Tender response times in 2026: the minimum periods by procedure
Minimum tendering and participation periods in 2026 under the Procurement Act 2023, the reductions available, amendments and the standstill period.
Updated on September 5, 2026
Verified on 5 September 2026.
The response time on a tender is the gap between publication of the tender notice and the submission deadline. For contracts above the threshold in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, section 54 of the Procurement Act 2023 sets minimum periods that a buyer cannot go below. Below the threshold there is no statutory minimum, only a duty to act proportionately. Scotland and Ireland keep the older EU-derived rules, which are longer.
Minimum periods under the Procurement Act 2023
The periods below run in calendar days from the day the tender notice is published, and were checked against section 54 of the Act on the verification date (verified 2026-09-05).
| Procedure and situation | Minimum period |
|---|---|
| Open procedure, tenders can be submitted electronically and all associated tender documents are available with the notice | 25 days |
| Open procedure, electronic submission but documents provided separately | 30 days |
| Open procedure, no electronic submission, documents available with the notice | 30 days |
| Open procedure, no electronic submission and documents provided separately | 35 days |
| Competitive flexible procedure, requests to participate | 25 days |
| Competitive flexible procedure, requests to participate, urgent circumstances | 10 days |
| Competitive flexible procedure, tenders at each round | The same minimums as the open procedure apply to the tendering period |
| Light touch contracts, requests to participate | No minimum |
| Below-threshold contracts | No minimum |
The tendering period can be cut to 10 days in four situations: the buyer published a qualifying planned procurement notice in the right window before the tender notice; the buyer considers there is a state of urgency and could not comply with the normal period; tenders are invited only from suppliers already selected, which is open to utilities and to authorities other than central government; or the suppliers were selected through membership of a dynamic market.
Two points bidders miss. First, the minimum is a floor, not a norm: section 54 also requires the buyer to have regard to the nature and complexity of the contract, the need for site visits, whether subcontracting is involved and whether the documents have been changed, so a complex contract advertised for exactly 25 days is open to challenge. Second, the time limits must be the same for every supplier.
The competitive flexible procedure in practice
The Act replaced the old restricted and negotiated procedures with a single competitive flexible procedure that the buyer designs itself: it can have one round or several, with or without negotiation, with or without a shortlist. What this means for your diary is that the timetable is published in the tender notice and the associated documents rather than fixed by law. Read the procurement-specific timetable at the start: dates for clarifications, for a shortlist decision, for a presentation or site visit, and for each round of tenders.
Below the threshold, and in Scotland and Ireland
Below the threshold, the buyer sets the period. In practice you will see two to four weeks, and sometimes less for a small quotation. There is no rule against a short period, but a period that no competent supplier could meet exposes the buyer to challenge under its general duties. If a deadline is genuinely too short for the work asked, say so in a clarification: extensions are common when several bidders ask.
In Scotland, the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015 still apply, with the EU-derived minimums: broadly 30 to 35 days for an open procedure, shorter where an electronic submission or a prior information notice allows a reduction, and a separate two-stage timetable for the restricted procedure. Ireland applies the same directives through its own regulations, with notices on eTenders and, above the EU thresholds, in the Official Journal through TED. In both cases the exact minimum is stated in the notice, and it is the notice that governs.
What an amendment does to the deadline
A notice amendment is published when the buyer changes something after the original notice. Where the change is material, for example a new specification, a revised pricing schedule or a change to the award criteria, the buyer must reconsider whether the remaining time is still sufficient and, in practice, extend the deadline. A minor correction, such as a wrong contact address or a CPV code, does not require an extension.
Two consequences for a bidder:
- read every amendment, not just the first line: the new deadline, when there is one, is in the amending notice and on the buyer's e-sourcing portal, while the old date often remains visible on the original notice and on aggregators that do not refresh;
- ask your clarification questions early. Answers arriving days before the deadline are a classic reason for asking for more time, and the request carries more weight when the question was asked promptly.
How to count the days
- The clock starts on the day the tender notice is published on the central digital platform, not the day you happen to see it. If your watch runs weekly, you can lose a fifth of a 25-day period before you start.
- The periods are calendar days, so weekends and bank holidays count. A 25-day period announced just before Christmas or a late May bank holiday gives fewer working days than the same period in October.
- The time of day matters. Most buyers set noon or 5pm, and the portal clock is the one that counts. A tender uploaded one minute late is rejected without being read, whatever the reason.
After the deadline: the standstill period
Once a buyer decides to award, it publishes a contract award notice and must observe a standstill period of at least eight working days, beginning with the day that notice is published, before entering into the contract. That is when your assessment summary arrives, and it is the window in which any challenge has to be raised. Some contracts, such as those awarded under a framework or in genuinely urgent circumstances, are exempt from the mandatory standstill.
In summary
| Situation | Period to plan for |
|---|---|
| Open procedure, electronic submission, documents with the notice | 25 days |
| Open procedure, documents provided separately | 30 days |
| Competitive flexible procedure | 25 days to be shortlisted, then a tendering period per round |
| Reduced period after a qualifying planned procurement notice or in urgency | 10 days |
| Below-threshold contract | Usually 2 to 4 weeks, check every notice |
| Standstill before signature | At least 8 working days |
These are minimums: buyers routinely give more time on complex contracts, and the planned procurement notices published months ahead are your best way of knowing a competition is coming. Scoutee shows the deadline on every notice and flags the amendments that move it.