Abstract

Electronic means of communication are technical solutions, including internet equipment and compatible software tools allowing for individual distance communication with the use of data transfer between information systems, in particular with the use of email. In the case of public procurement, the European legislation, followed by the Polish legislation, granted priority to communication based on electronic means, as opposed to the three methods of communication having the same status before. Therefore, the basic method of communication for legal proceedings regulated by the provisions of Directive 2014/24/EU, Directive 2014/25/EU and the Public Procurement Law involves the use of electronic means of communication. This rule does not yet apply exclusively in the case of proceedings not covered by the EU thresholds, and proceedings organised in the security and defence sector, while the Polish legislator decided that contracts below the EU thresholds will also be subject to this obligation at a later date. Initially, this date was set out for 18 October 2018, but was then postponed to 1 January 2020. Nevertheless, these solutions come under an initiative covered by the Electronic Procurement Strategy, which is intended to result in creating complex solutions for developing electronic forms of public procurement.