UCC lien search
See every lien before you add yours.
Search UCC filings by business or by lender, straight from the state's filing office. See who already holds an active lien, when it was filed, when it lapses and what it covers.
| Status | Secured party | Lapses |
|---|---|---|
| Active | Northstar Capital LLC | 2031-09-18 |
| Active | Bluegate Funding Inc | 2031-02-10 |
| Lapsed | First Coast Bank | 2021-04-02 |
What a lien search returns
Every UCC-1 financing statement filed against the business, and everything filed against it since.
A summary first
How many filings are active, lapsed and terminated, and the lenders on the active ones: each is a creditor already in position.
Each filing
The file number, filing date, lapse date and status, the debtors and secured parties with their addresses, and the collateral.
Its full history
Every later continuation, amendment, assignment and termination, with dates. Lenders removed by an amendment are marked as former.
Honest gaps
When a state doesn't publish a field for free, the result lists it as not published, so an empty field never reads as "none".
What is a UCC lien?
A UCC lien is a public notice that a lender has a security interest in a business's assets. The lender files a UCC-1 financing statement with the state, under Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code, describing the collateral: all assets, receivables, equipment, inventory or specific items.
Later changes are filed as UCC-3 statements: a continuation to extend it, an amendment to change parties or collateral, an assignment when the debt is sold to another lender, and a termination when it's paid off.
For a corporation or LLC, filings go to the state where it was formed, not where it operates. That's why a lien search starts with the state of organization.
The full explanation is in What is a UCC lien? Paid off a debt and the lien is still there? See how to remove a UCC lien.
The filings at a glance
- UCC-1
- The original financing statement
- Continuation
- Extends the lien five more years
- Amendment
- Changes parties or collateral
- Assignment
- Moves the lien to another lender
- Termination
- Ends the lien
Active, lapsed or terminated
Clerkfield returns every filing with its status, so you see current claims and the borrowing history behind them.
Still in force
Filed less than five years ago, or extended by a continuation, and not terminated. Another lender has a claim today.
Expired on its own
Five years passed without a continuation. The notice is no longer effective, but it shows who lent before.
Ended by the lender
A termination was filed, usually because the debt was paid. The filing date of the termination is in its history.
Search by business or by lender
By business (the debtor): every filing against a company, matched on its name the same way business checks match names. This is the search to run before funding.
By lender (the secured party): every filing a lender has made in the state. Use it to see a competitor's book, or to confirm your own filings went through. It works in Connecticut, Florida, Nebraska, New Mexico and Rhode Island.
- Active, lapsed and terminated filings
- Secured parties, file numbers and dates
- Collateral and every later amendment
- Active-only results with one parameter
Covered in 10 states
Lien search works today in Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Kentucky, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico and Rhode Island. Some states leave fields out of their free records; here's what to expect from each. For other states, see UCC search by state.
| State | Search by lender | What the free records leave out |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Business only | Nothing we know of |
| Arkansas | Business only | City and state only |
| Connecticut | Yes | Active liens and those lapsed under a year; includes tax and municipal liens |
| Florida | Yes | Loaded from the registry's data files: filings made after the date shown on each result appear with the next load |
| Idaho | Business only | No filing history |
| Kentucky | Business only | Nothing we know of |
| Nebraska | Yes | City and state only; includes federal and state tax liens |
| New Jersey | Business only | No lender names or lapse dates (the state sells them) |
| New Mexico | Yes | City and state only, no street addresses |
| Rhode Island | Yes | Nothing we know of |
Run it by API or in the dashboard
The same search, from your own systems. See the API documentation.
curl -H "Authorization: Bearer $CLERKFIELD_KEY" \ "https://clerkfield.com/v1/liens?state=CT&debtor=Harbor%20Street%20Bakery%20LLC&include_inactive=false"
-
A UCC lien is a public notice that a lender has a security interest in a business's assets, filed as a UCC-1 financing statement under Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code. It tells other lenders that someone already has a claim on things like receivables, equipment or inventory.
-
A UCC-1 is effective for five years from the filing date. The lender can extend it for another five years by filing a continuation in the six months before it lapses. If no continuation is filed, it lapses on its own.
-
For a corporation or LLC, in the state where it was formed, not where it operates. A Delaware LLC that runs a bakery in New Jersey has its UCC filings in Delaware, so search the state of organization first.
-
Many lenders file through a filing agent, such as Corporation Service Company, which then appears as the secured party or its representative. The collateral, filing date and later amendments usually show which lender is behind it.
-
Yes, in Connecticut, Florida, Nebraska, New Mexico and Rhode Island. A lender search lists every filing that names that secured party. The other covered states support search by business name.
-
Yes. Clerkfield returns active, lapsed and terminated filings, each marked with its status, so you can see a business's full borrowing history. States may remove records a year after they lapse, and Connecticut's free data covers active liens and those lapsed under a year.