Practical completion is the most consequential date on a building contract. Penalties stop running. Risk and insurance shift. The defects clock starts. The first slice of money held back becomes releasable. Almost everything that happens at the end of a job hangs off it.
Which is why the distinction that catches people out is worth stating first: the works being practically complete and practical completion being certified are two different events, and only the second one does any of the above.
What practical completion means
Broadly, that the works are substantially complete and can effectively be used for the purpose they were built for. Not perfect — substantially complete. A house with a list of snags can reach practical completion; a house without a functioning bathroom cannot, however short the snag list.
The sequence, and the dates in it
| Stage | What happens |
|---|---|
| Practical completion | Certified. Penalties stop, the defects liability period starts, the list for completion is issued. |
| Defects liability period | Ninety calendar days from practical completion. Listed items are put right during it. |
| Ten working days before it expires | The contractor is expected to have the listed items done by this point — not on the final day. |
| Final completion | Certified once the listed defects are made good. The balance of money held follows. |
| Latent defects | Five years from final completion. Liability, not money held — but the reason to keep the file. |
Ninety calendar days, not working days, and it runs over builders’ holidays. A December practical completion means a defects period largely spent with subcontractors unavailable. Worth knowing when you are choosing which week to ask for the certificate.
Before you ask for the certificate
- Electrical certificate of compliance.
- Plumbing certificate of compliance where the local authority requires one.
- Gas certificate of conformity if there is a gas installation.
- Glazing, waterproofing and roof warranties, in the client’s name.
- As-built drawings where the build departed from the approved plans.
- Occupancy certificate from the local authority — the one most likely to be outstanding, and the one least within your control. Start it early.
- Appliance manuals, guarantees and paint schedules. Small, and it is what a client remembers.
- Keys, remotes and access codes, listed and handed over against a signature.
- The snag list, agreed and signed by both parties.
For the home owner
Do not sign practical completion on the promise that the outstanding items will follow. Once the certificate is issued a large part of your leverage has gone with it. Walk the house with the snag list in your hand, and agree the list before the certificate, not after.
Equally, do not withhold the certificate over a snag list. Snags are exactly what the defects liability period exists for, and refusing to certify because a cupboard door is misaligned is how a good relationship becomes an adjudication.
General guidance, not legal advice, and written around JBCC practice — where your contract says something different, your contract wins.