Substantial completion
Also called: Substantially performed, Practical completion
The point at which the work is finished enough for the customer to use the property for what it is meant for, even though small items remain. It matters far beyond the handshake: in several provinces and states substantial completion is a statutory milestone that starts the clock on releasing holdback and on lien deadlines, the statute rather than your contract decides when it has been reached, and the definition varies between them. Do not assume the date you called it done is the date the law counts from.
This one depends on where you work
The rule behind substantial completion is set by the province or state the work is in, and the versions do not agree with one another. We have described the shape of it and deliberately not named a deadline, a cap or a percentage — check the rule where you work, or ask someone who practises there.
Related terms
- Deficiency listThe list of small items left to fix before a job is accepted as finished — the missed touch-up, the door that binds, the cover plate nobody fitted.
- RetainageA slice of each payment the customer keeps back until the work is finished and any claim period has passed, then releases.
- LienA claim registered against the property you worked on, which makes it difficult for the owner to sell or refinance until you are paid.
- WalkthroughWalking the finished job with the customer, agreeing that it is done, and writing down anything that is not.
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