Every subcontractor who's worked on a commercial or public project has seen it: the AIA G702 Application and Certificate for Payment. It's the closest thing construction has to a universal billing standard — and it trips up thousands of subcontractors every billing cycle.
One wrong number. A missing signature. A period date that doesn't match the GC's billing schedule. Any of these can result in your application being rejected — and your payment delayed by 30 days or more.
This guide explains what the G702 is, how to fill it out step by step, what errors to avoid, and how to use TrestleBook to get it right every time.
What Is the AIA G702?
The AIA G702 — formally the "Application and Certificate for Payment" — is a document published by the American Institute of Architects. It was originally designed for architect-administered contracts between owners and general contractors, but it has become the de facto standard for progress billing throughout the entire construction chain.
The G702 is almost always paired with the G703 Continuation Sheet, which contains your Schedule of Values (SOV) — the line-by-line breakdown of your scope of work with dollar amounts allocated to each line item. The G702 is the summary; the G703 is the detail.
Step-by-Step: Filling Out the G702
Fill In the Project Header
Enter the project name, address, owner name, GC name (listed as "Architect" on the form), and your company name as "Contractor." Include your contract number and the date of your original contract. These must match your subcontract agreement exactly — not how you know the job internally, but what the paperwork says.
Set Your Application Number and Period
Application numbers should be sequential starting from 001. The "Period To" date is critical — this is the cutoff date for work included in this application. It must match the GC's billing period cutoff. Submit even one day late and your application may roll to the next cycle. Confirm the cutoff date with your GC at the project kickoff meeting and mark it on your calendar every month.
Complete Your Schedule of Values (G703)
Your SOV is the foundation of every pay app. Break your scope into line items — typically by CSI division or major work category. Assign a dollar amount to each line item that, when totaled, equals your original contract value. Front-loading your SOV (assigning more value to early work items) is common but risky — some GCs will reject an SOV that appears manipulated. Front-load by no more than 5–10% on any given line.
Enter Percentage Complete for Each Line Item
For each SOV line item, enter what percentage of that work was completed as of the period-to date. Be conservative and accurate — overstating completion creates problems at final closeout and can be considered fraudulent in some jurisdictions. Your daily logs and site photos should back up every percentage you report.
Calculate Materials Stored
If you have materials delivered to site but not yet installed, you can include their value on line G. You'll need invoices and often a materials stored list signed by the GC or owner's rep. Don't estimate — use actual invoice amounts. Some GCs require proof of insurance and title transfer before accepting stored materials billing.
Calculate Retainage
Retainage is typically 10% of the work completed to date (or 5% after 50% completion, depending on your contract). Enter the retainage amount on line I. This reduces your current payment due. Retainage accumulates until final completion — track it carefully because some GCs are slow to release it without a specific written request and final lien waiver package.
Account for Change Orders
Approved change orders increase your contract value. List all approved change orders in Section 7 and add them to your contract sum. Pending change orders — those submitted but not yet approved — should NOT be included unless your contract explicitly allows billing for pending COs. Including unapproved amounts is the fastest way to get an application rejected.
Verify the Math and Sign
The G702 requires an authorized signature from your company certifying that the amounts are correct. Before signing, verify: total contract sum equals original contract + approved COs, work completed percentages match your G703, the current payment due calculation is correct (earned to date minus retainage minus previous payments). A math error that slips through will be caught by the GC's accounting team — and your application will come back.
Common Errors That Trigger Rejections
Errors GC accountants catch immediately
Wrong period-to date. Missing the billing cutoff by even one day means your application is early or late by a full cycle.
SOV doesn't match the original. If your Schedule of Values changes between applications without a contract modification, it's flagged immediately.
Including unapproved change orders. Only approved, executed change orders belong in your billing. Pending COs go nowhere near the G702.
Missing or incorrect lien waiver. Most GCs require a conditional lien waiver matching the exact dollar amount of the current application. Amount mismatches cause instant rejection.
Math errors on the summary page. The G702 has specific formulas. If Line G + Line H doesn't equal Line I, or if Line I minus previous payments doesn't match Line M, the form is incorrect.
Missing certified payroll or insurance certificates. On prevailing wage and public works jobs, these must accompany every application. Their absence holds your payment regardless of how clean the G702 is.
How TrestleBook Streamlines Pay Applications
TrestleBook was designed specifically around the subcontractor billing workflow. Instead of filling out PDF forms by hand, calculating retainage manually, and tracking down lien waiver templates, TrestleBook handles the entire process in one place on your iPhone or iPad.
Here's how TrestleBook eliminates the most common pay application problems:
- Guided SOV setup: Build your Schedule of Values once at project kickoff. Every subsequent pay app auto-populates from it — no re-entering line items, no mismatches between applications.
- Automatic calculations: Retainage, earned-to-date, current payment due — all calculated automatically as you enter percentage complete figures. No manual math means no math errors.
- Change order integration: Approve a change order in TrestleBook and it automatically updates your contract value and SOV. Only approved COs flow into billing.
- Sequential numbering: Application numbers increment automatically. No duplicate numbers, no gaps in the sequence.
- Lien waiver attachment: TrestleBook generates a conditional progress lien waiver with the exact dollar amount from each application — the right type, the right amount, attached automatically.
- PDF export: Export a complete, professional pay application package — G702 summary, G703 continuation sheet, and lien waiver — ready to submit to any GC.
The time most subcontractors spend on a single pay application — pulling up old PDFs, re-checking the math, chasing down waiver forms — typically runs 2–4 hours. With TrestleBook, it's under 20 minutes. More importantly, the applications that come out are clean, consistent, and formatted exactly the way GC accounting departments expect them.
Clean applications get approved faster. Approved applications get paid faster. That's the entire goal.
Create Your First Pay App in Minutes
TrestleBook generates AIA G702-compliant pay applications with automatic calculations, change order tracking, and lien waiver attachment. Built for subcontractors on iPhone and iPad.
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