AIA Contract Series · ARE 5.0 Exam Prep · Updated July 2026
AIA G702/G703 explained for ARE 5.0
A plain-language breakdown of the Application for Payment forms—what they are, how they work together, and why they are heavily tested in Construction & Evaluation.
What are AIA G702 and G703?
AIA G702, Application and Certificate for Payment, is the form the contractor submits to the architect to request a progress payment. The same form contains the architect’s certification to the owner of the amount properly due.
AIA G703–1992, Continuation Sheet, supports the payment application with a line-by-line breakdown of the Contract Sum. It organizes the contractor’s schedule of values and shows completed Work, stored materials, percentage complete, balance to finish, and variable retainage when applicable.
G702 and G703 are normally used together on a standard payment application. G703 may also accompany G732 on projects using a Construction Manager as Adviser. For this study resource, the focus is the common G702/G703 process governed by A201–2017 and A101–2017.
Important distinction: G703 is formally titled the Continuation Sheet. It organizes payment information according to the contractor’s schedule of values but does not replace the contractor’s obligation to submit that schedule under A201 §9.2.
Why G702/G703 appear on CE and PjM
CE
Construction & Evaluation
Detailed review of the contractor’s Application for Payment—including progress, stored materials, retainage, certification, partial withholding, and payment-related remedies—is primarily a CE competency.
PjM
Project Management
PjM may test the contract relationships and management implications surrounding payment administration, including how A101, A201, G702, and G703 work together.
How G702 and G703 work together
G703
Detailed continuation sheet
The contractor breaks the Contract Sum into portions of the Work and records scheduled values, prior completed Work, current-period Work, stored materials, total completed and stored, percentage complete, balance to finish, and variable retainage where applicable.
G702
Application and certification cover sheet
Totals from G703 are transferred to G702. The contractor signs and, when required, notarizes the application. The architect reviews the application and completes the Certificate for Payment for the amount properly due.
How G702 calculates the current payment
- Original Contract Sum
- Add or deduct approved Change Orders
- Contract Sum to Date
- Total Completed and Stored to Date—transferred from Column G on G703
- Subtract Total Retainage
- Total Earned Less Retainage
- Subtract Previous Certificates for Payment
- Current Payment Due
- Balance to Finish, Including Retainage
Key concepts to know for the exam
A201 §9.2
Schedule of values
Before the first Application for Payment on a stipulated-sum or GMP project, the contractor submits a schedule of values to the architect. Unless the architect objects to it, the schedule becomes the basis for reviewing payment applications. The contract does not say that the architect “approves” the schedule of values.
A201 §9.3.1
Contractor’s submission timing
The contractor submits the itemized Application for Payment to the architect at least 10 days before the date established for each progress payment, unless the Contract Documents establish another arrangement.
A201 §9.3.1.1 · A101 §5.1.6.1.3
Authorized changes not yet in a Change Order
A payment application may include amounts for Work properly authorized by a Construction Change Directive or an interim determination by the architect, even when the amount has not yet been incorporated into a Change Order.
A201 §9.3.2 · A101 §5.1.6.1.2
Stored materials
G703 Column F identifies materials and equipment presently stored but not included in Columns D or E. Materials delivered and suitably stored at the site may generally be included. Off-site materials may also qualify with advance owner approval, a location agreed upon in writing, procedures protecting the owner’s interest, and applicable insurance, storage, and transportation provisions.
A101 §5.1.7 · G702 Line 5 · G703 Column I
Retainage
Retainage is an amount or percentage, if any, withheld from a progress payment under the completed Agreement. G702 summarizes retainage on completed Work and stored materials. G703 Column I is used on contracts where variable retainage for individual line items may apply. A101 may also identify items not subject to retainage or provide for reduction before Substantial Completion.
A201 §9.8.5
Retainage at Substantial Completion
Retainage is not automatically released merely because the architect determines Substantial Completion. Payment follows written acceptance of the responsibilities stated in the Certificate of Substantial Completion, consent of surety when applicable, and adjustment for incomplete or nonconforming Work.
G702 Contractor Certification
What the contractor certifies
By signing G702, the contractor certifies, to the best of the contractor’s knowledge, information, and belief, that the covered Work has been completed in accordance with the Contract Documents, prior amounts received for previously certified Work have been paid as required by the form, and the current payment is due.
A201 §9.4.2 · B101 §§3.6.3.1–3.6.3.2
What the architect certifies
The architect represents to the owner, based on evaluation of the Work and the data in the application, that to the best of the architect’s knowledge, information, and belief, the Work has progressed as indicated, its quality is in accordance with the Contract Documents, and the contractor is entitled to the amount certified. These representations remain subject to evaluation of the Work at Substantial Completion, results of subsequent tests and inspections, correction of minor deviations before completion, and specific qualifications expressed by the architect. Certification is not a guarantee and does not represent exhaustive inspections, review of construction means and methods, an audit of subcontractor requisitions, or a determination of how the contractor used prior payments.
B101 §3.6.3.3
Architect’s recordkeeping
The architect maintains a record of Applications and Certificates for Payment as part of Construction Phase Services.
A201 §§9.4.1 and 9.5.1
Partial or full withholding
Within seven days after receipt, the architect may certify the full amount, certify a lesser amount properly due, or withhold the entire application. The architect notifies the owner and contractor of the reasons for partial or full withholding. Based on subsequently discovered evidence, the architect may also nullify all or part of a Certificate previously issued.
A201 §9.5.1
Reasons certification may be withheld
Grounds include defective Work not remedied; third-party claims filed or reasonable evidence that such claims will probably be filed, unless the contractor provides security acceptable to the owner; failure to make payments properly to subcontractors or suppliers; reasonable evidence that the Work cannot be completed for the unpaid balance of the Contract Sum; damage to the owner or a Separate Contractor; reasonable evidence that the Work will not be completed within the Contract Time and the unpaid balance will not cover actual or liquidated damages for the anticipated delay; and repeated failure to carry out the Work in accordance with the Contract Documents.
A201 §9.6.6
Payment is not acceptance
Issuance of a Certificate for Payment, payment by the owner, or use or occupancy of the Project does not constitute acceptance of Work that does not comply with the Contract Documents.
A201 §9.7
Contractor’s right to stop Work for failure of certification or payment
If the architect fails, through no fault of the contractor, to issue a Certificate for Payment within seven days after receiving the Application for Payment, or if the owner fails to pay the amount certified by the architect or awarded by binding dispute resolution within seven days after the payment date established in the Contract Documents, the contractor may give the owner and architect seven additional days’ notice before stopping the Work. The Contract Time is extended appropriately, and the Contract Sum is increased by reasonable shutdown, delay, and start-up costs, plus interest as provided in the Contract Documents.
The payment cycle step by step
Contractor prepares G703 and G702
The contractor updates the line-item continuation sheet, transfers the required totals to G702, signs the contractor certification, and submits the application to the architect.
Architect reviews within seven days
The architect evaluates the data in the application against observations of construction progress and the Contract Documents. The review is not an exhaustive quantity audit.
Architect certifies the full amount, certifies a lesser amount, or withholds
The architect certifies the full amount requested, certifies a lesser amount properly due and explains the difference, or withholds certification of the entire Application for Payment and explains the reason.
Owner pays the certified amount
The owner pays the contractor within the time established in A101 and the other Contract Documents. When only part of the application is withheld, the certified portion remains payable.
Contractor pays subcontractors and suppliers
No later than seven days after receiving payment from the owner, the contractor pays each subcontractor the amount due, reflecting the percentage actually retained from that subcontractor’s portion of the Work. Similar payment requirements apply to suppliers.
Common exam traps
- The contractor applies; the architect certifies; the owner pays. These are separate acts by separate parties.
- The schedule of values is not “approved” by the architect under A201 §9.2. It is used unless the architect objects.
- The architect’s seven-day period begins when the architect receives the application.
- Partial withholding does not stop the entire payment. The owner pays the amount the architect certifies.
- A previously issued Certificate may be nullified, not merely “reduced,” when subsequently discovered evidence supports withholding under A201 §9.5.1.
- Off-site stored materials may qualify. They require advance owner approval and the additional protections stated in A201 §9.3.2.
- G703 Column I is not always completed. It is used on contracts where variable retainage for individual line items may apply.
- Payment certification is not a guarantee or exhaustive inspection.
- Payment does not accept nonconforming Work.
- The stop-Work right involves an initial seven-day period and seven additional days’ notice. It may result from the architect’s failure to issue a Certificate for Payment or the owner’s failure to make payment when required.
Exam tip
When an ARE question involves payment administration, identify the party acting and then identify the controlling document. G702 and G703 document and calculate the payment request. A201 Article 9 establishes submission, review, certification, withholding, payment, and nonpayment remedies. A101 Article 5 establishes project-specific payment dates, progress-payment calculations, retainage, and retainage exclusions.
How G702/G703 relate to other AIA documents
G702 and G703 are the forms used to carry out the payment procedures established in the Contract Documents. A201 Article 9 establishes who submits, who reviews, who certifies, who pays, and what happens when certification or payment is withheld. A101 Article 5 establishes the project-specific progress-payment calculation, payment timing, retainage, and possible retainage exclusions. B101 defines the architect’s Construction Phase responsibility to review and certify amounts due and maintain payment records.
Primary references: AIA G702; AIA G703–1992; AIA A101–2017 Article 5; AIA A201–2017 Article 9; AIA B101–2017 §3.6.3.