Lien waiver tracking
How waiver requirements are planned to be generated from payments and pay apps, checked against amount and through-date, and surfaced on the pay app checklist before submission.
This is on the roadmap and not built yet.
On this page
A lien waiver is a document in which a contractor, sub or supplier gives up some or all of its lien rights, usually in exchange for payment. Owners and lenders require them before releasing money. In most stacks, waivers live in email and a folder, and the missing ones are found on the day the pay app is due. We plan to generate each waiver requirement from the money that creates it. Lien waiver tracking is not in the app yet.
The four types
| Type | Signed when | Takes effect |
|---|---|---|
| Conditional progress | With a progress payment request | When that payment is received |
| Unconditional progress | After a progress payment clears | Immediately |
| Conditional final | With the final payment request | When final payment is received |
| Unconditional final | After final payment clears | Immediately |
Where requirements come from
Each waiver requirement is created by a record that already exists:
- Your pay app creates a requirement for your conditional progress waiver, for the amount requested and the period through-date. Your previous pay app’s payment creates your unconditional for what was received.
- Each payment you make to a sub or supplier creates a requirement for their unconditional progress waiver, for the amount paid and through-date covered.
- Preliminary notices received from lower-tier suppliers add them to the list of parties whose waivers may be required.
- Final payments create conditional and unconditional final requirements at closeout.
Checks on every waiver
When a waiver is uploaded, it’s matched to its requirement and checked:
-
Type
Conditional or unconditional, progress or final, matched to whether the payment has cleared.
-
Parties and project
Claimant, customer, owner and project match the contract record.
-
Amount
Conditional: the amount requested. Unconditional: the amount actually paid. A mismatch is flagged, never silently accepted.
-
Through-date
The covered period matches the payment. Gaps between consecutive waivers are flagged.
-
Exceptions
Any exceptions written on the waiver (disputed changes, unpaid retainage) are recorded on the requirement for the PM to review.
-
Accepted
A person accepts the waiver. Acceptance is logged with who and when.
On the pay app checklist
Before a pay app is submitted, the checklist shows every required waiver for the period and its status.
- Your conditional progress waiver for this period
- Your unconditional progress waiver for last period’s payment
- Unconditional progress waivers from every sub and supplier paid last period
- Lower-tier waivers the owner or lender requires
Planned: missing or mismatched waivers block submission only if your rules say so. Otherwise they’re shown as warnings with the party and amount.
Sample data. Riverside Medical Center, Pay App #9:
| Party | Requirement | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Your company | Conditional progress, this period | Ready |
| Summit Mechanical | Unconditional progress, last period | Accepted |
| Volt Electric | Unconditional progress, last period | Accepted |
| Apex Steel | Unconditional progress, last period | Missing |
| CoreDry | Unconditional progress, last period | Missing |
Agents
A Billing agent for waivers is Planned: requesting waivers when payments go out and listing what’s missing on the pay app draft, with a person accepting every waiver. See Planned agents and Writing approval rules.
Related: Pay apps, SOV and retainage, Closeout and retainage release. Glossary: lien waiver, conditional lien waiver, unconditional lien waiver, joint check, preliminary notice.
Keep exploring
Related across os.construction
- BlogRetainage, lien waivers and pay apps on one recordA pay app, the retainage it withholds and the lien waivers that release it are one transaction. Most contractors track them in three places. Here's how each piece works and why they belong together.
- GlossaryMechanics LienA legal claim against a property filed by an unpaid contractor, subcontractor or supplier who improved it.
- GlossaryLien WaiverA document in which a contractor, sub or supplier gives up its right to file a mechanics lien for a stated amount or period, usually in exchange for payment.
- PlatformLien waiver tracking (use case)How os.construction handles lien waiver tracking on one record.
- DocsPlanned agentsAP, Billing, Risk, RFI, Compliance and Reporting. The six agents we plan to build first, what each would do and read, and what it would ask you to approve.
- BlogThe 3-way match, explained for construction APThe textbook 3-way match is a purchase order, a receiving report and an invoice. Construction AP needs a version that works for subcontracts, progress billing, retainage and lien waivers. Here's what to match, and where it breaks.
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