Lien Release in Florida: Forms, Refusals, and Bond Transfers

A lien release in Florida happens in one of four ways under Section 713.21 of the Florida Statutes: the lienholder signs a satisfaction on the margin of the lien record at the clerk’s office, the lienholder signs and records a notarized release referencing the original lien, the lien expires because no enforcement lawsuit was filed in time, or a court cancels it after a show cause proceeding. The first two need the lienholder’s cooperation. The last two do not, and that is what property owners rely on when a contractor has vanished, gone out of business, or simply refuses to sign after being paid.¹

The Signed Release Document

The cleanest path is a written release from the lienholder. The document must be notarized and must identify the original claim of lien by its official records reference number and recording date, so the clerk can tie the release to the lien it discharges. Once it is recorded in the county where the property sits, the lien is off the title.¹

The costs are small. Florida recording fees run about $10 for the first page and $8.50 for each additional page, and most releases fit on a single page. Notarization adds up to $10 per notarial act.²

After recording, verify the release actually appears in the county’s official records. Title companies and lenders run their own searches before a closing, and an unindexed release can hold up a deal even when the paperwork is right. Ask the clerk for a copy of the recorded release and confirm the lien no longer shows on a current title search before you treat the matter as closed.

When the Lienholder Won’t Sign

An uncooperative lienholder is the most common reason people go looking for information on how to release a Florida construction lien. Two procedures put the choice in the property owner’s hands.

Notice of Contest of Lien

Section 713.22 gives a lienholder one year from recording to file suit to enforce the lien. If nothing is filed within that year, the lien is discharged automatically. You do not have to wait a year. Recording a Notice of Contest of Lien shortens the lienholder’s window to 60 days from the date of service. The county clerk serves the notice, records it, and certifies the service date. If the lienholder does not file suit within those 60 days, the lien is extinguished automatically.³

The tactical value is straightforward. Many liens are filed as leverage or as a precaution, and the lienholder never intended to fund actual litigation. A Notice of Contest forces that decision.

Show Cause Action

Under Section 713.21(4), any interested party can file a complaint in the circuit court of the county where the property sits. The clerk issues a summons ordering the lienholder to show cause within 20 days why the lien should not be canceled. If the lienholder does not respond, or cannot demonstrate that the lien is valid, the court cancels it.¹

The prevailing party can recover reasonable attorney fees and costs, a rule that applies more broadly to any action to enforce a construction lien or a claim against a bond under Chapter 713.⁴

Show cause works well when the debt has already been paid and the lienholder just failed to sign a release, or when the lien is defective on its face. You will need an attorney to file and appear.

Transferring the Lien to a Bond

If a closing or a loan will not wait for the 60-day or 20-day clock to run, Section 713.24 lets you move the lien off the real estate and onto a cash deposit or surety bond. The lien still exists; it just no longer clouds the title.

The required amount equals the face of the lien, plus three years of interest at the legal rate, plus the greater of $5,000 or 25 percent of the lien amount, set aside for potential attorney fees and court costs. For a $50,000 lien, the deposit or bond runs well above the face amount. Surety bonds must come from an insurer licensed in Florida.⁵

Once the deposit is made or the bond is filed, the clerk records a certificate of transfer and the real property is free of the lien. It is the most expensive option and the fastest.

The One-Year Backstop

If you do nothing, the lien still has a shelf life. Section 713.22 caps enforcement at one year from the date of recording. When that year runs without a suit filed, the lien is discharged under Section 713.21’s “failure to begin an action” method. For property owners who are not selling or refinancing and who are willing to wait, this is the cheapest route: no filings, no fees, no lawyer.³

Waivers and Releases During the Project

Section 713.20 governs the release forms exchanged while work is ongoing. One rule is absolute: lien rights cannot be waived in advance. A contract clause purporting to strip lien rights before work begins is unenforceable.⁶

Once work has started, the statute supplies two standard forms:

A progress payment release, used when a lienholder gives up lien rights for work performed through a specific date in exchange for a draw. It carves out retainage and future work.
A final payment release, used when the lienholder gives up all remaining lien rights in exchange for the final payment.

Parties do not have to use the exact statutory wording, but their forms must be substantially similar. A practical caution for contractors: signing a final release before the check has actually cleared leaves you with no lien remedy if the payment bounces.

Section 713.20 also permits a partial release. When a lienholder and owner disagree about only part of the work, the lienholder can release the undisputed portion and keep lien rights alive for the contested amount. That middle ground can unblock a closing without forcing the lienholder to abandon a legitimate claim.⁶

When the Lienholder Is Dead or Dissolved

Small contractors retire, pass away, and close up shop, and their liens do not vanish with them. Section 713.01(19) defines “lienor” to include a successor in interest, and Section 713.21 gives anyone who originally executed the claim of lien, or their legal successor, authority to sign a satisfaction or release.¹

For a deceased individual, that usually means the personal representative of the estate. For a dissolved corporation or LLC, the person who handled the winding-up may still have authority. When no successor can be located, the show cause procedure or the one-year expiration are typically the only practical options left.

When a Lienholder Can Legitimately Refuse

Not every refusal to release is stonewalling. A genuine dispute over the amount owed — completion of the work, authorization of change orders, the correct contract price — can justify keeping the lien in place while the parties fight it out. The lien amount should reflect what the lienholder honestly believes is due. Padding beyond that turns a legitimate claim into a fraudulent one under Florida law.

Procedural failures by the owner can also support a lienholder’s position. If payments were not properly documented, contractual payment procedures were skipped, or notice of a dispute was inadequate, the lienholder may argue the conditions for release have not been met.

Property owners have their own procedural weapons in this territory. Under Section 713.06, most lienholders other than laborers must serve a Notice to Owner within 45 days of first furnishing labor, services, or materials. Failure to serve that notice, or serving it late, is a complete defense to enforcement of the lien. If the lienholder pressing you never sent a Notice to Owner, the lien may be unenforceable regardless of the underlying debt — a defense that will not by itself discharge the recorded lien, but that will collapse it in a show cause or enforcement action.⁷

The Fraudulent Lien Exposure

Florida law gives owners real leverage when a lien has been inflated or fabricated. Section 713.31 defines a fraudulent lien as one where the lienholder willfully exaggerated the amount claimed or included charges for work never performed. A lienholder found to have filed one is liable for court costs and clerk’s fees, the owner’s attorney fees, bond premiums paid to transfer the lien, interest on money deposited to obtain discharge, and punitive damages capped at the difference between the claimed amount and the amount actually owed.⁸

The punitive formula scales with the inflation. A $100,000 lien on a $30,000 debt exposes the lienholder to up to $70,000 in punitives on top of everything else. Willfully filing a fraudulent construction lien is also a third-degree felony in Florida, carrying up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.⁸

A separate slander of title claim outside Chapter 713 can also recover the loss in property value caused by the wrongful lien, attorney fees spent clearing the title, and, where malice or oppression is shown, punitive damages.

For an owner staring at an inflated lien and a lienholder who will not sign a release, pointing to Section 713.31 in a demand letter often produces the release that a polite request did not.

1
Florida Legislature. Florida Code 713.21 – Discharge of Lien
2
Florida Legislature. Florida Code 117.05 – Use of Notary Commission, Singnatures, Fees, Seals, Stamps, and Electronic Notarizations
3
Florida Legislature. Florida Code 713.22 – Time for Commencing Action to Enforce Lien
4
Justia. Florida Code 713.29 – Attorney Fees
5
Florida Legislature. Florida Code 713.24 – Transfer of Liens to Security
6
Florida Legislature. Florida Code 713.20 – Waiver and Release of Liens
7
Florida Senate. Florida Code 713.06 – Liens of Persons Not in Privity With Owner
8
Florida Legislature. Florida Code 713.31 – Remedies in Case of Fraud or Collusion