Procurement Policy Note 04/17: New Threshold Levels 2018 · first published 22 December 2017
This Procurement Policy Note (PPN) originally set out new contract value threshold levels under the Public Contracts Regulations, which came into force on 1 January 2018. It applied to all contracting authorities across the public sector — central government, executive agencies, non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs), and the wider public sector. However, the document is now explicitly marked as out of date on GOV.UK. The current and relevant guidance on thresholds is PPN 10/21: Thresholds & Inclusion of VAT. Small businesses should not rely on this document for threshold figures when preparing bids.
WHO THIS APPLIES TO
THE ENKII VIEW
This document is superseded and carries no actionable weight for SMEs bidding today. The only value it offers is as a pointer: PPN 10/21 is the live reference for procurement thresholds. SMEs who have been using 2018-era threshold figures to decide which procurement rules apply to a contract should update their knowledge immediately using PPN 10/21.
1. Discard any threshold figures sourced from PPN 04/17 and look up PPN 10/21: Thresholds & Inclusion of VAT for the current, in-force procurement threshold levels.
All suppliers bidding for public contracts — GOV.UK explicitly states this PPN is out of date and directs readers to PPN 10/21, meaning any threshold figures here may no longer be accurate or legally current.
Every rule below quotes the official document verbatim.
This PPN is now out of date; the current reference for thresholds is PPN 10/21: Thresholds & Inclusion of VAT. (All contracting authorities)
“This Procurement Policy Note (PPN) is now out of date. Please refer to PPN 10/21: Thresholds & Inclusion of VAT”
The threshold levels set out in this PPN came into force on 1 January 2018. (All contracting authorities as defined by the Public Contracts Regulations)
“They come into force on 1 January 2018.”
The PPN applied to all contracting authorities, including all central government departments, executive agencies, NDPBs, and the wider public sector. (All contracting authorities)
“This note applies to all contracting authorities, as defined by the Regulations. This will include all central government departments, their executive agencies, non-departmental public bodies and the wider public sector.”
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.