Notice, termination and getting paid
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Employment has statutory notice; contracting has whatever you negotiate — and the default clauses are written by whoever drafted the contract. Read these before signing.
Market-standard notice
- Contractor gives: 1–4 weeks (keep it short; that's the flexibility you're paid for)
- Client gives: 1–4 weeks for projects; sometimes pay-in-lieu for early termination
- Termination for convenience with 2–4 weeks' notice is normal; immediate termination for cause should require material breach with a cure period
The clauses that protect you
- Payment for work performed up to termination — never a "payment only on completion" clause
- Pay-in-lieu parity: if they can exit same-day, you should be able to too (or they pay)
- Kill-fee on cancelled projects: partial payment if they cancel before start
Income smoothing, honestly
Gaps are the real cost of contracting: budget take-home on 44–46 weeks, not 52. Keep 3–6 months of personal runway, renew early, and let the nightly alerts shorten the gap when a contract does end. The tables use a 46-week umbrella year for exactly this reason.
One more habit: re-read the termination clause at every renewal, because notice periods are renegotiated more often than rates and rarely in your favour by default.
Getting paid: terms and the late-payment reality
Commercial payment terms of 14–30 days are standard; 60 days is a red flag you price for. Late payment legislation gives you statutory interest (base + 8%) on overdue commercial invoices — invoking it politely, in writing, resolves most cases. The stronger protection is operational: invoice the moment the milestone lands, not month-end; keep a named accounts-payable contact; and escalate at 15 days overdue, not 60. Payment conduct is also a status signal — a client that pays your company against invoices is transacting B2B, and the paper trail supports exactly the evidence file you'd want in any review.
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