How to Fill Out the Sheriff’s Entry of Service Form in Georgia

To fill out the Sheriff’s Entry of Service form in Georgia, complete the top half with the court name, county, case number (if assigned), and the full legal names and physical addresses of the plaintiff and defendant, then file it with the clerk of court along with your summons, complaint, and service fee. A sheriff’s deputy handles delivery and completes the bottom half, called the return of service, which becomes the court’s official proof that the defendant was notified.

What Goes on the Form

The form is one page, split into two halves. The top half is yours. The bottom half belongs to the deputy who attempts delivery, and you leave it blank.

Your half asks for a small set of facts:

The court and county where the case is filed. Write it out fully, such as Fulton County Superior Court, so the deputy knows which clerk to return the form to.
The case number, if the clerk has already assigned one. For a brand-new filing, leave this blank and the clerk will fill it in.
The plaintiff’s full legal name and current mailing address.
The defendant’s full legal name and a physical street address where the deputy can attempt delivery. A P.O. box will not work.
Garnishee name and address, but only in a garnishment action. Otherwise leave this blank.

The deputy’s half of the form has checkboxes for the method of service (Personal, Notorious, Corporation, Tack and Mail, or Non Est), plus space for the date, time, and a physical description of whoever accepted the papers.¹ You do not fill any of that in, but knowing what the deputy has to record helps you decide what to put on top.

Completing the Plaintiff’s Section

Match the names on the form to the names on the complaint, letter for letter. A nickname or an abbreviated business name can give the clerk a reason to reject the filing, or the defendant a reason to challenge service later.

The defendant’s address is the field that decides whether service succeeds. Give the physical street address where the defendant actually lives or works. Under Georgia law, the deputy can hand the papers to the defendant in person, leave them at the defendant’s home with a person of suitable age and discretion who lives there, or deliver them to an authorized agent.² A wrong address means a wasted attempt, and the service fee is generally not refunded.

Add anything on the form that will help the deputy actually find the defendant: apartment or unit number, gate codes, a physical description, or the hours the defendant is usually home. The Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office notes that every civil service request has to be accompanied by a completed Entry of Service form.³ Deputies work through long lists of service attempts, and specific directions raise your odds of a first-attempt success.

Suing a Corporation

When the defendant is a business entity, use the “Corporation” checkbox and enter the registered agent’s name and address in the defendant field. Georgia law treats a corporation’s registered agent as its agent for accepting legal papers.⁴ You can look up that name and address through the Georgia Secretary of State’s Business Search tool.⁵ If the corporation has no registered agent, or the agent cannot be found with reasonable effort, the statute allows service by certified mail or statutory overnight delivery addressed to the corporate secretary at the principal office.

Suing a Minor or an Incapacitated Person

Serving a minor, or an adult who has been judicially declared incapable of managing their own affairs, requires reaching a second person as well. For an incapacitated person with an appointed guardian, the deputy has to deliver copies to both the individual and the guardian. If no guardian exists, the court appoints a guardian ad litem to receive service on the person’s behalf.² For a minor 14 or older who is temporarily outside Georgia, service can be made by certified mail with return receipt; the court must appoint a guardian ad litem, and no judgment affecting the minor’s interest can be entered until 60 days after the service receipt, unless the guardian ad litem expressly waives that wait.⁶

On the form itself, list the defendant and the guardian or parent separately, with an address for each. The deputy needs to see clearly that two deliveries are required for one defendant.

Filing the Form and Paying the Service Fee

Submit the completed Entry of Service form to the Clerk of Court together with the original summons and complaint. The clerk stamps the papers as filed, assigns or confirms the case number, and forwards the service package to the sheriff’s office.

The sheriff’s fee for serving one defendant is $50 in many Georgia counties, including Fulton and Gwinnett.⁷³⁸ You pay a separate fee for each defendant. The fee is typically nonrefundable even if the deputy cannot locate the defendant. Accepted payment methods vary, so ask your local clerk whether they take cash, certified checks, or credit cards.

Electronic Filing

Most Georgia courts now require electronic filing through PeachCourt or Odyssey eFileGA. Which one your county uses (and some counties use both) depends on the court.⁹ When e-filing, you upload the completed Entry of Service form as a supporting document within the initial filing package. The system adds the sheriff’s service fee to your filing costs. Once payment clears, the clerk routes the service request to the sheriff electronically.

If you file in person, the clerk gives you a timestamped copy for your records. Either way, once the clerk accepts the documents and fee, your job on delivery is done.

What Happens After You File

Georgia law directs the person making service to deliver the papers within five days of receiving the summons and complaint, though service later than that is still valid.² In practice, most sheriff’s offices aim to serve within about seven working days of receipt.¹⁰ Actual timing depends on the deputy’s caseload and how easy the defendant is to find.

After the attempt, the deputy fills out the return of service on the bottom half of the form, recording the method used, the date and time, and identifying details about anyone who accepted the papers. That proof of service must be filed with the court within five business days of service. If it is not filed inside that window, the defendant’s response clock does not start until the return actually reaches the court.²

Once the return is on file, the defendant has 30 days from the date of service to answer.¹¹ You can watch for the return through your county’s online case portal.

If the Deputy Cannot Serve the Defendant

If the deputy cannot find the defendant after a diligent search, the return comes back marked “Non Est,” meaning the person was not found within the court’s jurisdiction. You still owe the service fee, and the defendant is not yet formally on notice. Two paths are available.

Ask the Clerk for Another Summons

Georgia law allows you to request that the clerk issue a separate or additional summons at any time.² If you have a better address, submit a new Entry of Service form with the updated information and pay the service fee again.

Service by Publication

When the defendant has left the state, cannot be found after due diligence, or is actively concealing themselves to avoid service, you can ask the court to authorize service by publication. File an affidavit setting out what you did to locate the defendant and why personal service is not possible. If the judge or clerk is satisfied, an order will issue directing publication of the summons in the newspaper where the county’s sheriff’s advertisements run. The notice must be published four times within 60 days, with at least seven days between each publication, and you pay the publication cost at filing.²

Publication is a last resort. Courts look hard at these affidavits because a newspaper notice is far less likely to reach the defendant than a deputy at the door. Thin search efforts get the request denied.

1
Georgia Magistrate Council. Sheriff Entry of Service Form
2
Justia. Georgia Code 9-11-4 – Process
3
Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office. Civil Process
4
Justia. Georgia Code 14-2-504 – Service on Corporation
5
Georgia Secretary of State. Business Search
6
Justia. Georgia Code 9-10-70 – Service on Resident Minor Over 14 Temporarily Outside State
7
Fulton County Superior Court. Review Fee Schedule
8
Liberty County, GA. Filing Fees and Costs
9
Georgia Courts. E-File Court Records
10
Long County Sheriff’s Office. Civil Process
11
Justia. Georgia Code 9-11-12 – Answer, Defenses, and Objections; When and How Presented and Heard; When Defenses Waived; Stay of Discovery