Technical capacity certificates: how to get your first and use them well

The only qualification document you cannot issue yourself: you have to earn it. How to request one, what it must state, whether private-client certificates count, how to add up contracts, and what to do when the requirement is disproportionate.

Published Aug 25, 2026 · Updated Oct 23, 2026 · Busca Licitações Team · 11 min read

This text was written for companies registered in Brazil. Foreign suppliers should also read how foreign companies can bid in Brazilian public tenders.

Of all the documents required in a public tender (licitação), the technical capacity certificate (atestado de capacidade técnica) is the only one you cannot produce on your own. Clearance certificates are downloaded from a website, your accountant prepares the balance sheet, your lawyer amends the articles of association (contrato social). The certificate depends on someone having hired your company before — and on that someone signing a document saying you delivered.

That is why it works as the main barrier to entering the public market, and also as the main advantage of those who are already in. This guide shows how to get your first one, what it must state to be accepted, how to use your portfolio strategically and what to do when the requirement in the tender notice (edital) is disproportionate.

What it is and what it is for

The certificate is a document in which a client — public or private — states that your company supplied certain goods or provided certain services, in a given quantity, timeframe and under given conditions. Its purpose is to demonstrate capability: the law allows the government to require proof of prior experience compatible with the subject of the contract, precisely to reduce the risk of hiring someone who has never done that work.

The requirement is legitimate, but it has limits. It must be proportionate: proof of a portion of the contract scope, not the entire scope. Tender notices that demand experience equivalent to 100% of the volume being procured can usually be challenged, a topic we return to below.

Your first certificate: where it comes from

There are four realistic paths, and none of them requires luck.

1. Private contracts you have already performed. This is the most direct path and the most overlooked. If your company has been selling to the private market for years, ask your clients for certificates. The law accepts certificates issued by private-law legal entities — they do not have to come from a government agency. A supermarket, a factory or a private school can certify what you supplied.

2. Electronic direct awards (dispensa eletrônica). Low value, lean documentation requirements and, crucially, they rarely ask for a certificate. This is the procurement type designed for companies with no track record yet. Once you have delivered, you ask the contract inspector for the certificate and walk away with the document you were missing. See how to take part in direct awards.

3. Subcontracting. Larger tender notices sometimes require the winner to subcontract micro and small businesses (ME/EPP). Introducing yourself to the companies that usually win those contracts puts you in the supply chain and generates experience you can document.

4. Smaller lots in large tenders. In tenders divided by item or lot, bid for the smaller ones. The certificate requirement is usually proportional to the lot, not to the total value of the tender.

What the certificate must state to be accepted

Generic certificates — "we declare that company X provides services satisfactorily" — are frequently rejected. To work in a qualification (habilitação) review, the certificate must allow a comparison with the subject of the tender. Ask for it to include:

• Issuer identification: legal name, CNPJ (Brazilian company tax ID), address and contact details;
• Contractor identification: your legal name and CNPJ;
• Description of the work performed, in enough detail to allow comparison;
• Quantities supplied or performed — the most important piece of information and the one most often left out;
• Performance period, with start and end dates;
• Value of the contract or supply, when possible;
• Statement of performance: that the work was carried out satisfactorily, with no record of penalties;
• Date, signature and identification of the signatory, with job title and, ideally, on letterhead.

A practical tip: bring the text ready-made. Contract inspectors and managers are busy, and your chance of getting a complete certificate goes up considerably if you hand them a draft to review and sign.

Ask at the right time

The best moment is immediately after you complete delivery, while the relationship is fresh and the person who oversaw the work still holds the position. Six months later, the inspector may have moved to another department, and whoever replaces them cannot certify what they did not see.

Make it a routine: add "request certificate" to the close-out checklist of every contract, alongside issuing the final invoice. It is a five-minute habit that builds lasting value.

Certificates from public contracts: the record that reinforces them

In contracts with the government, in addition to the certificate, you can request a certificate of record (certidão de acervo) or an equivalent registration. In construction and engineering services, the CAT (Certificate of Technical Record) issued by CREA or CAU (the regional engineering and architecture councils) links the responsible professional to the work performed and is usually required together with the company's certificate.

Worth noting: the CAT belongs to the professional, not to the company. If the responsible engineer leaves, their record goes with them — which is why engineering firms usually keep formal ties with professionals who hold a relevant record.

Adding up certificates: when it is allowed

A frequent question: can I add two smaller contracts together to prove the required quantity? It depends on the tender notice, and this is one of the most useful questions to ask in a request for clarification (pedido de esclarecimento).

In the supply of goods, adding certificates together is usually accepted when they refer to the same type of item. In continuous services, the government usually requires compatible simultaneous performance, because what it wants to see is the ability to sustain volume at the same time — two small contracts in different periods do not prove that.

If the tender notice is silent, ask beforehand. The answer becomes part of the tender notice and protects your bid.

When the requirement is disproportionate

Signs of a requirement that improperly restricts competition:

• a quantity equal to or greater than the total being procured;
• a requirement that certificates come exclusively from government agencies, without justification;
• a requirement that the work have been performed in a specific municipality or region;
• a minimum quantity that only the current supplier would have;
• a blanket ban on adding certificates together, with no technical reason.

The settled position of the courts of audit (tribunais de contas) accepts requiring a portion — usually between 30% and 50% of the contract scope — provided it is justified. Above that, the burden of demonstrating the need falls on the government. If you are able to perform the work but are blocked by a requirement like this, file a challenge to the tender notice (impugnação): it is free and frequently upheld. The step-by-step is in challenging a tender notice.

A certificate template to bring ready-made

A text that is usually accepted without changes, and that you can adapt on the client's letterhead:

"TECHNICAL CAPACITY CERTIFICATE. We hereby certify, for all due purposes, that the company [legal name], registered under CNPJ no. [number], headquartered at [address], supplied this institution with [detailed description of the goods/services], in the quantity of [quantity and unit], from [start date] to [end date], for a total value of R$ [value]. We declare that the supply was carried out within the agreed deadlines and specifications, with no record whatsoever that discredits the company's performance. As this is a true statement, we sign it below. [City, date]. [Name, title, signature and contact details of the person in charge]."

Three details make a difference to acceptance: an explicit quantity (not "various items"), a period with dates and the statement that there were no penalties. Without these three, the certificate is often questioned.

Mistakes that invalidate a certificate

Vague description. "Provision of miscellaneous services" does not allow comparison with the subject of the tender and will be rejected.

No quantity. This is the number one reason for rejection, because most tender notices require a minimum percentage of the volume.

Signature without identification. Initials with no name, title or contact details make it impossible to verify the document — and the agency would rather reject it than take the risk.

An issuer with ownership ties to the contractor. A certificate issued by a company in the same group or with shareholders in common is rejected for lack of impartiality.

Discrepancy with reality. An inflated quantity, an extended period, work that was never performed. Beyond rejection, this constitutes fraud — with the risk of a declaration of ineligibility (inidoneidade), under the sanctions provided by law.

Manage your portfolio as an asset

Keep a digital folder with all your certificates, plus an index spreadsheet listing: issuer, subject, quantity, period, value and a link to the file. When you read a tender notice, you can check in seconds whether you have a compatible certificate — instead of digging through old emails the day before the session.

It also pays to organize them by type of goods or service. A company that supplies cleaning products, pantry and kitchen supplies and disposables should know which certificates fit each type of tender, because the comparison is made by subject, not by CNPJ.

How the requirement varies by type of contract

Knowing the pattern in each area helps you plan which certificates to pursue first.

In the supply of goods, the requirement is usually quantitative and allows certificates to be added together: proof that you have already delivered a certain quantity of the same type of product. It is the easiest to meet for companies coming from the private market.

In continuous services with dedicated labor, the focus shifts to simultaneous performance: the agency wants to know whether you have already managed a team of that size at the same time. Certificates from small consecutive contracts do not replace one large contract — a subject tied to the cost breakdown spreadsheet, which reveals how complex these contracts are.

In construction and engineering, the company's certificate is required together with the professional's CAT, with the items of greatest technical relevance defined in the tender notice. It is the strictest area, covered in detail in how to bid on public works.

In technology, beyond quantity, there are complexity requirements: number of users served, modules deployed, integration with specific systems. See how to sell IT to the public sector.

In food, agencies usually require supply to institutions with a similar profile — schools, hospitals — because the logistics of perishables is what they want to see proven.

Frequently asked questions

Does a certificate from a private client really count?

Yes, unless the tender notice contains a justified restriction. Many new suppliers do not know this and fail to use years of private-sector track record.

Can the agency check whether it is true?

It can, and it does. The evaluation committee commonly calls the issuer or requests invoices proving the certified supply. An inflated certificate is fraud, with severe consequences.

Does a certificate have an expiration date?

The document itself does not expire, but the tender notice may limit the performance period taken into account — for example, work performed in the last five years. Check that clause.

Can I use a certificate from a contract that is still ongoing?

Generally yes, for the portion already performed, as long as the certificate states this clearly. Some tender notices require a completed contract; read carefully.

What if the client refuses to sign?

Insist with a simple, objective draft, explaining that it is a routine document. If you still cannot get it, invoices and the contract itself may serve in some tenders — but a formal certificate is always the safer option.

The economic value of your portfolio

It is worth seeing the certificate as a balance-sheet asset, even if it is not booked as one. Each document in the folder expands the range of tenders you can bid on — and, more importantly, reduces the competition in the ones you do bid on.

The logic is straightforward. In a reverse auction (pregão) with no certificate requirement, dozens of companies compete, many of them disorganized, and prices collapse. In a reverse auction that requires proof of 40% of the volume, only a few remain — and those few usually have similar cost structures, which keeps prices at a healthy level.

Mature companies use this deliberately: they prefer tender notices with significant technical requirements precisely because the barrier that bothered them at the start now protects them. It is the same barrier, seen from the other side.

So do not treat the certificate as a bureaucratic piece of paper to be filed away. Treat it as the most durable result of every contract you perform — the product that keeps paying off after the last invoice has been paid.

A twelve-month plan to start from zero

If you do not have a single certificate today, here is a realistic roadmap: in the first thirty days, ask all your relevant private clients for certificates — it is the quickest win. In parallel, put together your folder of clearance certificates and register on Compras.gov.br (the federal e-procurement system).

From the second to the fourth month, bid exclusively on electronic direct awards and on reverse auctions reserved for ME/EPP, where certificates are rarely required. Perform rigorously and ask for a certificate at the end of each one.

From the fifth month on, with two or three certificates in the folder, start bidding on mid-sized reverse auctions. By the end of the first year, your portfolio is usually enough for most tender notices in your field — and competition in those tenders is much lower, because many companies have never organized their own certificates.

To get started, see which tenders are open in your category and filter for the lowest-value ones — they are the ones that build the track record that unlocks everything else.

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