Site Visit in Public Procurement Law

The site visit is the inspection of the place of performance before bid submission – voluntary or mandatory – and is subject to the principle of equal treatment.

Definition: A site visit is an inspection of the place of performance organised or enabled by the contracting authority before expiry of the bid submission deadline. It allows bidders to gather information about the actual conditions on site and to calculate their bid appropriately.

Last updated: January 2026 · Legal basis: BVergG 2018, VOB/A, Directive 2014/24/EU

What is a site visit?

The site visit – also known as an inspection appointment or on-site bidder meeting – gives undertakings the opportunity to inspect the place of performance before submitting their bid. For construction works, cleaning services, technical maintenance contracts or other property-related services, knowledge of the local conditions is often essential for a correct calculation.

The contracting authority may offer the site visit as a voluntary option or – subject to strict conditions – make it mandatory.

Significance in the procurement procedure

The structure of the site visit directly affects the principle of equal treatment: all bidders must have equal access to the same information and on-site conditions.

Voluntary site visit

In the case of a voluntary site visit, bidders are free to decide whether to attend the appointment. The contracting authority must ensure that the procurement documents contain all essential information so that bidders can prepare a sound bid without attending.

Mandatory site visit

A mandatory site visit with an exclusion effect – i.e. bidders who fail to attend are excluded – is only permissible under procurement law if knowledge of the site is objectively essential for a proper preparation of the bid and cannot be substituted by any other measure (e.g. plans, photographs, descriptions). A disproportionate mandatory site visit that restricts competition is not permissible.

The invitation to the site visit must clearly state the location, date and time. A single, generally accessible appointment must be offered. If a bidder is unable to attend for understandable reasons (e.g. short-term illness), the contracting authority is required, depending on the individual case, to enable a substitute appointment in order to avoid a disproportionate exclusion effect.

Documentation

The site visit must be fully documented. The minutes record the attendance of bidders, questions raised and information provided. Information given during the visit must subsequently be communicated in writing to all bidders – including those who did not attend – in order to safeguard the principle of equal treatment.

Effects on the bid submission deadline

If a site visit is scheduled, the bid submission deadline must be set so that bidders still have sufficient time after the visit to prepare their bid. The deadline begins to run only after the inspection date at the earliest, or must include a sufficient remaining period after the visit.

Related terms

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