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Missouri Quitclaim Deed Form (2026): Requirements, Notary, Recording Fee

Updated October 11, 2026. Quick answer: Missouri requires an instrument conveying real estate to be proved or acknowledged and certified in the prescribed manner before it is recorded with the county recorder, and section 442.210 supplies the certificate forms. By statute the recorder of deeds charges five dollars for the first page of a deed and three dollars for each page after that. A document that does not meet the statutory format rules (type size, margins, first-page information) may still be recorded for an additional fee of twenty-five dollars.

Missouri quitclaim deed at a glance

ItemWhat the documents say
SigningMissouri allows a conveyance of land by a deed executed by a person with authority to convey, acknowledged and recorded as the statutes direct, without any other act or ceremony.
WitnessesThe documents read do not say whether a deed must be witnessed. The acknowledgment statute does let the officer rely on the signer being proved by at least two witnesses whose names and places of residence go in the certificate.
Notary or acknowledgmentMissouri requires an instrument conveying real estate to be proved or acknowledged and certified in the prescribed manner before it is recorded with the county recorder, and section 442.210 supplies the certificate forms.
Statutory quitclaim formNot found in the documents read
Where to record, and the feeCounty recorder of deeds. By statute the recorder of deeds charges five dollars for the first page of a deed and three dollars for each page after that. A document that does not meet the statutory format rules (type size, margins, first-page information) may still be recorded for an additional fee of twenty-five dollars.
State transfer taxNot found in the documents read (none of the Missouri documents read states whether the state levies a transfer or documentary tax on a deed.)
Gift from a parent to a childNot found in the documents read
Spouse or homesteadRSMo 442.030 says a husband and wife may convey the real estate of either by their joint deed acknowledged and certified. The documents read do not say whether a spouse must join in a deed.
SourceMissouri Revisor of Statutes

Signing, witnesses and the notary in Missouri

Missouri allows a conveyance of land by a deed executed by a person with authority to convey, acknowledged and recorded as the statutes direct, without any other act or ceremony.

Missouri requires an instrument conveying real estate to be proved or acknowledged and certified in the prescribed manner before it is recorded with the county recorder, and section 442.210 supplies the certificate forms.

The text itself:

  • RSMo 442.020 Conveyances of lands: “deed executed by any person having authority to convey”
  • RSMo 442.020 Conveyances of lands: “acknowledged and recorded as herein directed”
  • RSMo 442.380 Instruments to be recorded: “proved or acknowledged and certified in the manner herein prescribed”
  • RSMo 442.210 Certificate of acknowledgment: contents: “satisfy all requirements of law relating to the execution or recording”

If you want a ready-made form

Review LawDepot’s quitclaim deed form

LawDepot builds a quit claim deed from guided questions for your state. Compare the form with the signing, notary and recording rules on this page before you sign anything.

A deed moves title and can change a family’s tax and benefit position. If you need advice about your situation, ask a real estate attorney before choosing a document service.

The link goes to LawDepot, a paid legal-document service, not Clear Money Guide and not a law firm. LawDepot pays Clear Money Guide a commission if you buy a document there, at no extra cost to you. You are under no obligation to buy anything. We are not a law firm and this is not legal advice.

Review LawDepot’s quitclaim deed

Opens on LawDepot. Follow the signing, notary and recording rules for your state.

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Recording: where to file and what it costs

Recording office: County recorder of deeds. By statute the recorder of deeds charges five dollars for the first page of a deed and three dollars for each page after that. A document that does not meet the statutory format rules (type size, margins, first-page information) may still be recorded for an additional fee of twenty-five dollars.

An illustration, not a quote: a deed of 4 pages costs $5 + 3 x $3 = $14 at the statutory rates above, before any county add-on the documents do not show.

The text itself:

  • RSMo 442.380 Instruments to be recorded: “shall be recorded in the office of the recorder of the county”
  • RSMo 59.310 Documents for recording: recorder’s fee: “five dollars for the first page and three dollars for each”

Transfer tax and a gift to a family member

UNVERIFIED: none of the Missouri documents read states whether the state levies a transfer or documentary tax on a deed.

Between family members: Not found in the documents read.

Other filings the documents mention

A document presented for recording must show the title, date, all grantors’ names and marital status, all grantees’ names, and the legal description on its first page below a three-inch top margin.

The text itself:

  • RSMo 59.310 Documents for recording: recorder’s fee: “All grantors’ names and marital status”

A worked example: a parent deeds the home to an adult child

An illustration, not a return: a parent bought a home for $100,000, and it is worth $300,000 when the parent deeds it to an adult child by quitclaim deed, with no payment. The child later sells it for $350,000. For a gift, federal law says the child’s basis is “the same as it would be in the hands of the donor”, so the basis stays $100,000 and the gain is $250,000 ($350,000 minus $100,000). Had the child received the same home at the parent’s death, when it was worth $300,000, the statute sets the basis at “fair market value of the property at the date of the decedent’s”, so the gain would be $50,000 ($350,000 minus $300,000). Federal gift tax filing rules are outside this page and outside the documents read.

Read the Missouri transfer-tax rule above for the state side of the same transfer. See CMG’s quitclaim vs warranty deed for a family transfer page for the choice of deed.

What the documents do not say

  • Whether Missouri requires witnesses on a deed: the documents read do not say, though the acknowledgment statute lets the signer be proved by at least two witnesses whose names and places of residence go in the certificate.
  • Whether Missouri has a statutory quitclaim form: not found in the documents read.
  • Whether a gift from a parent to a child is exempt from the transfer tax: not found in the documents read.
  • Whether Missouri has a state transfer tax on deeds: not found in the documents read.
  • Whether a spouse must join in the deed: the documents read do not say. RSMo 442.030 says a husband and wife may convey by joint deed acknowledged and certified, and points to a separate homestead section that was not read.
  • County or city transfer taxes and local recording surcharges were not read unless named above.

Common mistakes

  • Assuming the answer for one state applies to another, or that signing a deed ends the paperwork before recording.

Related: quitclaim vs warranty deed for a family transfer, Missouri transfer on death deed, Missouri probate cost, and whether Missouri has an estate tax.

Sources

Sources: the primary documents linked above, read on October 11, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a tax professional or the state agency itself is the right place to confirm anything consequential.