7.1 Notary Fees

Notary Fees Under C.R.S. 24-21-529

Fees are a high-frequency exam topic because the dollar amounts changed recently and candidates confuse the paper cap with the electronic cap. The governing statute is Colorado Revised Statutes (C.R.S.) section 24-21-529, "Notary's fees." It establishes maximum fees only — a notary may always charge less, including nothing.

The 2023 increase (SB23-153)

Senate Bill 23-153, signed by Governor Polis on May 17, 2023, more than doubled the long-standing fee caps. Memorize the before/after — a stale $5/$10 answer is a classic distractor.

The statute frames the higher figure as the cap on the notary's electronic signature; in practice it is the ceiling for both electronic notarization and remote online notarization (RON), since both rely on the electronic signature.

What the capped fee must include

The $15 (or $25) is all-inclusive for the notarial act itself. You cannot unbundle the core steps and bill each one to slip past the cap.

• Verifying the signer's identity
• Administering any required oath or affirmation
• Completing and signing the notarial certificate (acknowledgment, jurat, etc.)
• Affixing the official stamp
• Making the required journal entry

What you MAY charge separately

Services that are not part of the notarization are not subject to the cap and may be itemized:

Why the unbundling rule matters

The statute deliberately makes the cap cover "all duties and functions required to complete the notarial act." That phrasing exists to stop creative fee-splitting. Before SB23-153 some notaries tried to add a separate "certificate fee" or "oath fee" on top of the base charge. Colorado closed that door: the single capped figure must absorb identity verification, the oath or affirmation, certificate completion, the stamp, and the journal entry.

The only way to exceed the cap legitimately is to bill genuinely separate services such as travel or copying, and even then those amounts should be disclosed before the work is done so the client can decline.

Worked example

A mobile notary drives 18 miles to notarize a single power of attorney. She may charge $15 for the act plus a disclosed travel fee (say $25) — total $40, properly itemized as "$15 notarization + $25 travel." If the same signer also signs a deed, that is a second document, so the act fee is $15 × 2 = $30, plus the one travel charge for the single trip. The act cap is per document/act, not per appointment, while travel is per trip. Itemizing each line protects the notary if the client later disputes the bill, and the breakdown should match the fee figure recorded in the journal for each act.

Disclosure and consistency expectations

Colorado does not require a published fee schedule, but transparency is the safe practice and the exam rewards it. A notary should tell the signer the total cost — capped act fee plus any ancillary charges — before performing the work, and should record the actual fee charged in the journal. Charging different signers wildly different amounts for identical work invites complaints; being consistent and disclosing up front keeps the notary clear of misconduct allegations under the Secretary of State's rules.

Traps to watch

• "Per signer" vs "per document." The cap is per notarial act on a document, not per signer. Two signers acknowledging one deed is generally one act on one record, billed once at $15.
• Electronic ≠ automatic $25. A standard in-person paper act stays at the $15 cap even if the document was emailed to the notary first. The $25 cap attaches to the notary's electronic signature on an electronic or remote act, not to how the paper arrived.
• Employer prohibition. An employer may require an employee-notary to perform acts for free or to remit any collected fees to the employer; the notary cannot pocket fees against the employer's policy.
• No minimum. Pro bono notarization is fully permitted; the statute sets only a ceiling, so notarizing for free for family or charity is legal.
• Don't pad the act fee. Calling the stamp a "separate $5 stamping fee" to push past $15 violates the all-inclusive rule and is a fee-overcharge violation.
• Travel must be real and disclosed. A "travel fee" billed when the signer came to the notary's office is not a legitimate separate charge.

Commission application and renewal fees

These are paid to the Secretary of State and are separate from what a notary charges the public:

Exam Cheat Sheet

• Paper act cap: $15 per document (C.R.S. 24-21-529)
• Electronic/RON cap: $25 per notarization
• Raised by SB23-153 in 2023 (from $5/$10)
• Cap is all-inclusive of ID check, oath, certificate, stamp, and journal entry
• Travel/copies/printing billable separately; no minimum fee