Florida Eviction Process for Landlords

A Florida eviction has three stages: you serve the correct written notice under Chapter 83 of the Florida Statutes, file a complaint for possession in the county court where the unit is, and have the sheriff execute a writ of possession. The state notice is 3 days for unpaid rent (not counting weekends and court holidays), 7 days for other lease violations, and 30 days to end a month-to-month tenancy. For unpaid rent, mailing adds time, and CARES Act-covered rentals require at least 30 days' notice to vacate. Only the sheriff can remove a tenant, and a landlord who locks out a tenant or shuts off utilities owes at least 3 months' rent in damages.

Which notice do you serve first?

The reason for the eviction decides the notice. A defective notice is a defense the tenant can raise in court.

Before using the 3-day nonpayment notice, check CARES Act coverage, which includes properties with federally backed mortgages or participation in certain federal housing programs. Section 4024(c) requires at least 30 days' notice before you can require a covered tenant to vacate.

A notice can be mailed, hand delivered, or left at the residence if the tenant is absent. Mailing a 3-day notice adds 5 days for delivery. Allow 5 more days for return mailing when payment by mail is permitted; Walton County's clerk says mailing the notice permits a mailed response. Email works only if you and the tenant signed an email-notice agreement under section 83.505. A lease clause that waives these notices is not enforceable.

Writing the 3-day notice

The statute's form requires the amount owed, the unit's address and county, the deadline date, and your name, address, and phone number. List only rent. Florida law counts periodic rent, plus other charges only if your written lease designates them as rent, so leave late fees off unless your lease calls them rent.

For hand delivery without CARES Act coverage or payment by mail, count 3 days starting the day after delivery and skip weekends and court holidays. If you hand-deliver the notice on Thursday, October 1, 2026, day 1 is Friday, October 2, day 2 is Monday, October 5, and day 3 is Tuesday, October 6. The notice should name October 6 as the deadline, and you can file on October 7 if the rent is still unpaid.

Partial payments after the notice

Accepting part of the rent does not waive your right to evict. If you take a partial payment after serving the 3-day notice, you must do one of three things before you file: give the tenant a receipt showing the date and amount received, the remaining balance, and the agreed date when that balance is due; deposit the partial payment into the court registry when you file; or serve a new 3-day notice for the new balance. Accepting rent while you know about a different violation waives your right to evict for that violation, though not for later or continuing ones.

Cure notices and repeat violations

If the tenant fixes a curable violation and then repeats the same conduct within 12 months, you can file for eviction without another notice. Keep a dated copy of every notice you serve.

Month-to-month tenancies

Since July 1, 2023, Florida requires 30 days' notice to end a month-to-month tenancy (it was 15 days before HB 1417). To end a tenancy on December 31, 2026, deliver the notice no later than December 1. Our guide on ending a month-to-month rental agreement covers the wording.

How do you file the eviction case?

1. File a complaint for possession in the county court for the county where the unit is located. Attach the notice and the lease. Use summons form 1.923(a) for possession only, or 1.923(b) if you also want a judgment for back rent. You or your attorney can file; a non-attorney agent can make only the initial filing.
2. Have the tenant served by the sheriff or a certified process server.
3. Wait out the response period. The tenant has 5 days after service, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, to respond on possession.
4. Ask for a default if the tenant does not respond, or for a hearing if the tenant does.
5. Get a final judgment and ask the clerk to issue the writ of possession.

Section 83.59 entitles landlords to the summary procedure, a shortened court process, and requires the court to advance the case on its calendar.

The court registry rule

In a nonpayment case, a tenant who raises any defense other than "I paid" must deposit the rent claimed in the complaint into the court registry within those same 5 days, and keep depositing rent as it comes due during the case. The tenant can instead file a motion asking the court to set the amount owed, with supporting documents. If the tenant does neither, section 83.60(2) treats that as an absolute waiver of all defenses except payment, and you are entitled to an immediate default judgment and writ of possession without a hearing.

Defenses a tenant can raise

• Failure to maintain. The tenant can defend a nonpayment case by showing you materially failed to maintain the unit, but only if the tenant gave you written notice of the problem and of intent to withhold rent, and 7 days passed. Our guide to Florida landlord maintenance obligations covers what counts.
• Retaliation. Under section 83.64, a tenant can argue the eviction is retaliation for a good-faith complaint to a code agency, joining a tenant organization, or exercising fair housing rights. The defense fails if you show good cause, such as a good-faith eviction for nonpayment or a lease violation.
• Notice defects. The court must give you a chance to correct a defect in your notice or complaint before it dismisses the case.

How does the writ of possession work?

After judgment, the clerk issues the writ to the sheriff. The sheriff posts a 24-hour notice on the unit, and weekends and holidays do not pause that clock. The 24 hours is a minimum notice period; you regain possession when the sheriff executes the writ at a scheduled appointment, which may be delayed by workload.

At that point you or your agent can remove the tenant's belongings to or near the property line. You can ask the sheriff to keep the peace while you change the locks and remove property, at a reasonable hourly rate you pay. Neither you nor the sheriff is liable for belongings lost or damaged after removal. Items left behind in other situations follow different rules; see handling property abandoned by a tenant.

What happens if you skip the court process?

Section 83.67 bars you from cutting off any utility (even one you do not pay for), changing the locks or using a bootlock, removing outside doors, windows, or locks except for repairs, or removing the tenant's belongings before a lawful eviction, surrender, or abandonment. A violation makes you liable for actual and consequential damages or 3 months' rent, whichever is greater, plus the tenant's court costs and attorney's fees. On a $2,000 monthly rent, that is at least $6,000 plus fees, and each separate, later violation can bring another award.

Without a court judgment, you can retake the unit only if the tenant surrenders it, abandons it, or was the last tenant and died more than 60 days ago with rent unpaid and no word from an estate. Florida presumes abandonment when the tenant is gone for half the rent period (15 days on monthly rent), rent is unpaid, and the tenant gave no notice of the absence.

Do city or county tenant rules still apply?

Not to the eviction steps above. Section 83.425, added by HB 1417 effective July 1, 2023, preempts the regulation of residential tenancies to the state and supersedes local rules on matters the landlord-tenant act covers, including notice requirements, rental agreement terms, deposits, and fees. A city or county ordinance that required longer notices or extra disclosures before an eviction no longer adds to the state process.

After the tenant moves out, the deposit rules still apply; see Florida security deposit laws. For how the stages compare with other states, see the steps for eviction proceedings.