e-SRCL (electronic Security Requirements Check List)

e-SRCL stands for electronic Security Requirements Check List. It is the online version of the Government of Canada's Security Requirements Check List (SRCL), the form federal departments use to identify and communicate the security requirements attached to a procurement or contract.

The SRCL is Government of Canada form TBS/SCT 350-103. The electronic process is delivered through the Contract Security Program's online services and is available to authorized federal-government users. Suppliers do not complete the e-SRCL themselves, but the security clauses that come out of it appear in the solicitation and contract documents they bid on.

What the SRCL form identifies

The Treasury Board Secretariat page for form 350-103 describes the Security Requirements Check List as the document that records security needs tied to a requirement. These cover physical security, information technology security, personnel security screening, and access to protected or classified information or assets.

Every requisition, and every later tender or contractual document, that contains protected or classified requirements must be accompanied by a completed SRCL. The same applies to subcontracts. CanadaBuys guidance for buyers extends the rule to contracts, standing offers and supply arrangements with a security requirement, which must have an SRCL, a statement of work and the relevant security documents.

How a department completes and submits an e-SRCL

The client department, through its project authority, completes the checklist at the beginning of the procurement process. PSPC's contract security manual states that the SRCL forms part of the bid solicitation documents.

A Government of Canada Supply Manual refers to the electronic version as the "E-SRCL" and sets out the approval step. The departmental security officer, or a delegated security authority, approves the form before the security clauses are prepared for inclusion in the resulting contract, standing offer or supply arrangement. The department then submits the approved form through the online service. The Contract Security Program's online industrial security services include an online SRCL service where authorized federal users complete and submit form TBS/SCT 350-103 electronically.

Speed and accuracy compared with the paper process

The online service is described as secure and confidential, and as faster and more accurate than completing the checklist by hand. CanadaBuys states that the e-SRCL provides the appropriate security clauses for a solicitation within two working days, compared with 15 working days for hard-copy processing.

For buyers, that means fewer errors in the form and a shorter wait before a solicitation can be issued. For suppliers, it means security requirements are more likely to be stated correctly and clearly when the bid documents are published.

What e-SRCL means for a supplier bidding on Canadian public contracts

When a solicitation includes security requirements, read the security clauses and the SRCL information in the bid documents before you commit to bidding. They state the conditions your organization must meet, including the screening of personnel and the safeguarding of information and assets.

• Check whether the solicitation lists a security requirement and what level of access it describes.
• Confirm your organization can meet the stated conditions before bid closing, using the PSPC security requirements in contracting guidance.
• After contract award, give your company security officer the contract's security requirements and the SRCL.
• Expect security requirements to flow down to any subcontractor that will handle protected or classified information or assets.

Because the SRCL is part of the solicitation package, bid teams should treat it as a core compliance document and not as an administrative attachment.