Florida security deposit law
Your landlord is on a clock, and most tenants never find out it exists. Here is what the statute actually says - quoted, with a link so you can read it yourself.
Florida runs two clocks. If your landlord is not claiming anything, the deposit must come back within 15 days. If they intend to claim against it, they have 30 days to send you written notice - by certified mail.
- Itemization
- Required, in a specific statutory form, sent by certified mail. You then have 15 days to object in writing.
- If they get it wrong
- A landlord who misses the 30-day notice deadline forfeits the right to impose any claim on the deposit and may not seek a setoff against it. They can still sue separately for damages, but only after returning the deposit.
- Statute
- Fla. Stat. § 83.49
The part most people miss
The certified-mail requirement is the thing to check first. A landlord who emailed you, texted you, or said it in person has not met the statute - and the deadline keeps running while they think they have.
If the landlord fails to give the required notice within the 30-day period, he or she forfeits the right to impose a claim upon the security deposit and may not seek a setoff against the deposit but may file an action for damages after return of the deposit.
Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(a)
Where that leaves you
Work out the date you handed back possession, then count. If the deadline has passed and nothing arrived, that fact alone carries weight under Florida law - read the statute above and see where you stand.
If you are still living there, or about to move out, the most useful thing you can do takes fifteen minutes. Nearly every dispute reduces to a single question - was that damage there before you were - and the person holding dated photographs is the one who wins it.
Check your exact timeline for Florida
Other states
How this was sourced: Statute text read at flsenate.gov (§ 83.49, 2023 edition), 19 Aug 2026. Confirm no amendment in the current session before relying on it.