Labour Bill Format in Excel (Labour-Only Contract)

What is a labour bill?

A labour bill is the bill a labour contractor raises for labour-only work, where the owner or main contractor buys the material. The work is measured by quantity and paid at agreed labour rates — per cft of brickwork, per sqft of plaster or slab, per kg of steel tied — less what earlier bills covered and the agreed deductions.

Paying named workers by attendance instead? Use the muster roll and wage register. Contractor supplying the material too? Use the RA bill format.

What is in the labour bill workbook?

• Contract Details — owner, labour contractor, work order and bill particulars, Running or Final, GST and the deduction percentages.
• Previous Bills — what each earlier labour bill billed, held back as retention and paid.
• RA Bill Working — the labour items, quantities to date, labour rates and the MB page for each item. Present-bill columns calculate.
• Deductions & Summary — gross amount, GST, deductions, retention released, net payable and totals to date.
• Filled Sample — Labour Bill No. 2 for a G+1 house, with the first bill listed.

How does the labour bill sheet calculate?

• Quantity for present bill = quantity up to date − quantity up to previous bill.
• Gross amount of this bill = the quantities to date at labour rates − the same for previous bills, plus any extra work.
• GST is added on the gross amount only if the labour contractor is registered and charges it.
• Retention, TDS and percentage recoveries are each a percentage of the gross amount of this bill; a fixed advance recovery is taken off as entered.
• Net amount payable = gross + GST − deductions + any retention released.
• A quantity with no rate shows NOT PRICED and is left out of the totals.

Worked example from the sample sheet (illustrative labour rates): labour work up to date is ₹3,88,200 and in the first bill ₹1,88,800, so this bill's gross amount is ₹1,99,400. Retention at 5% (₹9,970), TDS at 1% (₹1,994) and a ₹10,000 advance recovered leave ₹1,77,436 payable, and ₹19,410 of retention is held.

How do you use the labour bill template?

1. Open the Contract Details sheet and fill in the owner, labour contractor, work order and bill particulars. Set Bill Type to Running, or Final for the last bill.
2. On Previous Bills, add a row for each labour bill already paid. For Bill No. 1 leave it empty.
3. On RA Bill Working, list the labour items with their unit and agreed labour rate.
4. Enter the quantity in the previous bill and the total measured so far, with the MB page.
5. On Deductions & Summary, enter any advance or other recovery and check the net amount payable.
6. For the next bill, copy "Qty up to Date" into "Qty up to Previous Bill" and add this bill to Previous Bills.

What should you check before relying on the labour bill?

• Labour rates only. If the contractor supplies material as well, use the RA bill format.
• Measure on site and record it before billing. A labour bill paid without measurement is where most disputes with labour contractors start.
• Income-tax TDS applies to labour contracts when the payer is a business or other deductor; a homeowner usually does not deduct it. Confirm current law.
• Retention is not released automatically, even on a final bill. Enter an amount only when it is due.
• No rates are supplied. The figures on the sample sheet are illustrative only and must not be used for real billing.

What does each column mean?

A bill for payment is only as sound as the take-off behind it. The detailed measurement sheet format is where the quantities on this bill are measured and abstracted, item by item.