Notary bond in Indiana: amount and cost
Indiana requires a $25,000 notary bond written for eight years, the length of its commission; it is uploaded with the online application.
Notary bond premium in Indiana
$75 to $250
once, for the whole 8-year commission
| Bond the law requires | $25,000 |
| Rule | IC 33-42-12-1 |
| How it is priced | flat, not rated on credit |
Estimate: flat prices published for $5,000 to $10,000 bonds run from about $20 to $100 for a whole commission; scaled to this bond. Amount read on the official page, October 22, 2026.
Compiled by Radif Partners · Method and sources · rule read October 22, 2026
Indiana pairs one of the larger notary bonds with the longest commission read for this site. Under IC 33-42-12-1, a notary must hold a surety bond of at least $25,000, and the Secretary of State's guidance for its notary system says the uploaded bond must have an eight-year term and list the applicant's exact name as the principal. The commission itself lasts eight years. Notaries commissioned under the earlier rules, with a $5,000 bond, keep that bond until their commission expires; the $25,000 bond applies at the next commission. Because the bond is sold once for the whole term, its price stays modest despite the amount: about $75 to $250 for eight years on our estimate, a few dollars a year. Indiana applicants also complete a short education course and exam before applying. The bond protects the public; the notary repays any claim. Rule read on October 22, 2026.
Amount, term and name
The Secretary of State's FAQ for its notary system is precise: "Your uploaded surety bond must be for a minimum amount of $25,000, have an 8-year term, and list your exact name as the principal." (Indiana Secretary of State). Three checks follow from that sentence. The amount must be at least $25,000; a bond for less is rejected. The term must be eight years, matching the commission, not the one or four years a generic bond may show. And the principal's name must match the application letter for letter, middle name included if the application has one.
Indiana runs the whole application online. The applicant buys the bond first, receives a copy from the surety, and uploads it in the state's system with the rest of the file. A bond that fails one of the three checks sends the application back.
Older commissions
Indiana raised its notary bond from $5,000 when it reformed its notary law and moved to eight-year commissions. A notary commissioned under the old rules keeps the $5,000 bond until that commission expires and buys the $25,000 bond only when applying again. There is no need to replace a valid older bond mid-term.
Indiana next to other states
Notary bond premium in Pennsylvania
$75 to $250
| Bond the law requires | $25,000 |
| Rule | 57 Pa.C.S. § 321; 4 Pa. Code ch. 161 (effective March 28, 2026) |
| How it is priced | flat, not rated on credit |
| Before March 28, 2026 | $10,000 |
What it costs over eight years
Sureties price notary bonds once for the term, and the risk per year is low. An eight-year $25,000 bond is estimated here at $75 to $250, less than $32 a year at the top of the range. Electronic and remote notaries in Indiana meet extra requirements set by the Secretary of State. For comparison, Pennsylvania also moved to $25,000 in 2026, for a four-year term, and the notary bond overview lists every state read.
Ask the surety for the bond in the exact format the state's system accepts, usually a PDF of the signed bond. A scan missing the surety's signature or seal is a common cause of a returned application.
The Indiana rule as read
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Bond amount | $25,000 |
| Term | 8 years |
| Rule | IC 33-42-12-1 |
| Line read | “Your uploaded surety bond must be for a minimum amount of $25,000, have an 8-year term, and list your exact name as the principal.” |
| Page | www.in.gov |
| Read on | October 22, 2026 |