Starting September 12, 2026, Arizona law requires every notary to record a thumbprint from anyone who signs a deed, deed of trust, or other instrument affecting real property, or any power of attorney. This step is new. It was added by SB 1479, which updated A.R.S. 41-254. The purpose is simple: to make deed and document fraud harder to commit. If you have a signing appointment on or after that date, plan to press your right thumb onto an ink pad for a few seconds before the notary completes the notarization.
Which Documents Require a Thumbprint
The thumbprint rule applies to two groups of documents:
- Instruments affecting real property. Any deed, deed of trust, or other instrument that affects Arizona real estate on or after September 12, 2026 requires a thumbprint. This includes warranty deeds, quitclaim deeds, deeds of trust, beneficiary deeds, and trust transfer deeds.
- All powers of attorney. The rule is not limited to real-estate powers of attorney. It covers financial powers of attorney, healthcare powers of attorney, and any other type of power of attorney. If a notary is asked to notarize the document, a thumbprint is required.
Three document types are exempt:
- Trustee's deeds used to complete a foreclosure. When a trustee executes a deed after a trustee sale, no thumbprint is required.
- Deeds of release or reconveyance. These are the papers a lender records after a loan is paid off. They are also exempt.
- Remote online notarizations (RON) that meet specific safeguards. A RON session is exempt only when it follows Arizona's remote notarization law (A.R.S. 41-263), the notary's journal records your identification credential number, and the notary keeps the audio and video recording of the session for at least seven years.
Where Your Thumbprint Goes
Your thumbprint is recorded in the notary's journal. The thumbprint is not attached to the deed or power of attorney that gets filed with the county recorder. It does not appear in public property records. No title company, lender, or buyer receives it as part of the recorded document. The county recorder does not store it.
Keep in mind that a notary journal is generally a public record under A.R.S. 41-319. Anyone who submits a written request identifying the transaction by date, document type, and parties may be able to view or copy the relevant journal entry. The thumbprint lives in that journal, not in the recorded deed or POA, but the journal itself is not a sealed or law-enforcement-only record.
Why Arizona Created This Rule
Title fraud has grown in Arizona and across the country. A common scheme involves forging a signature on a deed and recording it with the county recorder. Once recorded, a fraudster may try to refinance the property, take out a loan against it, or sell it. Property owners sometimes do not find out until they try to sell or refinance themselves.
A thumbprint ties the signer to the document in a way that a signature alone cannot. Fingerprints are unique and very hard to fake. If a forged deed is recorded and later questioned, investigators can compare the thumbprint in the notary's journal to the suspected forger. SB 1479 was designed to deter title fraud before it happens and make it easier to prosecute when it does.
What If a Thumbprint Is Not Possible
The law sets a specific order to follow when the right thumb is not available. First, the notary must try the left thumb. If that is also not available, the notary must try another finger. Only when the signer is physically unable to provide any fingerprint at all does the notary record an explanation in their journal in place of the print. The signing is not canceled. The document is still notarized.
If you have an injury, a medical condition, or a limb difference that may affect your ability to provide a thumbprint, mention it to the notary before the appointment. They will work through the required sequence and note any explanation needed.
What to Expect at an RJP Signing Appointment
At a signing appointment with RJP on or after September 12, 2026, the notary will ask for your right thumbprint as part of the notarization step. You will press your right thumb onto an ink pad or fingerprint pad provided for this purpose. The step takes only a few seconds and is part of the standard notarization process going forward.
Bring a valid government-issued photo ID as you normally would. The thumbprint does not replace the ID check. Everything else about the appointment stays the same. The added step is a small one, but it protects you and every other person in the chain of title.
If you have questions about a scheduled signing or want to know how this step works in practice, reach out before your appointment.