State Notary Agent®
The Florida Notary Public Directory
For traditional, in-person notarizations, Florida does not require a journal. Chapter 117 imposes no recordkeeping obligation on a notary performing paper notarizations. Florida is in the minority here; many states do require one.
For remote online notarization, Florida absolutely does. Fla. Stat. §117.245 requires every Florida online notary to keep an electronic journal of online notarizations, and to retain it — along with the audio-video recording of each session — for at least 10 years after the notarial act.
So the answer depends entirely on which chair you are sitting in. If you commission for RON, you have a statutory retention program to run. If you only stamp paper, you have none.
Under §117.245, each electronic journal entry must record:
Separately, the RON service provider must retain an uninterrupted and unedited audio-video recording of the entire session — the principal's appearance, the identity confirmation, the notary's recitation, the declaration that the signing is voluntary, and everything said and done throughout.
Both the journal and the recordings run on the same 10-year clock. Retention may be delegated to a secure repository, but the Department of State must be notified within 30 days with the repository's contact information. Notably, recordings tied to electronic wills follow the separate qualified-custodian rules in Florida's will statutes.
No statute requires it. Every experienced notary keeps one regardless, for one reason: a journal is the only evidence you will ever have that you did it right.
A signature is disputed two years after the fact. A deed is challenged. A borrower claims they were never shown a document. You will not remember that appointment. Your journal will — the date, the ID you inspected, the document, the fee, and the signer's own signature in your book.
What to record for each act: date and time, act type, document title and date, signer's name, how you identified them, the fee charged, and the signer's signature. Keep it bound, sequential, and never pre-signed. If a signer refuses to sign your journal, note it and proceed — nothing in Florida law makes their signature a condition of the notarization.
One caution, and it is a real one: a Florida notary's journal is your record, not a public record. Do not hand the whole book to anyone who asks. If someone needs a specific entry, produce that entry — not the personal information of every other signer in the book.
Not for traditional in-person notarizations — Chapter 117 does not require one. It is required for remote online notarization: Fla. Stat. §117.245 requires a Florida online notary to keep an electronic journal of every online notarization.
At least 10 years after the date of the notarial act, for both the electronic journal and the audio-video recording of the session. Retention can be delegated to a secure repository if the Department of State is notified within 30 days.
Under §117.245: the date and time, the type of notarial act, a description of the record, the name and address of each principal, the evidence of identity used, and any fee charged.
Yes. A journal is the only contemporaneous evidence you will have if a notarization is ever challenged, and it costs a few dollars. Record the date, act type, document, signer, method of identification, fee, and have the signer sign the entry.
No. A Florida notary's journal is the notary's own business record, not a government public record. Produce specific entries when there is a legitimate need; do not hand over the entire book, which would expose other signers' information.
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