I do agree that notaries should be careful to not ever show anything on an invoice than what's allowed by our individual state laws, which vary greatly and should be the controlling factor. However, if I understand the above post correctly, I disagree with some other statements.
California, for one, is silent on travel, so as business owners, we're free to set our own fees however we wish. (If the law doesn't address it at all, I see no reason to consult the SOS.)
Another factor that affects deductibility is whether a notary works as an employee or as a self-employed business owner. If the business mileage is on behalf of an employer who pays their salary and provides either a flat car allowance or a per-mile reimbursement, it would be correct for the employee to not deduct those miles. In those cases, the employer is entitled to the deduction, since they're paying for it. But if an employee drives miles for an employer for which they do not get reimbursed, they have every right to claim a deduction (at the current annual IRS rate) for those miles - if they itemize.
However, unless a state's laws specify otherwise, business miles are a legitimate expense for a self-employed individual or business owner and therefore deductible. And any smart business owner (again, if legal) will make sure that their fees cover those costs - at minimum. Personally, when I charge for travel, which I'm careful to not detail as a mileage reimbursement, I make sure the travel fee covers not only the expense I have for operation of my vehicle, but also for my time.
When it comes to how to invoice, I do agree on being careful about that. For loan signings, I mostly do a flat rate, unless there's something exceptional about the signing, e.g. scanning back, delivering back to title, etc. If for GNW, I do recommend separating out notary fees at no more than what's allowed by state law. Everything else gets listed separately. Naturally, everyone will have their own system for this.
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