What does ITT mean in procurement?

ITT stands for invitation to tender. It is the set of documents a buyer issues inviting suppliers to submit a formal tender for a contract. It explains what is being bought, how bids will be evaluated, the questions you must answer, the pricing you must provide, the contract terms and how and when to submit.

What is the difference between an ITT and an RFP?

In practice the terms overlap. ITT is the usual term in UK public procurement for a formal, rules based competition with published evaluation criteria. RFP (request for proposal) is more common in private sector and North American procurement and often allows more room for suppliers to propose their own solution. An RFQ (request for quotation) usually focuses on price for a clearly defined requirement.

How long do I have to respond to an ITT?

It depends on the procedure and the complexity of the contract. The Procurement Act 2023 sets minimum time limits for covered procurements, but buyers often allow longer for complex requirements. Check the timetable in the ITT as soon as it is published and work back from the deadline, allowing time for clarification questions, internal reviews and portal upload.

Is an ITT the same as a PQQ?

No. A PQQ or selection questionnaire checks whether a supplier is suitable to bid. An ITT asks suitable suppliers how they would deliver the contract and at what price. In a procedure with a selection stage, you complete the PQQ first and only shortlisted suppliers receive the ITT.

What happens after I submit an ITT response?

The buyer checks compliance, evaluates and moderates the scores, and decides on the most advantageous tender. Under the Procurement Act 2023, each supplier receives an assessment summary explaining how its tender was assessed, and there is normally a standstill period of eight working days before the contract can be entered into.

Invitation to Tender (ITT): How to Respond and Win

An invitation to tender (ITT) is the moment a procurement becomes real. The buyer has defined what it wants and how it will judge bids, and now it wants your answer. A well run ITT response is a structured project with a fixed deadline; a poorly run one is a late night scramble that rarely wins.

This guide explains what an ITT contains, how it fits into UK public procurement under the Procurement Act 2023, and a practical process for responding. For the stage before the ITT, see our PQQ guide.

What Is an Invitation to Tender?

An ITT is a formal request from a buyer for suppliers to submit a tender. In UK public procurement it is usually issued through an e-tendering portal, either to anyone who expresses interest (in an open procedure) or to a shortlist of suppliers who passed a selection stage.

The ITT tells you three things: what the buyer wants (the specification), how it will choose (the evaluation criteria and weightings) and what you must submit (questions, pricing, forms and declarations, by a fixed deadline).

ITT, RFP, RFQ and PQQ compared

Document	Main purpose	Typical setting
PQQ or selection questionnaire	Checks whether a supplier is suitable to bid	Before the ITT, when a buyer shortlists
ITT (invitation to tender)	Formal tender with published evaluation criteria	UK public sector and regulated procurement
RFP (request for proposal)	Invites a proposed solution and price	Private sector, technology, international
RFQ (request for quotation)	Price for a clearly defined requirement	Lower value or commodity purchases
RFI (request for information)	Market research before a procurement	Early market engagement

The labels are not used consistently, so always read the instructions rather than relying on the title.

Where ITTs Fit Under the Procurement Act 2023

Since 24 February 2025, new above threshold public procurements in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are run under the Procurement Act 2023 (Scottish devolved bodies follow their own regulations). Under the Act:

Opportunities are advertised in a tender notice on the Find a Tender service, and buyers may signal them earlier through pipeline notices and preliminary market engagement.
Buyers use either the open procedure, a single stage tender open to all, or the competitive flexible procedure, which the buyer designs and which may include selection, negotiation, presentations or multiple tender rounds.
Contracts are awarded to the most advantageous tender, assessed against award criteria the buyer must set out in advance.
Suppliers must be registered on the Central Digital Platform.

See our Procurement Act 2023 guide for the full picture.

What Is in a Typical ITT Pack?

Instructions to tenderers. Timetable, portal instructions, clarification process, format rules, word limits and grounds for rejection. Read this first and in full.
Specification or statement of requirements. What the buyer needs, often with service levels, KPIs and performance standards.
Evaluation methodology. Award criteria, weightings, scoring scale and how price will be scored. This is your map of where the marks are.
Quality questions. The method statement questions you will answer. Our method statement guide covers how to write them.
Pricing schedule. Usually a spreadsheet in a fixed format. See our tender pricing guide.
Draft contract. Terms and conditions, often non negotiable, with schedules covering performance, payment and exit.
Forms and declarations. Form of tender, non collusion, conflicts of interest and any certificates required.
Supporting information. Site data, asset registers, TUPE information, current volumes and previous performance, where relevant.

How to Respond to an ITT: Step by Step

1. Decide whether to bid

Before you commit time, check that you can meet every mandatory requirement, that the contract fits your strategy and capacity, and that you have a realistic chance of winning. A disciplined bid or no bid decision is one of the biggest levers on win rate.

2. Break the documents down

Extract every requirement, question, word limit, deadline and mandatory document into a compliance matrix. Note the weighting of each question so effort follows the marks.

3. Ask clarification questions early

If something is unclear or contradictory, ask through the portal well before the clarification deadline. Answers are usually shared with all bidders, so phrase questions carefully. Our clarification questions guide has examples.

4. Plan your win themes and evidence

Agree the three or four messages that should run through every answer, based on what the buyer cares about most. Map the case studies, data and people that prove each theme. An evidence matrix keeps this organised.

5. Draft, review and refine

Assign questions to writers and subject experts with internal deadlines. Use a colour review process or similar: a structured review of early drafts against the scoring criteria, then a final compliance and quality check by someone who did not write the answers. Our bid review guide sets this out.

6. Build the price alongside the solution

Price and quality must describe the same service. Make sure staffing levels, assumptions and added value in your quality answers are reflected in the pricing schedule, and vice versa.

7. Submit early

Upload the final response at least a day before the deadline. Portals slow down near closing time and late submissions are usually rejected outright.

8. Learn from the result

Whether you win or lose, read the assessment summary carefully. Our guide to assessment summaries explains how to turn feedback into a better next bid.

What Happens After Submission

The buyer checks compliance, evaluators score each answer independently, scores are moderated and price is assessed. Some procedures include clarification meetings, presentations or interviews. Under the Procurement Act 2023, the buyer publishes a contract award notice and sends assessment summaries, and there is normally a standstill period of eight working days before the contract is signed. For construction, you may also meet two stage tendering.

Common ITT Mistakes

Missing a mandatory document or declaration
Exceeding word limits or ignoring formatting rules
Answering the question you wanted rather than the one asked
Quality answers and pricing that do not match
Generic content that ignores the specification
Leaving the upload until the final hour

How mytender.io Helps With ITTs

mytender.io is built for UK tender responses. Upload the ITT pack and it extracts requirements, deadlines and scoring criteria, summarises the tender and highlights win themes and buyer pain points. Your team can assign sections, draft answers from your own bid library, and check responses against the requirements before submission. To find your next ITT, browse live opportunities free in the mytender.io tender browser, or request a demo to see the full platform.