Insights
Commentary on tender procedures, contract performance and disputes, published with its sources and last review date.
Six Matters to Be Aware of in Vehicle Rental Tenders
The most frequent errors in tender documents in vehicle rental tenders, and the effect of those errors on the cancellation of tenders, are examined in the light of the decisions of the Public Procurement Board.
31 March 2026
Grounds for Cancelling a Tender May Not Be Lawful: What Should Firms Do?
Although Public Procurement Law No. 4734 confers on contracting authorities the power to cancel a tender, that power is not unlimited. The decisions of the Public Procurement Board show that cancellations must be carried out within the framework of the public interest, the requirements of the service and the fundamental principles. Grounds such as an insufficiency of appropriations that does not reflect the true position, requirements arising subsequently, grounds that are not concrete, the fact that only one valid tender remains, or an assertion that competition did not arise are in most cases not accepted as lawful. Firms whose tenders are cancelled should therefore examine the grounds carefully and, where necessary, have recourse to legal remedies.
24 March 2026
May the Content of Work Experience Certificates, Laid Down by Statute, Be Altered by Secondary Legislation?
The provisions concerning the use in public tenders of work experience certificates obtained from works carried out under public-private partnership projects have been the subject of judicial review. By the Communiqué of 30 September 2020, the rates at which work supervision and work management certificates are assessed were amended and restrictions were introduced on the issue of certificates for certain positions. The 13th Chamber of the Council of State held that those provisions altered the system laid down by statute and were unlawful. The decision also emphasised that such certificates must be assessed in terms of the right to property, legal certainty and competition.
18 March 2026
Are Demonstration Procedures Subject to Review by the Public Procurement Authority?
In goods and service procurement tenders, demonstration procedures allow it to be tested in practice whether the product or service offered meets the technical criteria set out in the tender documents. In practice, their conduct by contracting authorities within a broad discretion may give rise to legal disputes. In appeals concerning demonstration procedures, the Public Procurement Authority most often treats them as falling within that discretion and carries out no examination. By contrast, the decisions of the Council of State indicate that demonstration procedures should be reviewed by way of technical examination and expert assessment, within the framework of the public procurement legislation.
09 March 2026
Sample Evaluation in Electronic Tenders May Create Serious Difficulties for Supplier Firms
In electronic tenders, sample evaluation is no longer merely an examination of technical conformity; procedural errors may give rise to serious administrative sanctions. Technical non-conformity of the sample leads to elimination of the tender, while failure to submit a sample, submission at the wrong stage, inconsistency with the EKAP declaration, or non-compliance with the required form of submission may result in forfeiture of the bid bond and even in an assessment of prohibited conduct. The Public Procurement Board adopts a strict approach in its regulatory decisions, whereas the case-law of the Council of State is more balanced, drawing on the principles of proportionality and incomplete examination.
27 February 2026
Where and Within What Time Limit Should an Application Be Made Against the Cancellation of a Tender?
Where a tender is cancelled under Public Procurement Law No. 4734, the remedies and time limits available to candidates, tenderers and prospective tenderers who suffer a loss of rights are laid down by the legislation. Those remedies are a complaint to the contracting authority, an appeal to the Public Procurement Authority, and proceedings before the administrative courts. Applications must comply with the applicable procedure and time limits; otherwise they are rejected. Against some cancellation decisions an application must first be made to the contracting authority, while in other cases it must be made directly to the Authority or to the court. The article also addresses procurements falling outside the scope of Law No. 4734.
26 February 2026
Improper Exercise of Discretion in the Cancellation of a Tender
The power to cancel a tender conferred on contracting authorities under Public Procurement Law No. 4734 is not unlimited. It must be exercised in accordance with the public interest, the requirements of the service, the fundamental procurement principles and concrete grounds. Before the tender hour, a tender may be cancelled where matters exist that prevent it from being held and cannot be remedied, and no tender commission decision is required. After the tender hour, cancellation may be possible on grounds such as tenders being very high in relation to the estimated cost, insufficient appropriations, or a breach of the fundamental principles, and requires a commission decision and the tender officer's approval. Cancellation on grounds that are not concrete or objective is not lawful.
24 February 2026
Ambiguity in the Regulatory Decisions of the Public Procurement Authority: the Definition of Prohibited Act or Conduct
Decision No. 2025/UH.II-2814 of the Public Procurement Board assesses the position that the uploading of an incorrect document to EKAP is not in every case to be treated as a prohibited act or conduct, and considers the limits of interpretation of regulatory decisions.
12 January 2026
Withdrawal by the Ministry, on the Proposal of the Contracting Authority, of a Debarment Decision
Decision No. 2025/UM.I-2392 of the Public Procurement Board examines the process by which a debarment decision issued as a result of defective procedures of the contracting authority was withdrawn by the Ministry on the proposal of that authority.
07 January 2026
Quality and Standard Certificates in Public Service Procurement Tenders
The stage at which, the legal character in which, and the limits within which quality and standard certificates may be required in service procurement tenders are among the subjects most frequently giving rise to disputes in practice. Within the framework of Public Procurement Law No. 4734 and the secondary legislation, this study addresses the legal character of such certificates, the distinction between qualification criterion, non-price criterion and condition of contract performance, the limits within which ISO, TS, TSE, food business registration and accreditation certificates may be required, their submission in joint ventures and consortia, and errors in practice in the light of settled Public Procurement Board decisions.
02 January 2026
The Importance of the Criminal Record Certificate in Participation in Public Tenders
All tenderers participating in a tender must state in their tenders that, as at the date of the tender, they have not engaged in any act or conduct prohibited by Public Procurement Law No. 4734.
12 November 2025
The Time Limit Problem in Complaints Concerning the Tender Documents of Negotiated Procedures Without Notice
A significant proportion of tenders under Public Procurement Law No. 4734 are conducted under the negotiated procedure without notice provided for in Article 21(b), 21(c) and 21(f). Negotiated procedure tenders are not the principal tender procedure under the Law. Tenders of this kind may be held where circumstances of unforeseeability, natural disaster or special conditions requiring urgency arise. Because competition and participation are limited, it is a type of tender in which the risk of corruption is considerable.
03 November 2025