Florida’s red flag law, found in Section 790.401 of the Florida Statutes, lets a law enforcement officer or agency ask a circuit court to temporarily bar someone from possessing firearms and ammunition when that person poses a significant danger to themselves or others. The court moves in two steps: a fast temporary order on a reasonable-cause showing, then a full hearing within 14 days where the state must prove its case by clear and convincing evidence. A final Risk Protection Order (RPO) lasts up to 12 months and can be extended.1Florida Senate. Florida Code 790.401 – Risk Protection Orders
What the Order Does
An RPO is a civil court order, not a criminal charge. While it is active, the respondent cannot possess, purchase, or receive any firearm or ammunition, and must surrender any concealed-carry license.1Florida Senate. Florida Code 790.401 – Risk Protection Orders The point is preventive: cut off access to weapons during a window when evidence says the person is dangerous, then look at the question again when the term runs out.
Because it is civil, there is no jail time built into the order itself and no right to a court-appointed attorney. The respondent may hire one. Neither side is required to have counsel, and the statute bars any award of attorney fees in these proceedings.
Who Can File a Petition
Only a law enforcement officer or law enforcement agency can petition for an RPO in Florida. Family members, roommates, therapists, coworkers, and teachers cannot file on their own. What they can do is report the behavior that concerns them to local police or the sheriff’s office and let those officers decide whether to bring a petition.
The petition goes to the circuit court in the county where the agency’s office is located or where the respondent lives. It has to include a sworn affidavit spelling out the specific statements, actions, or facts pointing to dangerous behavior, along with what the agency knows about the firearms and ammunition the respondent currently has.1Florida Senate. Florida Code 790.401 – Risk Protection Orders Any existing protection orders against the respondent, such as a domestic violence injunction, must also be disclosed.
The Temporary Ex Parte Order
When police believe the situation is urgent, they can ask the court for a temporary ex parte order before the respondent knows anything about the petition. The hearing takes place in person or by phone on the same day the petition is filed or the next business day.1Florida Senate. Florida Code 790.401 – Risk Protection Orders
The standard at this stage is reasonable cause to believe the respondent poses a significant danger of causing personal injury in the near future by having access to firearms or ammunition. That is a lower bar than what applies at the final hearing. The respondent is not present and gets no advance notice. If the judge grants the temporary order, an officer serves it on the respondent together with notice of the upcoming full hearing.
The Full Hearing
The court has to set the full adversarial hearing no later than 14 days after the petition is filed. At this hearing, the respondent can appear, testify, present evidence, cross-examine witnesses, and be represented by an attorney they hire themselves.
The petitioning agency carries the burden of proof, and the standard is clear and convincing evidence. The judge must find that the respondent poses a significant danger of causing personal injury to themselves or others by having access to firearms or ammunition.1Florida Senate. Florida Code 790.401 – Risk Protection Orders When that finding is made, the court issues a final RPO for whatever period it considers appropriate, up to a 12-month maximum.
What the Judge Looks At
The statute lists 15 categories of evidence the court may weigh in deciding whether to issue, extend, or lift an order. These apply to both the temporary and final stages, though they matter more at the final hearing because the standard is higher.2Online Sunshine. Florida Code 790.401 – Risk Protection Orders They fall into a few practical groupings:
- Recent acts or threats of violence, whether or not a firearm was involved, and any similar acts within the past 12 months.
- Serious mental illness or recurring mental health issues.
- Prior violations of an RPO, domestic violence injunction, or similar no-contact order, and whether the respondent has been under a previous RPO.
- Criminal history involving violence: arrests, convictions, withheld adjudications, or no-contest pleas for domestic violence or other violent crimes in any state.
- Unlawful or reckless display or brandishing of a firearm.
- A pattern of using or threatening physical force, or stalking another person.
- Corroborated evidence of alcohol or controlled substance abuse.
- Recent acquisition of firearms or ammunition.
- Relevant information from family or household members, and sworn testimony from any witness.
No single factor decides the case. Judges look at the full picture, and combinations tend to drive outcomes: a fresh threat plus a new gun purchase, or a domestic violence history alongside active substance abuse, makes a much stronger case than any of those pieces standing alone.
Surrendering Firearms
Once the order is served, the respondent has to immediately surrender all firearms, all ammunition, and any concealed-carry license. If an officer serves the order in person, the officer asks for immediate surrender on the spot and takes custody. If the respondent was present in court instead of being served later, they have to bring everything to the local law enforcement agency right after the hearing.2Online Sunshine. Florida Code 790.401 – Risk Protection Orders
The officer taking custody issues a receipt listing every firearm and the type and quantity of ammunition surrendered, and files the original with the court within 72 hours. The court then holds a compliance hearing within three business days to confirm the surrender is complete. If the court is already satisfied the respondent has complied, it can cancel the compliance hearing.
Ending the Order Early
A respondent who believes they no longer pose a danger can file a written motion to vacate, but the chances are limited by statute. There is one motion to vacate during the life of the original order, plus one additional motion per extension period.2Online Sunshine. Florida Code 790.401 – Risk Protection Orders
After the motion is filed and the petitioning agency is served, the court sets a hearing between 14 and 30 days from the date of service. The burden flips here. The respondent has to prove by clear and convincing evidence that they no longer pose a significant danger, judged against the same factors the court used to issue the order. If that burden is met, the court must vacate the order and notify the agency holding the firearms.
Extending an Order Past 12 Months
The order does not renew on its own. The court must notify the petitioning agency at least 30 days before the order expires, and the agency has until the order’s end date to file a motion to extend.2Online Sunshine. Florida Code 790.401 – Risk Protection Orders
Once that motion is filed, the court schedules a hearing within 14 days and the respondent has to be personally served. The clear and convincing standard applies again. If the court finds the original grounds still hold, it can extend the RPO for up to another 12 months. When the respondent does not contest the extension and no changes are sought, the court can grant it based on a motion or affidavit that circumstances have not materially changed. There is no statutory cap on the number of extensions.
Getting Firearms Back
When an RPO expires without being extended, or when a court vacates it, returning the firearms is not automatic. The agency holding the weapons has to run a background check to confirm the respondent is currently eligible to possess firearms under both state and federal law, and confirm with the court that the order has actually ended.3Florida Senate. Florida Code 790.401 – Risk Protection Orders Before any firearms are returned, the agency must notify the respondent’s family or household members. A suspended concealed-carry license is reinstated separately by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, again after an eligibility check. Firearms unclaimed for one year after the order ends are disposed of under the agency’s standard policies for weapons in police custody.
Penalties for Violating an Order
Knowingly possessing a firearm or ammunition while subject to an active RPO, or attempting to buy one, is a third-degree felony.1Florida Senate. Florida Code 790.401 – Risk Protection Orders The exposure is up to five years in state prison and a fine of up to $5,000.4Florida Senate. Florida Code 775.083 – Fines The felony conviction that follows would also trigger a permanent federal firearms disability, well after the RPO itself has expired.
How the Order Shows Up in Federal Systems
The clerk of court enters the order into the Florida Crime Information Center and the National Crime Information Center within 24 hours of issuance, and it stays there for the full term. Any attempt to buy a firearm from a licensed dealer during that period will flag on the background check.
One boundary is worth flagging: federal law lists specific categories of prohibited possessors, and a standalone risk protection order is not one of them.5Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Identify Prohibited Persons The prohibition that keeps guns out of the respondent’s hands is the state one, backed by the Florida felony statute and the NCIC entry. A federal firearms disability, if it comes, generally comes from a resulting felony conviction rather than from the RPO itself.