The short answer
The law doesn't give you a deposit or a cancellation fee by default. You get them by agreeing them in writing before you start. With business clients you have a lot of freedom, as long as a cancellation fee isn't out of all proportion. With private clients the rules are stricter: they usually have 14 days to cancel, and any charge has to be fair.
Deposits
- 25% to 50% up front is common for new clients and fixed-price projects; staged payments suit longer work.
- Send it as a deposit invoice, or a pro-forma invoice if you want the whole fee in advance.
- Say in the contract whether the deposit is refundable, and in what circumstances.
- If you're VAT registered, VAT is usually due on a deposit when you receive it, not when the work is finished.
Kill fees and cancellation charges
A kill fee is what the client pays if they cancel after booking you. It should reflect what cancelling costs you: work already done, costs you can't get back, and time you turned other work away for. A sliding scale is easy to defend, for example 25% if they cancel more than a month before, 50% within a month, 100% once the work is delivered.
Between businesses, the courts won't enforce a charge that's a penalty: it has to protect a legitimate interest and not be out of all proportion to it (Cavendish v Makdessi, 2015). A charge you can explain line by line passes that test easily.
Private clients
If you agree the job with a private person at a distance (online, by phone or email) or away from your business premises, they usually have 14 days to cancel without a reason under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, and you have to tell them so. If they ask you to start sooner and then cancel, they pay a proportionate amount for what you've done. After the 14 days, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 says a cancellation charge must be fair, which in practice means no more than your real loss.
Our Freelance Services Agreement adds the 14-day cancellation wording, the model cancellation form and an early-start box the client ticks when they sign, when you say your client is a private person.
What the AgreeVia agreement already covers
If either side ends the Freelance Services Agreement early, the client pays for the work done so far, including a fair share of any fixed fee and costs you've committed to and can't cancel. That isn't a kill fee: if you want one, agree it in writing too, for example in your quote.
Questions people ask
Can a deposit be non-refundable?
With a business client, yes, if you agreed it and it's reasonable. With a private client it's refundable if they cancel within the 14-day period, and after that a non-refundable deposit must still be fair.
What's the difference between a deposit invoice and a pro-forma invoice?
A deposit invoice asks for part of the fee before work starts. A pro-forma invoice asks for payment in advance and isn't a VAT invoice; you send the real invoice once you've been paid.
How much should a kill fee be?
Enough to cover what cancelling actually costs you. A sliding scale based on how close to the work the client cancels is common and easy to justify.
This guide explains the general position in the UK as we understand it on 22 October 2026. The law differs between England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and it changes. If something important turns on it, talk to a solicitor or an accountant.
Templates and tools for this
Send your first agreement free
Send a deposit invoice your client signs to confirm, so the first payment is agreed before you start.
Free for 3 documents a month, no card needed. AgreeVia works in your browser and is live on Google Play. Coming soon to the App Store.