Preliminary Acceptance Criteria Template – Free Word Download

Introduction to Preliminary Acceptance Criteria

The final stage of any project deliverable is the “Moment of Truth,” also known as the Acceptance Phase. This is the point where the project team hands over the product to the customer or business owner, and the recipient must decide whether to sign off and pay the bill. In many projects, this phase is fraught with tension, delays, and disputes. These issues almost always stem from a lack of clarity at the beginning of the project. If you wait until the end of the project to define what “acceptance” looks like, you are essentially aiming at a moving target.

The Preliminary Acceptance Criteria document is designed to solve this problem during the Initiation phase. It is a formal set of conditions that must be met before a deliverable is accepted by the customer, user, or other stakeholders. By defining these criteria upfront, you are creating a “pre-nuptial agreement” for your project. You are establishing the specific, measurable, and realistic conditions that will eventually constitute the legal or organizational definition of “finished.”

This document is labeled “Preliminary” because, in a complex project, the specific details of a product might change during the design phase. However, the nature of the acceptance remains constant. For example, you might not know the exact color of the user interface yet, but you know that “compliance with brand accessibility standards” is a non-negotiable acceptance criterion.

This template will guide you through the process of defining acceptance from four critical perspectives: Functional, Technical, Operational, and Commercial. It will help you move away from vague statements like “the system must work well” to objective criteria like “the system must process 1,000 transactions per hour with a 0% error rate.” Completing this document ensures that both the project team and the stakeholders have the same mental picture of the finish line.

Section 1: The Acceptance Framework and Principles

1.1 Purpose and Objectives

The primary purpose of this section is to align all parties on why these criteria exist. It is not just about a checklist; it is about risk management and relationship management.

Guidance for Completion:

Define what the “Acceptance Event” looks like. Is it a formal board meeting? Is it a signature on a digital document? Is it the successful completion of a 48-hour “soak test”?

Drafting Text:

“The objective of these Preliminary Acceptance Criteria is to provide a clear, unambiguous basis for the formal acceptance of [Project Name] deliverables. These criteria serve as the foundation for the Final Acceptance Test Plan. Meeting these criteria constitutes the ‘Definition of Done’ at the project level. Once these criteria are met and verified, the customer agrees to provide formal sign-off, facilitating the transition to the closure phase.”

1.2 General Principles of Acceptance

Before listing specific items, establish the rules of engagement for the sign-off process.

Key Principles to Include:

• Objectivity: Acceptance must be based on facts and evidence, not opinions.
• Binary Nature: A criterion is either “Met” or “Not Met.” There is no “Partially Met” unless a waiver is granted.
• Documentation: All acceptance activities must be recorded in an audit trail.
• Timeliness: The customer agrees to review deliverables and provide feedback or sign-off within a pre-defined window (e.g., 5 business days).

Section 2: Functional Acceptance Criteria

Functional criteria describe what the product must do. This is the “business value” layer of acceptance.

2.1 Core Capability Requirements

These are the essential functions. If these are missing, the product is useless to the customer.

Guidance for Completion:

Reference the high-level requirements. For each core requirement, define the “Evidence of Success.”

Example Table:

Requirement ID	Functional Capability	Acceptance Criterion	Evidence Required
FR-01	User Authentication	Users can log in using corporate SSO.	Successful login log.
FR-02	Payment Processing	System can process credit card payments.	Transaction receipt in DB.
FR-03	Reporting	System generates a monthly PDF report.	Sample PDF generated.

2.2 Data and Content Accuracy

For many projects (especially IT or Research), the quality of the data is the primary acceptance hurdle.

Examples:

• “100% of the legacy data migrated from the old system must match the source records in the new system (zero data loss).”
• “All instructional content must be proofread and approved by the Legal department for compliance.”

Section 3: Technical Acceptance Criteria

Technical criteria describe how the product must perform. This is the “quality and engineering” layer of acceptance.

3.1 Performance and Scalability

How does the system behave under pressure?

Drafting Prompts:

• Speed: “The system shall return search results in less than 2 seconds under a load of 100 concurrent users.”
• Volume: “The database must support up to 1 million records without a performance drop exceeding 10%.”
• Uptime: “During the 1-week pilot phase, the system must maintain 99.9% availability.”

3.2 Security and Compliance

In the modern business environment, technical acceptance is often synonymous with security approval.

Key Criteria:

• “The application must pass a third-party penetration test with zero ‘High’ or ‘Critical’ vulnerabilities remaining.”
• “Data must be encrypted at rest and in transit using industry-standard protocols (e.g., AES-256).”
• “The solution must comply with GDPR requirements, specifically the ‘Right to be Forgotten’ functionality.”

3.3 Compatibility and Integration

Does the new product play well with others?

Examples:

• “The software must be compatible with the latest versions of Chrome, Safari, and Microsoft Edge.”
• “The hardware must fit within the existing server rack dimensions and use standard power connectors.”

Section 4: Operational and Supportability Criteria

Operational criteria ensure that the business can actually maintain and use the product after the project team leaves. This is often where “Shadow IT” projects fail; they build a great tool that the support team cannot manage.

4.1 Documentation and Handover

A project is not finished until the knowledge is transferred.

Checklist for Acceptance:

• User Manuals: Approved by the training team.
• Technical Docs: Architecture diagrams and API documentation delivered.
• Support Manual: “Runbook” provided to the IT Service Desk.
• Asset Register: All hardware serial numbers and license keys recorded.

4.2 Training and Readiness

The people must be as ready as the technology.

Drafting Text:

“Formal acceptance is contingent upon the successful training of at least 80% of the ‘Power Users.’ Effectiveness will be measured by a post-training assessment where users must achieve a score of 70% or higher.”

4.3 Warranty and Defect Management

What happens if it breaks on Day 2?

Guidance:

Define the “Warranty Period” as part of the acceptance.

“Acceptance includes a 30-day ‘Hypercare’ period. During this time, the project team must resolve any Severity 1 issues within 4 hours. Final sign-off occurs only after 5 consecutive days of ‘Incident Free’ operation.”

Section 5: Commercial and Contractual Criteria

For projects involving external vendors or internal cross-charging, the money only flows when these criteria are met.

5.1 Financial Reconciliation

Key Points:

• “All project invoices must be submitted and matched against the approved Purchase Orders.”
• “A final budget reconciliation report must be provided, showing the variance against the baseline.”

5.2 Legal and Intellectual Property

Key Points:

• “Transfer of all software source code to the company’s internal repository.”
• “Formal handover of all third-party licenses and maintenance contracts.”
• “Signed ‘Certificate of Originality’ or proof of IP ownership for all custom-built components.”

Section 6: The Acceptance Process Workflow

This section describes the “Who” and the “When.” It turns the criteria into an actionable process.

6.1 Roles and Responsibilities

In the RACI template, we identified who is accountable. Here, we specify who has the “Pen” for the signature.

The Sign-Off Hierarchy:

1. Technical Lead: Verifies technical criteria.
2. Product Owner/Senior User: Verifies functional criteria.
3. Project Manager: Consolidates all evidence.
4. Executive Sponsor: Provides the final, binding signature.

6.2 The “Acceptance Gate” Procedure

Describe the steps to be taken when the team believes they are finished.

The 5-Step Process:

1. Notification: The PM notifies the Sponsor that the deliverables are ready for review.
2. Evidence Submission: The PM provides the “Acceptance Pack” (The results of tests, audits, and inspections).
3. Review Period: The Sponsor and Users have [X] days to review the evidence.
4. Dispute Resolution: If a criterion is not met, the “Defect/Variance Process” is triggered.
5. Signature: The formal Acceptance Certificate is signed.

Section 7: Management of Variances and Non-Conformance

What happens if the project hits 95% of the criteria, but the last 5% is impossible or too expensive?

7.1 Conditional Acceptance

Sometimes, a project must go live even if it is not perfect (e.g., to meet a regulatory deadline).

Drafting Text:

“The Sponsor may grant ‘Conditional Acceptance’ if all Severity 1 and 2 criteria are met. In this scenario, a list of ‘Open Items’ is created. The project team remains active until these items are closed, or until they are formally transferred to the Business-as-Usual (BAU) backlog.”

7.2 The Rejection Process

Define how the customer says “No” in a professional way.

Guidance:

A rejection must be specific.

“Rejection of a deliverable must be accompanied by a ‘Non-Conformance Report’ (NCR). This report must cite the specific criterion from this document that was not met and provide evidence of the failure. General statements like ‘it doesn’t look right’ are not valid grounds for rejection.”

Section 8: Acceptance Criteria Matrix (The Summary Table)

This is the most important part of the template for copy-pasting into your project documents. It summarizes the entire strategy.

ID	Category	Description	Measurement Method	Target Value	Owner
AC-01	Functional	Login via Corporate SSO.	Visual Demo	Success on 1st try.	IT Lead
AC-02	Technical	System Response Time.	Load Test Report	< 2 seconds.	Architect
AC-03	Operational	Staff Training.	Attendance Log	90% staff trained.	HR Lead
AC-04	Commercial	Final Budget Report.	Finance Audit	Approved by CFO.	PM
AC-05	Legal	IP Transfer.	Legal Review	Contract signed.	Legal

Section 9: Governance and Version Control

9.1 Evolution of the Criteria

As stated in the introduction, these are preliminary. How do they become final?

Guidance:

“These Preliminary Acceptance Criteria will be reviewed and baseline during the ‘Requirements Sign-off’ stage gate. Once baseline, any changes to these criteria must be processed through the formal Project Change Control Board (CCB).”

Conclusion – Preliminary Acceptance Criteria Template – Free Word Download

The Preliminary Acceptance Criteria document is your project’s insurance policy. It protects the project team from “scope creep” and “expectation drift.” It protects the customer from receiving a product that doesn’t meet their needs.

By completing this template, you are fostering a culture of accountability. You are forcing the project team to think about the “End Game” while they are still at the “Beginning.” This foresight ensures that the build phase is focused on the things that actually matter for sign-off.

Remember that a good criterion is SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. If you find yourself using words like “efficient,” “fast,” or “better,” stop and replace them with numbers. The more mathematical your acceptance criteria are, the smoother your handover will be. When you reach the end of the project, you want the sign-off to be a simple formality, not a stressful negotiation.

Finally, ensure that the stakeholders who will eventually sign the acceptance certificate are the same ones who approve this document today. If the “Acceptor” changes mid-project, you must re-validate these criteria with the new person immediately to ensure they agree with the definition of success.

Meta Description:

A detailed Preliminary Acceptance Criteria template to define functional, technical, and operational sign-off conditions, preventing disputes during project handover.

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