Change-Order / Scope-Creep Checklist

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Not legal advice. Templates and checklists only — adapt to your practice and seek professional advice for contracts.

Why this exists

Most unpaid overtime on freelance jobs starts as a polite “quick tweak.” This one-pager helps you spot scope creep early, write it down, and agree a change order before you do the work.

Use it mid-project when a client asks for something outside the original brief.

1. Pause before you say yes

[ ] Have I read the original proposal / SOW / email brief again?
[ ] Is this request in scope, a clarification, or new work?
[ ] Have I estimated hours (or a fixed fee) before committing in chat?
[ ] Am I about to reply “sure” in Slack / WhatsApp / email without a paper trail?

Rule of thumb: If it needs more than 30 minutes, or changes deliverables, timeline, or price — treat it as a change order.

2. Capture the request in writing

Copy into your project notes (or reply by email):

Field	Fill in
Date	[DD Month YYYY]
Client	[Client / company name]
Project	[Project name / reference]
Requested by	[Name]
Channel	Email / call / message (summarise)
What they asked for	[Plain-English description]
Why they say they need it	[Optional]

3. Classify the impact

Tick all that apply:

[ ] New deliverable (extra page, feature, asset, revision beyond agreed rounds)
[ ] Changed deliverable (different format, brand, audience, or tech)
[ ] Extra revision round beyond the number in the proposal
[ ] Timeline change (bring forward, delay, or add a milestone)
[ ] Third-party / access dependency (new tools, accounts, stakeholders)
[ ] Out of scope entirely (different service than sold)

Rough effort: ☐ under 1 hour ☐ 1–4 hours ☐ half day+ ☐ needs re-quote

4. Decide: absorb, amend, or decline

Option	When it fits	What you do
Absorb	Tiny, goodwill, under ~30 min, clearly within spirit of SOW	Confirm in writing: “Happy to include this as a small clarification — no extra fee.”
Amend (change order)	Material time, money, or risk	Send change-order note (section 5) before starting
Decline / defer	Wrong fit, unpaid rush, or kills margin	Offer a later phase or separate quote

5. Send a short change-order note

Paste / adapt (UK English):

Hi [Name],

Thanks for the request to [short description]. That’s outside the current scope for [Project].

Proposed change: [what you will do]
Extra fee: £[amount] (or [n] hours at £[rate])
Timeline impact: [none / +X days / new milestone date]
Payment: [e.g. invoice on approval / added to final invoice / 50% now]

If you’re happy, reply “approved” to this email and I’ll proceed. If you’d rather keep the original scope, we can park this for a later phase.

Thanks,
[Your name / trading name]

Before you start the extra work:

[ ] Client replied with clear approval (email preferred)
[ ] Fee and dates are stated in that thread
[ ] You’ve updated your tracker / calendar

6. Protect the next project (optional clauses)

Add language like this to future proposals (customise; not legal advice):

Revision cap: “Fee includes [n] rounds of revisions. Further rounds are billed at £[rate]/hour or via a written change order.”
Out of scope: “Anything not listed under In scope is excluded unless agreed in writing.”
Change process: “Material changes require written approval of fee and timeline before work begins.”

UK freelancers: for late invoices, familiarise yourself with the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 (and related regulations) — useful when chasing overdue fees; it does not replace a clear change-order habit.

Quick red flags

Signal	Response
“Can you just…” mid-delivery	Pause → classify → change order if material
Scope discussed only on a call	Follow up with a written summary the same day
“We’ll sort the fee later”	Decline to start until fee/timeline are agreed
Endless “final” tweaks	Point to revision cap; offer paid round

Free lead magnet — not a paid product

This checklist is a free OpsKit Digital sample for UK freelancers. It is not legal advice, not a solicitor-drafted contract, and not a substitute for professional advice on your specific situation.

A fuller Scope Guard pack (change-order form, email scripts, clause snippets) may be offered later as a low-cost digital download via the OpsKit Digital store when available. No purchase required to use this page.

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