The end date on a contract notice is the most useful date for a supplier, but it is not a promise. When a federal contract reaches its end date, the agency can let it finish and go back to market, use an extension option, or, less often, extend it by varying the contract. Knowing how those choices are made helps you judge which contracts are worth preparing for.

The end date is not always the last day of work

The Department of Finance notes that a contract's end date does not have to be the date of final delivery (Contracts End Dates (opens in a new tab)). Officials are encouraged to leave time after the final delivery for invoices to be paid, for contract management to be tidied up, and for any next arrangement to be put in place.

So the work itself may wind down a little before the end date shown on AusTender. If an agency plans to replace the contract, it usually needs to run the new procurement before that date.

Some contracts have no fixed end date, such as some software licences, and some end when a milestone is reached, as with many construction contracts. Under paragraph 4.16 of the Commonwealth Procurement Rules (CPRs), a contract with no end date must allow for periodic review, and for termination if it no longer represents value for money.

Extension options

Many federal contracts are signed with extension options. An extension option is a legal right in the contract to extend its term for a set period. In Commonwealth standard contracts, using an extension is usually at the Commonwealth's discretion, not the supplier's.

On AusTender, the full contract notice shows Extension Options (how many were built in) and Max End Date (the latest date the contract could run to if every option is used). Put those next to the end date and you can see how much room is left. A contract ending in March with a maximum end date of June has one short option left. A contract whose end date already equals its maximum end date has no options left. Our guide to reading a contract notice explains the other fields.

What officials weigh before extending

Finance encourages officials to weigh the costs and benefits of continuing with the current contract, including:

  • whether extending would still be value for money
  • whether going back to market would give a better result, allowing for the cost of doing so
  • how well the current supplier is performing
  • whether there is enough time to run a new procurement
  • current market conditions
  • how the agency's needs have changed

Finance also says extension options should not be used just because procurement planning has slipped, to keep a supplier relationship going, or to avoid competition.

For a supplier, this list is a useful guide. You cannot see an agency's internal assessment, but you can often see signs of these factors in the public record, such as how many times a contract has already been extended, or whether the agency's needs have visibly changed.

Extending by variation

Without an option left, an agency can still extend a contract by agreeing a written variation with the supplier. Finance's guidance is cautious about this. A variation should not significantly change the contract's scope. As a general rule, it should only extend the contract long enough to run and set up the next arrangement, or to finish the original deliverables. Agencies are encouraged not to rely on extending by variation, and not to use it to avoid competition or their obligations under the CPRs.

In practice, a short extension by variation near the end of a contract can mean a new procurement is under way or about to start. That is a reading of the pattern, not a rule, so treat it as a prompt to look closer.

When the decisions are made

Finance's guidance shows an example of a three-year contract with two one-year extension options, with the decisions about its length made well before each end date. The timing varies with how complex the procurement is. The practical point is that the decision to re-tender is often made months before the end date, which is why watching end dates early matters. The guide to preparing for a re-tender 6 to 12 months out covers what to do with that time. If you are new to federal buying, start with what AusTender is.

Keeping track of end dates

Contract Horizon lists federal contracts ending in the next 3 to 12 months, with the agency, supplier, value, end date, and an open or limited badge. Every plan, including Free, shows the 24-month expiry calendar and the extension timeline for each contract. A free account also lets you save a search, get a weekly digest, and add matching end dates to your own calendar through a private feed, so nothing slips past. Paid plans add the full list, more saved searches, and daily digests, and Pro and Team show the re-tender score, which is how often that agency has given similar work to a new supplier. The pricing page sets out what each plan includes.

Contract Horizon is an independent reading of the public record. The contract notice on AusTender is always the source to check.