How to approve a milestone

When your builder marks a milestone complete, you'll get a notification. From that moment, you have a seven-day window to approve, ask a question, or decline. Once you approve, the milestone payment is released to your builder.

Steps

1. Open your dashboard. The milestone in question will be flagged for review.
2. Look at the evidence. Your builder uploads photos, certificates, and any documentation tied to the milestone — for example, electrical certificates, gas certificates, building control sign-off where relevant. Have a proper look.
3. Visit the site if you'd like. Some milestones — practical completion in particular — are easier to approve from the property than from your dashboard. If you're not sure, go and look.
4. Make a call. Three options:

• Approve. The platform releases the milestone payment to your builder. From here, your builder is paid the Friday after approval, in line with the weekly payment cycle.
• Ask a question. If something isn't clear, send a message through the platform. Your builder gets it; the payment is held while you talk it through.
• Decline the approval. If something isn't right, you can decline. Share a reason — what you think hasn't been done, or what needs to change — so your builder can fix it. The article What to do if you disagree with a milestone covers the path. (Note that we use "snagging" specifically for the last round of small fixes between practical completion and sign-off — declining a milestone earlier in the build isn't snagging, it's pausing the payment while a specific issue gets sorted.)

1. If you don't act. If the seven-day window passes without you approving, asking a question, or declining, the platform releases the payment automatically. This avoids holding up builders over an unread inbox.

What the milestone evidence should show

Different milestones need different evidence. As a rough guide:

• Break ground — site set-up photos, demolition complete (where relevant).
• First fix — structure complete, electrical and plumbing first fix in place, photos of work that will be hidden by plasterboard or finishes.
• Second fix / practical completion — the space is usable, all fixtures installed, finishes complete, snags listed (where any).
• Sign off — snags cleared, final certificates in place.

What this means for you

Approve promptly when work has been done. Builders rely on these payments to keep the project moving, and a delay at your end can compound into a delay at theirs. If you can't get to the dashboard or the site, tell your build advisor — they can keep things moving while you sort yourself out.

Related articles

• How construction payments work
• What to do if you disagree with a milestone
• Snagging — the 28-day window