You finished your scope, sent the invoice, and need to know when the money is due. Start with the payment clause and the project location. For North Carolina work covered by Chapter 22C, the upstream contractor must pass along payment for work you performed within seven days after receiving it. G.S. 22C-3 sets that rule, but G.S. 22C-6 excludes several residential categories.
There is no single deadline in that chapter for every house-building subcontract. On an excluded residential job, have a North Carolina construction attorney review the contract and other applicable law. Do not use an internet summary to set the due date in your collection letter.
Find the payment trigger before counting days
Pull the signed subcontract, its payment exhibit, and any documents it incorporates. Read them together. Mark the event that starts the payment period, the submission requirements, and the person who receives the invoice.
Use this sheet to find the terms in your contract.
Scroll to read all columns.
| Item to locate | What to record |
|---|---|
| Invoice submission | Recipient, submission channel, and cutoff |
| Approval | Who reviews the work and what evidence they require |
| Payment trigger | Invoice receipt, approval, a milestone, or upstream payment |
| Payment period | Exact wording and whether it specifies calendar or business days |
| Retainage | Amount or percentage withheld and its release condition |
| Changes | How approved extras enter the payment request |
| Disputes | Required notice, recipient, and response procedure |
Do not record only a phrase such as “paid after rough-in.” Ask what rough-in completion means in this agreement. Is your work complete when you finish installation, when an inspection passes, or when the GC accepts the scope? Get the answer in writing before your crew starts.
Make the invoice match that answer. Identify the lot, contract, completed scope, billing period, approved changes, prior payments, and the amount requested. Attach the evidence your agreement requires. Keep the complete submission and the delivery acknowledgment together.
What North Carolina Chapter 22C says
For work the chapter covers, G.S. 22C-2 ties a sub’s right to payment to performance under the contract. It also says upstream payment is not a condition precedent to downstream payment, and contrary agreements are unenforceable. The pass-through rule below sets a separate payment deadline.
Under G.S. 22C-3, a performing subcontractor must receive the full amount received for its work and materials within seven days after the contractor receives each periodic or final payment. The rule also applies between an upstream subcontractor and its own subcontractor. The clock starts when the upstream contractor receives payment, not when you print an invoice.
When covered payment is delayed beyond seven days after upstream receipt, G.S. 22C-5 provides interest beginning on the eighth day. The statutory rate is one percent per month or a fraction thereof on the unpaid balance due. Ask an attorney whether the chapter applies and how to calculate any claim before adding statutory interest to your demand.
G.S. 22C-4 permits withholding an application and certification to the owner for listed reasons. Those include disputed work, uncorrected defects, unsatisfactory progress, and qualifying retainage. An invoice alone does not show that the statutory conditions have been met.
Check whether the residential exclusions apply
G.S. 22C-6 excludes residential contractors as defined in the referenced licensing provision. It also excludes residential improvements exempt under the referenced architectural statute and residential improvements consisting of twelve or fewer units. Each exclusion is separate. A larger residential project is not automatically covered.
For a single-family house, do not assume Chapter 22C supplies your payment deadline or interest rate. Give your attorney the property location, project description, unit count, businesses that signed the contract, and full agreement. Ask which payment rules apply to this job.
The same caution applies to a quoted pay-when-paid prohibition. The residential exclusions apply to the whole chapter, including its payment-condition rule. Our pay-when-paid guide explains the clause review questions.
Document the due date and the receipt date separately
Create a payment record for each invoice. Keep dates separate rather than placing everything in a single “sent” column.
Keep the invoice submission record with the agreed payment terms so the follow-up names the disputed step.
- Work or milestone completion date, with supporting records.
- Invoice submission date and acknowledgment of receipt.
- Date the GC identifies a missing item or disputed scope.
- Date you submit the correction or requested information.
- Contractual approval and payment dates, once established.
- Upstream payment receipt date, if relevant and confirmed.
- Date and amount of each payment you receive.
If the GC says payment is waiting on the owner’s draw, ask which draw includes your work and whether it has been requested, approved, or received. Request the status in writing. Record an unconfirmed answer as unconfirmed. Do not replace it with a guessed funding date.
Match each partial payment to your records. Ask which invoice and scope each payment covers. Track retained money separately from an overdue progress balance.
Ask about each balance separately. Do not describe the entire contract balance as immediately due.
Follow up when payment is overdue
First, resend the invoice with the original delivery record. Ask whether the invoice is accepted, which line items are disputed, and when the undisputed amount will be paid. Keep the tone factual and the question specific.
Next, compare the response with the agreement. If the explanation is incomplete, send the contractual notice to the named recipient by the required method. Have an attorney review a demand, interest claim, or proposed work suspension. Ask the attorney whether you have a right to stop work on this job.
Check lien deadlines while you negotiate. For a North Carolina real-property claim, G.S. 44A-12 sets a filing limit of 120 days after last furnishing at the improvement site. G.S. 44A-13 sets a separate enforcement-action limit of 180 days after last furnishing. Those clocks do not start with a late invoice, and applicability, service, and subcontractor rights require separate review.
Questions to settle before the next job
Ask who approves invoices and who covers their absences. Confirm how cutoff dates interact with inspection dates. Ask how the builder handles a disputed change while paying accepted base work. Have the people authorized to sign put those answers in the agreement.
If a builder cannot explain the payment trigger, resolve that before accepting the scope. Even with a builder you know, record what is owed and when it is due. Use the late-payment guide to organize the records if payment remains unresolved.
For year-end reporting after the payment records are reconciled, follow the subcontractor 1099 workflow.
Where Cercha fits
Cercha profiles, portfolios, and builder and sub endorsements give you context for a new working relationship. Messages let you start the payment-terms conversation with the member. Confirm the agreement and payment dates directly with the contracting business.