Free template
Interior design agreement format
An interior design agreement format for Indian studios, clause by clause — scope, payment, variations, delays, warranty — with why each clause is there.
Free, no signup. Put your studio's name at the top and change anything that doesn't fit how you work.
Clause by clause
1. Parties and site
This agreement is made on [date] between [studio name], [address], GSTIN [ ] ("the Designer") and [client name], [address] ("the Client"), for interior work at [site address] ("the Site").
The site address is what ties the agreement to the job. A client with two flats, or a flat that changes before work starts, is a dispute about which one was agreed.
2. Scope of work
The Designer will carry out the work listed in the Bill of Quantities [quotation number] dated [date], attached as Annexure A. Anything not listed in Annexure A is outside this agreement.
"Complete interiors" in an agreement means whatever the client remembers it meaning. Tying scope to a numbered BOQ makes every later request either in the list or a variation.
3. Contract value and payment
The contract value is ₹[amount] plus GST as applicable, payable as per the payment schedule in Annexure B. Each payment is due within [7] days of the Designer's invoice for that milestone.
A due date per milestone, counted from the invoice, is what lets you stop work for non-payment without being the one in breach.
4. Variations
Any change to the scope, materials or finishes after signing will be priced in writing by the Designer and carried out only after the Client approves that price in writing (message or email is sufficient). Approved variations are added to the contract value.
Most interior disputes are an unpriced change: "just add a loft". Written approval of a price, before the work, is the only version of this that holds up.
5. Materials and approvals
Materials, finishes and brands are as stated in Annexure A. Samples shown to the Client and approved in writing are final. If a specified item is unavailable, the Designer will propose an equivalent for the Client's approval.
Laminate shades and hardware get discontinued mid-job. Saying in advance how a substitute is approved stops a delay becoming a disagreement.
6. Timeline
Work will start within [ ] days of the first payment and site handover to the Designer, and is expected to finish within [ ] weeks. The timeline is extended by any delay in payment, Client approvals, site access, or work by others on site.
A completion date with no conditions is a promise you make on the client's behalf. The extension clause is what makes the date fair to both sides.
7. Site access and other contractors
The Client will provide access to the Site, water and electricity during working hours, and any society permissions needed. The Designer is not responsible for work by contractors the Client appoints directly.
Society permission and a client's own electrician are two of the commonest reasons a job stops. This puts them on the right side of the line.
8. Handover and defects
On completion the parties will walk the Site together and record any defects in a snag list. The Designer will rectify listed defects within [15] days. The final payment is due on handover and may not be withheld for items not on the snag list.
Without a written snag list, the last payment is held against an open-ended list that grows. Tying the final tranche to a list, signed on the day, closes the job.
9. Warranty
The Designer warrants workmanship for [12] months from handover. Manufacturer warranties on hardware, appliances and materials pass to the Client. The warranty does not cover misuse, water damage from causes outside the work, or normal wear.
A warranty with a start date and exclusions is one you can honour. One without them is a service call for ever.
10. Ownership of designs
Drawings, 3D views and designs remain the Designer's property and may not be used to have the work carried out by others without the Designer's written consent and payment of the design fee of ₹[amount].
Clients taking your 3D views to a cheaper carpenter is common enough to have its own clause. A stated design fee makes it a payment, not a quarrel.
11. Termination
Either party may end this agreement by [15] days' written notice. The Client will pay for work done and materials ordered up to the date of notice; materials paid for become the Client's property.
Knowing what happens on the way out makes an exit civil, and protects you from paying for materials ordered for a client who has gone.
12. Disputes
The parties will first try to settle any dispute by discussion. Failing that, it will be referred to a sole arbitrator under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, seated at [city]. Courts at [city] have jurisdiction.
Naming your own city keeps a dispute where you work, not wherever the client moves to.
13. Signatures
Signed by the Designer: ____________ Signed by the Client: ____________ Name: [ ] Name: [ ] Date: [ ] Date: [ ] Annexure A: Bill of Quantities. Annexure B: Payment schedule.
Both annexures listed by name, so nobody later argues about which quotation was attached.
A format to start from, not legal advice. Have a lawyer read it before you rely on it, and check whether your state needs the agreement on stamp paper.
An agreement that says "as discussed"
The scope of an interior job lives in the BOQ, not in the agreement. An agreement that describes the work in a paragraph — "complete interiors of 3BHK as discussed" — is the one the client reads back to you as including the balcony. Attach the numbered quotation and say anything not in it is a variation.
In Houscade the quotation is the annexure: the client approves the exact BOQ on their phone, every change after that is a priced variation they sign the same way, and both carry a date and a name. See a quotation a client approves.