Legal Information, Policies & Disclosures

IMPORTANT LEGAL NOTICE
I AM NOT AN ATTORNEY LICENSED TO PRACTICE LAW IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA, AND I MAY NOT GIVE LEGAL ADVICE OR ACCEPT FEES FOR LEGAL ADVICE.

1. Website and Professional Disclaimer

Sirse Notary & Apostille is a woman-owned private business providing mobile notary and apostille, authentication, and legalization facilitation services. Sirse is not a law firm, government agency, embassy, or consulate and is not affiliated with or endorsed by any governmental authority.

Florida notaries are impartial public officers. Sirse does not provide legal advice or representation; prepare legal documents; select forms; determine which documents a client needs; choose the required notarial act; or explain a document's legal meaning, effect, validity, or suitability. The signer, document issuer, receiving authority, or a licensed attorney must provide those instructions.

Information on this website is general information only and is not legal advice. Clients who need legal guidance should consult a licensed attorney.

2. Services, Fees, Booking and Payment

Notarial and Non-Notarial Charges

Florida notarial fees will not exceed the amount permitted by law and will be separately itemized from travel, scheduling, facilitation, courier, printing, witness-coordination, translation-coordination, shipping, parking, tolls, and other non-notarial service charges. Clients will receive the applicable charges or a reasonable estimate before confirming service whenever practicable.

Travel charges are based on the service location, travel time, appointment type, scheduling demands, parking or toll expenses, and availability. Government fees and third-party expenses are separate unless expressly included in a written quote.

Booking Deposit

A $50 booking deposit is required to reserve an appointment. The deposit compensates Sirse for reserving the appointment time and completing scheduling and travel-planning work, is applied toward the total service charge, and is separate from the statutory fee charged for an individual notarial act.

The remaining balance is due when services are provided unless different written payment terms apply. Sirse may require full advance payment for extended-distance travel, correctional-facility appointments, urgent or after-hours service, expedited apostille matters, substantial third-party expenses, or clients with repeated cancellations or no-shows.

Cancellation and Rescheduling

With at least 24 hours' notice, a client may transfer the booking deposit one time to a rescheduled appointment, subject to availability. The deposit is not refunded. A cancellation or rescheduling request made with less than 24 hours' notice, a same-day change, or a no-show results in forfeiture of the deposit, and a new deposit is required to reserve another appointment.

If Sirse must cancel because of circumstances not caused by the client, the client may choose to transfer the deposit to a new appointment or receive a refund of the unearned deposit. This does not apply when service cannot proceed because of client-provided information, missing signers or witnesses, unacceptable identification, incomplete documents, facility restrictions, unsafe conditions at the location, or failure to satisfy legal requirements.

Payment and Refunds

Fees for completed notarial acts and other work already performed are nonrefundable. Travel, wait time, printing, witness coordination, translation, shipping, government filing, embassy or consular, courier, parking, toll, and other third-party charges are nonrefundable once incurred or paid. Accepted payment methods and any applicable processing charges will be disclosed before payment. A receipt is available for every payment.

3. Appointment and Document Readiness

Clients are responsible for ensuring that all signers, required witnesses, acceptable identification, and complete documents are available at the scheduled time. Sirse cannot advise whether a witness is legally required or whether a particular person may serve as a witness. Witness coordination must be arranged in advance and is subject to availability and a separate fee.

Florida law generally prohibits notarizing a signature on an incomplete or blank document. Documents must be complete before notarization except where a specific statutory exception applies. Sirse will not fill blanks, alter the document, or correct its contents.

Some documents must be signed in the notary's presence, while an acknowledgment may sometimes involve a signature previously made. Before signing, clients should follow instructions from the document's issuing or receiving authority or obtain guidance from a licensed attorney. Sirse cannot select the notarial act for the client.

Identification

Each signer must provide satisfactory evidence of identity as permitted by section 117.05, Florida Statutes. Identification may be established through the notary's personal knowledge, qualifying credible witnesses, or reasonable reliance on an identification document authorized by Florida law.

An identification document used under the statute must be current or issued within the preceding five years and contain a serial or other identifying number. Depending on the circumstances, authorized identification may include:

A Florida driver's license or identification card.
A United States passport.
A foreign passport bearing the immigration-related stamp required by Florida law.
A driver's license or identification card issued by another U.S. state or territory, Canada, or Mexico.
A U.S. military identification card or Department of Veterans Affairs Veteran Health Identification Card.
Certain Florida or federal inmate identification or other identification specifically authorized by Florida law.

An original identification credential must be presented. A photocopy, screenshot, digital image, or identification that does not satisfy Florida law will not be accepted. Because names and circumstances vary, Sirse must evaluate the identification presented at the appointment and may request additional information or qualifying credible witnesses.

Signer Awareness, Willingness and Communication

For a notarization to proceed, the signer must personally appear before the notary as required by law; be properly identified; act knowingly and voluntarily; and appear able to understand the nature and effect of the document. Sirse will not proceed when there is reasonable concern about identity, coercion, undue influence, willingness, awareness, or legal compliance.

A signer must be able to communicate understanding and willingness to the notary, directly or through a legally permissible translator, interpreter, assistive device, or reasonable communication accommodation. Language assistance or accommodations should be discussed before the appointment so Sirse can evaluate whether the requested notarial act may lawfully proceed. Sirse does not make medical diagnoses or judicial determinations of legal competency.

Document Readiness Review

Clients may be asked to provide a copy or image of a document before the appointment solely to identify apparent notarial logistics, confirm readiness, estimate appointment time, or evaluate apostille-processing requirements. A preliminary review is not legal review, does not determine the document's validity or legal effect, and does not guarantee that notarization or apostille processing can proceed.

Wait Time

A complimentary 15-minute grace period is included. Additional waiting time is charged at $15 for each additional 15-minute increment or portion thereof. If a delay is expected to exceed 30 minutes, Sirse may reschedule or end the appointment based on availability. Charges for time and travel already provided may still apply.

4. Specialized Mobile Appointments

Hospitals, Nursing Facilities, Assisted Living, Rehabilitation and Hospice

Sirse provides compassionate service in healthcare and residential-care settings, subject to facility rules and appointment availability. The signer must satisfy the same identification, personal-appearance, awareness, willingness, and communication requirements that apply to every notarization.

The notary independently evaluates whether the notarization may proceed. Family members, caregivers, medical staff, attorneys, and other interested persons cannot make that determination for the notary or direct the notary to proceed. To protect privacy and assess voluntariness, the notary may ask to speak with the signer privately.

The client is responsible for confirming facility access, visiting rules, signer availability, acceptable identification, document readiness, and the availability of any legally required witnesses. Deposits, travel charges, wait-time charges, and fees for work already performed may remain nonrefundable when the act cannot be completed because these requirements are not met.

Correctional and Secure Facilities

Correctional-facility, detention-center, jail, and other secure-facility appointments are subject to facility approval, security requirements, scheduling procedures, and access restrictions. The client is responsible for confirming that notarial service is permitted and arranging any required authorization, visitor approval, escort, document clearance, and witness access before the appointment.

Florida law provides specific identification options for certain incarcerated signers. Sirse must evaluate the identification available and cannot guarantee in advance that it will be sufficient. Enhanced scheduling, security screening, waiting, and access requirements may result in a minimum service charge, advance-payment requirement, or additional wait-time fee disclosed before booking.

Sirse may refuse, postpone, or end an appointment when facility rules, identification problems, signer unavailability, safety concerns, or Florida law prevent completion. Charges for scheduling, travel, waiting, and work already performed remain nonrefundable when the inability to proceed is not caused by Sirse.

5. Service Area, Weather and Safety

Sirse serves homes, businesses, hospitals, care facilities, correctional facilities, and other mutually agreed locations in Okaloosa County and surrounding areas. All appointments are subject to travel conditions and availability.

Sirse may delay, relocate, reschedule, decline, or terminate an appointment because of severe weather, emergency directives, unsafe roads, threatening or abusive conduct, unsecured aggressive animals, illegal activity, unsafe property or environmental conditions, or any situation presenting a reasonable safety risk. Clients must provide a safe, lawful, reasonably accessible appointment location.

When weather or another circumstance outside both parties' reasonable control prevents service, Sirse will make reasonable efforts to provide notice and offer rescheduling. The client may transfer the deposit without penalty or receive a refund of any unearned deposit when Sirse cannot safely provide the service and the unsafe condition was not caused by the client.

6. Apostille, Authentication and Legalization Facilitation

Sirse is a private document facilitator and courier, not an issuing authority. Sirse may coordinate document review for processing purposes, submission, courier service, tracking when available, return delivery, and related logistics for state apostilles or authentications, federal apostilles or authentications, and embassy or consular legalization.

Client Responsibilities

Provide complete, accurate, legible, and authentic documents and information.
Identify the destination country and intended use of each document.
Confirm requirements with the receiving authority when acceptance criteria are unclear.
Provide all supporting documents and authorizations requested by the competent authority.
Review names, dates, addresses, and other information for accuracy before submission.

Sirse may identify apparent processing requirements and recommend a submission path based on information available from competent authorities, but does not provide legal advice or guarantee that a receiving authority will accept a document.

No Guarantee of Issuance or Timing

The competent government authority, embassy, consulate, or receiving organization alone decides whether to issue or accept an apostille, authentication, certification, legalization, or translated document. Processing times are estimates and may change without notice. Expedited handling, when available, does not guarantee issuance or completion by a particular date.

An application may be delayed, rejected, or returned because of document defects, incomplete or inaccurate client information, agency requirements, legal restrictions, changes in procedure, carrier delays, or other circumstances outside Sirse's reasonable control. Sirse will promptly communicate material developments known to it and seek client instructions when additional work or expense is required.

Fees and Document Custody

Sirse's facilitation fee is separate from government, embassy, consular, courier, shipping, translation, notarization, and other third-party charges. The client is responsible for those charges unless a written quote expressly states otherwise.

Original documents may remain temporarily in Sirse's custody while processing is underway. Sirse will use reasonable care in handling and transmitting documents but cannot control government offices, carriers, translators, couriers, or other independent third parties. Clients should retain copies of all submitted documents whenever possible.

7. Translation Coordination

As a convenience, Sirse may coordinate translation through independent third-party translators. Sirse does not itself translate documents, certify translations, or determine the legal sufficiency of a translation. The translator is responsible for the accuracy, completeness, certification, and delivery of the translated work.

Before translation begins, the client must provide legible source material and disclose the required language, format, certification, notarization, apostille, and destination-country or receiving-agency requirements. Clients should review translations promptly and report suspected errors within any correction period offered by the translator.

Translation and coordination charges are separate from other services. Once translation or coordination work begins, the applicable fees are nonrefundable except as required by law or under the translator's written correction or refund policy. Additional revisions or changed requirements may result in additional charges.

Sirse cannot guarantee that a translation will be accepted by a government, court, embassy, consulate, school, employer, or other receiving organization. To the extent permitted by law, Sirse is not responsible for a delay, error, or acceptance decision caused solely by an independent translator or receiving authority outside Sirse's reasonable control.

8. Privacy, Confidentiality and Records

Information We May Collect

Sirse may collect information that a client provides through the website, telephone, email, text message, intake form, booking system, payment process, or service appointment. This may include contact information, appointment details, identification information, document images, destination-country information, payment and transaction information, and communications relating to requested services.

The website platform may also collect technical information such as IP address, browser or device information, cookie data, and website usage information. Payment-card information is processed by the applicable payment provider; Sirse does not intentionally retain complete payment-card numbers.

How Information Is Used and Shared

Information is used to respond to inquiries, provide quotes, schedule and perform services, process payments, coordinate apostilles or translations, communicate status, maintain business records, protect clients and Sirse, and comply with legal obligations.

Sirse does not sell, rent, or trade personal information. Information may be shared only as reasonably necessary with website and booking providers, payment processors, government authorities, couriers, shipping carriers, translators, witnesses arranged for an appointment, professional advisers, or other service providers involved in completing the client's request. Information may also be disclosed when required by law, court order, lawful investigation, or to protect rights, safety, or property.

Cookies, Security and Retention

The website may use essential cookies and, if enabled, analytics or similar technologies. Available cookie controls and the website platform's cookie notice should be used to communicate and manage those choices.

Sirse uses reasonable administrative, physical, and technical safeguards appropriate to the nature of the information handled. No website, email, text message, electronic storage system, or transmission method can be guaranteed completely secure. Clients should avoid sending sensitive documents through an unsecured method when a more secure option is available.

Sirse retains information only as long as reasonably necessary to provide services, maintain required business or notarial records, resolve disputes, enforce agreements, or comply with law. Document copies collected for a limited review or facilitation purpose may be securely deleted when no longer needed. Original documents are returned after service and are not retained unless required by law or specifically authorized by the client.

Florida does not generally require an electronic journal for ordinary paper notarizations. Sirse may maintain a professional notarial journal. If Sirse later provides remote online notarization, the legally required electronic journal and audio-video records will be retained and protected for the period required by Florida law.

Privacy Questions

A client may contact Sirse using the contact information published on the website to ask about personal information, request a correction, or raise a privacy concern. Some information may need to be retained when required by law or reasonably necessary for legitimate business records.

9. Reasonable Limitations and Client Acknowledgment

Sirse will perform its services with reasonable care and in accordance with applicable Florida notarial law. To the extent permitted by law, Sirse is not responsible for a delay, loss, rejection, or error caused solely by a government authority, embassy, consulate, receiving organization, carrier, courier, translator, facility, or other independent third party outside Sirse's reasonable control. Nothing in these policies excludes responsibility that cannot lawfully be excluded.

By booking an appointment, paying a deposit, submitting documents for facilitation, or requesting translation coordination, the client acknowledges receiving and agreeing to the policies applicable to the requested service. If a written quote, invoice, or service agreement contains a more specific term, that specific written term controls to the extent of a direct conflict.

Sirse may update these policies to reflect changes in services, law, or business practices. The version posted when a service is booked generally applies to that service unless a change is required by law or agreed to in writing.

Contact

Questions about these policies or a requested service may be directed to Sirse Notary & Apostille using the telephone number, email address, or contact form published on the website.