Procurement Thresholds Explained (UK & EU)

Procurement thresholds are the financial limits that determine how a public contract must be advertised, and they decide which portal your next healthcare opportunity appears on. Watch only one side of the line and you miss half the market.

How thresholds work

When a contract's estimated value is at or above the relevant threshold, buyers must follow the full advertised procedure and publish on the high-value portal. Below the threshold, lighter rules apply and contracts appear on the lower-value service, but there are still transparency requirements.

Where contracts land

• UK above-threshold → Find a Tender Service (FTS)
• UK below-threshold → Contracts Finder, see Contracts Finder explained
• EU above-threshold → TED Europa

Why suppliers must watch both

Higher-value frameworks appear on FTS/TED, but the sheer volume of everyday NHS and council spend sits below threshold on Contracts Finder. Suppliers chasing only the big frameworks miss the many smaller contracts that build track record. Monitoring both, automatically, is the point of aggregation.

Frequently asked questions

What decides which portal a contract appears on?

Its estimated value relative to the procurement threshold, above-threshold on Find a Tender/TED, below-threshold on Contracts Finder.

Do below-threshold contracts still have rules?

Yes, lighter-touch rules and transparency requirements apply, but they are real, and the contracts are still openly advertised.