EU Payment Observatory

This tender (Call ID EISMEA/2026/OP/0029) issued by the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA) seeks a contractor to maintain and further develop the EU Observatory of late payments in commercial transactions. The scope covers collection, validation and consolidation of B2B and G2B payment data, development of indicators, mapping of policy measures, reporting and dissemination. The estimated contract value is €1,440,000 for a 48 month period (initial 24 months plus one 24 month renewal) and the award criteria are quality 70 percent and price 30 percent. The submission deadline is 4 September 2026 at 12:00:59 Brussels time with applications required via the EU Funding and Tenders Portal using the published annexes.

What it funds

Scope

Service contract to maintain and further develop the EU Observatory on late payments in commercial transactions across the EU following the current contract ending Q4 2026. Activities cover data collection, indicator development, reporting and stakeholder engagement.

Estimated contract value:Approximately €1,440,000 (estimated overall contract amount) over the contract duration ¹.

1. 1Who can apply: legal entities (companies, consultancies, research organisations or consortia) eligible to bid in EU public procurement (see tender documents for detailed selection and exclusion criteria).
2. 2Type of procedure: open tender / eSubmission via the Funding & Tenders Portal.
3. 3Contract duration: planned 48 months (initial 24 months, renewable once).

Lead contracting authority:European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA). Interested bidders must consult the procurement documents and submit electronically through the Funding & Tenders Portal link in the call notice Invitation to tender. ¹

Footnotes

1. 1Full tender dossier (invitation, specifications, draft contract, annexes and financial form) published on the Funding & Tenders Portal on 2026-06-17. See the call page for documents and submission instructions.

Opportunity summary

What the tender is for

This is an open public procurement to award a service contract to maintain and further develop the EU Observatory of late payments in commercial transactions in the European Union. The incumbent contract (EISMEA/2022/OP/0010, initial 24 months plus one 24-month renewal) ends in Q4 2026; a new open procurement procedure has been launched to continue and expand the Observatory's activities.

Lead contracting authority:European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA) — lead authority and contracting entity for this procedure.

Call identifier and reference:Call identifier EISMEA/2026/OP/0029. Reference and full procurement documentation are published on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal Tender details ¹.

Key facts and administrative data

Estimated total procedure value:€1,440,000. Planned contract duration: 48 months (initial 24 months with one renewal option of 24 months as specified in the draft contract). Procurement type: services. Main CPV codes: 73200000, 79400000. Submission method: eSubmission via the Funding & Tenders Portal. Open tender event (oral opening) and tender submission deadline dates are published below.

Eligibility, applicants and consortium rules

This is a public procurement under EU rules. The procurement documents define the selection and exclusion criteria, specific tenderer requirements and the requested supporting documents to be submitted. The tender is suitable for organisations providing professional services in research, data collection, monitoring, policy analysis and communications. SMEs are not specifically identified as set-aside; SME suitability indicator is false in the metadata, i.e. not restricted to SMEs.

1. 1Eligible Applicant Types: The procurement documentation contemplates private sector companies, research organisations, consultancies, NGOs, consortia and other legal entities capable of concluding an EU service contract. Specific tenderer qualification requirements and evidence to be provided are set in the procurement documents (Annex 1, Annex 2 series, commitment letters, financial and technical forms). Individuals are unlikely to be eligible as prime contractors unless legally established as a contracting legal entity.
2. 2Consortium Requirement: The procedure allows participation by single tenderers or consortia. The presence of annexes for identified subcontractors and commitment letters indicates that prime contractors may propose subcontractors and third-party contributors. The tendering terms describe specific tenderer requirements and the selection criteria; consult Annex 4 List of identified subcontractors and Annex 5 commitment templates.
3. 3Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The contract covers activities for the EU market and the Observatory monitors late payments in EU commercial transactions. The procurement is published by an EU agency (EISMEA) and therefore legal entities established in EU Member States and entities meeting the procurement rules (including potential participation by entities established in EEA/EFTA or third countries where permitted) should consult the tender specifications. The documents do not list non-EU specific exclusions; check Tender specifications and Invitation to tender for precise nationality/establishment rules.
4. 4Target Sector: The Observatory focuses on commercial payment practices; relevant thematic sectors are single market policy, economics, market monitoring, business environment and policy support. The CPV codes point to research and monitoring services and employment/other services linked to the Observatory tasks.

Work scope, expected outputs and project stage

Scope:maintain and develop the EU Late Payment Observatory, including ongoing data collection, monitoring of late payment practices in commercial transactions across the EU, development and provision of indicators, methodological development, reporting, dissemination and support to EISMEA in policy and communication activities. The tender documentation includes a methodological note for development of indicators (Annex 8) and technical tender templates (Annex 7) that outline the expected technical content and deliverables.

1. 1Project Stage: This is an operational/implementation and monitoring contract for an established service. Expected maturity: demonstration/validation and operational monitoring rather than basic research or early-stage innovation.
2. 2Expected Outputs: Regular monitoring reports, indicators and methodological notes on late payments; maintenance of Observatory data infrastructure and public outputs; stakeholder engagement and dissemination activities; potentially ad-hoc analysis and support for policy development.

Funding type and financial arrangements:Funding mechanism: procurement award for services (service contract). The contract value is fully funded by the contracting authority (EISMEA) and will be paid under the contractual terms. The estimated overall contract amount listed is €1,440,000. Co-funding from applicants is not required as this is a procurement — price is part of the tender submission and no external co-financing is expected.

Application, evaluation and selection

Application method:open call (Invitation to tender) published on the Funding & Tenders Portal — submissions by eSubmission only. Tenderers must submit the full set of documents listed in Annex 1 and fulfil selection and exclusion criteria (Annex 2 declaration on honour, statement of turnover, power of attorney, technical capacity forms, financial offer forms). The awarding criteria are weighted: quality 70% and price 30% (weights published in the procurement metadata).

1. 1Application Type: Open invitation to tender — full eSubmission through the Funding & Tenders Portal is required.
2. 2Application Stages: Single-stage submission process (tenderers submit full technical and financial offers). There is an additional period specified for requests for additional information. The procurement metadata indicates an open tender event (oral opening) on the submission deadline day.
3. 3Evaluation Method: Award on Most Economically Advantageous Tender (MEAT) using quality and price criteria (quality 70 / price 30 as indicated). Tenderers must consult the Tender specifications and Annexes for detailed evaluation sub-criteria and scoring rules.
4. 4Success Rates: Not provided. Public procurement success rates depend on the number of bidders and cannot be inferred from the published data; no explicit historical success rate is published in the documentation.

Deadlines, timeline and practical dates

Required documentation and templates

The procurement publication includes a comprehensive set of annexes and templates that tenderers must use or complete. Key documents published (all dated 2026-06-17 in the portal metadata) include:

1. 1EN-Invitation_to_tender_EISMEA2026OP0029_Late Payment Observatory (Invitation to tender / Request for offer) — primary call document (Annex in cftDocuments list).
2. 2Tender specifications - Observatory LP_20042026_updated_V1.pdf — detailed technical specifications and scope of work.
3. 3EN Direct Service Contract EISMEA2026OP0029 draft_V1.pdf — draft contract text and contractual clauses including renewal terms and security appendices.
4. 4Annex 1-EN_List of documents to be submitted-EISMEA2026OP0029_V1.pdf — checklist of required submission documents.
5. 5Annex 2 - declaration-honour EISMEA2026OP0029_V1.docx — exclusion and debarment declaration.
6. 6Annex 2.1-Statement_turnover_V1.docx — turnover statement template for financial capacity evidence.
7. 7annex_2.2_-_technical_capacity_V1.docx — technical capacity form to demonstrate relevant experience and resources.
8. 8Annex 3 - Power of attorney template.
9. 9Annex 4-EN_List of identified subcontractors-EISMEA2026OP0029_V1.docx — list of subcontractors and their roles (if any).
10. 10Annex 5 - letter_of_submission EISMEA2026OP0029_V1.doc — letter of submission template.
11. 11Annex 5.1-EN_Commitment letter by an identified subcontractor-EISMEA2026OP0029_V1.docx and Annex 5.2-EN_Commitment letter by a third party-EISMEA2026OP0029_V1.docx — commitment letter templates.
12. 12annex_6-financial_offer_tasks_V1.xlsx — financial offer (price) form to be completed.
13. 13Annex 7-technical_tender_form_V1.docx — technical tender form template to be completed by tenderers.
14. 14Annex 8 - Methodological note for the Development of Indicators_V1.pdf — methodological guidance on developing the Observatory indicators.
15. 15Draft contract annexes: Annex III and Annex IV of the draft service contract, Appendix 2 Security requirements and Appendix 3 Security baseline — set out contractual obligations including security and data protection requirements.
16. 16Environmental policy_V1.pdf — EISMEA environmental policy applicable to contractors.

Evaluation criteria highlights

Awarding criteria are summarised in the procurement metadata:quality criteria carry 70% weight and price criteria carry 30% weight. Tenderers must consult the tender specifications and the technical tender form (Annex 7) for the detailed sub-criteria, required evidence, and scoring breakdown. Quality criteria will typically cover technical approach, methodology for indicators, relevant experience, team composition and capacity, data collection methodology, data protection and security measures, dissemination and stakeholder engagement plans.

Risk, security and contractual requirements

The draft service contract and associated appendices detail contractual obligations, including security requirements, data protection, confidentiality, liability, performance monitoring and reporting requirements. Appendix 2 Security requirements and Appendix 3 Security baseline are included and must be respected by contractors. Tenderers should review the draft contract annexes carefully before submitting.

Practical advice for applicants

1. 1Download and complete all required templates exactly as published (Annex 1 list). Use the provided financial offer Excel (Annex 6) and technical tender form (Annex 7).
2. 2Ensure compliance with exclusion and selection criteria: provide Declaration on Honour (Annex 2), turnover statement (Annex 2.1), technical capacity evidence (Annex 2.2) and power of attorney where needed.
3. 3If subcontractors or third parties are proposed, include the corresponding commitment letters (Annex 5.1 / 5.2) and populate Annex 4 list of identified subcontractors.
4. 4Present a clear methodology for indicator development and data collection referencing Annex 8 (Methodological note).
5. 5Address security and data protection requirements and demonstrate capacity to meet the security baseline in the contract appendices.
6. 6Respect the eSubmission deadline and verify that all attachments are the current versions published in the portal (publication dates 2026-06-17; consider-changed-until date 2026-07-01).

Specific technical and methodological documents of interest

Annex 8 Methodological note for the Development of Indicators provides the procurement's methodological expectations for the Observatory indicators. Annex 7 technical tender form specifies how technical proposals should be structured and which technical elements to address. Tenderers must follow these to score well under the quality criteria.

Answered categorisation questions (detailed)

Below are the categorisation responses extracted from the procurement metadata and documents:

1. 1Eligible Applicant Types: Legal entities able to conclude an EU service contract: private companies (large enterprises and SMEs), research institutes, consultancies, NGOs and consortia of such entities. Individuals are not practical candidates unless set up as legal entities. The tender documentation contains explicit templates for subcontractors and third parties, indicating accepted collaborative structures.
2. 2Funding Type: Procurement award — service contract (the mechanism is procurement, not a grant or loan). The contract is paid by the contracting authority under contractual terms.
3. 3Consortium Requirement: Other — single tenderer or consortium allowed. The submission process supports prime contractors with identified subcontractors. The documentation includes templates for identified subcontractors and commitment letters.
4. 4Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): EU-focused — the Observatory monitors EU commercial transactions and is published by an EU agency (EISMEA). Entities established in EU Member States are the primary participants; consult Tender specifications for participation rules for EEA or third-country entities.
5. 5Target Sector: Policy monitoring and research related to commercial payment practices and the single market. The relevant thematic areas include economics, single market competitiveness, business environment, data and indicators, market surveillance and stakeholder outreach. CPV codes indicate research/monitoring services and associated service categories.
6. 6Mentioned Countries: No individual Member States are singled out in the scraped content. The region explicitly referenced is the European Union / EU (EISMEA and the Observatory of late payments across the EU).
7. 7Project Stage: Implementation / operational monitoring and service provision for an existing Observatory; maturity is operational with methodological development and ongoing monitoring responsibilities.
8. 8Funding Amount: Estimated overall contract amount €1,440,000 (procurement metadata).
9. 9Application Type: Open call — Invitation to tender published on the Funding & Tenders Portal with mandatory electronic submission (eSubmission).
10. 10Nature of Support: Money — the successful bidder will receive payments under a service contract. The process is a paid contract; the award is not a grant in the sense of contribution funding but a procurement payment for services delivered.
11. 11Application Stages: 1 (single-stage submission where both technical and financial offers are submitted together). There is an additional questions/additional information period before the deadline.
12. 12Success Rates: Not specified in the documentation. Public procurement success rates vary and are not provided; historically only one winner is selected per contract.
13. 13Co-funding Requirement: No co-funding required. This is a procurement contract where tenderers price their offered services; the contracting authority funds the contract within the estimated budget.

Document repository (selected published annexes and templates)

The call includes the following documents available on the portal (file names as published):

1. 1EN-Invitation_to_tender_EISMEA2026OP0029_Late Payment Observatory_V1.pdf (Invitation to tender)
2. 2Tender specifications - Observatory LP_20042026_updated_V1.pdf
3. 3EN_Direct_Service_Contract_EISMEA2026OP0029 draft_V1.pdf (draft service contract)
4. 4Annex 1-EN_List of documents to be submitted-EISMEA2026OP0029_V1.pdf
5. 5Annex 2 - declaration-honour EISMEA2026OP0029_V1.docx
6. 6Annex 2.1-Statement_turnover_V1.docx
7. 7annex_2.2_-_technical_capacity_V1.docx
8. 8Annex 3 -Power of attorney EISMEA2026OP0029_V1.docx
9. 9Annex 4-EN_List of identified subcontractors-EISMEA2026OP0029_V1.docx
10. 10Annex 5 - letter_of_submission EISMEA2026OP0029_V1.doc
11. 11Annex 5.1-EN_Commitment letter by an identified subcontractor-EISMEA2026OP0029_V1.docx
12. 12Annex 5.2-EN_Commitment letter by a third party-EISMEA2026OP0029_V1.docx
13. 13annex_6-financial_offer_tasks_V1.xlsx
14. 14Annex 7-technical_tender_form_V1.docx
15. 15Annex 8 - Methodological note for the Development of Indicators_V1.pdf
16. 16Annex III and Annex IV of the draft service contract_2026_OP_0029 (1)_V1.docx
17. 17Appendix 2 Security requirements_V1.docx
18. 18Appendix 3 Security baseline en_V1.docx
19. 19Environmental policy_V1.pdf

Tenderers must use the current versions of these annexes when preparing their offers and ensure all required forms are completed and signed where requested. The portal shows document publication and version metadata (all items above show publication date 2026-06-17 and version NR 1 in the scraped content).

Final summary and explanation

The EU Payment Observatory tender (EISMEA/2026/OP/0029) is an open procurement launched by EISMEA to secure a contractor to operate, maintain and further develop the EU Observatory on late payments in commercial transactions across the EU for a planned period of 48 months (24 months initial with one 24-month renewal). The procurement is service-based, with an estimated total contract value of €1,440,000. The award will be based on MEAT criteria with quality weighted at 70% and price at 30%. The procedure requires a full eSubmission of technical and financial offers using the templates published in the portal annexes. Tenderers should carefully follow the tender specifications, complete the Annex 7 technical tender form, Annex 6 financial offer sheet and supply all required selection and exclusion documents (Annex 1 checklist). Security, data protection and contractual conditions are set out in the draft contract annexes and must be accepted by the successful tenderer. This is a procurement opportunity aimed at established organisations (companies, research bodies, consultancies, NGOs or consortia) with demonstrated experience in monitoring, data collection, indicator development and policy-oriented reporting related to late payments and single market issues in the EU. Detailed procedural rules, submission requirements and contractual clauses are available in the tender dossier on the Funding & Tenders Portal; consult the full set of annexes linked from the tender notice for complete instructions and templates ¹.

Footnotes

1. 1Full tender publication and all annexes available on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal: ec.europa.eu

Opportunity Purpose and Scope

This tender (Call Identifier:EISMEA/2026/OP/0029) seeks to maintain and further develop the EU Observatory of late payments in commercial transactions after the current service contract (EISMEA/2022/OP/0010) ends in Q4 2026 ¹. The Observatory monitors payment performance trends in B2B and G2B transactions, maps policy measures against late payments, and disseminates data through annual and thematic reports ².

Key Objectives of the Observatory

1. 1Collection, validation, and consolidation of data on payments in commercial transactions (B2B and G2B)
2. 2Mapping of policy documents and initiatives to combat late payments and promote prompt payment culture
3. 3Analysis and dissemination of data via annual reports, thematic reports, and stakeholder events

Who Should Apply

Applicants should be research institutions, policy analysis organizations, or consultancies with expertise in commercial payment behavior, EU single market policy, and data analysis. The contract is suitable for entities capable of managing large-scale data collection and producing high-quality policy reports ³.

Estimated Contract Value:The estimated overall contract amount is €1,440,000 for a 48-month period (24 months initial + 24 months renewable) ⁴.

Award Criteria

Submission Deadlines and Requirements

The final submission deadline is 4 September 2026 at 12:00:59 (Brussels time). Additional information requests must be submitted by 28 August 2026 ⁵. Tenderers must submit technical capacity statements, financial offers, declaration of honour, and power of attorney as specified in Annex 1 of the tender documents.

Contract Duration:Initial period of 24 months, renewable once for an additional 24 months (total 48 months) ⁶.

Procuring Authority

The contracting authority is the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA), which implements the European Innovation Council and manages EU programmes for SME support, innovation, and the single market ⁷.

Footnotes

1. 1Official tender description: EU Payment Observatory Tender Details
2. 2Observatory objectives: EU Payment Observatory Objectives
3. 3Previous contractor: CEPS EU Payment Observatory
4. 4Contract value and duration: Tender Specifications
5. 5Submission deadlines: Invitation to Tender
6. 6Contract extension terms: Draft Service Contract
7. 7EISMEA Agency: EISMEA Homepage