Notary Fees and Compensation Flashcards

An Alabama notary charges $5 per signature for a document with five signatures. Is this correct?

Answer: Only if each signature is a separate notarial act; multiple signatures on one act are one fee

The fee is per notarial act, not per signature; if all signatures are part of one acknowledgment, only one $5 fee applies.

Which government employees in Alabama are typically required to notarize documents without charging any fee?

Answer: Notaries employed as government clerks or officials notarizing official government documents

Government-employed notaries often notarize official documents as part of their job duties without collecting personal fees.

An Alabama notary discovers after the fact that they charged $6 instead of $5 for a notarial act. They should:

Answer: Refund the $1 overage to the client

Any amount collected above the statutory $5 maximum must be refunded; charging even $1 over the cap is unlawful.

May an Alabama notary accept a gratuity (tip) from a satisfied client in addition to the notarial fee?

Answer: It is not prohibited by law, but accepting tips beyond the fee cap may raise ethical concerns

Alabama law does not explicitly prohibit tips, but accepting extra payment beyond the fee cap could be seen as overcharging and is generally discouraged.

An Alabama notary who is also a loan signing agent charges $150 for a full loan signing appointment. This fee is:

Answer: Lawful for the signing agent service but the notarial portion is still capped at $5 per act

The $5 cap applies specifically to the notarial acts; fees for non-notarial services such as document handling, printing, and travel are separate.

What is the fee limit for electronic notarizations performed by Alabama remote online notaries?

Answer: $25 per electronic notarial act under Alabama's remote online notarization law

Alabama's remote online notarization law sets a higher fee cap of $25 per act to account for the technology and platform costs involved.