How Subcontractors Get Paid in NSW (Security of Payment Explained)
NSW invented security of payment - the 1999 Act was Australia's first. Here is how it works: the payment claim, the 10 business day schedule window, why silence makes the full amount a debt due, the 20 business day payment rule for subcontractors, and the two business day suspension notice.
Transcript
Not being paid on a New South Wales job? There is a law built for exactly this. New South Wales invented it.
The Security of Payment Act. The original, from nineteen ninety nine. Built for one thing. Cash flow.
Step one. A valid payment claim. The work identified. The amount claimed. Served on time.
The builder then has ten business days to respond with a payment schedule.
Silence makes the full claimed amount a debt due. And bars their defences at adjudication.
And head contractors must pay subcontractors within twenty business days of the claim. Whatever the contract says.
Adjudication runs through private nominating authorities. Typically ten business days from a schedule that disputes your claim. Diarise it the day the schedule lands.
Not paid by the due date? The Act gives you a lawful path to suspend, on two business days notice.
The windows are strict, and public holidays move real dates. Verify every deadline against the Act before you act.
Know your position before you pick the fight. Free tools below. And know what you're signing.
General information about Australian subcontracts, not legal advice. Get advice on your own contract and facts.