Resources · Queensland
What must a payment claim contain under the BIF Act (Qld)?
Under section 68 of the Building Industry Fairness (Security of Payment) Act 2017 (Qld), a payment claim must be a written document that identifies the construction work or related goods and services it relates to, states the amount claimed, and requests payment of that amount. It no longer has to say it is made under the Act.
- Reviewed
- Jurisdiction
- Queensland, Australia
- Reading time
- 6 min
- For
- Subcontractors and head contractors claiming progress payments in Queensland
Everything below describes the position in Queensland as at 5 August 2026, under the Building Industry Fairness (Security of Payment) Act 2017 (Qld). Section references are to that Act unless stated otherwise.
The three requirements, in full
Section 68 defines a payment claim. A document is one if — and only if — it does all three of these:
| Requirement | What that means in practice |
|---|---|
| It is in writing | An email with the claim attached is fine. A phone call is not. A verbal agreement that “we'll invoice the usual” is not. |
| It identifies the work or the goods and services | Enough detail that the person paying can understand what is being claimed for. Courts have accepted brief descriptions, but “works to date” with no reference to a contract, a period or a location is where claims fail. |
| It states the claimed amount | One number, the amount you say is payable. Not a range, not an estimate to be confirmed. |
| It requests payment of that amount | A tax invoice usually does this by its nature. A statement of account that only reports a balance may not. |
Source: BIF Act s 68
When you can give it
Section 75 controls timing, and there are two different windows depending on whether the claim is a progress claim or the final claim.
| Type of claim | Must be given within |
|---|---|
| Progress payment claim | The longer of: the period worked out under the contract, or six months after the construction work was last carried out (or the related goods and services were last supplied). |
| Final payment claim | The longest of: the period worked out under the contract; 28 days after the end of the last defects liability period; six months after completion of all construction work; or six months after the last supply of related goods and services. |
Source: BIF Act s 75
Supporting statements: head contractors only
A head contractor giving a payment claim to a principal must give a supporting statement with it — a declaration that all subcontractors have been paid what was payable to them, or an explanation of what has not been paid and why. A subcontractor claiming up the chain does not need one.
The consequence is not trivial. Giving a payment claim without the required supporting statement, or giving a supporting statement known to be false or misleading, carries a penalty, and the payment claim itself is at risk.
What happens after you give it
The clock starts. The respondent has to give you a payment schedule, and there is a date by which the money is payable, both of which are covered in the timeframes reference. If a schedule comes back for less than you claimed, or nothing comes back at all, you have an adjudication window and it is measured in business days.
Where claims actually fall over
- —The description of work is copied forward from last month and no longer matches what was done, so the respondent can say the claim does not identify the work.
- —The claim is given to the wrong entity — the site office, the superintendent, or a related company rather than the party named in the contract.
- —A variation is bundled into the claim with no reference to any instruction, so the whole line is disputed and drags the rest of the claim into a schedule.
- —The claim is the second one issued for the same reference date, because the first was withdrawn to fix a typo.
- —The final claim is given after the window in section 75 closed, on the assumption that the contract's own timeframe was the only one that mattered.
Sources
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