- Passing requires 80% on a written, closed-book exam across three domains.
- Application fee is $20, each attempt costs $10, commission issuance is $100.
- One failure means reexamination must be requested and rescheduled within 14 days.
- Two failures require a 90-day wait before you can reapply.
Quick Facts Snapshot
Keep this page bookmarked. It compresses everything the Hawaii Department of the Attorney General, Notary Public Office, expects candidates to know before sitting for the Hawaii Notary Public Examination. If you want the long-form explanations behind any of these numbers, the HI-NOTARY Study Guide 2026 walks through preparation strategy in detail, while this page is built for rapid pre-exam review.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Administering body | Hawaii Department of the Attorney General, Notary Public Office |
| Application fee | $20 (nonrefundable) |
| Exam attempt fee | $10 per attempt |
| Commission issuance fee | $100 |
| Passing score | 80% |
| Exam format | Written, closed book |
| Results turnaround | Within 30 days |
| Commission length | Four years |
| Surety bond requirement | $1,000 |
| Renewal cost | $20 application + $100 commission fee |
Eligibility Checklist
Before you even think about domain content, confirm you meet the baseline eligibility standard. Hawaii's requirements are narrower than a lot of applicants assume, and missing one item can delay your application before you ever reach the exam room.
- Be at least 18 years old
- Reside in the State of Hawaii
- Meet the citizenship or qualifying permanent-resident standard
- Submit justification for seeking a commission
- Provide character letters as part of the application packet
For a full walkthrough of how each requirement is verified and what documentation to prepare, see HI-NOTARY Requirements 2026: Eligibility, Prerequisites & How to Qualify.
Fee Breakdown
Money mistakes are avoidable if you understand the sequence of fees up front. Hawaii separates the application, the examination, and the commission itself into three distinct charges - and each one is nonrefundable or attempt-specific, so budgeting matters.
Fee Sequence
Understand which fee applies at which stage of the process.
- $20 - nonrefundable application fee, paid when you submit your packet
- $10 - charged per examination attempt, including any reexamination
- $100 - commission issuance fee, paid only after you pass
- $1,000 - surety bond required before commissioning
- $20 + $100 - renewal application plus renewal commission fee every four years
A complete cost analysis, including how these fees compare across the full commissioning cycle, is available in HI-NOTARY Certification Cost 2026: Complete Pricing Breakdown.
Domain Recap
The written exam draws from three domains. There's no published weighting split between them in the CERT FACTS, so treat all three as equally essential to master rather than assuming one dominates the test.
Domain 1: Statutory Laws and Rules That Specifically Apply to Notaries Public in Hawaii
This domain tests your command of the legal framework governing notarial acts in the state.
- Provisions found in HAR Chapter 5-11
- Statutory limits on notarial authority
- Rules unique to Hawaii versus general notarial practice elsewhere
Domain 2: Practical Aspects of a Notary's Practice
Here the exam shifts from statute memorization to applied judgment in real transactions.
- Handling documents, signers, and identification in everyday scenarios
- Recognizing situations that require declining service
- Maintaining proper records of notarial acts
Domain 3: A Notary's Duties and Responsibilities
This domain covers the obligations that follow a notary throughout the life of a commission.
- Core duties owed to the public and to the state
- Responsibilities tied to maintaining an active, compliant commission
- Consequences of failing to meet notarial obligations
For a deeper breakdown of subtopics within each domain, read HI-NOTARY Exam Domains 2026: Complete Guide to All 3 Content Areas. If you're still gauging overall difficulty before committing study time, How Hard Is the HI-NOTARY Exam? Complete Difficulty Guide 2026 is a useful companion read.
Exam Format Rules
The Hawaii Notary Public Examination is written and closed book. That single fact should shape your entire preparation approach - you cannot bring the 2023 Notary Manual or HAR Chapter 5-11 into the exam room, so both references need to be internalized rather than merely reviewed.
For the exact scoring mechanics and what an 80% actually means in terms of question count, see HI-NOTARY Passing Score 2026: Exactly What You Need to Pass. If you're curious how candidates historically perform against that bar, HI-NOTARY Pass Rate 2026: What the Data Shows covers what's publicly known.
Retake and Results Timeline
Results are issued within 30 days of your exam date, which means patience is part of the process - don't assume a delayed result equals a failure.
- After one failed attempt: reexamination must be requested, paid ($10), and rescheduled within 14 days.
- After two failed attempts: you must wait 90 days before reapplying.
Key Takeaway
If you fail once, move fast - the 14-day window to request and reschedule reexamination is tight. Use that window to target only the domains where you lost points, rather than restarting your review from scratch.
Scheduling logistics, including how testing windows are set up, are detailed in HI-NOTARY Exam Dates 2026: Testing Windows, Deadlines & Scheduling.
Commission and Renewal Facts
Passing the exam is only the midpoint. A Hawaii notary commission lasts four years, and maintaining it requires meeting a bonding requirement plus paying renewal fees on schedule.
- Commission duration: four years
- Surety bond required: $1,000
- Renewal costs: $20 application fee plus $100 commission fee
Thinking beyond the exam itself, many candidates ask who actually values this commission in the job market. Title companies, law offices, real estate firms, and financial institutions across Hawaii regularly rely on commissioned notaries for document execution. If you're weighing whether the time and fees are worth it, Is the HI-NOTARY Certification Worth It? Complete ROI Analysis 2026 and HI-NOTARY Salary Guide 2026: Complete Earnings Analysis go into that decision, and HI-NOTARY Jobs outlines where commissioned notaries tend to find work.
Last-Week Review Plan
In the final week before your exam date, structure your remaining hours around the three domains rather than generic study habits. This is the only place in this cheat sheet where a scheduling template applies, and it's tied directly to how the Hawaii exam is built.
Domain 1 Deep Review
- Re-read HAR Chapter 5-11 sections relevant to notarial authority
- Drill statutory definitions until recall is instant
Domain 2 Scenario Practice
- Work through practical situations involving signer identification and document handling
- Practice identifying when a notary must decline to act
Domain 3 Duties Review
- Review recordkeeping and commission-maintenance obligations
- Connect duties back to consequences described in the Notary Manual
Full Closed-Book Simulation
- Take a timed practice run without reference materials
- Flag any domain where recall felt shaky and revisit it same day
Run a full simulated exam on our practice test platform to feel the closed-book pressure before test day, then return to this cheat sheet to confirm you've covered every fee, timeline, and domain fact listed above.
FAQ
You need 80% correct on the written, closed-book exam to pass.
The application fee is $20 (nonrefundable), each exam attempt costs $10, and commission issuance after passing costs $100. A $1,000 surety bond is also required before commissioning.
You must request reexamination, pay the $10 attempt fee, and reschedule within 14 days of the failed attempt.
After two failed attempts, you must wait 90 days before reapplying for examination.
A commission lasts four years. Renewal requires a $20 application fee plus a $100 commission fee, along with maintaining the $1,000 surety bond requirement.