Mississippi Construction Lien Guide
Mississippi lien rights are governed by Mississippi Code § 85-7-401 et seq., enacted comprehensively in 2014 to modernize and expand lien protections for contractors, subcontractors, suppliers, and design professionals.
If you provide labor, materials, equipment, or services that improve real property in Mississippi and are not paid, this guide will help you protect your lien rights — including notices (when required), filing deadlines, service requirements, and enforcement rules.
In Mississippi, the terms mechanics lien, construction lien, and claim of lien are used interchangeably.
LET’S LEARN THE BASICS OF MISSISSIPPI CONSTRUCTION LIENS
⭐ Who Can File a Mechanics Lien in Mississippi?
Mississippi grants mechanics lien rights to parties who provide labor, materials, equipment, or professional services that improve real property. This includes general contractors, subcontractors, sub-subcontractors, material suppliers, equipment rental companies, laborers, and licensed design professionals such as architects, engineers, and surveyors. If you contributed to the improvement of real property in Mississippi and were not paid, you may have the right to file a mechanics lien, provided all statutory requirements are satisfied.
⭐ Mississippi Lien Deadlines (Critical)
LIEN IT OR LOSE IT! Mississippi lien law is strict. Missing a deadline or required notice can permanently eliminate lien rights.
Deadline #1 — Pre-Lien Notice Deadline (Residential Projects Only)
Before a mechanics lien can be filed on a single-family residential project, Mississippi law requires certain claimants to send a Notice of Intent to File a Mechanics Lien.
This notice must be sent at least ten (10) days before the mechanics lien is filed.
The Notice of Intent is required only if the claimant:
Does not have a direct contract with the property owner, and
Is a subcontractor, supplier, or certain design professional.
Failure to timely send this Notice of Intent will invalidate the lien, even if the lien itself is filed within the statutory deadline.
Deadline #2 — Deadline to File a Mississippi Mechanics Lien
A Mississippi mechanics lien must be filed:
Within ninety (90) days after the claimant last furnished labor, materials, or services to the project.
This deadline applies to contractors, subcontractors, and suppliers alike. If the lien is not filed within this 90-day window, lien rights are permanently lost.
Deadline #3 — Deadline to Enforce a Mississippi Mechanics Lien
After the lien is filed, the claimant must enforce it by filing a foreclosure lawsuit:
Within one hundred eighty (180) days after the lien is filed.
If the lien is not enforced within this timeframe, it becomes unenforceable. In some cases, the property owner may file a Notice of Contest of Lien, which can shorten the enforcement deadline and require quicker action.
BEFORE YOU CAN FILE A MISSISSIPPI MECHANICS LIEN, YOU MUST UNDERSTAND MISSISSIPPI’S PERLIMINARY NOTICE TO FILE A MECHANICS LIEN REQUIREMENT. THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT LIEN STEPS IN MISSISSIPPI.
⭐ Mississippi Preliminary Notice Requirements
Mississippi lien law recognizes two different notice concepts, PRELIMINARY NOTICE AND. NOTICE OF INTENT TO LIEN. They serve very different purposes. Understanding the distinction is critical to preserving lien rights.
The purpose is to create transparency early in the project, identify lower-tier participants, reduce payment disputes, and establish a paper trail in the event of nonpayment. While commonly sent within the first 30 days of work as a best practice, failure to send this notice does not affect the validity of a Mississippi mechanics lien.
Who Must Send a Mississippi Preliminary Notice?
Subcontractors
Sub-subcontractors
Material suppliers
Equipment suppliers
Who Does NOT Need to Send a Mississippi Preliminary Notice?
General contractors
Parties with a direct contract with the owner
When do you send out a Mississippi Preliminary Notice
Within 30 days of first furnishing labor or materials