Evictions in Florida: Notices, Court Process, and Writ of Possession

The eviction process in Florida runs through the county court. A landlord must serve the tenant a written notice matching the reason for eviction, wait out the notice period, file an action for possession if the tenant hasn’t complied, win a judgment, and have the sheriff execute a writ of possession. Self-help—changing locks, cutting utilities, or hauling belongings to the curb—is illegal and expensive. Even an uncontested case typically takes several weeks; a contested one takes longer.

Step One: Serve the Right Written Notice

Every eviction starts with a written notice, and the type depends on why the landlord wants the tenant out. Getting the notice wrong is the fastest way to lose the case before it starts.

Three-Day Notice for Unpaid Rent

When rent is late, the landlord delivers a three-day notice demanding payment or surrender of the property. The three days exclude Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, so a notice served on a Wednesday before a holiday weekend gives more calendar time than it looks.¹ The notice must state only the actual rent owed. Adding late fees, utility charges, or other amounts is a common mistake that can get the whole case dismissed. If the tenant pays in full within the window, the landlord cannot proceed.

Seven-Day Notice to Cure a Lease Violation

For violations the tenant can fix—an unauthorized pet, an unapproved occupant, parking in the wrong place—the landlord serves a seven-day notice to cure. The notice must describe the specific problem and warn that the lease terminates if the tenant doesn’t fix it within seven days.¹ If the same type of violation recurs within 12 months of the original warning, the landlord can skip the cure step and move straight to eviction.

Seven-Day Unconditional Notice to Vacate

Some violations are serious enough that the tenant gets no chance to fix them. Intentional destruction of property, repeated disturbances after a prior warning, and certain criminal activity all qualify.¹ The tenant has seven days to leave. Because there’s no cure opportunity, landlords should document the violation carefully. Police reports, photographs, and written complaints from other tenants all matter if the case goes to a hearing.

Thirty-Day Notice to End a Month-to-Month Tenancy

When there’s no fixed lease or the lease has expired and the tenant is paying month to month, either side can end the tenancy with at least 30 days’ written notice before the end of a monthly period.² The landlord doesn’t need to give a reason, but if the tenant stays past the notice date, the landlord still has to go through court to remove them.

Florida law prescribes specific language for each notice type, and courts expect landlords to follow those forms closely. A notice that omits required language, overstates what’s owed, or gives the wrong number of days can be challenged and may result in dismissal.

Step Two: File the Lawsuit

If the notice period expires and the tenant hasn’t paid, fixed the problem, or left, the landlord files an action for possession in the county court where the property sits. The complaint identifies the property, states the grounds for eviction, and confirms that the required notice was served and ignored. A copy of the lease and the notice should be attached.

Filing fees depend on what the landlord is asking for. A straightforward action for possession costs $185. Adding a damages claim for unpaid rent between $2,500 and $15,000 raises the fee to $300.³ Amounts vary slightly by county but stay in that range.

Once the case is filed, the court issues a summons. The summons can be handed to the tenant in person, posted conspicuously on the property, or sent by certified mail. A tenant who wasn’t properly served can get the case dismissed.

Step Three: The Tenant’s Five-Day Response

After being served, the tenant has five business days (excluding weekends and legal holidays) to file a written response with the court. This is where many tenants unknowingly lose. If a tenant raises any defense other than “I already paid the rent,” the tenant must also deposit all rent owed into the court registry within those same five days.⁴

Missing either deadline is costly. A tenant who doesn’t respond at all faces a default judgment giving the landlord immediate possession. A tenant who files a response but doesn’t deposit rent into the registry waives every defense except the claim that rent was already paid.⁴ If the tenant thinks the rent amount in the complaint is wrong, a motion to determine the correct amount has to be filed within that same five-day window. Tenants in public housing or with rent subsidies only need to deposit the portion of rent they’re personally responsible for under their program.

Step Four: The Hearing and Possible Defenses

Once the tenant responds and deposits rent, the court schedules a hearing. Both sides present evidence and the judge decides whether the eviction is justified. Florida eviction cases move quickly compared to most other civil matters.

Tenants can raise several defenses. The strongest one in a nonpayment case is that the landlord failed to maintain the property. If the tenant gave the landlord written notice about serious maintenance problems at least seven days before withholding rent, the landlord’s failure to fix those problems is a complete defense to a nonpayment eviction.⁴ The court can reduce the rent to reflect the diminished value of the unit during the period the landlord failed to maintain it.

Other valid defenses include a defective notice, improper service, retaliation, and discrimination. Florida law gives the landlord a chance to fix defects in the notice or complaint before the case is dismissed outright.⁴

Retaliation is its own defense. Florida law makes it illegal to evict a tenant, raise rent, or reduce services because the tenant complained to a government agency about code violations, participated in a tenant organization, or notified the landlord about needed repairs.⁵ Timing matters. A tenant who filed a code complaint two weeks before receiving an eviction notice has a stronger argument than one who filed six months earlier. Discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status, or disability is prohibited by the federal Fair Housing Act, and tenants can complain to HUD or the Florida Commission on Human Relations.⁶

If the judge rules for the landlord, the court enters a judgment for possession. Either party can appeal within 30 days.

Step Five: The Writ of Possession

After a judgment for the landlord, the clerk issues a writ of possession directing the sheriff to remove the tenant. The sheriff posts the writ on the property, and the tenant has 24 hours from that posting to leave. Weekends and legal holidays do not pause the clock.⁷

Once the sheriff executes the writ, the landlord or their agent can move any personal property the tenant left behind to the property line. The landlord can also ask the sheriff to stay on-site while locks are changed and belongings are removed, at a reasonable hourly rate the landlord pays. Neither the sheriff nor the landlord is liable for property left behind after the writ is executed.⁷

What Landlords Cannot Do

Florida law flatly forbids self-help eviction. A landlord cannot:

Shut off water, electricity, gas, or any other utility to pressure the tenant, even if the landlord pays the bill
Change the locks, add a padlock, or otherwise block the tenant’s access
Remove doors, windows, or the tenant’s belongings before a lawful eviction, surrender, or abandonment

A landlord who breaks these rules is liable for actual damages or three months’ rent, whichever is greater, plus the tenant’s court costs and attorney’s fees. Repeat violations produce separate damage awards for each incident, and a court can issue an injunction restoring the tenant’s access immediately.⁸ However far behind the tenant is on rent, the only legal path runs through the courthouse.

Situations With Extra Rules

Active-Duty Servicemembers

The federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act prohibits evicting a servicemember or their dependents from a primary residence without a court order if monthly rent falls below an annually adjusted threshold. For 2024 that threshold was $9,812.12 per month, which covers nearly all residential rentals.⁹ Once a case is in court, the servicemember can request a stay of at least 90 days if military service has materially affected their ability to pay, and the court must grant it.

Florida adds a right to end the lease early. A servicemember with permanent change-of-station orders, deployment orders to a location more than 35 miles away, or an involuntary discharge can terminate a lease with 30 days’ written notice and a copy of the military orders. Prorated rent is owed through the termination date, but no early-termination penalty or future rent.¹⁰

Assistance Animals in No-Pet Rentals

A no-pet eviction may violate federal law if the animal is an assistance animal. Under the Fair Housing Act, an assistance animal is not a pet; it works, provides assistance, or offers emotional support that alleviates the effects of a disability.¹¹ A landlord must grant a reasonable accommodation to keep an assistance animal unless the specific animal poses a direct threat to safety that can’t be reduced, would cause significant property damage that can’t be mitigated, or would impose an undue financial burden. No pet deposit or pet fee can be charged for an assistance animal. A tenant hit with a no-pet eviction should notify the landlord in writing that the animal is an assistance animal and provide supporting documentation if the disability or need isn’t obvious.

Public and Subsidized Housing

Tenants in federally assisted housing have added protections. As of early 2026, a HUD rule requires housing providers in covered programs to give a written 30-day notice before filing an eviction for nonpayment. The notice must itemize the rent owed and explain how to recertify income. If the tenant pays the full amount during the 30 days, the eviction cannot proceed. Covered programs include public housing and Section 8 project-based rental assistance, though Housing Choice Vouchers and project-based vouchers are not covered by this rule.

Subsidized tenants can only be evicted for serious or repeated lease violations, certain criminal activity, or other good cause, and a criminal conviction isn’t required. Victims of domestic violence cannot be evicted because of the violence. When another household member is the aggressor, the landlord can pursue eviction against that person while allowing the victim and other family members to stay.

After the Tenant Leaves: The Security Deposit

Winning an eviction doesn’t cancel the landlord’s deposit obligations. If the landlord intends to return the full deposit, it must be sent within 15 days after the tenant vacates. If the landlord plans to claim part or all of it for unpaid rent or damages, the landlord must send a written notice by certified mail within 30 days of the tenant leaving, itemizing each amount claimed and the reason.¹²

Missing the 30-day deadline forfeits the landlord’s right to make any claim against the deposit. Once the tenant receives a proper notice, the tenant has 15 days to object in writing. Without an objection, the landlord can apply the deposit to the claimed amounts.¹²

1
Justia Law. Florida Code 83.56 – Termination of Rental Agreement
2
Justia Law. Florida Code 83.57 – Termination of Tenancy Without Specific Term
3
Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller, Palm Beach County. County Civil Court Fees
4
Justia Law. Florida Code 83.60 – Defenses to Action for Rent or Possession
5
Florida Senate. Florida Code 83.64 – Retaliatory Conduct
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 3604 – Discrimination in the Sale or Rental of Housing and Other Prohibited Practices
7
Florida Senate. Florida Code 83.62 – Restoration of Possession to Landlord
8
Justia Law. Florida Code 83.67 – Prohibited Practices
9
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 USC 3951 – Evictions and Distress
10
Florida Senate. Florida Code 83.682 – Termination of Rental Agreement by a Servicemember
11
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Assistance Animals
12
Justia Law. Florida Code 83.49 – Deposit Money or Advance Rent, Duty of Landlord and Tenant