What a payday loan costs — before Florida’s rules
A payday loan typically costs $15–$20 per $100 borrowed for a two-week term — roughly 400% APR — and is due as a single lump sum on your next payday. That single-payment structure, not the fee on any one loan, is the trap: most fees come from borrowers who cannot clear the balance in one go and roll it over. Where a state caps rates below payday levels, licensed payday lending disappears and a loan above the cap is generally void — not legally collectible, whatever the contract says.
The law in Florida
- Rate cap
- Payday ("deferred presentment") loans are capped at $500 principal, a 10% fee plus a $5 verification fee, one at a time, no rollovers (Fla. Stat. Ch. 560, Part IV). The general usury cap is 18%/25% under Ch. 687.
- Key law
- Florida Deferred Presentment Act, 2001 (Fla. Stat. Ch. 560, Part IV).
- Enforcement
- The Florida Office of Financial Regulation (OFR) licenses and disciplines payday lenders. Florida courts have held that off-reservation loans marketed to non-tribal residents are not automatically exempt from state jurisdiction.
Florida law limits a payday loan to $500 with a maximum 10% fee plus a $5 verification fee, and bars having more than one outstanding at a time.
What it means for a Florida borrower
Licensed payday lending is legal but tightly limited. Loans exceeding the fee/size limits, or made by unlicensed tribal lenders, can violate Florida law — and tribal lenders lending off-reservation to Floridians are not guaranteed immunity.
If you already have a payday loan in Florida
A loan that violates Florida’s rate limits may be partly or fully unenforceable — which changes your options with the lender and any collector. This is general information, not legal advice.
- Verify the lender’s license and file a complaint with the Florida Office of Financial Regulation (Division of Consumer Finance).
- If the loan exceeds Florida’s fee/size limits or is unlicensed, treat the excess charges as potentially unlawful and dispute collection.
Cheaper first — try these before a payday loan in Florida
Payday Loans and tribal lenders in Florida
Many online lenders that market payday loans to Florida residents are tribal lenders arguing their sovereignty places them outside state rate caps — a separate legal question this site tracks in depth. For which tribal brands lend to Florida residents and how state law applies to them, see the Florida tribal-lending page.
Tribal loans in Florida →Frequently asked questions
Does an online or tribal lender have to follow Florida's payday loan rules?
Florida applies its rules to loans made to its residents, wherever the lender sits. Tribal lenders argue that sovereign immunity puts them outside state rate caps — an argument courts have accepted in some cases and rejected in others. For which tribal brands lend to Florida residents and how the state treats them, see the Florida tribal-loan page.
What can I do about a payday loan I already have in Florida?
Because Florida restricts high-cost payday loans, a loan that exceeds the state limit may be partly or fully uncollectible — so find out before you pay a collector anything more. The steps on this page start with the lender's license. This is general information, not legal advice.