Emergency contracting limits

An emergency contracting limit is the maximum total value for which an authorized contracting authority may enter into or amend a contract or contractual arrangement in response to a pressing emergency. The value normally includes applicable taxes, fees and amendments. The limit is set in federal procurement policy, and it differs by department. See the Treasury Board procedure on contracting authorities for the wording.

The term is used in the Government of Canada's Directive on the Management of Procurement, which is administered under Treasury Board policy. It applies only where normal contracting procedures cannot meet the requirement because of the urgency, and where delay would be injurious to the public interest. It sits alongside related concepts such as non-competitive contracting, pressing emergency, contracting authority, exceptional contracting limits and departmental contracting limits.

What counts as a pressing emergency under these limits

A pressing emergency exists for this authority when two conditions are met. First, a delay in approval would be injurious to the public interest. Second, the requirement cannot be satisfied through normal contracting procedures because of the urgency. Both conditions must hold. A requirement that is simply late, or that was poorly planned, does not meet the test on its own.

The CanadaBuys buyer's guide on emergency requirements sets out how federal buyers handle these situations. The emergency authority does not remove the need for a contract or contractual arrangement. A contracting authority must still put one in place within the applicable limit.

Current federal limits by department

The limits below come from the Treasury Board Directive on the Management of Procurement.

• Most departments: up to $3 million for a competitive or non-competitive contract in response to a pressing emergency (Directive).
• Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC): up to $25 million for a non-competitive emergency contract on behalf of any department, including PSPC (CanadaBuys).
• Shared Services Canada: up to $25 million for a non-competitive contract (Directive).
• Department of National Defence: up to $11 million for non-competitive contracts for fuel, food, water and transportation services during urgent Canadian Forces deployments under authorized operational orders (Directive).
• Fisheries and Oceans Canada: up to $16 million for non-competitive contracts responding to pressing emergencies involving actual or potential marine pollution (Directive).
• Global Affairs Canada: special limits apply to major crises abroad and national-security-related threats, including limits of $5 million, $15 million and $24 million, depending on the requirement (Directive).

The 2024 increase to the limits

Treasury Board Secretariat raised the general departmental emergency contracting limit from $1 million to $3 million. It also raised the PSPC and Shared Services Canada limits from $15 million to $25 million. The change is recorded in Contracting Policy Notice 2024-2.

The notice matters for anyone reading older guidance. Documents that cite the earlier figures are out of date, so check the current Directive before relying on a number.

What emergency contracting limits mean for suppliers

For a supplier, the limit is an internal government authorization threshold. It is not a supplier entitlement, and it does not guarantee any work. It tells you how much a given department can commit quickly when an emergency arises, and which department is likely to hold the authority.

A supplier responding to an emergency requirement must still comply with the solicitation or contract terms. That includes any applicable security, technical, delivery, reporting and invoicing requirements. Because the applicable value includes amendments and stated taxes or fees, a contract that grows through amendments can reach the ceiling. Suppliers should plan pricing and scope changes with that ceiling in mind, using the CanadaBuys emergency requirements guidance as a reference.