Notary fees by state.

The table

What the table shows

Every number in the table is a ceiling. A notary may charge less, and in several of these states may charge nothing: Washington says a notary "need not charge" (RCW 42.45.170(2)), Pennsylvania lets a notary waive the right to charge (57 Pa.C.S. 329.1(c)(2)), and California's handbook says the fee and its amount are the notary's or employer's choice up to the statutory maximum. Each row names where its number comes from.

Who sets the number: statute or regulator

California, Florida, Illinois, Oregon and Virginia write the dollar figure into the statute itself, so changing it takes an act of the legislature. Pennsylvania and Washington do not. Pennsylvania's statute says only that the Department of State fixes fees by regulation (57 Pa.C.S. 329.1(a)), and Washington's statute lets the director set maximums by rule (RCW 42.45.170(1)). The practical effect is that a Pennsylvania or Washington figure can change without a bill, so those two rows are the ones most likely to be wrong on a page that was written a few years ago.

Per act, per signature, or tiered

Most of these states count by notarial act. California counts by signature: the $15 acknowledgment fee applies "for each signature taken." Pennsylvania tiers the acknowledgment fee, charging the higher $5 for the first name in the certificate and $2 for each additional name. Because the unit differs, the same document can cost different maximums in different places, which the worked example below shows.

Worked example: one deed, three signers (hypothetical)

Three owners sign one deed and each acknowledges it. In California the maximum is 3 x $15 = $45, because the fee is per signature. In Pennsylvania, if one certificate names all three, the ceiling is $5 + $2 + $2 = $9. The 36 dollar gap comes entirely from how each state counts, not from a difference in the work. In Florida or Oregon the answer depends on whether each signer's acknowledgment is treated as its own "notarial act," a question the statutes do not settle in the text we read, so ask the commissioning office before you quote a price for a multi-signer document.

Edge cases and common mistakes

• Free acts. California bars any fee for vote-by-mail envelope signatures and for veterans benefit paperwork; Florida bars a fee for witnessing a vote-by-mail ballot.
• Remote caps are separate. Florida, Illinois, Oregon and Washington cap a remote or electronic act at $25; Virginia caps electronic-document acts at $25; Pennsylvania adds up to $20 on top of the base fee. The remote cap is not a substitute for a platform's own charge, which these statutes do not regulate (Florida says so expressly in 117.275).
• Illinois has a second tier. The $5 ceiling rises to $25 for acts on Cook County residential conveyance records under section 3-102, and immigration-form help has its own small schedule. Violations are a Class A misdemeanor for a first offense (3-104(c)).
• Employer-collected fees. In Pennsylvania the fee is the notary's property unless the notary and employer agree otherwise (329.1(d)). Oregon lets an employed notary agree that fees accrue to the employer (194.400(4)).

Who this is for

New notaries setting a price list, and anyone checking whether a quoted fee is within the legal ceiling.

What this does not cover

Only the seven states above are covered, and only because we could read their primary text; the other states and DC are not on this page, so absence is not a statement about them. This page does not cover how an acknowledgment must be worded, who may take one in another state, or apostilles and other authentication of a notarized document for use abroad. Each of those is set state by state and by the receiving country, and none changes the fee ceiling. It is general information, not legal advice.

FAQ

What is the maximum a notary can charge in California?

$15 for each signature on an acknowledgment and $15 for each oath or jurat, under Government Code section 8211. A deposition is $30 plus $7 for the witness oath and $7 for the certificate. No fee may be charged for vote-by-mail ballot envelopes or for veterans benefit paperwork.

Is the notary fee the same in every state?

No. For a standard paper act, the seven states checked here range from $5 in Illinois to $15 in California and Washington. Some states set the figure by statute and others delegate it to a regulator.

What can a notary charge for a remote notarization?

Up to $25 in Florida, Illinois, Oregon and Washington. Virginia allows up to $25 for acts on electronic documents. Pennsylvania lets electronic and remote notaries add up to $20 per act on top of the base fee. California has no remote notarization yet.

Can a notary charge a travel fee?

In Oregon and Washington, yes, if the notary explains it is separate and the customer agrees to the amount before the trip. Virginia's handbook says the notary and client agree on travel expenses. California's handbook says travel fees should be identified separately in the journal.

Can a notary notarize for free?

Yes. Washington says a notary need not charge, Pennsylvania lets a notary waive the right to charge, and California's handbook says a notary may charge no fee or less than the maximum.

Does my employer keep the fees I collect?

It depends on your state and your agreement. In Pennsylvania the fee belongs to the notary unless the notary and employer agree otherwise. Oregon lets an employed notary agree that the employer collects them.

Why do other websites show different notary fees?

Fees change by statute or regulation, and Pennsylvania and Washington fix them by regulation, so older tables go stale. This page names the source for every figure and was checked on October 20, 2026.

Sources

Retrieved 2026-10-20. Each link was opened and the figure next to it was checked against the text.

• California Secretary of State: Notary Public Handbook (January 2026), reprinting Government Code sections 8200 to 8230
• Florida Statutes (2025), chapter 117, Notaries Public
• 5 ILCS 312/3-104, maximum fee
• Oregon Revised Statutes chapter 194, Notaries Public
• 57 Pa.C.S. chapter 3, Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts
• Pennsylvania Department of State: Notary Public Fees
• Code of Virginia, Title 47.1, Virginia Notary Act
• Secretary of the Commonwealth: A Handbook for Virginia Notaries Public (revised July 1, 2026)
• Revised Code of Washington chapter 42.45, Uniform Law on Notarial Acts
• Washington Administrative Code chapter 308-30, Notaries Public