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Category: Texas Notary Blog

03/26/2020

Budget Notary Bonding Agency advises all Texas Notaries that by order of Governor Greg Abbott, the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) has temporarily waived expiration dates for certain Texas identification cards, including Driver Licenses, Commercial Driver Licenses and other identification forms. This measure suspends the need to venture into a public setting in order to renew an expiring or expired license.

Under terms of the order (and subject to conditions noted below) a Texas Notary Public may accept an expired, Texas-issued identification card (ID), driver license (DL), commercial driver license (CDL) and election identification certificate (EIC) as satisfactory evidence of identification. Remember that Texas Civil Practices and Remedies Code Sec. 121.005(a)(2) requires identification cards or documents accepted by a Notary Public to include the holder’s photograph and signature.

For a Texas Notary to accept an expired Texas ID type noted above as satisfactory evidence of identification, BOTH of these conditions must be met:

1. The expiration date on the driver license or ID card is on or after March 13, 2020; AND
2. The date of the notarial transaction/act is no more than 60 days after the Governor’s State of Disaster declaration is officially lifted (when that will occur is presently unknown).

This order pertains only to Texas-issued identification documents. A Texas Notary cannot accept expired forms of identification issued by any other states.

Texas Online Notaries Public: Verify that your Online Notary system/technology provider is aware of these developments, as they may affect aspects of the provider’s identity proofing procedures.

Recommended Notary procedures if presented with an expired Texas ID:

1. Verify that the card’s expiration date and the day/date that notarization is performed meet conditions 1 and 2 noted above. Also verify that the card includes a photograph and signature.
2. Advise the signer/cardholder that the expired ID card is being accepted under state emergency measures.
3. Write a note in the journal record that an expired ID card was accepted in accordance with the Texas Department of Public Safety’s March 2020 extension of expired ID cards.
4. Print and retain a copy of the DPS’s public announcement. Keep a copy of the announcement with every recordbook/journal containing entries involving your acceptance of an expired ID under the DPS’s expiration date waiver.

NOTE: This ID card expiration date extension does not return driving privileges to a person not eligible to drive due to an active enforcement action (suspension, revocation or denial).

Check back here for future updates.

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