Advance Contract Award Notice (ACAN) for Courier Services
An ACAN is a public notice indicating to the supplier community that a department or agency intends to award a contract for goods or services to a pre-identified supplier, thereby allowing other suppliers to signal their interest in bidding, by submitting a statement of capabilities. If no supplier submits a statement of capabilities that meets the requirements set out in the ACAN, on or before the closing date stated in the ACAN, the contracting authority may then proceed with the award to the pre-identified supplier.
Requirement Description
Please refer to Annex A: Statement of Work (SOW) attached hereto. An overview of this requirement can be found under section ‘3. Background’ of the SOW.
Minimum Essential Requirements:
Any interested supplier must demonstrate by way of a statement of capabilities that it can meet CRA’s requirements, as outined in Annex A: SOW.
Specifically, the CRA requires:
• a minimum of 1,000 CRA orders (shipments from CRA locations across Canada) daily to be processed.
• the chain of custody to be maintained over all courier mail delivered to every address in Canada, including to post office boxes.
• firm inclusive rates must be all-inclusive including, but not limited to, fuel surcharges, cubing and carriage costs.
• deliveries each morning and pickups each afternoon (business days), both events within a client prescribed one-hour window.
• shipments to be tracked, using Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) technology, throughout the supplier’s shipping network for intra-agency shipments.
• file transfer of either RFID or Tracking Personal Identification Number (PIN) events on a near real-time basis.
• delivery of intra-agency shipments within the following service standards:
o within the same city, next business day
o between cities within a province, 2- 3 working days
o national (between provinces), up to 5 working days
• a single supplier to handle courier, parcel and freight, securely while maintaining chain of custody and capable of meeting the CRA’s security requirements:
o the supplier is to have security clearances in place for all employees (Personnel security screening at the Reliability status level) and security-cleared facilities with physical security safeguards (consisting of access control, zoning, and an intrusion alarm system) that meet the requirements to store information at the Protected B level where CRA mail may be handled, prior contract award.
Proposed Contractor
Name: Canada Post Corporation
Address: 2701 Riverside Drive, Ottawa Ontario K1A 0B1
Proposed Period of Contract
The period of the Contract will be from August 10, 2025 to August 9, 2027 inclusive.
The Contractor will grant to Canada the irrevocable option to extend the term of the Contract by up to five additional one year periods under the same conditions.
Sole Source Justification
Canada Post Corporation is the only firm capable of providing the services outlined in Annex A: SOW.
Applicable Limited Tendering Reasons
The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) is proposing to award a contract as described above in accordance with the following exceptions:
Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA):
(1) Article 513.1(b) of CFTA is applicable on the basis of limited tendering (iii) due to an absence of competition for technical reasons.
Canada Chile Free Trade Agreement (CCFTA):
(1) Article Kbis-09.1(b) of CCFTA is applicable on the basis of awarding contracts by means other than open tendering where, for works of art, or for reasons connected with the protection of patents, copyrights or other exclusive rights, or proprietary information or where there is an absence of competition for technical reasons, the goods or services can be supplied only by a particular supplier and no reasonable alternative or substitute exists.
Canada Columbia Free Trade Agreement (CCoFTA):
CCoFTA allows for sole sourcing on the following basis:
(1) Article 1409.1(b) (iii) is applicable where the goods or services can be supplied only by a particular supplier and no reasonable alternative or substitute goods or services exist due to an absence of competition for technical reasons.
Canada Panama Free Trade Agreement (CPaFTA):
CPaFTA allows for sole sourcing on the following basis:
(1) Article 16.10.1(b) (iii) is applicable if the procurement can be carried out only by a particular supplier and a reasonable alternative or substitute does not exist because of the absence of competition for technical reasons.
Canada Peru Free Trade Agreement (CPFTA):
(1) Article 1409.1(b) in Chapter 14 of the CPFTA allows for sole sourcing where the goods or services can be supplied only by a particular supplier and no reasonable alternative or substitute goods or services exist [pertaining to] (iii) due to an absence of competition for technical reasons.
World Trade Organization – Agreement on Government Procurement (WTO-AGP):
Article XIII of WTO-AGP is applicable on the basis of limited tendering:
(1) Article XIII 1(b) where the goods or services can be supplied only by a particular supplier and no
reasonable alternative or substitute goods or services exist for any of the following
reasons: (iii) due to an absence of competition for technical reasons.
Canada–Korea Free Trade Agreement (CKFTA):
CKFTA allows for sole sourcing on the following basis:
Article 1.2: Relation to Other Agreements
The Parties affirm their existing rights and obligations with respect to each other under the WTO Agreement and other agreements to which both Parties are party.
Canada-Honduras Free Trade Agreement (CHFTA):
CHFTA allows for sole sourcing on the following basis:
(1) Article 17.11.2(b) a good or service being procured can be supplied only by a particular supplier and a reasonable alternative or substitute does not exist because: (iii) there is an absence of competition for technical reasons.
Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement (CUFTA):
CUFTA allows for sole sourcing on the following basis:
(1) Article 10.13.1(b) if the goods or services can be supplied only by a particular supplier and no reasonable alternative or substitute goods or services exist for any of the following reason: (iii) due to an absence of competition for technical reasons.
Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA):
CETA allows for sole sourcing on the following basis:
(1) Article 19.12.1b) if the goods or services can be supplied only by a particular supplier and no reasonable alternative or substitute goods or services exist for any of the following reasons: (iii) due to an absence of competition for technical reasons.
Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP):
CPTPP allows for sole sourcing on the following basis:
(1) Article 15.10.2(b) if the good or service can be supplied only by a particular supplier and no reasonable alternative or substitute good or service exists for any of the following reasons: (iii) due to an absence of competition for technical reasons.
Supplier’s Rights
Suppliers who consider themselves fully qualified and available to provide the services or goods described herein, may submit a Statement of Capabilities in writing to the Contracting Authority identified in this Notice on or before the closing date of this Notice. The Statement of Capabilities must clearly demonstrate how the supplier meets the advertised requirements.
When submitting a Statement of Capabilities by e-mail, the supplier must direct the email to the attention of the Contracting Authority and reference the CRA file number and the ACAN closing date in the subject line.
Closing date for Statement of Capabilities: May 30, 2025 at 2:00 PM (Eastern Daylight Time)
The Crown retains the right to negotiate with suppliers on any procurement.
Documents may be submitted in either Official Language of Canada.
Inquiries and submission of statements of capabilities should be sent to:
Contracting Authority
Name: Henrik Schwerdtfeger
Title: Senior Supply / Business Analyst
Section: Contracting Division
Directorate: Administration Directorate
Canada Revenue Agency
Address: 320 Queen St., 10th floor, Place de Ville, Tower A, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0L5
Telephone: 613-608-6997
E-Mail: Henrik.Schwerdtfeger@cra-arc.gc.ca
