Security of payment – a NSW comparison

Not dissimilar to the current state of change in security of payment in Queensland, New South Wales is in the process of tweaking its SOP legislation.

Due to a New South Wales election which is due in early 2019, there is some uncertainty as to when the changes will take effect.  But when they do:-

1.     there will be no further reliance on reference dates.

        Instead, any person who has performed work or supplied goods and services will be entitled to make claims for payment on and from the last day of the month … or at earlier times if         their contract provided for it;

2.     the maximum period for a subcontractor to be paid has been shortened, from 30 Business Days to 20 Business Days (… it is 25 Business Days in Queensland);

3.     like us in Queensland, there will be an entitlement to deliver a payment claim upon any termination of the contract; but

4.     unlike us in Queensland, the requirement for a notation to be endorsed on an invoice, notifying it as a payment claim under the Act, has been reintroduced!

The whole SOP jurisdiction is constantly evolving subsequent to the delivery of the Murray Report (in December 2017) and the formation of the Building Ministers’ Forum.