Quotations or tenders? The thresholds that decide
When government buys through petty cash, written price quotations or open competitive bids: National Treasury's thresholds for departments and public entities, and the regulations for municipalities.
Checked against the official sources listed below on 11 October 2026.
Why it matters
How an organ of state buys depends on the value of what it buys. Smaller purchases go out as requests for written price quotations, invited from suppliers on the Central Supplier Database; larger ones are advertised as open competitive bids. Knowing the thresholds tells you where to look and what kind of response is expected.
National and provincial departments and public entities
National Treasury's PFMA SCM Instruction No. 02 of 2021/22 sets these thresholds, including all applicable taxes:
- petty cash: up to R2 000, without inviting quotations;
- written price quotations: above R2 000 up to R1 000 000, invited from suppliers registered on the CSD, with at least three quotations from three different suppliers where possible; and
- open competitive bids: above R1 000 000, published on the eTender Publication Portal, where the awards are published too.
Lower thresholds are allowed
An institution may set lower thresholds in its own supply chain management policy, but not higher ones, and may require a competitive bid below R1 million. Purchases may not be split into smaller parts to avoid the competitive process. National Treasury has amended the instruction twice; the second amendment (January 2024) brought it in line with the 2022 preference regulations and left the thresholds unchanged.
Municipalities
Municipalities follow the Municipal Supply Chain Management Regulations, as amended on 14 December 2023. Including VAT:
- formal written price quotations: above R2 000 up to R300 000 for a local municipality, up to R200 000 for a district municipality and up to R750 000 for a metropolitan municipality;
- competitive bidding: above those amounts; and
- consultancy services: a competitive bid when the contract is above those amounts or runs for more than a year.
What to do
Register on the Central Supplier Database — quotations are invited from suppliers registered there, and some organs of state send their requests for quotation through the CSD itself, where genuine ones appear under the My RFQ menu — and keep your tax compliance and B-BBEE documents current so you can answer a request within its closing period. Watch the eTender Publication Portal and organs of state's own websites for open bids.
Where Govermate fits
Govermate lists the requests for quotation it holds separately from other tenders, so you can browse them on their own in the opportunities feed.
Official sources
- PFMA SCM Instruction No. 02 of 2021/22: procurement thresholds and processes(opens the official page in a new tab)National Treasury
- 2nd Amendment to PFMA SCM Instruction No. 02 of 2021/22(opens the official page in a new tab)National Treasury
- Instruction notes(opens the official page in a new tab)Office of the Chief Procurement Officer, National Treasury
- Amendments to Regulations regarding Supply Chain Management (Government Notice 4198, 14 December 2023)(opens the official page in a new tab)National Treasury
- MFMA regulations and gazettes(opens the official page in a new tab)National Treasury
- Request for quotations (RFQs) online evaluation overview: for suppliers (fact sheet, 2026)(opens the official page in a new tab)National Treasury