Whether CIS applies to you depends on what you are laying it on, and what else is happening on site.
Inside CIS: synthetic surfaces in sports grounds, gymnasia and children’s play areas. HMRC names these specifically as construction operations.
Inside CIS: any artificial grass laid as part of a wider construction project. New build landscaping, a development handover, groundworks alongside a build.
Usually outside CIS: a standalone domestic lawn with no other construction work attached.
There is a common misreading worth clearing up. Carpet fitting is excluded from CIS, even within a mixed contract. Some firms assume that logic extends to any floor covering. It does not. HMRC is explicit that the carve-out applies to carpet and nothing else. Artificial grass is tested on the ordinary rules.
The groundworks question
This is where most artificial grass firms actually sit.
You rarely just roll out turf. There is excavation, sub-base, edging, sometimes drainage. Those are construction operations in their own right, regardless of what goes on top.
So a job that looks like a domestic lawn installation can contain a significant element that is within CIS. If you are subcontracting the groundworks to a digger driver, you may be a contractor under the scheme without having realised it.
That is the single most common problem we see in this trade. Firms that think of themselves as landscapers, paying groundworkers cash or gross, with no CIS registration and no returns.
What else costs money in this trade
Seasonality. March to September carries the year. The cash flow work is making the winter survivable rather than a scramble.
Materials up front. You buy turf, aggregate and edging before you are paid. On a busy month that is a lot of working capital tied up.
Waste and disposal. Skips, tipping charges and muck away are real costs that often get lost.
Plant hire. Diggers and dumpers, with or without an operator. Hire with an operator is within CIS. Dry hire is not. Worth getting right.
Quoting by the square metre without knowing your true cost per square metre. Materials are the easy part. Groundworks, waste and labour are where the cost actually sits.
What we do
Work out whether you are a contractor under CIS, a subcontractor, both, or neither, based on the jobs you actually do.
Register you and run the returns if you need it. Tell you plainly if you do not.
Get the VAT treatment right, including the reverse charge on any work that sits within the scheme.
Job costing that shows real margin per square metre, with groundworks and disposal included.
Cash flow planning built around a seasonal business.
The routine compliance runs alongside all of that. Accounts, corporation tax, VAT, payroll and self assessment.
Who we work with
UK landscaping and surfacing limited companies turning over between £500,000 and £5 million, anywhere in the country.
Common questions
Does CIS apply to artificial grass installation?
Sometimes. Sports surfaces and play areas are within the scheme. So is any installation forming part of a wider construction project. A standalone domestic lawn usually is not.
I only do domestic gardens. Am I outside CIS?
Possibly, for the turf itself. But if you carry out excavation, sub-base or drainage, and particularly if you pay subcontractors to do it, you may be a contractor under the scheme.
Carpet fitting is excluded. Does that cover artificial grass?
No. That exclusion applies to carpet only. HMRC is explicit about it.
Do I charge VAT to a main contractor?
Where the work is within CIS and they are not the end user, the reverse charge applies and you do not charge VAT.
Is plant hire within CIS?
Hire with an operator is. Dry hire without an operator is not.
Book a call. We will look at the jobs you have run this year and tell you whether CIS applies, and whether you should be registered.
Common questions
Does CIS apply to artificial grass fitters?
Inside CIS: synthetic surfaces in sports grounds, gymnasia and children’s play areas. HMRC names these specifically as construction operations. Inside CIS: any artificial grass laid as part of a wider construction project, such as new build landscaping or groundworks alongside a build. Usually outside CIS: a standalone domestic lawn with no other construction work attached.
Does the VAT domestic reverse charge apply to artificial grass fitters?
It follows the CIS answer above. Where the work falls inside CIS and your customer is VAT registered, registered under CIS and is not an end user, the reverse charge applies and you do not charge VAT. Where the work falls outside CIS, or the customer is an end user or a homeowner, you charge VAT as normal. Two jobs in the same week can be treated differently.
Who we work with
- Sector: construction only. Contractors, subcontractors and the trades that work on site.
- Turnover: roughly £500,000 to £5 million a year.
- Structure: mostly limited companies, plus established sole traders and partnerships.
- Where: our office is in Cannock, Staffordshire. We work with clients across the UK on cloud accounting.
Who we are not for: businesses outside construction, property developers, brand new start-ups with no trading history, and anyone who wants filing done and nothing else.
If you are not sure, here is the longer version. We will tell you on the first call if we are not the right fit.