Texas evictions — formally forcible detainer suits — live in justice court and move fast: a notice to vacate whose default is three days, a trial set 10 to 21 days after filing, and a writ of possession as early as the sixth day after judgment. Senate Bill 38 rewrote parts of the procedure effective January 1, 2026, so guides written earlier are stale on the mechanics. Here's the current sequence.
This is general information for landlords, not legal advice, and BuildMyLease does not prepare eviction notices or court filings. Confirm the current rule — SB 38 is new and county practice varies — with a Texas landlord-tenant attorney before serving or filing.
Step 0 — Late fees have their own clock
Before anything else: a late fee isn't chargeable until rent has gone unpaid two full days past the due date, and the statutory safe harbor caps it at 12% of monthly rent (4 units or fewer) or 10% (more than 4). Violations cost $100 plus three times the fee wrongly collected plus attorney's fees (Tex. Prop. Code § 92.019). If your property is CARES Act-covered (federally backed financing or federal programs), the federal 30-day notice still applies on top of everything below.
Step 1 — The notice to vacate
The default is at least 3 days' written notice to vacate before filing — but the lease may set a shorter or longer period, down to one day (§ 24.005). The period runs from the day of delivery.
Service options: in person (to the tenant or a resident 16+, or affixed to the inside of the main entry door), by mail, the sealed-envelope outside-door-plus-mail alternative — and, since January 1, 2026 under SB 38, electronic delivery where the lease expressly authorizes it.
Texas gives no statutory right to cure: paying within the three days doesn't legally stop the case unless your lease grants that right. In practice most landlords accept payment and stand down — but that's discretion, not law, which is exactly what a pay-or-quit notice state would require.
Step 2 — Filing in justice court
You file in the justice-of-the-peace precinct where the property sits (§ 24.004). The citation sets an appearance/trial date 10 to 21 days after filing (TRCP 510.4), with service attempted within 5 business days under SB 38. Trial can't happen less than 6 days after service, and postponements are capped at 7 days absent agreement (TRCP 510.7). No appearance means the allegations are admitted and default judgment follows (TRCP 510.6).
Step 3 — Judgment, appeal window, writ
After judgment for the landlord, the writ of possession cannot issue before the 6th day after judgment — the same window in which the tenant may appeal (5 days, by bond, cash, or a Statement of Inability). SB 38 tightened appeals: the appealing tenant must pay a rental period's rent into the court registry with a sworn good-faith affirmation, and missed registry payments mean an immediate writ.
The sheriff or constable executes: a written warning at least 8.5×11 inches posted on the front door at least 24 hours before the lockout, then removal (§ 24.0061). The writ must issue within 60 days of judgment (90 for good cause) and can't be executed after day 90.
Statutory minimums total roughly 20–24 calendar days; four to eight weeks is a normal real-world range.
The traps
Texas's lockout rule is a trap dressed as permission. Uniquely, § 92.0081 allows changing locks for delinquent rent — but only with strict prior notice, and you must provide a new key on request regardless of payment. Get it wrong and the tenant recovers possession plus one month's rent plus $1,000, actual damages, and fees. Utility shutoffs for nonpayment are flatly prohibited (§ 92.008). Most landlords should treat the lock-change power as unusable and go to court.
Retaliation. A six-month presumption window follows protected tenant activity (§ 92.331), with remedies of a month's rent plus $500 and more — though retaliation is not a defense where the eviction is for delinquent rent.
Local cure ordinances are dead. Dallas's and Austin's extra-notice ordinances are treated as preempted by state law (HB 2127, upheld on appeal in July 2025). Follow state law statewide.
The notice math. Counting from the wrong day, or skipping the CARES notice on a covered property, restarts the whole case.
See how Texas compares with the other 19 states on our eviction notice laws by state page.
Common mistakes
Assuming a cure right exists. It doesn't, unless your lease creates one — decide deliberately whether yours should.
Using pre-2026 service rules. SB 38 changed delivery options and appeal mechanics; old checklists mislead.
Charging a late fee on day one. Two full days must pass, and the fee must sit inside the safe harbor.
Serving 3 days when your lease says otherwise. The lease controls the notice period in both directions — read it before you count.
The lease is where this process is actually won: the notice period, late-fee terms, and any cure right all come from it, and § 24.005(b) even requires conspicuous bold for some clauses. Build a compliant Texas residential lease agreement — $29 one-time, generated in minutes.
Statutory references
- Tex. Prop. Code § 24.005 — notice to vacate; lease may alter the period; service methods (as amended by SB 38, eff. Jan. 1, 2026). Official text
- Tex. Prop. Code § 24.004 — justice-court jurisdiction. § 24.0061 — writ of possession; 24-hour posted warning.
- TRCP 510.4, 510.6, 510.7, 510.8, 510.9 — citation, default, trial timing, writ, 5-day appeal.
- Tex. Prop. Code § 92.019 — late-fee rules. § 92.008 / § 92.0081 — utility-shutoff ban and lock-change limits.
- §§ 92.331–.333 — retaliation. 15 U.S.C. § 9058(c) — CARES Act 30-day notice.