To bid for a Singapore public sector tender, a firm must be able to transact on GeBIZ, hold any registration the tender specifies (for construction, BCA’s Contractors Registration System at a grade that covers the contract value), submit a complete bid electronically before the closing time, and meet the evaluation criteria published in the tender documents. Procurement above S$90,000 is conducted by tender, according to the Ministry of Finance. This guide sets out each requirement in the order a bidder encounters it, with the construction-specific rules that apply to contractors, developers and their design teams.

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TL;DR

Government procurement valued above S$90,000 uses tender, and open notices are published on GeBIZ; construction projects not exceeding S$1 million may fall under the simplified Tender Lite route.
Construction bidders must be registered under BCA’s Contractors Registration System (CRS), and the registered grade and workhead limit the contract value a firm may tender for.
Bids are submitted electronically through GeBIZ, and late submissions are not accepted.
Evaluation criteria are published with the tender; construction tenders of S$3 million and above are assessed under the Price Quality Method.
Successful bidders on standard public sector contracts provide a security deposit after the Letter of Acceptance, so financing for it should be arranged before bidding.

When a tender is required and where notices are published
Who may bid: registration and eligibility
What a tender submission contains
Standard conditions of contract
Deposits and security
How bids are evaluated
Briefings, clarifications and submission
Preparation sequence for a construction bidder
Perspective
Support for the design and approval side of a bid
FAQ
Sources

When a tender is required and where notices are published

The threshold is the first thing to establish. Government procurement valued at more than S$90,000 proceeds by tender, and open tender notices are published on GeBIZ, as the Ministry of Finance explains. Below that value, agencies generally use quotations, which carry lighter formalities.

GeBIZ is the single portal for these notices. Anyone can view the header information of open and closed tenders without logging in, but the detailed tender documents can be downloaded only after logging in as a GeBIZ Trading Partner, according to the GeBIZ FAQ. A firm that intends to bid regularly should therefore complete Trading Partner registration before a suitable notice appears, not after.

The Government Procurement Guide for Suppliers distinguishes several routes above S$90,000: open tender, in which any interested supplier may bid against the stated requirements, selective tender, which is a two-stage process beginning with an expression of interest, and term contracts or framework agreements. The same guide lists Tender Lite for values not exceeding S$1 million and standard tender above that figure.

Tender Lite for construction works

Tender Lite for construction services was implemented in May 2025. It covers works such as building, repairing or altering structures and is intended to reduce administrative processes for projects not exceeding S$1 million in estimated value, according to the GeBIZ supplier guide on Tender Lite. For smaller alteration and addition works, this lowers the documentary burden, although registration and capability requirements stated in the notice still apply.

Who may bid: registration and eligibility

Eligibility has two layers: the general supplier layer and the sector layer.

Government supplier registration

Some agencies treat valid Government Supplier Registration as an evaluation criterion for a particular tender, as stated in the supplier guide. The notice itself specifies whether this applies, so it should be read before any preparation begins.

Contractors Registration System (CRS)

For construction, firms must register with the CRS to participate in public sector construction tenders, and firms that hire construction S Pass or Work Permit holders must also register, according to BCA’s CRS page. Registration requires company information, financial documents such as audited accounts, and proof of personnel qualifications.

The registration is not a single status. Each firm is registered under one or more workheads, for example CW01 for General Building and CW02 for Civil Engineering, at a particular grade. BCA’s tendering limits restrict the maximum project value a firm can bid for according to that grade and workhead. BCA publishes the limits for each annual period, so the table for the current period should be checked on that page before a bid is priced.

Requirement	What it governs	Where to confirm
GeBIZ Trading Partner login	Downloading tender documents and submitting a bid	GeBIZ FAQ
Government Supplier Registration	Evaluation criterion in some tenders	Tender notice
CRS workhead and grade	Eligibility and maximum contract value for construction	BCA CRS and tendering limits pages
Registration of foreign worker hiring	Firms employing construction S Pass or Work Permit holders	BCA CRS page

What a tender submission contains

The exact list is defined by each tender, and common elements recur. The published eligibility criteria of tenders typically address past experience, financial standing, legal status and technical capability. A representative public sector construction-related tender shows the structure: an LTA tender document calls for a term non-disclosure agreement, a tender price, price documents and technical documents under a two-envelope bidding system. In a two-envelope system, the technical and price components are submitted separately so that quality can be assessed on its own terms.

In practice, a construction bidder should assemble the following before the notice closes:

Corporate documents: registration details, current CRS certificate showing workhead and grade, and supplier registration where required.
Financial documents: audited accounts and any financial standing evidence the tender specifies.
Technical proposal: method statement, programme, resource plan, key personnel and their qualifications, and the track record of comparable projects.
Safety submissions: safety management arrangements and past performance, which weigh more heavily in current evaluations (see the section on evaluation below).
Price documents: the priced schedule in the format GeBIZ prescribes, in Singapore dollars.
Design and compliance inputs: for design-and-build tenders, structural and geotechnical design basis, and an authority submission strategy.

A bidder that has to price design-and-build works should not treat item 6 as an afterthought. Structural, civil, geotechnical and M&E assumptions drive both the price and the programme risk, and the authority approvals needed afterwards are the factor most likely to move the completion date.

Standard conditions of contract

Public sector construction projects use standardised contract forms. The Public Sector Standard Conditions of Contract (PSSCOC) provide one form for all public sector construction projects, which reduces tendering effort and the need for extensive negotiation, according to BCA’s PSSCOC page. That page covers the 2020 editions and the PSSCOC-lite introduced in 2025.

Because the form is standard, the bidder’s attention belongs on the contract-specific appendix, where the employer states values such as the security deposit, liquidated damages and time for completion.

Deposits and security

Bid-stage deposits and award-stage security are different things, and the distinction matters for cash planning.

Some tenders, including certain non-construction or private tenders, ask for a tender deposit with the submission; where this applies, the tender document states the amount in Singapore dollars, and it must not be assumed from another tender. Public sector construction is more predictable at award stage. Under clause 4.5 of the PSSCOC for Construction Works (July 2020), the contractor deposits with the employer the amount specified in the Appendix as security within 14 days of the Letter of Acceptance, or a longer period the employer prescribes. The Design and Build form contains a corresponding clause.

The amount is therefore set by the employer in the Appendix, not by a fixed formula in the form. A bidder should read the Appendix during bid preparation and confirm with its bank or insurer that the facility is available, since the 14-day window is short.

How bids are evaluated

Bids are evaluated against criteria published in the tender documents, generally covering both quality and price, as the Ministry of Finance states.

For construction, BCA’s Price Quality Method (PQM) framework applies to tenders of S$3 million and above, assessing price together with quality attributes such as safety performance and track record. The framework took effect on 1 November 2024. Practically, the lowest price no longer guarantees an award on larger projects, and a firm with a documented safety and delivery record can compete on more than price.

Safety criteria deserve their own preparation. Our article on meeting enhanced safety criteria in public sector tenders explains how these requirements are approached from the contractor’s side.

Briefings, clarifications and submission

Agencies may hold mandatory or encouraged tender briefings and site show-rounds to clarify project requirements, according to the supplier guide. Where a briefing is mandatory, absence can disqualify a bid, so the notice should be checked for it on the day it is found.

The same guide advises seeking clarification from the agency when a requirement is unclear, for example how to complete the price schedule in GeBIZ. Questions are best raised early, because the clarification window closes before the tender does.

All tender bids must be submitted electronically through GeBIZ before the specified closing date and time. Late submissions are not accepted, and suppliers are encouraged to upload well ahead of the deadline to allow for technical delays. A sensible internal rule is to complete the upload at least a working day before closing and keep the system confirmation with the bid file.

Preparation sequence for a construction bidder

Confirm GeBIZ Trading Partner access and any supplier registration.
Verify the CRS workhead and grade against the tendering limit for the contract value.
Download the tender documents and list every mandatory form, certificate and personnel requirement.
Attend the briefing or show-round if one is offered.
Raise clarification questions in writing within the stated window.
Secure the security deposit facility named in the Appendix.
Price, review internally, and upload early.

Perspective

Across the tenders our clients pursue, the commercial price is rarely what delays a project after award. Delay comes from design assumptions that were never tested against authority requirements. A contractor who has priced a structure without considering BCA structural plan approval, geotechnical conditions near an excavation, SCDF fire safety requirements or JTC and URA conditions has priced a risk and not a scope.

We therefore advise bidders to involve a qualified Professional Engineer and the design team before the tender closes. Stellar Structures is led by a Professional Engineer with decades of experience in Singapore infrastructure, and our teams support design-and-build and construction bids with civil, structural, geotechnical and M&E input, together with authority submissions across BCA, URA, HDB, JTC, SCDF, PUB, LTA, NEA and NParks.

A bid that shows the evaluator a considered design basis and a realistic approval path demonstrates the technical competence that quality-weighted evaluation is designed to reward. That is a position built on how submissions are processed and approved, and it is the reason we encourage early engineering input and not a late check.

Aman

Support for the design and approval side of a bid

Bidders who need engineering and compliance input can engage us for structural, geotechnical, architectural and M&E design, design checks, and authority submissions. Details of each service are on our services page, and our guide to authority submission services explains how approvals are sequenced.

For related preparation, see our notes on how to submit BCA plans without delays, the checklist for choosing the right QP and supervision team, and geotechnical submission requirements. To discuss a specific tender, contact us through structures.com.sg.

FAQ

Do I need to be registered to download tender documents?

Open and closed tender headers on GeBIZ can be viewed without logging in. Detailed tender documents can be downloaded only after logging in as a GeBIZ Trading Partner, so registration should be completed before a relevant notice appears.

What is the minimum value for a government tender?

Government procurement valued at more than S$90,000 is conducted by tender. Below that value, agencies generally procure by quotation. For construction works not exceeding S$1 million, the Tender Lite process may apply.

Can a construction firm bid for any contract value?

No. Under CRS, the registered workhead and grade set the maximum project value a firm may tender for. BCA publishes the tendering limits for each annual period, and the notice may add further requirements.

Is a deposit required with the bid?

This depends on the tender, and the tender document states any amount. Under the PSSCOC for construction works, the successful contractor deposits the security specified in the Appendix within 14 days of the Letter of Acceptance, unless a longer period is prescribed.

What happens if I miss the closing time?

Bids must be submitted electronically through GeBIZ before the closing date and time, and late submissions are not accepted. Uploading well before the deadline allows for technical delays.

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Tender Requirements in Singapore: A Bidder’s Guide