Quote a service call or a bathroom reno in minutes.
Type your site notes. Markup’s AI-assisted quote builder suggests labour and material line items based on your rates and scope. Every line is yours to review, adjust, and approve before it leaves your phone.
- ✓AI-assisted line items you review and control
- ✓Separate labour, fixtures, and materials with your markup
- ✓Service calls and renovation work both supported
- ✓Province selector applies correct HST/GST/PST automatically
- ✓Branded PDF quote ready to send from your phone
Proper invoices that start the 28-day clock.
Ontario’s Construction Act requires specific fields before your invoice qualifies as a “proper invoice” and starts the 28-day payment clock on renovation and new-construction work. Markup fills all of them, including period of work, payment terms, and the statutory holdback line.
- ✓Proper invoice format (s.6.1 Construction Act) for project work
- ✓Standard service-call format for repairs and call-outs
- ✓10% statutory holdback tracked and shown separately
- ✓HST number and registration printed automatically
- ✓28-day payment clock noted with auto-reminders at days 7 and 14
- ✓Change orders for hidden work found behind the wall
T5018, HST, lien deadlines. All tracked.
Plumbers who sub out rough-ins, drain work, or excavation carry more CRA obligations than they realise. T5018 applies to every sub you pay over $500. Lien rights expire at 60 days in Ontario. Markup tracks all of it so nothing falls through.
T5018 subcontractor tracking
Every payment to a subbed plumber, drain crew, or excavator is logged. Markup alerts you when any subcontractor crosses the $500 annual threshold so you know a T5018 is required. You still file with CRA, but you won't miss who needs one.
HST/GST/PST by province
Working in Ontario? 13% HST. Service call in Alberta? 5% GST. BC? GST + PST. Markup applies the correct rate for every invoice based on the province you select. No manual lookups, no wrong rates on cross-provincial work.
Lien deadline tracking
Ontario: 60 days from last supply. BC: 45 days. Alberta: 60 days. Markup tracks the deadline from the last invoice date on each project and flags it before the window closes. A missed lien deadline is permanent, no extension available.
10% holdback tracking
The Ontario Construction Act requires owners to withhold 10% of progress payments as statutory holdback. Markup shows this as a separate line item on every Construction Act invoice and tracks what is outstanding versus what has been released.
CRA remittance calendar
Your free CRA deadline calendar shows every HST/GST filing date for your province and reporting frequency. Quarterly or annual filer, Markup keeps the dates visible so you never pay a late-filing penalty.
CSV export for your bookkeeper
Every invoice, expense, and HST amount exports to CSV. Your bookkeeper or accountant gets clean numbers for your HST return, ITC claim, and year-end. No re-keying from a stack of paper invoices.
Works from the basement. Not just the office.
Plumbers quote a repair standing in a flooded basement and invoice before they pack up the wet vac. Markup is built for a phone held one-handed, in a crawlspace, with one clean glove.
- Quote on arrivalVoice-to-text your site notes, get a line-itemed starting point, and send a quote before the homeowner calls someone else.
- Invoice on completionMark a job done, send the invoice, and start the 28-day clock before you wind up the hoses.
- Track expenses on siteLog a supply-house run or a fixture purchase against the job the moment you pay, so nothing is missing at HST time.
- No account needed for clientsClients receive a secure link to view, approve, and sign from their phone. No app download, no login.
What Markup does not do
Markup is a financial and compliance tool. It handles the money side of your business. It does not replace your trade tools or your regulator.
Questions from Canadian plumbers
What is the difference between a service-call invoice and a Construction Act invoice?
Service calls (clearing a drain, swapping a water heater, fixing a leak, replacing a toilet or faucet) are standard invoices with no special statutory requirements. Construction Act proper invoices apply to improvement work on real property: bathroom and kitchen rough-ins, repipes, additions, new construction, and commercial fit-ups. A proper invoice under section 6.1 of the Ontario Construction Act starts the 28-day payment clock and must include the invoice date, period of work, description of services and materials, amount payable, payment terms, and your name and address. Markup formats both types and lets you choose which applies.
Do I need to file a T5018 for plumbers or apprentices I subcontract?
Yes, if they are not your employees. The T5018 (Statement of Contract Payments) is required for any subcontractor in the construction industry who receives more than $500 in a calendar year. This includes journeyperson plumbers, apprentices, drain and sewer subs, and excavation crews you hire as subcontractors. Markup tracks every subcontractor payment and flags when the $500 threshold is reached. Filing with CRA is still your responsibility or your accountant's.
What is the lien deadline for plumbing work in Ontario?
In Ontario, a plumber has 60 days from the date of last supply of services or materials to a project to preserve a construction lien. Miss that deadline and lien rights are extinguished permanently. No extension is available. In BC the window is 45 days; in Alberta it is 60 days. Markup tracks the window from the last invoice date on a project and surfaces a warning before the deadline passes.
How does the 10% holdback work on a plumbing contract in Ontario?
Under Ontario's Construction Act, the owner or general contractor is required to hold back 10% of each progress payment as statutory holdback. For a plumber working under a GC on a renovation or build, every draw is short by 10% until the holdback period expires, after which you can invoice for the retained amount. Markup splits holdback from net receivable on every invoice so you always know what is owed, what is retained, and when it becomes collectible.
Does Markup handle GST plus PST for plumbing jobs outside Ontario?
Yes. Markup applies the correct tax combination for every province automatically. In Ontario that is 13% HST. In BC it is 5% GST plus 7% PST. In Manitoba it is 5% GST plus 7% RST. In Alberta it is 5% GST only. Tax amounts are stored separately from the base amount on every invoice, which keeps your ITC records clean for your bookkeeper.
Does Markup track my Certificate of Qualification or submit plumbing permits?
No. Plumber is a compulsory trade in Ontario, so you must hold a Certificate of Qualification from Skilled Trades Ontario and renew it on schedule; that stays with Skilled Trades Ontario. Plumbing permits and any required backflow test reporting are handled through your municipality. Markup is a financial and compliance platform covering quoting, invoicing, tax tracking, T5018, lien deadlines, and holdback. It does not manage your C of Q renewal, file permits, or schedule backflow tests.
No signup required.
Enter your last supply date and province. Get the exact preservation deadline for ON, BC, or AB.
Try it free →HST/GST filing dates for your province and reporting frequency. Never pay a late-filing penalty.
Try it free →10% statutory holdback math for Construction Act work. Know exactly what is retained.
Try it free →Correct HST, GST, and PST for every province. Useful on cross-provincial work.
Try it free →Service calls and rough-ins, invoiced right.
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Markup handles the financial side of your plumbing business: proper invoices, T5018 tracking, lien deadlines, holdback, and HST by province. Free plan available. No card required.
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