By Harold Safer

You've been on the job for six weeks. The crew is busy, the materials keep showing up, and somewhere in all of that the preliminary notice never went out. Now the payments are getting slow and you're wondering if you've already lost your lien rights.

The short answer: probably not all of them, and you should send the notice today. California law lets you send a preliminary notice late. You just lose protection for some of the earlier work. Every day you wait, you lose more.

The 20-Day Rule in Plain English

Under California Civil Code §8204(a), a preliminary notice “shall be given not later than 20 days after the claimant has first furnished work on the work of improvement.”

The clock starts on your first day on the project. That's the first day you showed up with labor, or the first delivery of materials or equipment. It doesn't start when the job started or when you signed the contract.

And it matters. Under §8200(c), giving preliminary notice is a “necessary prerequisite” to a valid mechanics lien or stop payment notice on a private project. Under §8200(d), it's also required for a claim against a payment bond (unless you use the separate notice route in §8612).

For the full rundown on who sends a prelim, what goes in it, and when, see our Guide to Preliminary Notices in California.

Good News: A Late Preliminary Notice Still Counts

This is what many contractors don't realize. The same section, §8204(a), says a claimant who missed the window “shall not be precluded from giving a preliminary notice at any time thereafter.”

The catch is that a late notice doesn't reach all the way back. The statute says you can still lien, stop-notice, or bond-claim only for “work performed within 20 days prior to the service of the preliminary notice, and at any time thereafter.”

In practice, that means a late notice covers work you performed on or after the date 20 days before the day you serve it, plus everything you do afterward. Work before that date is no longer protected by a lien. You can still pursue it under your contract, just not with a lien.

A quick example

You first delivered materials on March 2.
Your deadline for full coverage was 20 days later.
You realize the mistake and serve the notice on April 20.
The date 20 days before April 20 is March 31. Your lien rights cover work performed on or after March 31, plus all future work.
Work from March 2 through March 30 isn't covered by the lien.

If you'd waited until May 20, the cutoff would have moved to April 30. The lookback window moves forward every day you wait. That's why “send it today” is the right answer. If important work falls right on the cutoff date, don't rely on it; talk to a construction attorney.

When “served” happens

If you serve by mail, notice is complete when it's deposited in the mail (or handed to an express service carrier), not when it's delivered. See §8116(b). The date you mail it is the date you count back 20 days from.

Who You Need to Send It To

Under §8200(a), the preliminary notice goes to:

The owner or reputed owner
The direct contractor (the GC) you're working under, directly or through other subs
The construction lender, if there is one

Two exceptions are in §8200(e):

Laborers (workers claiming their own wages) don't have to send one.
Contractors hired directly by the owner only have to send it to the construction lender, if there is one. That means a GC on a financed job still needs to send a prelim.

Don't have the owner or lender info? Under §8208, the direct contractor has to give the owner's and construction lender's name and address to anyone who asks so they can send a preliminary notice.

One notice per contract

Usually, one preliminary notice covers all your work on a project (§8206(a)). But if you're supplying work under contracts with more than one subcontractor on the same job, you need a separate notice for each contract (§8206(b)). Suppliers get caught by this a lot.

How the Notice Has to Be Served

Under §8106, notice can be given by personal delivery, by mail as described in §8110, or by leaving a copy and mailing one the way §415.20 of the Code of Civil Procedure allows.

For mail, §8110 requires registered or certified mail, express mail, or overnight delivery by an express service carrier. Regular first-class mail isn't on that list for a preliminary notice.

Keep your proof. §8118 says proof of notice is made with a declaration that lists what was sent, when, how, and to whom, along with mailing documentation like the USPS certified mail receipt or tracking record. You'll need that proof if you ever record a lien. Under §8410, a lien can be enforced only if you gave the required preliminary notice and made proof of notice.

Your “I'm Late” Checklist

If you're past day 20, do this:

Serve the notice today. Don't wait for a slow week. Each day you wait pushes the lookback window forward.
Get the right names. Owner, GC, and lender. Ask the GC in writing if you don't have them (§8208).
Describe your work generally and give an estimate. §8202 requires a general description of your work and an estimate of the total price, along with the statutory “Notice to Property Owner” text.
Use an approved delivery method (§8110) and save every receipt and tracking record (§8118).
Write down your dates. Note your first day on the job, the date you served the notice, and the cutoff date 20 days before it. Bill or track the protected work separately if you can.
Watch for a Notice of Completion. If the owner records one, subs and suppliers generally have just 30 days to record a lien (§8414). Direct contractors have 60 days (§8412). If nothing is recorded, the outside limit is 90 days after the project is complete. Our Guide to Filing a Lien walks through those steps.
Think about filing your prelim with the county recorder. Under §8214, you can file it with the county recorder. The recorder then makes a good-faith effort to mail you a notice if a Notice of Completion or Cessation gets recorded. Not getting that notice doesn't extend your deadline, so don't count on it alone.

The License Angle: It's Not Just About Liens

If you're a licensed subcontractor and your contract on the job pays more than $400, failing to give the preliminary notice is grounds for disciplinary action under the Contractors' State License Law (§8216). One more reason to make prelims a routine part of starting every job.

Make “Late” Impossible Next Time

Send the prelim the day you start work or make your first delivery, on every job, even with customers you trust. The statutory text itself says the notice “is not intended to reflect upon the financial condition of the contractor.”

FAQ

Can I send a preliminary notice after 20 days in California?

Yes. Under §8204(a), you can serve a preliminary notice any time. A late notice protects work performed on or after the date 20 days before you served it, and everything after.

What if the job is already finished and I never sent a prelim?

Then a late notice may protect little or nothing, since only work in the 20 days before service is covered. Your contract claims against the party that hired you still exist, but lien rights may be gone. Talk to a construction attorney.

Does the general contractor need to send a preliminary notice?

A contractor hired directly by the owner only has to send it to the construction lender, if there is one (§8200(e)(2)). No lender, no prelim required for the GC.

Send Your Preliminary Notice in Minutes

Late or not, the best day to send your prelim is today. With FieldLatch, you enter the project details, review and pay, and we print and mail your notice by USPS certified mail with tracking so your proof is ready if you ever need it.

Preliminary Notice: $85 per project, including two recipients and certified-mail postage. Each additional recipient is $10.

If the payment problem has already started, FieldLatch can also send a Notice of Intent to Lien ($95 per recipient) or file your mechanics lien ($340, county recording fee included).

Send your preliminary notice now →

This article is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your specific project, talk to a licensed California attorney.