How do JCT interim valuation dates work? Payment dates and application deadlines depend on your exact JCT form, edition, completed contract particulars, and amendments. Your payment application must comply strictly with the contract terms and statutory requirements to establish an enforceable sum due and protect your notice rights under the Construction Act.
Interim payments provide the cash flow required to keep trade contractors moving on site. However, misinterpreting submission cutoffs, due dates, and notice requirements frequently leads to delayed payments and serious revenue loss.
Understanding how statutory notice mechanisms intersect with unamended and bespoke JCT subcontract terms ensures you serve valid applications, challenge defective deductions, and safeguard your working capital.
Below, I examine the operation of subcontract payment timetables, the statutory mechanics of Sections 110B, 111, 112, and 113, and the commercial reality of payment timing on site.
1. JCT Interim Payment Dates Depend on Your Subcontract
Payment dates and application deadlines depend on the exact JCT form, edition, completed contract particulars, and any amendments. Check the signed subcontract before deciding which deadline applies.
Missing an application deadline may affect the payment timetable where the subcontract says it does. Do not assume that an application is automatically rejected, moved to the next monthly cycle, or stripped of every payment-notice right. Some JCT subcontract terms use a receipt-based due-date calculation for later applications.
Use a worked date example only after checking the application deadline, due date, payment-notice deadline, final date, and any Pay Less Notice deadline against the exact subcontract and its service provisions.
2. Payment Notices and Possible Next Steps
If the payer does not give a required payment notice, a payee may have a statutory notice route under Section 110B. A routine application is not automatically that notice; check its timing, content, and the payment arrangements that apply.
A Section 111 Pay Less Notice must state the sum the payer considers due and the basis for its calculation. Whether a notice is effective and what sum must be paid depends on the payment notices and contract. Learn how to verify these details in my guide on what makes a JCT Pay Less Notice valid.
Section 112 may provide a right to suspend when its payment conditions are met. At least seven days’ notice of the intention to suspend, stating the grounds, is required. Check the contract’s notice and service requirements before using a suspension notice. Review the statutory procedure in my guide on suspending work under Section 112.
Section 113 concerns payment made conditional on the payer receiving payment from a third party. A certification condition is not automatically the same issue; check the precise contract wording. Review the legal position in my post on Section 113 pay-when-paid clauses.
Included in the Payment Toolkit
The toolkit provides practical drafting resources and review tools:
- Section 110B Payee’s Payment Notice in Default template, for applicable situations where the payer has not given a required payment notice.
- Section 111 Payment-Dispute Response template, for responding to a payer’s notice of intention to pay less.
- Pay Less Notice review checklist, to help check the notice date, amount stated, calculation basis, and relevant contract terms.
- Section 112 Suspension Notice template, for use only where the statutory conditions are met and the applicable contract requirements have been checked.
These are general templates and checklists, not a determination that a particular sum is due or that a specific notice is valid. Check your executed subcontract, payment history, and notice requirements before use.
Toolkit: £37. Includes a £37 credit voucher toward the first month of the Commercial Retainer on Trade Contracts Simplified. The voucher is valid for 30 days from purchase, with one redemption per customer.
Frequently Asked Questions About JCT Interim Payments
What happens if an interim payment application is submitted after the specified date?
Payment dates and application deadlines depend on the exact JCT form, edition, completed contract particulars, and bespoke amendments. A missed deadline may affect the payment timetable where the subcontract expressly provides, but it does not automatically mean an application is void or that every statutory remedy is lost.
Does an application sent late in the evening breach the application deadline?
Unless the subcontract specifies an express working-hours cutoff, service completed before midnight on the required date can be treated as valid under English construction law, as shown in Elements (Europe) Ltd v FK Building Ltd. Always verify the contract service rules.
What makes a Pay Less Notice valid under Section 111?
Under Section 111 of the Construction Act, a Pay Less Notice must specify the sum considered due at the date the notice is given and the basis on which that sum is calculated. Whether a notice is effective and what sum must be paid depends on the contract terms and payment notices served.