What is Florida's pre-suit notice for unpaid minimum wages?

Before bringing a claim for unpaid minimum wages under Fla. Stat. 448.110, you must notify the employer in writing of your intent to sue, identifying the minimum wage claimed, the actual or estimated work dates and hours, and the total amount of alleged unpaid wages through the date of the notice.

How long does a Florida employer have to respond to the pre-suit notice?

15 calendar days after receipt of the notice to pay the total amount of unpaid wages or otherwise resolve the claim to your satisfaction, and the statute of limitations is tolled during that 15-day period.

What are the federal time limits for a Florida wage claim?

Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. 255(a), an action for unpaid minimum wages or overtime must be commenced within 2 years after the cause of action accrued, or within 3 years if the violation was willful.

How to File a Wage Claim in Florida

The Florida rule in one table

Question	Florida rule
Statewide agency wage-claim process	None — no general agency form exists
Pre-suit notice (state minimum-wage claims)	Written notice of intent to sue under Fla. Stat. 448.110(6)(a), identifying the minimum wage claimed, the actual or estimated work dates and hours, and the total amount of alleged unpaid wages through the date of the notice
Employer response window	15 calendar days after receipt of the notice to pay the total amount or otherwise resolve the claim; the statute of limitations is tolled during those 15 days
If the employer does not pay	Bring a civil action in a court of competent jurisdiction, on terms consistent with the contents of the notice
Federal limits (FLSA)	2 years after the cause of action accrued, or 3 years if the violation was willful (29 U.S.C. 255(a))
County route (example)	Pinellas County Wage Theft and Recovery Ordinance: signed complaint to the Pinellas County Office of Human Rights no later than 1 year after the last date you performed work for the employer

What makes Florida different

Every other state in this directory gives you an agency, a form, and an investigator. Florida gives you a letter and a courtroom. No. Florida has no general statewide agency wage-claim process, so there is no agency form to file — recovery runs through a pre-suit notice and then a lawsuit, or through a county ordinance where one exists. Do not look for a Florida agency form — filing one does not exist — and do not skip the pre-suit notice for a state minimum-wage claim: the statute makes the written notice a precondition to suing, and the claim you file must stay consistent with what the notice said. The one local exception worth checking first is your county: Pinellas County runs its own wage-theft complaint process through its Office of Human Rights, with a 1-year filing window, so a worker inside Pinellas has a route no worker elsewhere in Florida has.

The process, step by step

Check your county first. If you worked for a covered employer inside Pinellas County, you can file a wage-theft complaint with the Pinellas County Office of Human Rights — a signed complaint no later than 1 year after the last date you performed work for the employer. If no county ordinance covers you, the state and federal lawsuit routes below are the process.
Write the pre-suit notice for a state minimum-wage claim. Before bringing a claim for unpaid minimum wages under Fla. Stat. 448.110, you must notify the employer in writing of your intent to sue, identifying the minimum wage claimed, the actual or estimated work dates and hours, and the total amount of alleged unpaid wages through the date of the notice.
Give the employer its 15 calendar days. 15 calendar days after receipt of the notice to pay the total amount of unpaid wages or otherwise resolve the claim to your satisfaction, and the statute of limitations is tolled during that 15-day period.
If the employer does not pay or resolve the claim, file suit. Bring a civil action in a court of competent jurisdiction, on terms consistent with the contents of the notice.
Mind the federal clock in parallel. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. 255(a), an action for unpaid minimum wages or overtime must be commenced within 2 years after the cause of action accrued, or within 3 years if the violation was willful.

For the deadline on the pay itself — Florida has no state final-pay statute either — see the Florida final paycheck deadline guide. Comparing states, the Wage Claim Filing by State directory puts all seven side by side.

Filing a wage claim in another state

Filing a wage claim in another state? See How to File a Wage Claim in New York and How to File a Wage Claim in Washington.

Source

Pre-suit notice and 15-day window: Fla. Stat. 448.110. Federal limits: 29 U.S.C. 255(a). County route: Pinellas County Wage Theft and Recovery. Facts verified 2026-10-24.

This page explains how the process works and what the official rules say. It is general information, not legal advice — for a dispute about your specific situation, talk to a lawyer or your state labor or consumer agency.