Types of Calls for Tenders in Québec: Public, Invitation-Only, Mutual Agreement, Qualification

Caroline bids regularly for her services firm. One day she gets a direct invitation from a public body to submit a price; the next day she spots a public notice open to everyone on SEAO; the following week someone talks to her about getting "qualified" for a recurring contract. Three situations, three different logics. Confusing the types of calls for tenders means putting the wrong effort in at the wrong moment.

The main ways public contracts are awarded in Québec each follow precise rules, and each one calls for a different positioning.

What determines the type: the amount, first

Before looking at the types one by one, remember the rule that drives almost everything: the value of the contract decides. At or above a certain threshold, the body must launch a public call for tenders open to all, visible to everyone on SEAO, with a few strict exceptions set out in law. Below it, the body has some room to manoeuvre, wider at the provincial level, more tightly framed at the municipal level, where the $25,000 to under $139,000 range goes, as a rule, through a written invitation to at least two enterprises, unless the contract management by-law or a legal exception provides otherwise.

The thresholds come from trade agreements: the most common is $139,000 (services and construction); it is $34,700 for goods purchased by government departments and agencies, and considerably higher for government enterprises such as Hydro-Québec. We break down every tier in our article on public tender thresholds.

1. The public call for tenders (open)

This is the most visible and most tightly framed type. The body publishes a notice on SEAO, and any business that meets the eligibility criteria can bid. It's the mandatory method at or above the threshold, barring exceptions; at the municipal level, the obligation is to use an open procedure, which can also take the form of a request for prices reserved for qualified enterprises.

For you, the public call for tenders means the widest opening (any eligible and compliant business can enter) and the most competition. Careful: "open" doesn't mean "no conditions". Eligibility, the territory covered by the trade agreements, licences, or a required qualification can rule you out. Your job: be rigorously compliant, and calibrate your bid according to the award method chosen.

2. The invitation-only call for tenders

Here, the body doesn't publish a notice open to all: it directly invites a limited number of suppliers to submit a bid. This procedure is used mainly below the threshold of the public call for tenders, in the middle zone where the body wants competition without the administrative weight of a full public call.

On the municipal side, for example, contracts from $25,000 to under $139,000 must in principle go through a written invitation (invitation écrite) to at least two enterprises (LCOM, ss. 30 and 80). The practical consequence is clear: if you're not on the body's list, you're not invited. Hence the importance of making yourself known ahead of time (Supplier Directory, direct contacts) so you're among those invited.

3. The contract by mutual agreement

The contract by mutual agreement is a direct award: the body negotiates with a business of its choice, without a formal competition. It's allowed below certain amounts (at the municipal level, below $25,000, or between $25,000 and the threshold if the contract management by-law provides for it), or in exceptional cases set out in law (emergency, sole supplier, notably). It's often the best way in for an SME just starting out.

As with invitation, everything is decided before the need exists: the body calls a supplier it already knows. We explain in detail how this mechanism works, and how to get chosen, in our dedicated article on contracts by mutual agreement.

4. The qualification call (and the price request to qualified enterprises)

This is the least well-known type, and it's growing in importance. Rather than evaluating price and quality on every contract, the body proceeds in two stages: it first publishes a qualification call to draw up a list of suppliers judged capable, then it approaches only those qualified suppliers when a specific need arises.

That's the logic of the qualified markets run by large public purchasers like Hydro-Québec, and it's also a new feature of the municipal reform: the LCOM (Act respecting contracting by municipal bodies) now lets municipalities launch a "request for a quotation to qualified enterprises" (« demande de prix à l'attention des entreprises qualifiées ») (LCOM, ss. 27 and 51 to 53), where the contract goes to the bidder that submitted the compliant bid with the lowest price.

How to recognize the type in a notice

When you browse notices on SEAO, the notice type is stated explicitly, and the search lets you filter by « Types d'avis » (notice types). The labels to look for (the interface can be in English, but the notices are written in French):

• "Call for tenders notice" (« Avis d'appel d'offres »): public procedure; you can bid if your business meets the eligibility, territory and file-compliance conditions (there are also "regionalized" or "reserved for small enterprises" variants).
• « Avis d'appel d'offres sur invitation » (invitation-only call for tenders notice): this type appears in SEAO's « Types d'avis » filter; only the enterprises invited by the body can bid (at the municipal level, the written invitation goes to at least two enterprises, LCOM, s. 80).
• "Notice of intention" (« Avis d'intention »): the notice provided for by law announces that the body intends to conclude a contract by mutual agreement with a named enterprise, because it considers that a call for tenders would not serve the public interest; barring an exception, it is published at least 15 days before the planned contract date. You don't "bid" on it: any enterprise can express its interest and demonstrate its capability.
• "Qualification notice" (« Avis de qualification »): the pre-selection stage. The price request that follows then goes only to enterprises that are already qualified.

Careful: a SEAO notice isn't always a chance to bid. It can be a qualification stage, an intention to conclude a contract by mutual agreement, or simply the publication of a contract already concluded (transparency). Reading this field first saves you from investing hours in the wrong place.

What to remember

The type of call for tenders isn't an administrative detail: it determines who can bid, how much effort to invest, and when to act. The public call for tenders is won on rigour and price on the day; invitation and mutual agreement are won beforehand, by already being on the buyer's radar; qualification is won by getting started months ahead. An SME that responds intelligently doesn't treat these four situations the same way.

Sources

• Act respecting contracting by public bodies (CQLR, c. C-65.1) and Act respecting contracting by municipal bodies (Loi sur les contrats des organismes municipaux, CQLR, c. C-65.01), and their regulations on solicitation and award methods.
• Secrétariat du Conseil du trésor and ministère des Affaires municipales: award thresholds and procedures, 2026.
• SEAO (seao.gouv.qc.ca): notice types (« Types d'avis » search filter, consulted on October 22, 2026) and user roles.
• Secrétariat du Conseil du trésor, Accords de libéralisation des marchés publics : seuils d'application (January 1, 2026).