Texas — Contractor Lien Waiver Resources
Texas runs its lien waivers through Property Code subchapter L, and § 53.284 prints the only four forms that count. A Texas waiver that does not substantially comply with one of them is unenforceable — which cuts both ways: it protects you from bad house forms, and it means your own form has to be right.
What the official source states
Official source: Property Code § 53.284 — https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/PR/htm/PR.53.htm
- The four statutory forms are at § 53.284(b)–(e): Conditional and Unconditional Waiver and Release on Progress Payment, and Conditional and Unconditional Waiver and Release on Final Payment.
- Under § 53.281 a waiver and release is effective only if it substantially complies with one of the statutory forms, or the claimant has actually received payment in good and sufficient funds in full — and it must be signed by the claimant or the claimant’s authorized agent. For a conditional release, evidence of payment must exist.
- For original contracts executed on or after January 1, 2022, Texas waivers no longer need to be notarized (the legislature removed the old notarization requirement); a contract from before that date can still carry the old rule.
Verified against the official source on 2026-10-27. This page is a plain-language summary, not the statute and not legal advice.
What this means for your paperwork
- Check the contract date before anyone asks you for a notarized waiver — post-2022 contracts follow the signature-only rule.
- Attach evidence of payment to conditional releases and file it with the pay application it belongs to.
- If a customer hands you their own waiver form, compare it against the § 53.284 forms before signing — substantial compliance is the enforceability test.
Texas Contractor Paperwork Pack
The Texas Starter Pack contains editable invoice, estimate, and change-order templates, a contractor checklist, payment tracker, waiver log, and an Official Form Reference Guide for Property Code § 53.284. Where Texas prescribes a statutory waiver form, the pack links to the official form at the source above — it does not substitute one.
See the catalog for pack status and contents.
Buy the Texas Starter Pack — $9 (secure Stripe checkout)