A 'service provider's declaration' is not a logo on your reference sheet — it must be clear, signed and attributable
The Council of State upholds the disqualification of an architects' consortium from Uccle's renovation contract because their reference for a private client was not accompanied by a real 'service provider's declaration' — an undated 'preamble' and a fact sheet bearing only the Archi 2000 logo are insufficient.
What happened?
On 15 April 2025, the municipality of Uccle published a contract notice for 'Project U' — appointing a project-author team for the renovation and refurbishment of its new administrative centre. Negotiated procedure with European publicity. The tender contained two technical capacity criteria. The second required a list of three pertinent references, including at least one office renovation of at least 5,000 m² over the past three years. On 18 May 2025, 27 candidates submitted applications, including the ARCHI 2000 + SETESCO + FELGEN consortium. On 3 September 2025, the council disqualified all three because reference 2 (Belliard 65) lacked an attestation of good performance or a 'service provider's declaration' as required by Article 72, 7° KB 15/07/2011. The consortium argued in urgency before the Council of State: no formal requirement — a fact sheet bearing the Archi 2000 logo plus a 'preamble' stating that 'the 3 pertinent references are all projects of which Archi 2000 was the author', should suffice. Subsidiarily: one 5,000 m² reference was enough, three attestations were not cumulatively required. The Council ruled otherwise. First branch — form of the declaration: Article 72, 7° imposes no specific formalism but requires an attestation or declaration that cannot be confused with the list of services itself. When the declaration is from the service provider (allowed only absent an attestation from the private buyer), it must be sufficiently clear in scope and author identity to engage that author's liability. A 'preamble' — drafted on plain paper, undated, unsigned, with no mention of its author — cannot, prima facie, count. A fact sheet with the Archi 2000 logo is a description, not an attestation engaging a person's responsibility. Reading both together is not the contracting authority's job — it should not 'compensate for' a missing declaration by deriving it from other documents serving another purpose. Second branch — cumulative requirements: the tender required three pertinent references AND one with a 5,000 m² office renovation. Not alternative — cumulative. One reference of 5,000 m² without the other two properly attested is not enough. Suspension dismissed.
Why does this matter?
For bidders, this is a fully self-controllable mistake. When you provide a reference for a private client without an attestation from that client, complete it with a dated, signed, clearly identified declaration from your own company — with the signatory's name and title. A 'preamble' or corporate fact sheet is not a declaration within Article 72, 7°. And read your tender carefully: cumulative requirements ('and') are not alternative requirements ('or'). For contracting authorities, the judgment confirms that selection can (and should) be strict — you do not need to 'read in' a missing declaration from other documents.
The lesson
When you submit references for private clients without attestations from them, draft your own separate declaration: dated, signed, with the signatory's name and title, and containing the substantive elements the tender requires. Add this declaration as one distinct document, linked to the reference it proves. A logo, a 'preamble' or a fact sheet is not enough.
Ask yourself
Walk through your references one by one: for every private-client reference, do I have a separate attestation from the client, or a signed, dated declaration from my own company where a named natural person assumes responsibility? A fact sheet bearing only a logo does not count.
About this database
The Council of State (Raad van State / Conseil d'État) is Belgium's supreme administrative court. In disputes over public procurement — from contract awards to tenderer exclusions — the Council of State is the final arbiter. The rulings in this database are summarised by TenderWolf in plain language, with practical lessons for tenderers and contracting authorities. View all rulings →