Notary Public (Florida) - Seal Requirements

Seal Requirements

A notary seal of the rubber stamp type is required to be affixed to all notarized paper documents. The rubber stamp must include the commissioned name of the notary public, the words "Notary Public-State of Florida", the notary's commission number, and the date on which the notary's commission expires. Prior to the mid-1970s, the only statutory requirement regarding notarial seals was that one be used and that it include the words "Notary Public" and "State of Florida at Large"; the name of the notary was optional, and the law did not specify what types of seals were permissible. This law was later amended to state that the seal must be round in design and of either the rubber stamp or impression type. In the early 1990s, the statute was again changed to require a rubber stamp seal, with an impression type seal being optional and not acceptable unless used in conjunction with a rubber stamp. However, many notaries continue to use the impression seal with their rubber stamp to allow for easy detection when trying to determine which document is an original. This process is made more difficult for notaries who only use a rubber stamp seal, as the Florida statutes require that the seal be affixed in only photographically-reproducible black ink.