Supplier information and the ESPD
The ESPD is the European self-declaration replacing certificates at bid stage. The UK now uses supplier registration on the central digital platform instead.
Updated on September 5, 2026
The European Single Procurement Document (ESPD) is a standard form in which a company declares that it meets the conditions for bidding for a public contract: no grounds for exclusion, and the required economic, technical and professional standing. It replaces most certificates and evidence at bid stage. In Great Britain the ESPD has largely been superseded, but the same idea survives in a different shape.
How it works
Ireland still uses the ESPD, completed online through eTenders for procurements under the European Union (Award of Public Authority Contracts) Regulations 2016. Scotland uses its own version, the ESPD (Scotland), on Public Contracts Scotland.
In England, Wales and Northern Ireland the Procurement Act 2023 replaced it with supplier registration on the central digital platform. A supplier enters its core information once, including identifiers, financial information, connected persons and exclusion grounds, and receives a share code that it gives to any buyer running a covered procurement. Buyers then ask only for what is specific to that contract, through conditions of participation that must be proportionate to the work. The older standard selection questionnaire is still seen on below-threshold exercises and on some portals.
In every version the principle is the same: only the supplier that is going to be awarded the contract has to produce the underlying evidence, such as accounts, insurances, tax clearance and certificates.
What it means for a bidder
This lightens the bid stage considerably, particularly for an SME bidding often. Complete your central digital platform registration, or your ESPD in Ireland, once and keep it current: turnover, headcount, insurances, convictions and connected persons all change.
Be accurate. These are declarations. An inaccurate one discovered when evidence is checked means the bid is rejected, and it can lead to exclusion from later procurements.
In a consortium, every member registers or completes its own declaration, and so does any subcontractor whose capacity you are relying on. Check the instructions to tenderers for what evidence the buyer wants at bid stage rather than at award.
Example
A building services consultancy bids for a heating plant replacement design at Roche Amont NHS Trust, estimated at £190,000 including VAT. Instead of assembling certificates, it gives the trust the share code from its central digital platform profile and answers the contract-specific questions on professional indemnity cover and three recent references. Named as the intended supplier, it then supplies its insurance certificates and accounts within the period set by the trust.
Frequently asked questions
Is registration mandatory?
For a covered procurement in England, Wales or Northern Ireland you must supply the required supplier information, in practice through the central digital platform. In Ireland the buyer must accept an ESPD if you submit one.
Is the declaration enough to win?
No. It lets you bid. The intended supplier must then evidence what it declared before the contract is signed.
Can I reuse it?
Yes, that is the main benefit: one profile or one ESPD, reused across procurements as long as the information stays accurate.