RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONGPA/W/127
11 January 2001
(01-0123)
Committee on Government Procurement Original:  English
CHECKLIST OF ISSUES FOR PROVISION OF INFORMATION RELATING TO
ACCESSION TO THE AGREEMENT ON GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT
Replies by Estonia
The following communication, dated 9 January 2001, has been received from the Permanent
Mission of Estonia with the request that it be circulated to Parties.
_______________
I. LEGAL FRAMEWORK
1. Is there a single central law on procurement?  If so, please specify?
The present Public Procurement Act serves as a single central law on procurement.
2. What are the other laws, regulations, decrees, administrative rulings, decisions, policy
guidelines and other instruments governing government procurement?  Please provide a summary of
the subject areas dealt with by each of these instrume nts.  Please also explain the main differences (if
any) that exist between their application at the central and sub-central levels of government and at
other types of entities.
Current legal acts on government procurement in the Republic of Estonia are as follows:1. Public Procurement Act (RT I 2000, 57, 374);2. Regulation of the Government "Establishment of deadline for submitting bids for
public procurements" (RT I 1998, 60, 958);
3. Regulation of the Government "Organization of bidding procedures for authorization
of public procurements" (RT I 1998, 60, 957);
4. Government Order "Public procurement of information technology" (RT I 1997, 11,
131);
5. Regulation of the Minister of Economic Affairs "Approval of procedure and forms of
invitations to tender for public procurement" (RT I 1998, 199-201, 804);
6. Regulation of Minister of Economic Affairs "Approval of the form and submission
procedure of declaration for public procurement" (RT I 1998, 199-201, 805);
7. Decree of Minister of Economic Affairs "A pproval of the statute of arbitration court"
(RTL 1997, 40, 212);GPA/W/127
Page 2
8. Decree of Minister of Economic Affairs "Approval of the list of arbiters" (as of
6 August 1999);
9. Regulation of the Government "Public Procurement of Construction Design and
Construction Works" (RT I 1997, 58, 982);
10. Competition Act (RT I 1998, 30, 410);11. Riigi Teataja Act (RT I 1999, 10, 155;  1999, 57, 594);
12. Code of Administrative Court Procedure (RT I 1999, 31, 425;  1999, 96, 846).
3. To what extent will the provisions of the Agreement be applied directly or need to be
transposed into the relevant law?  In the event of direct application of the Agreement over conflicting
provisions of domestic law, please indicate the relevant legal basis.
In the case of conflicting provisions of a domestic law and an international agreement ratified
by Estonia's Parliament, according to Article 123 of the Constitution of the Republic of Estonia, the
provisions of the international agreement have supremacy over the domestic law provisions.
II. SCOPE AND COVERAGE
4. Please summarize the organization of the government in your country at each level.
The Government of Estonia represents a type of a government of a unitary state and it has the
administrative authority all over the territory of the state in the framework of the existing law.  There
are also local municipalities, which have authority to organize local life in local issues on their
respective territories according to the existing law.  The right to conclude international agreements as
well as the responsibility for their fulfilment re sts solely with the Government of the Republic of
Estonia.
5. Please list all central government entities (m inistries, departments, agencies, etc.) procuring
goods, services and construction services.
§5. Contracting authority
(1) For the purposes of this Act, a contracting authority is:
1) a state agency, a profit-making state agency, a city or local government, or a local
government agency;
2) a legal person in public law or a body of a legal person in public law;3) a legal person in private law which is not a company and all the founders or members
of which are jointly or separately the state, a local government and/or a legal person
in public law;
4) a legal person in private law which is not a company and which, to the extent of more
than 50 per cent, is financed or more than one-half of the members of the supervisory
board or management board of which are appointed jointly or separately by the state,
a local government and/or a legal person in public law;GPA/W/127
Page 3
5) an undertaking if it has received a construction work concession from a person
specified in clauses 1)–4) of this subsection and enters into procurement contracts for
construction work on the basis of such concession or if the state, a local government
or persons specified in clauses 2)–4) of this subsection jointly or separately finance
the activities of the undertaking to the extent of more than 50 per cent, whereasholdings in the company are not deemed to be financing;
6) an undertaking if the state or a local government has granted a special or exclusive
right to the undertaking pursuant to the Competition Act (RT I 1998, 30, 410;  1999,
89, 813;  2000, 53, 343;  RT III 21, 232) and if the purchasing of things or contracting
for services or construction work is necessary for the exercise of the special or
exclusive right, or if the state, a local government or persons specified in clauses2)-4) of this subsection jointly or separately hold a majority of votes or more than
50 per cent of the shares in the undertaking directly or through other persons and if
the area of activity of the undertaking is either the creation or operation of permanent
networks with the intention to provide services relating to the production,
transportation, transmission or distribution of water, gas, electricity or thermal energyto the public, or the use of a geographic area in order to prospect for or extract fuels
or enable air or water transport undertakings to use an airport, port or other terminal
structure, or the operation of networks enabling the public to use services relating to
railway, tramway, trolleybus or bus transport, automatic systems or cable distribution,
or the creation or operation of public telecommunications networks for ensuring oneor more telecommunication services.
(2) Production, transportation, transmission or distribution of water, gas, electricity or thermal
energy by an undertaking to networks servicing the pub lic is not deemed to be an activity specified in
clause (1) 6) of this section if consumption of water or electricity is necessary for activities other thanthose specified in clause (1) 6) of this section, or if the supply of the public network depends solely on
consumption by the undertaking and does not exceed 30 per cent of the average overall production of
water or electricity by the undertaking during the last  three years, or if production of gas or thermal
energy by the undertaking results inevitably from ac tivities other those specified in clause (1) 6) of
this section, or if the public network is supplied with a surplus of gas or thermal energy for the
purposes of the economic use thereof and such surplus does not exceed 20 per cent of the average
turnover of the undertaking during the last three years.
The organization of the Government of the Republic of Estonia is regulated by the
Government of the Republic Act.
There are 12 ministries in Estonia, the State Chancellery and 15 county governments, as well
as executive agencies and inspectorates, and their regional offices with the authority to exercise
executive power.
The Republic of Estonia has the following ministries:
(1) Ministry of Education;
(2) Ministry of Justice;
(3) Ministry of Defence;
(4) Ministry of the Environment;
(5) Ministry of Culture;(6) Ministry of Economic Affairs;
(7) Ministry of Agriculture;
(8) Ministry of Finance;
(9) Ministry of Internal Affairs;
(10) Ministry of Social Affairs;GPA/W/127
Page 4
(11) Ministry of Transport and Communications;
(12) Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
6. What entities at the sub-central level of gover nment (states, provinces, municipalities, etc.)
procure goods and services?
At the sub-central level, the local municipalities procure goods and services.
7. Which are the enterprises owned or controlled by the government that are subject to the rules
on government procurement?  Which are the other entities or categories of entities (Annex 3-type of
entities) owned and controlled by the government that engage in procurement?  Specify.
Any entities at the sub-central level of government would not be autonomous from the
Government of the Republic of Estonia in implementation by them of any international agreements.The Agreement on Government Procurement has to be ratified by the Riigikogu  before it becomes a
part of Estonia's law.
8. Do entities listed in response to questions 5, 6 and 7 apply in their procurement the main law
(if one exists), other legislation provided by the federal or central level of government or are theyautonomous from federal or central level of gover nment in their procurement rules and practices?
Where any of these entities are not subject to the main procurement law, please list the entities
concerned and indicate which laws, regulations, et c., they are subject to.  How will you government
ensure the implementation of the Agreement by such entities below the central/federal government
level?
As for the purpose of government procurement, Estonia does not operate any lists of such
entities.  Instead, the issue is regulated through the notion of government procurement in Estonia's
law.  In any particular case, it will follow the rules set out in the Public Procurement Act.
9. Are there any general exceptions from the scope of application of the national procurement
rules, for instance for essential national defense or security reasons?  Please provide details.
§4. Exceptions
(1) A contracting authority is not required to appl y the procedure provided for in this Act to the
following:
1) public procurements in the case of which adherence to the procedure provided for in
this Act results in the disclosure of a state secret;
2) contracting for water, electricity, gas, heat energy, cable distribution and
telecommunications services, if such services can be provided by only one person;
3) purchasing of weapons, ammunition, battle equipment and training equipment related
thereto, and contracting for the relating services;
4) contracting for arbitration or conciliation services;5) contracting for financial services relating to the issue, sale, purchasing or assignment
of securities or other financial documents, or contracting for services provided by the
Bank of Estonia;  similarly, the Bank of Estonia is not required to apply the procedure
provided for in this Act to transactions the objective of which is the issue of currency,
operations with the reserves of precious metals or monetary reserves administered byGPA/W/127
Page 5
the Bank of Estonia, carried out in the performance of the lawful functions of the
Bank of Estonia, or procurement of things or services the main purpose of which is
ensuring the security of the Bank or compliance with the confidentiality requirements
established with regard to information not subject to disclosure;
6) contracting for scientific research unless the results of the research are used by the
contracting authority in its own interests and for the purposes of its activities;
7) purchasing or commercial leasing of immoveables, existing structures or parts thereof
as movables, or rights relating thereto;
8) contracting for services by broadcasting organizations for the acquisition,
development, production or co-production of a programme or a part thereof, and
contracting for broadcasting time;
9) entry into an employment contract;
10) services which a contracting authority specified in clause 5 (1) 6) of this Act contracts
from an affiliated undertaking;
11) purchasing of things or contracting for construction work or services, if the
procurement contract is entered into by the concessionaire and the affiliatedundertaking whom the concessionaire has entered in the list annexed to the tender
submitted in order to obtain the concession;
12) purchasing of museum objects, records, data media, the rights of use thereof, services
and things related thereto or information services the main purpose of which ispreservation of cultural property or ensuring access to information, and the purchaser
or seller of which is a library, museum or archives.
10. Please provide available statistics on the procurement by government entities in your country
in the last two years, including, to the extent av ailable, a breakdown by entity and by categories of
products and services.
Statistics on government procurement will be available by 2002.
III. NATIONAL TREATMENT AND NON-DISCRIMINATION
11. Identify the specific provisions in the legislation which reflect the national treatment and
non-discrimination commitments of Article III of the Agreement.
There are no specific provisions in the legislation, which directly reflect the national
treatment and non-discrimination commitments of Article III of the Agreement.  However, the Public
Procurement Act does not contain any provisions that limit the rights of the foreign tenderers in
comparison to the domestic tenderers.
The above statement is corroborated by the principle provided for in §6 of the Public
Procurement Act.
§6. Equal treatment of persons
A contracting authority shall treat all persons participating in a public procurement tendering
procedure (hereinafter tenderers) equally.GPA/W/127
Page 6
12. Please provide details of any provisions in national legislation according domestic supplies
and suppliers treatment more favourable than that accorded to foreign supplies or suppliers or
according supplies or suppliers of any country more favourable treatment than those of any other
country.
There are no provisions in the legislation according the domestic supplies and suppliers
treatment more favourable than that accorded to foreign supplies and suppliers or according supplies
or suppliers of any country more favourable treatment than those of any other country.
13. Please provide details of any provisions in national legislation allowing a locally established
supplier to be treated less favourably than another locally established supplier on the basis of its
degree of foreign affiliation or ownership or di scriminating against locally established suppliers on
the basis of the country of production of the good or services being supplied.
There are no provisions in national legislation allowing a locally established supplier to be
treated less favourably than another locally established supplier on the basis of its degree of foreign
affiliation or ownership or discriminating against locally established suppliers on the basis of the
country of production of the good or service being supplied.
14. Please specify to what extent, if at all, more favourable treatment is granted to any sectors of
the economy, regions or specific categories of suppliers or supplies.
There are no provisions granting more favourable treatment to any sectors of economy,
regions or specific categories of suppliers or supplies.
15. Please specify any provisions requiring or allowing the use of offsets or measures with
similar effect, such as domestic content, licensing of technology, investment, counter-trade or similar
requirements in the qualification or selection of suppliers, products or services or in the evaluation of
tenders and award of contracts.
There are no provisions requiring or allowing the use of offsets, such as domestic content,
licensing of technology, investment, counter trade or similar requirements in the qualification or
selection of suppliers, products or services or in the evaluation of tenders and award of contracts.
IV. ELEMENTS SPECIFIC TO PROCUREMENT PROCEDURES
16. Please provide a general description of your existing procurement methods and procedures,
including the main procurement methods used and a brief description of each method, and the extent
to which qualification of suppliers and open, selective and limited tendering for each level of
government is used.
§54. Open tendering procedure
(1) Contracting authorities shall use open tendering procedures.  The use of other tendering
procedures is permitted only in the cases provided for in this Act.
(2) A contracting authority shall invite all intere sted persons to participate in an open tendering
procedure by publishing an invitation to tender.
(3) In determining the due date for submission of tenders, the contracting authority shall take into
account the value and complexity of the public procurement, the volume of invitation-to-tender
documents and the tenderer's need to contact the contracting authority in order to access the
supporting documents or the construction site.GPA/W/127
Page 7
(4) A contracting authority shall issue invitation-to-tender documents to persons interested in
participating in an open tendering procedure durin g the period between publication of the invitation to
tender and the first due date for submission of tenders, within three working days after receipt of the
corresponding application.
§55. Restricted tendering procedure
(1) Contracting authorities may use restricted tendering procedures instead of an open tendering
procedure.
(2) In a restricted tendering procedure, the contracting authority shall select qualified tenderers on
the basis of the financial status and technical capacity of the applicants, and submit invitation-to-tender documents simultaneously to all qualified tenderers.
(3) A contracting authority may predetermine the number of tenderers participating in a restricted
tendering procedure on the condition that:
1) in the case of procurement contracts the value of which equals or exceeds an
international value threshold, the minimum number of tenderers is not less than five
and the maximum not more than 20;
2) the number of tenderers is determined on the basis of the nature of the things to be
purchased or construction work or services to be contracted for;
3) the number of tenderers participating in the tendering procedure is determined in the
invitation to tender;
4) the number of tenderers participating in the tendering procedure is sufficient for
ensuring competition.
(4) In determining the due date for submission of tenders, the contracting authority shall take into
account the value and complexity of the public procurement, the volume of invitation-to-tender
documents and the tenderers' need to access the supporting documents or the construction site.
§56. Negotiated tendering procedure with public notice
(1) A contracting authority may use a negotiated tendering procedure with public notice if:
1) all tenders were rejected in an open tendering procedure or restricted tendering
procedure on the grounds provided for in subsection 43 (4) or 44 (1) of this Act or if
such tendering procedure was terminated pursuant to clause 8 4) or 5) of this Act and
the initial terms and conditions of the public procurement were not substantially
altered;
2) due to the nature of the public procurement or the possible risks involved, it is not
possible to determine the estimated value of the public procurement in advance;
3) due to the nature of the services to be contracted, especially services concerning
intellectual property and insurance or banking and investment services, it is notpossible to determine the specific terms and conditions of the public procurement
with sufficient accuracy in order to find a successful tender in an open tendering
procedure or restricted tendering procedure;GPA/W/127
Page 8
4) the things to be purchased or services to be contracted shall be used purely for
purposes of scientific research, experimental study or development;
5) the object of the public procurement is a construction work concession.
(2) In a negotiated tendering procedure with public notice, the contracting authority shall select
qualified tenderers on the basis of the financial status and technical capacity of the applicants, and
submit invitation-to-tender documents simultaneously to all qualified tenderers.
(3) A contracting authority may predetermine the number of tenderers participating in a
negotiated tendering procedure with public notice on the condition that:
1) in the case of procurement contracts the value of which equals or exceeds an
international value threshold, the minimum number of tenderers is not less than three;
2) the number of tenderers participating in the tendering procedure is sufficient for
ensuring competition.
§57. Negotiated tendering procedure without public notice
(1) Contracting authorities may use restricted tendering procedures without public notice if:
1) rapid completion of the public procurement is necessary due to unforeseeable events
in order to save the life or health of a person or property of substantial value or
prevent damaging human life or health or property of substantial value or spread of
environmental damage, or it is necessary due to national defence reasons, and the use
of other tendering procedures is not possible due to time constraints;
2) additional things the value of which equals or exceeds an international value
threshold are purchased from the initial tenderer in order to either partially replace or
supplement the things purchased previously and a change of tenderer would entail the
purchasing of things which are technically incompatible with the things purchased
earlier or the use of which would cause disproportionate additional costs;
3) additional things the value of which is lowe r than an international value threshold are
purchased from the initial tenderer in order to either partially replace or supplement
the things purchased previously and a change of tenderer would entail the purchasing
of things which are technically incompatible  with the things purchased earlier or the
use of which would cause disproportionate additional costs, whereas such additionalthings may be purchased during three years after the end of the initial tendering
procedure;
4) the construction work or services to be additionally contracted were not included in
the initial public procurement but have, due to unforeseen circumstances, becomenecessary, on the condition that the additional procurement contract is entered into
with the same tenderer and due to technical or financial reasons such additional
construction work or services cannot be separated from the initial procurement
without causing disproportionate costs to the parties to the procurement contract and
the additional construction work or services are directly necessary in the later stagesof performing the procurement contract and the total value of the contracts for
additional construction work or services equals or exceeds an international value
threshold and does not exceed 50 per cent of the total value of the initial public
procurement;GPA/W/127
Page 9
5) the construction work or services to be additionally contracted were not included in
the initial public procurement but have, due to unforeseen circumstances, become
necessary, on the condition that the additional procurement contract is entered into
with the same tenderer and due to technical or financial reasons such additional
construction work or services cannot be separated from the initial procurementwithout causing disproportionate costs to the parties to the procurement contract and
the additional construction work or services are directly necessary in the later stages
of performing the procurement contract and the total value of the contracts for
additional construction work or services is lower than an international value threshold
and does not exceed 20 per cent of the total value of the initial public procurement;
6) in the absence of a suitable alternative or substitute, things can be purchased or
services or construction work contracted for only from one particular tenderer due to
artistic reasons or reasons connected with the protection of exclusive rights like
patents or copyrights or, in the absence of competition, due to technical reasons;
7) new construction work is contracted for which consists in repeating similar
construction work performed on the basis of a procurement contract entered into by
the same contracting parties as a result of an open tendering procedure conducted
earlier, on the condition that such construction work complies with the initial project
on the basis of which the procurement contract was entered into;
8) things are purchased or services are contracted for under especially favourable
conditions if such conditions are available only for a very limited period of time and
if such conditions allow for purchasing of things or contracting for construction work
for a price which is substantially lower than the usual market price;
9) things are purchased on the commodity exchange;
10) the procurement contract is entered into with the winner of a competition for ideas
conducted pursuant to the provisions concerning open tendering procedures provided
for in this Act;
11) no suitable tenders were submitted in an opening tendering procedure, restricted
tendering procedure or negotiated tendering procedure with public notice, on the
condition that the initial tendering conditions have not been substantially altered;
12) things are purchased or services contracted for only for conducting investigations or
experiments or for scientific or development purposes and not in order to receivebenefits therefrom, or for covering the corresponding expenses, on the condition that
such purchasing of things or contracting for services does not prejudice competition
in the conclusion of subsequent contracts for similar purposes;
13) the estimated value of the public procurement is up to EEK 200,000 in the case of
purchasing of things or contracting for services or up to one million kroons in the
case of contracting for construction work.
(2) In a negotiated tendering procedure without public notice, the contracting authority may
negotiate with as many tenderers as the contracting authority considers necessary.
(3) In a negotiated tendering procedure without public notice, the contracting authority shall send
invitations to tender or invitation-to-tender documents simultaneously to all selected tenderers.GPA/W/127
Page 10
(4) In a negotiated tendering procedure without public notice, the contracting authority shall send
a notice concerning the negotiated tendering proced ure without public notice to the register and the
notice shall set out at least the following information:
1) the name, address and other details of the contracting authority, and the registry code
thereof if a registry code exists;
2) the subject of the public procurement according to the standard classification of
public procurements, and the characteristics of the public procurement;
3) the name, position and details of the person responsible for the public procurement;
4) the estimated value of the public procurement;
5) the due date for the completion of the public procurement;6) the names, addresses and other details of the tenderers participating in the negotiated
tendering procedure without public notice, and the registry codes thereof if the
registry codes exist.
(5) The formal requirements for notices concerning negotiated tendering procedures without
public notice and the procedure for submission thereof shall be established by the Minister ofEconomic Affairs.
§58. Special rules
(1) Contracting authorities specified in clause 5 (1 ) 6) of this Act may use a negotiated tendering
procedure with public notice instead of an open tendering procedure or restricted tendering procedure.
(2) In the case of procurement contracts the estimated value of which equals or exceeds an
international value threshold, the contracting authoriti es specified in clause 5 (1) 6) of this Act may
use a negotiated tendering procedure without public notice if:
1) the contracting authority selects the tenderers from among tenderers qualified
pursuant to the qualification system provided for in §37 of this Act;  and
2) the contracting authority has published a prior notice for purchasing of things or
contracting for construction work or services and has indicated in the notice that in
the case of a restricted tendering procedure or negotiated tendering procedure withpublic notice the procurement contract will be entered into without the publication of
a further invitation to tender and persons are invited to submit written notices
concerning their interest towards participation in the tendering procedure and no
applications for participation in the tendering procedure have been submitted.
§59. Competition for ideas
(1) Contracting authorities shall organize compet itions for ideas pursuant to the provisions
concerning open tendering procedure or restricted tendering procedure provided for in this Act.
(2) Legal persons in private law, legal persons in public law and natural persons may participate
in competitions for ideas.GPA/W/127
Page 11
(3) A notice announcing a competition for ideas shal l contain at least the following information:
1) the name, address and other details of the contracting authority, and the registry code
thereof if a registry code exists;
2) the names of the members of the committee;
3) the subject and characteristics of the competition for ideas;4) the requirements for participants in the competition for ideas;5) the awards of the competition for ideas;6) the requirements for the projects;7) the evaluation criteria for the projects;
8) the place, due date and time for the submission of projects.
(4) A contracting authority may restrict the number of participants in a competition for ideas on
the basis of explicit and non-discriminatory criteria.  A contracting authority shall determine the
number of participants in a competition for ideas pursuant to the requirement of sufficientcompetition.
(5) The committee of a competition for ideas shall consist of persons independent of the
participants in the competition.  If certain professional qualifications are required from participants in
a competition for ideas, at least one-third of the members of the committee of the competition musthave the same or similar qualifications.
(6) A contracting authority shall authorize the committee of a competition for ideas to organize
the competition and ascertain the winners.
(7) The committee of a competition for ideas shall be independent in its decisions and opinions.
Decisions and opinions concerning anonymous projects shall be made only on the basis of the criteriaset out in the notice announcing the competition for ideas.
(8) The formal requirements for a notice announcing a competition for ideas and the procedure
for submission thereof shall be established by the Minister of Economic Affairs.
§60. Electronic public procurement
(1) Contracting authorities have the right to conduct public procurement through the
corresponding websites.
(2) Requirements for the websites specified in subsection (1) of this section and the list of the
websites shall be established by the Minister of Economic Affairs.GPA/W/127
Page 12
17. Identify the provision in your country's legislation requiring non-discrimination as regards
the qualification of suppliers in terms of Article VIII and selection of suppliers in terms of Article X.
Indicate any exception to this requirement.  What are the provisions ensuring non-discriminatory
access of new suppliers to existing qualification lists?
§12. Removal of tenderer from tender
A contracting authority has the right to remove a tenderer from a tender at any time if it
becomes evident that the information submitted about  the qualifications of the tenderer is false or
inaccurate.
§30. Qualification of tenderers
(1) Contracting authorities are required to verify the qualifications of the tenderers.(2) In the case of an open tendering procedure, the contracting authority shall verify the
qualifications of the tenderers before reviewing the contents of the tenders.
(3) In the case of a restricted tendering procedure or negotiated tendering procedure with public
notice, the contracting authority shall verify the qu alifications of an applicant before issuing the
invitation-to-tender documents to the tenderer.  A tenderer who has submitted a tender may be
subsequently disqualified only if the contrac ting authority becomes aware of new circumstances.
(4) In the case of a negotiated tendering procedure without public notice, the contracting
authority shall verify the qualifications of a tenderer before or after submitting the invitation to tender.
(5) The qualifications of tenderers who submit a joint tender shall be verified separately,
whereas:
1) the indicators resulting from adding the corresponding indicators of the tenderers
shall comply with the requirements set out in the invitation-to-tender documents;
2) in the case of a joint tender submitted upon contracting for construction work with the
estimated value of more than three million kroons, the corresponding indicators ofone tenderer shall, in addition to the provisions of clause 1) of this subsection,
comply with at least 40 per cent of the requirements specified in the invitation-to-
tender documents.
§31. Verification of qualifications of tenderers
(1) In order to verify the qualifications of a tenderer, the contracting authority is required to
request submission of documents confirming that:
1) the financial status and technical competence of the tenderer comply with the
specified requirements;
2) the tenderer is solvent, the tenderer's assets are not sequestered, and no liquidation or
bankruptcy proceeding has been initiated with respect to the tenderer;
3) the tenderer has performed all of the tenderer's obligations regarding state and local
taxes and compensation for damage caused by pollution;
4) the tenderer has, during the last three years, performed all public procurement
contracts as required.GPA/W/127
Page 13
(2) A contracting authority may only require a tenderer to submit information necessary for
verifying the qualifications of the tenderer, and shall take into consideration the legitimate interests of
the tenderer relating to the protection of the business secrets thereof.
§32. Enrolment of tenderer in commercial or professional register
(1) A contracting authority may require a tenderer to prove that the tenderer is entered in a
commercial or professional register according to the laws of the home country of the tenderer, or to
submit confirmation that the tenderer has taken a corresponding oath of office.
(2) If a tenderer is required to hold an activity licence or be a member of a corresponding
organization in order to perform a public procurement in the home country of the tenderer or in
Estonia, the contracting authority may require the tenderer to submit proof concerning such activity
licence or membership.
§33. Financial status of tenderer
(1) In order to verify whether the financial status of a tenderer meets the requirements set by the
contracting authority, the latter may require submission of one or several of the following documents:
1) the balance sheet or an extract from the balance sheet, if publication of the balance
sheet is required under the law of the home country of the tenderer;
2) data concerning the total turnover of the tenderer during the last three financial years;3) data concerning the turnover of the tenderer during the last three financial years as
concerns the object of the public procurement in question;
4) data concerning the social tax paid by the tenderer during the last three financial
years;
5) in the case of contracting for services, confirmation concerning the corresponding
professional liability insurance.
(2) If submission of documents specified in subsection (1) of this section is not possible, the
contracting authority may require the tenderer to submit other data and documents necessary for
assessing the financial status of the tenderer.
(3) If, for good reason, a tenderer is unable to submit the documents required by the contracting
authority, the tenderer may prove the financial status thereof by any other documents accepted by the
contracting authority.
§34. Technical competence of tenderers
(1) In order to assess the technical competence of a tenderer, the contracting authority shall,
depending on the nature, amount and purpose of the things to be purchased or construction work or
services to be contracted, require submission of one or several of the documents listed in
subsections (2)–(4) of this section.
(2) In the case of purchasing of things, the contracting authority may require a tenderer to submit:
1) a list of procurement contracts, if any, performed during the last three years, together
with the values, due dates and indication of contracting authorities;GPA/W/127
Page 14
2) a description of the technical capacity, measures for ensuring quality, and research
and scientific capacity of the tenderer, accompanied, if necessary, by proof;
3) information concerning the technicians or technical units whom the tenderer intends
to use in the performance of the public procurement contract;
4) samples, descriptions or photographs of the things being purchased, whereas the
authenticity thereof shall be proved if the contracting authority so requires;
5) documents to prove that the things comply with specific regulations or standards.
(3) In the case of contracting for construction work, the contracting authority may require a
tenderer to submit:
1) proof of the professional qualifications of the tenderer's specialists and persons
responsible for performing the construction work;
2) a list of construction work, if any, performed during the last three years and data
concerning the value, time, site and contracting authorities of the construction work
and confirmation that the construction work was performed properly and according to
good building practice;
3) the tenderer's statement of the tools, equipment and machinery necessary for
performing the construction work;
4) a statement of the average number of employees of the tenderer during the last three
years;
5) information concerning the technicians or technical units whom the tenderer intends
to use in the performance of the construction work;
6) a statement of the measures for ensuring quality, used by the tenderer;
7) data concerning the subcontractors which the tenderer intends to use in the
performance of the procurement contract.
(4) In the case of contracting for services, the contracting authority may require a tenderer to
submit:
1) proof of the professional qualifications of the tenderer's specialists and persons
responsible for providing the services;
2) a list of the main services, if any, provided during the last three years, and documents
indicating the value, time of provision and th e contracting authorities of the services;
3) information concerning the technicians or technical units whom the tenderer intends
to use in the provision of the services;
4) a statement of the average number of employees of the tenderer during the last three
years;
5) a statement of the tools, equipment and machinery necessary for the provision of the
services;GPA/W/127
Page 15
6) a description of the technical capacity, measures for ensuring quality, and research
and scientific capacity of the tenderer, accompanied, if necessary, by proof;
7) data concerning the subcontractors which the tenderer intends to use in the
performance of the procurement contract.
§35. Removal of tenderer from tender
(1) A contracting authority is required to exclude a tenderer from a tender at any time if it
becomes evident that the tenderer has submitted false information or falsified documents.
(2) A tenderer is disqualified if:
1) the tenderer is bankrupt or undergoing liquidation, the business activities thereof are
suspended or it is in any other similar situation arising from the law of the
corresponding state;
2) bankruptcy proceedings, compulsory liqui dation or other similar proceedings arising
from the laws of the corresponding state have been initiated with regard to the
tenderer;
3) the tenderer has not performed the obligations regarding state or local taxes or
compensation for damage caused by pollution;
4) according to a court judgment which has entered into force, the tenderer has, during
the last three years, failed to perform as required a procurement contract entered intowith the tenderer as a result of a tendering procedure;
5) the tenderer has failed to submit the data or documents required by the contracting
authority on the basis of this Act.
(3) In the cases listed in clauses (2) 1)–4) of this section, documents issued by a competent
institution are considered as acceptable proof.
(4) If the home country of a tenderer does not issue the relevant documents, they may be replaced
by a declaration made by the person concerned before a notary or other such competent official of the
home country of the tenderer.
§36. Registration of tenderers
(1) A tenderer whose seat is within a State Party to the European Economic Area Agreement,
may, in order to prove the qualifications of the tenderer according to the requirements provided for in
clauses 31 (1) 1) and 2) and §32 of this Act, provide the contracting authority with a registrationcertificate issued by a competent body of the home country of the tenderer concerning the enrolment
of the tenderer in the official list of tenderers.  A registration certificate shall contain references to the
basis for registration and the classification of the tenderer.
(2) A contracting authority may require all tenderers registered in an official list to submit
additional confirmation concerning payment of social tax in addition to the registration certificate
specified in subsection (1) of this section.GPA/W/127
Page 16
§37. System for qualifying tenderers
(1) A contracting authority may establish a system for qualifying tenderers, based on objective
criteria and the provisions of this Act.
(2) Contracting authorities who establish a system for qualifying tenderers based on qualification
criteria and rules shall ensure that it is possible, at all times, for interested persons to:
1) access the criteria and rules for qualifying tenderers, whereas interested persons shall
be notified of amendments to such criteria or rules;
2) apply for qualification.
(3) A contracting authority may use lists of qualified tenderers compiled by other persons, on the
condition that the qualification systems used are in accordance with the requirements of the
contracting authority and the provisions of this Ac t.  In such case, the contracting authority shall
notify interested persons of the names of the persons who compiled the lists of qualified tenderers.
(4) A contracting authority shall inform applicants of the decision concerning qualification.  If
the decision concerning qualification cannot be ma de within two months, the contracting authority
shall inform applicants within two weeks after submission of the applications of the reasons for delay
and notify the applicants of the date on which the decision is to be made.
(5) Tenderers or applicants who were disquali fied shall be informed of the corresponding
decision and grounds for disqualification.  Grounds for disqualification shall be based on criteria for
qualifying tenderers, specified in subsection (2) of this section.
(6) A contracting authority shall not require tenderers to submit documents or certificates which
duplicate documents already submitted to such contracting authority.
(7) Written records shall be kept of qualified tenderers.  The corresponding list may be
subdivided into categories according to the object of public procurement to which the qualification
applies.
(8) Contracting authorities may disqualify of a tenderer only on grounds arising from criteria for
qualification specified in subsection (2) of this section.  A tenderer shall be notified of disqualification
and the reason therefor shall be indicated.
(9) A contracting authority shall submit a notice concerning establishment of a system for
qualifying tenderers to the register and the notice shall contain at least the following information:
1) the name, address and other details of the contracting authority, and the registry code
thereof if a registry code exists;
2) the time of establishing the criteria and rules for qualifying tenderers;
3) the place and time for accessing the criteria and rules for qualifying tenderers.
(10) The formal requirements for the notice specified in subsection (9) of this section and the
procedure for submission thereof shall be established by the Minister of Economic Affairs.GPA/W/127
Page 17
18. In situations where qualification procedures and selective tendering may be used, to what
extent do entities allow suppliers to become qualified during the procurement process?  To what
extent do entities maintain permanent lists of suppliers?
There are no provisions regulating the use of permanent lists of suppliers or the selection of
suppliers on a contract-by-contract basis in the current Public Procurement Act.
19. What are the conditions and circumstances foreseen in your legislation allowing the use of
the limited tendering method under Article XV of the Agreement?  What measures exist in order to
ensure that this method is not used with a view  to avoiding maximum possible competition or in a
manner which would constitute a means of discriminating among foreign supplies/suppliers or in
favour of domestic supplies/suppliers?
§55. Restricted tendering procedure
(1) Contracting authorities may use restricted tendering procedures instead of an open tendering
procedure.
(2) In a restricted tendering procedure, the contracting authority shall select qualified tenderers on
the basis of the financial status and technical capacity of the applicants, and submit invitation-to-
tender documents simultaneously to all qualified tenderers.
(3) A contracting authority may predetermine the number of tenderers participating in a restricted
tendering procedure on the condition that:
1) in the case of procurement contracts the value of which equals or exceeds an
international value threshold, the minimum number of tenderers is not less than fiveand the maximum not more than 20;
2) the number of tenderers is determined on the basis of the nature of the things to be
purchased or construction work or services to be contracted for;
3) the number of tenderers participating in the tendering procedure is determined in the
invitation to tender;
4) the number of tenderers participating in the tendering procedure is sufficient for
ensuring competition.
(4) In determining the due date for submission of tenders, the contracting authority shall take into
account the value and complexity of the public procurement, the volume of invitation-to-tender
documents and the tenderers' need to access the supporting documents or the construction site.
20. Article XIV of the Agreement allows for negotiation under certain conditions.  Are entities
allowed to proceed to negotiations?  If so, which categories and what are the conditions imposed?
§9. Confidentiality
(1) A contracting authority shall not disclose information received from tenderers or from
persons applying for participation in a tendering procedure (hereinafter applicant) concerning theirbusiness activities, nor the contents of the tenders or negotiations unless otherwise provided by this
Act.GPA/W/127
Page 18
§51. Negotiations
(1) In negotiated tendering procedures with public notice or negotiated tendering procedures
without public notice, the contracting authority has the right to decide whether and to which extent to
negotiate with the tenderers.
(2) Negotiations are prohibited in open tendering procedures and restricted tendering procedures.
Contracting authorities shall not forward informati on received in negotiations to other tenderers.
21. Article XI sets out the minimum time-periods for tendering and delivery.  What are the rules
and practices regarding time-periods in your legisla tion?  Does the legislation reflect the various
minimum time-periods as set out in the Agreement?  If not, give information on any different
time-periods which have been established in your national legislation.
§40. Term for submission of tenders and applications for participation in tendering procedure
(1) In open tendering procedures, the period of time between the publication of an invitation to
tender and the due date for submission of tenders shall be, in the case of procurement contracts the
value of which:
1) is lower than an international value threshold, not less than 30 days;
2) equals or exceeds an international value threshold, generally not less than 52 days or
not less than 36 days, whereas due to time constraints or in simpler cases not less than
22 days, if the contracting authority has, in the prior notice, indicated all necessary
information concerning the open tendering procedure which is known at the time, on
the condition that the prior notice was published at least 52 days but not more than12 months before publication of the invitation to tender.
(2) In restricted tendering procedures, the period of time between the publication of the invitation
to tender and the due date for submission of applications for participation in the tendering procedure
shall be, in the case of procurement contracts the value of which:
1) is lower than an international value threshold, not less than 30 days;2) equals or exceeds an international value threshold, generally not less than 37 days or
not less than 15 days in cases where time constraints render compliance with the
requirement of 37 days impossible.
(3) In negotiated tendering procedures with public notice, the period of time between the
publication of the invitation to tender and the due date for submission of applications for participation
in the tendering procedure shall be, in the case of procurement contracts the estimated value of which:
1) is lower than an international value threshold, not less than 30 days;2) equals or exceeds an international value threshold, generally not less than 37 days or
not less than 15 days in cases where time constraints render compliance with the
requirement of 37 days impossible, or not less than 52 days if the procurement
contract to be negotiated is a construction work concession contract.
(4) In restricted tendering procedures, the period of time between the issue of the invitation-to-
tender documents and the due date for submission of tenders shall be, in the case of procurement
contracts the estimated value of which:GPA/W/127
Page 19
1) is lower than an international value threshold, not less than 30 days;
2) equals or exceeds an international value threshold, not less than 40 days, or not less
than 26 days if the contracting authority has, in the prior notice, indicated all
information necessary for the restricted tendering procedure which is known at thetime, on the condition that the prior notice was published at least 52 days but not
more than 12 months before the notice of the restricted tendering procedure, or not
less than 10 days in cases where time constraints render compliance with the
requirement of 40 or 26 days impossible, or not less than 24 days in the case of
contracting authorities specified in clause 5 (1) 6) of this Act if the contracting
authority does not reach an agreement with the selected tenderers concerning a
shorter time limit, on the condition that all tenderers are afforded the same amount oftime for the preparation and submission of tenders.
(5) A contracting authority may extend the term for submission of tenders or applications for
participation in a tendering procedure and change the date of opening the tenders.  A contracting
authority shall send a notice concerning extension of a term or a change in the date of opening oftenders to all persons who received an invitatio n to tender or invitation-to-tender documents.
22. Briefly describe the procedures for the submission, receipt and opening of tenders and
awarding of contracts, in particular the procedures and conditions guaranteeing regularity of the
openings and consistency with the non-discrimination provisions of the Agreement.  How is theinformation on the proceedings related to the receipt, opening and evaluation of tenders maintained
by entities?
§39. Submission, amendment and withdrawal of tenders
(1) A tender shall comply with the requirements set out in the invitation-to-tender documents and
shall be in no way misleading.
(2) A tender shall be submitted in writing and in a sealed envelope.(3) The contracting authority shall provide a tenderer with a certificate concerning receipt of a
tender and the date and time of receipt of the tender shall be indicated in the certificate.
(4) Tenderers may submit a joint tender if such opportunity is prescribed in the invitation-to-
tender documents.
(5) A tenderer may amend a tender by submitting a new tender or withdraw a tender, whereas the
corresponding written notice shall be submitted to the contracting authority before the due date for
submission of tenders.
§42. Opening of tenders
(1) Tenders shall be opened at the place and time specified in the invitation-to-tender documents
or, in the case of extension of the tender validity period, at the time specified by the contracting
authority.
(2) All tenderers have the right to participate in the opening of tenders personally or through their
authorized representatives.
(3) The names and addresses of the tenderers and the tender prices shall be made known at the
opening of the tenders.  A corresponding report on the opening of the tenders shall be prepared.GPA/W/127
Page 20
(4) A report on the opening of tenders shall be sent to the tenderers within three working days
after the opening of the tenders.
§43. Declaration of suitability of tenders and rejection of tenders
(1) Contracting authorities shall verify the comp liance of submitted tenders with the requirements
set out in the invitation-to-tender documents.
(2) A tender shall be declared suitable if it co mplies with all the requirements set out in the
invitation-to-tender documents.
(3) A tender may be declared suitable if it contains no substantive deviations from the conditions
set out in the invitation-to-tender documents.
(4) A contracting authority shall reject a tender if:
1) the tenderer is not qualified pursuant to the provisions of this Act;2) the tender does not comply with the requirements set out in the invitation-to-tender
documents.
(5) A notice concerning declaration of a tender as suitable or rejection of a tender, and the
reasons therefor shall be sent to the tenderer in writing within three working days after the making of
the corresponding decision.
§44. Rejection of all tenders
(1) A contracting authority may reject all tenders before entry into a procurement contract if the
invitation-to-tender documents prescribe such possibility and the grounds therefor.
(2) A contracting authority shall immediately send a notice concerning rejection of all tenders to
all tenderers to whom invitation-to-tender documents were issued.
(3) At the request of a tenderer, the contracting authority shall notify the tenderer of the grounds
for rejection of all tenders.
(4) Upon rejection of all tenders, the contracting authority shall refund the fee charged from
tenderers for the invitation-to-tender documents.
§45. Comparison and evaluation of tenders
(1) A contracting authority shall compare and evaluate all tenders which have not been rejected.
In the comparison and evaluation of tenders, only the criteria set out in the invitation-to-tender
documents shall be considered.
(2) The successful tender is a tender which, in terms of the evaluation criteria set out in the
invitation-to-tender documents, is the most advantageous among the tenders declared suitable,
whereas the success of the tender shall be objectively justifiable.
(3) A contracting authority which has divided a public procurement into parts shall evaluate
tenders according to the parts and as a whole if at least one of the tenders declared suitable concerns
the entire object of the public procurement.  The contracting authority shall declare successful the
most advantageous tender for each part if declaring one tender as successful for all of the parts is not
in compliance with the conditions specif ied in subsection (1) of this section.GPA/W/127
Page 21
(4) Persons who are or have been in a relationship with a tenderer which may give rise to justified
doubts as to the persons' objectivity shall not participate in evaluation of tenders.
§46. Acceptance of tenders
(1) A successful tender is deemed to be accepted after fourteen days as of declaration of the
tender as successful.
(2) A written notice concerning declaration of a tender as successful shall be sent to all tenderers
within three working days after th e corresponding decision is made.  The notice sent to the tenderers
shall set out the name of the tenderer who submitted the successful tender and an explanationconcerning the advantages of the successful tender over the other tenders.
23. Please identify the provisions in your legislation setting the parameters for the prescription of
technical specifications by entities as part of the evaluation criteria.
§26. Technical specification
(1) A technical specification is a list of characteristics or a description of the process affecting the
characteristics of things purchased or construction work or services contracted for by way of public
procurement.  In the case of contracting for cons truction work, the technical specification consists in
building design documentation containing corresponding drawings, explanations, qualification
requirements and other necessary documents to the extent permitting contracting for construction
work.
(2) A technical specification shall not create advantages to certain tenderers over their
competitors and give rise to barriers to international trade.
(3) In the preparation of a technical specificatio n, the contracting authority shall not use the
advice of persons who may have business interests with regard to the public procurement.
§27. Preparation of technical specification
(1) A technical specification may be prepared on the basis of a technical regulation or standard.(2) Things of a specific make or obtainable from a specific source or through a specific process,
which would favour or eliminate the participation of certain tenderers may be listed in a technical
specification only if such specification is unavoidable due to the special character of the object of thepublic procurement.
(3) Information concerning specific origins or methods of production, types, trade marks or
patents shall be listed or referred to in a techni cal specification only if such list or reference is
accompanied by the words "or equivalent" or if the characteristics of the object of the publicprocurement are otherwise not sufficiently precise and intelligible to all parties.
§28. Standards
(1) A technical specification may refer to international standards if these have not been
introduced as Estonian standards.
(2) Contracting authorities may derogate from the requirements provided for in subsection 27 (1)
of this Act and subsection (1) of this section if:GPA/W/127
Page 22
1) the object of the public procurement does not conform to the specified standards;
2) the use of such standards would oblige the contracting authority to purchase things
which are not compatible with the things already in use or would entail
disproportionate additional costs or technical difficulties;
3) such standards are not suitable for the application in question and do not take into
consideration the technical innovations which have occurred after the introduction of
the standards;
4) the object of the public procurement is of a genuinely innovative nature and therefore
the application of existing standards is not possible;
5) the technical regulations or standards contradict each other.
(3) On the basis of a corresponding request, a contracting authority shall provide tenderers with
the opportunity to access the technical regulations or  standards which referred to in the invitation-to-
tender documents or which the contracting authority intends to use for the public procurement
referred to in the prior notice.  If a technical specification is based on documents accessible by the
tenderers, a reference to such documents is sufficient.
24. Identify the measures in national legislati on ensuring that awards are made in accordance
with the evaluation criteria and essential requirements specified in the tender documentation.
§24. Invitation-to-tender documents
(1) Invitation-to-tender documents shall contain at least the following information:
3) the evaluation criteria which will be used for selecting successful tenders and which
may be either the lowest price only or the economically most advantageous tender
which, depending on the specific object of the public procurement, may be
determined on the basis of different criteria allowing for objective evaluation, and of
their relative proportion in per cents or value points;
§45. Comparison and evaluation of tenders
(1) A contracting authority shall compare and evaluate all tenders which have not been rejected.
In the comparison and evaluation of tenders, only the criteria set out in the invitation-to-tender
documents shall be considered.
(2) The successful tender is a tender which, in terms of the evaluation criteria set out in the
invitation-to-tender documents, is the most advantageous among the tenders declared suitable,
whereas the success of the tender shall be objectively justifiable.GPA/W/127
Page 23
V. INFORMATION
25. Article XIX:1 of the Agreement foresees the publication of laws, regulations, judicial
decisions, administrative rulings of general application and procedures regarding government
procurement.  Please give the name of the public ation(s) and indicate the means used for this
purpose.  Please also provide, where available, the address of an Internet website where thelegislation referred to in questions 1 and 2 can be found.
The official bulletin containing the publication of all legislation of the Republic of Estonia is
the Riigi Teataja .
The Riigi Teataja Act
§1. Scope of application of Act
This Act provides the procedure for publication in the Riigi Teataja  of legislation and
international agreements of the Republic of Estoni a, reasoned decisions of the Supreme Court of the
Republic of Estonia, notices and other documents, and for access thereto.
The legislation referred to in questions 1 and 2 can be found on the website of Estonian Legal
Translation Centre, available at:  www.legaltext.ee.  Mis Sa arvad, kas võiks selle lause sisse
panna???  Muidu ei vasta me ju üldse esitatud küsimusele?
26. Article IX:1 of the Agreement foresees the publication of invitations to participate for all
cases of intended procurement by entities.  Please give the name of the relevant publication(s) andindicate the media to be used for this purpose.  Please also provide, where available, the address of
an Internet website where such invitations are published.
The official source of information on government procurement is the Riigihangete Bülletään,
issued by the Public Procurement Office, available at www.rha.gov.ee.
27. Please specify the types of information that your legislation requires to be included in notices
of invitation to tender or in tender documentation, and identify the relevant provisions in your
legislation.
§18. Prior notices
(1) Concerning a public procurement the estimated value of which in the case of purchasing of
things or contracting for services equals or exceeds 750,000 euros or, in the case of contracting for
construction work, five million euros and which the contracting authority intends to organize during
the forthcoming 12 months, the following shall be  communicated by the contracting authority by
means of a prior notice submitted after the beginning of the financial year:
1) in the case of purchasing of things, the estimated value of each public procurement,
broken down by the types of the things;
2) in the case of contracting for services, the estimated value of each public
procurement, broken down by the types of the services;
3) in the case of contracting for construction work, the estimated value and essential
characteristics of each public procurement.GPA/W/127
Page 24
(2) A contracting authority shall submit a prior notice to the register in Estonian and shall add a
translation of the notice into English.
(3) A contracting authority shall not publish a prior notice or inform the tenderers of the content
thereof before the notice is entered in the register, whereas the prior notice shall contain theinformation provided for in clauses 19 (1) 1)–11).  In  the case of amending a prior notice, the subject
and characteristics of the public procurement according to the standard classification of public
procurements shall not be changed.
(4) The formal requirements for prior notices and the procedure for submission thereof shall be
established by the Minister of Economic Affairs.
§19. Notice of invitation to tender
(1) In the case of a public procurement by an open tendering procedure, restricted tendering
procedure or negotiated tendering procedure with public notice, the contracting authority shall submit
an invitation to tender to the register for publicat ion and the notice shall contain at least the following
information:
1) the name, address and other details of the contracting authority, and the registry code
thereof if a registry code exists;
2) the subject of the public procurement according to the standard classification of
public procurements, and the characteristics of the public procurement;
3) the type of the tendering procedure;
4) the name, official title and details of the person responsible for the public
procurement;
5) the due date for the completion of the public procurement;6) the place and conditions of issue of invitation-to-tender documents;
7) the minimum qualification requirements for the economic and technical conditions of
the tenderers;
8) whether a tender security is required and the amount thereof;
9) the amount to be paid for the invitation-to-tender documents;
10) in the case of an open tendering procedure, the place, due date and time for the
submission of tenders;
11) in the case of a restricted tendering procedure or a negotiated tendering procedure
with public notice, the place, due date and time for submission of written applications
for participation in the tendering procedure.
(2) An invitation to tender shall be published in Estonian whereas in the case of a public
procurement the value of which equals or exceeds an international value threshold, the contracting
authority shall submit a translation of the invitation into English, in other cases a summary of the
invitation in English may be annexed.GPA/W/127
Page 25
(3) A summary of an invitation to tender in En glish shall contain at least the information
provided for in clauses (1) 1), 2) and 10) or 11) of this section.
(4) In the case of an open tendering procedure, restricted tendering procedure or negotiated
tendering procedure with public notice, the contracting authority shall not publish the invitation totender or inform the tenderers of the content ther eof before the invitation has been entered in the
register.  If an invitation to tender is amended, the subject and characteristics of the public
procurement according to the standard classification of public procurements, the minimum
qualification requirements for the economic and technical conditions of the tenderers, and the
requirement for tender security and the amount thereof shall not be changed.
(5) The standard classification of public procurements shall be approved by the Minister of
Economic Affairs.
(6) The formal requirements for invitations to  tender and the procedure for submission thereof
shall be established by the Minister of Economic Affairs.
§24. Invitation-to-tender documents
(1) Invitation-to-tender documents shall contain at least the following information:
1) the due date for the completion of the public procurement;2) the technical specification;3) the evaluation criteria which will be used for selecting successful tenders and which
may be either the lowest price only or the economically most advantageous tenderwhich, depending on the specific object of the public procurement, may be
determined on the basis of different criteria allowing for objective evaluation, and of
their relative proportion in per cents or value points;
4) the terms and conditions of the procurement contract to the extent that the contracting
authority is able to submit at the moment;
5) the conditions of payment;
6) the amount of tender security if the contracting authority demands submission of
tender security;
7) the language or languages in which the tenders are to be prepared, whereas, if the
tenders are to be prepared in another language besides Estonian, at least one of the
languages in addition to the Estonian shall be an official working language of the
World Trade Organization;
8) the currency unit or units in which the value of the tenders is to be submitted;
9) the address to which the tenders are to be sent;10) instructions for the marking of the envelope in which the tenders are to be submitted;11) the due date and time for the submission of tenders;GPA/W/127
Page 26
12) the address from which additional information concerning the public procurement
and the content of the invitation-to-tender documents can be obtained, and other
details;
13) the tender validity period;14) the place, date and time of opening the tenders;15) the conditions and requirements for the qualification of the tenderers, a notice
concerning the information and documents which are to be annexed to a tender in
order to allow evaluation of the qualifications of the tenderers, and the earliest
possible date of issue of the required documents;
16) if the contracting authority prescribes the possibility of rejecting all tenders, a notice
concerning the conditions under which the contracting authority reserves the right to
do so;
17) the possibility of and the procedure for submitting a joint tender if the contracting
authority prescribes such possibility.
(2) In invitation-to-tender documents, the contracting authority may require the tenderers to
indicate in their tenders the share of the contract which they intend to perform themselves and theshare of the contract which they intend to subcontract to third parties, whereas subcontracts shall not
reduce the liability of the tenderer.
(3) A contracting authority may charge a fee for invitation-to-tender documents if the amount of
the fee has been indicated in the invitation to te nder.  The amount of the fee shall not exceed the
expenditure for the photocopying and delivery of the invitation-to-tender documents.
(4) If an invitation to tender prescribes a fee for the invitation-to-tender documents, the
contracting authority shall issue the invitation-to-t ender documents after payment of the fee indicated
in the invitation.
(5) A contracting authority shall enable tenderers to access invitation-to-tender documents at the
contracting authority without charge.
(6) In the case of a negotiated tendering procedure with public notice or negotiated tendering
procedure without public notice, the contracting authority shall submit the information specified
subsection (1) of this section in the invitation-to-tender documents to the extent it considers necessary.
§25. Amendments to invitation-to-tender documents
A contracting authority may make amendments to invitation-to-tender documents on the
condition that such amendments be sent during one and the same day of the first half of the term forsubmission of tenders to all tenderers who received the invitation-to-tender documents.  If a protest or
appeal is filed, the contracting authority may extend the term for submission of tenders.GPA/W/127
Page 27
28. Article IX:1 of the Agreement foresees publication of permanent lists of qualified suppliers by
entities maintaining such lists.  Please give the name of the publication(s) and indicate the means
used for this purpose.  Please also provide, where available, the address of an Internet website where
such invitations are published.
There are no provisions in the Public Procurement Act on the lists of qualified suppliers since
the Public Procurement Act does not foresee maintainin g of any such lists by the entities subject to the
government procurement procedures.
29. Article XVIII:1 of the Agreement foresees the publication of details of contract award notices
by entities.  Please give the name of the relevant publication(s) and indicate the means to be used for
this purpose.  Please also provide, where available, the address of an Internet website where suchnotices are published.
The official source of information on government procurement is the Riigihangete Bülletään,
issued by the Public Procurement Office, available at www.rha.gov.ee.
30. Please specify the types of information that not ices of contract awards should contain in your
country and identify the relevant provisions in your legislation.
The Public Procurement Act sets the informatio n requirements for notices of contract awards
as follows.
§20. Declarations
(1) Within 10 days after termination of a public procurement tendering procedure, the contracting
authority shall submit a public procurement declaration (hereinafter declaration) to the register and acopy of the procurement contract to the Office unless the submission thereof is contrary to law.
(2) Within 10 days after deciding the winner of a competition for ideas, the contracting authority
shall submit a corresponding declaration to the register.
(3) Declarations submitted by contracting authorities specified in clause 5 (1) 6) of this Act shall
not contain information the disclosure of which may be contrary to the public interest, damage thelawful business interests of other persons or free competition.
(4) A declaration shall set out:
1) the name, address and other details of the contracting authority, and the registry code
thereof if a registry codes exists;
2) the subject of the public procurement according to the standard classification of
public procurements, and the characteristics of the public procurement;
3) the type of the tendering procedure;
4) the name, official title and details of the person responsible for the public
procurement;
5) the names, addresses and other details of the tenderers who submitted tenders, and the
registry codes thereof if the registry codes exist;
6) the names, addresses and other details of the qualified tenderers, and the registry
codes thereof if the registry codes exist;GPA/W/127
Page 28
7) the date of entry into, value and other essential conditions of the procurement
contract, including the names, addresses and registry codes of subcontractors if these
exist;
8) the prices of the tenders submitted by qualified tenderers or, in the case of an
economically most advantageous tender, the percentage or value points attained by all
qualified tenderers according to the evaluation criteria;
9) information concerning appeals filed with a court in the course of the tendering
procedure;
10) in the case of cancellation of the tendering procedure or rejection of all tenders, the
reasons why and the basis on which this was done;
11) if an open tendering procedure or restricted tendering procedure is not used, the
grounds for the selection of the tendering procedure.
(5) A declaration of a competition for ideas shall set out:
1) the name, address and other details of the contracting authority, and the registry code
thereof if a registry code exists;
2) the subject and characteristics of the competition for ideas;3) the names and addresses of the participants;
4) the name and address of the person who submitted the award-winning project;
5) information concerning the qualifications required of the participants or confirming
the lack thereof;
6) the total value of the awards of the competition for ideas;
7) a summary of the evaluation and comparison of the projects.
(6) The formal requirements for declarations and the procedure for submission thereof shall be
established by the Minister of Economic Affairs.
§21. Public procurement report
(1) Within 10 days after the date of completion of a public procurement, the contracting authority
shall prepare a written public procurement report which shall set out:
1) the name, address and other details of the contracting authority, and the registry code
thereof if a registry code exists;
2) the subject of the public procurement according to the standard classification of
public procurements, and the characteristics and total value of the publicprocurement;
3) amendments to the essential conditions of the procurement contract;4) complaints filed in the course of performance of the procurement contract.GPA/W/127
Page 29
(2) A public procurement report shall be preserved until the end of the fourth year following the
completion of the public procurement.
(3) A contracting authority shall submit a public procurement report to the register and copies of
amendments to the procurement contract, including c opies of the annexes to the contract, to the Office
immediately after preparing the public procurement report.
(4) The formal requirements for public procurement reports and the procedure for submission
thereof shall be established by the Minister of Economic Affairs.
§22. Register
(1) Information concerning prior notices, notices, invitations to tender, declarations, procurement
contracts, public procurement reports and tenderers shall be entered in the register.
(2) The register shall be established and the statutes for the maintenance of the register shall be
approved by the Government of the Republic.
(3) The Office is the chief and authorised processor of the register.(4) The register shall be maintained in the form of a computer database.(5) The main functions of the register are:
1) entry of information concerning prior notices, notices, invitations to tender,
declarations, procurement contracts, public procurement reports and tenderers in theregister;
2) processing of information concerning prior notices, notices, invitations to tender,
declarations, procurement contracts, public procurement reports and tenderers entered
in the register.
(6) Contracting authorities, except for those specifie d in clause 5 (1) 1) of this Act, shall pay a
state fee for entry of information concerning a prior notice, notice or invitation to tender in the
register.
(7) A contracting authority shall be responsible for the correctness of the information submitted
by the authority to the register.
§23. Publication of data entered in register
(1) The register shall be public.
(2) Information concerning the following items in the register shall be published on the Internet
homepage of the register:
1) prior notices;
2) notices;
3) invitations to tender;4) declarations;GPA/W/127
Page 30
5) public procurements reports;
6) tenderers.
(3) Information concerning a public procurement shall be publicly available in the register for
one year after completion of the public procurement.
31. Please specify the relevant provisions in your legislation enabling, as foreseen in
Article XVIII:2, the provision of information to other Parties and unsuccessful tenderers regarding
the reasons why a tender was not selected.
§44. Rejection of all tenders
(1) A contracting authority may reject all tenders before entry into a procurement contract if the
invitation-to-tender documents prescribe such possibility and the grounds therefor.
(2) A contracting authority shall immediately send a notice concerning rejection of all tenders to
all tenderers to whom invitation-to-tender documents were issued.
(3) At the request of a tenderer, the contracting authority shall notify the tenderer of the grounds
for rejection of all tenders.
(4) Upon rejection of all tenders, the contracting authority shall refund the fee charged from
tenderers for the invitation-to-tender documents.
VI. BID CHALLENGE PROCEDURES
32. Please provide information on existing challenge procedures.
§61. Contestation of acts or decisions of contracting authority
A tenderer or a person interested in participating in a tendering procedure who finds that the
contracting authority has violated the tenderer's rights or damaged the tenderer's interests by violating
the provisions of this Act in the course of the tendering procedure may file a protest against theactivities of the contracting authority.
§62. Submission of protests
(1) Protests against the acts or decisions made by a contracting authority in a tendering procedure
shall be filed with the Office.
(2) Protests shall be filed within five working days after the date the person filing the protest
becomes or should have become aware of the violation of the rights or damage to the interests of the
person, but not after the contracting authority has accepted the successful tender.
(3) A protest shall be filed in writing and shall set out:
1) the name, address and other details of the person filing the protest;
2) the name, address and other details of the contracting authority;GPA/W/127
Page 31
3) the content of the act or decision against which the protest is filed and the reasons
why the person filing the protest considers this to be a violation of the rights or
damage to the interests of the person;
4) the clearly expressed request of the person filing the protest;5) a list of documents annexed to the protest.
(4) The person filing a protest shall annex to the protest information at his or her disposal
concerning the tendering procedure which is the subject of the protest.
§63. Organization of hearings of protests
(1) The Office has the right to require a contracting authority to submit all documents necessary
for hearing a protest.
(2) The contracting authority shall submit the required documents to the Office within two
working days after the receipt of the corresponding request from the Office.
(3) Before hearing a protest, the Office has the right to require the contracting authority to submit
a written statement concerning the content of the protested act or decision and the contracting
authority shall submit the statement to the Office w ithin two working days after the receipt of the
corresponding request from the Office.
(4) The Office shall refuse to hear a protest and shall make a corresponding decision if:
1) the protest is not filed within the specified term;2) the protest fails to comply with the requirements specified in subsection 62 (3) of this
Act;
3) the protest is filed against an act or decision of a contracting authority concerning
which it is not possible to restore the situation which existed before violation of the
provisions of this Act in the tendering procedure;
4) a decision specified in subsection 70 (1) or (2) has been made.
(5) If the Office finds that a protest filed does not  comply with the requirements provided for in
subsection 62 (3) of this Act, it shall return the protest to the person who filed it and set a term of twoworking days for eliminating the deficiencies.  If th e person who filed the protest fails to eliminate the
deficiencies within the specified term, the Office shall refuse to hear the protest.
§64. Suspension of tendering procedure
(1) Upon receiving a protest concerning which there are no grounds provided for in
subsection 63 (4) for refusing to hear the protest, the Office is required to notify the contracting
authority of the filing of the protest against the act ivities of the contracting authority in the tendering
procedure and to send a copy of the protest to the contracting authority.
(2) If the Office sets a term for elimination of deficiencies contained in a protest, the Office shall
notify the contracting authority of the filing of the protest against the activities of the contracting
authority in the tendering procedure and send a copy of the protest received by the Office after
elimination of the deficiencies to  the contracting authority.  If the person filing a protest fails toGPA/W/127
Page 32
eliminate deficiencies within the specified term, the Office shall immediately notify the contracting
authority of such failure.
(3) Upon receiving a notice from the Office concerning the filing of a protest, the contracting
authority is required to suspend the tendering procedure.
(4) If a contracting authority continues a tendering procedure after receiving a notice concerning
the filing of a protest from the Office, all subsequent acts performed in the course of the tendering
procedure are void.  Procurement contracts entered into after receiving a notice concerning the filing
of a protest from the Office are also void.
§65. Hearing of protest
(1) The Office shall organize the hearing of a protest within seven working days after receiving
the protest, whereas at least the representative of the Office, the person filing the protest and the
contracting authority shall participate in the hearing of the protest.
(2) A contracting authority shall inform all tenderers or applicants of the hearing of a protest and
they have the right to participate in the hearing.   The failure of a contracting authority to inform
tenderers or applicants of the opportunity to participate in the hearing of a protest or the failure of the
tenderers or applicants to appear at the hearing shall not hinder the hearing of the protest.
(3) A protest shall be resolved on the basis of a mutual agreement between the person who filed
the protest and the contracting authority and a corresponding report shall be prepared concerning the
agreement.
(4) If the person who filed a protest or the contracting authority fails to appear at the hearing of
the protest, or the protest cannot be resolved during the hearing on the basis of a mutual agreement,
the Office shall make a decision concerning termination of the hearing of the protest.
§66. Filing of appeals with administrative court
In order to resolve a protest concerning which a decision specified in subsection 63 (4) or
65 (5) of this Act has been made, an appeal may be filed with an administrative court against an act ordecision made by a contracting authority in a tendering procedure.
§67. Resumption of tendering procedure
A contracting authority may resume a suspended tendering procedure after:1) receiving the notice provided for in subsection 64 (2) of this Act from the Office, or2) receiving the document provided for in subsection 65 (3) of this Act, or
3) receiving a written notice from the person who filed the protest that the person will
not file an appeal pursuant to the procedure provided for in §66 of this Act against an
act or decision made by the contracting authority in the course of the tendering
procedure, or
4) 10 days have passed from the end of the hearing of a protest, or
5) expiry of the term for suspension of the tendering procedure specified by an
administrative court.GPA/W/127
Page 33
33. Are there specific provisions enabling access of foreign suppliers to challenge procedures?
There are no specific provisions enabling access of foreign suppliers to challenge procedures.
34. To the extent that this information does no t fully respond to the following points, please
provide the supplementary information necessary to do so:
(i) The time-limit to launch a complaint contained in the Agreement is "not less than 10
days" from the time when the basis of the complaint is known or reasonably should
have been known.  What are the limits in domestic legislation?
Protests shall be filed within five working days after the date the person filing the protest
becomes or should have become aware of the violation of the rights or damage to the interests of the
person, but not after the contracting authority has accepted the successful tender.
(ii) What body is responsible for the challenge procedures?  Is this a "court" or an
"impartial and independent review body"?  If the latter:
- How are its members selected?- Are its decisions subject to judicial review?
- If not, how will the requirements of paragraph 6 of Article XX be taken into 
account?
§62. Submission of protests
(1) Protests against the acts or decisions made by a contracting authority in a tendering procedure
shall be filed with the Office.
(2) Protests shall be filed within five working days after the date the person filing the protest
becomes or should have become aware of the violation of the rights or damage to the interests of the
person, but not after the contracting authority has accepted the successful tender.
(3) A protest shall be filed in writing and shall set out:
1) the name, address and other details of the person filing the protest;2) the name, address and other details of the contracting authority;3) the content of the act or decision against which the protest is filed and the reasons
why the person filing the protest considers this to be a violation of the rights or
damage to the interests of the person;
4) the clearly expressed request of the person filing the protest;
5) a list of documents annexed to the protest.
(4) The person filing a protest shall annex to the protest information at his or her disposal
concerning the tendering procedure which is the subject of the protest.
§63. Organization of hearings of protestsGPA/W/127
Page 34
(1) The Office has the right to require a contracting authority to submit all documents necessary
for hearing a protest.
(2) The contracting authority shall submit the required documents to the Office within two
working days after the receipt of the corresponding request from the Office.
(3) Before hearing a protest, the Office has the right to require the contracting authority to submit
a written statement concerning the content of the protested act or decision and the contracting
authority shall submit the statement to the Office w ithin two working days after the receipt of the
corresponding request from the Office.
(4) The Office shall refuse to hear a protest and shall make a corresponding decision if:
1) the protest is not filed within the specified term;2) the protest fails to comply with the requirements specified in subsection 62 (3) of this
Act;
3) the protest is filed against an act or decision of a contracting authority concerning
which it is not possible to restore the situation which existed before violation of the
provisions of this Act in the tendering procedure;
4) a decision specified in subsection 70 (1) or (2) has been made.
(5) If the Office finds that a protest filed does not  comply with the requirements provided for in
subsection 62 (3) of this Act, it shall return the protest to the person who filed it and set a term of two
working days for eliminating the deficiencies.  If th e person who filed the protest fails to eliminate the
deficiencies within the specified term, the Office shall refuse to hear the protest.
§64. Suspension of tendering procedure
(1) Upon receiving a protest concerning which there are no grounds provided for in
subsection 63 (4) for refusing to hear the protest, the Office is required to notify the contracting
authority of the filing of the protest against the act ivities of the contracting authority in the tendering
procedure and to send a copy of the protest to the contracting authority.
(2) If the Office sets a term for elimination of deficiencies contained in a protest, the Office shall
notify the contracting authority of the filing of the protest against the activities of the contracting
authority in the tendering procedure and send a copy of the protest received by the Office afterelimination of the deficiencies to  the contracting authority.  If the person filing a protest fails to
eliminate deficiencies within the specified term, the Office shall immediately notify the contracting
authority of such failure.
(3) Upon receiving a notice from the Office concerning the filing of a protest, the contracting
authority is required to suspend the tendering procedure.
(4) If a contracting authority continues a tendering procedure after receiving a notice concerning
the filing of a protest from the Office, all subsequent acts performed in the course of the tendering
procedure are void.  Procurement contracts entered into after receiving a notice concerning the filingof a protest from the Office are also void.GPA/W/127
Page 35
§65. Hearing of protest
(1) The Office shall organize the hearing of a protest within seven working days after receiving
the protest, whereas at least the representative of the Office, the person filing the protest and the
contracting authority shall participate in the hearing of the protest.
(2) A contracting authority shall inform all tenderers or applicants of the hearing of a protest and
they have the right to participate in the hearing.   The failure of a contracting authority to inform
tenderers or applicants of the opportunity to participate in the hearing of a protest or the failure of the
tenderers or applicants to appear at the hearing shall not hinder the hearing of the protest.
(3) A protest shall be resolved on the basis of a mutual agreement between the person who filed
the protest and the contracting authority and a corresponding report shall be prepared concerning the
agreement.
(4) If the person who filed a protest or the contracting authority fails to appear at the hearing of
the protest, or the protest cannot be resolved during the hearing on the basis of a mutual agreement,the Office shall make a decision concerning termination of the hearing of the protest.
§66. Filing of appeals with administrative court
In order to resolve a protest concerning which a decision specified in subsection 63 (4) or
65 (5) of this Act has been made, an appeal may be filed with an administrative court against an act or
decision made by a contracting authority in a tendering procedure.
(iii) What is the applicable law by reference to which the challenge body will examine
complaints?
The applicable law is the Public Procurement Act.(iv) Which rapid interim measures are provided to correct breaches of the Agreement and
to preserve commercial opportunities?
- Do these measures include the possibility to suspend the procurement 
process?  On what conditions?
§64. Suspension of tendering procedure
(1) Upon receiving a protest concerning which there are no grounds provided for in
subsection 63 (4) for refusing to hear the protest, the Office is required to notify the contracting
authority of the filing of the protest against the act ivities of the contracting authority in the tendering
procedure and to send a copy of the protest to the contracting authority.
(2) If the Office sets a term for elimination of deficiencies contained in a protest, the Office shall
notify the contracting authority of the filing of the protest against the activities of the contracting
authority in the tendering procedure and send a copy of the protest received by the Office after
elimination of the deficiencies to  the contracting authority.  If the person filing a protest fails to
eliminate deficiencies within the specified term, the Office shall immediately notify the contracting
authority of such failure.
(3) Upon receiving a notice from the Office concerning the filing of a protest, the contracting
authority is required to suspend the tendering procedure.GPA/W/127
Page 36
(4) If a contracting authority continues a tendering procedure after receiving a notice concerning
the filing of a protest from the Office, all subsequent acts performed in the course of the tendering
procedure are void.  Procurement contracts entered into after receiving a notice concerning the filing
of a protest from the Office are also void.
§70. Decision of Office on cancellation of tendering procedure or annulment of decision made by
contracting authority in tendering procedure
(1) The Office is required to cancel a tendering procedure by a decision at any time before entry
into the procurement contract if the contracting authority:
1) fails to present the evaluation criteria to be used to decide on the success of the
tenders or the relative importance of the criteria in the invitation-to-tender documents;
2) fails to notify all tenderers of amendments to the invitation-to-tender documents;3) violates the procedure for opening tenders;4) in the comparison and evaluation of tenders, uses as a representative or expert a
person whose relationship with a tenderer may give rise to justified doubts as to the
person's objectivity;
5) conducts negotiations with one or several tenderers in an open or restricted tendering
procedure.
(2) At any time before entry into a procurement cont ract, the Office has the right to annul, by a
decision thereof, a decision made by the contracting authority in the course of the tendering procedureif the contracting authority has violated the provisions of this Act in the course of the tendering
procedure and such violation is not listed in subsection (1) of this section.
(3) If a tendering procedure is cancelled, all acts performed in the course thereof are void
regardless of whether they were performed before or after the decision concerning cancellation was
made.  Procurement contracts entered into after the making of a decision concerning cancellation of a
tendering procedure or annulment of a decision made by the contracting authority in the course of thetendering procedure are also void.
(4) Before making a decision concerning cancellati on of a tendering procedure or annulment of a
decision made by the contracting authority in the c ourse thereof, the Office shall grant an opportunity
to the contracting authority to submit objections with in a term specified by the Office which shall not
exceed three working days.
(5) Legal disputes between a state agency or profit-making state agency and the Office shall be
resolved pursuant to the provisions of subsections 101 (1)–(3) of the Government of the Republic Act
(RT I 1995, 94, 1628;  1996, 49, 953;  88, 1560;  1997, 29, 447; 40, 622;  52, 833;  73, 1200;  81,1361 and 1362;  87, 1468;  1998, 28, 356;  36/37, 552;  40, 614;  107, 1762;  111, 1833;  1999, 10,
155;  16, 271 and 274;  27, 391;  29, 398 and 401;  58, 608;  95, 843 and 845;  2000, 49, 302;  51, 319
and 320;  54, 352;  58, 378).
(6) A decision of the Office shall contain at least the following information:
1) the date and place of making the decision;2) the name and address of the agency in whose name the decision is made;GPA/W/127
Page 37
3) the given name, surname and official title of the official making the decision;
4) the content of the decision.(v) How do challenge procedures provide for correction of the Agreement? What types of
compensation for loss or damages suffered can the challenge body order?
Any decision about compensation for loss or damages suffered can be made by the
administrative court.
(vi) Give any available information on the time-periods for the stages of the challenge
process, including to obtain interim measures and a final decision.
§63. Organization of hearings of protests
(1) The Office has the right to require a contracting authority to submit all documents necessary
for hearing a protest.
(2) The contracting authority shall submit the required documents to the Office within two
working days after the receipt of the corresponding request from the Office.
(3) Before hearing a protest, the Office has the right to require the contracting authority to submit
a written statement concerning the content of the protested act or decision and the contracting
authority shall submit the statement to the Office w ithin two working days after the receipt of the
corresponding request from the Office.
(4) The Office shall refuse to hear a protest and shall make a corresponding decision if:
1) the protest is not filed within the specified term;2) the protest fails to comply with the requirements specified in subsection 62 (3) of this
Act;
3) the protest is filed against an act or decision of a contracting authority concerning
which it is not possible to restore the situation which existed before violation of the
provisions of this Act in the tendering procedure;
4) a decision specified in subsection 70 (1) or (2) has been made.
(5) If the Office finds that a protest filed does not  comply with the requirements provided for in
subsection 62 (3) of this Act, it shall return the protest to the person who filed it and set a term of two
working days for eliminating the deficiencies.  If th e person who filed the protest fails to eliminate the
deficiencies within the specified term, the Office shall refuse to hear the protest.
§65. Hearing of protest
(1) The Office shall organize the hearing of a protest within seven working days after receiving
the protest, whereas at least the representative of the Office, the person filing the protest and the
contracting authority shall participate in the hearing of the protest.
(2) A contracting authority shall inform all tenderers or applicants of the hearing of a protest and
they have the right to participate in the hearing.   The failure of a contracting authority to inform
tenderers or applicants of the opportunity to participate in the hearing of a protest or the failure of the
tenderers or applicants to appear at the hearing shall not hinder the hearing of the protest.GPA/W/127
Page 38
(3) A protest shall be resolved on the basis of a mutual agreement between the person who filed
the protest and the contracting authority and a corresponding report shall be prepared concerning the
agreement.
(4) If the person who filed a protest or the contracting authority fails to appear at the hearing of
the protest, or the protest cannot be resolved during the hearing on the basis of a mutual agreement,
the Office shall make a decision concerning termination of the hearing of the protest.
(vii) What are the usual costs to conduct a challenge procedure?  Are there possibilities
foreseen to do so free of charge?
The usual costs to conduct a challenge procedure are 1,000 ECU in arbitral tribunal.  There
are no possibilities foreseen to do so free of charge.  Kas selle lause võtame siis maha???
The state fee for turning to the administrative court is 10 Estonian kroons.
(EEK 10 = DM 1.25)
VII. OTHER MATTERS
35. To what extent is information technology  being used in the process of government
procurement?  Are notices of invitations to tender and/or notices of contract awards published
electronically?  Please provide the address of such electronic publications.
Estonian authorities consider bringing the modern means of information processing to the
daily operations of national agencies as a key factor for facilitating the fluent exercise of any
government functions.  The notices of invitations to tender and/or notices of contract awards are
published electronically.  The internet address for such electronic publications is:http://www.rha.gov.ee.
36. Is there a contact point in your country for responding to enquiries from suppliers, othergovernments and the wider public relating to laws, regulations and procedures and practices
regarding government procurement at the central and/or sub-central level?  Please provide the
address.
There is no official contact point for responding to enquiries.  However, should relevant
issues get raised, the questions should be sent to the Ministry of Economic Affairs of the Republic of
Estonia, Department of Trade:
Ministry of Economic Affairs
Department of TradeHarju Street 11
15072 Tallinn
ESTONIA
Fax:  (372) 6313660
Email:  services@mineco.eeGPA/W/127
Page 39
Information can also be obtained from the Public Procurement Office:
Public Procurement Office
Kiriku Street 2/4
10310 TallinnESTONIA
Email:  info@rha.gov.ee
__________