Free freelance contract
Short enough that a client will actually read it, specific enough that the awkward conversations are already settled.
Freelance agreement
Between [Your name / business] ("the Freelancer") and [Client name / business] ("the Client").
Dated [DD/MM/YYYY].
1. The work
The Freelancer will deliver: [describe the deliverables specifically: "three page designs in Figma, desktop and mobile", not "design work"].
Anything not listed above is outside this agreement and will be quoted separately.
2. Timeline
Work starts on [DD/MM/YYYY] and is due by [DD/MM/YYYY], provided the Client supplies [content, access, assets, approvals] by [DD/MM/YYYY]. If the Client is late supplying those, the deadline moves by the same number of days.
3. Fee and payment
The fee is £[0.00] [plus VAT if applicable].
[A deposit of £[0.00] / [X]% is payable before work begins, and is non-refundable.] The balance is due within [14] days of the invoice date.
Late payment: interest and reasonable recovery costs may be charged on overdue sums as permitted by the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998.
4. Revisions
The fee includes [2] rounds of revisions on the delivered work. Further rounds, or changes to the brief after approval, are charged at £[0.00] per [hour / day].
5. Ownership of the work
Copyright in the delivered work transfers to the Client on full payment, and not before. Until then the Freelancer retains all rights.
The Freelancer keeps ownership of any pre-existing tools, templates or components used to produce the work, and grants the Client a licence to use them as part of it.
The Freelancer may show the work in a portfolio [unless the Client notifies otherwise in writing / after [DD/MM/YYYY]].
6. Confidentiality
Each party will keep the other's non-public information confidential and use it only for this project.
7. Cancellation
Either party may end this agreement in writing. If the Client cancels, the Freelancer is paid for all work completed to that date, plus [any non-refundable deposit / [X]% of the remaining fee].
8. Status
The Freelancer is self-employed, not an employee, and is responsible for their own tax and National Insurance. Nothing here creates employment, partnership or exclusivity.
9. Liability
The Freelancer's total liability under this agreement is limited to the fee paid. Neither party excludes liability where the law does not allow it.
10. Law
This agreement is governed by the law of [England and Wales], and the courts there have jurisdiction.
Signed, Freelancer
______________________
[Name] · [Date]
Signed, Client
______________________
[Name] · [Date]
The four clauses that earn their keep
Most freelance disputes are one of four arguments, and each has a clause above that prevents it.
- "I thought that was included." Clause 1. Describe deliverables in countable nouns. "Three page designs" can be checked off; "design work" cannot.
- "Can we just tweak it once more?" Clause 4. Naming a revision count turns endless feedback into a priced decision, without you having to be the one who raises it.
- "We're going to use it while we sort the invoice." Clause 5. Copyright transferring on payment, not on delivery, means the work isn't legally theirs until you've been paid. It's the single most useful sentence in the document.
- "We've decided to pause the project." Clause 7. Without it, a cancellation halfway through is a negotiation. With it, it's a calculation.
The dates clause people skip
Clause 2 ties your deadline to the client supplying what you need. Almost every late project is late because copy, access or a decision arrived weeks after it was promised, and without that sentence, the delay somehow becomes your problem. One line makes it symmetrical.
Two things this template deliberately doesn't do
It doesn't decide your IR35 status. If you're working through your own limited company for a medium or large client, the status determination is a separate question with real tax consequences, and a contract clause saying "not employment" doesn't settle it. HMRC looks at how the work actually runs.
It also isn't a lawyer. It's a solid, plain-English starting point that covers the arguments freelancers actually have. For work with real money or real risk attached, spend an hour of a solicitor's time on it.
Use it with the rest
Contract for the relationship, statement of work for each project inside it, quote to win it, late payment letter for when clause 3 gets tested. Or run the whole cycle in Sedonis, where clients, agreed scope and what's actually been paid live in one private place.
More: what to include in a freelance contract and how to price freelance work.
Next steps
Read the guide
What the words mean
fills this in for you, tracks who's paid, and keeps every client and number in one private app. Free to start.
A free template for general use, not legal advice. Adapt it to your situation, and have a solicitor review it before you rely on it for anything significant.