Ecuador Adds Sercop Registration Rights And Supplier Retention

Ecuador’s public-procurement system is getting a new cost and registration layer under Executive Decree 461, issued on July 30, 2026.

The decree changes the general regulation for Ecuador’s organic public-procurement law. Two provisions matter most for businesses: a special contribution collected through supplier retention, and a new right of registration for people and companies that want to participate in public contracting.

The retention applies to large contracts

For state contracts and formalized purchase orders with a value of USD 1 million or more, public entities will retain 0.4% of the net value of each invoice or payment statement presented for payment. Taxes are excluded from the calculation described in the decree.

The retained amounts are to be credited immediately to the account of the National Public Procurement Service. The decree also allows the governing board of the national procurement system to modify the contract threshold and the retention percentage.

There is a ceiling: any modification cannot exceed 0.5% of the net value of each invoice or payment statement. The decree says the rules are to apply progressive and sufficient-revenue criteria.

Registration will carry a fee

The decree also says Sercop will establish registration rights that must be paid by natural or legal persons, whether national or foreign, as well as associations and consortia. The payment will be connected to registering in and becoming eligible through the Registro Único de Proveedores, or RUP, for public-procurement procedures regulated by the law.

The report did not state the eventual amount of that registration right or the date on which suppliers must begin paying it. That makes the next Sercop guidance important for companies that already bid on government work or plan to enter the market.

What companies should watch

The immediate business issue is not just the percentage. Suppliers will need to understand how the retention flows through billing, cash planning, contract pricing, and consortium arrangements. A charge tied to a large invoice can be small relative to contract value while still affecting working capital and payment reconciliation.

Foreign companies and local businesses are both explicitly included in the registration provision. Until Sercop publishes the amount and operating details, businesses should treat the decree as a confirmed framework rather than a complete fee schedule.

The practical watch item is the implementation guidance: the registration amount, the payment process, the effective dates, and any technical rules for the retention.