CIS Invoice Template — UK Construction Subcontractors
Invoicing under the Construction Industry Scheme has one rule that changes everything else on the page: the contractor paying you must deduct tax from the labour part of your bill — 20% if you're registered and verified, 30% if you're not — and send it to HMRC on your behalf, while materials you paid for are handed to you in full. That makes a CIS invoice a document with a job to do: it has to show, unmistakably, which part of the total is labour and which is materials, or the contractor may deduct from everything to stay safe. This free CIS invoice template is built around exactly that split.
The generator below is pre-filled with a realistic subcontractor example — a bricklayer billing a contractor, labour days on one line, materials at cost on another, and a note stating the expected 20% deduction — and every field is editable. Swap in your trade, your figures, and your contractor, then download the PDF; Word and Excel versions are further down the page. Below the sample: a walkthrough of each field, plus plain-English answers on deduction rates, the VAT reverse charge, monthly deduction statements, and how the money HMRC is holding finds its way back to you.
What this template looks like
| Description | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bricklaying labour — plot 4 external walls (days) | 8 | £220.00 | £1,760.00 |
| Materials at cost — sand, cement, wall ties | 1 | £340.00 | £340.00 |
A sample invoice — every field, from the line items to the tax and notes, is yours to edit in the free generator.
Get this template
How to fill out a CIS invoice
Start with your details — and have your UTR ready
Head the invoice with your name or trading style, address, and contact details, the way any sole trader would. Your UTR doesn't have to be printed on the invoice, but the contractor needs it once, up front, to verify you with HMRC — verification is what decides whether they deduct 20% or 30%, so hand it over before the first payment, not after.
Bill the contractor, and name the site
Invoice the business that engaged you — the contractor's registered company name, not the site foreman — and add the site or plot reference on its own line, the way the sample carries "Plot 4, Bramble Rise". Contractors run several sites through one accounts office, and an invoice that names its site gets matched, approved, and paid without a query.
Number it and date it like any invoice
One sequential series, no reused numbers, plus the issue date and a due date with a number in it. Under CIS the paperwork matters double: your invoices need to line up with the contractor's monthly returns to HMRC and the deduction statements they send you, and a clean number sequence is what makes that reconciliation painless at tax time.
Put labour on its own line — always
The deduction applies to labour, so labour must be identifiable: days or hours times the rate, described plainly. This is the line the contractor deducts from, and the single most common CIS invoicing mistake is blending labour into an all-in price. If the contractor can't see the labour figure, expect the deduction taken off the whole invoice instead.
List materials at the cost you actually paid
Materials you bought for the job — and plant you hired in — go on their own lines at your actual cost, because the contractor pays these gross, with no deduction. Keep the receipts: contractors are entitled to ask for evidence of material costs, and HMRC expects the figure to be what you genuinely paid, not a marked-up guess.
State the expected deduction so nobody is surprised
Calculating and paying the deduction is legally the contractor's job, but a note like the sample's — "contractor to deduct 20% from the labour element only" — sets shared expectations on paper. You invoice the gross amount; the note explains why the bank transfer will be smaller, and it flags your rate so a 30% deduction by mistake gets caught early.
Handle VAT by your registration — and check the reverse charge
Not VAT registered: no VAT anywhere on the invoice, rate set to 0, like the sample. VAT registered and billing another VAT-registered business for CIS work: the domestic reverse charge usually applies — you charge no VAT, state "Reverse charge: customer to account for VAT to HMRC", and show the rate and amount they must account for.
Close with payment terms and your bank details
Account name, sort code, account number, a due window, and the invoice number as the payment reference. Expect the paid amount to be your total minus the labour deduction — that difference isn't lost money, it's tax already paid for you, and the contractor's monthly statement is your evidence. Chase that statement as firmly as you'd chase the payment.
Billing tips for CIS subcontractors
The labour/materials split is the whole game
Every pound you can't show as materials is treated as labour, and labour is what gets deducted. An all-in "supply and fix" price with no split hands the contractor no choice but to deduct from the lot, which means HMRC holds 20% of your materials money for a year until your tax return unwinds it. Two lines — labour priced as days or hours, materials at documented cost — keep your cash where it belongs: in the month you earned it.
Verification decides 20% or 30% — sort it before invoice one
Before first payment, the contractor verifies you with HMRC using your UTR and business details. Registered under CIS: 20% off labour. Not registered or the details don't match: 30%, and the missing ten points sit with HMRC until your return. If a deduction statement shows 30% when you're registered, the usual culprit is a name or UTR mismatch — fix it with the contractor's payroll, and register with HMRC as a subcontractor if you never have.
The reverse charge flips who handles VAT
Since March 2021, VAT-registered subcontractors billing VAT-registered contractors for CIS-scope work usually don't charge VAT at all. Instead the invoice states that the domestic reverse charge applies and shows the VAT rate and amount for the customer to account for — the contractor pays the VAT straight to HMRC, not to you. Billing an end user, like a homeowner or a business that isn't selling the construction work on, stays normal VAT. When in doubt, ask the contractor's accounts team which side of the line the contract sits on.
Deductions aren't lost — they're your tax, prepaid
Every deduction is money HMRC is holding against your tax bill. Sole traders reclaim it through Self Assessment: the year's deductions come off the January bill, and many subcontractors end the year with a refund rather than a payment. Limited-company subcontractors offset deductions against their PAYE liabilities during the year instead. Either way the deduction statements are your proof, so file every one — a missing statement is genuinely money left on the table.
Expect a deduction statement every month — by the 19th
For any tax month in which a contractor deducted from your payments, they must give you a payment and deduction statement within 14 days of the month's end — tax months end on the 5th, so the statement is due by the 19th. It shows the gross payment, the materials figure, and the tax deducted, and it's the document your reclaim rests on. A contractor who pays reliably but never sends statements is quietly creating your problem with HMRC; chase the paperwork like it's the payment.
What a CIS subcontractor invoice must include
- Your name or trading style and address — the details the contractor verified with HMRC
- The contractor's business name and address, plus the site or plot reference
- A unique, sequential invoice number and the invoice date
- Labour on its own line — days or hours at the agreed rate
- Materials and plant hire on separate lines, at the cost you actually paid
- The gross total — never invoice net of the expected deduction
- A note of the expected CIS deduction rate on the labour element
- VAT handled by registration: none if unregistered, reverse-charge wording if it applies
Calculating and paying the deduction to HMRC is the contractor's legal duty — your invoice shows gross figures and the labour/materials split that makes the deduction correct. Keep every monthly deduction statement; they are how the money comes back.
Frequently asked questions
What is a CIS invoice?
A normal UK invoice, structured for the Construction Industry Scheme: labour and materials shown separately, because the contractor paying it must deduct tax — usually 20% — from the labour element and pass it to HMRC on your behalf, while materials are paid in full. You still invoice the gross amount; CIS only changes what lands in your bank and what HMRC holds as prepaid tax under your UTR.
Do I deduct the CIS tax on my own invoice?
No — never invoice net of the deduction. You bill the full gross amount for labour and materials; making the deduction is the contractor's legal duty, not yours, and they'll calculate it from the labour figure your invoice shows. Best practice is a note stating the expected deduction, like the sample's, so the smaller bank transfer is explained in advance — but the invoice totals stay gross.
Why was I deducted 30% instead of 20%?
A 30% deduction means HMRC couldn't verify you at the standard rate: you're not registered as a CIS subcontractor, or the name and UTR the contractor submitted don't match HMRC's records. Register with HMRC, then have the contractor re-verify you — the rate drops to 20% for future payments. The extra already deducted isn't gone: it offsets your tax bill or comes back in your refund after your return.
Are materials really paid without deduction?
Yes — the cost of materials you bought for the job, plant you hired in, and fuel used on site (not travel) are excluded from the deduction, which is why they must sit on their own line at the price you actually paid. Keep the receipts, because the contractor can ask for them and HMRC expects the figure to be genuine cost. Marked-up materials drift into labour territory and risk being deducted.
Do I charge VAT on a CIS invoice?
If you're not VAT registered — no VAT at all, and the sample invoice shows that case. If you are registered and the contractor is too, the domestic reverse charge usually applies to CIS-scope work: you charge no VAT, state on the invoice that the reverse charge applies, and show the rate and amount the contractor must account for to HMRC. Normal VAT still applies when you bill end users, like homeowners.
How do I get the deducted money back?
As a sole trader, through Self Assessment: report the year's gross income and total CIS deductions, and the deductions come straight off your tax bill — refunds are common, since 20% off gross often overshoots what you actually owe. Limited-company subcontractors instead offset deductions against PAYE during the year via their payroll submissions. Both routes run on the contractor's monthly deduction statements, so keep all of them.
What paperwork should the contractor give me?
A payment and deduction statement for every tax month in which they deducted from you, due within 14 days of the tax month ending on the 5th — so by the 19th. It records the gross payment, materials, and tax deducted, and it's your evidence when you reclaim. If statements aren't arriving, ask in writing; a contractor deducting without issuing statements leaves you unable to prove tax you've already paid.
What is gross payment status?
A status HMRC grants established subcontractors that lets contractors pay you with no deduction at all — you settle your own tax through your return instead. Qualifying means passing HMRC's tests: construction turnover above their published level, a clean record of filing and paying on time, and a business bank account. Apply through your CIS registration once the business can show that history; HMRC reviews the status annually.
Is this CIS invoice template really free?
Yes — fill it in and download the PDF, Word, or Excel version with no signup and no watermark. When you're across several sites and contractors, the Paid app on iPhone keeps each contractor's invoices and payment status straight, and the labour/materials pattern stays as easy to repeat as the sample above.
Related templates
Contractor
An invoice for general contractors — progress draws, change orders, and retainage, free to fill and download.
Roofing
An itemized invoice for roofers — tear-off, squares, materials, and disposal, free to fill and download.
Sole Trader
Your name, trading name, and the fields HMRC expects from a sole trader — free to fill in and download.
United Kingdom
Sole trader and VAT invoices with the fields HMRC expects — free to fill in and download.
VAT Invoice
A full VAT invoice with the number, rate, and VAT total HMRC requires — free to fill in and download.
The app goes further
Invoice from your pocket
The free tool here makes a clean one-off PDF; the Paid app on iPhone adds what it deliberately leaves out — saved clients, estimates that convert to invoices in a tap, and tracking for what's paid and what's still owed.