Progress Claim Calculator (Singapore)

How a progress claim is calculated

A progress claim (a payment claim under Singapore's Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act) is a claim for the value of work done to date, not for this month's work in isolation. The sequence is always the same:

1. Gross value to date: contract sum × percentage complete, plus approved variations to date and, if your contract allows it, materials delivered to site.
2. Less retention at the rate in your contract, usually 5% or 10% of the gross value, often capped at a percentage of the contract sum.
3. Less previous claims certified, net of their own retention.
4. Amount claimed this period, then GST at 9% if you are GST registered.

Worked example: an M&E fit-out of S$186,000, billed in stages: mobilisation 10%, first fix 30%, second fix 30%, testing and handover 30%. Claim 1 (mobilisation) was S$18,600 less 5% retention, so S$17,670 was certified. After first fix the work done is 40%, S$74,400. Less retention S$3,720 gives S$70,680; less S$17,670 certified before gives a claim of S$53,010, which is S$57,780.90 with GST. Retention held is now S$3,720.

Retention: what to track

Retention is cash held back from every claim as security against defects. The common pattern in Singapore is a two-stage release: half when the works are certified complete, the other half at the end of the defects liability period, often 12 months later. On a S$186,000 job at 5% that is S$9,300 that sits in someone else's bank until you claim it, so diarise both release dates. Some contracts allow a performance bond instead of retention, which protects your cash flow if you can get one.

SOP Act timelines, if your contract is silent

• Serve the payment claim by the last day of the month.
• The respondent's payment response is due within 14 days (a contract may allow up to 21 days, not more).
• If it is disputed or no response arrives, there is a dispute settlement period, then adjudication through the Singapore Mediation Centre.
• Once you issue the tax invoice for the accepted amount, payment is due within 14 days if the contract is silent, and never later than 35 days under any contract.

Check the Act, the Regulations and BCA's guides for your situation. This calculator does the arithmetic; it is not legal advice.

Why claims go out late

In most small firms the delay is not a dispute. The site team knows the stage is reached, but the person who prepares claims finds out at month-end. The fix is to make "stage reached on site" and "claim ready" the same event, in a system or at least in a shared sheet, so the claim is calculated the day the milestone is marked. The free job costing calculator shows the other half of the picture: cost to date against what you have billed.

Questions

How do you calculate a progress claim? Multiply the contract sum by the percentage of work done to date, add approved variations and any materials on site, deduct retention at the contract rate, deduct previous claims certified net of retention, then add GST if you are registered.

Is retention calculated on each claim or cumulatively? On the cumulative gross value to date. That keeps the retention balance correct at every claim and is why previous claims are deducted net of their retention.

What is the difference between a progress claim and a payment claim? A payment claim is the statutory term in the SOP Act; a progress claim is what the industry calls the same document. When it is served under the Act, the Act's timelines apply.

When is retention money released? Usually half at completion and half after the defects liability period, but the rate, cap and release terms are set by your contract, so read those clauses before pricing the job.