# Florida

Florida licenses private investigators and agencies through the Division of Licensing of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS). Since 2023 Florida has moved its renewal late fee into rule, made unlawful GPS tracking a felony that can also cost a license, and let county tax collectors handle some licensing services.

Source: https://uscli.org/licensing-tracker/florida

## At a glance

- **Authority:** [Division of Licensing, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services](https://www.fdacs.gov/Business-Services/Private-Investigation-Licenses/Class-C-Private-Investigator-License-Requirements)
- **Statute:** [Chapter 493, Florida Statutes](http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0400-0499/0493/0493.html) (Part I general provisions; Part II private investigative services)
- **Rules:** [Florida Administrative Code Chapter 5N-1](https://www.flrules.org/gateway/ChapterHome.asp?Chapter=5N-1)
- **Who is licensed:** Class C private investigators, Class CC interns, Class A agencies, Class AA branch offices, and Class MA managers. Class C and CC licensees must own or work for a Class A agency or branch (s. 493.6201(4)). Carrying a firearm takes a Class G license.
- **Qualifications:** At least 18 (21 for Class G). Two years of lawfully gained, verifiable, full-time experience, which may combine investigative work, a Class CC internship, and up to one year of criminal justice coursework or law enforcement training. A state exam, passed before applying ($70) ([FDACS requirements](https://www.fdacs.gov/Business-Services/Private-Investigation-Licenses/Class-C-Private-Investigator-License-Requirements)).
- **Renewal:** Class C, CC, MA, and G licenses every 2 years; Class A agency and branch licenses every 3 years (s. 493.6113(1)). Class C: $50 application, $75 license, $42 fingerprint processing, and a $10.75 retention fee; renewal $75 plus a $16.75 retention fee. Class A: $50 application and $450 license; renewal $450. A renewal received within 3 months after expiration carries a late fee equal to the license fee; after 3 months the license cannot be renewed ([r. 5N-1.116](https://www.flrules.org/gateway/ruleNo.asp?id=5N-1.116)).
- **Continuing education:** None for Class C. Class G licensees complete 4 hours of firearms requalification each year (s. 493.6113(3)(b); [r. 5N-1.132](https://www.flrules.org/gateway/ruleNo.asp?id=5N-1.132)).
- **Bond or insurance:** None for private investigators or Class A agencies. The $300,000 general liability requirement in s. 493.6110 applies to Class B security agencies.

## Changes, 2023 to 2026

- Jul 1, 2026 — **Volunteer armed security at places of worship exempted** — CS/SB 52, Chapter 2026-46, Laws of Florida · Approved April 23, 2026; effective July 1, 2026 — Adds s. 493.6102(16), which exempts from Chapter 493 anyone who provides armed security on the premises of a church, mosque, synagogue, or other place of worship voluntarily and without pay. It reenacts s. 493.6201(4), the rule that Class C and CC licensees must own or work for a Class A agency or branch. — **For licensees:** No change to PI licensing. The agency ownership or employment rule stays the same. — [Chapter 2026-46](https://laws.flrules.org/2026/46)
- Oct 1, 2025 — **Tracking to commit a dangerous crime becomes a second-degree felony** — CS/SB 1168, Chapter 2025-71, Laws of Florida · Approved May 22, 2025; effective October 1, 2025 — Amends s. 934.425(5). Unlawful tracking remains a third-degree felony, but tracking done to commit or facilitate a dangerous crime listed in s. 907.041(5)(a) is a second-degree felony. — **For licensees:** Unlawful tracking is also a ground for discipline under s. 493.6118(1)(y). — [Chapter 2025-71](https://laws.flrules.org/2025/71)[Section 934.425](http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0900-0999/0934/Sections/0934.425.html)
- Jul 1, 2025 — **Court-ordered tracking exempted from the tracking law** — CS/CS/HB 903, Chapter 2025-81, Laws of Florida (section 7) · Approved May 22, 2025; effective July 1, 2025 — Adds exceptions to s. 934.425(4) for Department of Corrections and Department of Juvenile Justice staff tracking people in their custody, and for anyone a court order authorizes to install, place, or use a tracking device or application. The business purpose exception, which does not cover private investigation done for someone else unless the activity would be exempt if the client did it, is unchanged. — **For licensees:** Tracking authorized by a court order falls outside s. 934.425. — [Chapter 2025-81](https://laws.flrules.org/2025/81)[Section 934.425](http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0900-0999/0934/Sections/0934.425.html)
- Mar 10, 2025 — **Tax collectors limited to security officer applications** — Final rule, r. 5N-1.150 (new) · Effective March 10, 2025 — Carries out s. 493.6127. Appointed county tax collectors may accept new applications only for Class D security officer licenses. They may take fingerprints and photographs for applicants for any license type who applied online or by mail. — **For licensees:** Tax collectors cannot take a new Class C application, but an appointed office can take fingerprints and photos for an online or mailed application. — [Rule 5N-1.150](https://www.flrules.org/gateway/ruleNo.asp?id=5N-1.150)[Notice of proposed rule](https://www.flrules.org/Gateway/View_notice.asp?id=29068589)
- Oct 30, 2024 — **Late renewal fee set equal to the license fee** — Final rule, r. 5N-1.116 · Effective October 30, 2024 — Carries out the 2023 law below. A renewal received after expiration but within three months carries a late fee equal to the license fee, and no license can be renewed three or more months after it expires. The division waives the late fee on a request made within three months of expiration if the delay came from reasonable reliance on erroneous written information from the department, or from the department’s failure to provide correct information. — **For licensees:** Renewing a Class C license late costs an extra $75. Renew before the license expires. — [Rule 5N-1.116](https://www.flrules.org/gateway/ruleNo.asp?id=5N-1.116)[Notice of proposed rule](https://www.flrules.org/Gateway/View_notice.asp?id=28479217)
- Oct 1, 2024 — **Unlawful tracking becomes a felony** — CS/SB 758, Chapter 2024-114, Laws of Florida · Approved April 26, 2024; effective October 1, 2024 — Amends s. 934.425. Besides installing a tracking device or application on another person’s property without consent, it is now unlawful to place one, or to use one to learn another person’s location or movement. The offense went from a second-degree misdemeanor to a third-degree felony. The existing business purpose exception still does not cover a person doing private investigation for someone else, unless the activity would be exempt if the client did it. The law also extended s. 493.6118(1)(y), which since 2015 has made unlawful installation a ground for discipline, to placing or using a tracker. — **For licensees:** Placing or using a tracker without consent, outside a listed exception, risks a felony charge and action against the license. — [Chapter 2024-114](https://laws.flrules.org/2024/114)[Section 934.425](http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0900-0999/0934/Sections/0934.425.html)
- Jul 1, 2024 — **Two calibers in one requalification class; tax collectors may take applications** — CS/CS/SB 1084, Chapter 2024-137, Laws of Florida · Approved May 1, 2024; effective July 1, 2024 — At the instructor’s discretion, a Class G licensee may requalify on up to two calibers in one 4-hour class, with a separate course of fire for each (s. 493.6113(3)(b)). New s. 493.6127 lets FDACS appoint county tax collectors to accept new, renewal, and replacement license applications, with convenience fees of $22 for a new application, $12 for a renewal or replacement, and $9 each for fingerprints and photographs. — **For licensees:** Armed investigators can requalify on two calibers in one class. — [Chapter 2024-137](https://laws.flrules.org/2024/137)
- Jul 19, 2023 — **Live online classroom training allowed** — Final rules, r. 5N-1.132, 5N-1.140, and 5N-1.142 · Effective July 19, 2023 — Carries out the 2022 online training law (ch. 2022-79). The classroom part of the 28-hour Class G course may be taught in person or by live online instruction on a secure website, with the instructor verifying identity, attendance, and completion. The 8 hours of range training must be in person. — **For licensees:** The classroom part of firearms training can be taken live online; range time cannot. — [Rule 5N-1.132](https://www.flrules.org/gateway/ruleNo.asp?id=5N-1.132)[Notice of proposed rule](https://www.flrules.org/Gateway/View_notice.asp?id=27092505)
- Jul 1, 2023 — **Renewal late fee moved from statute to rule** — CS/HB 1307, Chapter 2023-155, Laws of Florida · Approved May 25, 2023; effective July 1, 2023 — Before this law, s. 493.6113(4) required a late renewal to pay a late fee equal to the license fee. Now a late renewal may be required to pay a late fee set by division rule, up to the license fee. The law also added a Class G training waiver for licensees who show annual firearms training under the federal Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act (s. 493.6113(3)(b)4.), new options for firearms instructor (Class K) applicants and renewals, and let FDACS publish industry information online (s. 493.6123(3)). — **For licensees:** See the October 30, 2024 rule above for the fee amount. — [Chapter 2023-155](https://laws.flrules.org/2023/155)[Section 493.6113 (2022)](https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2022/493.6113)

## Checked and unchanged

- The PI fee caps (s. 493.6202) and Class C license requirements (s. 493.6203) were not amended from 2023 through October 2026.
- No continuing education requirement for Class C investigators was enacted or adopted.
- FDACS rule development on r. 5N-1.100, noticed in 2026, concerns definitions for security services and has no proposed rule text yet ([rule history](https://www.flrules.org/gateway/ruleNo.asp?id=5N-1.100)).