Overview
On 9 December 2025, the UK Government exercised its powers under section 127(2) of the Procurement Act 2023 (the “Act”), and, with the consent of the Welsh Ministers, enacted the Procurement Act 2023 (Commencement No. 4) Regulations 2025 (the “Regulations”).
The Regulations commence the remaining publication requirements for public contracts awarded under the Procurement Act in early 2026.
These regulations apply across England and Wales, and, where applicable, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Certain provisions will come into force on 1 January 2026, while others are scheduled to take effect on 1 April 2026. In addition, procurements regulated by the Welsh Ministers are subject to separate commencement dates, which are outlined below.
The requirements that come into effect following the Regulations are set out below.
Payments compliance notice
From 1 January 2026, contracting authorities will be required to publish a payments compliance notice, as set out in section 69 of the Act. For procurements regulated by the Welsh Ministers, this will not take effect until 1 April 2026.
A payments compliance notice sets out the extent to which, over a six month period, a contracting authority has paid its invoices in accordance with section 68 the Act. Section 68 implies payment terms into public contracts and nullifies any terms that purport to restrict or override such payment terms. This implied term states that payments are to be made by the contracting authority within 30 days of the day the invoice is received, or, if later, the day on which the payment becomes due in accordance with the invoice (provided the invoice is considered to be valid and undisputed).This implied term applies to every public contract that is not a concession contract or a contract awarded by a private utility or school.
The UK Government’s guidance emphasises the importance of publishing these notices to ensure transparency around compliance and to demonstrate how contracting authorities pay their suppliers. This increased transparency is intended to support improved payment practices and help encourage faster payments for suppliers.
Significant payments notice
Under the Regulations, contracting authorities will be required to publish a notice containing certain information whenever payments of more than £30,000 are made under a public contract, effective from 1 April 2026. At present, no commencement date has been confirmed for the application of this requirement to procurements regulated by the Welsh Ministers. This requirement does not apply to a transferred Northern Ireland contracting authority.
Further information regarding this notice and what will be required from contracting authorities is expected to be issued by the UK Government in early 2026.
Contract performance notice
From 1 January 2026, in accordance with section 71 of the 2023 Act, contracting authorities will be required to publish a contract performance notice for England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
This notice is used to publish information relating to the suppliers’ performance against any key performance indicators, as well as information relating to particular breaches or failure to perform a public contract (except where a breach would constitute termination of a public contract, in which case the required contract termination notice would be published).
The intention of a contract performance notice is to provide transparency to other contracting authorities and the public on how suppliers are performing. A contract performance notice also provides contracting authorities with “an objective source of information or a discretionary exclusion ground relating to breach of contract and poor performance, and will allow improved decision-making when considering the exclusion ground”, according to the UK Government’s guidance.
Concluding comment
The Regulations form part of the staged rollout of the Act,and reflect the Act’s core aim of increasing transparency through continuous monitoring and reporting of public contracts. Once the new requirements take effect, contracting authorities will need to familiarise themselves with the relevant requirements and ensure full compliance with the updated rules.
For further guidance on this topic, or other matters related to public procurement, please feel free to contact our procurement lawyers or visit our Procurement Centre of Excellence web page.
Thank you to Eryka Kobelczuk, a trainee in our Commercial Team, for her assistance in creating this article.
