Everything you need to know before your next pay run.

Petl Pay (also written PetlPay or petlpay) is the automated back office for UK construction firms that pay subcontractors. Pay runs, CIS and payments sit in one record, from work logged on site to your books. You can run it yourself, or have it done for you with an accountant.

Work can be logged on WhatsApp, ChatGPT, Claude or the Petl app. Petl works out CIS on every payment, turns work into invoices, and pushes every payment and deduction to Xero.

For agencies and businesses paying people abroad, Petl Pay also handles global payments across the US, Europe, Latin America and South Africa.

• UK construction firms and contractors paying CIS subcontractors
• Subcontractors and trades who want to get paid on time and see what was deducted
• Accountants and bookkeepers looking after construction clients
• Agencies and studios paying teams across borders
• Businesses simply moving funds across borders

Petl Pay takes a pay run from site to the books:

1. Work is logged on site, on WhatsApp, ChatGPT, Claude or the Petl app, or by a project manager
2. CIS is worked out on labour at each subbie's rate, with materials kept separate
3. Receipts, bills and invoices are sorted against the project
4. You approve every payment, then pay by bank or download a BACS file
5. Every payment and CIS deduction is pushed to Xero, ready for your accountant

One record, from work on site to your books.

No. Petl Pay is a B2B financial infrastructure platform for contractor payments and project finance. The name refers to the platform only, built exclusively for businesses paying contractors, subcontractors, and distributed teams.

No. Petl Pay never holds your funds. It isn't a bank and doesn't take deposits. Payments are carried out by licensed, regulated payment partners, and you approve every payment before it's sent.

Xero and QuickBooks are accounting tools built around a single business ledger. Petl Pay runs the work before it reaches the ledger: work logs, CIS on every payment, invoices and payments, project by project. The two are complementary. Every payment and CIS deduction is pushed to Xero on the right lines, and QuickBooks is coming soon. Xero handles the ledger. Petl handles the project.

Wise is a point-to-point transfer tool. Petl Pay is project payment infrastructure: invoicing, CIS, payments to every contributor, and AI-native access in one platform. Cross-border payments cost 0.4% to 1.4% end to end, depending on volume, and payments between Petl Pay wallets are free.

Deel and Remote are employer of record (EOR) platforms designed for businesses hiring full-time remote employees and managing payroll. Petl Pay is built for contractor and subcontractor relationships, project-based, outcome-driven work with multi-party payment flows, CIS compliance, and cross-border settlement.

If you need to convert a contractor relationship to a full employment or EOR arrangement, that can be explored via Rafiki Works, Petl Pay's sister company, which provides fractional talent placement and managed contractor-to-employee transition support.

Payoneer is a mass payout platform. Petl Pay is project-anchored: invoicing, compliance, and payment are tied to the specific project. Petl Pay also has native Claude AI integration, embedded CIS compliance, and stablecoin wallet infrastructure.

No. Petl Pay isn't a bank. It partners with licensed, regulated financial institutions to handle payment processing and stablecoin wallet infrastructure. Petl Pay provides the workflow, compliance, and orchestration layer. Regulated partners handle the movement and custody of funds.

Petl Pay is backed by the Visa Accelerator Programme, Baobab Network, and Jobtech Alliance.

The Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) is a UK HMRC framework for businesses in the construction sector that pay subcontractors. Under CIS, the paying business must verify each subcontractor, deduct tax at the correct rate, and submit monthly returns. CIS applies to groundwork, electrical, plumbing, roofing, decorating, site preparation, and more.

Always check the latest HMRC guidance at gov.uk as requirements are subject to change.

HMRC applies one of three CIS deduction rates depending on a subcontractor's registration status:

• 0%, gross payment status. The subcontractor is approved by HMRC to be paid in full and handles their own tax.
• 20%, standard rate. The subcontractor is registered for CIS.
• 30%, higher rate. The subcontractor isn't registered for CIS or can't be verified by HMRC.

Petl Pay works out CIS on the labour part of every payment at each subbie's rate, keeps materials separate, and tracks every deduction for your monthly return. You verify each subbie's status with HMRC.

Always check the latest guidance with HMRC at gov.uk, as rates and requirements can change.

No. Petl Pay calculates and tracks CIS on every payment, so your monthly return is ready to go. The return is filed by your accountant, or by one of our accountant partners if you'd like it done for you. Each subbie also gets a statement showing the gross amount, the deduction and what they were paid.

A CIS nil return tells HMRC you made no payments to subcontractors in a given month. If you don't send one when it's needed, you can be fined. Petl Pay keeps a record of every pay run, so you and your accountant can see at a glance whether a month needs a full return or a nil return.

Always check the current nil return rules with HMRC at gov.uk, as requirements can change.

MTD for Income Tax requires self-employed people over the relevant income threshold to keep digital records and send HMRC quarterly updates through recognised software. Petl Pay keeps a clean digital record of your invoices, payments and CIS deductions that your accountant can work from. Filing stays with you or your accountant.

MTD thresholds and timelines can change. Always check the latest requirements with HMRC at gov.uk.

As a subcontractor operating under CIS, you generally need to:

• Register for CIS with HMRC to qualify for the 20% standard rate rather than the 30% higher rate
• Provide your UTR to contractors paying you
• Keep records of all CIS deductions made from your payments
• File a self-assessment tax return each year and claim back any CIS overpayments
• Apply for gross payment status once your business meets HMRC's thresholds

Petl Pay provides each subcontractor with a payment statement showing gross amount, deduction rate, and net amount received.

Keep records of:

• All invoices issued and payments received
• CIS deduction statements from each contractor who paid you
• Business expenses: materials, equipment, travel, software, and professional fees
• VAT charged and paid if VAT-registered
• Bank statements reconciled against income and expenses

Petl Pay generates and stores invoice and payment records automatically for tax filing.

South African contractors manage their own tax obligations under SARS. UK and US businesses paying South African contractors are generally not required to withhold tax at source. Petl Pay settles via local ZAR EFT at 0.4% to 1.4% end to end depending on volume, or via USDC stablecoin for fast settlement with no SWIFT fees.

Tax rules vary by jurisdiction and can change. Always check requirements with a qualified accountant and the latest guidance from SARS at sars.gov.za.

European contractors are subject to their own national tax regimes. UK businesses paying European contractors are generally not required to withhold tax at source, though the specific rules depend on the contractor's country and legal structure. Petl Pay settles via SEPA in EUR. Contractors should declare income to their national tax authority and confirm any VAT obligations with their accountant.

Tax rules vary significantly by EU member state and are subject to change. Always verify with a qualified accountant familiar with the relevant jurisdiction.

Latin American contractors are subject to national tax frameworks that vary by country. UK and US businesses paying contractors in Brazil, Mexico, Colombia and elsewhere in Latin America are generally not required to withhold at source, though local rules vary. Petl Pay pays out on local rails, like PIX in Brazil and SPEI in Mexico, which cuts transfer costs and settlement time compared to SWIFT.

Always check tax obligations with a qualified accountant who knows the country, as rules can change.

UK self-employed contractors must register for VAT once taxable turnover goes over the current HMRC threshold. Once registered, contractors must charge VAT on invoices, file returns and pay VAT to HMRC. Petl Pay invoices can include VAT where it applies.

Check the latest VAT threshold at gov.uk.

Invoicing is tied to the project. When work is logged or approved against a project, Petl Pay generates the corresponding invoice automatically. Invoices can be generated on behalf of individual contractors, businesses, or projects. The invoice reflects the approved work, applicable tax deductions, and the correct payment amount for each contributor. You don't need to build invoices manually from scratch.

Yes. Via the Petl Pay Claude connector, you can describe work in a Claude conversation and have a compliant invoice generated directly without opening the dashboard. For example: "Create an invoice for £2,400 for the Bermondsey groundwork project for Marcus." Claude will generate it, attach it to the correct project, and confirm the details. To get access, reach out at petlpay.com/enquiry.

A consolidated client invoice merges multiple contractor or contributor invoices into a single client-facing payment request. Rather than sending a client 8 separate invoices from 8 different subcontractors, Petl Pay collapses them into one invoice for the total project amount. The client pays once. Petl Pay handles distribution to each contributor.

When a client pays, each contributor's share is already worked out on the project. Every contributor is paid their agreed amount to their chosen rail, whether that's a UK bank, local EFT or a stablecoin wallet, and you approve each payment before it goes. One payment in, every contributor paid, with a full audit trail for every transaction.

A payment link is a shareable URL generated from an approved invoice. The client clicks the link and pays directly without needing to log in to any platform or set up a bank transfer manually. Payment links are useful for on-site or mobile-first workflows where the payer needs a fast, frictionless way to settle a project invoice.

Yes. Split payments are a core feature. When a project has multiple contributors, Petl Pay calculates each contributor's share based on the work logged and agreed rates, and distributes accordingly from a single inbound client payment. Splits can be configured as fixed amounts or percentages of the total.

Yes. Petl Pay supports approval workflows. Invoices can be routed for review and sign-off before payment is triggered. This gives businesses full control over outgoing payments.

Yes. All parties on a project can see payment status, approvals, and audit trails in one place. Contributors don't need to chase for payment confirmation or reconcile payments manually. Every payment has a full record accessible to both the paying business and the receiving contractor.

Petl Pay connects work logged to invoices generated. Billable time and milestones can be recorded against projects and used as the basis for invoice amounts. For more detailed time tracking requirements, Petl Pay can work alongside dedicated time tracking tools.

Invoices can currently be issued in GBP, EUR, USD, ZAR, and LatAm currencies including ARS, BRL, CLP, and COP. Petl Pay provides USD and EUR account details for international invoice generation, allowing contractors to bill international clients in those currencies and receive settlement accordingly.

Coming soon: full multi-currency conversion within projects, including the ability to set a project budget in USD and see the comparable ZAR, EUR, or GBP equivalent in real time.

Always check the latest supported currencies at petlpay.com/enquiry.

Petl Pay supports different payment rails depending on where the money starts and ends:

• GBP via open banking (Faster Payments, UK)
• USD via ACH and wire, with local USD account details
• EUR via SEPA and SEPA Instant, with local EUR account details
• ZAR payouts to South African banks
• BRL via PIX, MXN via SPEI and COP via Bre-B, PSE and Nequi
• USDC and USDT stablecoin wallets for any contributor

Yes. Once you've approved a pay run, you can pay each subbie by bank from inside Petl Pay, or download a BACS file to upload to your business bank. Either way, the payment and its CIS deduction land on the same record and are pushed to Xero.

Petl Pay supports open banking payments from UK banks including Lloyds, Barclays, NatWest, HSBC UK, Nationwide, Santander UK, Halifax, Monzo, Revolut, Starling, TSB, Bank of Scotland, RBS, Chase UK, First Direct, Tide, Mettle, Cashplus, Coutts, Yorkshire Building Society, Chelsea Building Society, Danske Bank UK, Ulster Bank UK, AIB GB, Bank of Ireland UK, First Trust Bank, and business variants of Lloyds, Barclays, HSBC, NatWest, RBS, Bank of Scotland, Barclays Corporate, and Barclays Wealth.

More banks added regularly. If your bank isn't listed, contact us at petlpay.com/enquiry.

Petl Pay supports open banking across major European markets including Germany, France, Spain, and the Netherlands, covering 60+ institutions. Key supported banks include Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank, N26, Revolut EU, BNP Paribas, Societe Generale, Credit Agricole, Credit Mutuel, BBVA, Santander, CaixaBank, and ING.

More banks and markets are being added. Contact us at petlpay.com/enquiry for latest coverage.

Settlement speed depends on the payment rail:

• GBP open banking (Faster Payments): near instant, typically within seconds
• EUR SEPA: same day within the eurozone
• ZAR local EFT: same day to next business day
• USDC and USDT stablecoin: instant, within minutes
• LatAm local rails: varies by country, typically 1 to 2 business days

Cross-border payments cost 0.4% to 1.4% end to end, depending on volume and corridor. That covers conversion and settlement, with no hidden fees. Payments between Petl Pay wallets are free.

Costs are indicative and can vary by corridor, currency and volume. Ask us at petlpay.com/enquiry for a breakdown for your workflow.

Open banking allows businesses and individuals to initiate bank transfers directly from their bank account via a secure API connection, without card networks or manual entry. In the UK it runs on Faster Payments, settling in seconds. Petl Pay uses open banking for GBP payments because it's faster and cheaper than traditional B2B payment methods.

SEPA (Single Euro Payments Area) is the European payment network enabling fast, low-cost EUR transfers across 36 countries including all EU member states, the UK, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein. Petl Pay uses SEPA for EUR contractor payments with same-day eurozone settlement.

Yes. Petl Pay settles ZAR payments to South African contractors via local EFT rails, so there's no SWIFT. That removes the correspondent bank fees and multi-day delays that come with international wires. End-to-end cost runs between 0.4% and 1.4% depending on volume.

Yes. Petl Pay pays out to local banks in Brazil (BRL by PIX), Mexico (MXN by SPEI) and Colombia (COP by Bre-B, PSE and Nequi), with more Latin American currencies supported, including ARS, CLP, PEN, BOB and CRC. Contributors get paid on local rails rather than costly international wires.

More markets are being added. Ask us at petlpay.com/enquiry for current coverage.

A local rail payment routes funds through the recipient country's domestic banking infrastructure. It's faster, cheaper, and avoids correspondent bank fees. A SWIFT transfer routes via a network of correspondent banks, each of which may charge fees and add delays. For South Africa and Latin America, local rails via Petl Pay are significantly faster and cheaper than SWIFT.