The Lien Waiver Process: 7 Steps From Request to Signed

The lien waiver process is how you get signed releases from your subs and suppliers, in exchange for paying them. Done well, it takes a few minutes per sub. Done badly, it eats the last week of every month.

Here are the seven steps, in the order they happen on each payment.

Step 1: Pick the waiver type for this payment

Every payment needs one of four waivers:

Waiver	Use it when
Conditional progress	You are about to pay for work through a date
Unconditional progress	That payment has cleared
Conditional final	You are about to make the last payment of the job
Unconditional final	The last payment has cleared

The rule behind the table: conditional means we are about to pay, unconditional means we already paid. More on that in conditional vs unconditional lien waivers.

Step 2: Gather the details

You need five things before you request anything: the sub's legal name, the project, the amount, the through-date and the state. The state matters because 12 states prescribe the form: Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, Texas, Utah and Wyoming. If the project is in one of them, use that state's form word for word. See lien waiver requirements by state.

Step 3: Get the conditional lien waiver from your sub

Send the conditional waiver before the check goes out. This is the form that says the sub releases their lien rights for this work once the payment arrives.

If you build in a state that needs a statutory form, use the conditional progress payment template for that state, or send it from a tool that picks the form for you.

Step 4: The sub signs

The easier you make signing, the faster it comes back. A sub who can open a link on their phone and sign with a finger will do it between jobs. A sub who has to print, sign, scan and email will do it on Friday, if at all. This is why requiring an account is the most common reason waivers do not come back.

Step 5: Check it before you pay

When the signed waiver is back, check four things:

1. The amount matches the pay application.
2. The through-date matches the pay period.
3. The waiver type is the conditional one, because you have not paid yet.
4. The signature is from someone who can sign for the company.

If you hold retainage, also read the language for a carveout. See the retainage carveout your waiver might be missing.

Step 6: Pay, then collect the unconditional

Release the payment. Once the money has cleared, ask for the unconditional waiver for the same amount and through-date. Do not ask for it earlier: an unconditional waiver signed before payment is the biggest risk on the sub's side, and in many states the form says so in bold.

Step 7: File it and keep a list

File every signed waiver by project and pay period, and keep a running list of who has signed and who is missing. When a lender, owner or lawyer asks for the full set, you want to hand it over in minutes, not rebuild it. At the end of the job, repeat steps 3 to 6 with the final waivers.

If you are keeping that list in a spreadsheet, here is a free lien waiver tracking spreadsheet to start from.

Where the process breaks

• Requesting the waiver after the check. You lose your hold on the payment. Ask first.
• Mixing up conditional and unconditional. Conditional before payment, unconditional after.
• Using one template for every state. It works in most states and fails in the 12 that prescribe the form.
• Chasing by email. Each reminder is manual, and nobody can see who is missing without opening a spreadsheet.

For the full reference, see lien waivers in construction.

Make each step shorter

You can run all seven steps by email and a spreadsheet. If you do it for many subs every month, a tool built for it takes out the chasing. With LienDone you pick the sub, project and waiver type, and send a link. The sub signs on their phone in about two minutes with no account, you get reminders sent for you, and you see who has signed on each project. It costs $99 a month, with unlimited projects, subs and waivers.

Want to try it on a real job? Start a 14-day free trial. No card. Add one project and one sub, send a waiver, and see what your sub sees.

Not ready for that? Make a single waiver with the free lien waiver generator, or check the form you use today with the free lien waiver audit.