Collection and transfer of the payments of application fees for travel authorisations under ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorisation System)

The European Commission, specifically the Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs (DG HOME), has announced a planned call for tenders to select a payment service provider (PSP) for the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS). This procurement opportunity, identified under the procedure identifier EC-HOME/2025/CPN-CC/0014-PIN, will be published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJ S), with an estimated publishing date for contract notice on November 14, 2025.

The scope of the contract encompasses the collection and transfer of application fees for ETIAS, with the PSP being tasked to process payments via a secure payment gateway, collect individual fees on behalf of the European Commission, and ensure timely transfer of these funds. The estimated value of the procurement contract is €20 million, with a maximum duration of 48 months.

Eligible applicants are likely large financial institutions or specialized firms capable of handling a significant volume of payment transactions, reflecting the SME suitability indicator being marked as false. There is no requirement for consortium participation, indicating that a single applicant can fulfill the contract requirements.

Geographically, the tender is open to entities within EU member states and associated countries, adhering to standard EU procurement eligibility criteria. The primary target sector is financial services, specifically those related to payment processing, with the main CPV code designated as 66600000, which relates to treasury services.

The nature of the support provided through this contract is monetary; the EU will compensate the awarded PSP for services rendered, which distinguishes this procurement from typical grant funding. The application process is an open call via electronic submission, following established EU public procurement rules, and involving a single stage for submission and evaluation.

Overall, this call for tenders marks an important opportunity for potential PSPs to engage in a significant project that supports the functionality of ETIAS, aimed at improving travel authorization processes within the EU. The final call for tenders with comprehensive documentation will become available as the anticipated publication date approaches.

The European Commission, DG HOME - Migration and Home Affairs, is planning a call for tenders with OJ S publication, procedure identifier EC-HOME/2025/CPN-CC/0014-PIN, for the collection and transfer of payments of application fees for travel authorizations under ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorisation System). The TED reference is 141/2025 486861-2025.

The objective of this procurement procedure is to select a payment service provider (PSP) in line with the ETIAS Regulation. The PSP will be responsible for collecting payments of the ETIAS application fees and transferring them to the European Commission.

The PSP's responsibilities include:

1.  Processing each applicant’s payment of the ETIAS fee through a payment gateway hosted by the PSP. Applicants for an ETIAS travel authorization will be redirected to this gateway when applying on the ETIAS website or app.
2.  Collecting all individual payments on behalf of the European Commission.
3.  Transferring the collected amounts to the European Commission's account on a regular basis in the form of net payouts.

The estimated total value of this call for tenders is 20,000,000 EUR. The TED publication date is 25/07/2025, and the estimated date of publication of a contract notice is 14/11/2025. The nature of the contract is for services, and the maximum contract duration is 48 months. No framework agreement is mentioned. The main classification (CPV) code is 66600000, which corresponds to Treasury services.

A question was asked regarding where to find the procurement documents for this call for tenders. The response indicates that the planned call for tenders announces the intention of the contracting authority to publish a future call for tenders, and no other information or documents are available other than those already published. This answer was published on 16/02/2024 23:54.

In summary, this is a pre-announcement of a forthcoming call for tenders by the European Commission, DG HOME, to select a payment service provider for the ETIAS program. The selected PSP will handle the collection and transfer of application fees. The estimated value is 20 million EUR, and the contract duration is up to 48 months. The actual call for tenders with all relevant documentation is expected to be published around November 14, 2025. Currently, no procurement documents are available beyond this pre-announcement.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant type is a payment service provider (PSP).

Funding Type: This is a procurement opportunity, specifically a call for tenders. The European Commission is seeking a service contract.

Consortium Requirement: The information does not explicitly state whether a consortium is required or if a single applicant is sufficient. However, given the nature of the services, it is possible that either a single strong PSP or a consortium with a leading PSP could be considered.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility is not explicitly stated, but since it is an EU tender related to the ETIAS system, it is highly likely that the eligible applicants must be based in the EU or EEA countries, or potentially countries with agreements allowing participation in EU tenders.

Target Sector: The target sector is finance, specifically payment processing and treasury services. It also touches upon security and travel authorization systems.

Mentioned Countries: No specific countries are mentioned. The relevant region is the EU, as the project relates to the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS).

Project Stage: The project is in the implementation stage, requiring a service provider to manage the collection and transfer of payments for an existing system (ETIAS).

Funding Amount: The estimated total value of the procurement is 20,000,000 EUR.

Application Type: This is a planned call for tenders with OJ S publication.

Nature of Support: The selected payment service provider will receive money in exchange for services rendered. The PSP will be paid for processing payments and transferring funds to the European Commission.

Application Stages: The number of application stages is not explicitly stated in the provided text. However, a typical call for tenders involves multiple stages, including submission of a tender, evaluation, and contract award. Therefore, it is likely to involve multiple stages.

Success Rates: The success rates are not mentioned in the provided text.

Co-funding Requirement: The information does not explicitly state whether co-funding is required. Given that this is a procurement contract for services, co-funding is unlikely.

Summary:

This is a planned call for tenders by the European Commission, DG HOME - Migration and Home Affairs, to select a payment service provider (PSP) for the collection and transfer of application fees for the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS). The selected PSP will be responsible for processing payments through a payment gateway, collecting individual payments on behalf of the European Commission, and transferring the collected amounts to the Commission's account. The estimated total value of the contract is 20,000,000 EUR, and the maximum contract duration is 48 months. The TED publication date was 25/07/2025, and the estimated date of publication of a contract notice is 14/11/2025. The call for tenders will be published in the Official Journal of the European Union Supplement (OJ S). The main classification (CPV) is 66600000 - Treasury services. The opportunity is aimed at payment service providers capable of handling a large volume of transactions and ensuring secure and reliable transfer of funds.