The eviction process in Florida moves through three court-supervised stages and usually takes three to four weeks from the first notice to the sheriff physically removing the tenant. A landlord must start with a written notice, then file a lawsuit in county court, then wait for a judge to issue a final judgment and a writ of possession. Only the sheriff can carry out the removal. Skipping a step, or getting the paperwork wrong, resets the clock.
Step One: The Written Notice
Chapter 83, Part II of the Florida Statutes requires a written notice before any court filing. The type of notice depends on why the landlord wants the tenant out.
Three-Day Notice for Unpaid Rent
When rent is late, the landlord delivers a written demand stating the exact amount of rent owed and the property address, using the form language the statute prescribes. The tenant has three days to pay or move out.1The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 83.56 – Termination of Rental Agreement
Those three days exclude Saturdays, Sundays, and court-observed legal holidays. A notice delivered on a Thursday gives the tenant until the following Tuesday. Only rent belongs in the demand amount. Late fees, utility charges, and anything the lease calls “additional rent” should stay out, because putting them in gives the tenant grounds to challenge the notice.
Seven-Day Notices for Lease Violations
For problems other than nonpayment, Florida uses one of two seven-day notices. A curable-violation notice describes the problem and gives the tenant seven days to fix it; if the same type of violation happens again within 12 months, the landlord can move to evict without offering another chance to cure. An unconditional seven-day notice to vacate applies when the violation is severe enough that no cure is appropriate, or when it repeats a similar violation the tenant was already warned about in writing within the past 12 months.2Florida Senate. Florida Code 83.56 – Termination of Rental Agreement
A separate rule governs month-to-month tenancies: either side ends the arrangement by giving at least 30 days’ written notice before the end of a monthly period.3The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 83.57 – Termination of Tenancy Without Specific Term A tenant who stays past a fixed-term lease without permission can be evicted as a holdover, and the landlord may collect double monthly rent for the holdover period.4The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 83.58 – Remedies; Tenant Holding Over
Notices may be hand-delivered, mailed, emailed if the lease allows it under Section 83.505, or left at the residence if the tenant is not home.
Step Two: Filing the Complaint
If the tenant does not pay, cure, or leave within the notice period, the landlord files an eviction complaint in the county court where the property is located.5The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 83.59 – Right of Action for Possession The complaint describes the property, explains the grounds, and attaches the notice. A summons must be prepared for each tenant named.
The filing fee is $185 for a possession-only case, plus $10 per summons.6Seminole County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller. Evictions Copy and Fee Requirements Chart If the landlord also seeks up to $15,000 in unpaid rent or damages, the filing fee rises to $300. These fees are nonrefundable regardless of outcome.
Step Three: Serving the Tenant
After the case is filed, the tenant must be formally served. A county sheriff or licensed private process server delivers copies of the summons and complaint, either handing them to the tenant directly or leaving them with someone at least 15 years old at the residence.7The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 48.031 – Service of Process Generally
If the tenant cannot be found, the sheriff may post the papers on the property. When service happens by posting, the clerk also mails copies to the tenant’s last known addresses, and at least five days must pass before the court can enter a final judgment.
Step Four: The Tenant’s Five-Day Response
Once served, the tenant has five business days (excluding weekends and legal holidays) to file a written response.8The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 83.60 – Defenses to Action for Rent or Possession Many eviction cases are decided at this stage, because the consequences of missing the deadline are severe.
In a nonpayment case, a tenant who wants to raise any defense other than “I already paid” must deposit the full amount of accrued rent into the court registry within those same five days, or file a motion contesting the amount owed. Failing to deposit the rent is treated as a complete waiver of defenses, and the landlord is entitled to an immediate default judgment and writ of possession without a hearing. Tenants who receive rent subsidies deposit only their personal share.
Defenses that a tenant who deposits rent can raise include the landlord’s failure to keep the property in compliance with building, housing, and health codes under Section 83.51(1), provided the tenant gave the landlord seven days’ written notice of the problem before withholding rent. Retaliatory eviction is also a defense: Florida law bars a landlord from filing to evict primarily because the tenant complained to code enforcement, joined a tenant organization, or exercised fair housing rights, though retaliation is not a defense when the landlord proves a genuine ground like actual nonpayment.9The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 83.64 – Retaliatory Conduct If the landlord’s notice has a technical defect, the court must give the landlord a chance to correct it before dismissing the case.
Step Five: Judgment and Writ of Possession
If the tenant does not respond, or the judge rules for the landlord after a hearing, the court enters a Final Judgment for Possession. The judgment confirms the landlord’s right to the property, but it does not by itself allow anyone to touch the tenant’s belongings or change the locks.
The clerk then issues a writ of possession directing the sheriff to restore the property to the landlord.10The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 83.62 – Restoration of Possession to Landlord A Florida Attorney General opinion states that no clerk fee is authorized by statute for issuing the writ in a residential possession case.11Office of Attorney General. Fees and Writ of Possession The sheriff charges $90 to execute the writ: a $40 base service fee plus $50 for the seizure component.12Florida Senate. Florida Code 30.231 – Sheriffs Fees for Service of Summons, Subpoenas, and Executions
A deputy posts the writ on the property, and the tenant has 24 hours to leave voluntarily. That clock runs continuously; weekends and holidays do not pause it. If the tenant is still there after 24 hours, the sheriff returns to remove anyone on the premises, and the landlord can then change the locks and take control of the property.
What Landlords Cannot Do
Florida bans self-help evictions completely. Regardless of how much rent is owed or how serious the lease violation, a landlord cannot:
- Shut off or interrupt water, electricity, gas, or garbage collection
- Change the locks or otherwise block the tenant’s access
- Remove doors, windows, roof sections, or walls (outside of legitimate maintenance)
- Remove the tenant’s personal property from the unit before the eviction is lawfully complete
A landlord who violates these rules is liable for the tenant’s actual damages or three months’ rent, whichever is greater, plus attorney fees and court costs, even when the tenant owes substantial back rent.13The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 83.67 – Prohibited Practices The court process is the only lawful path.
What an Eviction Costs
Even an uncontested case adds up quickly:
- Court filing fee: $185 for possession only, or $300 if the landlord also seeks up to $15,000 in back rent or damages14Pasco County Clerk, FL. Landlord/Tenant Eviction Fees and Costs
- Summons fee: $10 per summons
- Service of process: sheriff fees start at $40 per summons; private process servers often charge more
- Writ of possession execution: $90
- Attorney fees: optional but common. The prevailing party in an action to enforce a lease or Chapter 83 can recover reasonable attorney fees and court costs, and this right cannot be waived in the lease. If the tenant wins, the landlord can end up paying the tenant’s legal costs.15The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 83.48 – Attorney Fees
A straightforward eviction handled without an attorney generally runs $300 to $400 in court and sheriff fees alone, on top of rent lost during the weeks the case takes.
After the Tenant Is Out
Security Deposit
The landlord has 15 days after the tenancy ends to return the full deposit if no claim is being made. If the landlord intends to keep part or all of it, a written notice sent by certified mail within 30 days must specify the amount claimed and the reason.16The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 83.49 – Deposit Money or Advance Rent; Duty of Landlord and Tenant Missing that 30-day deadline forfeits the landlord’s right to claim against the deposit, though a separate lawsuit for damages is still possible. The tenant then has 15 days to object in writing; if there is no objection, the landlord can deduct the claimed amount and refund any balance within 30 days of the original notice.
Property Left Behind
If the lease contains the specific statutory language stating the landlord is not responsible for storing or disposing of property after surrender or abandonment, the landlord is off the hook for the formal abandoned-property process. Without that provision, Section 715.104 governs: the landlord sends written notice describing the property, stating where it can be claimed, and giving at least 10 days (in-person delivery) or 15 days (mail) before disposal.17The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 715.104 – Notification of Former Tenant of Personal Property Remaining on Premises
Extra Protection for Active-Duty Servicemembers
The federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act limits evictions of active-duty military tenants and their dependents from a primary residence when the monthly rent falls below an annually adjusted threshold (based on a $2,400 figure set in 2003 and indexed each year). A landlord cannot evict a covered servicemember without a court order, and if military service materially affects the ability to pay, the court must stay proceedings for at least 90 days on request. Knowingly evicting a protected servicemember without a court order is a federal misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail.18Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 USC 3951 – Evictions and Distress Florida also prohibits landlords from discriminating against servicemembers in any terms of a rental agreement.13The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 83.67 – Prohibited Practices