You do not need to possess Florida residency, but to file in the Southern District of Florida, you must meet specific residency and exemption rules:
🗓️ 1. District Filing Requirement (91-Day Rule)
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You can file your Chapter 13 case in the district where you have lived for the majority of the last 180 days.
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Alternatively, if your principal assets (like your home) have been in that district for at least 180 days, you can file there.
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In practical terms, you must have lived in Southern Florida for at least 91 days before filing bankruptcy.blog+10bankruptcylawhelp.com+10tampalawadvocates.com+10.
🛡️ 2. Bankruptcy Exemption Rules (730-Day Rule)
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To use Florida’s generous state exemptions, including the unlimited homestead exemption, you must have lived in Florida for at least 730 days (2 years) findlaw.com+3myfloridalaw.com+3bankruptcy.blog+3.
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If you’ve lived in Florida less than two years, you must use the exemption laws of your previous state of residence (based on where you lived during the six months before the 2‑year period), or fallback to federal exemptions if that state’s exemptions don’t apply lrlawoffice.com+11bankruptcy.blog+11findlaw.com+11.
âś… Summary Table
| Requirement | For Filing District | For Florida State Exemptions |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum time living in Florida | ≥ 91 days | ≥ 730 days |
| Affect on filing location | Allowed to file here | n/a |
| Affect on exemptions used | n/a | Must use Florida exemptions |
đź“ť In Practice
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If you’ve been in South Florida for more than 91 days but under 2 years, you can file in Southern Florida, but won’t qualify for Florida’s state exemptions.
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If you’ve lived here for 2+ years, you both can file in the district and use Florida’s exemptions fully.
For most South Florida filers, once you’ve been here over three months, filing is possible—but you’ll want to wait until you hit the 2‑year mark to take full advantage of Florida’s favorable exemption laws.
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