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Adjudication under SOPA: the full process from payment claim to enforcement

NSW SOPA adjudication: payment claim to enforcement in ~40 business days. Timelines, ANA selection, adjudicator fees, and what if the respondent won't pay.

By Chalkline. Last updated 9 May 2026. Verified 9 May 2026.

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TL;DR

SOPA adjudication is a fast-track way to get a payment dispute decided when a head contractor, subbie, or supplier hasn’t been paid. From a valid payment claim to an enforceable determination takes roughly 40 business days.

The deadline that kills claims: you have 10 business days to apply for adjudication after receiving a payment schedule. Miss it and you lose the right to adjudicate that payment period.

Cost: under $50,000 claims, adjudicator fees are fixed at $900 to $5,100 (GST-inc) via Adjudicate Today. Above $50,000 the adjudicator bills hourly. Fees split 50/50 by default, but the adjudicator can pin the lot on the respondent.

Outcome: the determination is enforceable straight away, but it isn’t final. Either side can take it to court afterwards, but the respondent must pay first.

When you do this

Adjudication applies once a valid payment claim has been served and the respondent has either:

  • Served a payment schedule for less than the claimed amount; or
  • Failed to serve a payment schedule at all and not paid by the due date.

It is available under the Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 1999 (NSW) (“the Act”) to any builder, subcontractor, or supplier carrying out construction work or supplying related goods and services under a construction contract in NSW, including owner-occupier residential contracts (from 1 March 2021) (verified 2026-05-09, NSW Government, About Security of Payment).

As of 20 August 2024, a residential building contractor who is unlicensed or lacks the required Home Building Compensation Fund (HBCF) insurance cannot use the Act for claims on Home Building Act 1989 (NSW) work (verified 2026-05-09, Piper Alderman, NSW SoP Act Amendments).

Who’s involved

PartyRole
ClaimantBuilder, subcontractor, or supplier who served the payment claim
RespondentPrincipal (owner/developer), head contractor, or subcontractor who received the claim
Authorised Nominating Authority (ANA)Receives the adjudication application, appoints the adjudicator
AdjudicatorIndependent third party who determines the dispute

Steps

Step 1: Serve a valid payment claim

Before adjudication can be triggered, the claimant must have served a written payment claim on or after a reference date (the date specified in the contract for making claims, or the last day of each named calendar month if none is specified). The claim must include:

  • Written form
  • A description of the construction work, goods, or services claimed
  • The claimed amount (including GST)
  • The statutory endorsement: “This is a payment claim made under the Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 1999”

Head contractors claiming from the principal must attach a valid supporting statement declaring all subcontractors have been paid everything due. A false supporting statement carries a maximum penalty of 1,000 penalty units for a corporation or 200 penalty units (or three months imprisonment) for an individual (verified 2026-05-09, NSW Government, Authorised nominating authorities).

Claims must be made within 12 months of the work, goods, or services being last performed or supplied.

Step 2: Wait for the payment schedule (10 business days)

The respondent has 10 business days after receiving the payment claim (or the contractual payment schedule deadline, whichever is earlier) to serve a written payment schedule. The schedule must:

  • Identify the payment claim it responds to
  • State the scheduled amount the respondent proposes to pay (which may be nil)
  • Include reasons for any withheld amount

If the respondent does not serve a payment schedule within the deadline, the full claimed amount becomes due and payable. Once issued, the respondent cannot raise new reasons in adjudication that were not in the schedule (verified 2026-05-09, NSW Government, Applying for adjudication).

Business days exclude Saturdays, Sundays, public holidays, and 27-31 December. Time counts from the day after service, not the service date itself (verified 2026-05-09, Contracts Specialist, Adjudication Timeframes NSW).

Step 3: Apply for adjudication

The claimant chooses one of three pathways under section 17, depending on what the respondent did:

ScenarioPathwayAdjudication application window
Respondent served a payment schedule below the claimed amounts17(1)(a)(i)Within 10 business days of receiving the schedule
Respondent served no schedule and the scheduled amount was not paid by the due dates17(1)(a)(ii)Within 20 business days after the payment due date
Respondent served no schedule and the full claimed amount was not paid by the due dates17(1)(b) (notice required first)See s17(2) notice procedure below

s17(2) notice procedure (no payment schedule, unpaid amount): The claimant must first serve written notice of intention to apply for adjudication on the respondent within 20 business days of the due date. The respondent then has 5 business days to provide a payment schedule. If no schedule arrives within that period, the claimant may apply within 10 business days after the 5-business-day period expires. Missing any of these windows extinguishes the right to adjudicate for that reference period (verified 2026-05-09, Contracts Specialist, Adjudication Timeframes NSW).

Application must be served simultaneously on the respondent. The written application lodged with the ANA must include a copy of the payment claim, the payment schedule (if one was received), the contract, supporting documentation, and the ANA application fee (verified 2026-05-09, NSW Government, Applying for adjudication).

Step 4: ANA nominates an adjudicator (up to 4 business days)

The ANA appoints an independent adjudicator. If the claimant does not receive notice of adjudicator acceptance within 4 business days, the claimant may withdraw the application and serve a fresh one with a different ANA (s26(1)(a)) (verified 2026-05-09, Contracts Specialist, Adjudication Timeframes NSW).

Choosing an ANA. Seven ANAs are approved for NSW as at May 2026 (verified 2026-05-09, NSW Government, Authorised nominating authorities):

ANAPhone
Adjudicate Today Pty Ltd1300 760 297
Australian Building & Construction Dispute Resolution Service1300 857 383
Australian Solutions Centre Pty Ltd1300 722 624
Expert Adjudication0418 248 086
Master Builders Association of NSW Pty Ltd02 8586 3517
Resolution Institute1800 651 650
Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors Dispute Resolution Service1300 953 459

Compare fee structures before lodging. Different ANAs have different application fees and hourly rates for the adjudicator pool they appoint from.

Step 5: Respondent’s adjudication response (5 or 2 business days, whichever is later)

Once the ANA appoints an adjudicator and notifies the respondent, the respondent has the longer of:

  • 5 business days after receiving the adjudication application; or
  • 2 business days after receiving notice of the adjudicator’s acceptance.

The respondent can only lodge an adjudication response if they already served a valid payment schedule. New reasons not included in the original payment schedule cannot be raised in the response (s20(2A)) (verified 2026-05-09, Contracts Specialist, Adjudication Timeframes NSW).

Step 6: Adjudicator’s determination (10 business days)

The adjudicator must make their determination within 10 business days of the date the adjudication response was (or was required to be) lodged. If no adjudication response was lodged, the period runs from when notice of adjudicator acceptance was served. The period may be extended beyond 10 business days only by written agreement between both parties (s21(3)(b)) (verified 2026-05-09, Contracts Specialist, Adjudication Timeframes NSW).

The determination is in writing and sets out the adjudicated amount (which may be nil), the adjudicator’s reasons, and the fee allocation between parties.

Step 7: Payment of the adjudicated amount (5 business days)

The respondent must pay the adjudicated amount within 5 business days of service of the determination (s23) (verified 2026-05-09, Contracts Specialist, Adjudication Timeframes NSW).

The determination is an interim decision, not a final one. Either party can pursue the underlying dispute in court after the adjudication, but the respondent must pay the adjudicated amount first. “Pay now, argue later” is the core principle of the Act (verified 2026-05-09, Turtons Lawyers, NSW Security of Payment Act).

Step 8: Enforcement if the respondent does not pay

If the respondent does not pay within 5 business days, the claimant:

  1. Requests an adjudication certificate from the ANA under s24. Certificate fees at Adjudicate Today range from $110 to $825 depending on the adjudicated amount (GST-inclusive, verified 2026-05-09, Adjudicate Today, Fee Policy).
  2. Files the certificate as a judgment debt in a court of competent jurisdiction under s25. No separate hearing is required: the certificate registers as a judgment.
  3. Commences standard debt recovery proceedings on the judgment if the respondent still does not pay.

The registration process typically takes days, not weeks. Standard enforcement options (garnishee orders, writs of execution, statutory demand) then apply to the judgment debt.

Documents needed

DocumentWho provides it
Signed contract or contract correspondenceBoth parties
Payment claim (with statutory endorsement)Claimant
Supporting statement (head contractors only)Claimant
Payment schedule (if served)Respondent
Records of work completed (progress photos, variations, delivery dockets)Claimant
ANA application form and feeClaimant
Adjudication application (written)Claimant
Adjudication response (written, if respondent elects to respond)Respondent

Common holds

Missing the 10-business-day window. The most common failure. After receiving a payment schedule showing a lesser amount, the claimant has 10 business days to apply. Calendar this immediately on receipt of the schedule.

Invalid payment claim. Missing the statutory endorsement, serving before the reference date, or omitting the supporting statement (head contractors) can make the claim defective and give the respondent grounds to challenge jurisdiction.

Respondent raising new reasons. Respondents sometimes attempt to raise defences in the adjudication response that were not in the payment schedule. Adjudicators must disregard them. If new reasons are raised, flag this in any rejoinder or supplementary submission the ANA permits.

Claimant serving on the wrong party. Especially in subcontract chains, ensure the payment claim is served on the right respondent (the party with whom you have a direct contract).

No payment schedule served on the claimant’s end either. If the claimant also failed to serve any schedule in prior periods, this may complicate the reference date analysis. Legal advice before applying is worthwhile for complex chains.

Adjudicator fees

Fees split equally between claimant and respondent by default under s29. The adjudicator may determine that one party pays all or a greater share, typically the respondent if the claimant substantially succeeds (verified 2026-05-09, NSW Government, Applying for adjudication).

Adjudicate Today’s fixed rates as at May 2025 (GST-inclusive) for claims under $50,000:

Claim valueAdjudicator fee
Up to $5,000$900
$5,001 to $15,000$1,500
$15,001 to $25,000$2,700
$25,001 to $50,000$5,100

For claims over $50,000, adjudicators bill at hourly rates: Grade 1 at $310/hour, Grade 2 at $450/hour, Senior/Chief at $540/hour (GST-inclusive, verified 2026-05-09, Adjudicate Today, Fee Policy).

Other ANAs operate different fee structures. Check the ANA’s fee schedule before lodging.

Total adjudication costs typically range from $3,500 to $15,000 or more, depending on claim value, complexity, and whether the parties engage legal representation (verified 2026-05-09, Contracts Specialist, SOPA Adjudication Costs NSW).

References

See also

Last updated: 2026-05-09. Verified: 2026-05-09. Quarterly review for currency.

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