Mandatory requirements checklist for Kenyan tenders
Every tender has its own list (look for "Mandatory requirements" or "Preliminary examination" in Section III). Missing one mandatory item usually ends your bid at the first stage. These are the items that appear most often, from PPRA standard documents and real 2025–2026 tenders.
| Item | What evaluators check |
|---|---|
| Certificate of Incorporation / Registration | Copy, with change of particulars if any. |
| CR12 (companies) | Often "issued in the last six months" or "not more than one year old"; directors must match your CBQ. |
| Tax Compliance Certificate (KRA) | Valid on the tender opening/closing date. A TCC that expires a week before closing fails. |
| County business permit / trade licence | Current year; some tenders want the county where you operate. |
| AGPO certificate | For tenders reserved for youth, women or PWD; must be valid. |
| NCA registration and annual practising licence (works) | Right category (e.g. NCA 8 and above) and current licence. |
| Form of Tender | On letterhead, price in words and figures, signed and stamped. |
| Confidential Business Questionnaire | Filled, signed, stamped; ownership matches CR12. |
| Certificate of Independent Tender Determination | Signed and stamped. |
| Self-declaration forms SD1 and SD2 (and SD3 / Code of Ethics) | Both attached, correct tender number. |
| Power of Attorney | Names the person signing, with specimen signature; sometimes before a Commissioner for Oaths. |
| Tender security or Tender-Securing Declaration | Amount, issuer and validity as in the data sheet; some tenders accept a declaration instead of a bank/insurance guarantee. |
| Audited accounts, bank statements | The years asked; sometimes certified, with the auditor's practising number. |
| SHA/NHIF, NSSF, housing levy proof | Increasingly common in 2026 tenders. |
| Serial page numbers | "The tenderer shall chronologically serialize pages of all tender documents" — every page numbered in order. |
| Copies, binding, sealing (paper tenders) | Number of copies, bound, sealed and marked as the tender says. These do not apply to e-GP electronic tenders. |
Two checks most bidders skip
- Expiry vs closing date. Put every certificate's expiry date next to the closing date before you print anything.
- Addenda. Entities change requirements and dates by addendum; re-check the list after each one.
Save the typing. Upload the tender PDF to Tender Tayari: it lists the mandatory requirements, checks your documents' expiry dates against the closing date, fills these forms with your company details and numbers every page of the bid. Free, no account.
Not legal or procurement advice. Always follow the tender document and its addenda; if a tender attaches its own version of a form, use that version. Updated 2026-11-05.