The legal maximums
For a notarial act performed in person, Florida law caps the fee at $10 per act. For a remote online notarization, the cap is $25 per act. For solemnizing a marriage, a notary may not charge more than the clerk of the circuit court charges for the same service, which is currently $30.
Note the words per act. A document with three signatures that each need notarizing is three acts, not one. A loan package with eight notarized pages is eight acts. That is why a closing costs more than a single affidavit.
What is not capped: travel
The cap applies to the notarial act. Travelling to you is a separate service, and mobile notaries charge for it based on distance and time of day. Florida requires that a travel fee be agreed in advance and itemized separately from the notarial fee, so you can see exactly what you are paying for.
That is why an evening visit to a hospital forty minutes away costs more than signing one page in a coffee shop nearby. What should never happen is discovering the number after the signing.
A realistic picture
What people actually pay, in practice:
- One document, signed online: the notarial fee only.
- One document, mobile visit nearby: notarial fee plus travel.
- A power of attorney with two signatures: two acts plus travel.
- A loan closing: one act per notarized page, plus travel, which is why signing agents quote a package price.
- A wedding ceremony: the solemnization fee, plus travel to the venue.
How I quote
You get the full amount before I set out, not after. If something changes on the day — an extra signature, a document that turns out to need a jurat instead of an acknowledgment — I tell you what that adds before we continue.
If the appointment cannot go ahead because identification is missing or the signer is not able to sign, there is no notarial fee, because no notarial act happened.
Frequently asked questions
- Is the $10 cap per document or per signature?
- Per notarial act. One signature notarized is one act. Two people signing the same document is two acts.
- Can a notary charge more for evenings or weekends?
- Not for the notarial act itself, which stays capped. The travel fee can reflect the hour, and it must be agreed with you beforehand.
- Do you charge to travel to a hospital?
- Yes, a travel fee based on distance and time. You will know the amount before I leave.
- Why does an apostille cost more?
- Because the state charges its own fee per apostille, separate from anything a notary charges. That money goes to the Florida Department of State, not to me.