Commonwealth Procurement Rules
The Commonwealth Procurement RulesExternal Link (CPRs) outline the rules surrounding procurement contracts for Australian Government agencies.
The CPRs provide guidelines that we and any potential or current supplier must follow.
Understanding these responsibilities and relevant guidelines can also assist you in writing a targeted tender response.
Supplier diversity
The CPRs contain rules that promote equal opportunity within underrepresented groups.
These groups include registered Indigenous businesses and Australian Disability Enterprises.
You can gain an understanding of your participation requirements and our responsibilities regarding procurements by referring to our Supplier diversity page.
Digital services
CPRs set out rules we must comply with when procuring goods and services. There are additional rules and guidelines that must be followed for procurements with businesses within the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) goods and services sector.
The Digital Transformation Agency (DTA) ICT procurement pageExternal Link provides further information on the rules and guidelines. This aim to make it easier and less expensive for businesses to contract with the Australian Government and deliver better government services at a lower cost.
Modern slavery
The Commonwealth Modern Slavery Act 2018 establishes a national modern slavery reporting requirement for certain large businesses and other entities in the Australian market. This is to report on risks of modern slavery in their operations and supply chains.
For more information, see Modern slavery reporting requirementExternal Link.
Statement of tax record
Businesses tendering for Australian Government procurements that are undertaken through open tenders and have an estimated total value of over $4 million (including GST) must obtain a statement of tax record (STR) showing satisfactory engagement with the tax system.
First tier subcontractors undertaking work individually valued at over $4 million (including GST) for the prime contractor are also required to have a satisfactory tax record.
Visit our Statement of tax record page for more information on STRs including how to apply or what happens if your STR is unsatisfactory.
Senate order
The Senate Order on departmental and agency contracts requires agencies to publish details of contracts valued at $100,000 or more (including GST) that:
- have been entered into in the previous 12 months
- have not been fully performed.
The ATO assures that the listed contracts do not contain any inappropriate confidentiality provisions.
Procurement contracts
Reports are generated by the Department of Finance. They are available through the Senate Order Report on AusTenderExternal Link.
Non-procurement contracts
For non-procurement contracts, see the Senate Order 13 on entity contracts list below.
|
Contractor |
Subject matter |
Amount of consideration |
Start date |
Anticipated end date |
Whether contract contains provision requiring the parties to maintain confidentiality of any of its provisions (Yes/No) |
Whether contract contains other requirement of confidentiality (Yes/No) |
Reason(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Multiple recipients qualified under the terms of the National Tax Clinic (NTC) program |
14 substantially identical contracts with qualified recipients of grant agreements under the NTC program. The NTC program provides funding to tertiary education providers to operate tax clinics where unrepresented taxpayers can seek assistance with their tax and superannuation obligations. |
Amounts varying from $168,660 to $365,650. |
1/01/2022 |
31/03/2025 |
No |
No |
n/a |
|
Gateway Network Governance Body (GNGB) |
Supports the continuation of the governance framework for the Superannuation Transaction Network (STN). |
$1,483,900 |
3/09/2024 |
3/10/2028 |
No |
No |
n/a |
Estimated cost of complying with this order
The cost of compliance with the Senate order is estimated at $1,835, on the basis of full direct costs. That is, the cost of salaries for the time spent by staff on data collection, quality assurance, management and administrative support relating to the production of the Senate order.
Government Procurement (Judicial Review) Act 2018 (Cth)
The Government Procurement (Judicial Review) Act 2018 establishes an independent complaint mechanism for government procurement processes. The Act applies to contraventions or proposed contraventions of relevant Commonwealth Procurement Rules for relevant procurements.
For more information, see Procurement related complaints.