If you pay subcontractors, CIS isn't optional and it isn't forgiving. Deduct at the wrong rate, against the wrong portion, or for an unverified subcontractor, and you've created a problem that surfaces months later. DuoApp builds the scheme's rules into the way applications and invoices are produced.
Verifying a subcontractor
Before you deduct, you need to know a subcontractor's status. Record each subcontractor's verification details against their record, and DuoApp uses that status to drive the deduction:
- Gross — no deduction is made.
- Net (standard) — deducted at the standard rate.
- Unverified / higher rate — deducted at the higher rate until verified.
Because the status lives on the subcontractor's record rather than being re-typed onto each application, you can't accidentally apply last quarter's rate to this quarter's payment.
Deducting against labour, not materials
CIS is deducted from the labour element only — materials are excluded. DuoApp applies the deduction to the right portion when an application splits labour and materials, so you're not over-deducting on materials or under-deducting on labour. This is one of the most common spreadsheet errors, and it's handled for you.
What DuoApp gets right automatically
- The deduction rate that matches the subcontractor's verified status
- Deducting against labour only, with materials excluded
- A deduction statement for each subcontractor payment
- Records kept and ready for your monthly return and HMRC
Statements and records
Every CIS deduction produces the statement the subcontractor is owed, and the figures are kept in a form you can reconcile against your monthly return. When your records and HMRC's need to agree, you've got a clean trail rather than a reconstruction job.
Retention and CIS together
CIS and retention often apply to the same payment, and the order they're handled in matters. DuoApp applies them consistently so the subcontractor's payment, the deduction and the amount retained all line up — see tracking retention and deductions for how the retention side is held and released.
Where it fits
CIS isn't a separate task you do after invoicing — it's part of how invoicing works. Raise the application, and the deduction is already in it, calculated against the verified status. That's the difference between CIS being a monthly worry and CIS being something that just happens correctly in the background.