Public buyers and suppliers should prepare for fresh threshold figures from 1 January 2026 under the Procurement Act 2023. A new statutory instrument (SI 2025/1200) was made on 18 November and laid before Parliament on 21 November to keep the regime aligned with international rules on public purchasing.

For regulated below‑threshold works procedures, two key trigger points drop to £135,018 and £207,720. These figures bring section 85(3) into line with Schedule 1 and will shape how buyers run below‑threshold works competitions in early 2026.

Beyond works, most Schedule 1 amounts are refreshed. Rows 4, 6 and 9 to 12 follow WTO GPA levels; rows 1 to 3 are tuned for consistency. All values are VAT‑inclusive, so suppliers should check estimates on a gross basis when deciding whether new procedures apply.

The changes do not apply to contracts regulated by the Welsh Ministers. Wales is handling thresholds through its own instrument and guidance, so suppliers bidding to devolved Welsh authorities should follow Welsh timings and figures rather than the UK‑wide updates.

Which competitions move onto the new sums? If a buyer has already published a tender or transparency notice or invited tenders before 1 January 2026, the original thresholds continue for that process; fresh procurements from that date use the revised values. That mirrors the transition approach departments used when the Act went live in February 2025.

For SMEs, the practical question is timing. If an opportunity in your pipeline sits around £130k–£210k including VAT, ask the buyer whether the notice will be issued before or after 1 January. A slip into January can change the route to market, documentation and time limits, even when the scope is identical.

A simple example helps. A local contractor pricing a minor refurbishment at about £136,000 in January should expect the contracting authority to run the refreshed below‑threshold works procedure. If the same competition had been posted in December, the previous figures would still govern that tender.

Suppliers active across England, Northern Ireland and Wales should treat the regimes separately. Wales amended thresholds and related schedules in February 2025 and will continue to set its own figures; keep an eye on Welsh Government circulars and Sell2Wales notices for any 2026 updates.

Why these numbers move: the UK converts GPA thresholds, set in Special Drawing Rights, into sterling every two years. Currency shifts can nudge the sterling values up or down, which is why the works triggers step down from January 2026.

Bottom line for bid teams: diary the 1 January 2026 change, re‑check any opportunity near the new break‑points, and ask contracting authorities to confirm which rulebook they will apply. Market Pulse UK will update this note if Welsh legislation or Cabinet Office guidance adds further detail.