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What lien releases do I need before making the final payment in Florida?

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What Florida law requires before your last check

Under Florida's Construction Lien Law, your liability as an owner is limited to the contract price — but only if you made "proper payments." A proper payment means you paid against lien releases from every lienor who served you a Notice to Owner, and you made final payment only after the contractor gave you a sworn final payment affidavit.

Skip this, and you can be forced to pay an unpaid sub or supplier even after paying your contractor in full — sometimes called "paying twice."

The releases to collect for every payment

• Every lienor who served you a Notice to Owner (subcontractors, suppliers) should give you a lien waiver or release for the amount of each payment.
• Use a conditional waiver before you pay — it only takes effect once the check clears.
• Use an unconditional waiver once the funds have actually cleared.
• Florida has statutory forms for these waivers and releases — see Fla. Stat. 713.20.
• Collect one from each lienor who sent an NTO, not just from your general contractor.

The final payment affidavit — the last piece

Before you make your final payment, Florida law requires your contractor to deliver a sworn statement — the final payment affidavit — listing everyone still unpaid for labor, services, or materials on the job. See Fla. Stat. 713.06(3)(d). This must happen at least 5 days before you make that final payment.

If the contractor won't provide it, don't make the final payment yet — ask in writing, and don't assume silence means everyone was paid.

If a release is missing, or you already paid

• If a lienor who sent you an NTO never gave you a release, you can send them a written request for a sworn statement of account under Fla. Stat. 713.16. They have 30 days to answer, or they can lose their lien rights.
• If you already paid your contractor in full and a supplier or sub still says they're owed money, your contractor's paid-in-full receipt is evidence against the contractor — but it is not automatically a defense against that unpaid lienor.
• In that situation: demand the final payment affidavit and proof of payment from the contractor, send the 713.16 request to the lienor, and talk to a Florida construction attorney before paying anyone again.

If a lien gets recorded anyway

A claim of lien must be recorded within 90 days of the lienor's last furnishing, and it stays valid for 1 year — unless you record a Notice of Contest of Lien, which cuts the lienor's time to sue down to 60 days (Fla. Stat. 713.22). You can also request a sworn statement of account, or ask about a lien-transfer bond if you need to sell or refinance soon. If your contractor was licensed and you were harmed, the Florida Construction Recovery Fund may also apply — see the DBPR Recovery Fund page.

What to do next

This page is general information, not legal advice, and Florida's lien statutes (Fla. Stat. ch. 713 Part I) have strict deadlines. A free tool can read your Notice to Owner, contract, or the numbers on your job and tell you which releases you're missing, whether the final affidavit is due, and what step to take this week — in English or Spanish. Nothing you paste is stored. Confirm anything important with a Florida construction attorney before you record or pay anything.

Owner Lien Shield FL explains Florida's Construction Lien Law from the homeowner's side in plain language; it can be wrong, and it is not legal advice. Deadlines and forms under Fla. Stat. ch. 713 are strict — confirm with a Florida construction attorney or legal aid. Nothing you paste is stored.