Development of a QMS and related implementing procedures on operational parts of flag State and port State-related activities for the maritime administrations of IPA and ENP countries

The European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) has published a procurement opportunity for the development of a Quality Management System (QMS) and related procedures for maritime administrations in countries under the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA) and the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP). This framework contract is valued at an estimated total of 500,000 EUR and has a maximum duration of 48 months.

Eligible applicants include consultancy firms with expertise in maritime regulations, specifically those capable of developing QMS for flag and port state activities. The opportunity is categorized as a procurement contract rather than a grant, facilitating payment for services rendered rather than requiring co-funding from the contractors.

This is an open call for tenders with electronic submission required by the deadline of September 11, 2025, at 16:00 CET, and potential applicants must register for a Personal Identification Code (PIC) to participate. The contracting authority, EMSA, will not respond to inquiries submitted after September 2, 2025.

The project focuses on consultancy and operational compliance within the maritime sector and is open to applicants from the EU, EEA, and potentially other countries following EU procurement rules. Submissions are evaluated based on a 70% quality and 30% price criterion, with no explicit consortium requirement, allowing for individual applicants.

All tender documents, including the Invitation to Tender, Tender Specifications, Draft Contract, and e-submission guidelines, are available for download. The application process involves a single-stage submission and evaluation, with a focus on providing a comprehensive understanding of the project's requirements and criteria.

The European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) has published a call for tenders, EMSA/2025/OP/0017, for the development of a Quality Management System (QMS) and related implementing procedures for the operational parts of Flag and Port State activities. This framework contract aims to benefit specific entities of the maritime administrations of IPA (Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance) and ENP (European Neighbourhood Policy) beneficiary countries.

The procedure type is an open procedure, and submissions must be sent exclusively via electronic means. The estimated total value of the contract is 500,000 EUR. The TED (Tenders Electronic Daily) publication date is 15/07/2025. The lead contracting authority is the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA). The main classification (CPV) code is 79410000, which refers to business and management consultancy services. The nature of the contract is for services, and the maximum contract duration is 48 months. The award method is based on the best price-quality ratio. It is a framework agreement without reopening of competition.

Key milestones include: TED publication date: 15/07/2025, Date and time of public opening: 12/09/2025 10:00 Europe/Lisbon, Deadline for receipt of tenders: 11/09/2025 16:00 Europe/Lisbon, and the Contracting authority is not bound to reply to questions submitted after 02/09/2025 06:00 Europe/Lisbon.

The following documents are available for download: ENB.01 Invitation to tender (Invitation letter), ENB.02 Tender Specifications (Tender specifications), ENI.02 Framework Service Contract (Draft contract), ENA.01 Tenderer (Candidate) Checklist (Other invitation to tender document), and ENA.30 e-submission guidelines (Other invitation to tender document). All documents were published on 15/07/2025 and are version 1, with no translations available.

Submissions must be sent exclusively at the address for submission given on the eSubmission platform.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

How to proceed if the system is slow or doesn’t work while uploading/downloading documents?
Make sure to use the latest versions of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox. If the issue persists, clear the cache and cookies on the Internet browser.

Which Internet browsers does eSubmission support?
Use the latest versions of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox. For the most up-to-date technical recommendations, click on the link System Requirements.

Is it possible to view the details of the submission after the deadline?
No, the content of the submission is not accessible after submitting the tender as the system encrypts all attachments upon upload.

Where can I find my submissions in Manage My Area, in the Funding & Tenders portal?
Submissions can be found in ‘My Submission(s)’: tenders in response to open calls for tenders, requests to participate.

Which size should attachments have?
eSubmission accepts files that are less than 50 MB in size.

How should I name attachments in eSubmission?
Name the attachments for your tender draft following the System Requirements. See the following conditions: The attachment name must be logical and descriptive. It must be as short as possible. It must enable easy identification of the attachment’s content. It must not exceed 50 characters (including file extension). It must only contain Latin alphanumeric characters, underscore, and dots (e.g. “Project_description.pdf”). It must not contain any special characters or spaces.

Can I submit a video in eSubmission? Which formats are supported?
Check the System Requirements of eSubmission.

I received an invitation from the F&T Portal but cannot view the procurement documents.
Invited candidates can only see the procurement documents after having selected an organisation. Go to F&T Portal, “My Invitations”. Click on “Select Organisation” from the “Action” column.

Do I need to validate my PIC in order to submit a tender in eSubmission?
The Personal Identification Code (PIC) is mandatory to participate in a call for tenders as a sole candidate/tenderer or as a member of a group (consortium). For subcontractors, PIC is not mandatory.

I have an issue uploading a file in eSubmission and it’s giving me an error. What do I do?
Make sure it follows the technical requirements of the system.

How many attachments can I upload per submission?
The maximum number of documents the system will allow you to upload per tender is 200 files.

Why do tenderers need a PIC?
It is mandatory to register for a PIC if you intend to submit a tender or a request to participate. Only one PIC per organisation must be used.

How do I register my organisation and get a Participant Identification Code (PIC)?
First, check if the organisation is already registered using the Search PIC tool under 'How to Participate' > Participant Register.

What is the validity period of a PIC?
A PIC is unique and its validity is not limited in time.

How many languages does the system support?
The system is multilingual and supports all 24 official EU languages.

Which is the character set encoding in the system?
The character set encoding is UTF-8.

Does the system use encryption to ensure the integrity and the confidentiality of the information?
Yes, the system encrypts all uploaded documents, using an asymmetric key as an encryption mechanism.

Which file types does the system support?
The supported file types depend on the type of submission you want to make. The allowed file types are specified within the system requirements linked to the procedure in question.

Can I view and edit my draft submission?
Until the deadline for the submission has been reached, submissions in the draft status can be edited, viewed and deleted.

In the submission report, under the name of our entity, "Legal form: UNKNOWN" is displayed while in the system, our legal form was correctly displayed. Is this a problem for the submission?
No, it is just a display issue. This is not blocking for you: you can submit.

I sent my submission on time and a few days later, I received an automatic email informing me that the deadline for the reception of submissions had been reached. Does this mean that my submission was not correctly sent?
No, this is an auto-generated notification sent when the time limit of receipt defined for the call for tenders has been reached. Until then, you had the possibility of withdrawing your submission.

In summary, this is a call for tenders by the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) seeking a contractor to develop a Quality Management System (QMS) and related procedures for maritime administrations in IPA and ENP countries. The contract is valued at 500,000 EUR and will run for a maximum of 48 months. The submission deadline is September 11, 2025. Tenderers must submit their proposals electronically and should consult the provided documentation and FAQs for guidance on the submission process and system requirements. A Personal Identification Code (PIC) is mandatory for participation. The award will be based on the best price-quality ratio.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly stated, but based on the nature of the tender, it is likely that eligible applicants include business and management consultancy services, potentially SMEs, large enterprises, or consortia with relevant expertise. The tender is aimed at developing a QMS and related procedures, suggesting that organizations with experience in quality management systems, maritime administration, and related consulting services would be suitable.

Funding Type: The funding type is procurement, specifically a framework service contract. The contracting authority, EMSA, is procuring services for the development of a QMS.

Consortium Requirement: The text mentions that a Personal Identification Code (PIC) is mandatory to participate in a call for tenders as a sole candidate/tenderer or as a member of a group (consortium). This indicates that both single applicants and consortia are eligible to apply.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes IPA (Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance) and ENP (European Neighbourhood Policy) beneficiary countries.

Target Sector: The target sector is maritime, specifically focusing on the development of a Quality Management System (QMS) and related implementing procedures for flag and port state activities. It also touches upon business and management consultancy services.

Mentioned Countries: The opportunity mentions IPA countries (Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance) and ENP countries (European Neighbourhood Policy). Specific countries are not listed, but these refer to regions and countries within the scope of these EU policies.

Project Stage: The project stage is development, specifically the development of a QMS and related implementing procedures.

Funding Amount: The estimated total value of the framework contract is 500,000 EUR.

Application Type: The application type is an open call for tenders, with electronic submission.

Nature of Support: The beneficiaries will receive money in exchange for services rendered, specifically the development of a QMS and related implementing procedures.

Application Stages: The number of application stages is not explicitly mentioned, but it can be inferred that there will be at least one stage involving the submission of a tender, followed by evaluation and selection. The tender documents (Invitation to Tender, Tender Specifications, etc.) will provide more details on the specific stages.

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

Co-funding Requirement: The co-funding requirement is not explicitly mentioned in the provided text.

Summary:

This opportunity is a call for tenders issued by the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) for a framework contract worth an estimated 500,000 EUR. The purpose of the contract is to develop a Quality Management System (QMS) and related implementing procedures for the operational parts of flag and port state activities. These activities fall within the competency of specific entities of the maritime administrations of IPA (Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance) and ENP (European Neighbourhood Policy) beneficiary countries.

The procedure type is an open procedure, meaning any interested and eligible tenderer can submit a proposal. The submission method is electronic. The deadline for receipt of tenders is September 11, 2025, at 16:00 Europe/Lisbon time. The contracting authority will not reply to questions submitted after September 2, 2025, at 06:00 Europe/Lisbon time. The maximum contract duration is 48 months. The award method is based on the best price-quality ratio.

Interested tenderers must submit their proposals electronically through the designated e-submission portal. The tender documents, including the Invitation to Tender, Tender Specifications, Draft Contract, Tenderer Checklist, and e-submission guidelines, are available for download. Tenderers must register for a Participant Identification Code (PIC) to participate, either as a sole candidate or as part of a consortium. The system supports all 24 official EU languages and uses encryption to ensure the integrity and confidentiality of the information. The maximum number of documents that can be uploaded per tender is 200, with each file being less than 50 MB in size.