Free Florida Eviction Complaint for a Lease Violation
Florida Eviction Complaint (Lease Violation) — a free preparation worksheet for a Florida eviction based on a lease breach other than nonpayment, after a 7-day notice under Fla. Stat. § 83.56(2) has expired. This organizes the facts; the eviction is filed on the county court’s official form.
A Florida eviction complaint for a lease violation is filed when a tenant breaches the lease for a reason other than nonpayment of rent. Under Fla. Stat. § 83.56(2), the landlord must first deliver either a 7-day notice to cure (for a curable violation) or a 7-day unconditional quit notice (for a non-curable or repeat violation). Once that notice expires without cure or surrender, the landlord files a complaint for possession under Fla. Stat. § 83.59 in the county court where the property sits, attaching the lease and the notice. The worksheet on this page is a preparation organizer — it is not the official court form and not the filed complaint, and it is not legal advice. Use it to assemble your facts, then transfer them to the clerk’s official complaint for possession.
Florida Eviction (Lease Violation) at a Glance
Predicate notice
7-day cure or 7-day quit § 83.56(2)
Complaint
County court § 83.59
Tenant answer
5 days § 51.011
Possession
Writ + 24 hrs § 83.62
This is a court filing — the worksheet does not replace the official form
The eviction is filed on the county court’s official complaint for possession under Fla. Stat. § 83.59, following the summary procedure of Fla. Stat. § 51.011. Florida forbids self-help eviction: a landlord may not change the locks, remove the tenant’s belongings, or shut off utilities to force a tenant out. Only the sheriff, acting on a writ of possession, may remove a tenant. When in doubt, consult a Florida landlord-tenant attorney or the clerk.
How a Florida Eviction for a Lease Violation Works
Confirm the 7-day notice has expired
Confirm a valid 7-day notice to cure or 7-day unconditional quit notice under Fla. Stat. § 83.56(2) was delivered and the seven days ran without cure or surrender.
Gather the underlying documents
Collect the signed lease, a copy of the 7-day notice, and dated proof of how and when it was delivered under Fla. Stat. § 83.56(4).
Complete this worksheet
Fill in the court and county, the parties, the property, the lease, the notice given and its date, the violation, and the relief sought, then generate the worksheet PDF.
File on the official county-court form
Transfer the facts to the clerk’s official complaint for possession, attach the lease and notice, pay the filing fee, and file in the correct county under Fla. Stat. § 83.59.
Serve, then be ready for the answer and hearing
Have the summons and complaint served, file proof of service, and prepare for the tenant’s 5-day answer and any hearing under the summary procedure.
A Florida lease-violation eviction moves through a fixed sequence: a written 7-day notice, then a complaint for possession, then service and a short window for the tenant to answer, then a hearing or default, a judgment, and finally a writ of possession the sheriff executes. Each step rests on the one before it. Skip or botch the notice and the complaint fails; miss a required attachment and the clerk or the tenant can knock the case down. The sections below walk through each stage with the governing Florida statute, and the worksheet below the video captures the facts you will need at every step.
The 7-Day Notice: Cure vs. Quit
Every lease-violation eviction in Florida begins with a written notice under Fla. Stat. § 83.56(2), and the statute splits into two paths depending on whether the violation can be fixed. Choosing the wrong path is one of the most common ways a Florida landlord loses an otherwise sound case, so it pays to read the two subsections carefully before drafting anything.
The 7-day notice to cure — § 83.56(2)(b)
For a curable violation, the landlord delivers a written notice that specifies the noncompliance and states that if it is not corrected within seven days from the date the notice is delivered, the landlord will terminate the rental agreement. This is the path for a first-time, fixable breach — an unauthorized pet the tenant can remove, a guest who has overstayed and can leave, a parking or nuisance issue the tenant can stop. The tenant gets a genuine chance to cure. If the tenant fixes the problem within the seven days, the tenancy continues and there is no basis to file.
The 7-day unconditional quit notice — § 83.56(2)(a)
For a violation that cannot be cured, or where the tenant repeats the same or a substantially similar violation within twelve months, the landlord delivers a written notice that specifies the noncompliance and the landlord’s intent to terminate, giving the tenant seven days to vacate. There is no opportunity to cure. The statute lists examples such as destruction, damage, or misuse of the landlord’s or another tenant’s property, and continued unreasonable disturbance. A repeat of a violation already noticed within the past year also falls here — the tenant used up the cure chance the first time.
Count the seven days as calendar days
Unlike the 3-day nonpayment notice, the 7-day notice periods in § 83.56(2) are counted in calendar days from delivery. Because the count is unforgiving, build in a cushion rather than filing a day early. Under Fla. Stat. § 83.56(4), the notice is delivered by mailing, by hand-delivering a true copy, by e-mail in accordance with § 83.505 where that applies, or, if the tenant is absent, by leaving a copy at the residence. Keep dated proof of the method used, because that proof gets attached to the complaint.
Lease Violation vs. Nonpayment: Don’t Use the Wrong Notice
Florida law treats a lease violation and unpaid rent as two different tracks, and the wrong starting notice can sink a filing. A nonpayment case begins with a 3-day notice to pay rent or quit under Fla. Stat. § 83.56(3), and those three days exclude Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays. A lease-violation case — the subject of this page — begins with the 7-day notice under § 83.56(2), counted in calendar days. If the real problem is unpaid rent, the 7-day notice is the wrong tool; if the problem is a lease breach, a 3-day notice is the wrong tool. Landlords who face both problems at once should treat them separately and pair each ground with its correct notice. For a companion worksheet on the nonpayment track, see the sibling form; the deeper statutory background lives in the Florida landlord-tenant laws overview.
| Track | Starting notice | Statute | Day count |
|---|---|---|---|
| Curable lease violation | 7-day notice to cure | § 83.56(2)(b) | 7 calendar days |
| Non-curable or repeat violation | 7-day unconditional quit | § 83.56(2)(a) | 7 calendar days |
| Nonpayment of rent | 3-day pay-or-quit | § 83.56(3) | 3 days, excl. weekends and holidays |
What the Complaint States
Under Fla. Stat. § 83.59, a landlord, the landlord’s attorney, or the landlord’s agent applying to remove a tenant files, in the county court of the county where the premises are situated, a complaint that describes the dwelling unit and states the facts that authorize its recovery. In a lease-violation case, those facts are: the parties and the property, the existence of a written or oral lease, the specific lease term breached, the fact that a 7-day notice under § 83.56(2) was delivered and how, the date the notice expired without cure or surrender, and a demand for possession. The lease and the served notice are attached as exhibits, and the landlord is entitled to the summary procedure in § 51.011, which moves the case ahead of ordinary civil matters.
Precision matters here. The complaint must describe the premises accurately, identify the correct legal parties (the owner of record or an authorized agent as plaintiff; every adult tenant on the lease as defendant), and rest on the exact ground stated in the 7-day notice. A complaint that describes a violation the notice never mentioned, or that names a party who is not on the lease, invites dismissal. Note also that under § 83.59 a non-attorney agent may file the initial complaint but is not permitted to take any further action in the case unless that agent is an attorney — so a property manager filing without counsel should plan for a lawyer to carry the case forward.
Possession vs. possession-plus-rent
A lease-violation case is usually a possession-only action — the landlord asks the court to return the unit, not to collect money. If the landlord also claims unpaid rent, the case becomes a possession-and-rent action, which changes what the tenant must do to defend (see the registry-deposit note below). Decide up front whether you are seeking possession only or possession plus a money judgment, because that choice shapes the complaint and the tenant’s obligations.
Where and How It Is Filed
The complaint is filed with the clerk of the county court for the county where the property is located, on that court’s official complaint-for-possession form, with the filing fee paid. Most Florida counties require or allow electronic filing through the statewide e-filing portal, and each clerk publishes its own local requirements for formatting, cover sheets, and the summons. Because those requirements differ by county and change over time, confirm the current form and fee with the clerk before you file. This is the step where the worksheet you prepare below earns its keep: it lets you walk into the clerk’s office (or the e-filing portal) with every fact already organized, so you are transcribing onto the official form rather than composing from scratch.
File in the right county. Venue lies where the premises are situated, not where the landlord lives or where the management company is headquartered. Filing in the wrong county wastes the fee and the time, and the case has to be refiled. Attach the lease and the 7-day notice as exhibits, and keep clerk-stamped copies of everything you file. A clean, complete filing is what keeps a Florida eviction on the fast summary-procedure track instead of bogging down in curable defects.
Service and the Tenant’s Answer
After filing, the summons and complaint are served on the tenant under the applicable service rules — typically personal service by the sheriff or a certified process server, with posted-and-mailed service available in defined circumstances when personal service cannot be made. Proof of service is filed with the court; without valid service, the court cannot enter a judgment against the tenant, and defective service is a frequent reason a case stalls or gets reopened.
Once served, the tenant has a short window to respond. Under the summary procedure in Fla. Stat. § 51.011, all defenses of law or fact must be contained in the tenant’s answer, which is due within five days after service of process. If the tenant files no answer, the landlord may move for a default and, on a proper record, obtain a judgment for possession. If the tenant answers and raises a genuine defense, the court sets the matter for a prompt hearing.
Rent into the court registry — a nonpayment rule, not automatic here
Under Fla. Stat. § 83.60(2), when a landlord sues for possession and the tenant raises any defense other than payment, the tenant must deposit the accrued rent claimed in the complaint into the court registry. That registry-deposit rule is aimed at nonpayment cases where rent is at issue. In a possession-only lease-violation case where no rent is demanded, the automatic deposit requirement generally does not apply — but if your complaint also claims unpaid rent, expect the deposit rule to come into play, and the tenant’s failure to deposit can waive defenses and speed a default. Know which kind of case you are filing.
Common Mistakes That Get a Case Dismissed
- Filing before the 7-day notice has run. The complaint cannot be filed until the seven days under § 83.56(2) have fully expired without cure or surrender. Filing a day early is a curable-looking error that a tenant can raise to defeat the case.
- Using the wrong notice. A 3-day pay-or-quit for a lease breach, or a 7-day notice for unpaid rent, mismatches the ground and the statute. Pair each ground with its correct notice under § 83.56(2) or § 83.56(3).
- A defective or unprovable notice. A notice that fails to specify the noncompliance, or that cannot be shown to have been delivered under § 83.56(4), undercuts the whole action. Keep dated proof of delivery.
- Filing in the wrong county. Venue is where the premises sit. Filing elsewhere forces a refile.
- Naming the wrong parties or describing the wrong premises. The plaintiff must be the owner or an authorized agent; every adult tenant belongs as a defendant; the unit must be described accurately.
- Defective service or missing proof of service. No valid, proven service means no enforceable judgment.
- Accepting rent after the notice. Taking rent for a period after the violation can be treated as a waiver of the breach in some circumstances; be deliberate about what you accept.
- Resorting to self-help. Changing locks, removing belongings, or cutting utilities exposes the landlord to liability under Fla. Stat. § 83.67; only the sheriff removes a tenant.
Florida Eviction (Lease Violation) — Statute Reference
| Stage | Statute | Key rule |
|---|---|---|
| Curable violation notice | § 83.56(2)(b) | 7 days to cure or the agreement terminates |
| Non-curable / repeat notice | § 83.56(2)(a) | 7 days to vacate, no cure |
| Notice delivery | § 83.56(4) | Mail, hand-deliver, e-mail (§ 83.505), or leave at residence |
| Nonpayment (contrast) | § 83.56(3) | 3-day pay-or-quit, excl. weekends/holidays |
| Complaint for possession | § 83.59 | File in county court; describe unit and state the facts |
| Summary procedure / answer | § 51.011 | Answer within 5 days after service |
| Defenses / rent registry | § 83.60 | Registry deposit where possession-and-rent is claimed |
| Writ of possession | § 83.62 | Sheriff posts writ; possession after 24 hours |
| No self-help | § 83.67 | No lockouts, no utility shutoff, no removing belongings |
Judgment and the Writ of Possession
If the landlord prevails — by default or after a hearing — the court enters a judgment for possession. Under Fla. Stat. § 83.62, the clerk then issues a writ of possession to the sheriff describing the premises and commanding the sheriff to put the landlord in possession after twenty-four hours’ notice conspicuously posted on the premises. Only the sheriff executes the writ; the landlord cannot do it personally. Once the sheriff has restored possession, the landlord may re-enter, change the locks, and handle any property left behind according to Florida’s statutory procedures rather than by self-help. Any money judgment for rent or damages, if awarded, is collected separately and does not delay the possession side of the case.
Best Practices
- Match the notice to the ground. Curable violation → 7-day notice to cure; non-curable or repeat → 7-day unconditional quit; unpaid rent → 3-day pay-or-quit. Getting this right at the start protects the whole case.
- Specify the violation precisely. The notice and the complaint should name the exact lease term breached and the facts, not a vague “you violated the lease.”
- Document delivery. Record how and when the 7-day notice was delivered under § 83.56(4) and keep that dated proof for the exhibit.
- Attach the lease and the notice. Both are exhibits to the complaint under § 83.59.
- File in the correct county court and confirm the current official form and fee with the clerk before filing.
- Effect proper service and file proof. Use the sheriff or a certified process server and get the return of service into the file.
- Screen future tenants thoroughly. Many lease-violation evictions trace back to a rushed move-in; verifying rental history and prior evictions up front prevents the next case.
- Get counsel for contested matters. If the tenant lawyers up or the facts are messy, a Florida landlord-tenant attorney is worth the cost.
Generate Your Florida Lease-Violation Eviction Worksheet
Complete the fields below to generate a preparation worksheet for a Florida eviction based on a lease violation. Again: this worksheet organizes your facts — it is not the official court form and not the filed complaint. File the eviction on the county court’s official complaint for possession, attaching your lease and the 7-day notice.
Purpose
Organizes the parties, property, lease, 7-day notice, violation, and relief for a Florida lease-violation eviction under Fla. Stat. § 83.56(2) and § 83.59, so the facts are ready to transfer to the county court’s official form.
1. Court & Parties
Plaintiff (Landlord / Owner / Authorized Agent)
Defendant (Tenant)
2. Property & Lease
3. Notice Given (7-Day)
4. Violation & Relief
5. Verification & Signature
About This Florida Eviction Worksheet
This page provides a free preparation worksheet for a Florida landlord pursuing an eviction based on a lease violation other than nonpayment of rent. It is governed by Part II of Chapter 83 of the Florida Statutes — the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act — and specifically by the noncompliance provisions of Fla. Stat. § 83.56 and the possession action in § 83.59. The worksheet mirrors the information a county-court complaint for possession requires, so that a landlord (or a landlord’s agent filing the initial complaint) can organize the facts before touching the official form. It does not, and cannot, substitute for that official form: the eviction is commenced only by filing the clerk’s complaint for possession, and this worksheet is titled and built as an organizer for exactly that reason. For the broader statutory framework, the Florida landlord-tenant laws overview and the Florida eviction notice laws guide explain the notices and timelines in more depth, and the Florida month-to-month rental agreement shows how a periodic tenancy that later goes wrong is created in the first place.
After You Prepare This Worksheet
Once the worksheet is complete, the next move is off this page and into the courthouse. Take your organized facts, the signed lease, and the 7-day notice with its proof of delivery, and complete the county court’s official complaint for possession — on paper at the clerk’s office or through the statewide e-filing portal, whichever your county uses. Pay the filing fee, attach the lease and notice as exhibits, and file in the county where the property sits. Then arrange service of the summons and complaint through the sheriff or a certified process server, file the proof of service, and calendar the tenant’s five-day answer window.
From there the case is on the summary-procedure track: a default if the tenant does not answer, or a prompt hearing if the tenant raises a defense, followed by a judgment and — if the landlord prevails — the writ of possession the sheriff executes after twenty-four hours. Keep clerk-stamped copies of everything, never attempt a self-help lockout, and get a Florida attorney involved if the tenant contests the case. Handled in order, a lease-violation eviction is a predictable process; the worksheet on this page exists to make sure nothing is missing before you start it.
Bottom line
A Florida lease-violation eviction rests on a valid 7-day notice under Fla. Stat. § 83.56(2) — to cure for a fixable breach, unconditional quit for a non-curable or repeat one — followed by a complaint for possession in county court under § 83.59. The wrong notice and defective service are the most common ways a case is dismissed. This is a preparation worksheet, not the official court form; use it to organize the facts, then file on the clerk’s complaint for possession.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a Florida eviction complaint for a lease violation?
It is the complaint for possession a Florida landlord files in county court to recover a rental unit after a tenant breaches the lease for a reason other than nonpayment of rent — such as an unauthorized occupant, a pet in violation of the lease, or damage to the premises. The action proceeds under Fla. Stat. § 83.59 after the landlord has served a 7-day notice under Fla. Stat. § 83.56(2) and that notice has expired without cure or surrender.
What is the difference between the 7-day notice to cure and the 7-day unconditional quit notice?
Under Fla. Stat. § 83.56(2)(b), a curable violation gets a 7-day notice to cure that gives the tenant seven days to fix the problem or the tenancy terminates. Under Fla. Stat. § 83.56(2)(a), a non-curable violation — or the same or a similar violation repeated within twelve months — gets a 7-day unconditional quit notice that gives the tenant seven days to vacate with no chance to cure.
How is a Florida lease-violation eviction different from a nonpayment eviction?
A nonpayment case starts with a 3-day notice to pay rent or quit under Fla. Stat. § 83.56(3), counting three days excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays. A lease-violation case starts with a 7-day notice under Fla. Stat. § 83.56(2), counted in calendar days. The correct notice depends on the ground, and using the wrong one can defeat the case.
Does the tenant have to deposit rent into the court registry in a lease-violation case?
The registry-deposit requirement in Fla. Stat. § 83.60(2) applies where the action is for possession and unpaid rent is claimed. In a possession-only lease-violation case where no rent is demanded, the automatic rent-into-registry rule generally does not apply, though a court can still address rent that comes due. If the complaint also claims rent, the deposit rule can apply.
How long does the tenant have to respond after being served?
Under the summary procedure in Fla. Stat. § 51.011, the tenant’s answer is due within five days after service of process. If the tenant does not answer, the landlord may move for a default and, on a proper record, a judgment for possession.
How is the 7-day notice delivered?
Under Fla. Stat. § 83.56(4), the notice is delivered by mailing, by hand-delivering a true copy, by e-mail in accordance with Fla. Stat. § 83.505 where that applies, or, if the tenant is absent, by leaving a copy at the residence. Keep dated proof of how and when the notice was delivered, because that proof is attached to the complaint.
Can I use this worksheet instead of the official court form?
No. This is a preparation worksheet, not the official court form and not the filed complaint. The eviction is filed on the county court’s official complaint for possession. Use this worksheet to organize the facts, then complete and file the official form with the clerk.
What happens after the landlord wins?
Under Fla. Stat. § 83.62, after a judgment for possession the clerk issues a writ of possession to the sheriff, who posts it on the premises and puts the landlord back in possession after twenty-four hours. A landlord may not use a self-help lockout or utility shutoff; only the sheriff executes the writ.
Do I need a lawyer to file a Florida eviction?
Self-representation is allowed, but these cases are technical and a defective notice or service is the most common reason a case is dismissed. A property manager who is not an attorney may file the initial complaint but generally cannot take further steps in the case. Consulting a Florida landlord-tenant attorney is strongly recommended, especially if the case is contested.
Screen Florida tenants thoroughly before move-in
Most lease-violation evictions trace back to a rushed approval. Tenant Screening Background Check has been verifying renters since 2004 — credit, eviction filings, criminal background, and employment — across all 50 states and DC.
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