Deadline for Requests to Participate in Public Procurement Law 2026
Participation deadline in procurement law: minimum periods for requests to participate in the restricted procedure and the negotiated procedure under EU procurement law.
Definition: The deadline for requests to participate is the period set in the contract notice of a restricted procedure, negotiated procedure, or competitive dialogue by the expiry of which interested undertakings must submit their request to participate (application) in order to be included in the candidate selection.
Last updated: January 2026 · Legal basis: Art. 28 Directive 2014/24/EU, § 16 VgV, § 86 BVergG 2018
What is the deadline for requests to participate?
In two-stage procurement procedures, the participation phase precedes the offer phase: undertakings wishing to take part in the competition must first submit a request to participate, by which they demonstrate their suitability. The deadline for requests to participate limits the period within which these applications can be submitted. It is to be distinguished, substantively and temporally, from the later offer deadline.
The deadline for requests to participate is relevant in the:
- Restricted procedure
- Negotiated procedure with prior call for competition
- Competitive dialogue
- Innovation partnership
Minimum periods
EU procurement law prescribes a minimum period of 30 days for the participation phase.
| Procedure | Minimum participation period |
|---|---|
| Restricted procedure (standard case) | 30 days |
| Negotiated procedure with notice | 30 days |
| Urgency (justified) | 15 days |
These periods are laid down in Art. 28(1) of Directive 2014/24/EU and are implemented in § 16 VgV (Germany) and § 86 BVergG 2018 (Austria).
In the dynamic purchasing system (DPS), the minimum period for admission to the system is 30 days from publication of the notice.
Beginning and end of the period
The deadline for requests to participate begins on the day of publication of the contract notice on TED (EU above-threshold area).
The end of the period – date and time – must be stated precisely in the notice. Requests to participate received late must be excluded.
Relationship to the offer deadline
The deadline for requests to participate and the offer deadline are sequential in time: the offer phase only begins once the participation phase has been completed and the candidates have been selected.
Between the end of the participation deadline and the invitation to submit offers lies the evaluation of applications by the contracting authority. Afterwards, the selected candidates receive the procurement documents and the invitation to submit offers – with a new, separate offer deadline.
Related terms
- Offer submission deadline
- Deadline extension
- Participation period
- Restricted procedure
- Negotiated procedure
- Suitability check
FAQ
How long is the minimum period for a request to participate in the restricted procedure? 30 days from publication of the contract notice. In justified urgency, the period can be reduced to 15 days.
Can a late request to participate be taken into account? No. Requests to participate received late must mandatorily be excluded, in line with the rule for late offers.
What happens after the deadline for requests to participate has expired? The contracting authority evaluates the requests received against the suitability criteria laid down in advance, selects a limited number of suitable candidates, and invites them to submit offers.
Last updated: January 2026 All information without warranty. For legally binding advice, please consult a law firm specialising in public procurement law.
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