Florida Injunctions for Protection: 5 Types, Filing, and Penalties

Florida injunctions for protection are civil court orders that restrict someone’s contact with a person facing violence, threats, or harassment, and the state offers five kinds: domestic violence, dating violence, repeat violence, sexual violence, and stalking. Each has its own statute and eligibility rules. There is no filing fee for any of them, and a judge can issue a temporary order the same day you file, without notifying the other person in advance.

The Five Types and Who Qualifies

Choosing the right category matters because each type has its own statute and eligibility test. Filing under the wrong one can cost you time, and in some cases the case itself.

Domestic Violence

A domestic violence injunction under Florida Statute 741.30 is available when the person you need protection from is a family or household member. That covers a current or former spouse, a blood or in-law relative, someone you currently live with or previously lived with as though you were family, or someone with whom you share a child. If you share a child, you qualify regardless of whether you ever lived together. For everyone else in this category, you must currently live together or have lived together in the past.¹

Dating Violence

Dating violence injunctions fall under Florida Statute 784.046 and protect people harmed by a romantic partner. The court looks at three factors to decide whether a qualifying relationship exists: the relationship must have been active within the past six months, it must have involved an expectation of romantic or sexual involvement, and the two people must have interacted frequently and continuously over time.² Casual acquaintances and people who only interacted in ordinary business or social settings do not qualify.

Repeat Violence

A repeat violence injunction, also under Florida Statute 784.046, does not require any particular relationship between you and the person threatening you. You must show two separate incidents of violence or stalking by the same person, and at least one of those incidents must have happened within six months of filing your petition.² “Violence” here includes assault, battery, stalking, kidnapping, false imprisonment, and any criminal offense that results in physical injury. This is often the right option when the person harming you is a neighbor, coworker, or stranger.

Sexual Violence

Sexual violence injunctions, also governed by Florida Statute 784.046, require only one incident. You qualify if you reported the sexual violence to law enforcement and are cooperating with any criminal investigation, even if charges were never filed or were later dropped. You can also file if the person who committed the offense was sentenced to prison and that sentence has expired or will expire within 90 days.³

Stalking

Stalking injunctions are governed by a separate statute, Florida Statute 784.0485, not the repeat violence statute. You do not need any particular relationship with the person stalking you. Under Florida law, stalking means a pattern of conduct directed at a specific person that causes substantial emotional distress and serves no legitimate purpose. Cyberstalking is a specific form that involves using electronic communication to direct words or images at a specific person, or accessing someone’s online accounts without permission, causing substantial emotional distress and serving no legitimate purpose.⁴ A parent or legal guardian can file on behalf of a minor child living at home.⁵

How to File the Petition

Every protective injunction petition uses Florida Supreme Court Approved Family Law Form 12.980, with different versions for each type. Blank forms are available at the Clerk of Court’s office or through the Florida Courts website.⁶ You do not need a lawyer to file.

Filing costs nothing. State law prohibits the clerk from charging a filing fee for domestic violence petitions⁷ and stalking petitions,⁵ and dating, repeat, and sexual violence petitions under Section 784.046 are filed without cost as well.

The form asks for identifying information about the respondent: full legal name, home address, physical description including height, weight, and distinguishing features such as tattoos or scars. Include the employer’s address, places the person frequents, date of birth, and vehicle make and model if you know them. Law enforcement uses these details to locate and serve the papers.

The written account of what happened is the most important part. Describe the most recent incidents with specific dates, times, and locations. If weapons were involved, or threats were made against your children or other family members, say so explicitly. The judge deciding whether to grant a temporary order relies almost entirely on what you write here. Supporting documents help, both at the temporary stage and at the final hearing: police reports, medical records, photographs of injuries or property damage, and printed copies of threatening messages or social media posts.

The Temporary Injunction and the 15-Day Window

Once you submit your paperwork to the Clerk of Court, a judge reviews it the same day through an ex parte process. The respondent is not present and has no advance notice. If the judge finds that your sworn statements show an immediate and present danger, the judge issues a temporary injunction right away.⁷

A temporary injunction lasts up to 15 days.⁷ During that window, the clerk forwards the order to the local Sheriff’s office, and a deputy personally serves the respondent. The injunction becomes enforceable the moment service is completed. If the respondent has not been located by the hearing date, the judge can extend the temporary order so it stays in force through any continuance.

The Final Hearing

The court schedules a full hearing before the temporary injunction expires. Both sides appear before the judge. Each of you can testify under oath, present evidence, and bring witnesses. The judge may ask questions to clarify your account.

You carry the burden of proving that the violence or stalking occurred and that there is a reasonable basis to believe you remain in danger. For a domestic violence petition, you must show either that you are a victim of domestic violence or that you have reasonable cause to believe you are in imminent danger of becoming one. The judge weighs both sides’ credibility along with any exhibits. If the respondent was properly served but does not appear, the judge can enter a final injunction based on your testimony alone. An attorney can represent either party but is not required.

What a Final Injunction Can Order

A final injunction is tailored to your situation, but most orders include a core set of protections. The respondent is typically ordered to stay at least 500 feet away from your home, workplace, school, and any other locations you regularly visit.⁸ The order also prohibits all contact with you, direct or through a third party, by phone, email, text, social media, or any other means.

In domestic violence cases, the court can go further. The judge can award you temporary exclusive use of a shared home and order the respondent to leave immediately, regardless of whose name is on the lease or title. The court can also establish temporary custody of your children, set up a visitation schedule, and order temporary child support. The judge may require the respondent to complete a batterer’s intervention program or other counseling.

Firearms

A final domestic violence or stalking injunction triggers a firearms ban. Under Florida Statute 790.233, it is a first-degree misdemeanor for a person subject to a final injunction under Section 741.30 or Section 784.0485 to have any firearm or ammunition in their care, custody, possession, or control.⁹ The final judgment must state this prohibition on its face.⁷

Federal law adds another layer. Under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(8), a person subject to a qualifying protective order cannot ship, transport, possess, or receive any firearm or ammunition anywhere in the country. The federal prohibition applies when the order was issued after a hearing where the respondent had notice and a chance to participate, and the order either includes a finding that the respondent poses a credible threat to the protected person’s safety or explicitly prohibits the use of physical force.¹⁰ Violating the federal ban is a felony. A final Florida injunction issued after the full hearing almost always triggers both the state and federal firearm prohibitions at once.

How Long the Order Lasts

For domestic violence injunctions, the core protections remain in effect until the court modifies or dissolves the order. There is no automatic expiration date. Either party can ask the court to modify or dissolve the injunction at any time, and no specific allegations are required to file that motion.⁷ The judge holds a hearing before making any changes.

If you are the petitioner, your injunction does not quietly expire after a year or two. It stays in force until a judge specifically orders otherwise. If you are the respondent, you cannot simply wait it out. You have to file a motion and convince a judge that circumstances have changed enough to justify dissolving or modifying the order.

Penalties for Violating an Injunction

Violating a protective injunction is a criminal offense, not just civil contempt. For domestic violence injunctions, any willful violation is a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail.⁸ The same penalty applies to violations of dating, repeat, and sexual violence injunctions under a parallel statute.¹¹ Conduct that counts as a violation includes coming within 500 feet of the petitioner’s home, school, or workplace; any direct or indirect contact; coming within 100 feet of the petitioner’s vehicle; damaging the petitioner’s property; or refusing to surrender firearms when ordered to do so.

Penalties escalate with repeat offenses. A person with two or more prior convictions for violating an injunction who violates again against the same victim commits a third-degree felony.⁸ A “conviction” here includes any guilty plea or trial verdict, even if the court withheld formal adjudication. Statewide law enforcement agencies keep injunction records in an electronic database, so an officer responding to a call can verify an active order immediately and arrest the respondent on the spot.

Enforcement If You Leave Florida

Your injunction does not lose its force at the state line. Under the federal Violence Against Women Act, every state, tribe, and territory must give full faith and credit to a valid protection order from any other jurisdiction and enforce it as though it were a local order. You do not need to register or file your Florida injunction in the new state for it to be enforceable.¹²

Two conditions make an order eligible for interstate enforcement: the issuing court must have had proper jurisdiction, and the respondent must have received notice and an opportunity to be heard. For temporary ex parte orders, the respondent must get that opportunity within the time the issuing state’s law requires. Keep a certified copy with you when traveling. Officers in other states can verify the order through national databases, but having the document on hand speeds things up if you need help immediately.

1
Florida Senate. Florida Code 741.30 – Domestic Violence; Injunction; Powers and Duties of Court and Clerk
2
Florida Senate. Florida Code 784.046 – Action by Victim of Repeat Violence, Sexual Violence, or Dating Violence for Protective Injunction
3
Online Sunshine. Florida Code 784.046 – Action by Victim of Repeat Violence, Sexual Violence, or Dating Violence for Protective Injunction
4
Online Sunshine. Florida Code 784.048 – Stalking; Definitions; Penalties
5
Florida Senate. Florida Code 784.0485 – Stalking; Injunction; Powers and Duties of Court and Clerk
6
Florida Courts. Petition for Injunction for Protection Against Domestic Violence
7
Online Sunshine. Florida Code 741.30 – Domestic Violence; Injunction; Powers and Duties of Court and Clerk
8
Florida Senate. Florida Code 741.31 – Violation of an Injunction for Protection Against Domestic Violence
9
Online Sunshine. Florida Code 790.233 – Possession of Firearm or Ammunition Prohibited When Person Is Subject to an Injunction
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 922 – Unlawful Acts
11
Florida Senate. Florida Code 784.047 – Penalties for Violating Protective Injunction Against Violators
12
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 2265 – Full Faith and Credit Given to Protection Orders