Negotiation
Negotiation lets a public buyer discuss and improve tenders before award. Which procedures allow it in the UK and Ireland, the rules that apply and how to prepare.
Updated on September 5, 2026
Negotiation is the stage of a procurement in which the buyer discusses tenders with one or more suppliers so that they can be improved: price, timescales, technical content, delivery arrangements. It is only available where the chosen procedure allows it and where the buyer has said in advance that it will happen.
How it works
The Procurement Act 2023 (verified 2026-09-05) offers two competitive routes above threshold. In the open procedure, everyone tenders once and there is no negotiation; the buyer may only seek clarification or allow an obvious error to be corrected. In the competitive flexible procedure, the buyer designs the process itself and may build in one or more rounds of negotiation, dialogue or demonstration, provided the tender notice and associated documents describe them.
Below the thresholds, and in the light-touch and below-threshold procedures, the buyer is largely free to negotiate as long as it says so in the instructions to tenderers. Negotiation may cover any part of the tender but not the buyer's stated requirements or the award criteria, which can only be refined within limits published in advance. Equal treatment applies throughout: the same information to every remaining bidder, the same deadline for final tenders, and confidentiality of each bidder's commercial position. The buyer may run successive rounds and reduce the field between them if that was announced.
In Ireland the equivalents are the competitive procedure with negotiation and competitive dialogue under the 2016 procurement regulations, both restricted to defined grounds; open and restricted procedures allow no negotiation.
What it means for a bidder
Negotiation is an opportunity for a smaller firm: it lets you explain your offer, correct a misunderstanding and adjust a price or a scope. Prepare for it as you would for a commercial meeting: know your margins, decide in advance what you can concede and what you cannot, and bring alternatives.
Take the buyer's written record or request seriously and answer in the form asked for. Negotiation does not always mean cutting the price; it may concern the programme, the scope or the optional items. Stay consistent with your first tender, because a sudden drop invites scrutiny as an abnormally low tender.
Finally, do not count on negotiation to rescue a weak first submission. Buyers often negotiate only with the strongest tenders, and many award without negotiating at all.
Example
A fictional Welsh town council runs a below-threshold tender for a website rebuild estimated at £75,000, stating that it may negotiate with the three highest scoring bidders. A local digital agency, placed second, is invited to a session. The council wants a shorter delivery window and additional training. The agency proposes a tighter programme, adds a training day and holds its price. Its final tender takes first place.
Frequently asked questions
Is negotiation compulsory below threshold?
No. The buyer decides whether to allow it and may reserve the right to award on first tenders. Read the instructions to tenderers.
Can an open procedure be negotiated?
No. Only clarification is permitted, and it must not change the substance of the tender.
Must the buyer negotiate with everyone?
It may limit negotiation to the highest scoring bidders if that was announced. All bidders taken into negotiation must be treated the same way.