Lula Bid

Guide

SBD 1: the invitation to bid, explained

SBD 1 is the cover form of almost every national and provincial government bid. It carries the bid number, your company details and your tax and CSD numbers, and its Part B sets the ground rules every bid must follow. This guide walks through the current form, Version 1 of 2023, part by part.

Applies to
National and provincial departments, constitutional institutions and public entities. Municipalities use MBD 1.
Last reviewed

The issued tender pack always takes precedence. Buyers customise the standard forms and add their own conditions, so complete the forms and follow the rules in the pack you received. This guide explains the official forms; it is general information, not legal advice.

What SBD 1 is

SBD stands for Standard Bidding Document. National Treasury publishes the SBD forms, and organs of state put their own name, logo and bid number on them before they issue a tender. SBD 1 is the invitation to bid: the buyer fills in the top of Part A, you fill in the supplier information, and you sign Part B.

The current form says Version 1 of 2023 in its footer. The older SBD 1 still asked whether you had a B-BBEE status level certificate or sworn affidavit and referred to the Preferential Procurement Regulations, 2017. If the pack you downloaded has an older SBD 1, complete the one the buyer issued. The issued pack is what the buyer evaluates.

Part A: invitation and supplier information

Completed by the buyer

  • The name of the department or public entity, the bid number, the closing date and closing time, and a short description of the requirement.
  • Where to deliver the bid. The form has a line for the bid box street address; where the buyer uses another method, such as electronic submission, the bid document sets it.
  • Contact people for bidding procedure enquiries and for technical enquiries.

Check these against the eTenders notice. If the closing date on SBD 1 and the notice differ, look for an amendment on eTenders and ask the bidding procedure contact in writing.

Completed by you

  • Name of bidder: the registered name exactly as it appears on CIPC and the Central Supplier Database (CSD), not a trading name on its own.
  • Postal and street address, telephone, cellphone, fax (if any) and email.
  • VAT registration number, if the company is registered for VAT.
  • Supplier compliance status: your SARS Tax Compliance Status (TCS) PIN or your CSD supplier number, which starts with MAAA. Giving both does no harm.
  • Whether you are the accredited representative in South Africa for the goods or services offered. If you answer yes, attach proof, such as a letter from the manufacturer.
  • Whether you are a foreign-based supplier. If yes, answer the questionnaire for foreign suppliers.

The questionnaire for foreign suppliers

Five yes-or-no questions: is the entity resident in South Africa, does it have a branch here, a permanent establishment here, any source of income here, and is it liable for any form of South African tax. If every answer is no, the form says the entity does not have to register for a SARS tax compliance status PIN. Otherwise the form points to clause 2.3 of Part B, which says a TCS PIN can be applied for on SARS eFiling. South African companies answer "No" to being foreign-based and skip this part.

Part B: terms and conditions for bidding

Part B is not a set of questions. It lists conditions that apply to your bid, and you sign underneath to accept them.

  • Bid submission (clauses 1.1 to 1.4). Bids must be delivered by the stipulated time to the correct address; late bids are not accepted. All bids must be on the official forms provided (not to be re-typed) or in the manner the bid document prescribes. The bid is subject to the Preferential Procurement Policy Framework Act, 2000 (PPPFA), the Preferential Procurement Regulations, the General Conditions of Contract (GCC) and any special conditions. The successful bidder fills in and signs a written contract form (SBD 7).
  • Tax compliance (clauses 2.1 to 2.6). Bidders must be tax compliant and give their SARS PIN so the organ of state can verify their tax status. A TCS PIN can be applied for on SARS eFiling (2.3), and a printed TCS certificate may also be submitted with the bid (2.4). In a consortium, joint venture or subcontracting arrangement, each party must submit its own TCS certificate, PIN or CSD number (2.5). Where no TCS PIN is available but the bidder is registered on the CSD, the CSD number must be given (2.6).
  • Persons in the service of the state (clause 2.7). No bids will be considered from persons in the service of the state, from companies with directors who are in the service of the state, or from close corporations whose members are.

Below Part B you sign, state the capacity in which you sign (for example director), and date the form. The form asks for proof of authority, such as a company resolution, so include a signed resolution that names the person signing the bid.

Failure to comply may invalidate the bid

SBD 1 ends with: "Failure to provide / or comply with any of the above particulars may render the bid invalid." Treat every field as required unless the bid document says otherwise.

Common mistakes

  • Re-typing SBD 1 into your own template. Part B says bids must be on the official forms provided (not to be re-typed), unless the bid document prescribes another manner.
  • Leaving out the tax PIN and the CSD number, or giving a CSD number for a different entity in the group.
  • In a joint venture, giving only the lead partner's PIN or CSD number.
  • Signing without a resolution that authorises the signatory, or signing in a capacity the resolution does not cover.
  • Copying the closing date from an old advert when an amendment moved it.
  • Answering "Yes" to accredited representative without attaching proof.

How Lula Bid helps

  • Takes your company details from the company profile, and your CSD supplier number and tax PIN from the document vault, so they are written the same way on every form.
  • On the Prepare package, fills SBD 1 on the buyer's own pages in the tender pack you upload, or on the official Treasury Word form when the pack has none, ready for you to check and sign.
  • Uses MBD 1 instead when the buyer is a municipality.

You still check every answer and sign the forms yourself. See what each package includes

Official sources

  1. SBD 1 Invitation to bid (Version 1 of 2023, Word) · National Treasury, Office of the Chief Procurement Officer
  2. Standard bidding forms (SBD and MBD) · National Treasury, Office of the Chief Procurement Officer
  3. Implementation Guide: Preferential Procurement Regulations 2022 (Version 1, March 2023) · National Treasury, Office of the Chief Procurement Officer

Last reviewed 10 October 2026 against these documents. Forms and instructions change; check the buyer's pack and National Treasury's site for later versions.