LUCAS (Land Use/Cover Area frame Survey) 2027

LUCAS 2027 is an open public procurement by the European Commission DG ESTAT (Eurostat) for services to prepare and implement the EU in‑situ Land Use/Cover Area frame Survey. The procedure (EC-ESTAT/2026/OP/0019) has an estimated total value of €12,340,000 and is divided into four lots covering survey fieldwork and office quality control (Lots 1 and 2), helpdesk/technical assistance and external quality control (Lot 3), and Data Management Tool hosting, maintenance and helpdesk (Lot 4). Submissions are electronic via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal with a tender deadline of 10 November 2026 16:00 Europe/Luxembourg and a questions deadline of 30 October 2026, and award will be based on the best price-quality ratio (50% quality / 50% price). Eligible economic operators or consortia with demonstrated large-scale field survey, quality assurance and IT hosting capacity may apply in accordance with the published tender specifications and templates.

Scope

What is funded

Contracts for services to prepare and implement the EU LUCAS 2027 land use/cover field survey (in‑situ data collection, office quality control, external quality control, and hosting/maintenance of the Data Management Tool).

Estimated total value:€12 340 000 (total estimated procedure value) ¹

Who can apply

Open procedure on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. Eligible applicants are economic operators able to deliver large-scale field survey, quality control and IT hosting services (single tenderers or consortia). EU Login/PIC registration and compliance with procurement selection criteria required; tenderers bidding for Lots 1 or 2 may not bid for Lot 3 to preserve independence of quality control ¹.

Timetable & submission

Tender submission is electronic via the Funding & Tenders Portal. Main deadline (closing date) 10 November 2026 16:00 Europe/Luxembourg. (Portal subscription and eSubmission access required) ¹.

1. 1Procedure type: Open procedure (call EC-ESTAT/2026/OP/0019)
2. 2Place of contracting authority: European Commission, DG ESTAT - Eurostat
3. 3Award criterion: best price-quality ratio

Lots and approximate budgets

Key requirements (high level)

• Delivery period: maximum 23 months for Lots 1–3; Lot 4 up to 24 months (see tender specs)
• Services include survey preparation, field visits, soil sampling, photo-interpretation, internal QC, support to external QC, training and DMT hosting/operations
• Tenderers must meet selection and exclusion criteria in the tender specifications and sign confidentiality/data-protection commitments

Detailed tender specifications, draft contracts, financial offer forms and technical annexes are published on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal; apply and submit via eSubmission LUCAS 2027 tender page ¹

Footnotes

1. 1Official procurement documents and submission details are available on the Portal tender page (Invitation to tender, Tender specifications, Annexes and Draft contracts).

Overview:This is an open procedure tender launched by the European Commission, Directorate-General Eurostat (DG ESTAT). The call procures services to prepare, implement and quality control the LUCAS 2027 field survey across Member States, plus hosting, maintenance and helpdesk for the LUCAS Data Management Tool and a central helpdesk / external quality control service. The overall estimated total procedure value is €12 340 000, divided into four separate lots. Submissions are electronic via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal F&T Portal ¹.

Key administrative facts

• Call identifier: EC-ESTAT/2026/OP/0019 (TED reference 181/2026 643556-2026)
• Procedure type: Open procedure (electronic submission required via EU Login/eSubmission)
• Publication date: 18/09/2026 (TED) — procurement documents published same date
• Deadlines: Main closing date for tenders 10/11/2026 16:00 Europe/Luxembourg; public opening 12/11/2026 10:00 Europe/Luxembourg; contracting authority may stop replying to questions after 30/10/2026 23:59 Europe/Luxembourg
• Lead contracting authority: European Commission, DG ESTAT - Eurostat
• Main CPV codes: 79330000 (Statistical services), additional 71355000 (Surveying services)
• Submission method: Electronic (EU Login account required), via F&T Portal eSubmission

Structure of the procurement (Lots and scope)

The procurement is divided into four independent lots. Tenders may be submitted for any lot. Bidders for Lot 1 or Lot 2 are not permitted to bid for Lot 3 to preserve independence of external quality control.

Objectives and technical summary

Purpose:procure all services necessary to prepare and execute LUCAS 2027. LUCAS is an in-situ, area-frame field survey that collects harmonised information on land cover, land use and agri-environmental parameters across the EU to support policy, monitoring and Copernicus/Earth observation validation. The LUCAS 2027 wave uses a modular survey design (core and modules for Soil, Landscape Features, Copernicus observations, and grassland components). The total in-situ sample is approximately 130 000 points across the EU.

Survey modules and sample (indicative):Core and Copernicus: 130 000 in-situ observations. Landscape Features: ~93 000 points (pre-field photo-interpretation + in-situ). Soil module: 25 000 points (Phase 1 approx. 11 500 included in this call; Phase 2 up to 13 500 subject to negotiated procedure). Grassland: essential indicators at 20 000 core points. The sample is split between Lot 1 and Lot 2 roughly equally (Lot 1 total ~65 114 points; Lot 2 total ~64 886 points).

Deliverables, tasks and timing (summary)

Overview of main tasks for Lots 1 and 2 (Survey contractors):Task 1 Preparation (documentation, ground documents, equipment, IT and DMT readiness, recruitment, training, stakeholder coordination). Task 2 User Acceptance Testing of the DMT (use DMT training environment, complete UAT). Task 3 Implementation, quality assurance and correction (planning, pre-field photointerpretation, field visits, soil sampling, internal QC, interaction with XQC, corrections, follow-up visits). Deliverable schedule includes four technical implementation reports and periodic monitoring reports (preparation monitoring every 4 weeks, regular implementation every 4 weeks). Field survey period is March to end November 2027; data transmission until January 2028; corrections up to April 2028.

1. 1Mandatory Preparation Readiness Report (DLV 1.2) — February 2027 (required for first interim payment).
2. 2UAT report on DMT access (DLV 2.1) — within one week of DMT training environment access.
3. 3Regular Implementation Reports (DLV 3.1) — four‑weekly during field operations until April 2028.
4. 4DLV 3.2: Data availability in DMT (two weeks before start of field survey and ongoing).
5. 5Technical implementation reports: 1st (after Task 1/2), 2nd (when 10% data transmitted and follow-ups done), 3rd (when 90% data transmitted), draft final (after final meeting), final report (within 60 days of contract completion).

Eligibility, applicant types and consortium rules

Eligible applicant types:The tender is open to economic operators as defined in EU procurement rules. Typical eligible applicants include SMEs and large enterprises, survey companies, statistical and surveying service providers, environmental and agronomic consultancies, research institutes, universities, non-profit organisations and public bodies where allowed by national procurement law. Subcontracting is permitted subject to contracting authority approval. Public-private and cross-border consortia are allowed; where joint tenders are submitted, members are jointly and severally liable and a lead entity should be nominated in the tender documentation.

Consortium requirement:Consortium: Multiple organisations may form a consortium and submit a joint tender. For Lots 1 and 2 the contracting documents require evidence of organisational capacity, CVs of key personnel (L-PM, S-PMs), and clarity on central and regional office structure. Note: bidders for Lot 1 or Lot 2 are not permitted to bid for Lot 3 (XQC) to preserve independence.

Eligible geographies and beneficiary scope

This procurement is EU-wide. Lots cover specific EU Member States (listed in the Lots table). Beneficiaries must be able to operate within the EU / EEA territory listed for the lot they bid for and comply with Commission security and data localisation requirements. The DMT hosting and operation (Lot 4) must guarantee availability for the whole LUCAS DMT solution.

Funding type and nature of support

Funding type:procurement / service contracts. This is not a grant but a public procurement contract under EU rules. Nature of support: the contracting authority will pay for delivered services (money). No non-monetary ‘award’ funding mechanism is embedded; beneficiaries receive payment for contracted services according to invoicing and deliverable acceptance schedule.

Estimated contract values:Total estimated procedure value €12 340 000. Lot values: Lot €1 5 400 000; Lot €2 5 300 000; Lot €3 1 250 000; Lot €4 390 000. Any tender exceeding a lot maximum amount will be rejected.

Target sectors and technical/operational requirements

Target sector:environment / land management / agriculture & rural statistics / geospatial / statistical services. Technical requirements: operational field survey capacity across Member States; capacity to prepare ground documents (orthophotos, maps), equip, train and supervise surveyors; DMT operational use and compatibility; soil sampling logistics and sample preservation; internal quality control workflows; ability to accept and act on external quality control (XQC) findings; photo-anonymisation procedures; compliance with data protection and Commission security baselines; open source obligations for software deliverables (see special conditions).

• Field survey operations: routing, local offices, supervisors, surveyors, photo-interpreters, quality controllers, back-up staff.
• Soil module: bulk density assessment on 25 000 points, 2 000 biodiversity sub-samples (Phase 1: 418 for Lot 1; 502 for Lot 2), triplet backup points, sample shipping to JRC and storage / labelling procedures.
• Photo-anonymisation: mandatory blurring of identifiable persons and vehicle plates before upload.
• IT and DMT: compatibility with central LUCAS DMT, ability to work offline and sync, UAT, security and hosting requirements (Lot 4).
• Quality assurance: internal QC so that 95% of points made available for external QC before December 2027; target 99% accepted points per country; correction process until April 2028.

Project stage and expected maturity

Expected maturity:implementation and operational stage. Tenderers must demonstrate prior experience in large-scale field surveys, survey management and quality control, DMT operation or comparable IT/data management systems. Experience from prior LUCAS rounds (2015, 2018, 2022) is explicitly referenced as background.

Application and selection process

Application type:open call for tenders (electronic submission through the EU Funding & Tenders Portal). Submission requires registration (EU Login) and use of the Participant Register/PIC. Tenders are evaluated on best price-quality ratio. Award criteria are split quality / price (each 50% weight) — detailed criteria and scoring are in the tender specifications. Tender validity and content rules are in the procurement documents.

Application stages:Number of stages: single-stage tender submission with subsequent evaluation, clarifications, possible request for additional evidence and award. Key evaluation elements include compliance with exclusion and selection criteria, technical tender (methodology, organisation, quality) and financial offer. Post-award tasks include contract signature and kick-off activities.

Success rates and co‑funding

Success rates:typical public procurement success rates vary widely by competition. No specific success-rate statistics are provided in the tender documents; competition is open and award is based on best price-quality ratio. Co-funding: not applicable — this is a procurement (contract) and the contractor charges the contracting authority for services; no co-financing required from tenderers beyond covering their own operational costs and including all expenses into the price as required by the financial templates.

Application templates and form structure

Tender documentation:published annexes include Invitation to tender, Tender Specifications (Annex 9 technical documentation), Draft Contracts with annexes per lot, Financial offer form (Annex 6 Excel) and technical documentation (templates B1–B4, C1–C5, D1 and D5). Tenderers must use the mandatory financial templates and complete all required price lines to avoid rejection. The technical tender must include a dedicated chapter on quality, working methods and methodology, project team summary, training and risk table, and detailed timetables. Annex 6 (financial) defines fixed and variable cost lines by country and by module and requires full completion. The DMT UAT template (DLV 2.1) is also mandatory to be completed during testing.

1. 1Use the EN Invitation to Tender and Tender Specifications as the legal reference.
2. 2Complete Annex 6 Financial Tender (Excel) exactly as provided; no added rows/columns and prices in EUR, VAT excluded.
3. 3Provide Project Team Summary List and demonstrate minimum requirements for key roles (Lot Project Manager, Survey Project Managers).
4. 4Follow the reporting templates (B2) and deliver monitoring reports at required periodicity.
5. 5Register and submit via EU Login eSubmission; obtain PIC where needed.

Selection & exclusion checks, certification and security

Selection and exclusion:tenderers must comply with exclusion criteria (criminal, fraud, insolvency, breaches of social/environmental obligations), and must supply standard proof documents. Technical selection criteria include professional capacity, previous experience, staff CVs and organisational evidence. Security: where personnel will access Commission premises or sensitive systems, the contractor must ensure personnel sign required consents and undergo security screening and comply with Commission security baselines and photo-anonymisation rules. Data handling is subject to Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 for Commission data and the contract contains strict data localisation and processing rules.

Other contractual and compliance features

Contract type:service contract with payment upon acceptance of deliverables and invoices. Award method: best price-quality ratio. Maximum contract durations: 23 months for Lots 1–3 and 24 months for Lot 4. Payments: staged interim payments linked to deliverables (first interim linked to DLV 1.2, second to transmission of 10% data and samples, third to transmission of 90% data and samples; final payment linked to acceptance of final technical report and outstanding deliverables). Open source policy: software developments not qualifying as contractor background IPR must be publishable under open licences (EUPL or similar) on EU repositories if Eurostat decides so.

Mentioned countries (explicit list by lot)

1. 1Lot 1 countries: Belgium; Ireland; Greece; Spain; France; Croatia; Italy; Cyprus; Luxembourg; Malta; Netherlands; Portugal; Slovenia.
2. 2Lot 2 countries: Bulgaria; Czechia; Denmark; Germany; Estonia; Latvia; Lithuania; Hungary; Austria; Poland; Romania; Slovakia; Finland; Sweden.

Risk, quality and acceptance metrics

Key quality targets:internal QC finalised by January 2028; at least 95% of points made available for external quality control before December 2027; final acceptance target: at least 99% of accepted points per country by end of correction period. Picture anonymisation non-compliance is contractual breach and may trigger checks and potential contract sanctions. The contracting authority may request additional verification and follow-up visits; standard follow-up visits include office and field checks and the contractor must support them.

How to apply — practical steps

1) Register an EU Login account and your organisation in the Participant Register to obtain a PIC. 2) Subscribe to call for tenders on the Funding & Tenders Portal and download all procurement documents (Invitation, Tender Specifications, Annexes, Draft Contracts, Financial offer form). 3) Prepare and complete the technical and financial tenders using the provided templates (Annex 6 financial spreadsheet must be fully completed). 4) Submit only via eSubmission before the deadline 10 November 2026 16:00 Europe/Luxembourg. 5) Attend (or follow) public opening on 12 November 2026 10:00 Europe/Luxembourg as required. 6) Respond to contracting authority clarifications if requested during evaluation.

Eligible Applicant Types (detailed)

The procurement is open to economic operators established in the EU in line with the procurement rules. Typical eligible applicant types include: private companies (startups, SMEs, large enterprises) offering surveying, statistical, IT hosting, data management and fieldwork services; independent consulting firms; universities and research institutes (often as consortium partners or subcontractors); non-profits and NGOs with relevant survey and quality control capacity; national statistical institutes or public authorities where permitted by procurement rules. Individual natural persons are not the normal contracting counterpart for large, multi-country survey contracts but may be part of tenderers’ personnel (surveyors, experts). Public-private partnerships may participate if organised as legal entities and meeting selection criteria.

Project Stage and Suitable Applicants

Expected project stage:operational implementation and execution of field survey and associated IT/quality control. Suitable applicants: organisations with proven track record in large-scale field surveys, national or international sampling operations, soil sampling logistics, QC methodologies, and DMT or survey data platform experience. Applicants should provide references from prior LUCAS or similar projects (photo-interpretation, soil modules, DMT use).

Co-funding requirement and financial rules

Co-funding:Not required — procurement contract where contractor must include all costs (overheads, travel, equipment, shipping of JRC-provided tools return shipping, etc.) in financial offer. Financial tender must respect the Excel Annex 6 structure and prices are fixed in EUR, exclusive of VAT. VAT treatment differs by Member State for local purchases; instructions and required declarations are in the draft contracts and Annex 6.

Success rate and application competitiveness

Success rates are not published in the tender documents. Competition will be among specialist national/regional surveying and data-management providers. Strengths in methodology, quality assurance, DMT integration and value-for-money pricing increase award prospects.

Summary: What is this opportunity about?

This procurement seeks contractors to prepare and implement the LUCAS 2027 modular field survey across the EU. The work includes all preparatory arrangements, field operations, soil sampling, internal quality control, support to external quality control, training, follow-up visits and corrections, plus centralised DMT hosting/maintenance and a project-level external quality control/helpdesk service. The tender is split into four lots (two geographic survey lots, one for XQC/helpdesk and one for the DMT). The contracting authority is DG ESTAT - Eurostat. The procedure is an open electronic procedure; applicants must submit technical and financial tenders using the published templates and comply with procurement, data protection, security and open-source obligations. The procurement is substantive in scale (estimated €12.34M) and operationally demanding: it requires multi-country survey management, technical expertise in land cover/soil, robust quality assurance, DMT integration and logistics for soil sampling and shipping to JRC. Tenderers must follow the detailed technical specifications and report/delivery schedule and shall be evaluated on best price-quality ratio.

Footnotes

1. 1Procurement and submission are handled via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. Tenderers must register and use eSubmission as described in the Invitation to Tender and Tender Specifications: EU Funding & Tenders Portal.

LUCAS is Eurostat's EU-wide in situ land use and land cover survey, producing harmonised statistics and agri-environmental evidence that supports EU policy design, implementation and monitoring.[2][4] The 2027 tender is for services that will help prepare and run the survey, including field data collection, quality control, technical assistance and data management support.

Opportunity Summary

What the Contract Covers

The contract is split into four lots. Lot 1 and Lot 2 cover the survey fieldwork and office quality control in different groups of Member States. Lot 3 covers helpdesk, technical assistance and external quality control. Lot 4 covers the Data Management Tool, including hosting, maintenance and helpdesk.

Who Can Apply

This is an open procurement, so eligible economic operators may apply if they can demonstrate the capacity required by the procurement documents. The notice is not marked as SME suitable, so applicants should assume that the contract is not specifically tailored for small firms only. The tender documents state the selection criteria, and tenderers must comply with the technical and financial requirements set out there.

• A valid EU Login account is required for electronic submission and for portal actions such as subscribing to the call and asking questions.
• A Participant Identification Code, or PIC, is mandatory for a sole tenderer and for each member of a consortium.
• The tender is submitted electronically through the Funding and Tenders Portal only.
• Tenderers should review the technical specifications, draft contract and financial offer form before submitting.
• The award criteria are 50 percent quality and 50 percent price, so both technical strength and commercial competitiveness matter.

Key Conditions and Practical Points

This is a services contract rather than a grant, so there is no funding rate or co-financing percentage. The available notice shows framework agreement arrangements for the lots, no renewal period, and a tender validity period of 12 months.

1. 1Check the lot structure carefully and decide whether to bid for one lot, several lots, or all lots, based on your operational footprint and capability.
2. 2Map your team against the lot requirements, especially field survey capacity, survey logistics, statistical quality control, IT hosting and helpdesk support.
3. 3Prepare the financial offer using the official financial form and align it with the draft contract conditions.
4. 4Submit clarification questions before 30 October 2026 because the contracting authority is not bound to reply after that date.
5. 5Complete the electronic submission before 10 November 2026 at 16:00 Luxembourg time and do not rely on last minute uploading.

Why This Opportunity Matters

LUCAS is a core EU evidence system for land use, land cover and related environmental indicators, so the contract is strategically important for Eurostat and for wider EU policy monitoring.[2][4] Applicants with proven experience in large scale field surveys, statistical operations, geospatial or environmental data collection, IT support and data quality management are likely to be the most competitive.

Official documents and submission access are available through the EU Funding and Tenders Portal.