Progress Payments

Partial payments the government makes as work progresses, rather than one payment at completion.

Progress payments are partial payments the government makes as a contractor incurs costs or reaches milestones on a contract — common on larger or longer-term awards, especially in construction. They exist to ease the burden of financing a big job, so you're not carrying the entire contract cost until the very end.

Even so, progress payments lag the work: you pay subs, materials, and labor as the job happens, but the payment arrives weeks later, and a portion may be held back as retainage until closeout. That timing gap is a frequent driver of construction cash-flow strain.

Invoice factoring bridges the gap by advancing up to 90% of each approved progress invoice, so you can keep crews working and materials flowing while you wait for the government's payment.

Frequently asked questions

What are progress payments?

Partial payments the government makes as work progresses on a contract, rather than a single payment at completion. They're common on larger or longer-term awards.