How to bid for government tenders in South Africa.

South Africa at a glance

The 2026 ruling: why nothing changed

• The Act. Parliament passed the Public Procurement Act 28 of 2024 to replace much of the framework. It was to start by proclamation, and draft regulations were published in April 2026.
• The ruling. On 17 September 2026, the Constitutional Court declared the whole Act invalid. It found that Parliament adopted the Act in a manner inconsistent with the Constitution, because the preferential-procurement chapter was rewritten late without adequate public participation. The declaration wasn’t suspended.
• What happens next. The Minister of Finance said he noted and respects the judgment and will engage Parliament on new legislation.
• What that means for bidders: day-to-day rules don’t change.
  • The PFMA and MFMA and their supply-chain rules still apply.
  • So do the PPPFA and the 2022 Preferential Procurement Regulations.
  • The CSD and the eTender portal continue.
  • The Act’s planned procurement tribunal never existed.

Thresholds and procedures

National and provincial departments and many public entities (PFMA):

• Municipalities (MFMA) have their own thresholds. Quotations are reported to run up to R300,000 for local municipalities, R200,000 for districts and R750,000 for metros, with competitive bidding above. Bids over R10 million get at least 30 days.
• Construction: public projects of R30,000 or more must use a CIDB-registered contractor and be advertised on the CIDB i-Tender portal.
• Transversal contracts. National Treasury arranges transversal term contracts (the “RT” contracts) that departments buy from.
• State-owned companies such as Eskom and Transnet run their own e-tendering portals.

Preference points and specific goals

Under the 2022 Regulations:

• Specific goals. The 20 or 10 points go to “specific goals” chosen by the buyer and stated in the tender. They usually cover contracting with people historically disadvantaged by race, gender or disability, such as ownership by black people, women, youth or people with disabilities.
• B-BBEE status level isn’t used as such to award these points, although a B-BBEE certificate can be accepted as proof of a goal.
• What it means for foreign firms. A typical foreign-owned bidder scores little or nothing on specific goals and competes on price. Options to improve your score:
  • a joint venture with a qualifying South African firm;
  • multinationals can earn B-BBEE ownership recognition through equity-equivalent investment programmes.
• Local content. The 2022 Regulations dropped the old national local-content “designations”. Buyers can still set local production as a specific goal, and some state companies have localisation policies, so check each tender.
• Ties go to the highest specific-goals score, then a draw. A buyer can award to someone other than the top scorer only on objective criteria.
• False claims. False specific-goal claims can lead to disqualification, termination and damages.

Foreign companies: registration and tax

• The CSD. Register on the Central Supplier Database (secure.csd.gov.za) as a foreign company, using your home registration number or ISIN. It’s free. South African tax numbers are optional, and foreign bank accounts are accepted.
• Tax status:
  • the standard bid form (SBD 1) asks foreign suppliers whether they have South African residency, a branch, a permanent establishment, South African-source income or tax liability;
  • if all the answers are no, you don’t need a SARS tax compliance PIN;
  • before award, SARS confirms the recommended foreign bidder’s status to the buyer.
• Consortia and joint ventures: each party submits its own tax proof or CSD number, plus the joint-venture agreement.
• Doing business in South Africa. If you’ll actually conduct business there, register with CIPC as an external company within 20 business days.
• Construction (CIDB).
  • Who can register: external companies need an office in South Africa, a physical address there and CIPC registration before they can register as contractors.
  • Grades set the tender values you can take on: Grade 2 up to R1 million, through Grade 8 up to R200 million; Grade 9 has no limit.
  • Joint ventures: every partner must be CIDB-registered, and the combined grade must match the tender.

Bidding, step by step

1. Find tenders on etenders.gov.za (all levels of government), on Eskom’s and Transnet’s portals, and on the CIDB i-Tender portal for construction.
2. Decide your South African footprint: CIPC registration if you’ll conduct business there, and always for construction.
3. Register on the CSD as a foreign company.
4. Settle your tax status: either get a SARS tax PIN, or answer “no” on the foreign-supplier questionnaire.
5. For works, get CIDB grading in the right class.
6. Read the tender data:
   • mandatory requirements;
   • the functionality criteria and minimum score (often 60–70%);
   • the 80/20 or 90/10 system, the specific goals and the proof required;
   • bid validity (often 90 days);
   • any compulsory briefing session.
7. Complete the standard forms without retyping them:
   • SBD 1 (invitation and foreign questionnaire);
   • SBD 4 (declaration of interest);
   • SBD 6.1 (preference claim). Submit by the closing time, often online. Late bids are rejected.
8. Evaluation:
   • a responsiveness check;
   • the functionality threshold, below which bids are eliminated;
   • then price and specific-goals points.
9. Award. Awards above R1 million are published on the eTender portal and in the Tender Bulletin. Provide performance security within 30 days if required.

Payment and guarantees

• Payment: national and provincial bodies must pay within 30 days of receiving an invoice, unless the contract says otherwise. Municipalities must take reasonable steps to do the same.
  • Compliance varies. Treasury publishes quarterly late-payment reports and runs an escalation address (30daysqueries@treasury.gov.za).
• Goods and services: the Treasury General Conditions of Contract set:
  • payment within 30 days of an invoice;
  • performance security within 30 days of award, as a bank guarantee or irrevocable letter of credit from a reputable bank in South Africa or abroad;
  • disputes go to consultation, then mediation, then South African courts.
• Construction:
  • contracts use standard forms (GCC for construction works, FIDIC, JBCC or NEC);
  • guarantees are capped at 10% (fixed) or 12.5% (variable);
  • retention is capped at 10%, or 5% where a guarantee is given.

Challenging a decision

• There’s no specialist procurement tribunal. The 2024 Act’s tribunal never started.

1. Ask for reasons. Under the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act (PAJA), you can request reasons within 90 days.
2. Use the buyer’s objection procedure. At municipalities, you can object within 14 days. An independent person deals with it, and matters unresolved after 60 days can go to the provincial treasury. National bodies follow their own policies.
3. Judicial review. Apply to the High Court within 180 days of learning of the decision and its reasons. Courts usually expect internal remedies to be used first, and can extend the deadline in the interests of justice.

What changed in 2025–2026

• January 2026: draft amendments to the B-BBEE Codes of Good Practice were published for comment.
• 16 April 2026: draft General Public Procurement Regulations were published under the 2024 Act. Comment closed on 15 July 2026.
• 17 September 2026: the Constitutional Court declared the Public Procurement Act 2024 invalid. The draft regulations now have no parent Act, and Treasury will engage Parliament on new legislation.
• For bidders: day-to-day rules haven’t changed.

Live South African tenders

See also which countries can bid on which government tenders.

Questions

Sources

• Minister of Finance notes and respects the Constitutional Court judgment on the Public Procurement Act (17 September 2026)
• Preferential Procurement Regulations, 2022 (National Treasury)
• PFMA SCM Instruction 02 of 2021/22: procurement thresholds
• eTender Publication Portal
• SARS: tax compliance for foreign entities bidding for government tenders
• CIDB: register of contractors

This guide explains the rules in plain English; it isn’t legal advice. Procurement rules change, and each tender document sets its own conditions — it always prevails.