How to Evict a Tenant in Indiana (2026)
The legal steps for landlords in Indiana — the notice, the court case, costs, timeline and the mistakes that get cases thrown out — with the statute or official page behind each step.
Short answer: In Indiana a landlord must give the required written notice, file an eviction case in court if the tenant doesn't pay or leave, win a judgment, and have a sheriff or other officer carry out the removal. Changing the locks or removing belongings yourself is not allowed.
Step 1: Have a legal reason and give the right notice
| Unpaid rent | Not less than 10 days' notice to pay or vacate, unless the parties agreed otherwise or the tenant pays in full within the notice period. Source: IC 32-31-1-6, 32-31-1-7 |
|---|---|
| Lease violation | No statute — Indiana law sets no notice period for ending a tenancy over a lease violation other than unpaid rent; the lease terms govern. No notice is needed at all when a fixed-term lease ends on its stated date, a tenant at will commits waste, or the tenant is a tenant at sufferance (IC 32-31-1-8). |
| Ending a month-to-month tenancy (no fault) | Tenancy at will / month-to-month: one month's written notice. Periodic tenancies of 3 months or less: notice equal to the rental period. Year-to-year: at least 3 months before the end of the year. |
Local rent-control or just-cause rules can limit evictions: Preempted: local units may not regulate rental rates for privately owned property, nor screening, security deposits, lease applications, lease terms, disclosures, parties' rights, or landlord fees, unless authorized by the General Assembly. Does not apply to property receiving government funds for reduced rents.
Step 2: Write and deliver the notice correctly
| What the notice must say | At least 10 days' notice, unless the parties agreed otherwise or the tenant pays in full within the notice period. Statutory form that may be used: date; 'To (tenant): You are notified to vacate the following property not more than ten (10) days after you receive this notice unless you pay the rent due on the property within ten (10) days: (description of property)'; landlord's name. Service: on the tenant; if the tenant cannot be found, on a person residing at the premises (the server must explain the notice's contents); if no one is found, by affixing a copy to a conspicuous part of the premises. No notice is required if the lease expressly requires rent in advance and the tenant fails to pay it. Source: IC 32-31-1-6, -7, -8(5), -9 |
|---|---|
| How it must be delivered | Termination and rent notices under IC 32-31-1-1 to -7 may be served on the tenant personally. If the tenant cannot be found, the notice may be served on a person living at the premises, and the server must explain the notice's contents to that person. If no such person is found, the notice may be posted on a conspicuous part of the premises. No statute provides for e-mail or text service. Source: IC 32-31-1-9 |
Notice forms:
- Indiana notice to pay rent or quit — requirements and free draft
- Indiana notice to end a month-to-month tenancy — requirements and free draft
- Statutory notice to quit for nonpayment of rent (form text in IC 32-31-1-7) (official)
- Statutory notice ending a year-to-year tenancy (form text in IC 32-31-1-5) (official)
Step 3: File the eviction case and go to the hearing
Eviction cases in Indiana are heard in: Circuit, superior, or city/town court (commonly the small claims docket); in Marion County, township small claims courts.
- Serve notice: 10-day notice to pay or vacate for nonpayment, or the applicable termination notice for periodic tenancies
- File a complaint for possession (and damages) in a court with jurisdiction, often the small claims docket
- Optional: file an affidavit for immediate possession; the court issues an order to show cause with a hearing no earlier than 5 business days after service
- Possession hearing; judgment for possession
- Separate damages hearing may follow for unpaid rent and damages
- Order/writ of possession executed by sheriff or other executing officer
Court timing: Under the immediate-possession procedure, the show-cause hearing may be held no earlier than 5 business days after service on the defendant (IC 32-30-3-2). Other timing is set by the court's summons/small claims rules.
Source: IC 32-31-1-6; IC 32-30-3-1 to 32-30-3-5; IC 33-29-2-4
How long it takes to evict a tenant in Indiana
For unpaid rent, the notice period is 10 days; after that comes the court process (filing, service, the tenant's answer and a hearing), then the final order and removal by an officer. Uncontested cases move fastest; a contested case, an appeal or a crowded court adds weeks. See how long evictions take in every state.
How much it costs to evict a tenant in Indiana
Court filing and service fees are set locally. Verified fees in the largest Indiana counties:
| County | Filing and service fees |
|---|---|
| Marion County (Indianapolis) | $130 in small-claims filing fees in a Marion County township small claims court (this total includes the $26 Marion-only small-claims service fee in effect since July 1, 2025), plus service of the notice of claim (Warren Township lists $15 per defendant); writ of restitution $15 (Warren Township) |
| Lake County (Gary, Hammond) | $97 if served by certified mail or $125 if served by the sheriff, plus $10 for each defendant after the first (Room 2 posted fees); $87 if e-filed |
| Allen County (Fort Wayne) | Eviction on small claims docket: $97 (paper) or $87 (e-filed); eviction on civil docket: $157; sheriff service $28 per case before judgment; $10 per additional defendant on paper filings |
| Tippecanoe County (Lafayette, West Lafayette) | $97 small claims filing (paper) or $87 if e-filed + $28 if sheriff service is requested; $10 per additional defendant on paper filings |
| St. Joseph County (South Bend, Mishawaka) | $97 small claims filing (paper) or $87 if e-filed + $28 if sheriff service is requested; $10 per additional defendant on paper filings |
| Hamilton County (Carmel, Fishers, Noblesville) | $97 small claims filing (paper) or $87 if e-filed + $28 if sheriff service is requested; $10 per additional defendant on paper filings |
| Vanderburgh County (Evansville) | $97 small claims filing (paper) or $87 if e-filed + $28 if sheriff service is requested; $10 per additional defendant on paper filings |
| Monroe County (Bloomington) | Small claims and evictions on the small claims docket: $87 (e-file) or $97 (paper); evictions must be served by the sheriff ($28 sheriff service fee); $10 per additional defendant on paper filings; eviction on the civil docket $157 |
Add the cost of a lawyer if you hire one, lost rent during the case, and any writ or officer fee to remove the tenant.
Evicting someone without a lease (family member, roommate, guest or squatter)
| Someone with no written lease who pays rent (month-to-month / at will) | Tenancy at will / month-to-month: one month's written notice. Periodic tenancies of 3 months or less: notice equal to the rental period. Year-to-year: at least 3 months before the end of the year. |
|---|---|
| Someone who was never a tenant (squatter / unauthorized occupant) | Expedited police removal (since July 1, 2025). A 'squatter' is someone occupying another's property who does not have, and has never had, a rental agreement, the owner's permission, or another property interest; former tenants and invitees are excluded. The owner signs an affidavit (stating false statements are subject to perjury penalties) and gives it to a law enforcement agency, which must dispatch officers to remove the squatter within 48 hours (later only for public-safety reasons, then as soon as practicable). Officers must remove the person unless they find credible evidence the person has or had a rental agreement/permission or is an invitee; they may also arrest on probable cause. Officers are immune from civil liability. A person removed because the affiant knowingly made a materially false statement may sue the affiant. The owner may still use a possession or emergency possession action instead. |
Mistakes that get eviction cases dismissed — or get landlords sued
| Changing locks / shutting off utilities | Except by court order, landlord may not change locks, remove doors/windows/fixtures/appliances, or interrupt or shut off electricity, gas, water or other essential services (emergencies, good-faith repairs and necessary construction excepted), and may not seize or withhold tenant property to enforce rent. Tenant may petition for an emergency possessory order; the court must hold a hearing within 3 business days and may order possession restored, plus damages at a later hearing. |
|---|---|
| Retaliation | Landlord may not raise rent, decrease/interfere with services, or bring or threaten an eviction/possession action in response to a tenant complaining to a code-enforcement agency about health/safety violations, complaining in writing to the landlord about IC 32-31-5-6 or 32-31-8-5 violations, suing under IC 32-31-6 or 32-31-8, joining a tenant organization, or testifying against the landlord. No statutory presumption period. Exceptions include non-renewal at end of term, market-rate rent increases, and evictions for unpaid rent or health/safety lease violations. |
| Accepting rent after the notice | No statute on whether accepting rent after a notice waives the eviction — left to case law. By statute, a landlord may end the lease for unpaid rent on at least 10 days' notice, unless the parties agreed otherwise or the tenant pays the rent IN FULL before the notice period expires. Partial payment does not by statute cure the default. Source: IC 32-31-1-6 |
Federal rules that can change the process
- Servicemembers Civil Relief Act: eviction protection: A landlord may not evict a covered servicemember or their family during military service without a court order. When the servicemember's ability to pay is materially affected by service, the court must on request stay the case for 90 days or adjust the lease. Knowingly evicting without a court order is a federal misdemeanor. More
- VAWA housing protections: An applicant or tenant cannot be denied, evicted or cut off from assistance because they are or were a victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault or stalking. The abuse cannot be treated as a serious lease violation by the victim. The landlord may 'bifurcate' (split) the lease to evict the abuser and keep the victim housed. Covered programs must also have an emergency transfer plan. A transfer is available on request if the tenant reasonably fears imminent harm, or if a sexual assault happened on the premises within the prior 90 days. More
- CARES Act 30-day notice to vacate (covered dwellings): The landlord of a covered dwelling may not require the tenant to leave until 30 days after giving a notice to vacate. The 120-day filing moratorium in the same section expired in July 2020, but the 30-day notice subsection has no expiration date in its text. More
- HUD 30-day nonpayment notice (public housing and project-based Section 8): Before filing an eviction for nonpayment, the landlord must give written notice at least 30 days in advance. The notice must itemize the rent owed by month, explain how to pay it off and by what date, and explain how to recertify income or request a hardship exemption. The notice cannot be served before the day after rent is due. If the tenant pays the amount owed within the 30 days, the landlord may not file the eviction. More
Indiana eviction FAQ for landlords
How much notice does a landlord have to give to evict for unpaid rent in Indiana?
Not less than 10 days' notice to pay or vacate, unless the parties agreed otherwise or the tenant pays in full within the notice period.
How much does it cost to evict a tenant in Indiana?
Court fees are set locally — for example, Marion County (Indianapolis): $130 in small-claims filing fees in a Marion County township small claims court (this total includes the $26 Marion-only small-claims service fee in effect since July 1, 2025), plus service of the notice of claim (Warren Township lists $15 per defendant); writ of restitution $15 (Warren Township)
Can a landlord change the locks to evict a tenant in Indiana?
Except by court order, landlord may not change locks, remove doors/windows/fixtures/appliances, or interrupt or shut off electricity, gas, water or other essential services (emergencies, good-faith repairs and necessary construction excepted), and may not seize or withhold tenant property to enforce rent. Tenant may petition for an emergency possessory order; the court must hold a hearing within 3 business days and may order possession restored, plus damages at a later hearing.
How do you evict a tenant without a lease in Indiana?
Tenancy at will / month-to-month: one month's written notice. Periodic tenancies of 3 months or less: notice equal to the rental period. Year-to-year: at least 3 months before the end of the year.
← All Indiana landlord-tenant rules · Notice deadline calculator
General legal information, not legal advice. Laws change and local rules can differ; check the linked official source or talk to a lawyer about your situation.