What does this Florida Rule 3.850 calculator compute?

Select the applicable branch under Rule 3.850(b) and enter the trigger date. For the general bar, it adds 2 calendar years to the finality date. For newly-discovered facts, it adds 2 years to the discovery date. For a retroactive constitutional right, it adds 2 years to the mandate date. For the counsel-neglect exception, it adds 2 years to the date the ordinary filing time expired. For the illegal-sentence path it shows no deadline; that motion may be filed at any time. Every period comes verbatim from Rule 3.850.

What is the 2-year bar under Rule 3.850(b)?

Under Rule 3.850(b), no motion may be filed more than 2 years after the judgment and sentence become final, unless an exception applies. The finality date is case-specific: it depends on whether a direct appeal was taken and when that concluded. This calculator adds 2 years to the finality date you enter; it does not determine when finality occurred.

What is the illegal-sentence exception?

Under Rule 3.850(b), a motion to vacate a sentence that exceeds the limits provided by law may be filed at any time. There is no filing deadline for this path. This calculator shows "may be filed at any time" when you select the illegal-sentence branch, and computes no closing date.

What are the three exceptions to the 2-year bar?

Rule 3.850(b) provides three exceptions that each carry their own 2-year period: (1) newly-discovered facts, measured from the date the facts were or could have been discovered with due diligence; (2) a fundamental constitutional right not established within the original period that has been held to apply retroactively, measured from the date of the mandate announcing retroactivity; and (3) counsel retained to timely file a motion who through neglect failed to do so, measured from the date the ordinary filing time expired.

Does the calculator compute when the judgment and sentence became final?

No. Finality is case-specific: it depends on whether a direct appeal was taken, when the appellate mandate issued, and when the time for further review expired. You determine the finality date from the docket and enter it. The calculator adds 2 calendar years to the date you provide.

Florida · Free tool

Florida Rule 3.850 postconviction deadline calculator

Select the applicable Rule 3.850(b) branch and enter the trigger date to see the closing date of the postconviction relief window in real time. Every period comes verbatim from Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.850, Motion to Vacate; Set Aside; or Correct Sentence.

Covers the general 2-year bar ((b)), the newly-discovered facts exception ((b)(1)), the retroactive constitutional right exception ((b)(2)), the counsel-neglect exception ((b)(3)), and the illegal-sentence path (no deadline). It adds calendar years to the date you enter. It is a calculation aid, not legal advice. Tolling, successive-motion restrictions, and procedural requirements are not computed.

Read before you rely on this

This is a calculation aid for defense counsel, not legal advice and not a computed deadline you should rely on without checking. It adds 2 calendar years to the trigger date you enter, following the Rule 3.850 time limitations. It does NOT determine when the judgment and sentence became final for purposes of the general bar: finality is case-specific and depends on whether a direct appeal was taken, when the appellate mandate issued, and when the time for further review expired. The trigger date for each exception (discovery date, mandate date, or expiry of the filing period) is also case-specific and is not derived here. Tolling, successive-motion restrictions, and procedural requirements under Rule 3.850 are not computed. If the computed date falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the filing deadline extends to the next business day under Fla. R. Gen. Prac. & Jud. Admin. 2.514(a)(1)(C), and this tool does not adjust for that. Verify every date against the current text of Rule 3.850 and your own docket before acting on it.

Source: Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.850, Motion to Vacate; Set Aside; or Correct Sentence. official Florida Bar rule text. Every period below is a verbatim fragment of that rule.

Select the applicable branchRule 3.850(b) branch

Each exception has a different starting point. The general bar runs from the date the judgment and sentence become final. Each exception runs from its own trigger date. Reconstruct the trigger date from the appellate docket or the court record.

Trigger dateDate the judgment and sentence became final

The finality date is case-specific. For a direct appeal, finality runs after the appellate mandate. Without a direct appeal, it runs after the time to appeal expires. Determine the date from the docket before entering it here.

How the Florida Rule 3.850 time limitation works

Under Rule 3.850(b), no motion to vacate, set aside, or correct a sentence may be filed more than 2 years after the judgment and sentence become final, unless one of three exceptions applies. Finality is case-specific: without a direct appeal, it runs after the time to appeal expires; with a direct appeal, it runs after the appellate mandate. The calculator does not determine finality: you enter the finality date from the docket.

The three exceptions each carry their own 2-year period running from a different trigger: (1) the date newly-discovered facts were or could have been discovered with due diligence (Rule 3.850(b)(1)); (2) the date of the mandate announcing retroactivity of a new constitutional right (Rule 3.850(b)(2)); and (3) the date the ordinary filing time expired, for cases where retained counsel through neglect failed to timely file (Rule 3.850(b)(3)). The illegal-sentence path carries no deadline: a motion to vacate a sentence that exceeds the limits provided by law may be filed at any time.

This calculator provides the arithmetic only. For the motion structure, the legal standards for each ground, and the habeas corpus framework, see the paid Compassionate Release and Post-Conviction Pack. For the full Florida charge references, start at the Florida criminal-defense references hub.

Common questions

What does this Florida Rule 3.850 calculator compute?: Select the applicable branch under Rule 3.850(b) and enter the trigger date. For the general bar, it adds 2 calendar years to the finality date. For newly-discovered facts, it adds 2 years to the discovery date. For a retroactive constitutional right, it adds 2 years to the mandate date. For the counsel-neglect exception, it adds 2 years to the date the ordinary filing time expired. For the illegal-sentence path it shows no deadline; that motion may be filed at any time. Every period comes verbatim from Rule 3.850.
What is the 2-year bar under Rule 3.850(b)?: Under Rule 3.850(b), no motion may be filed more than 2 years after the judgment and sentence become final, unless an exception applies. The finality date is case-specific: it depends on whether a direct appeal was taken and when that concluded. This calculator adds 2 years to the finality date you enter; it does not determine when finality occurred.
What is the illegal-sentence exception?: Under Rule 3.850(b), a motion to vacate a sentence that exceeds the limits provided by law may be filed at any time. There is no filing deadline for this path. This calculator shows "may be filed at any time" when you select the illegal-sentence branch, and computes no closing date.
What are the three exceptions to the 2-year bar?: Rule 3.850(b) provides three exceptions that each carry their own 2-year period: (1) newly-discovered facts, measured from the date the facts were or could have been discovered with due diligence; (2) a fundamental constitutional right not established within the original period that has been held to apply retroactively, measured from the date of the mandate announcing retroactivity; and (3) counsel retained to timely file a motion who through neglect failed to do so, measured from the date the ordinary filing time expired.
Does the calculator compute when the judgment and sentence became final?: No. Finality is case-specific: it depends on whether a direct appeal was taken, when the appellate mandate issued, and when the time for further review expired. You determine the finality date from the docket and enter it. The calculator adds 2 calendar years to the date you provide.