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How much does it cost to file an eviction in Maine?

Filing an eviction in Maine — formally a forcible entry and detainer action — costs $100 to enter in District Court, under the Maine Judicial Branch's statewide Court Fees Schedule, Administrative Order JB-05-26 (A. 3-26), effective March 9, 2026. Unusually, the schedule states what is inside the number: the $100 includes a $15 mediation fee, and the order's mediation section confirms that mediation in forcible entry and detainer actions is included in the filing fee rather than charged again later.

Maine eviction fees at a glance

Every figure in the table is from the same source used for this site's Maine divorce costs page: Administrative Order JB-05-26 (A. 3-26), the single fee schedule for the whole Maine court system. Section I.A.3.m sets "Entry of a Forcible Entry and Detainer Action" at $100, and footnote 12 to that line states that the fee includes a $15 mediation fee. Section 5.h of the order then lists "Mediation in Forcible Entry and Detainer Actions" as "Included in filing fee" — so a Maine landlord will not be charged a second mediation amount when the case is referred, unlike the family-matter mediation priced separately at $160 for two sessions elsewhere in the same order. Writs are priced in Section B: preparing a writ and renewing a writ cost $25, an attested copy of a writ $10. The national comparison is on the eviction filing costs hub and the wider state picture on the Maine court costs guide.

Before you file: Maine's notice periods decide the case

A Maine FED action under 14 M.R.S. §6001 is filed in the District Court for the district where the property sits, but it stands or falls on the notice that came before it. For a tenancy at will, §6002 requires a written notice to quit — generally 30 days — while a tenancy can be terminated on 7 days' written notice for the serious grounds the statute lists, including nonpayment of rent (where the statute's conditions on how far the rent is in arrears must be met), substantial damage, or conduct that disturbs other tenants. A landlord who files on a short or defective notice risks dismissal and the loss of the $100, plus weeks of delay while a correct notice runs. One Maine-specific protection belongs in every landlord's planning: a tenant cannot lawfully be locked out or have utilities shut off to force them out — possession changes hands through the FED judgment and the writ of possession, served by the sheriff, not through self-help.

Mediation, hearing and the writ of possession

Maine's inclusion of mediation in the filing fee reflects how its District Courts actually run FED dockets: many cases are referred to mediation on the court day itself, and a mediated agreement — a move-out date, a payment plan, repairs — can be entered as the judgment. If there is no agreement, the court hears the case; the landlord must prove the tenancy, the notice and its proper service, and the ground relied on. A judgment for the landlord is enforced by a writ of possession, which the clerk prepares for the $25 writ fee in the schedule and the sheriff then serves; the sheriff's service and enforcement charges are set outside JB-05-26, so this page lists them without a figure rather than borrowing a number from another county or year. Either side may appeal a FED judgment to the Superior Court — the same order prices a civil appeal at $175 (§6.a) — and an appeal in an eviction has its own fast rules on rent payment pending the appeal, which both sides should check with the clerk immediately, because the deadlines are short.

How the case runs

1. Serve the correct written notice to quit — 7 days for the serious statutory grounds including qualifying nonpayment, otherwise generally 30 days for a tenancy at will — and let it expire
2. File the forcible entry and detainer complaint in the District Court and pay the entry fee $100, mediation included
3. Have the summons and complaint served on the tenant (sheriff or server's charge is separate)
4. Attend the court day: mediate under the included-fee programme, or try the case on the notice, the tenancy and the ground
5. On a judgment for possession, have the writ of possession prepared $25 and served by the sheriff; appeal, if either side takes one, costs $175

What an eviction really costs beyond the clerk

Maine's published numbers make the court side small and knowable: $100 in, $25 for the writ, $175 if there is an appeal. The costs that actually decide what an eviction costs a Maine landlord are outside the schedule — rent lost during the notice, court and any appeal periods; sheriff's service and writ-enforcement charges, set outside JB-05-26; turnover and repair costs; and attorney fees if counsel is used, which are market-priced. Tenants should note the mirror image: defending a Maine FED costs no entry fee of its own under this schedule, and the included mediation is often where a workable move-out agreement — more time, a payment record kept clean — is actually reached. Compare the other low-fee state in this run, Oregon eviction costs at $88, and the tiered structures in North Carolina eviction costs.

Can't afford the fee?

Maine's Application to Proceed Without Payment of Fees, with its Indigency Affidavit, is the route for a filer who cannot pay the $100 entry fee; a judge decides on the sworn financial statement, and means-tested benefit recipients are the clearest qualifiers. File it with the complaint. The general mechanics are explained in the fee waiver guide.

Sources: Maine Supreme Judicial Court Administrative Order JB-05-26 (A. 3-26), Revised Court Fees Schedule, effective March 9, 2026 — FED entry $100 including a $15 mediation fee (§I.A.3.m and footnote 12); FED mediation included in filing fee (§5.h); preparing/renewing a writ $25 (§B.1); attested copy of a writ $10 (§B.3); copies $2 first page / $1 subsequent (§E.3); civil appeal to Superior Court $175 (§6.a); family mediation $160 for two sessions (§5.a, for comparison) · 14 M.R.S. §§6001 (forcible entry and detainer), 6002 (notice to terminate tenancy at will — 7-day and 30-day notices). Last verified: October 2026 — confirm current figures with your District Court clerk.