Standstill Letter (Alcatel Letter)

The standstill letter takes its informal name from the landmark European Court of Justice ruling in Alcatel Austria AG v Bundesministerium fur Wissenschaft und Verkehr (C-81/98, 1999), which established that member states must provide an effective opportunity for unsuccessful bidders to challenge award decisions before contracts are concluded. The standstill obligation was subsequently codified in the Remedies Directive and is now a foundational procedural protection across European public procurement.

What is a standstill letter (Alcatel letter)?

A standstill letter is the communication that triggers the standstill period. It is functionally identical to the award decision letter in most modern EU member states, where a single notification serves both purposes. The letter must be sent simultaneously to all tenderers who submitted an admissible bid and must convey sufficient information for recipients to assess whether to seek a debriefing or bring a challenge.

The mandatory standstill period runs from the day after the standstill letter is dispatched. Under Directive 2007/66/EC (the Remedies Directive, amending Directive 89/665/EEC):

• The standstill must be at least 15 calendar days where the letter is sent electronically or by fax.
• A 10-day minimum applies in some member states, depending on the method of communication and national implementation.
• In the UK under the Procurement Act 2023, the standstill period is 8 working days from dispatch of the assessment summary (which is the UK equivalent of the standstill letter).

During the standstill period, the contracting authority must not sign the contract. If it does so, the contract may be declared ineffective, the authority may be required to shorten the contract term, and a financial penalty may be imposed.

The standstill obligation applies to above-threshold contracts under the EU Directives. Below-threshold contracts are governed by national law, and standstill periods may be shorter or, in some jurisdictions, not mandatory.

Why it matters for bidders

The standstill period is the critical window for action. A supplier that believes the evaluation was unfair, that selection criteria were misapplied, or that the winning bid was abnormally low must initiate a challenge before the contract is signed or risk losing the right to effective redress. Once a contract is signed, remedies become substantially harder to obtain.

The sequence is typically: receive standstill letter, request an urgent debriefing, obtain disclosure of scoring, assess grounds for challenge, and (if grounds exist) apply to the competent review body or court before the standstill expires.

Example

A Portuguese IT company bids for a national health authority software contract and receives a standstill letter on a Tuesday. The 15-day standstill period runs until the following Wednesday. The company requests an urgent debriefing, receives it within five days, and determines that the contracting authority applied an undisclosed sub-criterion when evaluating the technical proposal. It files a challenge with the Portuguese administrative court on day 12, and the court issues an interim injunction suspending the contract signature pending the full hearing.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if a contracting authority does not send a standstill letter?

If the authority signs the contract without sending the standstill letter and allowing the period to run, the Remedies Directive requires member states to make the contract available for a declaration of ineffectiveness. This is one of the most serious procedural remedies in European procurement law and can result in the contract being cancelled.

Does the standstill period restart if the authority issues a corrected award decision?

If the authority withdraws its original award decision and issues a new one (for example, after correcting a scoring error), a fresh standstill period typically begins from the date of the new notification. Suppliers should monitor for any such re-notification carefully.

Are framework call-offs subject to a standstill obligation?

Generally no. Mini-competitions within a framework agreement and direct call-offs where the framework terms govern the award typically do not require a separate standstill period, as the standstill was satisfied when the framework itself was awarded. However, rules vary by jurisdiction and by the degree of competition within the framework.