Notary Services

Text/Call: (904) 467 - 7876

The basic role of a notary public in our legal system and in the world of commerce is to prevent fraud. Notaries deter fraud when they perform their duties with diligence and obey the laws governing their duties. The most basic requirement for performing a notarization is that the person who is taking an oath or making an acknowledgment (the one whose signature is being notarized) must be present at the time of the notarization. The presence requirement refers to physical presence.

Duties of a Notary Public

Notaries are authorized by law to perform six basic duties.

  • Administer oaths or affirmations: An oath or affirmation is administered to a document signer when the signer is required to make a sworn statement about certain facts.

  • Take acknowledgments: In an acknowledgment, the document signer must personally appear before you, the notary public, and declare that he or she has signed the document voluntarily.

  • Attest to photocopies of certain documents

  • Solemnize marriage: Florida is one of only three states that authorize notaries public to perform marriage ceremonies.

  • Verify vehicle identification numbers (VINs): Florida law requires that, when applying for a Florida title for the first time on a used motor vehicle, the owner must sign a sworn statement that the vehicle identification number (VIN) and the odometer reading on the vehicle are correct.

  • Certify the contents of a safe deposit box: Florida law provides that a financial institution may open a safe deposit box if the rental fee is past due, providing that proper notice has been made and that certain other conditions are met. A notary public is authorized and required to be present for the opening of the
    safe deposit box, to inventory the contents of the vault, and to make an appropriate certificate of the opening.

Notary Fees

The State of Florida allows notaries to charge $10.00 for each signature they notarize. In addition to this, however, there are frequently other charges that cause the fee incur to be higher. Here are some examples of things that cause the fee to increase:

1. Except for your signature, the document should be fully completed before arrival. There is a time charge if we have to wait for you to fill in the document or if you ask our assistance in filling in the document for you.

2. Although we cannot provide any legal advice, there are sometimes occasions when we are asked to provide a general explanation of part or all of a document. Since that is not part of the notarization process, there is a time charge for that as well.

3. Travel to get to you to provide the notarization, there will be a travel charge. If we travel to the location and we are not able to provide the service the travel fees will still be due. Please note that when traveling to the hospital if the patient is not fully aware we will not be able to notarize the document.

There may be other activities or issues that require an extra charge as well but the above are representative of the reasons why additional charges exist.

NOTARIAL SERVICES MAXIMUM FEES

Administering Oaths and Affirmations .....................................................$10.00 (each seal)

Verifying a Vehicle Identification Number ................................................$10.00

Taking an Acknowledgment .......................................................................$10.00 (each seal)

Protests ........................................................................................................$10.00

Certifying Contents of a Safe-Deposit Box ...............................................$10.00

Attesting to a Photocopy ............................................................................$10.00 (per copy)

To Solemnize a Marriage (Perform a Marriage Ceremony) ....................$30.00

Loan Signings (1 Loan) ................................................................................$125.00

OTHER SERVICE FEES

Travel Fees start at $30.00 within Duval and Clay County

Time Fee: Included with the notarization of 5 minutes. There will be a charge for time if the Notary has to wait for documents to be completed, or for any other delay for example looking for proper identification. For the First 10 to 30 minutes - $30.00.

E-docs: $30.00 per loan.