Michigan mobile notary guide
How to Become a Notary in Michigan and Work as a Mobile Notary
How to become a notary in Michigan: the short answer
Michigan notaries are appointed by the Secretary of State for a term of 6 to 7 years that ends on your birthday. You must be 18, live or work in Michigan, read and write English and file a $10,000 surety bond. The law sets a $10 state fee and a $10 county filing fee. No course or exam is required, and you may charge at most $10 per act.
Michigan mobile notary rules at a glance
| Rule | Michigan |
|---|---|
| Acknowledgment fee cap | Up to $10 for any individual transaction or notarial act[1] |
| Jurat fee cap | Up to $10. Michigan sets one cap for every notarial act, and a jurat is a notarial act[1] |
| Travel fee | Michigan law allows a separate travel fee but sets no dollar cap. You and the client may agree on it before you start traveling, and it is separate from the $10 notarial fee.[1] |
| Bond | $10,000 surety bond filed with the county clerk (licensed Michigan attorneys are exempt)[2] |
| Training | Not required. MCL 55.271 lists no course and the Secretary of State application page lists none[2] |
| Exam | Not required[2] |
| Journal required | Only for remote notarizations. The law does not require a journal for in-person acts |
| Remote online notarization | Allowed[3] |
How to become a mobile notary in Michigan
First, check you qualify. Michigan requires that you are:
- Be at least 18 years old[4]
- Live in Michigan, or keep your principal place of business in the Michigan county where you apply[4]
- Read and write in English[4]
- Have no conviction for a felony, misdemeanor or violation listed in section 41 of the Act[4]
- File a $10,000 surety bond and an oath with your county clerk (licensed Michigan attorneys are exempt from the bond)[5]
Then follow these steps.
- Check that you qualifyConfirm you are 18, read and write English, and live in Michigan or have your main place of business in the county where you apply. Some convictions disqualify you.[4]
- Buy a $10,000 surety bondGet the bond from an insurance agency or bonding company. File it within 90 days before you send your application.[5]
$10,000 bond amount (premium set by the surety) - File the bond and take the oath at the county clerkTake the bond to your county clerk, pay the filing fee and take the oath of office there. Wayne County may charge a different fee.[5]
$10 county filing fee - Apply to the Secretary of StateApply online, which takes 1 day or less, or by mail, which takes 4 to 6 weeks. Pay the nonrefundable $10 processing fee.[6]
$10 state processing fee - Set up your certificate wordingMichigan does not require an embosser. Each certificate must show your name, "Notary public, State of Michigan, County of" your county, your expiration date, and "Acting in the County of" when you notarize outside your county. Many notaries buy a stamp with this wording.[7]
- Add remote or electronic notarization if you want itBefore your first electronic act, notify the Secretary of State and name the approved system you will use. Remote notarization must run on an approved remote platform, and you must keep a journal and recordings for 10 years.[8]
The fee charged by a notary public for performing a notarial act shall not be more than $10.00 for any individual transaction or notarial act.
What it costs to get commissioned in Michigan
These are the amounts the state sets. Bond, training and supply prices vary by vendor, so we list the legal requirement rather than a price.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Application processing fee (Secretary of State) | $10[9] |
| County clerk bond and oath filing fee | $10 (Wayne County may differ)[5] |
| Surety bond (legal amount, not the premium) | $10,000[5] |
| Training course and exam | Not required[4] |
| County clerk certification of a notarial act | $10[1] |
| Apostille or certification (Office of the Great Seal) | $1 per document[10] |
How much can a mobile notary charge in Michigan?
The notarial fee in Michigan is capped at $10 per transaction or notarial act. The law allows a separate travel fee with no cap, as long as you and the client agree on it before you start traveling.
| Notarial act | Maximum fee |
|---|---|
| Acknowledgment | Up to $10 for any individual transaction or notarial act[1] |
| Jurat | Up to $10. Michigan sets one cap for every notarial act, and a jurat is a notarial act[1] |
| Oath or affirmation | Up to $10 to administer an oath or affirmation[1] |
| County clerk certification of a notary's notarial act | $10 processing fee, charged by the county clerk, not the notary |
| Remote online notarization | No separate remote or electronic fee. The same $10 cap applies to any notarial act, including acts done on an approved remote platform[1] |
Travel fees in Michigan
Michigan law lets you charge a separate travel fee, with no dollar cap, if you and the client agree on it before you start traveling. The notarial fee stays capped at $10 per act. You must either display a fee sign or tell the signer the fee before you perform the act.[1]
Price a signing in Michigan with the fee calculator, which uses these caps.
Before the notary public commences to travel in order to perform a notarial act, the notary public and client may agree concerning a separate travel fee to be charged by the notary public for traveling to perform the notarial act.
Journal, ID and seal rules for mobile work
Journal
For acts on a remote platform, keep a bound paper register or a tamper-evident electronic journal with the date and time, the type of act, a description of the record, each signer's full name and address, how you identified them (with the ID's issue and expiration dates) and the fee charged. Keep the journal and any recording for at least 10 years.[1]
Need one? Our free printable notary journal has a column for every field most states ask for.
Identifying the signer
Identify the signer by personal knowledge, by a credible witness you know who knows the signer, or by a current federal or state license, ID card or record with the person's photo and signature. Remote signers must pass identity proofing and credential analysis on an approved platform.[3]
Seal or stamp
No seal or embosser is required for documents used in Michigan, and you may not use an embosser alone. Your certificate must carry your name, "Notary public, State of Michigan, County of" your county, and your commission expiration date. Michigan does not issue commission numbers.[7]
Each notary public commission is for a 6 to 7-year period ending on the notary's birthday.
Working as a loan signing agent in Michigan
Michigan has no separate license for loan signing agents in the notary law or on the Department of State pages. MCL 55.291(10) says acting as an agent, employee, escrow or lender for an interested party is not by itself a direct financial interest, so it does not bar you from notarizing. Each notarial act in a loan package is still capped at $10, and a travel fee must be agreed before you travel. We found no official source on attorney closing rules, so follow the title company's instructions.[11][1][6]
Remote online notarization in Michigan
Michigan allows both electronic and remote notarization. There is no separate commission or fee: notify the Secretary of State before your first electronic act, use only an approved remote platform, and keep a journal and recordings for 10 years. The $10 per act cap still applies.[3]
Apostilles and authentications
Clients often ask a mobile notary about apostilles. A notary does not issue them. In Michigan, the office that does is the Michigan Department of State, Office of the Great Seal, and the fee is $1 per document.[10] Send the document with the request form and the $1 per document fee by mail, or visit the Office of the Great Seal at 7064 Crowner Drive, Lansing, MI 48918. Michigan notaries cannot make true copy statements, so bring originals or certified copies from the issuing office. We read the fee from a 2022 copy of the page, so confirm it before you send.
Mistakes that get Michigan notaries in trouble
- Charging more than $10 for a notarial act. MCL 55.285(7) caps the fee at $10.00 for any individual transaction or notarial act.
- Driving to a signing before the travel fee is agreed. MCL 55.285(7) says the travel fee is agreed before you start traveling.
- Certifying a copy as a true copy. MCL 55.291(1) bars Michigan notaries from certifying that a record is an original or a true copy.
- Notarizing for a relative. MCL 55.291(8) bars acts for a spouse, parent, child, sibling, in-laws, steps or half-relatives.
- Notarizing outside Michigan or using only an embosser. Michigan notaries can act only in Michigan, and MCL 55.287(3) bans an embosser alone.
Watch: Michigan notary basics
How to Become a Notary in Michigan, from National Notary Association. Overview of the Michigan bond, county filing and application steps; check numbers against the MCL sections cited here
EXPLAINING HOW TO CHARGE NOTARY FEES IN MICHIGAN INLCUDING A TRAVEL FEE, from Michigan Notary Association. Covers the $10 cap and the separate travel fee, the two rules mobile notaries ask about most
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to become a notary public in Michigan?
The fees set by law are a $10 Secretary of State processing fee and a $10 county clerk filing fee, though Wayne County may charge more. You also need a $10,000 surety bond. The Department of State says bonds generally cost $50 to $100, but the bond company sets the price. Michigan requires no course or exam, so there is no training fee.
Is there a downside to becoming a notary?
In Michigan the fee is capped at $10 per notarial act, so the notarial income per act is small. You cannot notarize for your spouse, parents, children, siblings or in-laws, cannot certify copies, and can only notarize inside Michigan. There is no renewal process, so you must apply for a new commission and refile a bond each time your term ends.
Can notary be a side hustle?
Yes. A Michigan commission runs 6 to 7 years and has no minimum number of acts, and there is no required course or exam. As a mobile notary you may add a separate travel fee that Michigan law does not cap, as long as you and the client agree on it before you start traveling. The notarial fee itself stays at $10 or less.
What kind of notary makes the most money?
We found no official data that ranks notary types by income. Michigan caps every notarial act at $10, so the fee alone is small. The travel fee is not capped and is set by agreement before you travel, which is why mobile and loan signing work can pay more per appointment than one-off walk-in notarizations.
Can you live off of being a notary?
No official Michigan source publishes notary income, so we cannot give a figure. The law sets the ceiling on the notarial part: $10 per transaction or notarial act. Anything above that comes from travel fees you agree in advance, so income depends on how many appointments you take and how far you drive, not on a state rate.
What is the most common mistake made by a notary?
No official Michigan source ranks notary mistakes. The rules most often relevant to mobile work are these: do not charge more than $10 per act, agree the travel fee before you leave, never certify a true copy, never notarize for a relative, add "Acting in the County of" when outside your county, and never use an embosser alone.
Sources
Every number on this page comes from one of these official pages. We read them on October 1, 2026.
- MCL 55.285(7), Michigan Law on Notarial Acts. legislature.mi.gov
- Michigan Department of State, Notary FAQ. michigan.gov
- MCL 55.286b, remote notarization journal. legislature.mi.gov
- Check that you qualify. legislature.mi.gov
- Buy a $10,000 surety bond. legislature.mi.gov
- Apply to the Secretary of State. michigan.gov
- Set up your certificate wording. legislature.mi.gov
- Add remote or electronic notarization if you want it. legislature.mi.gov
- legislature.mi.gov. legislature.mi.gov
- Document authentication and apostille. michigan.gov
- MCL 55.291, prohibited acts and conflicts of interest. legislature.mi.gov
Junaid runs Ertiqah LLC and edits this site. He is not a notary or a lawyer. His job here is narrow: read the statute and the Secretary of State page for each rule, quote it, and link it, so you can check every number yourself. How we check facts.
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