How to claim an extension of time in construction and document the delay
General information only, not legal advice. Your contract's particular conditions decide what applies, so check them, and take proper advice on any dispute.
An extension of time (EOT) moves your completion date when you're delayed by something you're not responsible for, and it's what protects you from liquidated damages for that period. But most contracts make you ask for it in a set way and by a set deadline, and some take the entitlement away if you miss it. To claim an EOT, you need four things: notice on time, records made when the delay happened, evidence of the effect on completion, and the contract's procedure followed. This guide covers each one, compares the deadlines under the main contract forms, and sets out what to do when a delay starts.
Why an EOT matters: liquidated damages
Most contracts charge the contractor damages for every day of delay beyond the completion date:
- FIDIC 2017: delay damages at the daily amount stated in the Contract Data, up to the maximum stated there (Sub-Clause 8.8, FIDIC Red Book 2017).
- CPWD: compensation for delay of up to 1% per month, computed per day, capped at 10% of the accepted tendered value (GCC 2023, Clause 2, IIT Kanpur copy).
- A typical EPC contract: NTPC's published tender conditions for a power plant package, for example, set liquidated damages per day of delay, capped at 5% of the total contract price (NTPC Nabinagar Stage-II BOP bidding document CS-0371-001C-2, Special Conditions 26.2).
An EOT moves the date those damages run from. As the Society of Construction Law's Delay and Disruption Protocol puts it, an EOT relieves the contractor of liability for delay damages for the period before the extended completion date (SCL Protocol, Core Principle 2).
Which delays qualify
Broadly, delays caused by the employer, or by events the contract treats as the employer's risk or as neutral:
- FIDIC 2017 (Sub-Clause 8.5): variations; delays caused by the employer, its personnel or its other contractors; exceptionally adverse climatic conditions; unforeseeable shortages of labour or goods caused by epidemics or government action; and BoQ quantities exceeded by more than 10% where that delays completion.
- CPWD (Clause 5): neutral events such as force majeure, abnormally bad weather, fire, or civil commotion and strikes give an extension of time but no damages (5.2). Hindrances caused by the department give a fair and reasonable extension (5.3).
- A typical EPC contract (NTPC GCC 40.1): changes, force majeure, unforeseen conditions, suspension, changes in law, and employer default, including failure to give possession of the site.
Delays caused by the contractor's own resources or performance don't qualify.
Notice deadlines compared
This is where most claims are lost. The deadlines differ by contract form:
| FIDIC 2017 | FIDIC 1999 | CPWD GCC 2023 | Typical EPC GCC (NTPC example) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Notice | As soon as practicable, no later than 28 days after you became aware, or should have become aware, of the event (20.2.1) | As soon as practicable, no later than 28 days after the event (20.1) | In writing within 14 days of the event, on the prescribed form, Appendix XVI (5.4) | As soon as reasonably practicable after the event begins (40.2) |
| Detailed claim | Within 84 days (20.2.4) | Within 42 days (20.1) | The request states the extension sought (5.4) | Particulars with the notice; period then agreed (40.2) |
| If notice is late | No EOT and no additional payment. The Engineer has 14 days to object, or the notice is deemed valid (20.2.1, 20.2.2) | Time for Completion not extended (20.1) | The 14-day request is the condition for the request to be considered (5.4) | No fixed day count; notify as soon as reasonably practicable (40.2) |
| Continuing delays | Interim claims monthly; final claim within 28 days after the effects end (20.2.6) | Monthly interim updates; final claim within 28 days of the end (20.1) | — | — |
Sources: FIDIC 2017 Red Book; Fenwick Elliott's commentary on FIDIC 1999 Sub-Clause 20.1; CPWD GCC 2023; NTPC bidding document CS-0371-001C-2, Section IV.
Which FIDIC edition? The 2017 edition is current, but the 1999 edition is still widely used, particularly in the Gulf. Oman's 2019 government standard form, for example, is based on it (Trowers & Hamlins). Check yours.
Are time bars enforced? It depends on the law of the contract. Under common law, a clearly worded time bar like FIDIC's is generally treated as a condition precedent. Under civil law, for example in the UAE, principles such as good faith may soften strict enforcement in some cases (Fenwick Elliott). Don't plan on either: give notice on time.
Document the delay as it happens
A claim is only as good as the records behind it. FIDIC 2017 defines contemporary records as records "prepared or generated at the same time, or immediately after, the event", and requires the contractor to keep those needed to support the claim (Sub-Clause 20.2.3).
The hindrance record
The core record of any delay is a hindrance register: a running log of each hindrance, kept as it happens.
- On EPC contracts it carries real weight. NTPC's general conditions name "the joint recordings in 'Hindrance Register' and 'Weekly Review Register'" first among the documents that form the principal basis for considering time extensions, liquidated damages and extra claims (GCC 40.4).
- On CPWD works the format has changed. The physical hindrance register has been dispensed with for works tendered from 19 February 2019. A hindrance is to be written at once in the site order book and reported to the Engineer-in-Charge (CPWD Works Manual 2022, para 5.15, NDMC copy).
Whatever the format, record what the SCL Protocol calls obstruction data: the start and finish dates, the daily status at the affected work front, and the area and activities affected (SCL Protocol, Appendix B 2.2). Where possible, get entries signed jointly.
| No. | Hindrance | Location / work front | Started | Ended | Activities affected | Reported to / when | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| H-07 | Revised drawing for lift core awaited | Core, all floors | 22 Oct | — (continuing) | Lift core walls, slab cycle above level 3 | Project manager, 22 Oct; client's engineer, 23 Oct | WhatsApp message, email, site photos |
Supporting records
- Daily progress reports recording the hindrance, its effect and the resources standing idle. (See our DPR format guide.)
- Dated photos of the affected area.
- Correspondence: letters, emails and minutes of review meetings where the delay was raised.
- The programme, updated to show actual progress and the delay events. The SCL Protocol's first core principle is an agreed, regularly updated programme.
Show the effect on completion
Not every delay extends the completion date. The SCL Protocol says entitlement arises for employer-risk events "that impact the critical path" (Core Principle 4). In practice:
- Show where the delay sits on the programme, and whether it affected activities on the critical path.
- Don't wait and see. The Protocol discourages waiting to assess delay and recommends applying "as close in time as possible to the delay event" (Core Principle 4).
- Account for overlapping delays. On CPWD contracts, where a department delay overlaps a neutral event, the contractor gets time but no damages for the overlap (Clause 5.3).
What to do when a delay starts
- Site team reports it the same day: what happened, where and when, with photos, in the site group and the daily report.
- The project manager logs it in the hindrance record or site order book and informs the client's engineer.
- The PMO checks two things: the notice clock under your contract, and whether the delay is likely to affect completion.
- The PMO brings in head office and the contracts or planning team, who prepare the notice in the contract's required form and send it well inside the deadline.
- Keep records running for as long as the delay continues, and submit interim updates where the contract requires them.
- Submit the detailed claim with the records, the programme analysis and the extension sought, within the contract period.
- Follow it through until the extension is agreed or determined.
Where Velora fits
Most project teams know a delay can mean an EOT and LD exposure, so the hindrance gets logged and raised. Two things still slip.
The notice deadline. The delay is logged on day one, the site moves on, and the 14 or 28 days run down while everyone is busy. Contract Intelligence (early access) tracks the notice period under your contract from the date the delay started, and reminds your team before the window closes.
The clauses nobody has top of mind. Contracts are long: NTPC's published bidding document for one power plant package runs to more than 3,000 pages across its volumes (CS-0371-001C-2). Many clauses carry consequences that don't look like a delay or a claim when they come up on site:
- Under FIDIC 2017, a BoQ quantity exceeded by more than 10% can be grounds for an EOT where it delays completion (Sub-Clause 8.5). On site, it just looks like more work.
- Under NTPC's general conditions, a repair during the defect liability period extends that part's liability period by twelve months from the repair (GCC 27.8). On site, it's a routine fix.
Velora reads your main contract and flags these as site updates trigger them, with the likely clause and the proof from the site record: the WhatsApp messages, photos and daily records. Your team doesn't have to remember every clause. Your PMO raises it with head office and the contracts team, and Velora never sends notices or decides entitlement.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I claim an extension of time in construction?
- Give notice in the form and within the deadline your contract sets, keep records made at the time of the delay, show how the delay affected completion (usually through the critical path on an updated programme), and submit a detailed claim with supporting records within the contract period. This is general information, not legal advice.
- What happens if a contractor misses the 28-day notice under FIDIC?
- Under FIDIC 2017 Sub-Clause 20.2.1, the contractor is not entitled to the extension or additional payment, though the Engineer must object within 14 days or the notice is deemed valid. FIDIC 1999 Sub-Clause 20.1 has a similar time bar. Under common law such time bars are generally enforced; under civil law, principles such as good faith may soften them in some cases.
- What is the time limit for an EOT request on a CPWD contract?
- Under CPWD GCC 2023 Clause 5.4, the request must be made in writing within fourteen days of the event causing delay, on the prescribed form (Appendix XVI), to the authority named in Schedule F, stating the extension sought.
- How does an extension of time protect against liquidated damages?
- Liquidated damages run from the completion date. An extension moves that date, so the contractor is not liable for delay damages for the extended period. Without it, damages accrue daily up to the contract cap, such as 10% of the tendered value on CPWD contracts.
- What is a hindrance register?
- A running log of every hindrance to the work, with when it started and ended, where it occurred, which activities it affected and who was told. On EPC contracts such as NTPC's, joint hindrance register entries are a principal basis for deciding time extensions. On CPWD works, hindrances are now recorded in the site order book.