Sole-Source (Non-Competitive) Contract
A Canadian government contract awarded without a competitive process, permitted only under specific exceptions in the Government Contracts Regulations. Federal sole-source intentions are often posted as an Advance Contract Award Notice (ACAN) for challenge.
Definition
A sole-source, or non-competitive, contract is one a government buyer awards directly to a single supplier without running an open competition. In Canadian federal procurement, sole-sourcing is the exception, not the norm: the Government Contracts Regulations permit it only in defined circumstances, such as a pressing emergency, situations where only one supplier is capable of performing the work, contracts below a low-dollar threshold, or cases where a competition would not serve the public interest. Provincial and municipal procurement policies contain comparable but distinct exception lists.
How it works in Canadian procurement
When a federal department intends to sole-source a contract that would otherwise be competed, it frequently posts an Advance Contract Award Notice (ACAN) on CanadaBuys. The ACAN names the intended supplier and the rationale and gives other vendors a minimum challenge period (commonly 15 calendar days) to submit a statement of capabilities showing they can also meet the requirement. If a credible challenge is received, the department must run a competitive process; if none is received, the contract proceeds to the named supplier. Sole-source contracts still appear in proactive disclosure, so the public record shows non-competitive awards and their values. For cleaning vendors, an ACAN is an opportunity: a well-supported statement of capabilities can convert a planned sole-source into a competition.
Common confusions
A sole-source contract is not the same as a competitive tender that received only one bid; the latter is still a competition. A second confusion is treating an ACAN as a guaranteed award to the named supplier: it is a contestable intention, not a closed deal. Finally, sole-sourcing is constrained by trade agreements as well as domestic regulation, so the available exceptions narrow as contract value rises above trade-agreement thresholds.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, but only under specific exceptions in the Government Contracts Regulations and equivalent provincial or municipal policies, such as a single capable supplier, a pressing emergency, or low-dollar values.
An Advance Contract Award Notice. It publicly announces an intended sole-source award and gives other vendors a set period, commonly 15 days, to challenge by showing they can also meet the requirement.
Yes. Submitting a credible statement of capabilities during the ACAN challenge period can force the buyer to run a competitive process instead.
Related terms
- Request for Proposal (RFP): A formal procurement notice used by Canadian government buyers to solicit competitive bids for goods or services of every kind, from professional services and construction to IT, facilities, and cleaning contracts.
- CanadaBuys: The Government of Canada's central electronic tendering service for federal goods and services procurement across all categories, from IT and consulting to construction, facilities, and cleaning.
- Standing Offer: A pre-arranged Canadian government procurement vehicle that lets buyers issue call-ups for goods or services on demand, at pre-negotiated rates, without re-running a full RFP each time.
See Sole-Source (Non-Competitive) Contract terms in real Canadian government contracts
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