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ServiceM8 how-to

How do you handle a variation after a ServiceM8 quote is accepted?

ServiceM8 has no dedicated variation feature. Add the extra lines to the Work Order (the accepted quote PDF stays in the Diary unchanged), get the customer's signed approval with a Contract Variation form sent for remote signature, then bill it on the final invoice or split it off with a partial invoice.

Last checked 25 Sep 2026 against the sources listed at the end of this page.

Partly

Partly: add variation lines to the Work Order and use a signed Contract Variation form, then invoice with the job or split it off with a partial invoice.

Step by step

  1. Build a Contract Variation form in Settings, Forms with questions for the variation detail, price and whether it includes tax, plus a signature.
  2. Link a document template to the form, and add the image_customer_signature merge field so it can be signed remotely.
  3. When extra work turns up, complete the variation form on the job in the app or Online Dashboard.
  4. Email the completed form to the customer for remote signature and wait for the signed copy to appear in the Diary before starting the extra work.
  5. Add the variation items to the job's Billing tab, under a section description line naming the variation and its approval date.
  6. To bill it with the job, leave the lines there for the final invoice.
  7. To bill it separately, open Quotes & Invoicing, click the arrow next to Produce Invoice, choose New Partial Invoice and tick only the variation lines.
  8. Check the job's Edit History to confirm who added the variation lines and when.

Gotchas

  • Do not restore an older quote version on an accepted job. Restoring puts that version's items and price back into Billing and wipes the variation lines.
  • The job's Edit History records item names, quantities and prices, but not cost or tax changes.
  • A standard form Signature question captures whoever fills in the form. For the customer to sign remotely, the template needs the customer signature merge field.
  • Unsigned variation lines look identical to quoted lines on the invoice. Label them with a section description.
  • For Queensland regulated domestic contracts, starting variation work before the owner agrees in writing is an offence carrying up to 20 penalty units.
  • A partial invoice for the variation is a separate invoice in Xero, so the customer receives two invoices for one job.

What the official help article misses: It builds the form but does not connect it to the job's billing: how to add the variation lines, how to invoice them together or separately, why restoring an old quote version wipes them, or what Queensland law requires in a variation document. Read ServiceM8's article.

The accepted quote is safe, the job is not

When a customer accepts a quote, ServiceM8 keeps that quote as a PDF version in the job Diary. Adding items to the job's Billing tab afterwards does not change that PDF, so the record of what was accepted survives. What does change is the job's running total, which is what you will invoice.

That is both the good news and the risk. You can add a variation in seconds, but nothing in ServiceM8 marks those new lines as a variation or asks the customer to approve them. Two months later, the customer sees an invoice higher than the quote and a Diary with no signed approval for the difference.

The job's Edit History helps after the fact. It shows each item added, removed or changed, who did it and when, including changes made in the app or through the API. It is evidence of what changed, not evidence the customer agreed.

Getting approval in writing

ServiceM8's help centre shows how to build a simple Contract Variation form: the variation details, the price, whether tax is included, and a signature. Link it to a document template and the completed form becomes a PDF. Add the customer signature merge field to that template and you can email it for remote signature: the customer clicks a button in the email, signs, and the signed PDF replaces the unsigned one in the Diary.

For a domestic building contract in Queensland this is not optional. Written contracts are required for domestic building work over $3,300, and for those regulated contracts the builder must not start variation work before the owner agrees to it in writing. The variation document must describe the variation, state the date it was requested, state the change to the contract price (or how it is calculated), say when any increase is to be paid, and estimate any delay. A copy must be given to the owner within 5 business days of agreeing, or before the work starts if that is sooner. An increase cannot be required to be paid before the variation work starts.

Invoicing the variation

Together with the job. Leave the variation lines on the Work Order and they appear on the final invoice. Add a section description line above them, such as "Variation 1: additional circuit, approved 14 March", so the customer can match the invoice to the signed approval.

Separately. If the Partial/Progress Invoicing add-on is on (Starter plan and up), create a partial invoice and tick only the variation lines. ServiceM8 moves them to a new completed job with its own invoice number, and the original job keeps a matching negative line. This suits builders who pay variations on a separate claim.

Sources

  1. Each produced quote is saved as a version in the Diary; restoring a version restores its price, billable items and Work Completed description to the job. ServiceM8 Help Center, checked 25 Sep 2026.
  2. A job's Edit History shows items added, removed, restored or updated with author and time, including changes made in the app or through the API; changes to cost, vendor or tax rate do not appear. ServiceM8 Help Center, checked 25 Sep 2026.
  3. ServiceM8's example Contract Variation form asks for the nature of the variation, its cost, whether that includes tax, and a client signature. ServiceM8 Help Center, checked 25 Sep 2026.
  4. Forms can be emailed for remote signature once the template has the customer signature merge field; after signing, the signed version replaces the document in the Diary. A form's Signature question captures the person completing the form. ServiceM8 Help Center, checked 25 Sep 2026.
  5. For a regulated contract, the contractor must give the owner a written copy of a variation within 5 business days of agreeing or before the work starts, must not start the work before the owner agrees in writing (maximum penalty 20 penalty units), and the variation document must describe the variation, state the request date, the price change or method, when an increase is payable and any delay estimate. An increase cannot be required to be paid before the variation work starts. Queensland Building and Construction Commission Act 1991, Schedule 1B, sections 40 and 41, checked 25 Sep 2026.
  6. QBCC says written contracts are required for domestic building work priced over $3,300, including labour, materials and GST. Queensland Building and Construction Commission, checked 25 Sep 2026.
  7. A partial invoice for existing items creates a new completed job with the original job number plus a letter and adds a negative item to the original job. ServiceM8 Help Center, checked 25 Sep 2026.
  8. On ServiceM8's Australian pricing, Partial/Progress Invoicing is included from the Starter plan up. ServiceM8, checked 25 Sep 2026.