Do I need to send a preliminary notice in Kentucky?

Anyone who did not contract directly with the owner, the owner's agent or the lessee (subcontractors, suppliers, lower tiers) must send the owner a written notice of intent to hold the property liable, stating the amount claimed. Contractors in direct contract with the owner are exempt. Within 75 days after the last item of material or labor is furnished on claims under $1,000, and within 120 days on claims over $1,000. On an owner-occupied single or double family dwelling, the notice is due within 75 days after last furnishing regardless of amount..

How long do I have to file a lien in Kentucky?

File a sworn lien statement with the county clerk of the county where the property is located within 6 months after the claimant last performed labor or furnished materials. Within 7 days of filing, send a copy by regular mail to the owner's last known address, or the lien is dissolved. Same deadline for primes and subs.

How long does a Kentucky lien last before I have to enforce it?

An action to enforce must be brought within 12 months from the day the lien statement was filed with the county clerk. If the owner dies before then, an extra 6 months from the qualification of the personal representative is allowed.

Mechanics lien law

Kentucky lien deadlines for contractors

Updated September 24, 2026 · Checked against primary sources

The short answer

In Kentucky, file your lien statement with the county clerk within 6 months after you last furnish labor or materials, and mail a copy to the owner within 7 days of filing. Subs and suppliers without a direct owner contract must send a notice of intent within 75 or 120 days after last furnishing. Sue to enforce within 12 months of filing.

The deadlines

Step	Rule
Preliminary notice: who	Anyone who did not contract directly with the owner, the owner's agent or the lessee (subcontractors, suppliers, lower tiers) must send the owner a written notice of intent to hold the property liable, stating the amount claimed. Contractors in direct contract with the owner are exempt.
Preliminary notice: when	Within 75 days after the last item of material or labor is furnished on claims under $1,000, and within 120 days on claims over $1,000. On an owner-occupied single or double family dwelling, the notice is due within 75 days after last furnishing regardless of amount. (Kentucky has no notice at the start of the job; this notice is sent at the back end, after furnishing. Proof of mailing to the owner's last known address is sufficient.)
File or register the lien	File a sworn lien statement with the county clerk of the county where the property is located within 6 months after the claimant last performed labor or furnished materials. Within 7 days of filing, send a copy by regular mail to the owner's last known address, or the lien is dissolved. Same deadline for primes and subs.
Enforce or perfect it	An action to enforce must be brought within 12 months from the day the lien statement was filed with the county clerk. If the owner dies before then, an extra 6 months from the qualification of the personal representative is allowed.
Residential jobs	For an owner-occupied single or double family dwelling (and related agricultural or personal-use improvements on the same owner's contiguous land), a claimant without a direct owner contract must give the notice of intent within 75 days after last furnishing. The lien does not apply to the extent the owner paid the contractor before receiving that notice. The contractor or subcontractor cannot serve as the owner's authorized agent for this notice.

Other notices and rules

Priority statement: to prime a later-recorded mortgage or conveyance, a claimant may file a statement with the county clerk before that mortgage is recorded, showing labor or materials furnished or expected (376.010(2)).
Leased property: since the 2023 amendment, a lien on lessee improvements also reaches the lessor's interest unless the lease says otherwise, and the lessee must tell the contractor of such a clause (376.010(3)).

Common questions

Do I need to send a preliminary notice in Kentucky?: Anyone who did not contract directly with the owner, the owner's agent or the lessee (subcontractors, suppliers, lower tiers) must send the owner a written notice of intent to hold the property liable, stating the amount claimed. Contractors in direct contract with the owner are exempt. Within 75 days after the last item of material or labor is furnished on claims under $1,000, and within 120 days on claims over $1,000. On an owner-occupied single or double family dwelling, the notice is due within 75 days after last furnishing regardless of amount..
How long do I have to file a lien in Kentucky?: File a sworn lien statement with the county clerk of the county where the property is located within 6 months after the claimant last performed labor or furnished materials. Within 7 days of filing, send a copy by regular mail to the owner's last known address, or the lien is dissolved. Same deadline for primes and subs.
How long does a Kentucky lien last before I have to enforce it?: An action to enforce must be brought within 12 months from the day the lien statement was filed with the county clerk. If the owner dies before then, an extra 6 months from the qualification of the personal representative is allowed.

General information from the statutes cited below, checked 2026-09-24. Lien law is strict and details depend on your role and contract. Confirm with a construction lawyer in Kentucky before relying on a deadline. Verified against current KRS text on apps.legislature.ky.gov; 376.010 was last amended by 2023 Ky. Acts ch. 177, effective June 29, 2023. The statute says under $1,000 (75 days) and in excess of $1,000 (120 days) and does not address a claim of exactly $1,000.

Where Pavado comes in

How Pavado builds a CRM around your jobs

Lien rights are usually lost to a calendar, not a court. We build CRMs that start each job's notice and lien clocks from its real start and completion dates and remind you before every deadline, so the rights you earned by doing the work are still there when a customer stops paying.

Instead of bending your shop around someone else's software, we build the system around how your jobs actually move, and connect it to what you already use.

Your pipeline, your stages. From first call to paid invoice, set up the way your team already works.
Automations for the busywork. Follow-ups, reminders and handoffs that happen without anyone remembering.
One record per customer. Calls, quotes, jobs, photos and invoices in one place instead of five apps.
Connected to your stack. QuickBooks or Xero, Gmail or Outlook, payments and e-sign, plus thousands more through Zapier and an API.

1.Book a free demo and walk us through how a job moves today.
2.We map the workflow and send a scoped proposal, free.
3.We build it, connect your tools and get your team using it.

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The first conversation and a scoped proposal are free, and we will tell you early if we are not the right fit.

Go deeper

Other states

Sources

Cite this page

Pavado, “Kentucky Lien Deadlines 2026: Notice and Filing”, https://www.pavadotech.com/lien-deadlines/kentucky, updated 2026-09-24.