# Warrant of Restitution Expiration in Maryland: The Two 60-Day Clocks That Can Kill Your Eviction Maryland warrants of restitution run on two 60-day clocks: request within 60 days of judgment, execute within 60 days of issuance. Miss either and you restart. - Published: 2026-08-25 - Author: Jordan Walsh - Canonical: https://www.evictpro.us/blog/warrant-of-restitution-60-day-expiration --- A Maryland judgment for possession is not self-executing, and it is not evergreen. Between the day you win at rent court and the day the sheriff meets you at the property, your case lives or dies on **two 60-day clocks**, and both of them expire quietly. No warning letter, no reminder from the clerk. The docket just goes stale, and you start over. This is the guide to both clocks: when each starts, what eats the runway, how the 7-business-day post-trial wait interacts, what an expired warrant actually costs you, and how to petition for more time before it happens. - **60 days**: Clock 1: request (from judgment to warrant request) - **60 days**: Clock 2: execute (from issuance to sheriff execution) - **9-11 days**: Gone before you start (the 7-business-day post-trial wait) > The judgment feels like the finish line. It is actually the start of a 60-day fuse, and the first 9 to 11 days burn before you are allowed to touch it. **The short version:** Clock 1: request the warrant of restitution (form DC-CV-081) within 60 days of the judgment, and remember the mandatory post-trial wait consumes the first 9 to 11 calendar days of that window. Clock 2: once issued, the warrant must be executed within 60 days, or it lapses. Extensions of the execution window exist, but only on petition filed before expiration. Miss either clock without relief and the usual remedy is refiling the entire FTPR case. The fix is boring and absolute: file DC-CV-081 the first day you legally can, and calendar the execution deadline the day the warrant issues. ## Clock 1: Request the Warrant Within 60 Days of Judgment The warrant of restitution is the court order that authorizes the sheriff to restore possession of the property to you. It exists only if you ask for it, and [Md. Code, Real Property § 8-401](https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Laws/StatuteText?article=grp§ion=8-401&enactments=false) gives you a bounded window to ask: **60 days from the date of the judgment for possession**. The request is made on form **DC-CV-081**, published by the Maryland District Court at [mdcourts.gov](https://www.mdcourts.gov/sites/default/files/import/district/forms/civil/dccv081.pdf). The field-by-field walkthrough lives in our [DC-CV-081 filing guide](/blog/dc-cv-081-warrant-restitution-how-to-file); this post is about the calendar around it. ### The 7-business-day wait eats your runway You cannot file DC-CV-081 the morning after judgment. Section 8-401(f)(1)(i) imposes a post-trial waiting period before the warrant may issue: **7 days, treated in practice as 7 business days under Md. Rule 1-203**. Because a weekend always intervenes, that lands **9 to 11 calendar days after judgment**. Do the arithmetic on Clock 1: - 60 days of nominal window - minus 9 to 11 days of mandatory wait - minus mail time, clerk processing, and your own reaction time Your usable runway is closer to **7 weeks than 9**, and every day you spend "seeing if the tenant pays" comes out of it. The tenant can still redeem after the warrant is requested in an ordinary FTPR case, so waiting to file buys you nothing: the [right of redemption](/blog/right-of-redemption-maryland-tenant) protects the tenant either way, and filing early only protects you. ### The 4-day appeal window sits inside the wait The tenant's 4-day appeal window runs inside the post-trial wait, so by the time you are allowed to request the warrant, you already know whether an appeal exists. An unbonded appeal does not pause Clock 1; a bonded appeal stays execution until the appeal is decided. The full decision tree is in [what happens when the tenant appeals your FTPR judgment](/blog/tenant-appealed-ftpr-judgment-maryland). ### What "missing" Clock 1 means If 60 days pass from judgment with no warrant requested and no relief sought from the court, the possession judgment goes stale for enforcement. In practice that means **starting over**: a fresh FTPR filing, a new hearing 2 to 4 weeks out, a new judgment, and a new post-trial wait, all while rent continues not being paid. If your original 10-day [Notice of Intent](/notice-of-intent) has aged badly or the arrears have changed, you may be re-serving notice too. Budget 4 to 8 weeks of lost time, plus filing fees, for a deadline that cost nothing to meet. **The quiet failure mode:** Nobody tells you Clock 1 is running. The clerk does not send a reminder, and the tenant certainly does not. The most common way landlords blow the 60-day request window is optimism: a partial payment arrives, a promise is made, a month drifts by. Take the payment if you choose, but file DC-CV-081 anyway. A requested warrant you never execute costs you the $50 court fee. A lapsed judgment costs you the whole case. ## Clock 2: Execute Within 60 Days of Issuance Filing DC-CV-081 is not the end. Once the court issues the warrant, a second, independent clock starts: **the warrant must be executed within 60 days of issuance**. Execution means the sheriff or constable physically carries out the eviction at the property, the day covered in our [warrant of restitution timeline guide](/blog/maryland-warrant-of-restitution-timeline). Sixty days sounds generous. It is not, because you do not control most of it: - **Sheriff scheduling backlogs.** In high-volume jurisdictions, the queue between issuance and a scheduled eviction date can run several weeks by itself. - **Eviction-date notice requirements.** Before the eviction can occur, the tenant must receive notice of the scheduled date: a single 6-day minimum notice statewide by default under RP § 8-407, but 14 days plus a 7-day posting in Baltimore City and 14 days in Montgomery County. Those notice periods live inside Clock 2. - **Weather stays.** District Courts stay evictions during extreme weather, and the sheriff reschedules afterward. A January cold snap or a July heat emergency can consume a week or more. - **Cancellations and reschedules.** A sheriff crew that cannot reach the property, a paperwork mismatch, or a court-ordered postponement resets the scheduling queue, not the clock. ### Extension petitions: ask before it dies If the execution window is closing and the eviction has not happened, the remedy is a **petition to the court to extend the warrant**, filed before the 60 days run. Grounds that courts see routinely: sheriff backlog, weather stays, tenant-requested postponements, or a rescheduled date that fell outside the window. Local practice varies, so call the clerk's office of the issuing District Court, confirm the procedure, and file with time to spare. Maryland's court directory and fee schedules are at [mdcourts.gov](https://www.mdcourts.gov/courts/feeschedules) if you need the issuing court's contact details and current costs. ### What happens when a warrant lapses A lapsed warrant is dead paper: the sheriff will not execute it. Your options depend on which clocks are still alive: 1. **Still within 60 days of judgment?** Ask the clerk whether a new warrant request on the same judgment is available. If so, you refile DC-CV-081, pay the fee again, and rejoin the scheduling queue. 2. **Judgment window also expired?** You are generally refiling the FTPR case from the complaint, or from the notice if the arrears picture has changed. 3. **Either way, act the day you notice.** Every option gets worse with time, and none of them get better. **Never let a warrant clock expire unwatched**: https://www.evictpro.us/pricing ## The Full Calendar, End to End Here is how the clocks stack on a typical uncontested FTPR case: - **Day 0:** judgment for possession at rent court. - **Days 1 to 4:** tenant appeal window. Watch the docket. - **Days 9 to 11:** post-trial wait ends (7 business days under Rule 1-203). File DC-CV-081 now. Clock 1 satisfied. - **Issuance:** the court issues the warrant; **Clock 2 starts**. Calendar issuance date plus 60 on the spot. - **Issuance + 1 to 3 weeks:** sheriff schedules; eviction-date notice goes out under your county's rule (6-day statewide default, 14 days in Baltimore City and Montgomery County). - **Eviction day:** execution at the property, within 60 days of issuance or under an extension you petitioned for in advance. Run cleanly, judgment to eviction commonly lands inside 3 to 6 weeks, and the overall case inside Maryland's typical 45-to-75-day notice-to-eviction range. Run passively, the same case dies twice: once at day 60 after judgment, and again at day 60 after issuance. Two more realities to hold in mind while the clocks run. First, **redemption stays open**. In an ordinary FTPR case the tenant can stop the eviction at any point before execution by tendering the full judgment plus costs, so an active warrant is leverage, not a guarantee; keep the ledger certified and current in case the tender arrives. Second, **partial payments do not stop the clocks**. Accepting money during the warrant period may affect the payoff figure and, in some situations, the posture of the case, but it does not pause either 60-day window. If a tenant offers a payment plan mid-warrant, decide with the calendar in front of you, and with advice from a licensed Maryland attorney if the amounts are significant. **Two clocks, two rules:** Rule 1: file DC-CV-081 the first day the 7-business-day wait allows, every time, even if the tenant is promising payment. Rule 2: the day the warrant issues, calendar issuance + 60, and petition for an extension before that date if the sheriff has not executed. Landlords who follow both rules never meet the refiling penalty; landlords who follow neither meet it twice. ## How EvictPro Keeps Both Clocks Alive The 60-day clocks are a calendar problem, and calendar problems are what case management software is for. EvictPro tracks every FTPR case as a staged pipeline with the legal deadlines built in: - **Warrant of Restitution stage: $199**, the $50 DC-CV-081 court fee included. The request is prepared from your case file and filed at the earliest lawful date, not whenever someone remembers. - **Sheriff Scheduling: $49.** Coordination with the sheriff's office and your county's eviction-date notice requirement, so Clock 2's moving parts move. - **Eviction Day: $225.** Execution-day support so the scheduled date actually completes instead of rescheduling into the deadline. - **Deadline visibility.** Your case timeline shows the appeal window, the post-trial wait, both 60-day clocks, and the scheduled eviction date in one view, whether you run one rental or a thousand doors. Start free: the 10-day Notice of Intent that opens every FTPR case is $0 at [evictpro.us/notice-of-intent](/notice-of-intent). Filing with Court is $99 with the base court filing fee included and Maryland's $5-per-tenant service fee billed at cost. An uncontested case through the warrant typically runs $298 total, and you only ever pay for the stages your case reaches. See the [full pricing breakdown](/pricing). **Not legal advice**: This article is general educational information about Maryland landlord-tenant law and procedure. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws, court fees, and local rules change over time. For advice on your specific situation, consult a licensed Maryland attorney or a qualified housing counselor. **Related reading:** - [Maryland Warrant of Restitution Timeline: From Judgment to Sheriff Eviction in 2026](/blog/maryland-warrant-of-restitution-timeline) - [How to File DC-CV-081 (Warrant of Restitution) in Maryland](/blog/dc-cv-081-warrant-restitution-how-to-file) - [Tenant Appealed Your FTPR Judgment? What Happens Next](/blog/tenant-appealed-ftpr-judgment-maryland) - [Right of Redemption in Maryland: A Landlord's Guide](/blog/right-of-redemption-maryland-tenant) **Put your warrant deadlines on autopilot**: https://www.evictpro.us/notice-of-intent ## Frequently asked questions ### How long is a warrant of restitution good for in Maryland? Two separate 60-day limits apply. First, the landlord must request the warrant within 60 days of the judgment for possession. Second, once the court issues the warrant, it must be executed by the sheriff or constable within 60 days of issuance. Extensions of the execution window are possible on petition to the court, but they are granted, not automatic. ### What happens if I don't request the warrant within 60 days of judgment? The possession judgment goes stale for enforcement purposes. In practice, a landlord who lets the 60-day request window lapse without seeking relief from the court generally has to start over with a new failure-to-pay-rent case: new notice period if required, new filing, new hearing, new judgment. That typically costs 4 to 8 weeks and new filing fees. ### What happens if the sheriff doesn't execute the warrant within 60 days? The warrant lapses. Execution backlogs, weather stays, and rescheduled eviction dates can all eat the window. Before the warrant expires, petition the court for an extension. If it has already lapsed, ask the clerk whether a new warrant request is still available on your judgment; if the judgment window has also run, you are usually looking at refiling the case. ### When can I request the warrant of restitution after an FTPR judgment? Md. Code, Real Property § 8-401(f)(1)(i) sets a 7-day post-trial wait, treated in practice as 7 business days under Md. Rule 1-203, which lands 9 to 11 calendar days after judgment. That wait consumes the front of the 60-day request window, leaving roughly 50 days of usable runway to file DC-CV-081. ### Does a tenant appeal pause the 60-day clocks? Not automatically. An appeal without a bond does not stay the warrant, and prudent landlords keep the warrant process moving to protect the request clock. A bonded appeal stays execution until the appeal is decided; how your District Court treats the clocks during that stay is a question to put to the clerk or a licensed Maryland attorney rather than assume. ### How do I request an extension of a Maryland warrant of restitution? File a written petition or motion with the District Court that issued the warrant, before the 60-day execution window closes, explaining why execution has not occurred: sheriff backlog, weather stays, or a rescheduled eviction date are common grounds. Practice varies by county, so ask your clerk's office about the local procedure and expected turnaround. ### How much does the warrant of restitution stage cost with EvictPro? EvictPro's Warrant of Restitution stage is $199 with the $50 DC-CV-081 court fee included. Sheriff Scheduling is $49 and Eviction Day execution support is $225. Each stage is priced all-in, and you only pay for the stages your case actually reaches.