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.

Why offer an Official Records Web Subscription Service?

The following documents cannot be displayed on publicly available Internet websites, pursuant to Florida Statute 28.2221:

• Military Discharge
• Death Certificate
• Court file, record, or paper relating to matters or cases governed by the Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure, Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure, and Florida Probate Rules.

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.

Cost to Join

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.

System Availability

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.

Recommended Software

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. 

Services

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.

Clerk's Responsibilities

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.

Customer's Responsibilities

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.

Termination of Services

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.

How to Subscribe

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 

Privacy Notices

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.

Removal of Document Images From the Publicly Available Internet Website

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.

Removal of Private Numbers from the Publicly Available Internet Website

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.

Find out more about remote notarial acts on the Electronic Legal Documents page.

Forms and requirements are not available for download on the Clerk's website; however, forms can usually be purchased from office supply stores or downloaded from other websites. 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? You should have received your deed at the time that you purchased your property. Once you have paid the mortgage in full, your mortgage holder will prepare and record a Satisfaction or Release of Mortgage with the Clerk’s Office. Once this document has been recorded with the Clerk, your mortgage holder is responsible for mailing the original document to you. 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, Ruskin (Southshore). See wait times.

Document types include, but are not limited to, the following as delineated in Florida Statute 28.222.

• Affidavits
• Agreements
• Assignments
• Deeds
• Domestic partnerships
• Easements
• Judgments
• Liens
• Marriage records
• Mortgages
• Notice of commencements
• Plats
• Power of attorney
• Satisfactions

A 3x3 inch square is required on all documents to be recorded with Official Records in the top right-hand corner on the first page and a 1x3 inch space at top right-hand corner on each subsequent page for use by the Clerk.

Paper documents are imaged and indexed into the Hillsborough County Clerk of the Circuit Court permanent Official Record, where they are available to the public through the Clerk’s Internet or in each office location. Each recorded document receives an instrument number, along with date- and time-stamps. Documentary and intangible tax information, if required, is also printed on appropriate documents. When submitted in paper form, recorded documents are returned to the submitting party.

Check the following before submitting documents to be recorded:

1. Date.
2. The name and address of each person signing an instrument affecting real property.
3. The name and address of each person receiving property on all documents conveying an interest in real property.
4. Description of property.
5. The signed and typed names are in agreement.
6. Acknowledgement.
7. Notary Public seal and expiration date.
8. Corporate seal if applicable.
9. Name and address of the natural person who prepared the instrument or under whose supervision it was prepared.
10. A three (3) inch square is required on all documents at the top right-hand corner on the first page and a 1x3 inch space at top right-hand corner on each subsequent page for use by the Clerk.
11. Name of each person who executed, witnessed and acknowledged documents affecting real property shall be legibly printed, typewritten or stamped on each document.
12. Submit the Recording Transmittal form or a cover letter with instructions with all transactions.
13. Florida Statute requires two witnesses on deeds.
14. A self-addressed, stamped envelope of sufficient size for the return of the recorded documents.
     Click here to calculate recording fees for your new mortgage.
     Click here to calculate recording fees for your new deed.

Wills only get filed with the Probate Court once someone passes away. They do not get recorded in Official Records unless a Probate Case gets filed. Please go to our Probate Court page and read the FAQ on how to file a last will and testament for more information.

See Recording Services Fees for more information.

Foreign judgment requirements can be found in Florida statutes 55.501-509. To record a foreign judgment with the Clerk, you must provide: 

1. A certified or exemplified copy of the judgment.
2. An original notarized affidavit, which must contain the following: name, social security number (if known), and the last known mailing address of the judgment debtor and of the judgment creditor.
3. A self-addressed stamped envelope for the return of the recorded document.
4. A check payable to "Clerk of Circuit Court" for the following fees:

• Recording Judgment: $10.00 for the first page, and $8.50 for each additional page
• Indexing Additional Names for the judgment: $1.00 per name after the fourth name
• Recording Affidavit: $10.00 for the first page, and $8.50 for each additional page
• Indexing Additional Names for the affidavit: $1.00 per name after the fourth name
• Foreign Judgment Fee: $42.00
• Foreign Judgment Document Preparation Fee: $7.00
• Registered Mail Postage: $12.90 without return receipt (or current postage rate, if greater) times the number of judgment debtors, or $15.70 with return receipt (or current postage rate, if greater) times the number of judgment debtors
• Copies of Judgment and Affidavit: $1.00 per page times the number of judgment debtors

To correct, add or remove a name from a deed for a property located in Hillsborough County, it is recommended that a real property attorney or a legal advisor be consulted. If you choose to prepare the deed yourself, forms can usually be purchased from office supply stores such as Office Depot, Staples or downloaded from other websites. 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.

Once you complete the Declaration of Domicile, it needs to be submitted for recording by the Clerk. It must be submitted along with a check for the recording fee of $10 made payable to "Clerk of the Circuit Court" and either mailed to Clerk of Court & Comptroller, PO Box 3249, Tampa FL 33601-3249 or submitted in person at Room 140, 401 Pierce Street, Tampa, FL. Once the document has been recorded, the original document is returned to the you.

Generally speaking, a Notice of Commencement is a form publicly filed in county records to signify that a construction project is beginning. You can find out more about Notice of Commencement requirements in FSS 713.02.

To record a Notice of Commencement with the Clerk, you must provide:

1. A certified copy of the Notice of Commencement
2. Two self-addressed stamped envelopes (one envelope to mail the certified copy if requested and one envelope to mail the original recorded Notice of Commencement)
3. A Recording Transmittal form or a cover letter with instructions with all transactions
4. A check payable to "Clerk of Circuit Court" for the following fees:

• Recording Notice of Commencement: $10.00 for the first page, and $8.50 for each additional page
• Copies of Notice of Commencement: $1.00 per page
• $2.00 for each certification

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 recording to 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). You can check our Official Records Index to see if the NOC has become available.

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:

• Subdivision plat maps
• Tax rolls from 1883 to present
• Marriage license records from 1831 to the present
• Circuit Civil judgment from 1972 to the present
• County Civil judgments from 1986 to the present
• Probate judgments from 1986 to the present

Search by the name of the individual or company and the year or approximate date of the recording. Documents recorded prior to January 4, 1965, are available on microfilm. Most documents recorded prior to 1965 are only available for viewing at 419 Pierce Street, Room 140.

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

If you believe you are exempt from the fees and costs assessed by the Clerk's Office, do not order records using eCertify, which charges a fee upfront; instead, request official records from recording@hillsclerk.com 

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.