Under the Florida bad check statute of limitations, prosecutors have two years to file charges for a worthless check under $150 and three years to file charges for a worthless check of $150 or more.1Florida Senate. Florida Code 775.15 – Time Limitations; General Time Limitations; Exceptions Civil collection by the person who received the check runs on a separate timeline and is not controlled by those criminal deadlines.
The Two Criminal Deadlines
Florida ties the limitations period to how the offense is graded, and the grade depends on the face value of the check.
A worthless check for less than $150 is a first-degree misdemeanor.2Florida Senate. Florida Code 832.05 – Giving Worthless Checks, Drafts, and Debit Card Orders Under the general criminal time-limits statute, that gives the state two years from the date of the offense to file charges.1Florida Senate. Florida Code 775.15 – Time Limitations; General Time Limitations; Exceptions
A worthless check for $150 or more is a third-degree felony.2Florida Senate. Florida Code 832.05 – Giving Worthless Checks, Drafts, and Debit Card Orders The state then has three years from the date of the offense to charge the case.1Florida Senate. Florida Code 775.15 – Time Limitations; General Time Limitations; Exceptions Once either period expires without charges filed, prosecution is barred.
When the Clock Pauses
These deadlines are not always a straight run from the day the check was written. The limitations clock can pause under certain circumstances, including when the accused is absent from the state.1Florida Senate. Florida Code 775.15 – Time Limitations; General Time Limitations; Exceptions Time spent out of Florida does not necessarily count toward the two- or three-year window, which means someone who left the state after writing a bad check cannot assume the deadline has quietly run while they were gone.
Civil Lawsuits Run on a Separate Timeline
The criminal statute of limitations only controls when the state can prosecute. It does not touch the ability of the person who took the check to sue for the money. Florida’s civil collection statute for worthless payment instruments operates independently of the criminal deadlines.3Florida Senate. Florida Code 68.065 – Actions to Collect Worthless Payment Instruments
That matters, because civil exposure is heavy. If the payee sends a written demand by certified mail, registered mail, or first-class mail with an affidavit of service, and you fail to pay the amount owed in cash within 30 days, the payee can sue for the face value of the check plus triple that amount in damages. The treble damages have a floor of $50 and no statutory cap. The payee can also recover court costs, reasonable attorney fees, and bank fees from the bounced check.3Florida Senate. Florida Code 68.065 – Actions to Collect Worthless Payment Instruments
So the question “has the statute of limitations run?” is really two questions. The criminal clock may have expired while civil liability is still very much alive.
The 15-Day Notice That Can Reach You Before the Clock Does
Even inside the limitations period, there is a mechanism built into Florida law that lets you shut down the criminal case without waiting for any deadline to run. When a check bounces, Florida treats that fact as prima facie evidence that you intended to defraud the recipient. That presumption disappears, however, if you pay the holder the full amount plus a service fee within 15 days of receiving written notice that the check bounced. The service fee is either the amount set by the state fee schedule or 5% of the check’s face value, whichever is greater, plus any bank fees the holder incurred.4Online Sunshine. Florida Code 832.07 – Prima Facie Evidence of Intent; Identity
One category of check does not get this cure window. If the check was drawn on an account that was already closed or that never existed, intent to defraud is presumed with no opportunity to cure.4Online Sunshine. Florida Code 832.07 – Prima Facie Evidence of Intent; Identity For those checks, waiting out the limitations period, if you can, is the only clock that helps you.
Federal Exposure Has Its Own Rules
Florida’s limitations periods apply to state prosecutions. A check-writing scheme involving a federally insured bank can draw a federal bank fraud charge, which carries up to 30 years in prison and a fine of up to $1,000,000.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 1344 – Bank Fraud Federal prosecutors usually pursue these cases when the amounts are large, the conduct crosses state lines, or there is a pattern of fraud aimed at the banks themselves rather than individual payees. The expiration of Florida’s two- or three-year window does not control what the federal government can do.
What an Old Bad Check Can Still Cost You
A criminal deadline running out does not clear the record elsewhere. Banks and credit unions screen applicants through services like ChexSystems and Early Warning Services, and negative information from a bounced check generally stays on those reports for five years.6HelpWithMyBank.gov. How Long Does Negative Information Stay on ChexSystems and EWS Reports During that window you may be denied new checking or savings accounts at most major banks. If a bank denies your application based on one of these reports, it must send an adverse action notice identifying the screening company, and you can request a free copy of the report to review it for errors and dispute inaccuracies.7Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Denied for a Bank Account? Here’s What You Should Know
Put the pieces together before you count on any deadline. The criminal clock is two years for a check under $150 and three years for a check of $150 or more, it can pause while you are out of state, civil collection answers to its own timeline, and the banking consequences run five years from the reporting event regardless of what the prosecutor does.