Fees of our notarial office
Notaries’ remuneration is governed by strict rules that ensure transparency and predictability. Certain instruments are subject to a regulated national scale (regulated fees), while others are covered by freely agreed professional fees set by agreement. View the details of our fees to understand precisely the cost of our services.
Regulated fees
For the most common authentic instruments, the notary receives fees set by the State. These rates are the same throughout France and ensure predictable, transparent remuneration.
The notary’s role and remuneration
The notary’s role is defined by Ordinance No. 45-2590 of 2 November 1945 relating to the status of the notarial profession.
“Notaries are public officers established to receive all instruments and contracts to which the parties must or wish to give the character of authenticity attached to instruments of public authority, to ensure their date, keep them on deposit, and issue enforceable copies and certified copies.”
Article 1 of the Ordinance of 2 November 1945
In this capacity, the notary acts as a public and ministerial officer, ensuring the legal security of the instruments they receive. Their remuneration is strictly regulated by the State. It is governed by a mandatory national scale, identical throughout the country, ensuring clients predictable, transparent remuneration independent of the office’s location.
Instruments subject to the regulated scale
For so-called “tariffed” instruments, the notary receives regulated fees. The current legal framework results in particular from:
- Law No. 2015-990 of 6 August 2015 on growth, activity and equal economic opportunities
- Decree No. 2016-230 of 26 February 2016 relating to notaries’ regulated fees
- the Order of 26 February 2016 setting the fees
- the Order of 28 February 2020, which updated them
These texts, regularly revised, set a binding national scale, available on the administration’s official website.
Types of fees: proportional or fixed
Proportional fees
Calculated based on the value of the capital or assets concerned, in particular for:
- Property sales
- Loans
- Gifts
- Inheritance declarations
Fixed fees
For certain specific instruments, such as:
- Marriage contracts
- Notoriety deeds
- Certain formalities, including when they accompany an instrument subject to a proportional scale
Involvement of several notaries
In property sales
The involvement of two notaries (one for each party) does not increase the overall cost: the tariffed fees are shared between the notaries, in accordance with professional rules.
In inheritance matters
The fees are not shared. Accordingly, when a notary is involved in the settlement of an estate without being responsible for drafting the tariffed instruments allocated to them under professional rules, their involvement falls under the freely agreed fees regime.
In this case, a written, prior and transparent fee agreement must be established with the heirs, in accordance with ethical and regulatory requirements.
Freely agreed fees
Certain services provided by the notary are not subject to the State’s regulated scale and fall under the freely agreed fees regime. These fees are governed by a prior, transparent written agreement.
Services covered by freely agreed fees
In accordance with Article L. 444-1, paragraph 3, of the French Commercial Code, as currently in force:
“Unless otherwise provided, the services that the professionals referred to in the first paragraph of this article perform in competition with those, not subject to a scale, of other professionals are not subject to a regulated scale.
The fees remunerating these services take into account, according to customary practice, the client’s financial situation, the complexity of the matter, the costs incurred, the professional’s reputation and the work performed. The professionals concerned enter into a written fee agreement with their client specifying the amount or method for determining the fees, as well as the anticipated costs and disbursements.”
This regime includes, in particular, severable services—those that are not inherent to the drafting of a tariffed authentic instrument.
Our commitments
All our freely agreed fees are governed by a written, prior and detailed fee agreement specifying the amount or method for determining the fees, as well as the anticipated costs and disbursements.
The amounts indicated below are provided for information purposes only. As each matter is unique, we systematically prepare a personalised quote tailored to the complexity of your situation.
Fee agreement: our commitment to transparency
For any service subject to freely agreed fees, we enter into a written agreement with you specifying:
- The exact nature of the service
- The amount of the fees or how they are calculated
- The foreseeable costs and disbursements
- Payment terms
- The estimated timeline for completion
This agreement is established before we begin our work and guarantees you full visibility on the cost of our services.
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