The Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) encourages suppliers (including potential suppliers) to lodge a complaint if you believe we have breached the Commonwealth Procurement Rules (CPRs). 

All procurement complaints will be handled fairly, without discrimination and as efficiently as possible. Complaints will not prejudice a supplier, or potential suppliers, participation in any future procurement process.

There are two types of complaints you can make:

  1. a general procurement complaint or
  2. a complaint under the Government Procurement (Judicial Review) Act 2018 (the JR Act).

General procurement complaints

A general procurement complaint can be made about any aspect of the procurement process relating to any procurement activity. A general complaint is one that does not satisfy the requirements for a JR Act complaint.

JR Act complaints

Complaints under the JR Act allow a supplier to make a complaint to the accountable authority about a contravention of the relevant CPRs (so far as those rules relate to a covered procurement). 

The JR Act protects the rights of suppliers or potential suppliers when making a complaint.  

The JR Act applies to covered procurements, as defined in Section 5 of the Act and paragraph 6.9 of the CPRs. 

Where a complaint is made in writing, the PBO will assess if the complaint has been made under section 5 and 18 of the JR Act. If the complaint is a valid complaint under the JR Act, it must be handled in accordance with the guidance in Resource Management Guide 422.

The PBO is required to formally investigate complaints made in accordance with the JR Act, and to suspend procurements during the investigation of a complaint, unless a public interest certificate is in place. 

Public Interest Certificates 

The PBO may issue a Public Interest Certificate (PIC) if it considers that it is not in the public interest for a specified procurement to be suspended while complaints are being investigated or applications for injunctions are being considered.  

How to lodge a complaint

To make either a general complaint or a JR Act complaint, please email the Chief Financial Officer at corporate@pbo.gov.au and include the following information:

  • Procurement reference (ATM ID# or RFQ# or Purchase Order Number)
  • AusTender ID (if known)
  • Contact name
  • Business name
  • ABN
  • Street address/PO Box
  • Suburb
  • Country
  • Phone
  • Email
  • Nature of your procurement and complaint (max 500 words)
  • Documents to support your complaint. 

To help the PBO to formally assess your complaint, make sure you include all the above required information so we can get started. We’ll reach out to you if anything is missing. 

What happens next?

When the PBO receives a complaint, we’ll:

  • Send you an acknowledgment it’s been received and
  • After an initial assessment, provide further detail in writing in relation to next steps in the complaints process and timing
  • For JR Act complaints:
    • Assess whether it meets the criteria under the Act 
    • If appropriate, suspend the procurement unless a public interest certificate is issued.

At the end of the review, you’ll receive a report on the outcome of the investigation. If you’re happy with the outcome, the matter is considered closed. 

If you are not happy with the outcome, you can raise it with the Australian Government procurement coordinator or Commonwealth Ombudsman. 

If at any point you consider the complaint to be resolved or would like to withdraw your complaint, you can email corporate@pbo.gov.au.