# Florida — How long a money judgment stays enforceable before it must be renewed, by state

For Florida, how the statute states the period is no judgment, order, or decree of any court shall be a lien upon real or personal property within the state after the expiration of 20 years from the date of the entry of such judgment, order, or decree; section is 55.081, verified against its source on 2026-09-01.

- **State:** Florida _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_
- **How long the judgment stays enforceable before it must be renewed or revived:** 20 years from the date of entry. After that, no judgment, order, or decree of any court is a lien upon real or personal property anywhere in the state. A recorded lien reaches that outer limit only if it is re-recorded on the way there. _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_
- **What has to happen to extend it:** Re-recording, not a court application. The lien on real property lasts 10 years from recording, and is extended for one further 10-year period by re-recording a certified copy of the judgment before the existing lien expires, together with an affidavit giving the creditor's current address - the extension fails if that affidavit is not recorded at the same time. The extension cannot push the lien past the 20 years allowed by s. 55.081. _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_
- **How the statute states the period:** no judgment, order, or decree of any court shall be a lien upon real or personal property within the state after the expiration of 20 years from the date of the entry of such judgment, order, or decree _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Section:** 55.081 _(verified: appears in its own passage below)_

## What the source says

> no judgment, order, or decree of any court shall be a lien upon real or personal property within the state after the expiration of 20 years from the date of the entry of such judgment, order, or decree.

## Where each value comes from

This source states these in separate places, so each value is shown with the passage that states it.

### State

> 2025 Florida Statutes Title VI CIVIL PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE Chapter 55 JUDGMENTS

### What has to happen to extend it

> If the certified copy is first recorded in accordance with this subsection on or after July 1, 1994, then the judgment, order, or decree shall be a lien in that county for an initial period of 10 years from the date of the recording. (2) The lien provided for in subsection (1) or an extension of that lien as provided by this subsection may be extended for an additional period of 10 years, subject to the limitation in subsection (3), by rerecording a certified copy of the judgment, order, or decree prior to the expiration of the lien or the expiration of the extended lien and by simultaneously recording an affidavit with the current address of the person who has a lien as a result of the judgment, order, or decree.

### Section

> 55.081 Statute of limitations, lien of judgment.

## Source

- https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2025/0055.081
- https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2025/0055.10
- https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2025/0095.11

Last verified: 2026-09-01. Review by: 2027-09-01.
Part of [How long a money judgment stays enforceable before it must be renewed, by state](https://referencesource.org/judgment-renewal-deadlines-by-state/).