Subcontractor invoices often hinge on progress billing, retainage, and change orders. Everhour keeps project billing data organized.
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A subcontractor invoice usually needs more than a labor line and a total. Construction billing commonly follows milestones or percentage completion, so the invoice should connect the current charge to the contract, approved work, and remaining balance. A general contractor or project owner needs enough detail to match the invoice against the subcontract, purchase order, schedule of values, and job records.
Use the invoice to show the pay application clearly: original contract amount, approved change orders, prior billings, current amount due, retainage withheld, and balance remaining. Add your business name, client details, invoice number, issue date, payment terms, job name, job address, and remittance instructions. In the United States, private-sector invoices do not follow one prescribed federal format, but they still support business records.
Progress billing works best when each invoice line maps to a schedule of values. A concrete subcontractor might list mobilization, formwork, reinforcement, placement, finishing, and cleanup as separate values. Each line can show the scheduled value, percentage complete, amount earned to date, amount previously billed, current amount due, and balance left to bill.
Approved change orders belong outside the original contract line unless the contract says otherwise. A separate change-order line keeps the original scope clean and gives the reviewer a direct path from approval to invoice. Sales and use tax treatment depends on state and local rules, nexus, and whether the product or service is taxable in that jurisdiction. The United States does not use a national VAT or GST invoice regime.
Construction progress billings often include retainage, commonly 5% to 10% withheld from the total project or each progress value until completion. On U.S. federal construction contracts, retainage may be withheld only when satisfactory progress has not been achieved, may not exceed 10% of the approved estimated amount, and retained amounts must be paid promptly once all contract requirements are completed.
Lien waiver timing deserves the same attention as the invoice total. Waivers are commonly grouped into conditional and unconditional waivers for progress payments and final payments. A waiver should identify the specific work, materials, and project tied to the payment. Treat an unconditional waiver as a final release, because signing one before payment clears can create risk if the payment is delayed or fails.
A free invoice tool is enough for a one-off bill when the job is simple, the approved scope is clear, and the supporting records already exist. It works for a single progress invoice, a final balance request, or a small change-order invoice where you only need a clean PDF and a record for your files.
A managed workflow matters when multiple crews, jobs, rates, and billing periods feed the invoice. Everhour reporting turns logged time, budgets, costs, and project data into customizable reports with 45+ columns, grouping, filters, date ranges, and exports. That gives subcontractors a stronger trail from field time and project cost to invoice review.
This content is for general information only, may not be fully up to date, and is provided without any warranty or liability.
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A subcontractor invoice should include your business and client details, invoice number, issue date, job name, job address, contract or PO reference, payment terms, line items, current amount due, retainage, prior billings, approved change orders, and remittance details. Progress billings usually also show contract amount, billed-to-date, completion percentage, and remaining balance.
Subcontractors commonly bill by milestone when the contract defines specific payment triggers, such as rough-in complete or final inspection. Percentage-complete billing fits work measured against a schedule of values, where each task or phase has an assigned contract value. Use the method stated in the subcontract, because the invoice should match the payment schedule agreed before work begins.
Retainage appears when the contract requires it or the project's payment process uses it. Construction progress billings often withhold 5% to 10% from each progress value or from the total project until completion. For U.S. federal construction contracts, retainage has a 10% maximum and applies only when satisfactory progress has not been achieved.
Approved change orders can appear on the same progress invoice when they are clearly separated from the original contract value. List the change-order number, approval date or reference, description, and amount. Unapproved work should not be buried in a regular invoice line, because that makes review harder and creates a payment dispute risk.
A U.S. subcontractor invoice does not need a national VAT or GST line because the United States does not use a national VAT or GST invoice regime. Sales and use tax obligations come from state and local rules. Taxability depends on nexus, the place of sale, and whether the specific service, labor charge, material, or product is taxable.
Everhour reporting turns logged time, budgets, costs, and project data into customizable reports with 45+ columns, grouping, filters, date ranges, and exports. A subcontractor can review billable time, project cost, client, member, task, and invoice status details before preparing a progress invoice or backup package.
Use Everhour reports to organize subcontractor time, costs, budgets, and billing details before invoice review, so approved project records support cleaner client billing.
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