The Ministry of Defence (MOD) does not keep preferred supplier lists and is open to new entrants. What decides whether you can win work is whether you can see the opportunities, meet the cyber and security requirements written into each tender, and put in a compliant bid.
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Register on the portals that advertise MOD work
Register free on the Defence Sourcing Portal, which hosts all of the MOD's advertised requirements, and choose the category codes you want alerts for. Also register on Contracts Finder, which lists government contracts worth over £12,000 including VAT, and on Find a Tender, which lists high-value contracts, usually above £139,688 including VAT. The MOD Acquisition Pipeline shows planned procurements and framework agreements ahead of time.
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Check what standards the tender requires
Each tender states the quality, security and other standards the contract needs, and they vary by contract, so read the requirements before you decide to bid.
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Ask the buyer to sponsor any staff clearances
Staff who need access to sensitive information must hold national security clearance from United Kingdom Security Vetting. You cannot apply for it yourself. The application has to come through a registered sponsor, and a sponsor account has to be approved by the relevant departmental security authority or, for a cleared contractor, its site security controller. Raise the need with the contract's commercial contact as soon as you know it.
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Make yourself visible to prime contractors
The MOD encourages its strategic suppliers to advertise subcontracting opportunities on the Defence Sourcing Portal. The Hellios SME Portal is a free portal, created with JOSCAR, that makes smaller firms visible to buyers across the defence, aerospace and security sectors. Prime contractors set their own supplier requirements, so ask each one what it needs.
Meet the cyber and security requirements
Bid for a contract
The MOD buys under the Procurement Act 2023 for procurements started on or after 24 February 2025. For above-threshold contracts, notices appear on the Central Digital Platform, which is where Find a Tender sits, at each stage of the procurement. Before it announces the award, the buyer must give each supplier whose tender was assessed an assessment summary.
Support for smaller firms
The Defence Office for Small Business Growth, established in January 2026, helps small and medium-sized enterprises and start-ups reach the defence supply chain. It also provides a confidential channel for firms to raise concerns about procurement. Other routes in are Commercial X, the MOD's team that acquires innovative capability and works on entry barriers for smaller firms, Dstl's SME Searchlight for defence research, the UK Defence Innovation ideas marketplace, and Knowledge in Defence, which gives new suppliers access to policy, guidance and the Commercial Toolkit with its Defence conditions.
Legal basis
Primary legislation and key regulations
Official guidance
Defence Procurement, useful information (GOV.UK) (opens in a new tab)
GOV.UK
Cyber Security Model (GOV.UK) (opens in a new tab)
GOV.UK
MOD supplier enquiries (opens in a new tab)
GOV.UK
DASA Open Call for Innovation (opens in a new tab)
Publication · GOV.UK
MOD Acquisition Pipeline (opens in a new tab)
Publication · GOV.UK
Find a Tender (opens in a new tab)
Cabinet Office
Contracts Finder (opens in a new tab)
Cabinet Office
Defence Sourcing Portal (DSP) (opens in a new tab)
contracts.mod.uk