This guide is the checklist behind a Turkish bid: each document and step, in the order a tender needs it, with who may lawfully handle it. For how procurement in Türkiye works overall (thresholds, procedures, domestic preferences, evaluation and appeals), see How to bid for government tenders in Türkiye.
Before you bid
1. A Turkish tax number. EKAP and every contract identify you by your tax number (vergi kimlik numarası), issued free by the Revenue Administration (GİB) and valid permanently. Turkish companies already have one.
- Who does it: a foreign company applies to a Turkish tax office for a potential tax number with its translated, legalised incorporation document; foreign individuals can apply online through GİB’s service for foreigners. A mali müşavir can prepare the file. You sign the application and provide the identity documents.
2. A secure e-signature for each person who signs. A qualified certificate under Law 5070 (güvenli elektronik imza) is needed to download tender documents on EKAP, sign and send e-bids, upload contract documents and sign the contract. It comes from an electronic certificate provider authorised by BTK, such as KamuSM, E-Tuğra or TürkTrust, and typically lasts 1–3 years depending on the product.
- Who does it: each signer applies for a certificate in their own name, with identity verification, and keeps sole control of it. An adviser who works in your account uses their own certificate, never yours.
- From abroad: plan on a Turkish certificate for your signatory, which needs Turkish ID or foreigner ID data, or appoint a proxy resident in Türkiye who signs with their own (see step 4).
3. Register the company on EKAP. Every person or company taking part in procurement under Law 4734 must be registered on KİK’s Electronic Public Procurement Platform. Registration is free and stays valid as long as you keep the data complete, accurate and current.
- Who does it: your company completes the identity-bound registration itself, authenticating by e-signature or e-Devlet as KİK requires. Your advisers can prepare the data and uploads. Once registered, the company can authorise other people by e-signature to carry out EKAP operations in its account under their own identity.
- From abroad: register with the potential tax number plus apostilled, translated company documents and powers of attorney. Validation of a foreign company has been reported at 5–10 business days.
4. A notarised power of attorney, if a proxy will sign. A bid made through a proxy (vekil) is valid only with a notarised vekaletname issued in the proxy’s own name for taking part in tenders. Your legal representative signs it before a notary, usually the same day; it stays valid for the term it states. The proxy, often a lawyer, then signs with their own e-signature.
- From abroad: sign before a notary in your own country, add an apostille or consular legalisation, and have a sworn Turkish translation made.
5. Check the debarment register. Debarred persons, and their partners, can’t bid. KİK checks the register on EKAP at opening, at award approval and at signature, and the register is public, so check your company, its partners and any joint-venture members before committing to a tender.
6. Foreign experience: have KİK register it first. For works, completion certificates for contracts performed abroad count only once KİK has registered them on EKAP. KİK does so within 15 days of a proper application, and the registration is permanent. Your company, as the certificate holder, applies from its EKAP account or through an authorised user; the file needs the certificate, the contract, apostilles and sworn translations.
7. Sector licences named in the notice. Where specific legislation requires a registration, permit or licence for the work, the notice names it, and you (and in a joint venture, each partner) hold it in your own name. For building works, contractors need an authority number with a group classification (A–H) from the Ministry of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change (YAMBİS); a joint venture needs its own number. Your company applies through the ministry’s e-application system under its own login.
With your bid
8. Download the documents with an e-signature. Only those who log in and download the tender document with an e-signature become potential bidders. It takes minutes and costs nothing. An authorised adviser can download it with their own e-signature; in a joint venture one partner’s download is enough.
9. Ask questions early. Clarification requests and complaints about the tender documents must be raised at least 3 working days before the bid deadline. A lawyer can file them as your vekil.
10. Bid security (geçici teminat). At least 3% of your bid price, usually a bank guarantee letter (teminat mektubu), though cash and government bonds also count. EKAP won’t send a bid with too little security, and you lose it if you withdraw or fail to sign. The date on the letter must cover the bid validity period. Letters issued through the channel integrated with EKAP are quoted by number; any other letter must follow KİK’s e-form. Only your company can apply to its bank; the bank charges its own fees.
11. Work-experience certificates. Works tenders ask for certificates for similar works accepted within the last 15 years, typically worth 50–100% of your bid price. Each must carry an EKAP document number and be held in your name, or through your share in a joint venture; the buyer verifies it on EKAP. For domestic public works they already exist on EKAP, so you only enter the number.
12. Financial evidence, where asked. A works tender may set financial-capacity criteria: last year’s balance sheet must show a current ratio of at least 0.75, an equity ratio of at least 0.15 and short-term bank debt below 0.50 of equity. If the tender date falls in January–April, the year before last is used, and averaging over up to 3–4 years is allowed. Turnover (iş hacmi) is shown from the prior year’s income statement or works turnover. An SMMM or YMM approves the balance sheet or prepares KİK’s e-form statement under their own professional identity; you provide the records.
13. Quality certificates, where asked. ISO 9001, 14001 or 45001 and product certificates (TSE, CE conformity) come from a TÜRKAK-accredited body or TSE after an audit of your company. ISO certificates typically run 3 years with surveillance audits.
14. The Domestic Goods Certificate (Yerli Malı Belgesi), for Turkish-made goods only. It shows at least 51% domestic content (classes A–E) so your goods can earn the price advantage of up to 15%; software also needs a Technological Product Certificate. Chambers and commodity exchanges issue it through the TOBB/TESK online system after an expert inspects the factory, under the new rules in force since 1 January 2026, and it lasts 1 year. Your SMMM checks and approves the domestic-content calculation sheets; the manufacturer applies with its own e-Devlet login and needs a valid capacity report and industry registry certificate.
15. Send the e-bid. The bid letter and the tender participation document (ihaleye katılım belgesi) are completed on EKAP, e-signed and sent before the deadline; EKAP blocks a bid with missing fields. An authorised adviser can prepare every field and annex. The signature comes from your authorised signatory or a proxy with a notarised power of attorney; in a joint venture every partner signs.
If you bid as a joint venture. A joint partnership or consortium submits a declaration (iş ortaklığı or konsorsiyum) signed by all partners with the bid. A lawyer drafts the agreement.
If the buyer asks why your price is so low. A bid below the limit value can trigger a request for a cost explanation (aşırı düşük teklif açıklaması), which you file on EKAP with an e-signature within the buyer’s deadline. Your adviser or mali müşavir prepares the cost breakdown and supporting quotes, with SMMM or YMM certifications where required.
If you need to challenge. A complaint to the buyer (şikâyet) and an appeal to KİK (itirazen şikâyet) are both filed on EKAP. A lawyer files them as your vekil under a notarised power of attorney. The KİK appeal fee in 2026 is TRY 64,652, 129,385, 194,085 or 258,810 depending on the tender’s value; deadlines and refunds are in the main guide.
If you’re in line for award
Within 10 days of the buyer’s invitation (12 extra days for foreign bidders), the winner uploads the contract-stage documents on EKAP with an e-signature.
| Proof | Issued by | Who can get it for you | Valid for | What only you do |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chamber registration and trade-registry record (oda kayıt belgesi, Ticaret Sicili Gazetesi) | Trade-registry offices within TOBB chambers; the chamber of commerce or industry | Your mali müşavir; partner and manager data is pulled from EKAP | You must be registered with the chamber on the tender date | Request the chamber certificate as the registered company |
| No final tax debt | GİB, checked by the buyer through EKAP | Your SMMM keeps filings and payments current | On the tender date and at signature | Pay any outstanding tax |
| No final social-security debt | SGK, checked through EKAP | Your SMMM keeps premium filings current | On the tender date and at signature | Pay any outstanding premiums |
| No bankruptcy, liquidation or concordat; no conviction for professional misconduct in the last 5 years; no chamber ban | Courts, the trade registry, the criminal record office (Adli Sicil), your chamber | A lawyer can obtain court certificates under a power of attorney | The position on the tender date | Request criminal-record extracts for the company and its officers through your own e-Devlet login or in person |
| Performance security (kesin teminat) | A bank operating in Türkiye | — | Until provisional or final acceptance under the contract | Apply for the guarantee |
The performance security is 6% of the contract price, or 9% of the estimated cost when a works bid is below the limit value. Tax and social-security debt is checked automatically for Turkish bidders, so in practice the work is keeping your filings clean before you bid.
Before the contract
Notarise the joint-venture agreement. A winning joint venture must give the buyer a notarised partnership or consortium agreement before signing. All partners sign before a notary.
Sign the contract on EKAP. Your authorised signatory, or a proxy under a power of attorney, signs electronically on EKAP. KİK takes a share of 0.05% of contracts above TRY 6,813,294 in 2026, and stamp duty also applies.
Who does what
| Step | Who can do it | What only you do |
|---|---|---|
| Potential tax number (foreign companies) | A mali müşavir prepares the file | Sign the application; provide identity documents |
| Secure e-signature | A BTK-authorised certificate provider issues it | Each signer applies in person and keeps sole control |
| EKAP registration | Advisers prepare the data and uploads | Complete the identity-bound registration; authorise any adviser as a user |
| Power of attorney for a proxy | A lawyer drafts; a notary notarises | Your legal representative signs before the notary |
| Document download, eligibility forms and annexes | An authorised adviser, with their own e-signature | — |
| Bid security and performance security | Your bank issues it | Apply and be the obligor |
| Balance sheet, turnover and domestic-content sheets | An SMMM or YMM | Provide the records |
| KİK registration of foreign experience | Advisers and a sworn translator assemble the file | File as the certificate holder, or authorise a user to file |
| E-bid signature | Your signatory, or a proxy with a notarised power of attorney | Sign, or issue the power of attorney |
| Exclusion-ground evidence | A lawyer can get court certificates | Request criminal-record extracts through your e-Devlet |
| Complaints and appeals | A lawyer as vekil | Issue the power of attorney |
| Contract signature | — | Sign on EKAP with your own e-signature |
The professionals involved
| Professional | Licensed or regulated by | What they do for a bidder |
|---|---|---|
| Avukat (lawyer) | Türkiye Barolar Birliği and the provincial bar, under Attorneyship Law No. 1136 | Legal opinions on tender documents, eligibility and joint-venture structure; acts as your vekil for complaints and appeals; represents you in administrative-court actions against KİK decisions; drafts the joint-venture or consortium agreement |
| SMMM or YMM (mali müşavir) | TÜRMOB and local chambers, under Law No. 3568 | Approves the balance sheet or prepares the e-form statement; certifies turnover; approves domestic-content calculation sheets; keeps your books and tax and SGK filings current |
| Noter (notary) | Ministry of Justice and Türkiye Noterler Birliği, under Notaries Law No. 1512 | Notarises the vekaletname and the joint-venture agreement; certifies sworn translations, true copies and signature declarations |
| Yeminli tercüman (sworn translator) | Sworn before a Turkish notary | Translates foreign company documents, financial statements and experience certificates into Turkish |
| Bank operating in Türkiye | BDDK (Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency) | Issues bid and performance guarantee letters, electronically through the EKAP-integrated system or in KİK’s e-form; issues guarantees against a foreign bank’s counter-guarantee |
| Certification body or TSE | TÜRKAK (Turkish Accreditation Agency) | ISO 9001, 14001 and 45001 and product certificates |
| İhale danışmanı (tender consultant) | Unregulated | Monitors EKAP, reads the administrative specification and prepares the eligibility table (yeterlik bilgileri tablosu), bid-form data and document set as an authorised user of your account |
Court work and legal opinions are reserved to lawyers registered with a Turkish bar.
If your company is from abroad
You don’t need a Turkish company or partner to bid, though buyers may close tenders below the thresholds to foreign bidders; who may bid, and when a Turkish subsidiary helps, is covered in How to bid for government tenders in Türkiye. For the paperwork:
- Company records: your home-country documents showing managers, shareholders and authority to bid, with an apostille (or consular legalisation) and a sworn Turkish translation.
- Legalisation: every foreign corporate, financial, power-of-attorney and experience document needs an apostille, or chain legalisation ending at the Turkish consulate. Documents from honorary consulates aren’t accepted.
- Translation: either by a sworn translator in Türkiye, then notarised, or by a sworn translator abroad with an apostille.
- Tax and social security: checked at contract signature under your home country’s rules, with your home authorities’ certificates, apostilled and translated.
- Financial statements: prepared under your home law and approved by the authority competent there; each joint-venture partner submits separately.
- Guarantees: a foreign bank’s guarantee is accepted only through a counter-guarantee from a bank operating in Türkiye.
- Experience: have KİK register your foreign completion certificates before you bid; start at least three weeks ahead.
- Signing: many foreign bidders use a proxy resident in Türkiye with a notarised power of attorney.
- Domestic Goods Certificate: only for goods made in Türkiye.
Pitfalls
- Never hand over your e-signature, PIN or e-Devlet login. Advisers work as authorised EKAP users or notarised proxies under their own e-signature.
- A proxy without a notarised vekaletname in their own name can’t sign your bid.
- Don’t leave foreign experience to the last week. KİK registration takes up to 15 days, and an unregistered certificate doesn’t count.
- Check the debarment register for every partner and joint-venture member, not just your own company.
- No collusion, no conflicts of interest. Both are prohibited acts under Art. 17 of Law 4734 and lead to debarment.
- Read the notice for a domestic-only clause before preparing anything if your company is foreign.
- Get the bid security exactly right: at least 3%, valid past the bid validity period, and on KİK’s e-form or through the EKAP-integrated channel.
- Works tenders no longer ask for bank reference letters. The rule was repealed on 29 December 2022; if a goods or services tender still asks, raise it as a clarification.
Doing it with askTender
In Türkiye, your askTender Partner is added as a named user on your company’s account on EKAP and works under their own login. You keep your own login, and sign what only you can sign: the registration, any power of attorney, the bank guarantees, the e-bid and the contract. The askTender Desk prepares the forms and the document set and coordinates the certificates; askTender Partners, such as a mali müşavir, a lawyer or a sworn translator, do the steps their licence covers.
Questions
Can an adviser submit my bid on EKAP for me?
An adviser can be authorised by your company, by e-signature, to work in your EKAP account under their own identity: download the documents, fill in the forms and attach the annexes. The bid itself is signed either by your own authorised signatory or by a proxy holding a notarised power of attorney issued in the proxy’s name for tenders, using the proxy’s own e-signature.
Does registering on EKAP or downloading tender documents cost anything?
No. EKAP registration is free, viewing tender documents is free, and a buyer can’t charge for downloading them. You must download with a secure e-signature, though: only those who do can bid.
How long does KİK take to register a completion certificate for work done abroad?
Up to 15 days from a complete application, and an unregistered certificate can’t be used. File it at least 15 days, ideally three weeks, before the bid deadline.
What do I have to provide after winning, and by when?
Within 10 days of the invitation (12 more for foreign bidders) you upload the contract-stage documents on EKAP, including evidence that no exclusion ground applies, and provide a performance security of 6% of the contract price. The contract is then signed electronically on EKAP.
Do I need a notarised signature declaration (imza beyannamesi)?
Only where bids are still taken on paper. Since the 2024 amendment, an e-bid on EKAP doesn’t need one.
How long is a Domestic Goods Certificate valid?
1 year. It shows at least 51% domestic content and is issued by chambers and commodity exchanges through the TOBB/TESK online system after an expert inspects the factory. The manufacturer applies with its own e-Devlet login.
Sources
- Public Procurement Law No. 4734 (mevzuat.gov.tr)
- Regulation on Conducting Public Procurement Electronically (Official Gazette, 2024)
- Works Implementing Regulation (mevzuat.gov.tr)
- Public Procurement Communiqué 2026/1: fees (Official Gazette)
- Revenue Administration: tax number application for foreigners
- Attorneyship Law No. 1136 (mevzuat.gov.tr)
- Law No. 3568 on independent accountants and sworn financial advisers (mevzuat.gov.tr)
- Bursa Chamber of Commerce and Industry: Domestic Goods Certificate
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.