on the Document

The sequence from the Notary Handbook is simple but has to happen in order:

The signer makes a deliberate mark on the signature line (an “X” is standard, though any intentional symbol works) while both witnesses watch.
One witness writes the signer’s full legal name next to the mark. This is the step that ties the mark to a specific person under Civil Code Section 14.²
Both witnesses sign their own names near the mark to confirm they observed it.¹

Keep the mark, the printed name, and the two witness signatures visually grouped on the page. Recorders and banks sometimes reject documents where these elements are scattered or ambiguous. If the document has multiple signature lines, as a deed of trust does, repeat the full sequence at each one.

Notary Journal Entries

Every California notary keeps a single sequential journal of official acts.⁵ The standard entry records the date and time of the act, the type of document, the type of notarial act, how the signer was identified, and the fee charged.

A signature by mark adds two more requirements inside that entry. The signer must place a mark directly in the journal, and a witness must write the signer’s name next to that journal mark and sign as a witness to it.⁴ The mark in the journal has to be witnessed the same way the mark on the document was.

One point commonly misunderstood: the two mark witnesses are not required to sign the journal unless they are also serving as credible witnesses to establish the signer’s identity. When the signer produced valid photo ID, the witnesses’ job stops at observing and signing the document.⁴

Completing the Certificate and Seal

After the mark is placed, the notary fills in the certificate the document calls for. An acknowledgment confirms the signer’s identity and voluntary signature; the notary does not have to witness the actual signing. A jurat requires the signer to swear or affirm the truth of the contents in the notary’s presence, and the notary must witness the mark being made.⁶ The document usually indicates which: “subscribed and sworn” signals a jurat, “acknowledged before me” signals an acknowledgment.

The notary signs the certificate in their own hand and applies the official seal. The impression needs to be legible. A smudged or faint seal is one of the most common reasons a county recorder sends a document back, so check the impression before releasing the paperwork.⁷

Fees

California caps the notary’s fee at $15 per signature for an acknowledgment and $15 for a jurat.⁸ A signature by mark is not a separate fee category; the same statutory maximum applies. When a document has multiple signatures requiring separate notarial acts, the fee applies per signature. A mobile notary who travels to the signer may add a travel charge on top, because travel fees are not regulated by Section 8211.

When a Mark Won’t Work: Signature by Proxy

If the signer cannot produce any mark at all, even an “X” with the pen guided for them, the mark procedure doesn’t fit. California allows a signature by proxy in that situation: the signer verbally directs another person to sign the signer’s name, and the proxy does so in the signer’s presence and at their express direction. With a mark, the signer’s own hand creates the symbol. With a proxy, another person’s hand writes the name entirely.

Both paths still require the signer to be mentally competent and to understand the document. The notary cannot act as the proxy, because that would compromise the required impartiality. If a proxy is used instead of a mark, the notarial certificate and journal entry need to reflect that choice; the two procedures have different requirements and cannot be mixed.

Mistakes That Get Documents Rejected

Most rejections trace back to the same handful of errors. Catching them before the appointment ends is far easier than reassembling the signer, two witnesses, and a notary a second time.

No witness name next to the mark. A bare “X” is not a signature under Civil Code Section 14 unless someone writes the signer’s name beside it.²
Only one witness. Two are required; one invalidates the mark for notarial purposes.¹
No mark in the journal. The signer has to mark the journal, not just the document, and a witness has to write the signer’s name next to that journal mark.⁴
Illegible seal impression on the certificate.
Signer ID that is expired beyond the five-year window.³

Getting the sequence right the first time matters more here than with a routine signature, because the physical limitations that make the mark necessary are usually the same limitations that make a follow-up appointment hard to arrange.

1
California Legislative Information. California Code of Civil Procedure 17 – Preliminary Provisions
2
California Legislative Information. California Code, Civil Code – CIV 14 – Meaning of Words
3
California Legislative Information. California Code, Civil Code – CIV 1185
4
California Secretary of State. 2026 California Notary Public Handbook
5
California Legislative Information. California Government Code 8206 – Notaries Public
6
California Legislative Information. California Government Code 8205 – Notaries Public
7
California Secretary of State. Procedures and Guidelines for the Issuance of Notary Public Seals
8
California Legislative Information. California Government Code 8211