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Arizona Eviction Process: Special Detainer Steps and Deadlines

In Arizona a landlord regains a rental through a court case called a special detainer action, not by changing locks. For unpaid rent the order is a written five-day notice, a sworn complaint, a summons, a trial, a judgment, and a writ of restitution that cannot issue until five calendar days after judgment. The rules are in A.R.S. 33-1377 and A.R.S. 33-1368(B), plus the title 12 forcible detainer sections that 33-1377(A) makes applicable.

Section 33-1377(A) says: “Except as provided in this section, the procedure and appeal rights prescribed in title 12, chapter 8, article 4 apply to special detainer actions.” Where the texts give different numbers we show both; the statutes do not reconcile them, so ask the justice court clerk.

The steps, nonpayment track

StepWhoStatutory time limitSection
1. Written notice of nonpayment and intent to terminateLandlordTenant has five days to pay (calendar days)33-1368(B), (G)
2. File a sworn complaintLandlordAfter the five days pass; no later deadline stated33-1368(B); A.R.S. 12-1175(A)–(B)
3. Summons issuesCourtDay of filing (33-1377); next judicial day (12-1175)33-1377(B); 12-1175(A)
4. Serve the summonsNot named in the textAt least two days before the return day33-1377(B); 12-1175(C)
5. Return day, which is the trial dayTenant appears and answersNot more than six nor less than three days from the summons date33-1377(B)
6. Trial, jury if requestedCourtPostponement on affidavit: 3 days (justice court) or 5 (superior court)33-1377(C)–(D); A.R.S. 12-1176; A.R.S. 12-1177
7. Judgment and writ of restitutionCourtNo writ until five calendar days after judgment33-1377(F); A.R.S. 12-1178(A), (C)
8. Appeal (optional)Either partyFive calendar days after judgmentA.R.S. 12-1179(A)
9. Utilities and belongings after the writ is executedLandlordThe day following execution33-1368(D)–(E)
10. Records sealed if dismissed before judgment or tenant winsCourtNone statedA.R.S. 33-1379

What the text adds

Notice

The five-day nonpayment notice is in 33-1368(B). Subsection (A) has three separate breach tracks: ten days for material noncompliance, five days for a health-and-safety breach of A.R.S. 33-1341, and immediate termination for a material and irreparable breach. Section 33-1368(G) makes days calendar days for that section only. How a tenant receives a notice, and when mailed notice is deemed received, is in A.R.S. 33-1313(B).

Service

The tenant is deemed to have received the summons three days after it is mailed if personal service is attempted and, within one day of issuance, a copy is conspicuously posted on the main entrance of the tenant's residence and, the same day, sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the tenant's last known address. That counts as personal service for a money judgment (33-1377(B)).

Two clocks in the text

Postponement: 33-1377(C) says not more than three days (justice court) or five days (superior court); 12-1177(C) says three calendar days or ten calendar days. Summons: day of filing in 33-1377(B), next judicial day in 12-1175(A). Trial: 33-1377(B) sets a return date three to six days from the summons; 12-1176(A), in its jury provision, says no more than five judicial days after filing. Section 33-1377 does not define days. Ask the clerk.

Material and irreparable breach

Under 33-1377(E) the trial and return date are set no later than the third day after filing, and on a finding by a preponderance of the evidence the court orders restitution “not less than twelve nor more than twenty-four hours later”.

Judgment, writ, aftermath

If the tenant is found guilty, judgment is for restitution, late charges stated in the rental agreement, costs and, at the landlord's option, rent found due and unpaid through the periodic rental period (33-1377(F)); 12-1178(A) also lists damages and attorney fees. If the tenant wins, judgment is for the tenant for costs (33-1377(G)). Section 12-1178(C) says: “No writ of restitution shall issue until the expiration of five calendar days after the rendition of judgment.” A motion to set aside does not suspend it unless a judge finds good cause. A defendant lawfully served with the writ who remains in or returns to the unit without the owner's express permission commits criminal trespass in the third degree (12-1178(D)). A separate action for rent or damages is not barred (A.R.S. 12-1183). After execution the landlord follows A.R.S. 33-1370(D)–(I) for the tenant's property (33-1368(E)), including a fourteen-calendar-day hold (33-1370(F)).

Appeal

Either party may appeal from the justice court to the superior court by giving notice within five calendar days after judgment; a motion to set aside does not extend that time (12-1179(A)). A bond for costs on appeal is filed with the notice, or an affidavit that the party cannot give one (12-1179(B)). To stay a judgment for possession, the appealing party files a supersedeas bond (rent accruing from judgment to the next periodic rental date, plus costs and attorney fees) and pays each period's rent to the justice court clerk; a missed payment lets the other side move to lift the stay (12-1179(D)–(E)). Money judgments: 12-1179(F). A.R.S. 12-1181 covers the appeal trial; A.R.S. 12-1182 covers supreme court appeals in actions begun in the superior court.

Sealed records

If the court dismisses before judgment or enters judgment for the tenant, it shall seal all records; it shall also seal on a written stipulation of both sides to set aside the eviction order (33-1379(A)–(B)). Sealed files go only to the people listed in 33-1379(C).

Worked example (illustrative dates)

Rent due Thursday 1 October 2026 is unpaid; notice is handed over Monday 5 October. Counting 6 October as day one, day five is Saturday 10 October; the text does not say whether the delivery day counts or what a weekend does. Complaint and summons: Tuesday 13 October. Return day, in calendar days from the summons date: Friday 16 to Monday 19 October. Personal service for a 16 October return day is due by Wednesday 14 October. Posting and certified mail on 13 October is deemed received Friday 16 October, which on a plain reading is not two days before a Friday return day; the text does not say how the clocks combine. Judgment Monday 19 October: counting 20 October as day one, the appeal window and the writ wait both run through Saturday 24 October.

Outside the statute text

Filing fees, court forms, the Arizona Rules of Procedure for Eviction Actions, constable or sheriff scheduling and fees, and local procedure are outside the statute text; ask the justice court clerk. General information, not legal advice.

Common mistakes

Checked against the text published on azleg.gov on 5 October 2026.

Sources

Related guides

Informational only, not legal advice. Statute text checked against the Arizona Revised Statutes (Title 33, Chapter 10 and Title 12, Chapter 8, Article 4) as published at azleg.gov on October 5, 2026. Statutes change every legislative session and a court may read them differently than a summary does; for a dispute, an eviction or anything expensive to get wrong, talk to an Arizona landlord-tenant attorney.

Want the complete picture? The Arizona Small Landlord Compliance Guide puts the deposit, notice and eviction rules of the Arizona Residential Landlord and Tenant Act in one place, with each rule cited to the statute text.

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