e-Procurement – Electronic Procurement 2026

e-Procurement: the fully electronic handling of procurement procedures – obligation, platforms, and advantages at a glance.

Definition: e-Procurement refers to the fully electronic handling of procurement procedures, in which the notice, provision of procurement documents, communication, and bid submission are handled exclusively via electronic means and platforms.

Last updated: January 2026 · Legal basis: Art. 22 Directive 2014/24/EU; §§ 97(5), 53 VgV; § 83 BVergG 2018

What is e-procurement?

E-procurement is the digital transformation of public procurement and has been mandatorily prescribed for the above-threshold area since the 2016 EU procurement law reform. Art. 22 of Directive 2014/24/EU obliges public contracting authorities to carry out all communication and information exchange processes in the procurement procedure electronically. In Germany, this is transposed in § 97(5) GWB and § 53 VgV; in Austria in § 83 BVergG 2018.

E-procurement covers all phases of the procedure: from publication of the notice through electronic provision of the procurement documents to encrypted electronic bid submission.

Duty for electronic communication

Public contracting authorities above the EU thresholds are required to handle all communication with bidders electronically. Exceptions are only possible in narrow cases governed by law (e.g. physical models, samples).

The duty covers:

Provision of the tender documents on a procurement platform
Answering bidder questions via the platform
Receipt of bids exclusively in electronic form
Communication regarding exclusion, award, and revocation

E-procurement platforms

In Germany and Austria, there is a range of procurement platforms via which e-procurement procedures are handled:

Germany

DTVP (German Procurement Portal)
subreport ELVIS
Vergabe24
Bidder management systems of federal authorities (e.g. federal e-procurement)
National register platform (planned / under construction)

Austria

Lieferanzeiger / Ausschreibungs-Ass
eVergabe.at
Austrian State Printing House (ÖSTAT)
TED for EU-wide notices

Electronic bid submission

Electronic bid submission requires a qualified electronic signature or a comparable authentication method. Bids must be submitted encrypted on the platform by the bid submission deadline; opening before the opening date is technically prevented. This ensures the confidentiality and integrity of bids.

Advantages of e-procurement

Electronic procurement offers contracting authorities and bidders significant practical advantages:

Automated documentation of the procurement procedure
Faster, location-independent communication
Reduction of paper effort
Better traceability and audit-proof integrity
European interoperability through the eForms standard

eForms

Since 25 October 2023, EU-wide standardised electronic forms (eForms) have been mandatory for notices above the EU thresholds. eForms enable machine-readable, structured data capture and improve the comparability of procurement data across Europe.

Related terms

FAQ

Is e-procurement also mandatory below the EU thresholds? Below the EU thresholds, the electronic obligation does not apply without restriction; many contracting authorities, however, use e-procurement there voluntarily or based on federal-state law requirements.

What applies if a bidder has technical problems with electronic submission? The contracting authority is not liable for technical problems on the bidder's side. In the case of demonstrable platform outages on the contracting authority's side, a deadline extension may be appropriate.

Must bids always be signed electronically? Above the EU thresholds, a qualified electronic signature or a comparable authentication method is required. The exact requirements depend on the respective platform and the procurement documents.

Last updated: January 2026 All information provided without guarantee. For legally binding advice, please consult a law firm specialising in public procurement law.