Public service notice. Nothing in this article is legal advice or legal instruction. The only legal information it contains is quoted or summarized from the Florida Statutes and government publications cited in the numbered notes, and it is shared as a public service announcement only.
In 2024, Florida created a procedure that allows a residential property owner to ask the county sheriff, rather than a court, to remove unauthorized occupants, often described as squatters. The statute, section 82.036 of the Florida Statutes, was created by chapter 2024-44, Laws of Florida, and amended in 2025 by chapter 2025-112, which also created a parallel procedure for commercial property in section 82.037. Much of the coverage from 2024 describes the original version. This article quotes the current text, and the numbered notes at the end link to each original.
This article is part of a series on removing occupants from Florida residential property. Court cases against occupants with no agreement to pay rent are covered in Eviction vs. Unlawful Detainer in Florida, and residential evictions in DIY Landlord Evictions in Florida.
Everything that follows is quoted or summarized from the Florida Statutes and the government publications cited. None of it represents legal advice, legal instruction, or the legal opinions of the author.
When the statute says the procedure is available
Section 82.036(1) opens with a legislative finding: “The Legislature finds that the right to exclude others from entering, and the right to direct others to immediately vacate, residential real property are the most important real property rights.” It states that “The intent of this section is to quickly restore possession of residential real property to the lawful owner of the property when the property is being unlawfully occupied.”¹
Section 82.036(2) provides that “A property owner or his or her authorized agent may request from the sheriff of the county in which the property is located the immediate removal of a person or persons unlawfully occupying a residential dwelling pursuant to this section if all of the following conditions are met”:¹
- “The requesting person is the property owner or authorized agent of the property owner.”
- “The real property that is being occupied includes a residential dwelling.”
- “An unauthorized person or persons have unlawfully entered and remain or continue to reside on the property owner’s property.”
- “The real property was not open to members of the public at the time the unauthorized person or persons entered.”
- “The property owner has directed the unauthorized person to leave the property.”
- “The unauthorized person or persons are not current or former tenants pursuant to a written or oral rental agreement authorized by the property owner.”
- “The unauthorized person or persons are not immediate family members of the property owner.”
- “There is no pending litigation related to the real property between the property owner and any known unauthorized person.”¹
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office summarizes the same requirements on its website, stating that “In order for the Marion County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) to enforce F.S.S. 82.036, ALL of the following conditions must be met.”²
The verified complaint
Section 82.036(3) provides that “the property owner or his or her authorized agent must submit a complaint by presenting a completed and verified Complaint to Remove Persons Unlawfully Occupying Residential Real Property to the sheriff of the county in which the real property is located,” and that “The submitted complaint must be in substantially the following form.”¹ The form begins with the owner or agent declaring “under the penalty of perjury” and instructs the signer to “initial each box” beside thirteen numbered statements. They include:¹
- “I am the owner of the real property or the authorized agent of the owner of the real property.”
- “I purchased the property on” a date the owner fills in.
- “The person or persons are not current or former tenants pursuant to any valid lease authorized by the property owner, and any lease that may be produced by an occupant is fraudulent.”
- “The unauthorized person or persons sought to be removed are not an owner or a co-owner of the property and have not been listed on the title to the property unless the person or persons have engaged in title fraud.”
- “I understand that a person or persons removed from the property pursuant to this procedure may bring a cause of action against me for any false statements made in this complaint, or for wrongfully using this procedure, and that as a result of such action I may be held liable for actual damages, penalties, costs, and reasonable attorney fees.”
- “I am requesting the sheriff to immediately remove the unauthorized person or persons from the residential property. I authorize the sheriff to enter the property using reasonably necessary force, to search the property, and to remove any unauthorized person or persons.”
- “A copy of my valid government-issued identification is attached, or I am an agent of the property owner, and documents evidencing my authority to act on the property owner’s behalf are attached.”¹
The form closes with a statement in capital letters above the signature line:
I HAVE READ EVERY STATEMENT MADE IN THIS PETITION AND EACH STATEMENT IS TRUE AND CORRECT. I UNDERSTAND THAT THE STATEMENTS MADE IN THIS PETITION ARE BEING MADE UNDER PENALTY OF PERJURY, PUNISHABLE AS PROVIDED IN SECTION 92.525, FLORIDA STATUTES.¹
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office instructs owners that “you must complete a §82.036 COMPLAINT TO REMOVE PERSONS UNLAWFULLY OCCUPYING RESIDENTIAL REAL PROPERTY (DWELLING) form.”²
What the statute says the sheriff does
Under section 82.036(4), “Upon receipt of the complaint, the sheriff shall verify that the person submitting the complaint is the record owner of the real property or the authorized agent of the owner and appears otherwise entitled to relief under this section. If verified, the sheriff shall, without delay, serve a notice to immediately vacate on all the unlawful occupants and shall put the owner in possession of the real property.”¹ The statute provides that “Service may be accomplished by hand delivery of the notice to an occupant or by posting the notice on the front door or entrance of the dwelling,” that “The sheriff shall also attempt to verify the identities of all persons occupying the dwelling and note the identities on the return of service,” and that “If appropriate, the sheriff may arrest any person found in the dwelling for trespass, outstanding warrants, or any other legal cause.”¹
Section 82.036(5) addresses fees and the occupants’ belongings. “The sheriff is entitled to the same fee for service of the notice to immediately vacate as if the sheriff were serving a writ of possession under s. 30.231.” After service, “the property owner or authorized agent may request that the sheriff stand by to keep the peace while the property owner or agent of the owner changes the locks and removes the personal property of the unlawful occupants from the premises to or near the property line,” and “When such a request is made, the sheriff may charge a reasonable hourly rate.”¹ The same subsection states that “The property owner or his or her authorized agent is not liable to an unlawful occupant or any other party for the loss, destruction, or damage to the personal property unless the removal was wrongful.”¹
Wrongful removal and other remedies
Section 82.036(6) provides that “A person may bring a civil cause of action for wrongful removal under this section. A person harmed by a wrongful removal under this section may be restored to possession of the real property and may recover actual costs and damages incurred, statutory damages equal to triple the fair market rent of the dwelling, court costs, and reasonable attorney fees.”¹ Section 82.036(7) states that “This section does not limit the rights of a property owner or limit the authority of a law enforcement officer to arrest an unlawful occupant for trespassing, vandalism, theft, or other crimes.”¹
The sheriff procedure is described in the statute’s own title as a “Limited alternative remedy.” Chapter 82 also provides a court action. Section 82.03(1) states that “A person entitled to possession of real property, including constructive possession by a record titleholder, has a cause of action against a person who obtained possession of that real property by forcible entry, unlawful entry, or unlawful detention and may recover possession and damages,” and section 82.03(4) provides that “All actions under this chapter must be brought by summary procedure as provided in s. 51.011.”¹ Section 82.02(1) states that “This chapter does not apply to residential tenancies under part II of chapter 83,” the landlord-tenant law.¹
The 2025 amendments and commercial property
The history note for section 82.036 lists two enactments, “s. 1, ch. 2024-44; s. 1, ch. 2025-112.”¹ The complaint form quoted above is the current version, as amended in 2025, and articles and forms prepared under the original 2024 law may show an earlier version of the form.
Chapter 2025-112 also created section 82.037, a “Limited alternative remedy to remove unauthorized persons from commercial real property.” It uses a separate “Complaint to Remove Persons Unlawfully Occupying Commercial Real Property” with eleven numbered statements, and its conditions omit the immediate-family requirement found in the residential procedure.¹
No services offered. BeforeYouFile.Info and Form America LLC do not prepare, complete, review, or submit the Complaint to Remove Persons Unlawfully Occupying Residential Real Property or any other document under sections 82.036 or 82.037. The complaint is signed under penalty of perjury and carries the possibility of a wrongful removal action, and the statements it contains are the owner’s own. Questions about whether the procedure fits a particular situation are for a licensed Florida attorney, and The Florida Bar Lawyer Referral Service can be reached at 800-342-8011.
Notes
- Florida House of Representatives, 2025 Florida Statutes, Chapter 82, Forcible Entry and Unlawful Detainer
- Marion County Sheriff’s Office, Unauthorized Occupants
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