CLERK OF COURT & COMPTROLLER
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, FLORIDA
The Clerk of Court Recording Department records, indexes, and archives all documents that create the Official Records of Hillsborough County. Approximately 25 million documents have been recorded in the Official Records since 1846 and 2,000 new documents are recorded each day. In addition to recording documents, the Recording Department collects money for documentary stamp taxes, intangible taxes, recording fees, and other miscellaneous fees.
Attention Official Records Customers: The Hillsborough County Clerk of Court & Comptroller replaced its Official Records recording system in January 2020. The new recording system will no longer assign book and page numbers. Only the instrument number will be used, with the exception of plats. The Online Search of Official Records was replaced with a new version with a new link. Please bookmark this link for your records.
Agent link for balances starting January 11, 2020.
NEW 24/7 SERVICE! Electronically certified official records are now available 24/7. Find out more about eCertify and place your order online.
ERecording, or electronic recording, is the process of recording documents with the Hillsborough County Clerk of Court's Recording Office via the internet. This process would otherwise require documents be submitted by express mail, courier service or personal visit.
If you are an eRecording vendor that would like to begin eRecording with Hillsborough County Clerk, please contact our office.
If you wish to begin sending your recordable documents electronically to Hillsborough County, please contact one of the following eRecord Vendors:
| CSC Corporation Service Company |
| e-Doc Solutions |
| eRecordings Partners Network |
| Indecomm Global Services |
| Simplifile |
The Official Records Library provides access to recorded documents that are microfilmed and/or electronically imaged. The earliest records available date back to 1836. Official Records Library staff will provide instructions regarding the research of these older documents. Copies of all documents are available upon payment of the statutory fee. Records Library staff also search records and prepare Clerk's Certificates on a fee basis.
The following documents cannot be displayed on publicly available Internet websites, pursuant to Florida Statute 28.2221:
To serve those entities that require access to the information limited by law, the Hillsborough County Clerk of Court is offering a new web subscription service. For an annual usage fee, you will be given access to a secure, password-protected website with all Official Records document images recorded since January 4, 1965. Through this service, you will be provided the same information that is available on the public workstations in Official Records.
There is annual fee of $100.00 for the web subscription service. The fee must be paid in full prior to initiation of service. Fees are subject to change annually. Fees are not refundable, except as provided in Article 14. No fee credit will accrue during periods the subscription site is out of service.
The Clerk will attempt to provide continuous operation of the subscription website, except during periods of routine maintenance or under unusual circumstances such as "brownouts," emergency production requirements mandated by law, computer intrusions, adverse operational impacts, or other unforeseen events. Most routine maintenance will be scheduled between 5PM and 8AM or during weekends or holidays.
Microsoft Internet Explorer Version 5.0 or higher is recommended to view the subscription website. To view images in PDF format, you must use Adobe Acrobat Reader Version 5.0 or higher. This program can be downloaded for free from the Adobe website.
Access to the subscription service will be provided through the Clerk of Court Internet website www.hillsclerk.com. Customers are responsible for maintaining and repairing their own equipment and for connectivity to the subscription website through their Internet Service Provider (ISP). The Clerk may modify the categories, classifications, format, or appearance of the data on the subscription site without prior notification; however, updates will generally be made to conform to changes in Florida law or to improve service to the subscriber.
Upon execution of the agreement, the Clerk will provide limited customer service through e-mail. Requests for assistance on specific problems or questions about the subscription website should be e-mailed to recording@hillsclerk.com. Email assistance will be available Monday through Friday from 8AM to 5PM, excluding holidays. The Clerk does not guarantee results or imply that all errors or problems will be corrected.
The customer will ensure that unauthorized users do not access the subscription website and that the information gathered from the site is not made available for commercial resale or represented as the official government record. Failure to do so can result in immediate termination of the agreement and/or legal action.
The subscription may be terminated without cause by either party with fifteen (15) days written notice to the other party. The Clerk may immediately terminate this agreement with no prior notice to the subscriber if the subscriber fails to comply with the terms of this agreement.
The subscription agreement may be terminated immediately if the Clerk fails to receive appropriate and continued funding from the customer for the subscription service. The Clerk will notify the customer by fax or telephone and follow up with written confirmation. The Clerk may immediately terminate the agreement without notice in order to protect the contents the Official Records from unauthorized remote access, alteration, or if the security of the website has been breached.
The Clerk may issue full or partial refunds of subscription fees if the termination is not the result of an act of noncompliance by the subscriber.
To subscribe to the Official Records web-subscription service, download the Subscription Agreement for Electronic Access to Official Records. Mail the completed, notarized agreement with your check (made payable to Clerk of the Circuit Court) to the following address:
Hillsborough County Clerk of Court and Comptroller
ATTN: Official Records Director
PO Box 3249
Tampa FL 33601-3249
Redaction of Confidential Information From Images in the Official Records Under Section 119.071 of the Florida Statutes.
Section 119.071(4) of the Florida Statutes states that individuals in certain professions, as well as their spouses and/or children, may request the Clerk of Court to remove personal information such as a home address and telephone number that may be included on documents in the Official Records such as mortgages and deeds.
The Confidentiality Request Form is available online or in the Official Records department.
As provided under Florida Law, no county recorder or clerk of the court may place an image or copy of a public record, including an official record, on a publicly available Internet website for general public display if that image or copy is of a military discharge; death certificate; or a court file, record, or paper relating to matters or cases governed by the Florida Rules of Family Law, the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure, or the Florida Probate Rules.
Any records specified in this subsection made available by the county recorder or clerk of the court on a publicly available Internet website for general public display prior to June 5, 2002, must be removed if the affected party identifies the record and requests that it be removed. Such request must be in writing and delivered by mail, facsimile, or electronic transmission, or in person to the county recorder or clerk of the court. The request must specify the identification page number of the document to be removed. No fee may be charged for the removal of a document pursuant to such request.
The Internet Image Removal Request Form is available in the Official Records department.
Any person who prepares or files a document to be recorded in the official records by the county recorder as provided under Florida law, may not include a person's social security number or complete bank account, debit, charge, or credit card number in that document unless otherwise expressly required by law. Until January 1, 2007, if a social security number or a complete bank account, debit, charge or credit card number is or has been included in a document presented to the county recorder for recording in the official records of the county, such number may be made available as part of the official record available for public inspection and copying. Any person, or his or her attorney or legal guardian, may request that a county recorder remove from an image or copy of an official record placed on a county recorder's publicly available Internet website, or a publicly available Internet website used by a county recorder to display public records outside the office or otherwise made electronically available outside the county recorder's office to the general public, his or her social security number or complete bank account, debit, charge, or credit card number contained in that official record. Such request must be legibly written, signed by the requester, and delivered by mail, facsimile, electronic transmission, or in person to the county recorder. The request must specify the identification page number of the document that contains the number to be redacted. The county recorder does not have a duty to inquire beyond the written request to verify the identity of a person requesting redaction. A fee may not be charged for redacting such numbers.
The Private Numbers Internet Redaction Form is available online or in our office.
Forms and requirements are not available for download on the Clerk's website. Legal advice cannot be provided by the Clerk's staff, nor can they help prepare legal forms. The public is encouraged to consult with an attorney or legal advisor to ensure that the correct form is used for their situation and that the recording criteria as outlined in Florida Statutes, Section 695.26 is followed. You can find a Florida real property attorney by contacting the Florida Bar Association.
To correct, add or remove a name from a deed, it is recommended that a real property attorney or a legal advisor be consulted.
To find out about recording fees for deeds, use our online Deed Calculator tool.
How do I obtain a deed to my property once I have received the lien satisfaction from my mortgage company? If you have lost or misplaced your deed, you can purchase a certified copy from our office.
| Mail. P.O. Box 3249 Tampa, FL 33601-3249 |
| Email: Contact us |
| Phone: (813) 276-8100 |
| In person: Downtown Tampa, Brandon, Plant City. See wait times. |
The public is encouraged to consult with an attorney or legal advisor to ensure that the correct form is used for their situation and that the recording criteria as outlined in Florida Statutes, Section 695.26 [third party website] is followed. You can find a Florida real property attorney by contacting the Florida Bar Association [third party website].
Please be sure to submit the Recording Transmittal form or a cover letter with instructions with all transactions and a self-addressed, stamped envelope of sufficient size for the return of the recorded documents.
To calculate fees:
Foreign judgment requirements can be found in Florida statutes 55.501-509 [third party website]. Please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for the return of the recorded document with the check payable to "Clerk of Circuit Court" for the following fees:
The public is encouraged to consult with an attorney or legal advisor to ensure that the correct form is used for their situation and that the statutory requirements for recording are followed. You can find a Florida real property attorney by contacting the Florida Bar Association [third party link].
Recording fees are $10.00 for the first page and $8.50 for each additional page of the document. The first four names are free; any additional names are $1.00 per name. If you are unsure if documentary stamp taxes are due, please contact the Florida Department of Revenue at (850) 488-6800 for assistance.
Once your document is prepared, you will bring the original signed and notarized deed to the Clerk’s Office; it can also be submitted by mail, but not by email.
You can find out more about Notice of Commencement requirements in chapter 713, Florida Statutes.
Please also include a Recording Transmittal form or a cover letter with instructions with all transactions, and two self-addressed stamped envelopes if sending in the document for recording by mail (one envelope to mail the certified copy if requested and one envelope to mail the original recorded Notice of Commencement).
Required fees, made payable to "Clerk of Circuit Court," are as follows:
The above documents and payment can be electronically recorded using an e-Recording vendor (see e-Recording Services FAQ above), mailed to Hillsborough County Clerk of Court Official Records, PO Box 3249, Tampa FL 33602-3249, or recorded in person at our Official Records service locations.
Once the documents and payment have been received, please allow for up to 7 business days for the Notice of Commencement (NOC) recording to be validated and recorded into our Official Records Index. If you deliver it to Official Records in person, the NOC will be recorded and returned to you while you wait (no mailing envelopes are required for walk-in recordings).
Electronically certified official records are now available. Using a service called Clerk eCertify, the Clerk is able to provide its customers with self-validating, tamper evident, electronically certified official records online 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Customers can purchase electronically certified official records from the convenience of their home or smart phone from anywhere, and receive them as secured PDFs via email on holidays, in the middle of the night, from anywhere that they have internet access, without having to come to the courthouse to find parking, go thru security screening and wear protective masks, and without having to wait in line or wait for the mail to arrive. Customers will need email in order to use this service, because the documents are delivered via download links in an email.
Find out more about eCertify for Official Records and place an order.
Besides the Official Records Books which contain land records, here are examples of other recorded documents:
The Official Records Index from 1965 to the present is available online. If you do not require a certified copy, search the Official Records online for free. If you require a certified copy, you can obtain one 24/7 online using eCertify for Official Records.
You may request copies in person to order using a credit card. There is a charge of $2 for each year searched, $1 per page for copies of the document being requested, and $2 for certifying the document.
Website Security Changes
Beginning February 1, 2019, Hillsborough County Clerk websites will no longer support TLS versions 1.0 and 1.1. Only TLS version 1.2 will be supported. If you are using unsupported web browsers, old versions of the browsers or have not enabled your browser to use TLS 1.2 to connect to our records search websites after this date, you will begin receiving error messages.
Why are we disabling TLS 1.0 and 1.1?
We are disabling them to ensure that our websites are providing our customers and partners with safe and secure protocols for these connections. This change is enforced throughout the industry to maintain secure connections that encrypt and protect data from malicious data breaches.
Supported Browsers
Most of the latest versions of standard browsers will support TLS 1.2 by default. If you are unsure about whether your browser will support it, you can verify this by using the following website: https://www.ssllabs.com/ssltest/viewMyClient.html
Contact the State Health Department online or by calling (813) 307-8002.
The State Office of Vital Statistics also has marriage and divorce records for the entire state, and can be reached at (904) 359-6900.
Certified copies of birth certificates for Florida-born citizens are also available at the Tax Collector's Office.