How to bid on your first public tender in Türkiye

Last updated: 3 November 2026

This guide gives general information and is not legal advice. Each tender sets its own rules in its tender documents. Read them before you bid and consult an expert if needed.

Short answer: Register your company on EKAP, find a notice that fits your business, check the eligibility requirements in the administrative specification against your documents, prepare the bid bond and submit your bid before the deadline.

In 2025, 9,270 contracting authorities in Türkiye ran 80,720 tenders, and total public procurement reached TRY 3.23 trillion.^[1] This guide covers the six steps of preparing your first bid.

1. Register your company on EKAP

Turkish public tenders are published on EKAP, the Electronic Public Procurement Platform run by the Public Procurement Authority (KİK). Under the standard administrative specifications, anyone who intends to bid must download the tender documents by signing in to their EKAP account, and every member of a joint venture must be registered on EKAP.^[2] Check EKAP's current guide for the registration steps and the signature or identity tools you need. Registration can take a few days, so do it before you find your first tender.

2. Find a notice that fits your business

On EKAP you can search by tender type, province, date and keyword. The same kind of work can appear under different titles, so a single-keyword search can miss notices. On ProcuSale you choose your sector once, and we email you when a new matching notice appears, from EKAP and from other countries.

3. Screen the notice in two minutes

Before you start preparing a bid, check four things in the notice:

• Deadline date and time: Can you prepare your documents in time?
• Procurement procedure: In an open procedure every bidder can bid. In a restricted procedure you first need to pass prequalification.
• Eligibility criteria: If a work experience certificate is required, read the required amount and the definition of similar work.
• Bond and submission method: How much is the bid bond, and how is the bid submitted?

If one of these four does not fit your company, move on to the next notice.

4. Check eligibility

A work experience certificate shows that your company has completed similar work before. The contracting authority states in the tender documents which work it accepts as similar and the amount it requires. If your certificate does not match that definition or the amount falls short, look at the joint venture option.

Under Law No. 4734, a joint venture takes one of two forms: a business partnership or a consortium. A business partnership can bid in any tender. The contracting authority states in the tender documents whether consortia may bid. A partnership agreement is required at the tender stage, and if the joint venture wins, it submits a notarized partnership contract before signing.^[3] The tender documents set out how the partners meet the eligibility requirements.

5. Prepare the bond

• Bid bond (geçici teminat): At least 3% of your bid price. The bidder sets the amount, and the bond is submitted with the bid. In consultancy service tenders, a bid bond may not be required if the tender documents say so.^[4]
• Performance bond (kesin teminat): 6% of the contract price, taken before the contract is signed.^[5] If your bid is below the threshold value, regulations issued by the Public Procurement Authority may set this rate between 6% and 15%.^[5]
• Accepted as security: Turkish currency in circulation, letters of guarantee and government domestic borrowing securities.^[6]

Example: if you bid TRY 1,000,000, you prepare a bid bond of at least TRY 30,000. If you win at that price, the standard rate gives a performance bond of TRY 60,000. If you plan to use a bank letter of guarantee, discuss the limit with your bank before you decide to bid. Check the bond type and validity period in the tender documents.

6. Submit your bid and watch the notice

Submit your bid with the documents the tender requires before the deadline date and time. After publication, the authority can issue a correction or cancellation notice, so check the notice regularly until bid day.

Frequently asked questions

More questions: Frequently asked questions · See tenders that fit your sector: Join ProcuSale for free