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Trade Tax Specialists

19 articles

CIS Compliance

Practical guides on cis compliance for UK construction subcontractors and contractors.

  • CIS Compliance

    How Long Do Large Construction Firms Actually Take to Pay? The Data

    Every large UK business must publish, by law, how long it takes to pay its suppliers. We compiled that statutory disclosure for 225 large construction businesses and cross-checked each one against its registered Companies House SIC code. The median is 33 days. Almost one in four takes more than 45 days on average, and eight companies pay over half their invoices later than 60 days. This article works through what the data shows, names the extremes at either end (using each company's own published disclosure), and sets out what a subcontractor should actually do about a slow-paying main contractor, from payment terms to retentions to CIS cashflow.

    5 min read

  • CIS Compliance

    Which Construction Sub-Sectors Have the Most Insolvencies (And Which Are Getting Worse Fastest)

    Insolvency Service data broken down by SIC division shows that specialised construction trades, electrical, plumbing, plastering, joinery, groundworks and demolition among them, account for more than half of all construction company insolvencies in the trailing twelve months. But the sub-sector with the fastest-deteriorating trend over the last decade is building construction, where insolvency counts have risen 79.9% since 2016, more than twice the rate of civil engineering. This article separates the two questions that get conflated in headline construction insolvency figures: which sub-sector carries the largest share of failures today, and which sub-sector is getting worse the fastest.

    5 min read

  • CIS Compliance

    UK Construction Insolvencies: The Decade Trend and What It Means for CIS Subcontractors

    Construction company insolvencies in England, Wales and Scotland rose 49.9% between 2016 and 2025, from 2,793 to 4,188 per year. Creditors voluntary liquidation accounts for nearly three in four cases, and the practical consequences for subcontractors are severe. Unpaid invoices, trapped retentions, and the cascading effect of main-contractor failure are real and common risks. This article explains what the data shows, what each insolvency procedure means for an unsecured creditor, and what CIS subcontractors and trade businesses can do to reduce their exposure.

    12 min read

  • CIS Compliance

    CIS End of Year: What Contractors and Subcontractors Must Do

    There is no annual CIS return filing event. The Construction Industry Scheme runs on monthly returns throughout the year, and year-end is simply the close of the final tax month on 5 April. But that close triggers a different set of obligations for contractors and subcontractors depending on how they trade. This guide sets out what each party must do between 5 April and the weeks that follow, and how to avoid the mismatches that delay repayments.

    7 min read

  • CIS Compliance

    Unallocated Credit on Your HMRC Account: How to Reclaim CIS Deductions

    If your HMRC account shows an unallocated credit and you are a CIS subcontractor, the money has arrived but HMRC has not yet matched it to your tax position. This guide explains what that term means, why limited companies use the EPS route to recover deductions monthly, why credits sometimes stall (mismatched deduction statements, wrong employer reference, late EPS), and the practical steps to get the money moving again including repayment timelines, phone versus webchat, and the year-end Corporation Tax offset. Sole traders follow a different route via Self Assessment.

    8 min read

  • CIS Compliance

    CIS April 2026 Rule Changes: GPS Revocation, Nil Returns and Director Liability Explained

    Finance Act 2026 reshaped the Construction Industry Scheme from 6 April 2026. HMRC can now revoke gross payment status immediately where a contractor knew or should have known about supply-chain fraud, the reapplication ban after a fraud-grounds removal jumps from 1 year to 5 years, new knowledge-based penalties fall on anyone who pays or makes a return knowing a connected party deliberately failed to comply (FA 2004 s.62A charges 20% of the payment, s.62B recovers 100% of the sum a false return treats as paid), and the CIS300 nil return is mandatory again. This guide explains each change, works the cash-flow and liability numbers in real pounds, and sets out the due-diligence checklist that keeps you on the right side of the new standard.

    14 min read

  • CIS Compliance

    CIS Deadline Calendar 2026/27: Monthly Returns, SA, MTD and GPS

    Missing a CIS deadline costs money. The penalty for a late monthly return starts at £100 and escalates quickly if left unresolved. This calendar sets out every CIS-related deadline for the 2026/27 tax year: the 12 monthly CIS300 filing dates, the nil return obligation reinstated from April 2026, the Self Assessment filing deadline, MTD quarterly update dates for higher earners, and the GPS review cycle. Every date is based on locked house-position figures from HMRC guidance.

    8 min read

  • CIS Compliance

    CIS for Contractors: Your Monthly Responsibilities Checklist

    Under CIS a contractor is the withholding agent, responsible for verifying subcontractors, calculating and deducting the right amount, issuing payment and deduction statements within 14 days, filing the CIS300 return by the 19th and paying HMRC by the 22nd every single month. This checklist walks through every step in order, with a worked example across three subcontractors and the full penalty picture for anything missed.

    7 min read

  • CIS Compliance

    CIS Gross Payment Status: How to Qualify, Apply and Keep It in 2026

    Gross payment status lets a construction subcontractor be paid in full with no CIS deduction taken at source, settling tax through Self Assessment or Corporation Tax instead. This guide explains the three qualifying tests, the turnover thresholds by entity type, the application and annual review, the tougher April 2026 anti-fraud regime, and the cash-flow cost of losing it.

    11 min read

  • CIS Compliance

    CIS Monthly Returns: Deadlines, Nil Returns and Penalties (2026)

    Every contractor registered for the Construction Industry Scheme must file a CIS300 monthly return with HMRC showing every payment made to subcontractors in the tax month. From April 2026 the rules tightened in two key ways, including a reinstated nil-return obligation and a new public sector exemption. This guide covers who must file, the exact deadlines, what verification you must complete before paying, what changes in 2026, and the full penalty ladder for late returns.

    8 min read

  • CIS Compliance

    CIS Nil Return: The April 2026 Rule Every Contractor Must Know

    From 6 April 2026, contractors must file a CIS300 nil return for every tax month in which they make no payments to subcontractors, or pre-notify HMRC that they are inactive for up to six months. The obligation was removed in 2015 and quietly reinstated eleven years later. Many contractors have no idea it exists. Miss it and the penalty clock starts the next day.

    6 min read

  • CIS Compliance

    CIS Payment and Deduction Statements: What They Must Show and What to Do If You Are Missing Them

    A CIS payment and deduction statement is the primary evidence for your Self Assessment refund claim. This guide explains exactly what a statement must contain, the 14-day issuance rule (statements due by the 19th of the following month), why there is no statutory annual CIS statement, what to do when a contractor refuses to issue one, and how to compile your total CIS deducted across multiple contractors for your tax return.

    9 min read
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