SACC Manual (Standard Acquisition Clauses and Conditions)

The SACC Manual is the library of pre-approved standard instructions, clauses and conditions that Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC, formerly Public Works and Government Services Canada) maintains for federal procurements. Federal bid solicitations and contracts do not spell these out in full — they cite each SACC item by number, date and title.

What it is

Per CanadaBuys, the SACC Manual is issued by Public Works and Government Services Canada to make dealing with the government more time and cost efficient by reducing duplicated contract drafting. It is organized into sections: Section 0 (Using the SACC Manual), Section 1 (Standard Instructions), Section 2 (Templates), Section 3 (General Conditions), Section 4 (Supplemental Conditions) and Section 5 (Standard Procurement Clauses, covering everything from instructions to bidders to Indigenous procurement and Canadian Commercial Corporation items).

How it is used

A bid solicitation's standard instructions tell bidders that "all instructions, clauses and conditions identified in the bid solicitation by number, date and title are set out in the Standard Acquisition Clauses and Conditions Manual issued by Public Works and Government Services Canada," and that submitting a bid means agreeing to be bound by them and by the clauses of the resulting contract. The resulting contract then cites specific items — for example, General Conditions 2010A with an effective date such as 2022-12-01, Goods (Medium Complexity). Reading the cited SACC items is therefore not optional: they form part of your contract terms.

Archived status since June 2023

CanadaBuys states the SACC Manual is no longer being maintained as of June 2023, as part of PSPC's contract modernization initiative; clauses previously labelled "Active" are now shown as archived, and contracts issued with SACC Manual clauses remain valid. PSPC has published modernized contractual document samples for new procurement documents. When you see a SACC citation in a solicitation today, use the archived SACC Manual on CanadaBuys to read the exact text.

Common questions

Where do I find the text of a cited clause?

In the SACC Manual area of CanadaBuys. You can filter items by ID, section, title, status or effective date, or download the complete archived manual in a single offline HTML file. Each item page shows its effective date, status and the legal text.

Can a clause be modified?

Yes — solicitations and contracts sometimes modify general conditions, and the modifications are set out in the document itself. The cited number, date and title identify the base text; anything that departs from it is written into the solicitation or contract.

Does the SACC Manual apply to provincial buyers?

No. It is a federal instrument used in Government of Canada procurements. Provinces and broader public sector buyers use their own templates and standard documents.

Related definitions

Supply Manual · Contract identification number · Task authorization