Compliance
£19/mo · included with ProCIS compliance software for UK contractors
Estimark’s CIS module calculates Construction Industry Scheme deductions on the labour element of a subcontractor payment, holds each subcontractor’s verification number and tax treatment, and assembles the monthly CIS300 return by tax month with its statutory declarations recorded. It is included from the Pro plan (£249/month) up.
What the CIS Compliance module does
- Stores per-company CIS settings: contractor UTR, whether CIS is enabled, and the standard and higher deduction rates.
- Holds each subcontractor’s CIS registration, UTR, verification number, verification date and tax treatment.
- Splits a payment into gross, materials, VAT, plant hire and other excluded amounts to arrive at the labour amount deduction applies to.
- Applies the deduction rate to the labour amount and records the deduction and the net payment.
- Groups deductions into a monthly return by tax month and tax year, one return per period.
- Records the CIS300’s statutory declarations — employment status, verification, nil return and inactivity — against the return.
- Marks a return as submitted with a date, an HMRC reference and the submission method.
- Links deductions to the purchase order they were raised against.
CIS Compliance — how it works
How is a CIS deduction calculated?
CIS is deducted from the labour element only. Estimark takes the gross payment and subtracts materials, VAT, plant hire and any other excluded cost to get the labour amount, then applies the deduction rate to that figure. Deducting from the gross is the single most common CIS error and the one this arithmetic exists to prevent.
| Element | Treatment |
|---|---|
| Gross payment | Starting figure |
| Materials | Excluded from deduction |
| VAT | Excluded from deduction |
| Plant hire | Excluded from deduction |
| Labour amount | The base the rate applies to |
| Deduction | Labour × rate; net = gross − deduction |
What deduction rates does Estimark apply?
Two rates are configured per company: a standard rate for a verified, registered subcontractor and a higher rate for one who is not registered or cannot be verified. HMRC’s figures are 20% and 30%, and gross-payment-status subcontractors are deducted at nil. The rates are configurable because they are settings, not constants.
Does Estimark file the CIS300 with HMRC?
No. Estimark records the CIS300 monthly return — the period, the totals for gross, materials and deductions, and the statutory declarations for employment status, verification, nil return and inactivity — and stores the HMRC reference and submission method once you have filed. The filing itself is done by you or your accountant.
NoteEstimark does not file CIS300 or RTI returns with HMRC, and it is not Making Tax Digital software. It produces and retains the record; submission is a separate step.
When does a CIS tax month run?
From the 6th of one month to the 5th of the next, which is why a payment made on the 5th and one made on the 6th fall into different returns. Estimark groups deductions into returns by tax month and tax year on that basis, with one return per period per company.
CIS Compliance — at a glance
- Plan
- Included with Pro
- Add-on price
- £19 / month
- Deduction base
- Labour element only
- Tax month
- 6th to 5th
CIS Compliance
£19per month
CIS Compliance is a bundled module. Plans are a ladder, so it is included on Pro and on Enterprise. On a lower plan you can activate it on its own for £19 a month.
Included from Pro — £249 a month
- Included on Pro and above at no extra cost.
- £19 per month as an individual module on a lower plan.
- Included in full during the 14-day free trial.
- No implementation fee and no minimum term.
Questions
CIS Compliance — frequently asked
Which plan includes CIS compliance?
CIS Compliance is included from the Pro plan (£249 a month) upward, and with Enterprise. It can be activated individually for £19 a month on Solo or Core.
Does Estimark submit CIS300 returns to HMRC?
No. Estimark records the CIS300 return, its totals and its statutory declarations, and stores the HMRC reference once you have filed. Filing with HMRC is done by you or your accountant.
What are the CIS deduction rates?
HMRC deducts 20% from verified registered subcontractors and 30% from unverified ones, with nil deduction for gross payment status. Estimark holds the standard and higher rates as per-company settings and applies them to the labour element of the payment.
Is materials cost subject to CIS deduction?
No. Materials, VAT, plant hire and other excluded costs are subtracted from the gross payment before the deduction rate is applied. Estimark records each of those amounts separately on the deduction so the calculation is auditable.
Does Estimark handle the VAT domestic reverse charge as well?
Yes, and it is a separate mechanism — the reverse charge changes who accounts for the VAT on the invoice, and is part of Estimark’s core invoicing rather than the CIS module.
Related
Subcontractor Management
The subcontractor register, verification status and insurances.
Purchase Orders
Where a CIS payment is raised and the deduction recorded.
HR Management
Employee records, contracts and Right to Work checks.
For builders & contractors
Pro at £249/month — job costing, payment applications, CIS and site safety.
CIS compliance
Labour-only deduction, 6th-to-5th tax months, HMRC verification, CIS300 recorded.
VAT domestic reverse charge
Section 55A wording on the invoice, nil VAT, per-client control.
Pricing & plans
Solo £29, Core £99, Pro £249, Enterprise £999 a month. Bolt-ons priced separately.
Try it on a real job.
Fourteen days, full access, every plan. No implementation fee.