During the administrative review of the formal conditions of applications received for tenders, the Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency is noticing an increased number of irregularities in the digital signing of documents and mandatory attachments that are an integral part of the application documentation in the Digital Forms system.

The most common problems relate to:

• incorrectly electronically signed documents,
• missing signatures of legal representatives,
• signing scanned instead of original (PDF/A) documents,
• technically inadequate or invalid digital signatures.

Due to the identified irregularities, applicants must be asked to supplement their applications, which prolongs the review procedures and may affect the timeline of the evaluation process.

In order to avoid additional administrative burdens and ensure timely and smooth processing of applications, all applicants are kindly requested to strictly follow the attached instructions for the correct preparation and digital signing of documentation before submitting the application.

The instructions contain technical and substantive guidelines regarding:

• appropriate form of documents (PDF/A),
• correct electronic signing procedure,
• checking the validity of the signature before submission,
• the most common mistakes and how to prevent them.

With careful preparation of the documentation, you will significantly contribute to a faster and more efficient processing of your application.

The instructions are available at the following link.

Source: ARIS