How to become an online notary in Florida
A Florida notary does not apply for a new commission to work online. You register with the Department of State as an online notary public, on top of the commission you hold, after a two-hour course and with a bond and an E&O policy in place. Then the RON service provider you named carries part of the load the statute sets, and you carry the rest. This is the path in order, from chapter 117 itself; the platforms are compared in RON platforms for Florida notaries. Other states' paths are under state rules and approved lists.
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Fig. 1Registration, not a second commission
Florida does not issue a second commission for online work. A commissioned notary registers with the Department of State as an online notary public, and the registration rides on the commission: the same number, the same term. The statute lists seven things the registration must carry. Gather all seven before you start the form, because the provider you name and the insurance you buy are the two that take time.
Your current commission number
Online registration sits on a commission you already hold.
The course certificate
A classroom or online course on an online notary's duties and technology.
Your RON service provider(s)
The provider or providers whose audio-video and identity-proofing technology you will use.
A $25,000 bond
From a surety authorized in Florida; it also satisfies the ordinary notary bond.
Our rule file sums up the same path, with the form and fee: Register with the Department of State: hold a current commission, certify a completed RON course, pay the registration fee ($10 per Rule 1N-7.001), file a sworn registration, name the RON service provider(s) you will use (Form DS-DOC-50), and show a $25,000 bond and $25,000 errors and omissions insurance. Tell the Department within 30 days if you change RON service provider. §§ 117.225, 117.265(5)(b), Fla. Stat.; Fla. Admin. Code R. 1N-7.001, 1N-7.005
The two-hour course
A 2-hour in-person or online course on the duties, obligations and technology requirements of an online notary, from the Florida Land Title Association, the Florida Bar RPPTL Section, the Florida Legal Education Association, the Department of State or a Department-approved vendor. The course is in addition to whatever you completed for the commission itself, and its certificate is item two on the registration. One detail in the statute is worth knowing when you compare providers: a course provider must offer the course to every applicant at the same price, member or not, unless it is given as part of a regular membership meeting.
The course covers duties, not a particular platform, so ask the RON service provider you name how it trains you on its own system. What a provider owes you under Florida law is in RON platforms for Florida notaries. How the other states with rules on file handle training is in remote online notary training by state, and the whole path for every state on file is set side by side in how to become a remote online notary.
§§ 117.225(2), 117.295(6), Fla. Stat. § 117.295(6), Fla. Stat. read 2026-10-23
Bond and E&O
Two separate $25,000 lines, and they protect different people. The bond protects the public: it is payable to anyone harmed by your breach of duty. The errors and omissions policy ($25,000 at least) protects you. Registering as an online notary means the bond you buy for it also counts as your ordinary commission bond, so you are not carrying two.
“in the amount of $25,000, payable to any individual harmed as a result of a breach of duty”
$25,000 is the floor the statute sets. A signing network may ask for more before it sends work (NotaryCam's network, for one, lists E&O of at least $250,000 among its asks); what networks ask, and the policies built for remote notaries, are in E&O insurance for remote notaries. The difference between the two instruments is laid out in notary bond vs E&O insurance.
Fig. 2What Florida asks of the provider
Florida puts real duties on the platform itself, which is why it calls it a RON service provider rather than software. The ones that touch your work:
| The provider | Cite |
|---|---|
| Files a self-certification with the Department that its technology meets chapter 117; each filing stays active one year | § 117.295(4)(a) |
| Uses tamper-evident technology: any later change to the record shows | § 117.295(4)(b) |
| Carries $250,000 of E&O in the annual aggregate for its own technology and process errors | § 117.295(5) |
| Runs credential analysis and gives its output to you, the online notary | § 117.295(3)(b) |
| Keeps the audio-video signal reasonably secure from interception and clear enough to confirm identity | § 117.295(3)(c) |
| Does not sell or transfer the signer's personal information, outside narrow exceptions | § 117.295(8) |
The Department of State publishes the RON service providers that filed the annual self-certification required by § 117.295(4)(a), with filing dates (122 filings listed on , many being repeat annual filings by the same provider). It is a self-certification list, not an approval: the Department 'does not recommend nor endorse any particular third party vendors.' The practical test is the date of a provider's latest filing, which our Florida platform comparison reads for each platform. If you work through more than one provider, each one goes on your registration, and a change is reported; how that works across states is in using more than one RON platform.
During the session
The online notary must be physically in Florida; the principal and witnesses may be anywhere. For a principal outside Florida, confirm (verbally or in writing) that they want a Florida notary under Florida law. A principal outside the United States may use a foreign passport as ID.
Identity is where Florida is most specific. Personal knowledge, or remote presentation of a government ID, credential analysis of it, and identity proofing (knowledge-based authentication or another conforming method). Minimum KBA: five or more questions with five answer choices, answered within 2 minutes, 80% correct, one more attempt allowed with no more than three repeat questions. If any step fails, the notarization may not go ahead. The platform runs the quiz and the credential check, but the decision to go ahead is yours, and a failed step ends the session rather than handing it to your judgment. The checks are explained in identity proofing in RON, and a signer who is abroad is covered in remote notarization for signers outside the US.
Fig. 3Records and fees
Keep one or more secure electronic journals of online notarizations, with a backup, protected from unauthorized access. Both the journal and the recording are kept for 10 years. The RON service provider keeps an uninterrupted, unedited copy of the audio-video recording; recordings are kept at least 10 years after the notarial act. The provider may delegate keeping the recordings to a secure repository by contract (and the notary may do the same for the journal), each with notice to the Department within 30 days. The split matters: the journal is yours to hand to a repository, reported to the Department within 30 days and noted in the journal itself, while the recording is the provider's to delegate. Ask the provider in writing whether it has, and where the recordings sit.
What the recording must show, from your opening recital to the signing, is set out in RON session recording requirements. A party to the act, a title or settlement agent, the Department and you can get the recording during the retention period; the provider may charge others up to $20 for access. Work out the keep-until date for any session with the recording retention date calculator, and compare where the journal lives in electronic notary journals.
Up to $25 per online notarial act. Fees for other services, including the RON service provider's, are not governed by this cap and may be charged separately. Log what you charge per act with the session fee ledger, which flags a line over the cap.
Statute: chapter 117, Fla. Stat., read 2026-10-23
Questions notaries ask
Do I need a separate commission to notarize online in Florida?
No. A commissioned Florida notary registers with the Department of State as an online notary public; the registration rests on the commission you already hold.
Is the online notary bond in addition to my regular notary bond?
No. The $25,000 bond for online registration also satisfies the ordinary notary bond requirement, so you carry one bond. The $25,000 E&O policy is separate and is yours.
Can I use a RON platform that is not on Florida's provider list?
Florida's list is of providers that filed the annual self-certification, and the provider you name on your registration must meet chapter 117. Check that a provider's latest filing is under a year old before you name it.
How long do I keep Florida session recordings?
At least 10 years after the notarial act, for the recording and the journal alike. You may delegate keeping the journal to a secure repository, and the RON service provider may delegate keeping the recordings; either delegation is reported to the Department within 30 days.
Can the signer be outside Florida?
Yes; the online notary must be physically in Florida, and the principal may be anywhere. For a principal outside Florida, confirm they want a Florida notary under Florida law.
Related
- RON platforms for Florida notariesWhat Florida asks of an online notary's RON service provider, and which platforms say they meet it.
- RON readiness checklistYour state's steps before a first remote act, ticked off one by one.
- Texas online notary requirementsThe Texas path: commission, digital certificate, electronic seal, online application and record keeping.
- Remote notarization for signers outside the USWhat the notary's state allows when the signer is abroad, and what the notary must confirm first.
- Notary E&O insurance for remote notaries, comparedWhich E&O policies say they cover remote online and electronic acts, read from the insurers' own pages.