To remove an eviction from your record in Florida, you file a motion to seal under Florida Statute ยง 83.626, a 2023 law that lets a tenant who was the defendant in an eviction case ask the court to make the record confidential and replace the tenant’s name with “tenant” on the public docket. You can only use this relief once in your lifetime, and only if your case fits one of five specific situations. Picking the right case to file on, and knowing whether a hearing is coming, matters more than the paperwork itself.
The Five Ways You Can Qualify
Section 83.626 recognizes five eligibility paths. You qualify if any one of these fits your case:
- You and your former landlord both agree and file a joint stipulation asking the court to seal the record.
- The eviction case was dismissed, for any reason.
- You and the landlord resolved the case by settlement or stipulation and you have fully complied with its terms.
- A default judgment was entered against you, but you have since paid any monetary award in that judgment.
- A judgment was entered against you after trial, at least five years have passed since that judgment, and you have satisfied any monetary award.
The last two paths carry an exception you need to know about. If the eviction was based on intentional destruction, damage, or misuse of the landlord’s property rather than unpaid rent, neither the default-judgment path nor the five-year path is open to you.1Florida Senate. CS/HB 1417 (2023) – Section 83.626
Who the Law Shuts Out
Two bars will disqualify you regardless of which path you otherwise fit.
First, if judgments were entered against you in two or more eviction proceedings within any 12-month period, you cannot seal. Second, if you have already had an eviction record sealed anywhere in Florida, you are done. The statute allows this relief one time only, and when you file your motion you must submit a sworn statement, under penalty of perjury, confirming you have never previously received this relief from any Florida court.1Florida Senate. CS/HB 1417 (2023) – Section 83.626
If you have more than one eviction on your record, think hard about which case to move on. There is no second chance.
How to File the Motion
You file the motion in the same court that handled the original eviction. What happens after you file depends on which eligibility category you used.
No-Hearing Paths
If your case was dismissed, or if you and the landlord filed a joint stipulation, the court must grant the motion without a hearing. These are the quickest routes and can be resolved in a matter of weeks.1Florida Senate. CS/HB 1417 (2023) – Section 83.626
Paths That Require Notice to the Landlord
If you are filing based on settlement compliance, a satisfied default judgment, or the five-year judgment path, there is an added step. You must serve the motion on every party to the original eviction, usually the landlord or the landlord’s attorney. They then have 30 days to object in writing.
If no objection arrives within that window, the court must grant your motion. If someone objects, the court sets a hearing, and you will need to show you meet the eligibility requirements. Bring proof that any monetary award has been paid: receipts, bank records, or a satisfaction of judgment signed by the landlord.1Florida Senate. CS/HB 1417 (2023) – Section 83.626
Fee and Timing
Expect a filing fee around $42, depending on the county. A dismissed-case motion can wrap up in weeks. Anything that triggers the 30-day notice period, and especially anything that goes to a contested hearing, can stretch to several months in busier counties.
What Sealing Actually Does
When the court grants a motion to seal, the eviction case record becomes confidential and is removed from public access. Your name is replaced with “tenant” on the progress docket, which is the listing tenant screening companies search.
Sealing is not erasure. Court staff and certain government agencies can still see the file. For the practical purpose of a rental application, though, the record will not surface in public court searches.
If You Won the Eviction, Your Name Comes Off Automatically
One piece of the law works without any motion at all. If the court enters judgment in your favor as the defendant in an eviction, the court must automatically substitute your name with “tenant” on the progress docket.1Florida Senate. CS/HB 1417 (2023) – Section 83.626
This is narrower than full sealing. The case record stays accessible; it just is not linked to your name. Because most screening companies find eviction records by searching names, this substitution removes the most common way a defeated eviction shows up in a background check.
Making Screening Companies Honor the Seal
Clearing the court record is only part of the job. Tenant screening companies keep their own databases, and a sealed eviction can linger there if a company has not updated its data.
The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires screening companies to use reasonable procedures to ensure accuracy. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has stated those procedures must prevent reporting of records that have been “expunged, sealed, or otherwise legally restricted from public access,” and that reporting a sealed record is misleading and inaccurate.2Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. CFPB Addresses Inaccurate Background Check Reports
If a sealed eviction turns up on a screening report, dispute it. The Federal Trade Commission suggests:
- Contact the screening company directly with a dispute, attaching a copy of the court order granting the seal.
- If you call, follow up in writing to create a paper trail.
- Tell the landlord who denied your application that you have filed a dispute, so they know the information may be wrong.
The company generally has 30 days to investigate and report back, sometimes 45. If the information cannot be verified or is confirmed inaccurate, the company must delete or correct it. For unsealed evictions, keep in mind the FCRA allows reporting for up to seven years from the filing date regardless of outcome.3Consumer Advice (Federal Trade Commission). Disputing Errors on Your Tenant Background Check Report
Where to Get Help
A dismissed-case motion is simple enough that many tenants file it on their own. If your path is a contested one, where the landlord may object, legal aid is worth the call.
Legal Services of Greater Miami posts self-help resources, tenants’ rights brochures, and an eviction answer builder.4Legal Services of Greater Miami. Self Help Community Legal Services of Mid-Florida handles housing matters across central Florida.5FFLA. Florida Legal Aid Programs Florida Law Help gathers statewide legal aid resources and referrals.6Florida Law Help. Home DIY Florida, from the Florida Courts system, builds legal documents through a guided questionnaire that you can then file through the E-Portal or at your local clerk’s office.7Florida Courts. DIY Florida The Florida Courts website also keeps a county-by-county directory of legal aid organizations.8Florida Courts. Legal Aid A free consultation with one of these organizations is often the fastest way to confirm which path fits your case before you use your one shot.