Oklahoma Retainage Requirements
- Private Jobs
- Public Jobs
- Top Links
Retainage Limit
Not Regulated by State Law
Pay Period
Not Regulated by State Law
There's No Process to Recover
Not specified
Not Held In Escrow
In Oklahoma, contractors and owners do not need to hold retainage funds in a separate escrow account.
5 Percent
Retainage cannot exceed 5%. Retainage for railroad construction contracts, for the Department of Transportation, and the Turnpike Authority is prohibited.
21 Day Pay Period
Retainage must be released within 21 days after a certificate of substantial completion is issued, minus 150% of the estimated costs to correct any incomplete or defective work. Upon receipt of retainage, contractor must release retainage to subcontractors within 10 days. All other parties have 7 days to release retainage amounts down the chain.
There is a Process to Recover
Yes, certificate of substantial completion along with "adequate" performance and approval of surety required.
Retainage serves two general purposes: (1) To provide an incentive to the contractor or subcontractor to complete the project; and (2) To give the owner some protection against problems like liens, contractual defaults, delays, and more. In most states, laws exist to regulate how the parties use the retainage concept, mostly protecting some parties against abuse of the tool from others. The following are resources, legal information, and frequently asked questions about Oklahoma’s retainage requirements. The Oklahoma retainage statutes are reproduced below on this page.
