FAR 52.211-9—Desired and Required Time of Delivery.
Plain-English Summary
FAR 52.211-9, Desired and Required Time of Delivery, gives the Government a way to state both the delivery schedule it prefers and the latest delivery schedule it will accept in a solicitation. It covers how the contracting officer inserts the desired delivery schedule, how offerors may propose an alternate schedule without being penalized in evaluation, and how the required delivery schedule sets the outer limit for responsiveness. The clause also explains how to calculate delivery time when award is made by mail or electronically, including the rule that performance time runs from the actual date of award or receipt of notice, not from when the contractor opens the mail. In addition, the clause includes three alternates for solicitations that use specific calendar dates or periods rather than days after award: Alternate I for schedules based on an assumed award date, Alternate II for schedules based on an assumed receipt date with prompt acknowledgment, and Alternate III for schedules based directly on the actual receipt date of notice of award. In practice, this clause is important because it affects bid responsiveness, delivery-date evaluation, and how both sides measure the start of performance. It is especially significant in sealed bidding and other procurements where delivery timing is a material term and late or unclear delivery offers can be rejected.
Key Rules
Desired schedule may be offered
The Government states a desired delivery schedule, but an offeror that cannot meet it may propose a different schedule without prejudicing evaluation. If the offeror does not propose another schedule, the desired schedule applies by default.
Required schedule is the limit
The offeror’s proposed delivery schedule cannot extend beyond the Government’s required delivery schedule. Any offer that does not clearly fall within the required delivery period is nonresponsive and must be rejected.
Delivery time runs from award
Unless the solicitation uses an alternate approach, the contractor must compute performance time from the actual date of award, not from the date the award notice is received in the mail. The Government is treated as having mailed or otherwise furnished the award on the date it is dated.
Mail and electronic receipt allowances
When evaluating an offer based on receipt of the contract or notice of award, the Government adds five calendar days for ordinary mail delivery or one working day for electronic transmission, if the solicitation says the award will be transmitted electronically. If the resulting delivery date is later than the required date, the offer is nonresponsive.
Alternate I: assumed award date
When delivery is stated as specific calendar dates or periods and is based on an assumed award date, the contracting officer may use Alternate I. Under this version, each delivery date is extended by the number of calendar days award is actually delayed beyond the assumed date.
Alternate II: assumed receipt date
When delivery is based on an assumed date the contractor receives notice of award, Alternate II may be used. Delivery dates are extended by the number of calendar days after the assumed date that the contractor actually receives notice, but only if the contractor promptly acknowledges receipt.
Alternate III: actual receipt date
When delivery is based directly on the actual date the contractor receives written notice of award, the contracting officer may delete paragraph (b) and use the alternate heading. This approach ties the delivery period directly to receipt rather than award date.
Responsibilities
Contracting Officer
Insert the desired and required delivery schedules in the solicitation, choose the proper alternate if the schedule is based on specific dates or periods, and state whether award will be transmitted electronically when relevant. The contracting officer must also evaluate offers for responsiveness against the required delivery schedule and reject offers that do not clearly meet it.
Offeror/Contractor
Review the desired schedule, decide whether to propose an alternate schedule, and ensure any proposed delivery commitment stays within the required delivery period. The offeror must also calculate performance time correctly based on the applicable award or receipt rule and, where required, promptly acknowledge receipt of notice of award.
Government/Agency
Issue the award or notice of award in a way that supports the timing rules in the clause, including mailing or furnishing the award by the date it is dated. The agency must also ensure the solicitation’s delivery terms are internally consistent with the chosen clause text and method of award transmission.
Practical Implications
This clause can determine whether an offer is acceptable at all, not just how it is scored, because a delivery promise outside the required schedule can make an offer nonresponsive.
Contractors should not assume the clock starts when they actually read the award notice; the clause often uses the actual award date or a deemed receipt rule that can shorten the available performance time.
If the solicitation uses specific dates, the contracting officer must pick the correct alternate or the delivery schedule may be ambiguous or unfairly applied.
Offerors should check whether the solicitation says award will be mailed or transmitted electronically, because the deemed delivery allowance differs and can change the responsiveness analysis.
A common pitfall is proposing a schedule that seems acceptable in business terms but does not clearly fit within the required delivery window; under this clause, ambiguity usually hurts the offeror.
Official Regulatory Text
As prescribed in 11.404 (a)(3) , insert the following clause: Desired and Required Time of Delivery (June 1997) (a) The Government desires delivery to be made according to the following schedule: Desired Delivery Schedule [ Contracting Officer insert specific details ] Item No. Quantity Within Days After Date of Contract If the offeror is unable to meet the desired delivery schedule, it may, without prejudicing evaluation of its offer, propose a delivery schedule below. However, the offeror’s proposed delivery schedule must not extend the delivery period beyond the time for delivery in the Government’s required delivery schedule as follows: Required Delivery Schedule [ Contracting Officer insert specific details ] Item No. Quantity Within Days After Date of Contract Offers that propose delivery of a quantity under such terms or conditions that delivery will not clearly fall within the applicable required delivery period specified above, will be considered nonresponsive and rejected. If the offeror proposes no other delivery schedule, the desired delivery schedule above will apply. Offeror’s Proposed Delivery Schedule Item No. Quantity Within Days After Date of Contract (b) Attention is directed to the Contract Award provision of the solicitation that provides that a written award or acceptance of offer mailed or otherwise furnished to the successful offeror results in a binding contract. The Government will mail or otherwise furnish to the offeror an award or notice of award not later than the day the award is dated. Therefore, the offeror shall compute the time available for performance beginning with the actual date of award, rather than the date the written notice of award is received from the Contracting Officer through the ordinary mails. However, the Government will evaluate an offer that proposes delivery based on the Contractor’s date of receipt of the contract or notice of award by adding (1) five calendar days for delivery of the award through the ordinary mails, or (2) one working day if the solicitation states that the contract or notice of award will be transmitted electronically. (The term "working day" excludes weekends and U.S. Federal holidays.) If, as so computed, the offered delivery date is later than the required delivery date, the offer will be considered nonresponsive and rejected. (End of clause) Alternate I (Apr 1984) . If the delivery schedule is expressed in terms of specific calendar dates or specific periods and is based on an assumed date of award, the contracting officer may substitute the following paragraph (b) for paragraph (b) of the basic clause. The time may be expressed by substituting "on or before"; "during the months _______ "; or "not sooner than ______ , or later than ______ " as headings for the third column of paragraph (a) of the basic clause. (b) The delivery dates or specific periods above are based on the assumption that the Government will make award by _________ [ Contracting Officer insert date ] . Each delivery date in the delivery schedule above will be extended by the number of calendar days after the above date that the contract is in fact awarded. Attention is directed to the Contract Award provision of the solicitation that provides that a written award or acceptance of offer mailed or otherwise furnished to the successful offeror results in a binding contract. Therefore, the offeror shall compute the time available for performance beginning with the actual date of award, rather than the date the written notice of award is received from the Contracting Officer through the ordinary mails. Alternate II (Apr 1984) . If the delivery schedule is expressed in terms of specific calendar dates or specific periods and is based on an assumed date the contractor receives notice of award, the contracting officer may substitute the following paragraph (b) for paragraph (b) of the basic clause. The time may be expressed by substituting "within days after the date of receipt of a written notice of award" as the heading of the third column of paragraph (a) of the basic clause. (b) The delivery dates or specific periods above are based on the assumption that the successful offeror will receive notice of award by ___________ [ Contracting Officer insert date ] . Each delivery date in the delivery schedule above will be extended by the number of calendar days after the above date that the Contractor receives notice of award; provided, that the Contractor promptly acknowledges receipt of notice of award. Alternate III (Apr 1984) . If the delivery schedule is to be based on the actual date the contractor receives a written notice of award, the contracting officer may delete paragraph (b) of the basic clause. The time may be expressed by substituting "within days after the date of receipt of a written notice of award" as the heading of the third column of paragraph (a) of the basic clause.