Assistance for the Implementation of Technical Assistance and Information Exchange (TAIEX 10) Activities: Provision of Logistical Services and Financi...

TAIEX 10 (call EC-ENEST/2026/EA-RP/0109, TED 696134-2026) is a European Commission restricted procedure for a fee-based services contract to provide logistical services and financial management supporting the Technical Assistance and Information Exchange instrument. The contract covers organisation of conferences, workshops, expert missions, study visits, travel and accommodation arrangements, promotional materials and payment processing, with an estimated total value of €68 million and an initial duration of 48 months. Requests to participate must be submitted electronically via the EU Funding and Tenders Portal by 17 November 2026 at 16:30 Brussels time and between 4 and 8 candidates are expected to be shortlisted and invited to tender. Selection requires substantial capacity, including an average annual turnover of at least €22 million over the last three closed financial years, a current ratio of at least 1 for each consortium member, at least 10 relevant staff (minimum 3 permanent) and three reference contracts of at least €5 million each.

What it funds

Scope

Who can apply

Open to natural persons and legal entities (including consortia) established in EU Member States or eligible third countries under NDICI and IPA III; international and regional organisations may also participate. Sub-contracting allowed; consortia members jointly and severally liable.

Key eligibility and selection highlights

Procedure and practicals

Restricted tendering procedure. Award by best price-quality ratio. Submissions must be electronic via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal (EU Login) using a valid PIC. Requests to participate must follow the provided request to participate form and declarations.

Submission requirements include a completed request to participate form, declaration on honour, and supporting documents uploaded in the correct portal attachment sections. Only one request per candidate (or per lot) is permitted.

Footnotes

1. 1Full procurement documents and submission via the Funding & Tenders Portal: F&T Portal opportunity page.

Basic tender data

Purpose and scope of the contract

The contracting authority intends to conclude a fee-based framework contract to support implementation of the Technical Assistance and Information Exchange (TAIEX) instrument. TAIEX supports peer-to-peer cooperation among public authorities of EU Member States and authorities in beneficiary countries. The contractor will act under instructions from the European Commission and must provide comprehensive logistical services (organisation and logistics for conferences, workshops, expert missions, study visits, promotion and printed/digital materials, in-person/online/hybrid events) and ensure financial management related to those activities, including payments for logistical services and expert fees. The contract covers travel, accommodation, event organisation, logistics, and payment processing for experts and suppliers worldwide.

Legal basis, financing and programmes

The procedure is financed under multiple Union instruments and programmes including NDICI - Global Europe (Regulation (EU) 2021/947), IPA III (Regulation (EU) 2021/1529), specific EU funding lines referenced in the procurement documents and other relevant EU financial regulations and facilities (incl. Ukraine Facility, Technical Support Instrument and regional funds). The contract is conditional on the prior adoption of a financing decision and availability of appropriations.

Eligible applicants and geographic scope

Participation is open to natural persons (nationals) and legal persons effectively established in a Member State of the European Union, in eligible countries/territories defined under Article 28 of Regulation (EU) 2021/947 and Article 11 of Regulation (EU) 2021/1529. International and regional organisations may also participate. Candidates may participate individually or in groupings (consortia).

Funding type and nature of support

Consortium requirement and submissions

Selection and award criteria

Sub-contracting, alliances and short-list rules

Sub-contracting is allowed. Short-listed candidates may not change the composition of the tendering entity (no alliances forming after short-listing) without prior authorisation. The contracting authority will invite shortlisted candidates to submit full tenders; any tender with a different composition than the short-listed request will be excluded unless authorised.

Application process and templates

Requests to participate must be submitted exclusively via the F&T Portal (eSubmission). Candidates must be registered in the Participant Register and have a Participant Identification Code (PIC). The request to participate must use the official request to participate form and be accompanied by a Declaration on Honour on Exclusion and Selection criteria (templates available from the Annexes page referenced in the procurement documentation). Additional supporting documents must be uploaded to the correct attachment sections in eSubmission as specified in the call.

Procedural and technical notes for submission

All communications and documents for the procedure must be in English. EU Login is required. The eSubmission portal encrypts uploaded documents; attachments must comply with system size and format limits (individual attachments less than 50 MB, maximum 200 files per submission). The system supports latest Chrome and Firefox. Clarification questions must be submitted through the Questions & Answers tab on the F&T Portal no later than 21 days before the requests to participate deadline; answers will be published at the latest 8 days before the deadline.

Application stages, shortlist and success probability

Co-funding and financial obligations

Mandatory thresholds and disqualifying conditions

Mandatory selection thresholds include minimum average annual turnover of €22,000,000 over the last 3 closed financial years and completion of at least 3 contracts each worth at least €5,000,000 in the last 4 years for the technical capacity requirement. Candidates included in EU restrictive measures lists at the moment of award cannot be awarded the contract. A candidate submitting more than one request to participate will be excluded. In case of consortium submissions, each member must meet certain criteria (e.g., current ratio >= 1).

Main CPV codes and contract classification

Mentioned countries and geographic coverage

Templates and application format

Applicants must use the request to participate form and Declaration on Honour templates available from the Annexes page and the F&T Portal. Required structure: completed request to participate sections (identification, legal form, contact details, turnover and financial statements, technical/professional references and CVs, list of completed contracts with values and evidence), signed Declaration on Honour on Exclusion and Selection criteria, and any capacity-provider commitments as separate supporting documents. All attachments must be uploaded to the correct attachment tab in eSubmission.

Practical tips and compliance checklist

What this opportunity is about — summary

This restricted procurement seeks to appoint one service provider (or consortium) under a fee-based framework agreement to manage logistics and financial operations for the European Commission's TAIEX instrument. The contractor will plan and deliver travel, accommodation, event and logistics services for conferences, workshops, expert missions and study visits worldwide, produce promotional materials, and handle payments to experts and suppliers. The framework has an estimated total value of €68,000,000 and an initial duration of 48 months (with possible terms as specified in the procurement documents). Applicants must meet substantial financial, professional and technical thresholds to be shortlisted, and the award will follow a best price-quality ratio evaluation. Submission is electronic through the F&T Portal using specified request to participate and declaration templates; shortlisted candidates will be invited to tender in the second stage of the restricted procedure. For full procurement documentation and templates consult the contract notice and additional information documents on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal and TED TAIEX 10 - procurement documents 1.

Footnotes

1. 1Procurement documents including the Invitation to submit a request to participate (TAIEX 10 - a5f additional information to contract notice) and templates are available from the EU Funding & Tenders Portal tender details page and the TED notice. See the procedure identifier EC-ENEST/2026/EA-RP/0109 and TED reference 696134-2026 for downloads.

The opportunity is a European Commission restricted procurement for logistical services and financial management supporting the Technical Assistance and Information Exchange instrument, known as TAIEX 10. It is a services contract rather than a grant, so successful applicants will be contracted suppliers and will not receive a grant contribution or reimbursement percentage. The contractor will receive fee-based payments under the resulting contract for services and eligible operational payments instructed by the Commission.1

The contractor will support peer to peer cooperation between public authorities of EU Member States and authorities in beneficiary countries. Expected activities include organising conferences, workshops, expert missions, study visits and promotional materials, together with arranging related travel, accommodation, venues and other logistics. The contractor will also process payments associated with logistical activities and expert fees.

Official identification

The procurement is identified as EC-ENEST/2026/EA-RP/0109. The TED reference is 696134-2026, published under TED issue 195/2026. The lead contracting authority is the European Commission, ENEST.A, Enlargement Coordination, Strategy and Investments.

The authoritative Funding and Tenders Portal record is available at TAIEX 10 Funding and Tenders Portal. The additional information document is available at Additional information to the contract notice.

Key procurement parameters

The metadata includes an earlier date of 1 January 2026, but the official contract notice and additional information document identify 17 November 2026 at 16:30 Brussels time as the deadline for requests to participate. Applicants should rely on the deadline displayed in the live portal record and on any subsequent corrigendum.2

What the contractor is expected to deliver

The successful contractor will operate as an implementation and logistics partner for Commission instructions. The work is expected to cover the full operational cycle of TAIEX activities, including planning, supplier coordination, participant support, event delivery, travel and accommodation arrangements, documentation, payment administration and financial reporting.

The scope is particularly relevant to organisations with established capability in international travel management, accommodation procurement, conference and event organisation, hybrid and online events, payment processing and high-volume operational administration. Because the activities can take place globally, applicants should demonstrate international reach, multilingual operational capacity and the ability to manage suppliers and payments across different jurisdictions.

The contract is fee-based. The €68 million figure is the estimated overall procurement value and should not be interpreted as a fixed grant, guaranteed annual revenue or guaranteed minimum payment. The detailed tender documents will determine the fee structure, applicable unit prices, reimbursable cost categories, payment conditions, ceilings and Commission instructions.

Who can apply

Eligible participants include natural persons who are nationals of an eligible country, legal persons established in an EU Member State or an eligible country or territory under the applicable NDICI Global Europe or IPA III rules, and international or regional organisations. Participation may be individual or through a consortium.

Consortia may be permanent legally established groupings or informal groupings formed for this procurement. All consortium members are jointly and severally liable to the contracting authority. An ineligible member can cause exclusion of the entire consortium.

Subcontracting is allowed. Applicants may also rely on the capacities of other entities, provided that the required resources are legally committed and available for contract performance. Capacity-providing entities must satisfy the applicable eligibility and nationality requirements. For technical and professional capacity, the entity whose capacity is relied upon must perform the tasks for which that capacity is required. Entities supporting economic and financial capacity become jointly and severally liable for performance in the relevant area.

Participation restrictions

Only one request to participate may be submitted by a natural or legal person, whether acting individually, as a consortium leader or as a consortium member. The same organisation should not participate in multiple competing submissions unless the procurement documents expressly permit it.

Shortlisted candidates may not change their consortium composition, form alliances with other shortlisted candidates or subcontract to one another for this procurement without prior authorisation from the contracting authority. Applicants must also be free from the exclusion situations listed in the applicable Practical Guide and must not be subject to EU restrictive measures at the time of the award decision.

Selection requirements

Applicants should treat the following requirements as minimum gateway conditions for the request to participate.

The average turnover threshold reflects the specific procurement document and is not a general threshold for all EU tenders. Applicants should provide financial statements or equivalent information for public bodies and ensure that the figures are converted into euros as required by the procurement documents.

Reference projects may have started before the four-year reference period or may still be ongoing. Only the part completed during the relevant period will be considered, and the applicant must document both the value and the applicant's own share of work. Where a reference was delivered through a consortium, the applicant's responsibilities and completed contribution must be clearly evidenced.

Shortlisting process

Between 4 and 8 eligible candidates are expected to be invited to submit full tenders. If fewer than 4 candidates meet the requirements, the Commission may invite all candidates that satisfy the selection criteria. If more than 8 candidates meet the criteria, the Commission will rank them using the number of qualifying contracts first and the cumulative value of qualifying completed services second.

Passing the selection criteria does not guarantee an invitation to tender where the number of eligible candidates exceeds the maximum of 8. Applicants should therefore present more than the minimum number of references where possible and demonstrate substantial cumulative value, complexity, geographic coverage and relevance.

Evaluation and award

The final contract will be awarded using the best price-quality ratio. The portal data indicates an 80 percent quality weighting and a 20 percent price weighting, while the detailed tender documents will define the subcriteria, scoring method, minimum quality thresholds and price methodology.

The quality-heavy approach means that applicants should prepare a strong operational methodology rather than compete only on price. Relevant strengths are likely to include reliable global delivery, event and travel management systems, controls over expert fees and supplier payments, service continuity, digital tools, financial control, risk management, participant support and measurable service levels. These points are an analytical assessment of likely competitive factors and should be checked against the invitation to tender when issued.

Financing and legal framework

The procurement is subject to the prior adoption of a financing decision and the availability of appropriations. If those conditions are not met, the contracting authority may abandon the procurement or cancel the award procedure without candidates or tenderers being entitled to compensation.

The stated legal and financing framework includes the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument, the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance, the EU Financial Regulation and other instruments identified in the additional information document. The applicable rules may vary according to the financing source used for a particular activity or payment.

The rules of origin and eligibility are particularly important for consortium members, subcontractors and capacity-providing entities. Organisations should verify their establishment, ownership and participation status against the precise eligibility provisions applicable to the relevant financing source before forming a consortium.

Application and submission requirements

Requests to participate must be submitted exclusively through the European Commission Funding and Tenders Portal. Requests sent by email, post or another channel will be disregarded.

Applicants should complete the official request to participate form and submit the required declaration on honour concerning exclusion and selection criteria. The submission should contain only the documents requested by the procurement documents because additional brochures, letters or unsolicited material may not be taken into consideration.

The required submission structure includes the request to participate form under Other documents, the relevant declaration under Other documents and the declaration on honour on exclusion and selection criteria under Declaration on Honour. Each organisation must be registered in the Participant Register and use its nine-digit Participant Identification Code. For a consortium, each member must be registered and the submission must be made as a group submission.

An EU Login account is required to access the electronic submission process, submit questions and manage the procurement record. Applicants should create or verify their EU Login, Participant Register record and PIC well before the deadline, because registration, validation and consortium configuration can require additional time.

All written communications for the procedure and resulting contract must be in English. Financial data must be expressed in euros. Where a historic amount was originally expressed in another currency, the procurement document requires conversion using the specified September 2026 InforEuro exchange rate.

Clarifications and procedural timetable

Clarification questions must be submitted in writing through the Questions and Answers function of the Funding and Tenders Portal. Questions concerning the contract notice and additional information document may be submitted no later than 21 days before the request to participate deadline. Clarifications are expected to be published no later than 8 days before the deadline, and applicants remain responsible for monitoring updates and modifications.

The provisional timetable indicates an invitation to submit tenders in February 2027 and provisional contract commencement in August 2027. These dates are indicative and may change during the procurement process or as a result of financing and award decisions.

Applicants may withdraw a submitted request before the deadline or withdraw it and submit a replacement request. A replacement submission must include all required information and documents, even where those documents were included in the earlier version. The eSubmission timestamp and receipt provide the evidence of timely submission.

Applicant readiness assessment

This opportunity is most suitable for a large established travel, logistics and events operator, an international conference and administrative services provider, or a consortium combining these capabilities with financial management and global delivery capacity.

A prospective applicant should confirm the following before proceeding:

Overall assessment

TAIEX 10 is a high-value, internationally oriented public procurement opportunity with a demanding financial and experience threshold. It is not a conventional EU funding call and there is no stated co-financing rate, grant percentage or fixed award per beneficiary. The commercial opportunity lies in securing a four-year fee-based services contract with an estimated overall value of €68 million, subject to the final tender terms, Commission instructions, available appropriations and actual service volumes.

The principal barriers to entry are the €22 million average turnover requirement, the current ratio requirement for each consortium member, the requirement for at least three €5 million relevant contracts and the restricted procedure shortlist. Organisations below these thresholds may need to participate through an eligible consortium or as subcontractors, while ensuring that the proposed structure complies with the rules on capacity reliance, shortlisting and joint liability.

The immediate priority for a serious applicant is to validate eligibility, secure documentary evidence for the financial and technical criteria, establish a compliant consortium if needed, register or verify all PICs, prepare the prescribed request to participate form and monitor the portal for amendments, clarifications and the eventual invitation to tender.

Sources and qualification notes

The report uses the official Funding and Tenders Portal record and the published additional information document as the primary sources. The TED notice is also relevant for the procurement identifier, publication and contract notice details. The live portal should prevail if later amendments, corrigenda or clarifications change the information summarised here.3

Footnotes

1. 1Official opportunity record and procurement description: TAIEX 10 Funding and Tenders Portal.
2. 2The published additional information document states the deadline as 17 November 2026 at 16:30 Brussels time and provides the provisional timetable, eligibility rules, selection criteria and submission instructions: Additional information to the contract notice.
3. 3TED publication reference 696134-2026: TED contract notice. Background on the TAIEX instrument: European Commission TAIEX information.