CIS accounting

Specialist accountants for landscapers.

Landscapers face a more important CIS scope question than almost any other trade: not every landscaping job is a construction operation, and HMRC draws the line in a specific place. Routine grounds maintenance, gardening and estate upkeep are outside CIS. Landscaping that forms part of a new-build development, a site clearance or a construction contract is inside it. That boundary determines whether a main contractor is right to deduct from your payments at all, and whether you have a refund sitting unclaimed with HMRC.

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20%

CIS deducted on qualifying construction landscaping

~£2,000

Average first-year CIS refund

Deducted on materials (turf, plants, aggregates, topsoil)

The specific challenges

What makes landscapers accounting different.

The critical scope boundary: construction landscaping vs maintenance

HMRC's CIS 340 scope guidance draws the line explicitly: tree planting and landscaping carried out in the course of forestry or estate management are NOT construction operations. Tree planting and landscaping as part of a new housing development ARE construction operations. Finance Act 2004 s.74 includes landscaping within construction only where it is preparatory to or forms an integral part of a wider construction operation. Routine grounds maintenance, ongoing gardening, mowing, hedge-trimming and seasonal upkeep of existing grounds are outside CIS in all cases. A landscaper who works on new-build housing sites, commercial developments and construction project soft-landscaping is in CIS for those contracts. A landscaper who does only ongoing maintenance for existing property owners is not in CIS at all. Many landscapers work across both types and need their contract mix assessed.

Main contractors deducting incorrectly on non-CIS maintenance work

Where a landscaper is primarily a maintenance contractor and a main contractor or managing agent applies CIS deductions to their payments, those deductions may be wrong. A landscaper whose work does not meet the construction-operation test should not have CIS deducted at all. Recovering incorrectly deducted CIS requires a Self Assessment return and evidence that the work was outside the scheme.

High materials content on construction-landscaping contracts

Construction landscaping (soft landscaping on a new housing estate, hard landscaping as part of a commercial development) typically involves significant materials: topsoil, turf, shrubs, trees, bark, aggregates, paving, edging and irrigation components. On contracts that are within CIS, all of these materials are excluded from the deduction base. The 20% applies to labour only. Many landscapers have a larger overpayment than they expect once the materials split is applied correctly.

Plant, machinery and transport

Landscapers typically run a van or trailer, and often own or hire compact excavators, rotavators, rollers and turf cutters. On CIS contracts, plant hired for a specific job and charged on at cost is excluded from the deduction base. Plant you own is eligible for capital allowances. Mileage at 55p per mile from April 2026 applies to business travel. These costs are regularly underclaimed in self-filed returns.

How we help

What we do for landscapers.

CIS scope assessment: which of your contracts are inside the scheme

We review your contract mix to distinguish construction landscaping (within CIS) from maintenance and estate management work (outside CIS). Where main contractors are deducting incorrectly on maintenance contracts, we identify the overpayment and assist with recovery. Where your construction-landscaping work is within CIS, we ensure the deduction base (labour only) is being applied correctly.

CIS refund claim and materials review

For the CIS-subject contracts, we identify all materials costs that should be excluded from the deduction base (topsoil, turf, plants, aggregates, hard landscaping materials), calculate all allowable expenses including plant hire, mileage and PPE, and file your Self Assessment return. The refund position can be significant where materials form a large part of the work.

GPS application for construction landscapers

If your net CIS turnover from qualifying construction-landscaping contracts exceeds £30,000, you may qualify for gross payment status and receive those payments with no deduction. Note that maintenance income outside CIS does not contribute to the GPS turnover test. We assess eligibility and manage the application.

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“I had assumed all my work was outside CIS because I was doing gardens. Once we separated out the new-build site contracts, there were three years of overpayments to recover. The maintenance work was correctly outside the scheme but the development contracts had been deducted at 30% because I was not registered.”

Self-employed landscaper, South East England

Composite snapshot based on client patterns. Name and figures anonymised. The tax mechanics are real.

Questions from landscapers

Is my landscaping work inside or outside CIS?

It depends on the nature of the work, not just the label. HMRC's CIS 340 scope guidance states that tree planting and landscaping as part of a new housing development are construction operations and therefore within CIS. Tree planting and landscaping in the course of forestry or estate management are not construction operations. Routine grounds maintenance, gardening and seasonal upkeep are outside CIS in all cases. If you work on new-build sites or commercial construction projects, those contracts are likely within CIS. If you work only on ongoing maintenance for existing property owners, CIS does not apply.

A main contractor is deducting 20% from my maintenance contract payments. Is that right?

Possibly not. If the work is ongoing grounds maintenance rather than landscaping forming part of a construction project, it is outside CIS and no deduction should be made. You would need to establish the nature of the work and, if it is genuinely outside the scheme, recover the incorrectly deducted amounts through Self Assessment. We can review the contracts and advise on the recovery route.

I do both new-build soft landscaping and ongoing maintenance. How do I handle CIS?

The two income streams are treated separately. Income from construction-project landscaping is within CIS and subject to the standard deduction rules. Income from maintenance contracts is outside CIS and should not have any deduction applied. You need to register for CIS if you are not already, to ensure you receive the 20% rate (not 30%) on the CIS contracts, while keeping the two income types clearly separated in your records for Self Assessment.

Can I exclude topsoil, turf and plants from my CIS deductions?

Yes, on contracts that are within CIS. Materials you supply for a construction-landscaping job (topsoil, turf, shrubs, trees, bark, aggregates, paving materials) are excluded from the CIS deduction base. Only the labour element is subject to the 20% deduction. If your main contractor is applying the deduction to the full invoice value, you are overpaying on every CIS job and the difference is recoverable.

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Talk to a specialist landscapers accountant

Book a free call. We will talk through your CIS position, your deduction history and whether there is anything worth changing. No hard sell, no obligation.

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Specialist in CIS and construction accounting, not a generalist practice

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24-hour response guarantee

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Fixed fees, quoted before we start

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Plumbers Electricians Joiners and Carpenters Groundworkers Roofers

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