BC runs the same 10% holdback figure as Ontario and Alberta, but on a different clock — and a second, separate duty sits alongside it: whoever the owner names as prime contractor takes on a qualification requirement that has nothing to do with payment.
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Section 4(1) sets the 10 percent figure, but section 5(1) is the part firms miss: the owner must establish a holdback account at a savings institution for each contract, pay the section 4 amount into it, and administer it together with the contractor the holdback was retained from. Section 5(2)(c) then locks it — money in that account cannot be paid out without the agreement of everyone administering it. Section 5(7) gives the contractor a real remedy if the owner skips this: failing to fund the account is an act of default, and on 10 days' notice the contractor may suspend operations for as long as the default continues.
These are not the same deadline measured twice. The 55-day figure in section 8 is how long the holdback itself must sit before it can be released. The 45-day figure in section 20 is how long a subcontractor or supplier has to actually file a claim of lien, running from the same certificate-of-completion or abandonment trigger. Miss the 45-day filing window and section 22 is explicit: a lien not filed within the time provided is extinguished. The enforcement action after a lien is filed then has its own, longer clock — one year from filing, under section 33(1).
Section 10(1) goes further than requiring the money be set aside: it makes payments received by a contractor or subcontractor on account of the contract price a trust fund for everyone engaged on the improvement under that contract, with the recipient as trustee. Section 10(4) adds a practical protection — money held in a proper section 5 holdback account cannot be garnished.
OHSR 20.1A requires that whoever agrees with the owner to take on the prime contractor role under the Workers Compensation Act must be qualified for it — a distinct duty from anything in the Builders Lien Act. Separately, OHSR 20.2 requires WorkSafeBC receive written notice at least 24 hours before work starts on a project where, among other triggers, the estimated cost of labour and materials exceeds $100,000, or the structure exceeds 2 storeys or 6 metres. Confusing the payment relationship with the safety-qualification relationship is a common and avoidable error — they are governed by different parts of different instruments.
Ontario also holds back 10 percent, but on a 60-day-to-preserve, 90-day-to-perfect structure, and its 2026 amendment moved to annual holdback release by default. Alberta holds back 10 percent for 60 days and separately publishes real prompt-payment day counts, which BC's Act does not. For a firm bidding across provinces, treat every one of these numbers as province-specific — see Kelowna's regional page for the seasonal-market read on how BC's holdback interacts with a resort-driven building season, and Manitoba's page for Manitoba's lower 7.5 percent figure on the same mechanic.
No. The holdback must be held for 55 days before release; a lien claim has to be filed within 45 days of the same trigger event. Both run from the same certificate-of-completion or abandonment date, but they are separate clocks with separate consequences.
No. The prime contractor qualification duty under the OHS Regulation is a safety obligation. The holdback obligation under the Builders Lien Act falls on whoever is primarily liable for payment on each contract or subcontract — the two roles can sit with different parties on the same project.
A 30-minute call is enough to see where AI keeps BC's two clocks straight for every active contract.
