Good subcontractor onboarding means collecting the same core details from every subbie before they start. That set covers ABN and GST status, trade licence, insurances, SWMS, bank details and a signed subcontract. Check those details once, then send them straight into your accounting system and job costing so nobody types them again. Onboarding software for construction companies handles the collecting. The real benefit comes from connecting it to Xero or MYOB, so the supplier record, bank details and reporting settings are all created from the same information the subbie entered.
This guide covers what to collect, where onboarding usually goes wrong, and how to connect it to your accounts so the office stops doing the same data entry three or four times.
What to collect from every subcontractor
The exact list depends on your state, your contracts and the type of work. Most builders and contractors need these basics:
- Business details: legal entity name, trading name, ABN, GST registration status, and a postal and email address for remittances. Check the ABN and GST status on the government's ABN Lookup rather than taking the form's word for it.
- Licences: the trade or contractor licence that applies to the work in your state (e.g. QBCC in Queensland), plus the licence number, class and expiry date.
- Insurances: certificates of currency for public liability and workers' compensation, if they employ people. Collect personal accident or income protection cover too if your subcontract requires it from sole traders. Record the insurer, cover amount and expiry date for each policy.
- Safety documents: SWMS for any high-risk construction work, general construction induction (white card) details for workers going on site, and your own site induction records.
- Payment details: account name, BSB and account number, agreed payment terms and any retention arrangements.
- Contract and rates: the signed subcontract or terms of engagement, and the agreed rates or schedule of rates.
- Trade category: what they do, so their costs land against the right cost codes in your job costing.
Two tax points are worth knowing. If a supplier doesn't quote an ABN, you generally have to withhold tax from their payments at the top rate and send it to the ATO, so check this before the first payment goes out. Businesses in building and construction also have to report payments to contractors each year in the Taxable Payments Annual Report (TPAR). That report is only as accurate as the supplier records behind it.
Where subcontractor onboarding usually breaks down
In most construction businesses, the problem isn't knowing what to collect. The problem is what happens to the information afterwards.
The typical pattern looks like this. A subbie fills in a PDF or Word form and emails it back with attachments. Someone in the office types the details into a compliance spreadsheet. Then they type them into Xero or MYOB as a new supplier, and again into the project or job costing system. Sometimes the bank details get typed a fourth time into the banking portal.
For example, if your team onboards a new electrician, the same ABN, name and bank details might be entered in four places by two different people. Every retype is a chance for a wrong digit, a misspelt entity name or a missed TPAR setting. When the electrician's insurance is renewed, only one of those copies usually gets updated.
There are three other common weak spots:
- Expiry dates nobody watches. Insurance and licence expiries sit in a spreadsheet column, and no one notices until something goes wrong on site.
- Bank detail changes by email. Requests to change bank details by email are a known payment fraud method. Always confirm changes by calling a phone number you already hold for that subbie, never one supplied in the email.
- No link to job costing. If the subbie isn't set up against the right trade and cost codes, their invoices get coded inconsistently and your job margins become hard to trust.
How to stop re-keying: capture once, check once, sync everywhere
The fix is a simple principle: each piece of information is entered once, by the person who knows it, and every other system gets it from there.
- Capture once. The subbie enters their own details into an online form or portal and uploads their documents. They know their BSB and licence number better than your office does.
- Check once. Someone on your team reviews the submission. They verify the ABN and GST status, check certificates against the details entered and approve it. Nothing flows into your accounts until it's approved.
- Sync everywhere. On approval, an integration creates or updates the supplier in Xero or MYOB through their APIs. That sets the ABN, contact details, bank details, default account, tax rate and TPAR reporting. The same record is created in your job costing or project system and linked to the right trade.
- Decide who owns each field. Agree which system is the master for each piece of data. For example, onboarding might own licences and insurances while the accounting system owns payment terms. That stops updates in one place being overwritten from another.
If you already run a construction platform alongside Xero or MYOB, the accounting connection is often the missing piece. We cover that in more detail on our builder accounting software integration page. Getting suppliers set up against the right cost codes from day one also makes construction job costing far more reliable.
Keeping subcontractor records current after day one
Onboarding isn't a one-off event. Insurances and licences expire, and businesses change ABNs and bank accounts. A good setup handles this automatically:
- Reminders go to the subbie before an insurance or licence expires, asking them to upload the renewal.
- Expired documents are flagged to your project managers and accounts team before the subbie is allocated to new work or paid.
- ABN and GST status are re-checked periodically, not just at onboarding.
- Every supplier carries the correct TPAR setting, so the annual report is straightforward instead of a scramble.
Do you need dedicated onboarding software?
Not always. Builders tend to land on one of four options:
- A dedicated subcontractor compliance platform. These are good at collecting documents and tracking expiries, but check carefully how well they connect to your accounts.
- The onboarding features in your construction management software. These are convenient if you already use the platform, though some only sync basic contact details.
- Simple online forms plus a custom integration. This is often enough for smaller contractors who mainly want to stop re-keying.
- A custom-built portal. This makes sense when your process, approvals or reporting don't fit off-the-shelf tools.
Whichever option you look at, ask the same questions. Does it create suppliers in Xero or MYOB, including bank details and TPAR settings? Does it link subbies to your job costing? Can you export your data if you leave? If the answer to the first question is no, you've moved the typing rather than removed it.
If you're comparing options, our subcontractor management software page explains how we approach building and connecting these systems.
Frequently asked questions
What documents should a subcontractor provide before starting work?
At a minimum, collect their ABN and GST status, the relevant trade licence, certificates of currency for their insurances, SWMS for any high-risk work, induction details, bank details and a signed subcontract. Your own contracts and state rules may add to this list.
Can subcontractor details go straight into Xero or MYOB?
Yes. Both Xero and MYOB have APIs that allow supplier records to be created and updated automatically. With an approval step in between, details entered by the subbie can become a supplier record in your accounts without anyone retyping them.
Do we still need to check details if the subbie fills in the form themselves?
Yes. Self-service removes the typing, but someone should still verify the ABN, GST status and insurance certificates before approval. The aim is one careful check instead of several rushed retypes.
How much does connecting onboarding to our accounts cost?
Costs vary widely depending on the size of the business, how many systems are involved and how much needs to be custom-built. That's why we scope every project first and give you a fixed quote after a free initial chat. If you want a full written review of your current systems first, our paid $5,000 Process & Systems Audit covers that.
If your office is still copying subbie details from emails into spreadsheets, Xero or MYOB, and your project system, it's worth fixing. Book a free initial chat and we'll talk through how you onboard subcontractors now and what connecting it to your accounts would involve.