Posted by jojodatura on 8/28/06 8:24pm
Msg #141641

Self Employment tax

I read on another forum that notaries don't have to pay self-employment tax, ie. social security. Is that correct?

Reply by Poppy on 8/28/06 8:28pm
Msg #141646

Yes, but only on the portion of the payment that is for your notary services.
So if you have a signing for $150.00 with 5 notarized signatures your fee for those signatures is the only portion of the check exempt from the self employment tax. So make sure you separtate the fee.

Reply by Poppy on 8/28/06 8:31pm
Msg #141648

Looks like you're in CA so in the above situation with a $150.00 signing fee and 5 notarized signatures $50.00 dollars out of the $150.00 would be exempt from the self employment tax. You would want to reflect that in your bookeeping. $50.00 notary service $100.00 signing service.

Reply by cassiewi on 8/28/06 8:43pm
Msg #141650

Re: Notary Fees in WI stink

We can only charge .50 per notarization.

Reply by Poppy on 8/28/06 8:45pm
Msg #141651

That's not even enough to cover ink :-( n/m

Reply by cassiewi on 8/28/06 8:47pm
Msg #141653

Re: Yes ma'am

So true, the notary who runs a mail shop here charges you $2 anyway, said that the laws are old and no one charges only .50, I'm sticking to it in my book, not about to get in trouble over it, but still it really is pennies, 50 of them.

Reply by Joan Bergstrom on 8/29/06 12:30am
Msg #141726

This might be a naive question?

We in Calif get the highest fees in the U.S. at $10 per signature on a notarized document, but in other states where you only get say $.50 cents or a dollar is there any interest in putting a sign on the the front window that says "Notary on Site" or is the only interest in being a notary is to do loan signings? This might be a "Duh" question!

I noticed there are some states that don't set fees for notary work; does that mean a notary can charge whatever they want when a client brings a document to a notary to be notarized?

Reply by sue_pa on 8/29/06 7:56am
Msg #141744

Re: This might be a naive question?

in PA, some notaries do dept of transportation work - they actually issue license plates and transfer vehicle titles - they are called full agents. Not sure what all is involved except they need to take some education courses, have a bond and a signed contract with the DOT. They make their fees by charging for the clerical work involved in filling out the paperwork - plus the notarizations.

Reply by cassiewi on 8/29/06 8:40am
Msg #141759

Re: This might be a naive question?

I don't know about the other states but here there are a few places that say notary on site, I obviously don't put one on my house window though, LOL.

Reply by MelissaCT on 8/29/06 9:07am
Msg #141763

Re: In CT, we're allowed to charge

$5.00 per notarization and $0.35 per mile. That's it. As a SA, the rest is administrative/clerical fees.

Reply by SharonMN on 8/29/06 11:10am
Msg #141801

response to naive question

In MN ($1 notary fee), you would never want to advertise as a general notary. It couldn't possibly be worth the aggravation to have people calling you or showing up at your house, and I feel bad charging people a travel fee if they don't really need mobile service, because then they are overpaying 30x or 50x or whatever. I usually suggest a place like UPS Store that often has notaries on staff (they are being paid to sit their at the counter anyway, might as well notarize docs). Also, many people who work in banks, law firms, corporations etc. are notaries for work-related reasons. I think the concept of a "notary career" that didn't depend heavily on signing agent work is pretty foreign here, though.

Reply by SharonMN on 8/29/06 11:13am
Msg #141803

Re: travel fees

Oh, and what's up with NNA recommending we charge IRS mileage rate for travel (in newsletter I got yesterday)? I'm supposed to spend 2 hours of my time driving somewhere and charge only for gas? Thanks, NNA. How about looking at what a taxi or document courier service would charge to drive that distance instead?

Reply by Tina_MA on 8/29/06 1:01pm
Msg #141840

Re: travel fees

MA allows only $1.25 per notarization. However it has no suggestions on travel fees.

I usually suggest that people go to their local bank branch to have their document notarized.

Many people though, have needs that are outside of bank hours, or they want someone to travel to their home for the convenience. In which case I'm happy to oblige.