Procurement policy note 03/16: publication of payment performance statistics · first published 29 March 2016
This Procurement Policy Note (PPN) 03/16 restates a rule from the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR 2015): contracting authorities (public-sector buyers) must publish payment performance data every year, starting after March 2016. The data must show whether they are meeting their legal obligation to pay invoices within 30 days to first-tier suppliers and prime contractors. The note sits alongside separate statutory guidance on cascading 30-day payment terms down the supply chain. For a small business, this matters because it creates a public, searchable record of how fast a buyer actually pays — useful intelligence before you bid. It does not directly change what you must do, but it strengthens the payment-on-time framework you can rely on.
WHO THIS APPLIES TO
THE ENKII VIEW
The transparency angle is the practical win for SMEs: if a contracting authority is consistently late, its own published data will show it — giving small bidders a pre-bid risk signal. The 30-day payment obligation itself already existed; this PPN adds the accountability layer. SMEs already in a supply chain (as sub-contractors to a prime) benefit indirectly, because the broader statutory guidance this PPN supports pushes 30-day terms down the chain.
1. Before bidding, search for the contracting authority's published payment performance statistics to check whether they consistently pay within 30 days — use this as a cash-flow risk indicator when deciding whether and how to price a bid.
SMEs bidding on or considering public contracts — Contracting authorities are legally required to publish annual payment performance data from March 2016 onwards under regulation 113(7) of the PCR 2015, making late-payment patterns publicly visible.
2. When negotiating sub-contract terms, cite the statutory guidance on 30-day payment down the supply chain to push for 30-day payment terms in your sub-contract agreement.
SMEs working as sub-contractors to a prime contractor on public contracts — The PPN explicitly supports statutory guidance requiring 30-day payment terms to flow down the supply chain, giving sub-contractors a recognised policy basis for their request.
3. If a contracting authority's published data shows it is not meeting the 30-day requirement, raise this with the authority directly and, if unresolved, escalate via the relevant Crown Commercial Service or complaints route — the public data is your evidence.
SMEs who have experienced late payment from a public-sector buyer — Annual publication of payment performance is designed to demonstrate compliance; a gap between stated performance and your experience is a documented, actionable discrepancy.
Every rule below quotes the official document verbatim.
Contracting authorities must publish payment performance data after March 2016, and then at the end of each financial year. (All contracting authorities in scope of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, from March 2016 onwards.)
“After March 2016, and then at the end of each financial year, contracting authorities are required to publish data demonstrating compliance with the obligation to pay invoices within 30 days”
The published data must cover the previous 12 months and demonstrate compliance with the 30-day payment obligation to first-tier suppliers and prime contractors. (All contracting authorities in scope of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015.)
“publish data demonstrating compliance with the obligation to pay invoices within 30 days to first tier suppliers/prime contractors over the previous 12 months”
The 30-day payment publication requirement is grounded in regulation 113(7) of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. (All contracting authorities subject to the Public Contracts Regulations 2015.)
“This procurement policy note (PPN) restates the annual publication requirements under regulation 113(7) of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015.”
The PPN supports statutory guidance on paying undisputed invoices within 30 days down the entire supply chain (not just to first-tier suppliers). (All contracting authorities and, by extension, prime contractors passing terms down the supply chain.)
“This PPN supports the Public Contracts Regulations: statutory guidance for contracting authorities on paying undisputed invoices in 30 days down the supply chain.”
This briefing is enkii's interpretation of the official document — the official text always governs.
Source document © Crown copyright, reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0 via the GOV.UK Content API. enkii tracks every Procurement Policy Note and briefs changes the day they land — see all briefings.