New Texas Notary Law Goes into Effect on September 1, 2023

Texas House Bill 255 was passed on June 10, 2023 and will go into effect on September 1, 2023.

This new notary law allows a Texas notary to record in their notary journal, the expiration date of an identification card issued by a governmental agency (including a passport issued by the United States) if the signer, grantor, or maker of an instrument or document presents the document to the notary public as identification.

Furthermore, the law raises the maximum fees a notary is allowed to charge from $6 to $10 for:

• Taking the acknowledgement or proof of a deed or other instrument in writing, for registration, including certificate and seal, for the first signature.
• Administering an oath or affirmation with certificate and seal.  
• Swearing a witness to a deposition, certificate, seal, and other business connected with taking the deposition.  
• A certificate under seal or notarial act not provided for.  

The following maximum fees are increased from 50 cents to $1:

• The fee for each page of a copy of a record or paper in the notary public's office.
• The fee for each 100 words when taking the deposition of a witness.

Additionally, HB 255 ties notary fees to inflation by allowing the Texas Secretary of State to adjust the fees a notary can charge every five years. To do so, the secretary will apply the inflation rate, if any, to the current fees and amounts. This inflation rate will be determined by the comptroller using the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor.

Finally, the new law requires notaries to affix their notary seals only on documents they notarize and forbids notaries from providing any person with a copy of their notary seals.

 Click here to read the bill.