FIDIC Taking-Over Certificate Template: A Sample You Can Adapt
The search that brings most people here is "taking over certificate template" — and there is a mix-up worth clearing up before anything else: the Contractor does not write the Taking-Over Certificate. This guide gives you the document the Contractor does write to start the process, a worked example, and the two clocks under Sub-Clause 10.1 that decide when the Works are actually taken over.
Certificate vs Application — Who Actually Issues the Taking-Over Certificate
Under the FIDIC 1999 Red Book, Sub-Clause 10.1 gives the Contractor the right to apply for a Taking-Over Certificate once, in its opinion, the Works are complete or will be complete within 14 days. That application is a notice — it is not the certificate itself.
The Engineer then inspects the Works and decides. If satisfied, the Engineer issues the Taking-Over Certificate, stating the date on which the Works were completed in accordance with the Contract. The certificate is the Engineer's own act, in the same way the Interim Payment Certificate is the Engineer's act after the Contractor's monthly Statement — the Contractor opens the process, the Engineer closes it.
Key Takeaway: The Contractor submits an application under Sub-Clause 10.1 stating the Works are ready. The Engineer inspects and issues the Taking-Over Certificate itself, fixing the completion date. They are two different documents, written by two different parties.
What the Contractor's Application Must Contain
An application that gets a straight answer, rather than a rejection, covers the same ground every time:
- Which Works it covers — the whole of the Works, or a named Section or part, if the Contract identifies Sections.
- The anticipated completion date — not more than 14 days ahead of the date the application is sent.
- A statement that the Works meet the taking-over test — complete, or complete except for minor items that will not substantially affect their use for the intended purpose.
- A list of any minor outstanding work or defects — named individually, not glossed over as "snagging."
- A clear request that the Engineer inspect and issue the Taking-Over Certificate within the Sub-Clause 10.1 period.
That fourth item is where most applications go wrong. Listing the outstanding items honestly, rather than hoping the Engineer does not notice them on inspection, is what keeps a borderline application from being rejected outright.
Key Takeaway: Five parts make a complete application — which Works, the anticipated date, the readiness statement, an honest list of minor outstanding items, and the request itself. An honest snagging list gets a faster certificate than a silent one.
Taking-Over Certificate Application Template — Copy and Adapt
Here is a skeleton for the Contractor's application. Replace everything in square brackets with your own facts, then delete the brackets.
One note on the outstanding-items line: it is not an admission of default. Sub-Clause 10.1 expressly allows a Taking-Over Certificate to be issued despite minor outstanding work, so long as it does not stop the Works being used for their intended purpose. Silence about a defect the Engineer finds on inspection is far more damaging than naming it upfront.
Key Takeaway: Naming minor outstanding items in the application is not a weakness — it is exactly what Sub-Clause 10.1 expects. What sinks an application is a defect the Engineer finds that the Contractor never disclosed.
Worked Example: A Filled-In Application
Here is the same template filled in for a water treatment plant nearing completion.
Two named items, both cosmetic, both unlikely to stop the plant operating. That is the level of specificity an Engineer can actually assess on inspection — not a vague reference to "minor snagging."
Key Takeaway: A real application names the outstanding items individually and ties the anticipated date to the 14-day rule. Vague references to "snagging" invite the Engineer to look harder, not less.
What Comes Back: The Engineer's Taking-Over Certificate
Knowing the shape of the document coming back makes it easier to check whether it is doing what it should:
Instead, the Engineer may reject the application, giving reasons and specifying the work required before a certificate can be issued. That rejection has its own 28-day deadline, covered next — it does not leave the Contractor waiting indefinitely for an answer.
The Timeline: 14 Days to Apply, 28 Days to Respond
Two windows govern the whole process, and mixing them up is the most common error on Site:
- 14 days — the Contractor may apply no more than 14 days before, in its opinion, the Works will be complete and ready for taking over.
- 28 days — after receiving the application, the Engineer must either issue the Taking-Over Certificate, stating the completion date, or reject the application with reasons and the work required.
If the Engineer does neither within that 28-day period, and the Works are substantially in accordance with the Contract, the Taking-Over Certificate is deemed to have been issued on the last day of the period. That deemed-issue rule exists precisely so an Engineer who simply does not respond cannot hold taking-over hostage.
Sub-Clause 10.2 runs the same procedure for a Section or a part of the Works that the Contract identifies separately, or that the Employer wants to use before the whole project is finished — each part can be taken over, and start its own Defects Notification Period, on its own timeline.
The 2017 Second Edition keeps the same 14-day and 28-day mechanics, but adds an explicit requirement to submit As-Built Records and Operation and Maintenance Manuals as part of Taking-Over — documentation that sat inside other clauses in the 1999 edition rather than being tied directly to Sub-Clause 10.1.
Key Takeaway: The Contractor applies up to 14 days early; the Engineer has 28 days to certify or reject. Silence for 28 days deemed-issues the certificate if the Works are substantially complete. Sections and parts run the same clocks independently.
Common Mistakes That Delay Taking-Over
- Applying too early. An application filed while genuinely major work remains outstanding invites an easy rejection and resets the clock once the real application follows.
- Hiding defects instead of listing them. An Engineer who finds an undisclosed defect on inspection has every reason to reject rather than certify with a caveat.
- Confusing the application with the certificate. Sending the Contractor's notice and then telling the Employer the Works have been "taken over" — only the Engineer's certificate does that.
- Missing the Section reference. On a multi-Section contract, an application that does not name which Section it covers leaves the Engineer to guess, or to reject for clarity.
- Losing track of the Defects Notification Period start date. That period runs from the completion date the certificate states, not from the date it is signed or the date the Contractor applied — a gap of days that matters when a defect appears near the end of the period.
Key Takeaway: Most delayed taking-overs trace back to applying too early, hiding a defect, or losing track of which date actually starts the Defects Notification Period — not to a genuine dispute about whether the Works are ready.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Taking-Over Certificate the same document the Contractor submits?
No. Under Sub-Clause 10.1, the Contractor submits an application — a notice stating that the Works are complete or will be complete within 14 days and listing any minor outstanding items. The Engineer then inspects and issues the Taking-Over Certificate itself, which is the Engineer's own certification of the completion date. The Contractor's document opens the process; it is not the certificate.
What happens if the Engineer does not respond within 28 days?
If the Engineer neither issues the Taking-Over Certificate nor rejects the application within 28 days of receiving it, and the Works are substantially in accordance with the Contract, the Taking-Over Certificate is deemed to have been issued on the last day of that 28-day period. This deemed-issue mechanism stops an unresponsive Engineer from indefinitely blocking taking-over.
Does the Taking-Over Certificate mean the Contractor's work is finished?
No. A Taking-Over Certificate can be issued with a list of minor outstanding work and defects still attached, provided those items would not substantially affect the use of the Works for their intended purpose. The Contractor remains obliged to complete that outstanding work during the Defects Notification Period that the certificate starts running.
Can the Contractor apply for Taking-Over of a Section separately from the whole Works?
Yes, where the Contract identifies Sections or the Employer intends to use part of the Works before overall completion. Sub-Clause 10.2 extends the same application-and-certificate procedure to Sections or parts, so each can reach practical use — and start its own Defects Notification Period — on its own timeline rather than waiting for the whole project.
What starts the Defects Notification Period?
The date stated in the Taking-Over Certificate as the completion date — not the date the certificate happens to be signed, and not the date the Contractor applied. The length of the Defects Notification Period itself is not fixed by the printed form; it is whatever period the Contract Data or Particular Conditions state for the Works or Section concerned.
Authoritative Sources
This guide reflects the FIDIC Conditions of Contract and established construction-law commentary. For the primary materials, see:
- FIDIC Conditions of Contract — the official contract suite published by the International Federation of Consulting Engineers, which sets out the Clause 10 taking-over procedure referenced throughout this guide.
- 1999 Suite: Commentary on Clause 10 — Employer's Taking Over, Victoria Tyson, Howard Kennedy — a clause-by-clause commentary on the Sub-Clause 10.1 application, certification, and deemed-issue procedure.
About the Author
Muhammad M. Jiwani is a Project Director with 15 years' experience on major infrastructure and energy projects administered under FIDIC contracts. He writes from first-hand experience serving notices and managing contractual claims on live projects.