When must a Texas justice-court eviction appeal be perfected?

Actual signing of the eviction judgment

Obtain the actual signed judgment and lawsuit filing date.

Select and actually complete the compliant bond, cash or Statement in the justice court.

For a defendant, complete the required affirmation and assess residential rent and county fee duties.

1. Five calendar days after signing for the specified appeal perfection instrument
2. Forward from actual signing, excluding that day under Rule 510.4
3. Identify actual court closure and the required act before applying a period.

Rule 510.4 excludes the event day and counts every intermediate day, including weekends and state or federal holidays. A final weekend or state or federal holiday moves to the next eligible day. If the last filing day falls when the court is closed for all or part of that day, filing moves to the court’s next business day. Check actual closure separately. Express business-day periods and backward minimum notice require their own assessment. The general Rule 4 short-period exclusion does not apply.

Rule 510.5(c) separately requires service of noncitation papers on all other parties and a signed written certificate stating manner and date. Email uses an address expressly provided by the receiving party; after 5:00 p.m. recipient local time it is deemed served the following day. This text does not state the ordinary Rule 501.4 written-consent requirement. Mail-only service adds three days to a document-response period, not automatically to every signing or filing period. Party-requested court proceedings ordinarily require all-party notice at least three days before the proceeding. Citation and petition service instead follows Rule 510.8.

Fictitious facts. A defendant files only a document titled notice of appeal and assumes rent is unnecessary. Neither the required perfection instrument nor registry conditions are established.

The existing short-period counting preset does not support a verified five-day result. This guide publishes the actual requirements without a computed date.

Eviction security amount

The judge sets bond or cash with the Rule 510.21 items and applicable registry rent considered. It must be payable to the appellee with the stated prosecution and judgment-and-costs conditions. Do not import the ordinary justice-court $500 plaintiff or twice-judgment defendant amount.

No new-trial restart

Rule 510.18(i) prohibits a motion for new trial. The ordinary Rule 505.3 motion and appeal timetable does not supply an eviction restart. The defendant’s required affirmation is not reviewable by the justice court.

Actual lawsuit edition

The amended order, Misc. Docket No. 25-9105, paragraphs 4 and 6, makes the amendments effective January 1, 2026 and applies rewritten Rule 510 only to eviction lawsuits filed on or after that date. Earlier lawsuits use the earlier rules even when a hearing, judgment or appeal occurs later. The order is titled preliminary approval but expressly establishes effectiveness. Check later amendments and the actual lawsuit filing date. The October 1 consolidation date is not this transition date.

Eviction has a standalone procedure

Rule 510 governs the eviction lawsuit under Property Code Chapter 24. It does not govern pre-lawsuit notices to pay rent or vacate or notices to vacate. Rule 510.1(b) excludes other Civil and Evidence Rules unless specifically provided by law or these rules and prohibits a justice court from modifying or suspending Rule 510. The ordinary Rules 500–507 fairness and extension provisions are not an independent eviction extension power.

• Eviction uses five days from signing and specified perfection instruments. The ordinary twenty-one-day justice appeal and postjudgment motions are different procedures.
• The existing short-period counting preset does not support a verified five-day result. This guide publishes the actual requirements without a computed date.

• Obtain the actual signed judgment and lawsuit filing date.
• Select and actually complete the compliant bond, cash or Statement in the justice court.
• For a defendant, complete the required affirmation and assess residential rent and county fee duties.
• The judge sets bond or cash with the Rule 510.21 items and applicable registry rent considered. It must be payable to the appellee with the stated prosecution and judgment-and-costs conditions. Do not import the ordinary justice-court $500 plaintiff or twice-judgment defendant amount.
• Rule 510.18(i) prohibits a motion for new trial. The ordinary Rule 505.3 motion and appeal timetable does not supply an eviction restart. The defendant’s required affirmation is not reviewable by the justice court.
• Rule 510.5 generally requires a written, signed document actually filed with the court, except oral motions when all parties are present. Personal delivery, commercial delivery, mail and electronic filing if allowed are specified methods. Electronic filing follows Rule 21 and its ordinary court-time-zone before-midnight boundary. Check actual permitted methods and hours. Rule 510.4(b) warns that the court may act if a mailed filing is not received by its due date. Do not import the ordinary justice-court ten-day mailbox procedure.
• Rule 510.5(c) separately requires service of noncitation papers on all other parties and a signed written certificate stating manner and date. Email uses an address expressly provided by the receiving party; after 5:00 p.m. recipient local time it is deemed served the following day. This text does not state the ordinary Rule 501.4 written-consent requirement. Mail-only service adds three days to a document-response period, not automatically to every signing or filing period. Party-requested court proceedings ordinarily require all-party notice at least three days before the proceeding. Citation and petition service instead follows Rule 510.8.
• The amended order, Misc. Docket No. 25-9105, paragraphs 4 and 6, makes the amendments effective January 1, 2026 and applies rewritten Rule 510 only to eviction lawsuits filed on or after that date. Earlier lawsuits use the earlier rules even when a hearing, judgment or appeal occurs later. The order is titled preliminary approval but expressly establishes effectiveness. Check later amendments and the actual lawsuit filing date. The October 1 consolidation date is not this transition date.