Florida Security Deposit Return Deadline: What the Law Requires

Florida fixes how quickly a security deposit has to come back after a lease ends, and the deadline turns on one question: does the landlord plan to keep any of the money? The answer, and the notice rules attached to it, sit in a single statute, Fla. Stat. § 83.49, which is part of Florida landlord-tenant law. This article covers the return deadline, the written notice a landlord must send to claim part of a deposit, how a tenant disputes a deduction, and the separate rule for tenants who leave before the lease is up.

The 15-day and 30-day deadlines

Two deadlines control the return of a Florida security deposit, and only one of them applies to any given move-out.

If the landlord does not intend to keep any part of the deposit, Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(a) requires the full deposit back, plus any interest owed, within 15 days after the rental agreement terminates. If the landlord does intend to keep part of the deposit, the same paragraph gives the landlord 30 days after termination to send written notice of that intention by certified mail, or by email where the parties have agreed to it under Fla. Stat. § 83.505, to the tenant’s last known address.

A landlord who misses the 30-day deadline does not just lose part of the money. Under § 83.49(3)(a), a landlord who fails to send the notice in time forfeits the right to impose any claim on the deposit and has to return it, though the landlord may still file a separate lawsuit for damages afterward.

The clock runs from termination of the rental agreement, not from the day the tenant returns the keys or the day a new tenant moves in.

How a landlord claims part of the deposit

When a landlord wants to keep some or all of a deposit for unpaid rent or damage beyond ordinary wear, § 83.49(3)(a) prescribes the exact wording of the notice. The notice must state the amount of the claim, the reason for it, and that the tenant has 15 days to object.

1. The landlord sends a notice of claim within 30 days

   Within 30 days after the tenancy ends, the landlord sends written notice by certified mail to the tenant’s last known address, or by email where the parties agreed to electronic delivery. The notice states the dollar amount of the intended claim and the reason for it.

2. The tenant has 15 days to object in writing

   The notice must tell the tenant that a written objection is due within 15 days after the tenant receives it. The objection goes to the landlord’s address listed in the notice. A tenant who does nothing lets the deadline pass.

3. The landlord deducts and returns the balance

   If the tenant does not object within 15 days, the landlord may deduct the claimed amount and must send the remaining balance within 30 days after the date of the notice of intention, under § 83.49(3)(b).

The notice requirement is strict about timing but not about certified mail alone. Email delivery works only when both parties signed an addendum agreeing to it and listed valid email addresses, the form for which appears in § 83.505.

Objecting to a deduction

A tenant who disagrees with a landlord’s claim has 15 days from receiving the notice to object in writing. Missing that window has a narrow effect: under § 83.49(3)(b), failure to object in time lets the landlord deduct the claimed amount, but it does not waive the tenant’s right to sue separately for the money in a later action.

If either side takes the dispute to court, § 83.49(3)(c) entitles the prevailing party to court costs plus a reasonable attorney fee, and directs the court to advance the case on its calendar. The fee-shifting provision cuts both ways: a tenant who loses a deposit suit can be ordered to pay the landlord’s costs and fees, and a landlord who loses can be ordered to pay the tenant’s.

A landlord’s notice of intention to impose a claim is not an eviction notice. The notices a landlord uses to end a tenancy for unpaid rent or lease violations run on separate timelines described in Florida’s eviction notice rules.

Whether Florida caps the deposit amount

Florida law sets no statutory maximum on a residential security deposit. Neither § 83.49 nor any other section of the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act limits the dollar figure, so the amount is set by the lease. The Florida Bar’s consumer guide to the rights and duties of tenants and landlords describes the same framework: the statute governs how the deposit is handled, not how much it can be.

What the statute regulates instead is how the money is held while the tenancy runs. Under § 83.49(1), a landlord must keep the deposit in a separate non-interest-bearing Florida account, keep it in a separate interest-bearing account that pays the tenant at least 75 percent of the average rate or 5 percent simple interest, or post a surety bond. When interest is owed, the landlord pays or credits it to the tenant at least once a year.

Moving out early and the 7-day notice

A tenant who leaves before the lease term ends carries an extra obligation that affects the deposit. Under § 83.49(5), a tenant who vacates or abandons the unit before the end of the term must give the landlord at least 7 days’ written notice by certified mail or personal delivery, and that notice must include an address where the tenant can be reached.

Skipping the 7-day notice does not forfeit the deposit, but it does relieve the landlord of the duty to send the 15-day return notice under paragraph (3)(a). The tenant keeps any right to the deposit, but loses the timing protection that the notice would otherwise trigger. The rules for ending a lease before the term is up, including when a tenant can do so without owing the remaining rent, are covered in breaking a lease early in Florida.