Setting Deadlines in Public Procurement Law 2026

Setting deadlines in procurement law: fixing offer periods, participation periods, and subsequent-submission periods. Legal basis, minimum periods, and consequences.

Definition: In procurement law, setting deadlines refers to the fixing of legally binding time limits by the contracting authority within which bidders, candidates, or third parties must carry out specified actions – such as submitting offers, requests to participate, or subsequently requested documents.

Last updated: January 2026 · Legal basis: Art. 27–29 Directive 2014/24/EU, §§ 15–17 VgV, BVergG 2018

What is the setting of deadlines in procurement law?

Setting deadlines is a central regulatory mechanism in the procurement procedure: it secures equal treatment of all parties to the procedure and gives the procurement procedure a clear temporal structure. Without binding deadlines, a fair procurement procedure would not be possible – bidders could fine-tune at will, and the contracting authority could deploy deadlines selectively to favour particular bidders.

The contracting authority's power to set deadlines is restricted by the procurement-law minimum periods: it may not set deadlines shorter than the statutory minimum periods, except in the expressly regulated exceptional cases.

Types of deadlines in the procurement procedure

Procurement law recognises various types of deadlines that take effect at different points in the procedure.

Offer deadline

The deadline for submitting offers (§ 15 VgV, § 85 BVergG 2018). Minimum: 35 days in the open procedure, 30 days for electronic submission.

Deadline for requests to participate

The deadline for submitting requests to participate in two-stage procedures (§ 16 VgV). Minimum: 30 days.

Application deadline

Used synonymously with the participation deadline, frequently used in Austrian law.

Subsequent-submission deadline

The deadline that the contracting authority sets, in the context of the subsequent-request procedure, for missing documents. No statutory minimum period; but must be reasonable.

Deadline for bidder queries

The deadline by which bidders can submit queries on the procurement documents. Frequently fixed in the procurement documents.

Standstill period

The period between the award decision and contract conclusion within which bidders can submit review applications (§ 134 GWB, § 132 BVergG 2018). Minimum: 15 days (electronic notification) or 15 days (by post).

Principles for setting deadlines

When setting deadlines, the contracting authority must observe several procurement-law principles.

Equal treatment: All bidders receive the same deadlines and the same processing time.
Reasonableness: The deadline must be set so that bidders have a realistic possibility of preparing an offer.
Compliance with minimum periods: EU-law minimum periods must be observed.
Transparency: Deadlines must be clearly stated in the notice or the procurement documents.
Documentation: Extensions and shortenings of deadlines must be documented and justified.

Setting deadlines for review applications

It is not only the contracting authority that sets deadlines – the legislator also sets deadlines for bidders: the application period for review applications is 15 days after becoming aware of the complained-of procurement breach.

If a bidder misses this period, its review application is inadmissible. This applies in Germany (§ 160 GWB) as well as in Austria (§ 343 BVergG 2018).

Related terms

FAQ

May the contracting authority subsequently extend the offer period? Yes, an extension is possible and, in certain circumstances, even mandatory (e.g. where essential documents have been made available late). The extension must be communicated to all bidders.

What happens if the contracting authority sets too short an offer period? A period below the statutory minimum is not permissible under procurement law. Affected bidders can complain of this; if successful, the contracting authority must extend the period.

Are there also deadlines for the contracting authority in the procurement procedure? Yes. The contracting authority must, for example, answer bidder queries no later than six days before the deadline expires (§ 20(3) VgV) and must not allow any delay in providing the bidder information following the award decision.

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