California preliminary notice deadline
Find your 20-day deadline and estimate your mechanics lien dates with the free calculator.
In California, you must serve your preliminary notice within 20 days of first furnishing labor or materials to a private project (Cal. Civ. Code § 8204). Miss that window and you can lose the right to record a mechanics lien for the work you did before it. Enter your dates below to estimate your exact deadlines.
California deadline calculator
Enter your project dates to estimate your preliminary notice and mechanics lien deadlines.
This is a general estimate, not legal advice. “Completion” under California law can be triggered in more than one way — actual completion of the work, the owner’s occupancy or use of the project, or a 60-day cessation of labor — so your true deadline may differ. Deadlines that fall on a weekend or holiday and other fact-specific rules are not accounted for here. Confirm critical dates with a California construction attorney.
How is the preliminary notice deadline calculated?
Count 20 calendar days starting from the first day you furnished labor or materials to the project — the first day on site or the first delivery, whichever came first. The contract date and your first invoice date don’t matter for this count. Because the days are calendar days, weekends and holidays are included.
What if I already missed the 20-day deadline?
Serve a notice anyway. A late preliminary notice still protects the labor and materials you furnished in the 20 days before you serve it, plus everything you furnish afterward. Only the work furnished earlier than that rolling 20-day window loses protection, so a late notice is almost always better than none.
How does this connect to my mechanics lien deadline?
The preliminary notice preserves your right to record a mechanics lien; the lien itself has its own clock. With no Notice of Completion recorded, you have 90 days from completion of the whole project. Once an owner records a Notice of Completion, subcontractors and suppliers have just 30 days and the direct contractor has 60. See the California mechanics lien deadline guide for the full breakdown.
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Start your free noticeThis page is general information, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney–client relationship. California lien and notice deadlines are strict and fact-specific — “completion” alone can be triggered by actual completion, the owner’s occupancy or use, or a 60-day cessation of labor. Notice Harbor is not a law firm. Confirm any deadline that matters to your claim with a licensed California construction attorney.