The Act prescribes (i) general qualification criteria which require proof that the contractor: was not sanctioned for certain criminal offences or found guilty of unfair competition in the form of bribery; is not insolvent or bankrupt; and does not have any arrears of taxes or other fees. The Act further prescribes the fulfilment of (ii) professional qualification criteria by submission of an official document proving the authorization to conduct business activity in the Czech Republic, and the fulfilment of (iii) economic and financial qualification criteria by submission of an insurance contract, balance sheet or information on the total turnover, and the fulfilment of (iv) technical qualification criteria by submission of a list of important supplies made within the last three years, list of technicians which will be involved in the performance of the public contract, description of technical equipment, control of the production facilities, specimen, photos or description of goods or documents proving conformity of the goods.

No, as a general rule, bidders are obliged to follow the specifications set out by the contracting authority in the tender documents.

The protection of Small and Medium Enterprises ("SME"), which is one of the main objectives of the Directive 2014/24/EU, is indirectly embodied in several provisions of the Act. If it is possible with regard to nature of the public contract, the contracting authority shall divide the contract into lots to guarantee an award chance for SMEs. Further, as regards economic and financial qualification criteria, the contracting authority may only request a minimum annual turnover twice as high as the value of the bid, except if the risks of the bid require a higher amount.