GWB – Act against Restraints of Competition in Procurement Law 2026

GWB in procurement law: Part 4 of the Act against Restraints of Competition contains German procurement law above the EU thresholds – basis, structure and significance.

Definition: The Act against Restraints of Competition (GWB) is the central German competition statute; its Part 4 (§§ 97–184 GWB) contains German procurement law for the above-threshold area and transposes the 2014 EU procurement directives into national law.

Last updated: January 2026 · Legal basis: GWB as amended by the Procurement Law Modernisation Act 2016 (BGBl. I p. 203), most recently amended by the Supply Chain Due Diligence Act Adjustment Act 2024

The GWB as the foundation of German procurement law

With its Part 4, the Act against Restraints of Competition forms the primary statutory basis of German public procurement law above the EU thresholds and obliges public contracting authorities to award supply, works and service contracts through a transparent, competitive and non-discriminatory procedure. The GWB was enacted in 1958 as an antitrust statute and was only extended to cover procurement after European harmonisation; since the 2016 procurement reform, §§ 97 ff. contain a modern procurement law that complies with the EU directives.

The GWB is the formal act (an Act of Parliament); the detailed rules of procurement law are found in subordinate regulations (VgV, SektVO, KonzVgV, VSVgV) and sub-statutory rule sets (VOB/A, UVgO).

Structure of the procurement section (Part 4 GWB)

Part 4 of the GWB is divided into several sections and governs the basic principles, the scope of application, procurement procedures, review and legal protection.

§§ 97–101 GWB: General principles (competition, transparency, equal treatment, proportionality, support for SMEs)
§§ 102–103 GWB: Scope of application (public contracting authorities, definition of contract, thresholds)
§§ 104–108 GWB: Exceptions from the scope
§§ 119–135 GWB: Procurement procedures and principles
§§ 150–154 GWB: Special rules for utilities and defence
§§ 155–184 GWB: Review procedure (public procurement tribunals, appeals)

Basic principles under § 97 GWB

§ 97 GWB codifies the central procurement principles that run through the entire procurement law and must be observed in every award decision.

The most important principles are:

Competition (§ 97(1)): Contracts must be awarded in competition.
Transparency (§ 97(1)): The procedure must be transparent.
Equal treatment (§ 97(2)): All candidates and bidders must be treated equally; discrimination is prohibited.
Proportionality (§ 97(4)): Requirements must be proportionate.
Support for SMEs (§ 97(4)): Contracts should be divided into lots; small and medium-sized enterprises should be given preferential consideration where this is economically sensible.
Quality and innovation (§ 97(3)): Procurement should promote quality, innovation and sustainability.

Bidder rights under § 97(6) GWB

§ 97(6) GWB grants bidders and candidates a subjective right to compliance with the procurement rules and thereby creates the basis for primary legal protection in procurement matters. Without this provision, bidders would have no enforceable right to compliance with procurement rules; the review procedure before the public procurement tribunals is based on this foundation of bidder rights.

Review procedure (§§ 155 ff. GWB)

§§ 155 ff. GWB govern the review procedure before the public procurement tribunals as the primary form of legal protection above the EU thresholds.

The procedure is structured as follows:

Complaint (§ 160(3) GWB): Before commencing a review procedure, a complaint must be made to the contracting authority.
Application to the public procurement tribunal (§ 160 GWB): Within 15 days after the complaint is not remedied.
Decision of the public procurement tribunal (§ 168 GWB): Within 5 weeks (extendable).
Appeal to the higher regional court (OLG) (§ 171 GWB): Against decisions of the public procurement tribunal.
Appeal to the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) (§ 179 GWB): On certain points of law.

Relationship to regulations and sub-statutory rule sets

The GWB contains the statutory foundations and framework provisions; the operational design of the procurement procedure is set out in subordinate regulations.

VgV (Procurement Regulation): Supply and service contracts of public contracting authorities
SektVO (Utilities Regulation): Utilities (water, energy, transport, postal services)
KonzVgV (Concessions Regulation): Works and service concessions
VSVgV (Defence and Security Procurement Regulation): Special areas
VOB/A (Award and Contract Regulation for Construction Works): Construction works

Reform developments

The procurement law in the GWB was last fundamentally overhauled by the Procurement Law Modernisation Act 2016 and has since been supplemented by various targeted reforms, for example through the integration of sustainability criteria and requirements arising from the Supply Chain Due Diligence Act.

FAQ

What does the GWB regulate in procurement law? Part 4 of the GWB (§§ 97–184) governs the principles, scope, procurement procedures and legal protection for public contracts above the EU thresholds in Germany.

What is the difference between the GWB and the VgV? The GWB is the Act of Parliament containing the basic principles and the legal framework; the VgV is a regulation that governs the procedural details for supply and service contracts.

Does the GWB also apply to contracts below the EU thresholds? No, below the EU thresholds the UVgO applies (for supplies and services), or the VOB/A (for construction works), together with the relevant regional procurement laws.

Can bidders directly invoke rights under the GWB? Yes, § 97(6) GWB grants bidders and candidates a subjective right to compliance with the procurement rules, which can be asserted before the public procurement tribunals.

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