A Florida eviction notice is the written demand a landlord must give a tenant before filing an eviction lawsuit, and the form it takes depends entirely on why you want the tenant out. Chapter 83 of the Florida Statutes recognizes four situations, each with its own notice, its own deadline, and its own required language.1The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes Chapter 83 – Landlord and Tenant Get the wrong form, the wrong amount, or the wrong delivery method, and a judge has grounds to dismiss the case before it starts.
Match the Notice to Your Reason
Four notices cover almost every residential eviction in the state. Pick from them based on what the tenant did or failed to do.
3-Day Notice for Nonpayment of Rent
When rent is late, you deliver a written demand giving the tenant three working days to pay in full or vacate. Working days exclude Saturdays, Sundays, and court-observed holidays, and the day you deliver the notice does not count toward the three.2The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 83.56 – Termination of Rental Agreement
The dollar amount on the notice must be unpaid rent only. Florida defines rent as the periodic payment due under the lease plus any other charges the written lease specifically labels as rent.3The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 83.43(12) – Definitions If your lease does not designate late fees or utility charges as rent, do not include them. Inflating the demanded amount is one of the most common reasons these notices get invalidated.
7-Day Notice to Cure
Use this when the tenant has broken the lease in a way that can be fixed. The statute gives examples such as unauthorized pets, unauthorized vehicles, improper parking, and failing to keep the unit clean.4The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 83.56(2)(b) – Termination of Rental Agreement Describe the specific problem, give the tenant seven days to correct it, and include the statute’s required warning: if the same type of violation happens again within twelve months, you can terminate the lease without offering another chance to cure.
7-Day Unconditional Notice to Vacate
Some violations are serious enough that the tenant gets no chance to fix anything. Intentional destruction of property and repeated disturbances after a prior written warning fall into this group. You state the violation, state your intent to end the lease, and the tenant has seven days to leave.5The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 83.56(2)(a) – Termination of Rental Agreement The same notice applies when a tenant commits the same type of lease violation within twelve months of receiving a 7-day notice to cure for a similar problem.
30-Day Notice to End a Month-to-Month Tenancy
With no fixed-term lease in place, you can end the arrangement without giving any reason. Deliver written notice at least 30 days before the end of a monthly rental period.6The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 83.57 – Termination of Tenancy Without Specific Term The trap is timing. The 30 days must fully expire before the end of the monthly period, so count backward from the last day of the rental month and make sure the tenant has the notice at least 30 days earlier.
What the Notice Must Contain
The Florida Bar publishes free notice templates on its website. Form 1 covers the 3-day notice for nonpayment, and Form 2 covers the 7-day notice for noncompliance other than rent.7The Florida Bar. Landlord/Tenant Forms Many county clerk of court websites also post blank forms, and a guided self-help filing tool is available through the statewide e-filing portal at myflcourtaccess.com.
Every notice needs the following:
- Every adult tenant named on the rental agreement.
- The full property address, including any apartment or unit number and the county.
- The reason for the notice. For nonpayment, state the exact dollar amount owed. For lease violations, describe the specific conduct.
- The calculated deadline by which the tenant must pay, cure, or move out.
- Your name, mailing address, and phone number.
The 3-day nonpayment notice carries a further requirement. Florida law prescribes specific language the notice must follow “in substantially the following form,” with a demand for payment of the stated rent amount or possession of the premises within three working days.8The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 83.56(3) – Termination of Rental Agreement Using the Florida Bar’s Form 1 is the safest way to meet this, since the statutory language is already built into the template.9The Florida Bar. Form 1 – Notice From Landlord to Tenant – Termination for Failure to Pay Rent
The 7-day noncompliance notice has its own required content: a description of the violation, a demand that the tenant fix it within seven days, and the warning that repeating the same conduct within twelve months will end the lease without another chance to cure.10The Florida Bar. Form 2 – Notice of Noncompliance for Matters Other Than Failure to Pay Rent Again, the official template keeps you from accidentally omitting an element.
Date and sign the notice before you deliver it. The date starts the compliance clock. The signature confirms the demand came from the landlord or an authorized agent.
How to Deliver the Notice Legally
Florida Statute 83.56(4) allows four methods of delivery, and a lease cannot waive these requirements:11The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 83.56(4) – Termination of Rental Agreement
- Hand delivery to the tenant or to another adult at the residence.
- Regular mail or certified mail. Certified mail produces a receipt you can use as proof of delivery in court.
- E-mail, but only if the tenant has agreed to receive notices by e-mail under Florida Statute 83.505.
- Leaving a copy at the dwelling unit if the tenant is absent.
Document whatever method you use. Keep the certified mail receipt, save the e-mail with its timestamp, or write a short declaration recording the date, time, and method. A judge will want proof of delivery before allowing the eviction to move forward.
How to Count the Days
The 3-day nonpayment notice has the strictest counting rule. Exclude the day of delivery, and exclude Saturdays, Sundays, and court-observed legal holidays from the three-day count.9The Florida Bar. Form 1 – Notice From Landlord to Tenant – Termination for Failure to Pay Rent Deliver on a Wednesday with no holidays that week and the deadline lands the following Monday. Deliver on a Thursday and it moves to the following Tuesday.
For both 7-day notices, the seven days run from the date of delivery. The statute does not carve out weekends the way it does for the 3-day notice, so the count is typically calendar days. If you mail the notice instead of hand-delivering it, allow additional time for postal delivery before the clock starts.
Federal Rules That Can Override the Florida Deadline
Two federal overlays can lengthen the notice period beyond what Chapter 83 requires. Serve the wrong notice on a tenant covered by either and the notice will not support an eviction.
Active-duty military tenants and their dependents are protected by the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. In most cases, a landlord cannot evict a service member or their family from a primary residence without a court order, and the court can stay execution of an eviction if military duty materially affects the service member’s ability to comply. These protections generally last through active service and up to 90 days after discharge.12United States Courts. Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA)
Properties in federal housing programs or carrying federally backed mortgages may fall under Section 4024 of the CARES Act, which requires at least 30 days’ notice before requiring a tenant to vacate for nonpayment. If your property qualifies, that 30-day period applies even though the state 3-day notice is shorter. Check the loan documents or contact the mortgage servicer if you are unsure.
Do Not Try to Remove the Tenant Yourself
Florida Statute 83.67 prohibits landlords from using self-help to force a tenant out. You cannot change the locks, shut off utilities, remove exterior doors or windows, or take a tenant’s belongings out of the unit.13The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 83.67 – Prohibited Practices Hiring someone else to cut the power or block access is treated the same as doing it yourself.
The penalty is serious. A tenant who proves a self-help eviction can recover actual damages or three months’ rent, whichever is greater, plus court costs and attorney fees, with each separate violation carrying its own award.14The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 83.67(6) – Prohibited Practices The statute also treats any violation as irreparable harm, which allows a court to issue an immediate injunction restoring access and services. Deliver the notice, let the deadline run, and if the tenant does not comply, file a Complaint for Eviction in the county court where the property sits.