Straight answers for UK trades and subcontractors. What to put on the invoice, what the contractor pays, and what happens next.
14 October 2026
A photo taken before you touch anything takes ten seconds. Without one, “that crack was already there” is your word against the client’s. What to photograph at each stage, and where to keep it.
Read the guide14 October 2026
When it’s just you, every booking is a promise, and one overrun can break two. How to book visits you can keep: half days or set times, jobs that run for days, and telling the client.
Read the guide14 October 2026
Most job management software is built for a firm with an office and ten vans. Here’s the shorter list a one-person trade business needs, and what to leave out for now.
Read the guide10 September 2026
The VAT reverse charge covers standard and reduced-rate construction work between VAT-registered businesses paid under CIS. See every exclusion with 2026 examples.
Read the guide10 September 2026
A client won’t pay a UK invoice? The escalation sequence that works: chase in writing, add statutory interest, send a letter before action, then small claims court.
Read the guide10 September 2026
Yes. Deposits, stage payments and interim invoices after a valuation or application for payment are all raised before completion. See what each must show and what you cannot invoice.
Read the guide10 September 2026
Yes, you can invoice without VAT registration below the £90,000 threshold. See what a non-VAT invoice must show, the wording to avoid, and when registration takes effect.
Read the guide10 September 2026
How much deposit can you legally ask for on a building job? No statutory cap: see how to size, invoice and protect a deposit, and the refund terms to write down.
Read the guide10 September 2026
CIS deduction rates for 2026: 20% for registered subcontractors, 30% for unregistered, 0% with gross payment status. See worked examples and how to claim the right rate.
Read the guide10 September 2026
Construction VAT by service type for 2026: 20% on most work, 0% new builds, 5% conversions and empty-property renovations, plus the reverse charge layer explained.
Read the guide10 September 2026
Yes, UK law gives you 8% above base rate plus £40, £70 or £100 compensation on late business invoices. See rates, timing and how to charge it in 2026.
Read the guide10 September 2026
CIS is calculated after VAT is excluded. See worked 2026 examples for normal VAT, reverse charge, labour, materials and the final amount due.
Read the guide10 September 2026
Yes, you can invoice without a signed contract. See what evidence replaces one, how to get terms agreed in writing, and what fails in a dispute.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK driveway invoice template for 2026 block paving, resin, tarmac or gravel, with measured work, drainage, stages, VAT and CIS.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK heat pump installer invoice template for 2026 with design, equipment, grants, stages, commissioning, VAT and construction-tax checks.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK solar installer invoice template for 2026 with panels, inverter, battery, stages, handover records, deposits, VAT and CIS checks.
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Copy a UK groundworks invoice template for 2026 with measured quantities, plant, haulage, daywork, variations, retention, VAT and CIS.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK scaffolding invoice template for 2026 with erection, weekly hire, alterations, dismantling, off-hire, records, VAT and CIS.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK kitchen fitter invoice template for 2026 with design revisions, units, appliances, customer-supplied items, stages, VAT and CIS.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK flooring invoice template for 2026 with measured rooms, products, subfloor preparation, customer materials, deposits, VAT and CIS.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK bricklayer invoice template for 2026 measured work and daywork, with plots, variations, retention, materials, VAT and CIS.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK tiler invoice template for 2026 wall and floor work, with measured areas, preparation, customer tiles, deposits, VAT and CIS.
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Copy a UK plasterer invoice template for 2026 skimming, boarding and rendering, with measured work, materials, stages, variations, VAT and CIS.
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Copy a UK painter and decorator invoice template for 2026, with rooms, preparation, coats, paint, stages, variations, VAT and CIS fields.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK carpenter invoice template for 2026 joinery, first fix, second fix and bespoke work, with materials, deposits, variations, VAT and CIS.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK heating engineer invoice template for 2026 servicing, repairs and installations, with appliance details, parts, records, VAT and CIS checks.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a customer statement template for trade invoices, with payments, credit notes, CIS deductions, ageing, email wording and reconciliation checks.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK construction variation order template for 2026 with added and omitted work, price, programme, approval, VAT, CIS and invoice wording.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK construction application for payment template for 2026, including valuations, variations, retention, dates, evidence and invoice handoff.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a 2026 construction valuation template with cumulative work, current period, variations, materials on site, retention and prior certifications.
Read the guide8 September 2026
CIS materials deductions explained for 2026: actual cost, labour, plant hire, fuel, customer-supplied items, VAT and the records contractors need.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK payment receipt template for 2026 with full, part, cash, card, CIS and refund examples, plus receipt email wording and balance checks.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK credit note template with full and partial examples, VAT corrections, refunds, CIS changes and how a credit shows on a client statement.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK deposit invoice template for 2026 building work, with VAT, materials, accepted quotes, remaining balances and staged-payment examples.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Quote vs estimate in the UK explained for 2026: when each applies, what can change, wording to use, and how builders should record variations.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK landscaping invoice template for 2026 projects and maintenance, with labour, materials, plant, waste, deposits, VAT and CIS fields.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy overdue invoice reminder emails for UK trades in 2026, from one day late to final requests, main contractors, homeowners and disputed bills.
Read the guide8 September 2026
See a 2026 VAT reverse charge invoice example for UK construction, including required wording, end users, CIS deductions and worked calculations.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a roofing invoice template for UK roofers in 2026, covering labour, materials, scaffolding, stages, retention, VAT, CIS and guarantees.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK plumber invoice template for 2026 call-outs, installations and subcontract work, with labour, materials, VAT, CIS and certificate fields.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a stage payment invoice template for 2026 building work, with deposits, milestones, retentions, CIS and worked payment-plan examples.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK invoice template for 2026, check every required field, and see examples for VAT, sole traders, limited companies and construction work.
Read the guide8 September 2026
UK invoice payment terms explained with copyable wording, worked due dates, 30-day rules, stage payments and late-payment checks.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy practical invoice email templates for homeowners, main contractors, deposits, stage payments, EICRs and month-end applications.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK electrician invoice template with domestic, EICR and CIS examples, certificate references, VAT and payment checks.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK subcontractor invoice template with purchase order, valuation, variations, CIS, VAT reverse charge and payment checks.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a CIS invoice template and check worked 0%, 20% and 30% deductions, materials, VAT and reverse-charge examples.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK builders quotation template with scope, exclusions, staged payments, variations and a worked building quote example.
Read the guide8 September 2026
Copy a UK construction invoice template, see worked VAT and CIS examples, and check what builders and subcontractors must include before sending.
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