State Notary Agent®
The Florida Notary Public Directory
A notary may decline for reasons of practicality — being outside their service area, unavailable, or uncomfortable with a transaction that looks irregular. A notary is not obliged to accept every request.
What a notary may not do is decline on the basis of race, colour, religion, national origin, sex, or similar protected characteristics.
Ask specifically why. Most refusals come down to a fixable problem: missing signer, expired ID, a blank field, or a missing witness. Fix it and return.
If the refusal is because the notary suspects the signing is not voluntary, that is the system working. Pressuring another notary to proceed is a poor idea.
Yes. A notary must decline when the signer is not present, identity cannot be established, the signer does not appear to be acting willingly or aware, the document has blank spaces, or the notary has a financial interest. A notary may also decline for practical reasons.
No. A notary may not refuse on the basis of race, colour, religion, national origin, sex, or similar protected characteristics.
Most commonly: a signer is missing, identification is expired or unacceptable, the document has blank spaces, a required witness is absent, or the notary doubts the signer is acting voluntarily.
Generally no. A notary normally must be able to communicate directly with the signer to be satisfied they are acting willingly and understand what they are signing.
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