Construction services · Finance
Construction progress billing
Bill the work done each month on progress the site has confirmed, and get the certified amount back without chasing. The client representative certifies through a shared link, and no pay application goes out before the finance manager approves it.
- Duration: 2 to 3 weeks
- How often: Every month, on every active project
- Steps: 8 steps
- AI agents: 1 AI agent
- Approvals: 1 approval
Free plan, no credit card needed.
What changes with this template
Without it
The pay application is built from the subcontractors' claims, and the client finds the lines that are ahead of the work.
A pay application goes out with a missing change order or a wrong retention figure.
The certified amount, and the reason for any cut, arrive weeks later in an email.
Every project manager bills in their own format and at their own pace.
With it
The superintendent confirms progress on site before anything is billed.
An AI agent checks the amounts and the checklists, and the finance manager approves before anything is sent.
The client representative records the certified amount, the payment date and any disputed line through one link.
Every project bills through the same steps, every month.
The template, step by step
Each step says who does it: someone on your team, an AI agent, or the client through a shared link. An approval keeps every later step locked until it is given.
- Done by your team
- Done by an AI agent
- Done by the client, through a shared link
Starts when
The billing date in the contract comes round. The project accountant starts a run with the project name and the billing period.
- 1
Open the billing period and collect subcontractor pay requests
Hidden from the shared linkDay 1Project accountant · Team
Ask every active subcontractor for their pay request for the period, and list the approved change orders to include.
Checklist
- Pay request asked from every active trade
- Approved change orders listed
- Documents the subcontracts require requested
Fields to fill in
- Project name (required)
- Billing period end (required)
- Link to the subcontractor pay requests (required)
- Trades without a pay request
- 2
Confirm progress on site
Hidden from the shared linkDays 2 to 3Superintendent · Team
Walk the site and set the percent complete for each line of the cost breakdown, and check each subcontractor's claimed progress against the work in place.
Checklist
- Every line walked
- Subcontractor claims checked against the work in place
- Materials stored on site counted
Fields to fill in
- Link to the marked-up progress (required)
- Lines claimed ahead of the work
- 3
Prepare the pay application
Hidden from the shared linkDays 3 to 4Project manager · Team
Update the cost breakdown with the confirmed progress, add approved change orders and stored materials, and calculate retention and the amount due.
Checklist
- Approved change orders included
- Retention calculated as the contract says
- Previous payments deducted
Fields to fill in
- Link to the draft pay application (required)
- Work completed to date (required)
- Retention held (required)
- Amount due this period (required)
- 4
Check the pay application and draft the cover note
Day 4Pay application checker · AI agent
The pay application checker checks that the amounts on the run add up and that every checklist item in the earlier steps is ticked, lists what is wrong or missing, and drafts the cover note to the client.
Fields to fill in
- Issues found (required)
- Draft cover note (required)
Checked by: The finance manager resolves its findings and corrects the cover note in step 5.
- 5
Approve the pay application
Hidden from the shared linkDay 5Finance manager · Team
Resolve the issues found, check the amounts against the progress walk, and approve the pay application and the cover note.
Checklist
- Issues from step 4 resolved
- Amounts match the progress walk
- Cover note corrected
Approval: Nothing is sent to the client until the finance manager approves the pay application.
- 6
Send the pay application
Day 5Project accountant · Team
Send the approved pay application and cover note to the client representative, with the shared run link for their certification.
Checklist
- Pay application sent
- Shared link sent to the client representative
Fields to fill in
- Link to the pay application sent (required)
- Date sent (required)
- 7
Certify the amount
Weeks 1 to 2Client representative · Shared link
Through the shared link, the client representative records the amount certified, the expected payment date and any line they dispute, with the reason.
Fields to fill in
- Amount certified (required)
- Expected payment date (required)
- Disputed lines and reasons
- 8
Invoice the certified amount and schedule subcontractor payments
Hidden from the shared linkWeeks 2 to 3Project accountant · Team
Issue the invoice for the certified amount, hand any disputed line to the project manager, and schedule subcontractor payments as their subcontracts say.
Checklist
- Invoice issued for the certified amount
- Disputed lines handed to the project manager
- Subcontractor payments scheduled
Fields to fill in
- Invoice number (required)
- Payment received on
Done when
The client has certified the amount, the invoice is issued, disputed lines are with the project manager, and subcontractor payments for the certified work are scheduled.
Make it yours. Rename steps, change owners and add checklist items, fields or approvals. The template is a starting point for the way your team works.
The AI agents in this template
An agent only works on its own steps, and a person on your team checks what it did. Anything an agent writes to a connected app waits for approval unless you allow it.
Pay application checker
Checks the pay application on the run before the finance manager sees it, and drafts the cover note.
What it does
- Checks that the amounts recorded on the run add up
- Checks that every checklist item in the earlier steps is ticked
- Drafts the cover note with the work done this period and the amount due
- Completes its step for the finance manager to review
Checked by: The finance manager resolves its findings and corrects the cover note in step 5.
Questions this template answers
Start from progress confirmed on site, not from what the subcontractors claim, then add approved change orders and deduct retention and previous payments. Steps 2 and 3 do this in that order, and in step 5 the finance manager approves the result before it goes out.
Check every line of the cost breakdown against the work in place before you bill it. In step 2 the superintendent walks the site, sets the percent complete per line and notes any line that is claimed ahead of the work.
Collect every request first, then compare the claimed progress with what is built. Step 1 collects the requests and notes which trades have none, and in step 2 the superintendent checks each claim on site.
Send a clean pay application with a short cover note, and give the client one place to record what they certify. In step 7 the client representative records the certified amount, the expected payment date and any disputed line through a shared link.
Let AI check the arithmetic and the paperwork, and keep the approval with your finance lead. In step 4 an AI agent checks that the amounts add up and every item is ticked and drafts the cover note, and in step 5 the finance manager resolves its findings and approves.
Record the disputed line and the reason with the certification, and follow it up instead of holding back the whole invoice. Step 7 records the dispute, and in step 8 the project accountant invoices the certified amount and hands the disputed line to the project manager.
Run this workflow in OKiDO
Set up the steps, owners and approvals once, then start a run for every new case.