The following is Not Legal Advice.
Do Not Rely on This Information. It may not be current or accurate. For legal advice, consult an attorney.
Reflects Florida Statutes current through the 2026 session and reported decisions through September 2026; every statute cited on this page was checked against the official text. This area changes often and the registration statutes have been amended repeatedly — which version applies to a given person is itself a contested question. Every statute cite links to the official text on Online Sunshine, which opens in a new window.
Florida treats sex offenses differently from every other category of crime at three separate stages: the sentence itself, the conditions of any supervision that follows, and a registration obligation that is presumptively for life. Each is governed by its own statute, and qualifying for relief from one does not mean qualifying for relief from another.
Sexual offender vs. sexual predator
These are two distinct statutory designations, not degrees of the same thing. Neither is a sentence or a punishment — both are a status that results from the conviction. § 943.0435(12).
| Sexual offender | Sexual predator | |
|---|---|---|
| Statute | § 943.0435 | § 775.21 |
| How it attaches | By operation of law on conviction of a listed offense | By written finding of the court at sentencing |
| Roughly | One qualifying conviction | One capital/life/first-degree qualifying felony, or a qualifying felony with a prior qualifying conviction |
| Reregistration | Twice a year — birth month and the sixth month after | Four times a year — birth month and every third month |
| Aggravated offenses | Four times a year — § 943.0435(14)(b) | — |
| Address verified by law enforcement | — | At least four times per year |
| Community notification | Public registry | Public registry plus affirmative notice — every licensed child care facility and elementary, middle, and high school within a 1-mile radius, within 48 hours |
| Duration | Life, unless removed by court order | |
A predator designation entered without the required written finding is challengeable. Because the designation is not part of the sentence, courts have treated it as reviewable by postconviction motion. Saintelien v. State, 990 So. 2d 494, 496–97 (Fla. 2008); Breitberg v. State, 3 So. 3d 1193, 1194 (Fla. 2009).
The charges
Sexual battery — § 794.011
| Subsection | Circumstance | Degree |
|---|---|---|
| (2)(a) | Offender 18+, victim under 12 | Capital felony — death or life; procedure under § 921.1425 |
| (2)(b) | Offender under 18, victim under 12 | Life felony |
| (3) | Victim 12+, no consent, deadly weapon or force likely to cause serious personal injury | Life felony |
| (4)(a)–(d) | Victim 12+, no consent, with a listed aggravating circumstance under (4)(e) | First-degree felony |
| (5) | Victim 12+, no consent, without physical force likely to cause serious injury | Second- or first-degree, by age tier |
| (8) | Familial or custodial authority over a victim 12–17 | By tier — see statute |
Lewd or lascivious offenses — § 800.04
Neither the victim’s consent nor the victim’s lack of chastity is a defense. § 800.04(2). Ignorance of the victim’s age, the victim’s misrepresentation of age, and a bona fide belief as to age are all expressly unavailable as defenses. § 800.04(3).
| Offense | Circumstance | Degree |
|---|---|---|
| Lewd or lascivious battery — (4) | Sexual activity with a person 12–15 | Second-degree (first-degree on a listed prior) |
| Lewd or lascivious molestation — (5) | Offender 18+, victim under 12 | Life felony — § 775.082(3)(a)4. |
| Offender under 18, victim under 12 | Second-degree | |
| Offender 18+, victim 12–15 | Second-degree (first-degree on a listed prior) | |
| Offender under 18, victim 12–15 | Third-degree | |
| Lewd or lascivious conduct — (6) | Offender 18+ / under 18 | Second-degree / third-degree |
| Lewd or lascivious exhibition — (7) | Offender 18+ / under 18 | Second-degree / third-degree |
Other core offenses
| § 827.071 | Sexual performance by a child; child sexual abuse material — promoting, producing, possession with intent, and possession tiers. The statute was renamed in 2026; older opinions and forms use “child pornography.” |
| § 847.0135 | Computer pornography; solicitation; traveling to meet a minor (subsection (4)); lewd exhibition on computer (subsection (5)) |
| § 775.0862 | Sexual offense against a student by an authority figure — reclassifies the offense one degree upward |
| § 825.1025 | Lewd or lascivious offense upon an elderly or disabled person |
| § 794.05 | Unlawful sexual activity with certain minors (16–17 year olds) |
Minimum mandatory sentences
The Dangerous Sexual Felony Offender Act — § 794.0115
This is the principal minimum mandatory in sex cases, and it is severe. It applies to a person 18 or older convicted of a violation of § 787.025(2)(c); § 794.011(2), (3), (4), (5), or (8); § 800.04(4) or (5); § 825.1025(2) or (3); § 827.071(2), (3), or (4); or § 847.0145 — where any one of the following also applies:
- Caused serious personal injury to the victim
- Used or threatened to use a deadly weapon
- Victimized more than one person during the criminal episode
- Committed the offense while under the jurisdiction of a court for a felony
- Has a prior conviction for one of the listed offenses
| Offense committed before October 1, 2014 | 25 years minimum mandatory, up to life |
| Offense committed on or after October 1, 2014 | 50 years minimum mandatory, up to life |
Three features make this provision unusually hard to work around. It is irrelevant that the aggravating factor is itself an element of the offense charged, and equally irrelevant that the offense was already reclassified upward. § 794.0115(5). The mandatory term applies notwithstanding § 775.082, chapter 958 (youthful offender), or any other law, and if it exceeds the otherwise-authorized maximum, the mandatory minimum controls. § 794.0115(6). “Serious personal injury” means great bodily harm or pain, permanent disability, or permanent disfigurement. § 794.0115(3).
Others
| Sexual battery, offender 18+, victim under 12 | Capital felony — death or life — § 794.011(2)(a) |
| Lewd or lascivious molestation, offender 18+, victim under 12 | Life felony — life, or a split sentence of at least 25 years followed by probation or community control for life — § 800.04(5)(b), § 775.082(3)(a)4. |
A qualifying sex offense will also frequently trigger the general enhancements — habitual violent felony offender, three-time violent felony offender, violent career criminal, and prison releasee reoffender. Those are set out on the Florida Minimum Mandatory Sentences page.
Mandatory conditions of sex offender probation — § 948.30
These conditions are not discretionary and do not have to be orally pronounced at sentencing — the statute deems them standard conditions. § 948.30. They apply to supervision for a violation of chapter 794, § 800.04, § 827.071, § 847.0135(5), or § 847.0145, for crimes committed on or after October 1, 1995, and to certain human trafficking offenses under § 787.06(3) for crimes on or after July 1, 2021.
| § 948.30(1) | Condition |
|---|---|
| (a) | Curfew, 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. The court may substitute another 8-hour window if employment requires it and DOC recommends it |
| (b) | If the victim was under 18 — no residence within 1,000 feet of a school, child care facility, park, playground, or other place where children regularly congregate, measured in a straight line |
| (c) | Active participation in and completion of sex offender treatment, at the probationer’s own expense |
| (d) | No contact with the victim, direct or indirect, unless approved by the victim, the treatment provider, and the court |
| (e) | If the victim was under 18 — no contact with any child under 18, except supervised contact the court approves on a qualified practitioner’s risk assessment, written parental consent, and an approved safety plan |
| (f) | If the victim was under 18 — no working or volunteering anywhere children regularly congregate |
| (g) | No obscene or pornographic material relevant to the offender’s deviant behavior pattern |
| (h) | No Internet or computer access until the treatment provider completes a risk assessment and implements a safety plan (offenses on or after July 1, 2005) |
| (i) | DNA specimen to FDLE |
| (j) | Restitution for the victim’s medical, psychiatric, and psychological care |
| (k) | Submission to warrantless search of person, residence, or vehicle by the probation officer |
Additional conditions under § 948.30(2) for sex offender probation or community control, for offenses on or after October 1, 1997: annual polygraph examinations as part of treatment, at the probationer’s expense — the results may not be used as evidence in court to prove a violation; maintenance of a driving log and a prohibition on driving alone without the supervising officer’s prior approval.
New for offenses committed on or after July 1, 2026 — § 948.30(6) and (7). The 2026 Legislature added two further mandatory conditions, both aimed at public swimming pools:
- § 948.30(6) — where the victim was under 18, a prohibition on living within 1,000 feet of any public swimming pool, and on working or volunteering at one. As with the school/park restriction, the probationer is not forced to relocate if a pool is later established within 1,000 feet of an existing residence.
- § 948.30(7) — for a person convicted at any time of a registrable offense under § 943.0435(1)(h)1.a.(I) against a victim under 18, a prohibition on visiting a public swimming pool without the supervising officer’s prior approval. This one does not apply if the person has been removed from the registration requirement under § 943.04354.
A drafting quirk worth noting: subsection (6) defines “public swimming pool” by reference to § 775.215, while subsection (7) defines it by reference to § 856.022(6).
The practical distance between this and ordinary probation is large: a curfew, a residency restriction, a treatment obligation the probationer pays for, a bar on Internet use, a search condition, and an annual polygraph. Note also that the mandatory-reinstatement provision for a first low-risk technical violation is unavailable to anyone on community control rather than probation — see First Probation Violation in Florida.
Registration — what it actually requires
Registration is not a single act. It is a continuing set of 48-hour deadlines, and each failure is independently chargeable as a third-degree felony. § 943.0435(9).
| Initial registration | In person at the sheriff’s office within 48 hours of establishing residence in Florida, of release from DOC custody, or of conviction |
| Driver license | In person at DHSMV within 48 hours after that |
| Change of residence or name | Within 48 hours |
| Transient residence | Report within 48 hours, then in person every 30 days |
| E-mail addresses and Internet identifiers | Within 48 hours of use |
| Vehicles owned | Within 48 hours of any change |
| Moving out of state | In person at least 48 hours before leaving |
| Travel outside the United States | In person at least 21 days before departure |
The “Romeo and Juliet” law — § 943.04354
This is the provision most people mean when they ask how to avoid having to register. It does not undo the conviction, reduce the sentence, or seal anything. It removes the registration requirement only, and only for a narrow class of people.
Who qualifies — all three must be true
| (1)(a) — the offense | Conviction or delinquency adjudication for § 800.04, § 827.071, or § 847.0135(5), and no other conviction or adjudication for § 794.011, § 800.04, § 827.071, or § 847.0135(5) |
| (1)(b) — the basis | Registration is required solely because of that conviction |
| (1)(c) — the ages | The offender is not more than 4 years older than the victim, and the victim was 13 or older but under 18 at the time of the offense |
Note carefully which statute numbers are on that list. § 847.0135(5) — lewd exhibition on computer — qualifies. § 847.0135(3) and (4) — solicitation and traveling to meet a minor — do not. In Maxey v. State, No. 6D2024-1883 (Fla. 6th DCA Mar. 6, 2026), the trial court granted removal and then vacated its own order; the Sixth District affirmed, holding the defendant was ineligible on both counts — his § 847.0135(3) conviction was not a listed offense, and at 28 years old with a perceived 14-year-old victim he was far outside the 4-year window. The court had no discretion to grant relief.
The procedure — § 943.04354(2)
- Motion to the criminal division of the circuit court — where the conviction occurred (Florida convictions), or where the person resides or last resided (out-of-state convictions).
- The motion must allege that the person meets the (1) criteria and that removal will not conflict with federal law, which requires that the sexual act have been consensual notwithstanding the victim’s age. An out-of-state conviction also requires written confirmation that the person is not required to register in the convicting jurisdiction.
- Notice to both the state attorney and FDLE at least 21 days before sentencing, disposition, or the hearing. Both may present evidence in opposition.
- The court rules at sentencing, at disposition, or at a hearing. If it finds the criteria met and no federal conflict, it may grant the motion — the relief is discretionary even for a qualified applicant.
- If granted, the person must deliver a certified copy of the order to FDLE, which then removes the information from the public registry. § 943.04354(3).
One shot. If the court denies the motion, the statute does not authorize filing another one. § 943.04354(2)(b).
Removal from the public registry does not deny the public access to the underlying criminal history, which remains a public record. § 943.04354(3).
The other route off the registry — § 943.0435(11)
Separate from the Romeo and Juliet provision, a sexual offender may petition for removal after being lawfully released from confinement, supervision, or sanction — whichever is later — for at least 25 years with no arrest for any felony or misdemeanor since release.
Disqualifying adult convictions. The 25-year route is unavailable if registration was based on an adult conviction for § 787.01 or § 787.02; § 794.011 (excluding (10)); § 800.04(4)(a)2. where the court found a victim under 12 or force or coercion; § 800.04(5)(b); § 800.04(5)(c)2. where the court found force or coercion and unclothed genitals; § 825.1025(2)(a); any attempt or conspiracy to commit these; or a similar offense in another jurisdiction.
The court may grant relief only if the offender shows no arrest since release, that relief complies with the federal Adam Walsh Act and other federal funding standards, and that the court is otherwise satisfied he or she is not a current or potential threat to public safety. FDLE and the state attorney must receive at least 3 weeks’ notice. If denied, the court may set a future date for another petition — unlike the Romeo and Juliet provision, this route is not one-and-done.
Two live disputes worth knowing about
Which version of the statute applies
Registration statutes have been amended repeatedly — the removal period went from 20 years to 25, and disqualifying offenses were added in 2007. Offenders convicted long ago routinely argue the older, more generous version governs. Courts have rejected this, holding § 943.0435 procedural and regulatory rather than punitive, so the current version applies and there is no ex post facto problem. Smith v. Doe, 538 U.S. 84 (2003); State v. Partlow, 840 So. 2d 1040, 1043 (Fla. 2003); Givens v. State, 851 So. 2d 813, 814–15 (Fla. 2d DCA 2003). The same reasoning has been applied to the Romeo and Juliet statute. Hurtado v. State, 332 So. 3d 15, 17 (Fla. 2d DCA 2021).
Whether the State can appeal a removal order — an open district split
This one is unresolved as of this writing, and it decides whether a granted removal order actually sticks.
| Second District — criminal, no appeal State v. Korson, 413 So. 3d 207 (Fla. 2d DCA 2025), review denied, No. SC2025-0970 (Fla. Feb. 10, 2026) | Removal proceedings are part of the criminal case. Under LaFave v. State, 149 So. 3d 662 (Fla. 2014), the State has no statutory right to appeal and certiorari is unavailable. Appeal dismissed — even though the court said plainly the trial court had applied the wrong version of the statute and the offender should have been excluded. |
| Fourth District — civil, appeal lies FDLE v. Garcia, No. 4D2025-2547 (Fla. 4th DCA Sept. 2, 2026) | Expressly disagrees with Korson. Registration proceedings are civil, so § 9.030(b)(1)(A) supplies appellate jurisdiction; FDLE has standing because the order affects its statutory duty to maintain the registry; and the current statute disqualified the offender. Reversed. |
The practical consequence is venue-dependent. In the Second District a granted removal order has been effectively unreviewable; in the Fourth, FDLE can appeal it directly. Note also that § 943.0436 gives FDLE a mechanism to move to vacate an order that limits or nullifies registration requirements, and declares that the laws governing sexual predators and sexual offenders are substantive law — language in some tension with the procedural characterization courts use in the retroactivity cases above.
Read § 943.04354 in full → | Read § 948.30 → | Read § 794.0115 →