Construction Library
Project delivery
Practical completion
Also known as: PC
Practical completion marks the point when construction work is finished enough for the client to take over the building, bar minor snags.
Practical completion, often shortened to PC, is the point at which the works are complete except for minor snagging, and the client can take possession and use the building. It is a significant contractual milestone: it usually triggers the handover, starts the defects liability period, and releases part of the retention.
Exactly what counts as practical completion depends on the contract, so the definition in your JCT or NEC contract is what matters in practice.