Verify subcontractors. Deduct CIS at payment. File CIS300 by the 19th. Most contractors do this in a spreadsheet that breaks at the worst moment. Ledgers handles every step — and the rest of your books while we're at it.
Generic accounting software pretends CIS is a checkbox. It isn't. You verify each subbie with HMRC, deduct the right rate (0%, 20%, or 30%), keep the labour-vs-materials split clean, file CIS300 every month by the 19th, hand statements to subbies. Plus retentions, plus project costing, plus chasing main contractors.
Spreadsheet of UTRs and 'I think so'.
Subcontractor register tracks verification number + rate + verified date. One source of truth.
Look at the PDF, do mental maths, hope.
Split entered at payment time. CIS deducts only on labour. JE posts Dr Expense / Cr Bank (net) / Cr CIS Liability.
Sunday night, spreadsheet, eyeball totals.
Auto-generated 6th of the month. Per-subbie breakdown in HMRC format. Type 'I confirm', file via Gateway.
Open the spreadsheet. Hope it's up to date.
CIS Liability balance on every dashboard. Pay by the 22nd; the JE clears the balance.
Job-cost spreadsheet, weeks late.
Tag bills + subbie payments + materials to the project. True margin monthly.
Awkward email, hoping.
Auto-chase ladder: day 1 / 7 / 14 / 30. Stops on payment. Retentions tracked separately.
UTR, NI number, company number, HMRC verification number, deduction rate. Status flows: unverified (30%) → verified (20%) → gross-payment (0%).
Enter labour + materials + VAT separately. We compute the deduction (only on labour), post the JE: Dr Subbie Expense / Cr Bank (net) / Cr CIS Liability (deducted).
Tax months run 6th → 5th. Auto-generated return groups by subcontractor with totals. You type 'I confirm', file via HMRC Online, paste the reference back.
Growth+: if our agent prepares an incorrect CIS300 and you incur a penalty, we cover it. Same for VAT. Conditions on /trust.
Tag bills + subbie payments + materials to projects. See true margin per development, not just monthly P&L.
Most construction firms also juggle VAT, payroll for PAYE staff, Companies House filings. Ledgers handles all of it in one place.
Buildxact, Procore, Buildertrend — site management, drawings, change orders, RFIs stay there. Ledgers handles the money side: bills, payments, CIS, payroll, statutory returns. We accept exports from most major job-cost tools.
Includes CIS, monthly CIS300 prep, anomaly flagging on VAT, Penalty Pledge. Larger firms (20+ subbies regularly) go Scale (£179) or Custom.
Replaces Xero (£32) + Construction Industry Scheme add-on (£15+) + bookkeeper familiar with CIS (£300-500/mo) = £350+/mo dropping to £79.
Connect a bank, set up your subbies, hand CIS300 to the AI. Free to try.
Start free →