Retention and deductions are where contractors leave real money on the table — not through fraud, but through forgetting. A percentage held on a job two years ago, in a tab nobody opens, never chased and never released. DuoApp keeps this visible by tracking it against the project as part of how you bill.
How retention is held
When a job carries retention, DuoApp holds it automatically at the agreed percentage as each application or invoice is raised. You don't calculate it by hand each time — it's applied consistently, and the running total held on the job is always there to see. The detail of how it appears on a bill is covered in how invoicing works.
Releasing retention
Retention is usually released in stages — a portion at practical completion, the balance at the end of the defects period. Because DuoApp knows what's held and against which job, those releases can be tracked and actioned at the right time, rather than depending on someone remembering a date from eighteen months ago.
What's tracked automatically
- Retention held on every job, at the agreed rate
- The running total still outstanding, per project
- Release stages, so nothing sits unclaimed
- Deductions applied to subcontractor payments
Deductions on subcontractor payments
The same discipline applies to what you deduct from subcontractors — retention you hold on their works, plus CIS. DuoApp applies these consistently so a subcontractor's payment, the amount retained from them, and any CIS deduction all line up. The CIS side is covered in detail in CIS deductions and verification.
Across every job at once
The value compounds when you can see retention across your whole business — total held by you, total held against you, and what's due for release and when. That's a number most contractors can only assemble by hand, if at all, and it's visible in your analytics without the stitching.
The principle
Retention and deductions go wrong for the same reason spreadsheets do — they depend on a person remembering. DuoApp's answer is the one it applies everywhere: calculate it once, hold it against the job, and keep it visible, so the money you're owed is chased on time and the money you hold is accounted for.