This guide is the checklist behind a Maltese bid: each document and step in the order a call asks for it, and who can lawfully handle it. For how Maltese procurement works overall (thresholds, who runs the call, who may bid, how bids are assessed, payment and challenges), see How to bid for public tenders in Malta.
Before you bid
1. Your company’s supplier account on ePPS. Every Maltese call, whether run by the Department of Contracts, a department or a Local Council, is published and answered on ePPS at etenders.gov.mt. The account is free, and non-Maltese companies register directly: the country list covers every state.
- What the Register Supplier form asks: the organisation’s name, its type (a Joint Venture/Consortium type exists, with a lead partner), its size, at least one of a company registration number, VAT number or business ID, an address, email and phone.
- One account per organisation. An organisation that already holds a user account can’t apply for another, so the account is your company’s, with credentials it never shares.
- Who does it: the data can be filled in for you; your company creates the account and keeps the credentials.
2. English versions of foreign documents. Maltese calls are in English, so documents in any other language need an English translation, and public documents from outside the EU may need an apostille.
- Who does it: a translator translates; a notary or your home authority certifies; you provide the originals.
3. An electronic signature, only if the call requires one. Communications through the platform meet the required security level by default. Where a buyer asks for advanced electronic signatures, it must accept ones supported by qualified certificates from the EU trusted lists, without extra hurdles. Maltese persons can use the Maltese e-ID. The certificate costs the market price.
- Who does it: your authorised signatory, with their own certificate.
- From abroad: foreign eIDAS qualified certificates must be accepted.
4. Questions and the terms. Clarification requests go through ePPS. If a term looks unlawful, a challenge to it goes to the Public Contracts Review Board within the first two-thirds of the tender period, with a deposit of 0.5% of the estimated value (max €50,000).
- Who does it: the requests can be drafted for you and your company submits them; an advocate files any challenge, which you instruct and fund.
With your bid
5. The ESPD. Your self-declaration that no exclusion ground applies and that you meet the selection criteria, used as preliminary evidence in Department of Contracts calls and above-threshold procedures. It is free and can be reused while it is still correct. An entity whose capacity you rely on files its own.
- Who does it: it can be filled in for you; your company confirms it is true and submits it.
6. The bid bond (tender guarantee), only when the call asks. The call sets the amount, and a bank or insurer issues the bond on the call’s template within days, for its market commission. Submit the original or a scan as the call instructs. Losing bidders’ bonds are released within 30 days of the award.
- Who does it: the bank or insurer; you sign the facility.
- From abroad: a foreign bank’s guarantee is subject to the call’s conditions.
7. The joint venture, for a group bid. Groups need no legal form to bid. On ePPS, the lead partner registers the joint venture as a Joint Venture/Consortium organisation, with its partners. An advocate drafts the agreement, which runs for the contract, and every member signs.
8. Electronic submission on ePPS. Bids go in only electronically, before the deadline. Submission is free. Bidder names and prices are published at the opening, so expect your competitors to see your price.
- Who does it: every file and the response can be prepared for you. Your company logs into its own ePPS account and submits; if the call requires e-signatures, your signatory signs with their own certificate.
- Afterwards: answer any rectification or clarification request within the deadline the buyer sets.
If you’re in line for award
Buyers may ask the preferred bidder to back the ESPD with evidence. What a call asks for depends on its exclusion and selection criteria.
| Document | Issued by | Who handles it | Valid for | What only you do |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Company registration documents (registration number, memorandum, directors), often with the VAT number and trade licence | Malta Business Registry (MBR) | Ordered for you from the public register, or collected from you | — | — |
| Judicial record extract or police conduct certificate for the directors (reg. 230) | Malta Police; or the home-state judicial authority | Each director requests their own | — | Each director obtains their own |
| Tax and social-security compliance certificates | Commissioner for Revenue; Department of Social Security | An accountant, as your authorised agent where the authority allows; otherwise you request them | — | Authorise the accountant, or request them yourself |
| Economic and financial standing (reg. 231): bank statements, audited financial statements, turnover, professional risk indemnity insurance | Your auditor, bank or insurer | An accountant or auditor prepares the statements | The last financial years | Sign the turnover statement if required |
| Technical ability (reg. 232): works of the past five years with certificates of satisfactory execution; supplies or services of the past three years | Your previous clients | Gathered for you; free; takes weeks | — | — |
| Quality-assurance and environmental-management certificates, if the call requires them | Accredited certification bodies (NAB-Malta or EU equivalents) | The certification body audits and certifies | — | Host the audit |
| Professional indemnity or public liability insurance | Insurers authorised by the MFSA, or passported from the EU | A broker or insurer issues it; market price; days | Annual | Sign the policy |
Before the contract and the first invoice
The performance guarantee, when the contract requires it. The call sets the amount. A bank or insurer issues it on the Department of Contracts template, within days, for its market commission, and it runs for the contract. You sign the facility.
A BCA contractor licence, for works. Contractors doing demolition, excavation or construction need a licence from the Building and Construction Authority; the regime has been fully in force since January 2025 and is reported to cover foreign contractors. A perit or consultant prepares the application and your representative signs it.
A Maltese VAT number, where needed. Calls commonly ask for a VAT number. An accountant registers you with the Commissioner for Revenue as your authorised agent, on an authorisation you sign. A foreign supplier needs Maltese VAT registration only if its supplies are taxable in Malta.
An FDI screening notification, for some calls. For procurements involving critical activities published from June 2026, a notification to the National Foreign Direct Investment Screening Office may be needed between award and signature where a third-country investor is involved. An advocate prepares and files it; you provide the ownership data and sign.
Electronic invoicing. Department of Contracts contracts require e-invoices, which an accountant issues in the required format.
Who does what
| Step | Who can do it | What only you do |
|---|---|---|
| ePPS registration | The data is filled in for you | Create the one organisation account and keep the credentials |
| English translations and apostille | A translator; a notary or your home authority certifies | Provide the originals |
| Electronic signature, if required | A qualified trust service provider issues it | Your signatory signs with their own certificate |
| Clarification requests | Drafted for you | Submit them from your account |
| Challenge to the terms or to the award | An advocate files it at the PCRB | Instruct the advocate and fund the deposit |
| ESPD | Filled in for you | Confirm it is true and submit it |
| Bid bond and performance guarantee | A bank or insurer | Sign the facility |
| Joint venture | An advocate drafts; the lead partner registers it on ePPS | Each member signs |
| Submission | Files and response prepared for you | Log in and submit |
| Company registration documents | Ordered for you from the register | — |
| Judicial record or conduct certificate | — | Each director requests their own |
| Tax and social-security certificates | An accountant, as authorised agent | Authorise them, or request them yourself |
| Financial evidence | An accountant or auditor | Sign the turnover statement |
| Technical evidence | References gathered for you | — |
| Quality certificates | An accredited certification body | Host the audit |
| Insurance | A broker or insurer | Sign the policy |
| BCA licence | A perit or consultant prepares the application | Your representative signs |
| Maltese VAT number | An accountant, as authorised agent | Sign the authorisation |
| FDI notification | An advocate prepares and files it | Provide ownership data and sign |
| E-invoices | An accountant | — |
The professionals involved
| Professional | Licensed or regulated by | What they do for a bidder |
|---|---|---|
| Certification or conformity-assessment body | National Accreditation Board – Malta (NAB-Malta, under the MCCAA), or another EU national accreditation body | Certify ISO 9001, 14001 and 45001 systems and product conformity; S.L. 601.03 obliges buyers to accept certificates from equivalent bodies in other Member States |
| Bank or insurer | Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA); the European Central Bank for significant banks | Issue the bid bond and the performance guarantee on the Department of Contracts template when a call requires them; issue professional indemnity and public liability policies |
| Tender consultant | Unregulated | Track calls on ePPS; prepare the ESPD and the technical and financial offers for you to upload |
If your company is from abroad
You don’t need a Maltese company or a local agent to bid, as the law draws no distinction between suppliers established in Malta and abroad; who may bid from abroad, and on what terms, is explained in How to bid for public tenders in Malta. For the paperwork:
- ePPS: register directly with your company registration number, VAT number or business identification number from any country.
- Company record: your home-country registry extract, with an apostille and English translation if requested.
- Criminal records: the home-state equivalent or, where none is issued, a sworn or solemn declaration before a judicial or administrative authority, a notary or a professional body.
- Tax and social security: home-state certificates or a solemn declaration; e-Certis lists the equivalents.
- Financial and technical evidence: your home audited accounts and references, in English.
- Signature: foreign eIDAS qualified certificates must be accepted.
- Insurance: an EU insurer can cover you under the freedom to provide services.
- VAT: your home VAT number is accepted for ePPS registration; Maltese VAT registration depends on the place-of-supply rules.
- FDI screening: applies to third-country-owned bidders on calls involving critical activities.
Pitfalls
- Never share your ePPS credentials. ePPS allows one account per organisation, and your company performs the submission.
- Sign only with your own certificate. Where a call requires e-signatures, only your authorised signatory signs, with their own qualified certificate.
- Count the days. An objection to the award has a 10-calendar-day window; a challenge to the terms must come within the first two-thirds of the tender period.
- Third-country owners: check FDI screening before signature on calls involving critical activities.
- Put every foreign document into English, and apostille it where required.
- Your price will be public. Bidder names and prices are published at the opening.
Doing it with askTender
In Malta, ePPS allows one account per organisation, so you log in and press submit yourself, in a guided session with askTender. Everything before that is prepared for you. You sign only what the law reserves to you: the ePPS registration and submission, the ESPD, any e-signature a call requires, the guarantee facilities, the BCA licence application and the contract, while your directors obtain their own conduct certificates. The askTender Desk prepares the ESPD, the technical and financial offers and the bid files and coordinates the evidence; askTender Partners, such as an advocate, an accountant or a perit, do the steps their licence covers.
Questions
Which documents do I submit with a bid in Malta?
The ESPD, your self-declaration on exclusion grounds and selection criteria, plus the technical and financial offers in English, uploaded on ePPS. Add a bid bond if the call asks for one, an ESPD for any entity whose capacity you rely on, and the joint-venture details for a group bid.
Can several people from my company use ePPS?
ePPS allows one account per organisation: the Register Supplier form states that an organisation already holding a user account can’t apply for another. Your company keeps the credentials and submits; nobody else logs in as you.
Do I need an electronic signature to bid in Malta?
Only if the call requires signed documents. Communications through the platform meet the security level by default. Where a buyer asks for advanced electronic signatures, it must accept those supported by qualified certificates from EU trusted lists, including foreign eIDAS certificates.
What can the buyer ask the preferred bidder for?
An extract from the judicial record or a police conduct certificate for the directors, certificates showing taxes and social-security contributions are paid, and the financial and technical evidence the call lists, such as audited accounts or certificates of satisfactory execution. A foreign company gives its home-state equivalents, in English.
What do I need before signing a Maltese contract?
Any performance guarantee the contract requires, a BCA licence if you do demolition, excavation or construction, a Maltese VAT number where your supplies are taxable in Malta, and, for calls involving critical activities with a third-country investor, a notification to the National FDI Screening Office.
Sources
- Public Procurement Regulations, S.L. 601.03 (legislation.mt)
- ePPS, the Government’s e-procurement platform
- Example 2026 Department of Contracts notice on TED
- The licensing of contractors regime comes into force (BusinessNow)
- FDI compliance in Malta’s public procurement process (Chambers)
- Late payments in commercial transactions (Ganado Advocates)
This guide explains the rules in plain English; it isn’t legal advice. Procurement rules change, and each tender document sets its own conditions — it always prevails.