Construction Industry Scheme, built for UK contractors
Most construction software treats CIS as someone else's problem. ScopeKit handles subcontractor status and deduction rates, monthly returns, and payment and deduction statements natively, so the tax workflow doesn't slow your build.
15-minute walkthrough. No credit card required.
Every part of the CIS pipeline, in one place
From the first subcontractor record through monthly returns and certificate distribution. CIS in ScopeKit isn't a bolt-on — it's wired into payment runs, invoicing, and your accounting integration.
Payment runs, bank files and remittances
CIS is calculated inside the payment run rather than alongside it. An approved run produces a bank file to upload and a remittance advice for each subcontractor, generated from the same approved data, so the deduction you calculated is the deduction you paid and the one you advised.
Subcontractor CIS status on every payment
You verify a subcontractor with HMRC and record the result here — gross, 20% standard or 30% higher. That status is then what every deduction, statement and CIS300 line is worked out from, and it travels with the subcontractor rather than being re-keyed each time you pay them.
Monthly CIS returns
Returns are generated from your live payment data and validated inside ScopeKit. You file through the HMRC portal and record the reference, keeping the full audit trail in one place.
Payment and deduction statements
A payment and deduction statement is produced from each CIS payment, ready to email to the subcontractor from ScopeKit. If any are still unsent as the 19th approaches, your finance team is reminded, and you keep the audit trail.
Under-deduction is refused
A subcontractor with no verification on file is deducted at the 30% higher rate automatically, and you are told the rate is an assumption. Setting a rate below the one HMRC requires for the status on file is rejected outright, so nobody is quietly paid gross.
The filing deadline in front of you
Each return carries its HMRC filing deadline and the list is ordered by tax month, so the return that is due is the one at the top. You still file it — ScopeKit makes sure the deadline and the figures behind it are in plain sight.
Direct integration with Xero, QuickBooks and Sage
CIS deductions flow into your accounting system without re-keying. Reconciliation runs against the actual ledger entries.
Who CIS in ScopeKit is for
Whether you’re paying your first subcontractor or running a regular weekly returns cycle, the workflow scales with you.
Main contractors running 10+ subbies per month
The weekly returns workflow turns from a half-day chore into a 15-minute review. Live payment data flows straight into the return, errors are flagged before submission, and the audit trail is built as you go.
SMEs paying their first sub for the first time
ScopeKit holds the subcontractor's CIS status and rate, works the deduction out from it, and produces the statement and the monthly return. You don't need to know the rules cold — a rate below the one HMRC requires for that status is refused rather than warned about.
Companies switching from a generic accounting tool
Prior payments, deductions and statements are recorded against the subcontractor and the project, so the history you are carrying over stays available for audit and the first live return starts from a clean baseline.
Questions contractors usually ask
What buyers ask before signing up — answered straight.
01
Will this actually file my monthly CIS return with HMRC?
Returns are generated from your live payment data and validated inside ScopeKit, which catches the most common errors — unverified subcontractor, mismatched UTR, deduction-rate drift — before you file. Filing itself is done through the HMRC portal and the reference recorded against the return; direct API filing is not yet available.
02
How does subcontractor verification work?
You verify the subcontractor with HMRC yourself — through HMRC's own service or your agent — and record what comes back in ScopeKit: gross, 20% standard, or 30% higher, with the rate that goes with it. Every deduction, statement and CIS300 line is then calculated from that. Until a status is recorded, ScopeKit deducts at the 30% higher rate and tells you it is assuming, and it will not accept a rate below the one HMRC requires for the status on file. There is no direct HMRC verification API in ScopeKit.
03
What about the certificates we have to send subcontractors?
ScopeKit generates the CIS payment-and-deduction certificate automatically from each payment and emails it to the subcontractor. You keep a permanent record on the project and on the workforce register. No manual PDFs.
04
Is this safe to use if we've never run CIS through software before?
Yes. You register with HMRC and verify your first subcontractor with them; ScopeKit holds the scheme reference, the subcontractor's status and rate, and produces the deductions, statements and return from there. The first return can run alongside whatever you used to do, so you can reconcile before going live.
05
What if HMRC fines us for a late return?
Every return carries its HMRC filing deadline and the returns list is ordered by tax month, so the one that is due is the first thing you see, with the payments behind it already totalled. Generating the return is a step you take rather than something that happens overnight, and filing is done on the HMRC portal. ScopeKit can make the deadline and the figures impossible to miss; it cannot file for you, and it cannot waive an HMRC penalty.
CIS is included on every plan that supports subcontractor payments. See pricing to compare tiers.
Related features
Trades using CIS
Stop CIS from being the worst week of every month
See how ScopeKit collapses subcontractor status, deductions, returns and certificates into a single workflow.
Prefer email? team@scopekit.co.uk