Procurement procedure – Revocation of a call for tenders
The procurement procedure ends with the conclusion of the service contract or with the revocation of the procurement procedure.
Caution
In general, these rules also apply to entrepreneurs from EU Member States in Austria.
Mandatory revocation
A procurement procedure is to be revoked after the tender period has expired if
- circumstances become known which, had they been known before the start of the procurement procedure, would have excluded a call for tenders, or
- circumstances become known which, had they been known before the start of the procurement procedure, would have resulted in a substantially different call for tenders, or
- no tender has been received or
- no tender remains in the procurement procedure after the elimination of tenders.
Before the tender period expires, revocation is mandatory in the case of the first two points.
Possible revocation
A procurement procedure can be revoked after the tender period has expired if
- only one tender has been received, or
- only one tender remains after the elimination of tenders, or
- there are objective grounds for doing so.
A call for tenders can be revoked before the tender period expires if there are objective grounds for doing so.
Please note
The contracting entity must inform tenderers of the intended revocation or make it known in the same way as the (contract) notice.
Following the expiry of the time limit for the receipt of requests to participate in a restricted procedure, a negotiated procedure, a competitive dialogue, or an innovation partnership, the publication of a notice may be dispensed with, and the decision to cancel the procedure may be communicated to the economic operators remaining in the procurement procedure. The notice and communication must announce the end of the standstill period and the reasons.
The revocation may not be declared before the standstill period expires (otherwise it will be ineffective!). This begins with the transmission or provision of the communication of the revocation decision and, in the case of a revocation before the end of the tender period, with the first availability of the notice or communication.
The standstill period is:
- 10 days in the case of electronic transmission or provision
- 15 days in the case of communication by letter or other suitable transmission
Prior to the expiry of the standstill period, no new procurement procedure for the same subject matter of the contract may be initiated. An exception to this prohibition is permitted only if the procurement is of extreme urgency due to compelling reasons that are unforeseeable and not attributable to the contracting authority.
Please note
The regulations apply to the ‘traditional area’ of procurement procedures (contracting authorities). The (slightly) different provisions for the sectoral area and the awarding of concessions are therefore not set out.
Further links
Legal basis
Bundesvergabegesetz 2018 (BVergG 2018)
Responsible for the content: Federal Ministry of Justice
