Mandatory Bid Criteria

Mandatory bid criteria are obligatory requirements that a bidder must satisfy for its bid to receive further consideration. They are generally assessed objectively on a pass/fail basis. A bid that fails any one of them is normally treated as non-compliant or non-responsive, and the evaluation of that bid stops.

The term belongs to the evaluation criteria of a solicitation. Mandatory criteria set the minimum requirements essential to performing the work. They are separate from rated criteria, which award points to measure relative strengths rather than decide basic eligibility. Canadian federal buyers use the concept across departments, and the Treasury Board uses the exact phrase "mandatory bid criteria" in its contracting directive.

How mandatory criteria work in a bid evaluation

A solicitation can contain mandatory criteria only, point-rated criteria only, or a combination of both, as Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) seminar notes on bidding opportunities explain. Where mandatory criteria apply, PSPC states that bidders must meet every mandatory criterion to proceed in the evaluation.

Treasury Board guidance says the same thing in its description of evaluation criteria. Criteria may consist of mandatory items, rated items, or both, and bids that fail the mandatory requirements receive no further consideration.

Examples of mandatory criteria in federal solicitations

PSPC lists accessibility features, financial stability, essential equipment-performance characteristics, and service-performance specifications as typical mandatory criteria on its bidding guidance page. The PSPC ProServices evaluation-criteria template adds licensing, minimum personnel qualifications, delivery deadlines, technical requirements, certifications, and budget limits. The template says mandatory requirements let evaluators screen out bidders who lack the necessary competence or capability.

On CanadaBuys, a solicitation may carry a section titled "Mandatory Technical Criteria". One federal request for proposals for ministerial meeting spaces and hospitality requires bidders to comply with all criteria in an appendix. It states that failure to comply makes the bid non-responsive without further consideration.

Mandatory bid criteria and Inuit and Nunavut benefits

The Treasury Board Directive on Government Contracts, Including Real Property uses the phrase "mandatory bid criteria" in connection with Inuit and Nunavut benefits requirements. It provides that an Inuit firm's bid must fulfill all mandatory bid criteria, including applicable intellectual-property, licensing, land-ownership, or similar requirements.

Treasury Board material identifies mandatory bid criteria such as employing Inuit labour, committing to on-the-job training or skills development for Inuit, using Inuit firms as subcontractors, and meeting specified Nunavut-presence requirements. These criteria apply in the procurements and real-property transactions the directive covers, as set out in the Treasury Board publication on the directive.

What buyers must do when they set mandatory criteria

Guidance directs buyers to limit mandatory criteria to requirements that are truly essential, clearly stated, and objectively measurable. The Office of the Procurement Ombud has stated in a procurement practice review that mandatory criteria must be clearly specified and must show bidders what their bids need to demonstrate to pass. Failure to meet a mandatory requirement must result in disqualification.

The Canada Revenue Agency reflects the same rule in its contract bidding and awards process audit. Solicitation documents must make clear that failing any mandatory criterion makes the bid non-compliant and subject to no further consideration.

What mandatory bid criteria mean for a supplier

Mandatory criteria decide whether your bid is scored at all. A strong technical proposal does not recover a missed pass/fail requirement, so build a compliance checklist from every mandatory item before drafting begins. Confirm that licences, certifications, personnel qualifications, and financial evidence are in hand and current. Check appendices and attachments, since mandatory technical criteria are often placed there. Answer each criterion directly and provide the proof the solicitation asks for, because evaluators assess these items objectively and bids that fail them are not evaluated further.