Award criteria in Belgian public procurement
In Belgium, article 81 of the law of 17 June 2016 has the contract awarded to the most economically advantageous tender, on price, cost or best price-quality ratio. The criteria appear in the notice or a procurement document. Above the European thresholds, each has a published weighting, except price alone. Below them, with no weight or order, they count equally.
Updated
In Belgium, article 81 of the law of 17 June 2016 has a public contract awarded to the most economically advantageous tender, determined on price, on cost or on the best price-quality ratio. The criteria are stated in the contract notice or another procurement document, with their weighting or their order of importance.
Three ways to pick the winning tender
Article 81, § 1, of the law of 17 June 2016 says the contracting authority awards public contracts on the basis of the most economically advantageous tender. Paragraph 2 says how it determines it, at its choice.
| Basis | What is compared | Text |
|---|---|---|
| Price | The price of the tenders | Art. 81, § 2, 1° |
| Cost | A cost-effectiveness approach, such as life-cycle costing | Art. 81, § 2, 2°, and art. 82 |
| Best price-quality ratio | Price or cost, plus qualitative, environmental and/or social criteria linked to the subject-matter of the contract | Art. 81, § 2, 3° |
What quality criteria can be
For the best price-quality ratio, article 81, § 2, 3°, names among others: quality, including technical merit, aesthetic and functional characteristics, accessibility, design for all users, social, environmental and innovative characteristics; the organisation, qualification and experience of the staff assigned, where their quality can significantly affect performance; after-sales service, technical assistance and delivery conditions, such as delivery date, delivery process and delivery or completion period.
The same point allows a fixed price or cost: economic operators then compete on quality criteria only.
Paragraph 3 requires the criteria to be linked to the subject-matter, not to give the buyer unrestricted freedom of choice, and to come with specifications that allow the tenderers' information to be checked. They must be stated in the contract notice or another procurement document. The sentences in this section are an English rendering of the consolidated French text, read on Wallex on 27 October 2026: Law of 17 June 2016, consolidated French text (Wallex)
Weighting by threshold
Article 81, § 4, separates contracts that reach the European publicity amounts from the others. The amounts in force are explained here: Thresholds 2026-2027 The calculator applies them: Threshold calculator
| Contract | What the buyer states | Failing that |
|---|---|---|
| At or above the European amounts | The relative weighting of each criterion in the procurement documents, except for an award on price alone; a range is possible | If weighting is not possible for objective reasons: the criteria in decreasing order of importance |
| Below the European amounts | Either the relative weighting of each criterion, or their decreasing order of importance | The award criteria have the same value |
Life-cycle costing
Article 82, § 1, says life-cycle costs cover, to the extent relevant, costs borne by the buyer or other users (acquisition, use such as energy consumption, maintenance, end of life such as collection and recycling) and costs imputed to environmental externalities, if their monetary value can be determined and verified.
Paragraph 2 requires a buyer using this method to state in the procurement documents the data tenderers must provide and the method it will use to calculate those costs.
What a small business checks before replying
The points below are read in the notice and the procurement documents. The law sets the frame; the criteria of a given contract are the ones written there.
- Read the award basis: price, cost or best price-quality ratio. A useful reading order for a notice is here: How to read a TED notice
- Note each criterion with its weight, range or rank. A quality criterion without a checkable specification can be the subject of a question to the buyer before the deadline.
- Look in the specification for sub-criteria and the scoring method: Tender specification
- If life-cycle costing is used, gather the data the documents ask for, in the form asked.
- Be ready to justify the price: article 84 of the law requires the buyer to check prices, and if a price seems abnormal, article 36 of the royal decree of 18 April 2017 obliges it to ask for written justifications, normally within twelve days. The term “abnormal price” is in the glossary: Glossary Royal decree, French text: Royal decree of 18 April 2017, French text (Justel)
- If the notice is divided into lots, check the criteria of each lot: TED notice in lots
- For a framework agreement with reopened competition, later contracts are awarded on the criteria in the framework agreement documents: Framework agreement
- A question to the buyer is asked before the deadline: Question to the buyer
What AOEX does and does not do
The AOEX page for a TED notice shows the award criteria when TED publishes them, in their wording; if they are missing, that is stated. The bid kit reads the published documents and suggests a reply outline drawn from the published criteria only: quality first, the heaviest criteria ahead, then price: Bid kit
AOEX does not submit the tender, does not contact the buyer and does not say who will be chosen. This page is not legal advice. The text to follow remains the latest official notice and the procurement documents.
TED and the directive
Above the European thresholds, the notice is read on TED: TED Directive 2014/24/EU covers award criteria in article 67 and life-cycle costing in article 68. Text of the directive: Directive 2014/24/EU The Belgian law as a whole: Guide to the law of 17 June 2016 The terms are also in the glossary: Glossary
Frequently asked questions
Which award criteria may a Belgian buyer use?
Article 81, § 2, of the law of 17 June 2016 allows three choices: price alone, cost using a cost-effectiveness approach such as life-cycle costing, or the best price-quality ratio, which adds to price or cost qualitative, environmental or social criteria linked to the subject-matter of the contract.
Can a contract be awarded on price alone?
Yes. Article 81, § 2, 1°, provides for the most economically advantageous tender determined on the basis of price. In that case, article 81, § 4, does not require a weighting.
Must the buyer publish the weight of each criterion?
At or above the European publicity thresholds, it states in the procurement documents the relative weighting of each criterion, except for an award on price alone. Where weighting is not possible for objective reasons, it lists the criteria in decreasing order of importance. Below them, it gives either the weighting or that order (article 81, § 4).
What if no weighting and no order is given?
For contracts below the European publicity amounts, article 81, § 4, says that the award criteria then have the same value.
Where are the award criteria of a TED notice?
Article 81, § 3, says the criteria must be stated in the contract notice or in another procurement document. On TED, the notice often lists them; the specification may detail them. The AOEX page shows the criteria when TED publishes them, in their wording, and says when they are missing.
Sources
Law of 17 June 2016, articles 81 and 82, consolidated text read on Wallex on 27 October 2026: Law of 17 June 2016, consolidated French text (Wallex) Justel: Law of 17 June 2016 (Justel) Directive 2014/24/EU, articles 67 and 68: Directive 2014/24/EU
This note describes public documents and how AOEX works. It is not legal advice.
Edited by aoex.
