Written change approval
A Simple Change-Order Template for Freelancers
A freelancer change record should identify the client’s request, the relevant original scope, the added or changed deliverable, the price, the schedule impact, and the approval status. Keep the language factual, let the professional set every commercial number, and obtain written approval before scheduling the additional work.
The useful part of a change order is not the document title. It is the sequence: a new request is compared with an existing commitment, its commercial effect is stated, and the decision becomes visible before work begins.
Field 1
Record the request in the client’s terms
Start with the date, project, requester, and a concise description of what the client asked for. Link or attach the original message when practical. Avoid emotional labels such as unreasonable, demanding, or last minute.
Restate the requested result in plain language. If the request is still too vague to estimate, mark the record as clarification required rather than forcing a price into an uncertain scope.
Field 2
Name the original scope boundary
Quote or reference the specific deliverable, revision limit, exclusion, assumption, or approval already agreed. “This was not included” is weaker than “the current scope includes one checkout flow and two revision rounds.”
If the existing agreement genuinely includes the work, stop the change-order process and confirm that it is included. A change record should clarify the deal, not create charges that contradict it.
Fields 3–5
Define deliverable, price, and schedule together
Describe the added output narrowly enough that both sides can recognize completion. Then enter the price and schedule effect decided by the professional. Do not leave timing implicit simply because the fee is clear.
If the change affects dependencies or acceptance, name those too: which assets the client supplies, who approves, when feedback is due, and what happens to the original launch date.
Approval
Make the next action unmistakable
End with a simple approval request that repeats the added deliverable, price, and timing. Written approval can be a signed change record, an accepted proposal, or an unambiguous email response, depending on the parties’ process.
Silence is not approval. A meeting discussion is not necessarily approval. Do not schedule or begin the extra work until the agreed approval step is complete.
After approval
Keep one audit trail
Store the request, scope reference, approved terms, relevant attachments, and status together. If the client later changes the change, create a new revision rather than editing history until nobody can see what was approved.
Use descriptive version names and dates. The record helps future communication, invoicing, and handoff, but it does not by itself determine legal rights or guarantee collection.
- Pending, approved, declined, or completed status
- Approval date and approver
- Versioned terms instead of overwritten history
- Invoice or project reference when applicable