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Notice to Owner software, built for Florida's Chapter 713
Add the job facts once, see the 45-day Notice to Owner date, and prepare the worksheet you need to review and serve. FL Permit Pay tracks the date and prepares the worksheet, but it does not file or serve the notice for you. This is not legal advice.
What you will do
- Add the job dates
- Review the Notice to Owner clock
- Keep proof that it was sent
Why the Notice to Owner deadline decides whether you get paid
- A sub or supplier who does not serve a Notice to Owner within 45 days of first furnishing loses lien rights entirely: it is a complete defense to the lien (Fla. Stat. 713.06(2)(a))
- The 45-day clock runs from your FIRST day of furnishing labor or materials. Not project start, and not your last day. So it is easy to miscount
- These windows hide across dozens of jobs, each on its own calendar, with nothing left to do the day one expires
- The Notice to Owner is only step one: the Claim of Lien (90 days) and enforcement (1 year) clocks come next
In Florida, anyone owed money on the job must serve a written Notice to Owner before a lien can stick. That means subs, sub-subs and material suppliers. It means anyone without a contract straight with the owner. Laborers are exempt. A prime contractor who deals straight with the owner does not serve one at all (Fla. Stat. 713.06(2)(a)).
The window is short and unforgiving: serve before you start, or no later than 45 days after you begin to furnish labor, services, or materials. The clock counts from the first day YOU furnish, not from project start (Fla. Stat. 713.06(2)(a)).
Miss it and the statute is blunt: failure to serve, or to timely serve, the Notice to Owner is a complete defense to enforcement of a lien by any person. No matter how much you are owed, the lien is gone.
Florida also gives you a break on the clock: mailed service by registered or certified mail is effective as of the date of mailing, not receipt, and if the last day falls on a weekend or holiday it rolls to the next business day (Fla. Stat. 713.18 and 713.011).
How FL Permit Pay tracks your Florida Notice to Owner
- 1
Add your role and work dates
On the job, choose whether you are a sub, supplier, or prime contractor and enter your first and last day of work. FL Permit Pay uses those facts to show the dates that apply to your role.
- 2
Review the Notice to Owner date
FL Permit Pay calculates the 45-day Notice to Owner date from your first furnishing date (Fla. Stat. 713.06(2)(a)), applies Florida's next-business-day rule (Fla. Stat. 713.011) conservatively, and shows the days remaining.
- 3
Read the deadline status
Look at the candidate date, where it stands now, and the rest of the Chapter 713 chain together. Then decide what needs you.
- 4
Prepare the filing worksheet
When it is time, generate a worksheet that maps your job data to the Notice to Owner elements, ready to transfer onto the official statutory form. Because mailing date controls under Fla. Stat. 713.18, treat the postmark as the satisfying event, not delivery.
- 5
Track the rest of the Chapter 713 chain
The Notice to Owner is step one. FL Permit Pay continues the chain in order for your role: Claim of Lien within 90 days of final furnishing (Fla. Stat. 713.08(5)), serve the owner a copy within 15 days of recording (Fla. Stat. 713.08(4)(c)), and file suit to enforce within 1 year, or 60 days if the owner records a Notice of Contest (Fla. Stat. 713.22).
Sourced to the statute, honest about its limits
- Every deadline traces to a section of the official 2025 Florida Statutes. 713.06(2)(a) for the Notice to Owner. 713.08 for the Claim of Lien. 713.22 for enforcement. 713.011 for the next-business-day roll. Each one links to the statute it came from, so you can read the source yourself.
- FL Permit Pay tracks deadlines and prepares a worksheet. It does not file or serve your Notice to Owner for you, and it is not legal advice. Confirm every date against the statute or your attorney before you rely on it.
- The dates FL Permit Pay shows are candidates, worked out from the work dates you enter. Final furnishing and owner-occupied home service both have edge cases that turn on the facts. So FL Permit Pay never finalizes a date that could forfeit your rights without you confirming it.
- This lien-deadline tracking and Notice to Owner worksheet feature is live in FL Permit Pay today.
Common questions
How long do I have to serve a Notice to Owner in Florida?
A subcontractor, sub-subcontractor, or material supplier who is not in privity with the owner must serve the Notice to Owner before starting, or no later than 45 days after first furnishing labor, services, or materials on the job (Fla. Stat. 713.06(2)(a)). The clock runs from your first day of furnishing, not project start. If the 45th day lands on a weekend or holiday it rolls to the next business day (Fla. Stat. 713.011). This is general information, not legal advice; confirm your date against the statute or your attorney.
Does a general or prime contractor need to serve a Notice to Owner?
No. A contractor in privity with the owner (one who contracts directly with the owner) does not serve a Notice to Owner, because the owner already knows them. The 45-day Notice to Owner requirement applies to subs, sub-subs, and suppliers who contract with someone below the owner. Laborers are exempt (Fla. Stat. 713.06(2)(a)). FL Permit Pay uses the role you set on each job so a prime never gets a false Notice to Owner alarm.
What happens if I miss the 45-day Notice to Owner deadline?
Under Florida law, failure to serve, or to timely serve, the Notice to Owner is a complete defense to enforcement of a lien by any person (Fla. Stat. 713.06(2)(a)). In practice that means you lose your construction lien rights on that job entirely, regardless of the amount owed. That is why FL Permit Pay surfaces the 45-day clock with a status stamp before it expires.
When is a Florida Notice to Owner considered served: on mailing or on delivery?
On mailing, not receipt. Certified mail with evidence of delivery counts from the postmark (Fla. Stat. 713.18), and the worksheet is built around that rule. Not legal advice. Confirm the service method fits your job.
Put the guide to work.
See Lien Protection. It uses your job dates to put the Notice to Owner and Chapter 713 deadlines we support in front of you:.