The Glossary

The vocabulary of public procurement.

15 terms, each with a definition in two or three sentences and what it means for a bidder in practice. Where something can be measured on our own corpus, the figure is there — with the date it was taken and a note on what exactly was counted. Where nothing can be measured, that is stated too. German legal terms keep their German names; they are explained rather than translated.

Where the figures come from: 93,400 open procedures across 27 countries and 60 source systems, read from aggregates rebuilt nightly — as of 21 August 2026. The definitions themselves are descriptions of the law, are not measured, and cite their source.

Threshold and publication

Where a contract must be announced depends on its estimated value — and so, therefore, does who gets to see it at all.

Below-threshold procurement (unterschwellige Vergabe)A public contract below the EU thresholds — national law applies, and it never appears on TED.EU thresholds (Schwellenwerte)The contract values at which EU-wide tendering becomes mandatory — reset every two years.TED (Tenders Electronic Daily)The EU official journal for contract notices — everything above the thresholds, nothing below them.Procurement platform (Vergabeplattform)The electronic system a buyer uses to publish, distribute documents and receive bids.

The German rulebooks

Three sets of rules, three fields of application. Which one applies depends on the type and value of the contract, not on the buyer.

UVgO — UnterschwellenvergabeordnungGermany's procedural rulebook for supplies and services below the EU thresholds.VgV — VergabeverordnungGermany's procedural law for supplies and services above the EU thresholds.VOB/AThe German award rules for construction works — Section 1 below the thresholds, Section 2 above.

Selection and award

Two assessments that are regularly confused: one decides who may bid, the other which bid wins.

Selection criteria (Eignungskriterien)What a company must prove in order to be allowed to bid at all.Award criteria (Zuschlagskriterien)The yardsticks by which the most economically advantageous bid is identified.Prequalification (Präqualifikation)Contract-independent, advance verification of suitability by an authorised body.

Deadlines, contract forms, classification

The terms you need to plan a procedure, compare it with others and find it across language borders.

Submission deadline (Angebotsfrist)The moment by which the bid must have arrived — arrival counts, not dispatch.Bidding window (Bieterfenster)The span between publication and deadline — the preparation time actually available.Framework agreement (Rahmenvereinbarung)An agreement setting the terms of future call-offs over a defined period.CPV codeThe EU-wide, language-independent classification of what is being procured.eFormsThe structured EU standard forms for contract notices, mandatory since October 2023.

And then?

Terms explain the framework; numbers explain the market. When notices are published, how much time each country leaves you and where the deadlines cluster is in the Guide, all measured on our own corpus. Which certificates are demanded how often is in the certificate guide.

DEFINITIONS · descriptions of the law with a citation, not legal advice · FIGURES · from nightly-built aggregates of our own corpus, each dated · methodology: friedrich-clement.com/methodology

The vocabulary applied to your sector — every morning at 7:30.

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