Texas preliminary notice deadline

The rule since 2022

H.B. 2237 rewrote Texas lien notices. It applies when the original contract, between the owner and the general contractor, was entered into on or after January 1, 2022; older original contracts follow the earlier law. Every claimant other than the general contractor now sends the same notice, to the owner and to the general contractor, under Tex. Prop. Code §53.056(a-1). The old second-month notice for lower tiers is gone. On residential projects the deadline is the 15th day of the second month instead.

One notice covers one month of work. If you are unpaid for three months, each month has its own deadline.

2026 notice deadlines, commercial projects

When the 15th falls on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, §53.003(e) extends it to the next business day. We show the business day before, so you never rely on the extension.

The deadlines after the notice

• Lien affidavit: by the 15th day of the fourth month after the month you last provided labor or materials (§53.052(b)), with a copy to the owner and general contractor within 5 days (§53.055).
• Retainage: its own notice within 30 days after your contract ends (§53.057) and its own lien deadline, the 15th day of the third month after the month the original contract was completed (§53.052(d)).
• Suit to foreclose: by the first anniversary of the last day you could file the lien affidavit (§53.158).
• Prompt pay: a contractor must pay its subs within 7 days of being paid, and late amounts carry 1.5% a month interest (ch. 28).