Principles of Procurement in Procurement Law 2026

Definition: The principles of procurement are the fundamental principles anchored in Union and national law that public contracting authorities must observe when conducting procurement procedures, in particular competition, transparency, equal treatment, non-discrimination, proportionality and mutual recognition.

Last updated: January 2026 · Legal basis: Art. 18 Directive 2014/24/EU; § 97 GWB; § 20 BVergG 2018

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What are the principles of procurement?

The principles of procurement form the legal foundation of the entire public procurement system and permeate every stage of the procurement procedure – from needs assessment to the award decision. They derive from EU primary law (the fundamental freedoms of the TFEU, the prohibition of discrimination in Art. 18 TFEU) and from the secondary-law procurement directives. Art. 18 of Directive 2014/24/EU codifies the procurement principles for classical procurement law.

The individual principles

1. Principle of competition

The principle of competition requires that public contracts be awarded, as a rule, in competition – i.e. that a sufficient number of companies must have the opportunity to compete for the contract. Direct awards without competition are admissible only in narrowly defined statutory exceptional cases. The principle of competition is intended to ensure that the public sector obtains the best possible terms and that no supplier is favoured by considerations extraneous to procurement.

2. Principle of transparency

The principle of transparency obliges the contracting authority to publish all essential information about the procurement procedure in advance and to design the procedure in a way that is comprehensible for bidders. This includes publication of the contract notice, the provision of complete procurement documents, the disclosure of selection and award criteria together with their weighting, and the documentation of all procedural steps. The CJEU has developed the principle of transparency as a free-standing obligation that applies even outside the scope of the procurement directives (CJEU case C-324/98 – Telaustria).

3. Principle of equal treatment and non-discrimination

All candidates and bidders must be treated equally in identical situations; any form of discrimination on grounds of nationality, seat or other characteristics is prohibited. The principle of equal treatment, in particular, prohibits: providing unequal information to different bidders, subsequently changing the evaluation criteria, favouring local suppliers without objective justification and using discriminatory selection requirements.

4. Principle of proportionality

All requirements of the contracting authority – in particular selection criteria and technical specifications – must be proportionate, that is, reasonably related to the subject of the contract. Disproportionately high selection requirements that effectively exclude small and medium-sized enterprises violate the principle of proportionality. Likewise, evidence and documents may only be required to the extent necessary to assess suitability or the tender.

5. Mutual recognition

In an EU context, the principle of mutual recognition applies: certificates, approvals and qualifications from other member states must, in principle, be recognised, provided that they are equivalent to the domestic requirements. This applies in particular to professional qualifications (Directive 2005/36/EC) and technical approvals.

6. Economy and thrift

Public funds must be used economically and prudently; the contract is to be awarded to the most economically advantageous tender. This principle is anchored in budgetary law and is operationalised in procurement law by the most-economically-advantageous-tender (MEAT) principle.

Subjective rights of bidders

§ 97(6) GWB (Germany) and § 20(3) BVergG 2018 (Austria) confer on undertakings a subjective right to compliance with the principles of procurement, which provides the basis for review applications. Without this subjective entitlement, effective protection of bidders would not be possible.

Procurement principles below the EU thresholds

The principles of procurement also apply below the EU thresholds, albeit in a weaker form. The CJEU has derived from the fundamental freedoms of the TFEU a duty of transparency and equal treatment for sub-threshold procurement of cross-border interest as well (CJEU case C-231/03 – Coname). National rules such as the UVgO (Germany) and the BVergG 2018 (Austria) codify these duties for the sub-threshold area as well.

FAQ

Does the principle of equal treatment also apply between candidates in different stages of the procedure? Yes. Equal treatment applies at every stage: during pre-qualification, during the tender phase and during evaluation. Different treatment in comparable situations always requires justification.

Can a contracting authority favour certain bidders for objective reasons? An objective differentiation is admissible only if it is justified by the subject of the contract and does not breach the prohibitions on discrimination. Regional preferences or favouring of national suppliers as such are inadmissible.

What happens in the event of a breach of the principles of procurement? Breaches can lead to the cancellation of the procedure, the voiding of the award, or claims for damages. In a review procedure, the competent review body examines compliance with the principles.

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