How to Present a G702 to an Owner and Avoid Common Rejections

The Short Answer

Owners reject G702 pay applications for predictable, avoidable reasons: arithmetic that does not tie out, backup that does not match the cover sheet, and submissions that arrive outside the contract window. Build a consistent pre-submittal routine and most rejections disappear before the package ever leaves your office.

Why a Rejection Hurts More Than You Think

A single rejection can push your payment 30 days or more past your original billing date. Most owner-architect review cycles run 7 to 14 days from receipt. Miss the submission deadline or hand over a package with errors and the clock resets. On a $2 million job carrying 10% retainage, a one-month slip in a $150,000 draw is a real cash-flow problem. The good news is that the rejection triggers are almost always the same ones, and every one of them is preventable.

Step-by-Step Checklist Before You Submit

Step 1: Confirm Your Submission Deadline

Pull the contract. Most AIA A101 and A102 agreements specify a billing cutoff date, often the 25th of the month for work completed through the last day of the prior month. Some owners set it as early as the 20th. Submit one day late and you wait another full cycle. Mark the deadline on your billing calendar at the start of every job and protect it like a milestone.

Step 2: Lock Down Your G703 Continuation Sheet First

The G702 cover sheet is a summary of the G703 continuation sheet. Build the G703 line items first, then let the totals flow up. Every column on the G703 must be complete: scheduled value, work completed in prior periods, work completed this period, materials presently stored, total completed and stored to date, percentage complete, and balance to finish. Missing a column on even one line item is enough for an architect to send the package back. If you bill stored materials, confirm you have the supporting documentation ready before the package goes out. The article on billing stored materials on the G703 without getting rejected covers that process in detail.

Step 3: Verify the Math on Every Line

This sounds obvious. It still kills pay apps every month. Confirm three calculations manually:

• Column G (Total Completed and Stored to Date) equals Column C (prior periods) plus Column D (this period) plus Column F (stored materials).
• Column G percentage equals Column G divided by Column B (scheduled value).
• G702 line totals match the G703 summary row exactly, to the penny.

One transposed digit and the architect marks the package deficient. Use a calculator or software to cross-check every figure before printing the final copy.

Step 4: Account for All Approved Change Orders

The G702 cover sheet has a dedicated section for change orders. Every change order that has been approved and executed belongs on this pay application. Unapproved change orders do not. Billing unapproved work is one of the fastest ways to generate a dispute with an owner or architect. Keep a running change order log and match it against your G702 before submission. If your schedule of values is front-loaded or structured for a unit-price contract, review the guidance in schedule of values best practices for lump-sum vs unit-price contracts to make sure your G703 structure is holding up as change orders are added.

Step 5: Apply Retainage Consistently

Check your contract retainage rate and apply it uniformly across all line items unless the contract allows variable retainage or retainage reductions after a specific completion threshold. A common error is carrying the wrong retainage percentage after a partial retainage reduction was granted. Confirm the net payment due on the G702 cover sheet equals Total Earned Less Retainage minus Previous Certificates for Payment. That net figure is what the owner cuts the check for. A mismatch between your expected amount and that calculated figure is a red flag the architect will catch immediately.

Step 6: Attach the Right Supporting Documents

Owners and architects frequently require backup beyond the G702/G703 package itself. Assemble this before the cover sheet is finalized:

• Conditional lien waivers from all subcontractors and suppliers for the current billing period.
• Unconditional lien waivers from subs and suppliers for the prior payment period, confirming that money you received was distributed.
• Stored material invoices, delivery tickets, or proof of insurance for materials billed but not yet incorporated into the work.
• Certified payroll reports if the project is subject to Davis-Bacon or state prevailing wage requirements.
• Any updated certificates of insurance if required by contract on a periodic basis.

Review the contract's Article 9 or the supplementary conditions for the specific list your owner requires. Do not guess.

Step 7: Get the Right Signatures Before Submission

The G702 format includes a notarization block for the contractor's sworn statement and a certification block for the architect. Many owners also require a principal-level signature from your company. Know who needs to sign before you print the final package. Routing an unsigned package to an owner is a simple mistake that burns days.

Step 8: Submit in the Right Format to the Right Contact

Some owners require a wet signature original. Others accept a PDF by email. A growing number require submission through a project management portal like Procore or CMiC, and a package emailed directly to the owner may not even be considered received. Confirm the submission method at the preconstruction meeting and note it in your billing checklist. Also confirm who receives the package: the owner's representative, the architect, or both. Sending to the wrong address delays the review period and gives a non-cooperative owner a technical out.

After You Submit: Track the Clock

Note the submission date and calculate the contractual payment due date. Most AIA-format contracts set payment due within 7 days of the architect's certification, with the architect having up to 7 days to act on your application. That means your payment window is typically 14 days from a clean submission. If you have not received a certification or a written notice of rejection within the architect's review period, follow up in writing. Document every touchpoint. If a retainage release is tied to this draw or will be coming up in the next one or two billing cycles, review the retainage release workflow so that paperwork is ready in parallel.

The Most Common Rejection Reasons at a Glance

• Math errors: G703 column totals do not agree with G702 summary figures.
• Missing lien waivers: Subcontractor waivers for prior period not included.
• Unapproved change orders billed: Work billed without a fully executed change order.
• Wrong retainage rate: Retainage percentage does not match the current contract terms.
• Late submission: Package received after the contractual cutoff date.
• Wrong format or recipient: PDF sent when originals are required, or sent to the wrong contact.
• Missing notarization: Contractor's sworn statement not notarized as required.

A Note on Reviewing Your Subs' Pay Applications

As a GC, you are not only submitting upward to the owner. You are also receiving and reviewing pay applications from your subcontractors on the same job. Hold your subs to the same standard covered in this checklist. A sub's billing error that inflates a line item can make your G702 to the owner look wrong when the architect compares your G703 to the subcontract breakdown. Review each sub's application against the subcontract schedule of values before you roll those numbers into your own billing package.

Managing G702/G703 packages manually across multiple jobs gets tedious fast. EZBilling handles progress billing, retainage, and change orders in one place, so your numbers are always consistent from the G703 continuation sheet up through the G702 cover sheet.