Who the deadlines apply to
The District of Columbia's mechanics lien chapter is D.C. Code §§ 40-301.01 to 40-303.20. Its rules are written in two layers. The first is listed for the direct contractor. The second repeats the notice of intent and the copy to the owner on their own branch, which reads: For a subcontractor, materialman or laborer directly employed by the original contractor. Those branch rows are listed for subcontractors, suppliers and laborers, and they also cite § 40-303.01 [2].
Two stages are not split that way. The deadline to sue is a single rule listed for all four roles on this page: direct contractor, subcontractor, supplier and laborer. The preliminary notice stage reads None required for the same four roles. The statute blocks printed under that row include § 40-303.02(b), the sentence that uses the term "notice amount" [3].
No rule here is limited to residential work or to work other than residential. Each one is written for any project type.
How the periods run
The notice of intent. In the District, the lien filing stage is the recording of a notice of intent in the land records. Its period reads: During the construction or within 90 days after the earlier of the completion or termination of the project [1]. The period runs from whichever of two events comes first, the completion of the project or its termination. Termination is not one of the calculator's inputs, so the table lists this rule without a counted date.
Section 40-301.02(a)(1) states what follows a missed recording. If the notice of intent is not recorded within that time, the contractor's lien terminates when the 90-day period ends [1]. The branch rule for a subcontractor, materialman or laborer directly employed by the original contractor carries the same statement, with the lien terminating when the 90-day period ends [1].
The copy to the owner. Once a notice of intent is recorded, a copy goes to the owner. The period reads: Within 5 business days after the notice of intent is recorded in the land records [1]. The rule is listed for the direct contractor and again on the branch for a subcontractor, materialman or laborer directly employed by the original contractor. It runs in business days, and the table gives it without a counted date.
Service under § 40-303.03. For a subcontractor or other person employed by the contractor, a further rule has a notice served on the owner of the property, or the owner's agent, if a resident of the District, with no period stated [4]. Until that notice is served, the owner may make payments to the contractor under the contract, and the amount the property is chargeable for in favor of the persons employed by the contractor is reduced to the extent of those payments [4].
The suit. The deadline to sue starts from the recording of the notice of intent: 180 days after the notice of intent is recorded [5]. Under § 40-303.13(a)(2), failure to file suit within the 180-day period, or to record the notice of pendency of action within 10 days of filing suit, terminates the lien [5]. The calculator counts this date from the notice of intent recording date entered.
What changed recently
Section 40-301.02, the section holding the notice of intent and the copy to the owner, was last amended by D.C. Law 23-269 (April 5, 2021) [1]. Section 40-303.13, the section holding the suit period, was last amended by D.C. Law 16-31 (October 20, 2005) [5].