Last reviewed October 2026
Notification and acceptance
The procuring entity notifies the successful bidder in writing, and the other bidders of the outcome. Read the notification for what it asks you to do and by when, for example to accept in writing or provide a performance security.
Public procurement law sets a waiting period after notification before the contract can be signed, to allow complaints to be raised. The contract is signed within the tender's validity period.
Performance security
Many contracts require a performance security, usually a bank guarantee or insurance bond for a percentage of the contract value stated in the tender. Arrange it early, in the exact form the tender requires: failing to provide it in time can cost you the award.
Delivering the contract
- Read the signed contract and its special conditions: delivery dates, inspection and acceptance, penalties for delay
- Keep every delivery note, inspection report and acceptance certificate. They are what your payment depends on
- Raise variations in writing and get them approved before doing the extra work
- For goods, deliver exactly to the specification awarded; substitutes need written approval
Invoicing and eTIMS
KRA's electronic Tax Invoice Management System (eTIMS) is how businesses issue tax invoices that KRA can see. Buyers, public and private, increasingly need an eTIMS invoice before they can pay or claim the expense. Check KRA's current rules for your business and make sure your eTIMS set-up works before you invoice.
Public buyers may also withhold taxes from payments and remit them to KRA on your behalf. The certificates they give you matter for your own tax returns: keep them.
Following up payment
Send invoices with the supporting documents the contract lists, to the address it names, and keep proof of delivery. Track what is due and follow up in writing. If your cash is tied up while you wait, LPO and invoice financing from lenders is one option; compare its cost with your margin.
Tendakazi turns an award into a contract record with milestones, deliveries, invoices and what is still owed, and can relay financing requests to partner lenders.
General information for suppliers, not legal, tax or financial advice. Procurement law, regulations, thresholds and government systems change: check the current rules with the procuring entity, the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA), the National Treasury or KRA, and speak to an advocate or tax adviser about your own case.