Tender Deadline in Public Procurement Law

The tender deadline is the legally regulated time limit within which bidders must submit their tender to the public contracting authority.

Definition: The tender deadline (Angebotsfrist) is the period set by the contracting authority in the procurement documents within which interested undertakings must submit their tender; it begins with the dispatch or publication of the invitation to tender and ends on the specified date, after which no further tenders are accepted.

Last updated: January 2026 · Legal status: Directive 2014/24/EU, BVergG 2018, § 15 VgV

What is the tender deadline?

The tender deadline is one of the central procedural deadlines in procurement law: it sets the time by which bidders must submit their tender to the contracting authority. Tenders received after expiry of the tender deadline must not be considered by the contracting authority and must be excluded. The deadline serves the principle of equal treatment because it ensures that all bidders have the same period to prepare their tenders.

The tender deadline generally begins with the dispatch of the contract notice (in the open procedure) or with the dispatch of the invitation to tender (in the restricted procedure and the negotiated procedure). The end of the deadline is the precise date/time by which the tender must have been received in full by the contracting authority.

Significance and function

The tender deadline serves a dual protective function: it gives bidders sufficient time to prepare careful tenders and at the same time protects fair competition by guaranteeing all participants the same conditions. Excessively short deadlines particularly disadvantage small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which do not have the same capacities as large undertakings. EU procurement law therefore sets binding minimum periods.

Minimum periods at a glance

Open procedure (EU above-threshold sector)

Standard: 35 days from dispatch of the contract notice (Art. 27(1) Directive 2014/24/EU)
With prior information notice: At least 15 days, provided the PIN was published between 35 days and 12 months before the contract notice
With fully electronic submission: A reduction of 5 days is possible (to 30 days)

Restricted procedure

Period for requests to participate: At least 30 days from dispatch of the contract notice
Tender deadline: At least 30 days from dispatch of the invitation to tender; may be reduced to 10 days by mutual agreement

Urgent cases

In duly justified urgency, the tender deadline in the open procedure may be reduced to at least 15 days (Art. 27(3) Directive 2014/24/EU).

Extension of the tender deadline

The contracting authority is obliged to extend the tender deadline where:

the procurement documents were not made available in good time, or
bidder queries were not answered in good time and the answers are essential for the preparation of tenders.

Legal basis

The tender deadline is regulated both at EU level and nationally.

EU: Arts 27, 28, 29 Directive 2014/24/EU
Austria: § 117 BVergG 2018 (deadlines in above-threshold sector); §§ 46 et seq. BVergG 2018 (below-threshold sector)
Germany: § 15 VgV (open procedure), § 16 VgV (restricted procedure), § 10a VOB/A (works)

Related terms

FAQ

What happens if a tender arrives after expiry of the tender deadline? Late tenders must be excluded from the procurement procedure. The contracting authority has no discretion. What matters is the time of receipt by the contracting authority, not the date of dispatch.

Can the tender deadline be extended after publication? Yes. Extension is possible and may even be mandatory, for example where the contracting authority materially amends the procurement documents or fails to answer bidder queries in time. The extension must be communicated to all bidders simultaneously.

Does the statutory minimum period also apply in the below-threshold sector? In the below-threshold sector, shorter national minimum periods apply. In Austria, the BVergG 2018 provides for shorter periods for simpler procurements; in Germany, the below-threshold sector follows the UVgO or VOB/A with their own deadline rules.

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