Support to the Strategic Communication of the EU in Israel 2027-2028

The European Commission (DG MENA) invites pre-qualified candidates to a restricted tender (reference EC-MENA/TLV/2026/EA-RP/0017) to provide strategic communication and advertising services in Israel for 2027–2028. The estimated contract value is €635,593 excluding VAT and the maximum duration is 24 months, with performance in Israel. Requests to participate must be submitted electronically via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal by 08 June 2026 and shortlisted candidates (min 4, max 8) will be invited to tender. Award will be based on the best price-quality ratio and applicants must comply with the specified exclusion and selection criteria and submit the Declaration on Honour as required in the procurement documents.

Opportunity summary

Procurement (restricted procedure) for global-price services to support the EU Delegation in Israel in designing and implementing strategic and targeted communication and advertising activities for 2027–2028.

Estimated contract value:€635,593 (excluding VAT).

Contract duration and location:Maximum 24 months; place of performance Israel.

Award criteria and procedure:Restricted procedure with a second-stage shortlist (minimum 4, maximum 8 candidates). Award on best price-quality ratio. Electronic submission via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal; EU Login required. ¹

Who can apply

Advertising, marketing and strategic communications firms or consortia meeting the selection and exclusion criteria in the procurement documents. Submissions and supporting declarations must follow the published tender specifications.

1. 1Language for submission: English
2. 2Electronic submission required via eSubmission (EU Login)
3. 3Minimum/maximum candidates invited to tender: 4 to 8

Lead contracting authority:European Commission, MENA.B.2 - Palestinian Territories, Israel and Eastern Mediterranean. Tender documents and declaration-of-honour form available on the Funding & Tenders Portal; consult the procurement documents for full selection, exclusion and submission requirements ¹.

Footnotes

1. 1Primary tender page and procurement documents: Funding & Tenders Portal.

Summary and Purpose

This is a restricted procurement procedure launched by the European Commission (Directorate MENA.B.2 - Palestinian Territories, Israel and Eastern Mediterranean) to award a framework services contract for strategic and targeted communication activities in Israel for the period 2027-2028. The contract is described as global-price services to support the EU Delegation in Israel in the design and implementation of strategic and targeted communication activities. The procurement is financed under the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument (NDICI) (2021-2027) and will be executed in Israel. The procedure follows LocalLaw procurement rules applying to EU external actions (Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509).

Procurement reference and IDs:Procedure identifier EC-MENA/TLV/2026/EA-RP/0017; internal UUID beed17b0-604f-41a4-a9d9-cdaa3d9947ff; TED reference 303452-2026 and change notice 00306897-2026 ¹.

Estimated value and contract duration:Estimated total value excluding VAT: €635,593. Maximum contract duration: 24 months. The procurement may include options for repetition of similar services up to 50% of the initial contract value by negotiated procedure without a new contract notice (as provided in the procurement documents).

Scope of Work and Deliverables

Main classification (CPV) 79340000 Advertising and marketing services. Nature of contract:services. The supplier will provide strategic communication support to the EU Delegation in Israel, including design and implementation of strategic and targeted communication activities. The contract is a framework agreement; detailed tasks, deliverables, performance locations and award criteria weights are set out in the procurement documents and tender specifications available on the Funding & Tenders Portal.

Who can apply and Eligible Applicant Types

Eligible applicants may be natural persons or legal persons, including communication, advertising and marketing agencies, consultancies, non-governmental organisations, media or public affairs firms, consortia of such entities, and other commercial organisations with the legal capacity to undertake the required services. The procurement documents specify selection criteria that may apply individually to involved entities and to the candidate as a whole. Applicants must be able to provide the required exclusion and selection evidence (see declaration of honour). A Participant Identification Code (PIC) is mandatory for any organisation participating. Subcontractors are permitted and must be declared as per the procurement documents.

Eligible applicant types (detailed):Legal persons (companies, NGOs, research organisations acting as contractors), natural persons (where permitted), consortia/joint ventures as group leaders or group members, subcontractors. Applicants must have legal and regulatory capacity to pursue the professional activity required and to demonstrate economic, financial, technical and professional capacity as specified in the tender specifications.

Funding Type and Nature of Support

This is a procurement (tender) for services. The financial mechanism is a public contract (services) awarded following a restricted procedure. Beneficiaries receive monetary payment under a contract for services (framework agreement). This is not a grant, loan or equity instrument but a paid service contract.

Procedure, Consortium Requirement and Stages

Procedure type:Restricted procedure with two stages. Stage 1: Request to participate (pre-selection). Stage 2: Invitation to submit a tender by the contracting authority to selected candidates. The procurement documents indicate a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 8 candidates to be invited to the second stage. Award method: Best price-quality ratio. Electronic submission through the Commission eSubmission portal is required.

1. 1Submission stage 1: Submit request to participate electronically via eSubmission (EU Login account required; PIC mandatory).
2. 2Shortlisting: Contracting authority will invite between 4 and 8 candidates to submit full tenders.
3. 3Stage 2: Invited candidates prepare and submit full tender in accordance with tender specifications; award based on best price-quality ratio.
4. 4Contract signature and possible mobilisation; contract execution in Israel for up to 24 months.

Deadlines, Language and Submission

Original TED deadline published and subsequently amended. Key dates from notices:TED publication date 04/05/2026; initial deadline for receipt of requests to participate 01/06/2026 16:00:59 (UTC+03:00) and later extended to 08/06/2026 16:00:59 (UTC+03:00). The call is open for submission electronically only. Languages in which requests and tenders may be submitted: English. Electronic submission address: webgate.ec.europa.eu.

Geographic Eligibility and Place of Performance

Place(s) of performance:Israel (NUTS / location code 20000916 - Israel). The procurement is funded under NDICI (Neighbourhood) and executed by the EU Delegation in Israel. While the contract will be performed in Israel, potential applicants from other countries may participate provided they meet the procurement requirements and can lawfully perform the contract in Israel and satisfy exclusion and selection checks.

Mentioned countries:Israel. The contracting authority is an EU institution based in Brussels and the EU Delegation in Israel (Ramat Gan address provided). The funding programme: Neighbourhood (NDICI). ¹

Award Criteria and Evaluation

Award method:best price-quality ratio. The exact weighting of price versus quality and the quality sub-criteria are specified in the tender specifications and procurement documents published on the Funding & Tenders Portal. Candidates should consult the procurement documents for details on evaluation methodology and required evidence.

Selection and Exclusion Requirements

Applicants must complete a Declaration on Honour covering exclusion and selection criteria. Exclusion grounds include bankruptcy/insolvency, breach of tax or social obligations, grave professional misconduct, fraud, corruption, money laundering, terrorist financing, child labour and trafficking in human beings, significant deficiencies in past contract performance, creation of entities to circumvent legal obligations, and resistance to audits. Selection criteria relate to legal and regulatory capacity, economic and financial capacity, and technical and professional capacity. Applicants may be required to submit documentary evidence supporting these declarations (judicial extracts, tax/social certificates, past performance documentation, etc.).

Mandatory Declaration on Honour:A Declaration on Honour covering exclusion and selection criteria is published as part of the procurement documents (document title Declaration on honour (requests to participate), Procedure reference EC-MENA/TLV/2026/EA-RP/0017). It must be signed (qualified electronic signature preferred; handwritten acceptable where QES not available) and submitted as required in the request to participate. The form includes parts for legal persons and natural persons and instructions on evidence to support declarations.

Application Templates and Required Documents

The procurement documents available on the Funding & Tenders Portal contain the request to participate form, Declaration on Honour, Invitation to submit a request to participate, and tender specifications. The Declaration on Honour template included in the procurement documentation sets out required fields and structure as follows:

1. 1Identification block: Option 1 for legal persons (full official name, legal form, registration number, address, VAT number). Option 2 for natural persons (name, ID/passport number).
2. 2Part A: Declaration on exclusion criteria with YES/NO checkboxes for each exclusion ground and provision for referencing earlier submitted declarations if applicable.
3. 3Part B: Evidence on exclusion criteria (listing of acceptable documentary evidence and instructions on when documentary evidence can be exempted if previously provided).
4. 4Part C: Declaration on selection criteria including consolidated assessment (group leader) and individual assessments (members/subcontractors) covering legal/regulatory capacity, economic/financial criteria and technical/professional criteria.
5. 5Part D: Declarations on professional conflicting interests and restrictive measures (EU sanctions) for candidate and persons in governing positions or beneficial owners.
6. 6Part E: Declaration on established debt to the Union.
7. 7Part F: Declaration on submitted tender independence and non-collusion.
8. 8Signature block: Full name, date and signature. Guidance on QES (qualified electronic signature) and instructions for handwritten signature where QES not available. References to validation tools and the EU Trusted List Browser are provided.

Technical and Administrative Notes

Electronic submission requirements:EU Login account is required with two-factor authentication (as of 30 June 2026 two-step verification is required). Files uploaded to eSubmission must comply with system requirements (file types and maximum size per file; attachments above 50 MB will be rejected). Maximum number of attachments per submission is 200. The PIC is mandatory. The system encrypts uploaded documents; drafts can be edited until the deadline. Applicants must follow file naming rules and use supported browsers (latest Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox recommended).

Consortium and Subcontracting Details

The two-stage restricted procedure allows group requests to participate. A consolidated assessment applies to the group leader for the candidate as a whole. Selection criteria may apply individually to involved entities; each involved entity must complete relevant parts of the Declaration on Honour. The tender specifications will state which selection criteria apply individually and which apply at group level. Subcontractors must be declared and may need to provide selection evidence. The minimum and maximum number of candidates invited to stage two is 4 and 8 respectively.

Success Rates and Co-funding

Success rates:Not published. For restricted procedures the pre-selection shortlists between 4 and 8 candidates to be invited to submit tenders, from which one contractor will be selected; public success rate metrics are not provided. Co-funding: Not applicable in the typical sense of grants. This is a procurement and the selected contractor will be remunerated by the contracting authority under the contract. Applicants do not need to provide co-funding but must bear proposal preparation costs themselves.

Application Type and How to Apply

Application type:Open request to participate under a restricted procedure (two-stage). Interested economic operators must subscribe to the call on the Funding & Tenders Portal and submit a request to participate electronically via the eSubmission portal. If shortlisted, candidates will receive an invitation to submit a full tender. The portal requires PIC registration and EU Login. All submissions must be in English. Contact email for the contracting authority: delegation-israel-fca-tenders@eeas.europa.eu.

Award and Contract Management

Award will be made on the basis of best price-quality ratio. The contract is a framework agreement for services with a maximum duration of 24 months. Electronic ordering and electronic payment will be used. The contracting authority reserves rights to extend the submission deadline in case of electronic communication disruptions and may entrust repeat services up to 50% of the initial contract to the initial contractor by negotiated procedure without a new contract notice.

Risks, Restrictions and Compliance

Applicants must ensure compliance with exclusion criteria (fraud, corruption, money laundering, terrorist financing, child labour, trafficking in human beings, etc.) and sanctions regimes. The procurement documents require evidence and may reject candidates under LocalLaw procurement rules. The procurement is not covered by the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA). The contract must be performed in Israel; bidders should ensure they can legally operate and deploy staff/resources in Israel and comply with local regulations.

Key Contact and Review Information

Lead contracting authority:European Commission, MENA.B.2 - Palestinian Territories, Israel and Eastern Mediterranean. Postal address for review: Paz Tower, 5-7 Shoham St., 16th floor, Ramat Gan. Review organisation: Court of Justice of the European Union. For review procedures and additional information contact delegation-israel-fca-tenders@eeas.europa.eu and consult the Funding & Tenders Portal documents page for this procedure. Procurement documents and invitation are available on the Funding & Tenders Portal Funding & Tenders Portal opportunity page. ¹

Practical checklist for applicants

• Register or verify organisation PIC in the Participant Register before submission.
• Create or verify EU Login account and ensure two-factor authentication is enabled (from 30 June 2026).
• Subscribe to the call on the Funding & Tenders Portal to receive updates and documents.
• Download procurement documents, Declaration on Honour and Invitation to submit a request to participate.
• Prepare required evidence for exclusion and selection criteria (judicial extracts, tax and social security certificates, financial statements, technical references, CVs, examples of past communication campaigns).
• Complete and sign the Declaration on Honour; sign with QES if available or provide handwritten signature as permitted.
• Submit request to participate electronically via the eSubmission link before the deadline (08/06/2026 16:00:59 UTC+03:00 as per change notice).
• If shortlisted, prepare full tender in accordance with tender specifications and evaluation criteria.

Project Stage and Target Sector

Project stage:implementation/delivery of communication activities (service delivery). Target sector: strategic communications, advertising, marketing, public diplomacy, media and outreach in the political/diplomatic context of EU external action.

Success factors for a competitive bid:Demonstrated experience in strategic communication campaigns in Israel or similar markets; strong technical proposals aligned to EU Delegation objectives; evidence of multi-channel implementation capacity (media, digital, events); qualified team and personnel CVs; robust quality assurance and risk mitigation propositions; competitive pricing while maintaining high quality to meet the best price-quality award principle.

Funding Amount and Financial Details

Estimated total value excluding VAT:€635,593. The contract is a paid service contract. Tenderers must propose pricing consistent with a global-price services framework and comply with the financial conditions laid out in the tender specifications (payment schedules, invoicing, electronic payment).

Co-funding Requirement

Co-funding is not applicable in the typical grant sense. This is a procurement contract:selected contractor will be paid under the contract. Applicants do not need to provide match funding but must account for their own proposal preparation costs.

Success Rates and Number of Stages

Number of application stages:2 (request to participate then invitation to tender for shortlisted candidates). Public success rates are not published. The shortlist will include between 4 and 8 candidates from which the final contractor will be selected.

Final summary

This procurement opportunity invites qualified communication and advertising service providers to support the EU Delegation in Israel with strategic and targeted communication activities in 2027-2028. It is a restricted two-stage procurement under NDICI funding with an estimated value of €635,593 and a maximum duration of 24 months. Interested organisations must register a PIC, hold an EU Login account (with two-factor authentication), complete and sign the Declaration on Honour and request to participate via the eSubmission portal in English by the stated deadline. Shortlisted candidates (minimum 4, maximum 8) will be invited to submit full tenders. The award will be based on best price-quality ratio and the contract will be performed in Israel. Applicants must comply with exclusion and selection criteria, provide required documentary evidence and follow the submission technical requirements set out in the procurement documents. Detailed technical specifications, award weighting and documentary evidence requirements are available in the procurement documents on the Funding & Tenders Portal Funding & Tenders Portal opportunity page. ¹

Footnotes

1. 1Primary source: Funding & Tenders Portal opportunity page and TED notice entries for EC-MENA/TLV/2026/EA-RP/0017 (Support to the Strategic Communication of the EU in Israel 2027-2028). Procurement documents and Declaration on Honour available on the portal: ec.europa.eu

Procurement Overview

The European Commission, through its Directorate-General for the Middle East, North Africa and the Gulf (DG MENA), is launching a restricted tender for strategic communication services in Israel. This procurement is managed by the EU Delegation to Israel and seeks to engage a service provider to support the design and implementation of strategic and targeted communication activities during 2027-2028. The tender reference is EC-MENA/TLV/2026/EA-RP/0017.

Funding Details

Contract Value:The estimated total value of this contract is €635,593 excluding VAT ¹.

Funding Source:This procurement is financed through the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument (NDICI) for 2021-2027, specifically under the Neighbourhood programme. The funding is provided by the European Commission's general budget and the European Development Fund (EDF).

Contract Duration:The maximum contract duration is 24 months, covering the period 2027-2028.

Scope of Work

The contract involves providing global-price services to support the EU Delegation in Israel in planning and implementing strategic and targeted communication activities. The service provider will work directly with the EU Delegation to develop and execute communication initiatives aligned with EU strategic objectives in the region. The contract is classified under CPV code 79340000 (Advertising and marketing services).

Eligibility and Application Requirements

Procedure Type

This is a restricted procedure, meaning that only pre-qualified candidates who submit a request to participate by the deadline will be invited to submit full tenders. The procedure follows a two-stage process with a minimum of 4 and maximum of 8 candidates to be invited to the second stage.

Who Can Apply

Eligible applicants include legal persons (companies, organizations, consortia) and natural persons who meet the selection and exclusion criteria outlined in the procurement documents. Applicants must demonstrate legal and regulatory capacity to pursue professional activities in advertising and marketing services, as well as appropriate economic, financial, and technical capabilities ².

Exclusion Criteria

Applicants will be excluded if they or their representatives are subject to any of the following situations: bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings, breach of tax or social security obligations, grave professional misconduct, fraud, corruption, criminal offences, significant deficiencies in implementing EU-funded contracts, irregularities, creation of entities to circumvent legal obligations, or resistance to investigations by EU authorities. Applicants must also not be subject to EU restrictive measures or have established debt to the Union ².

Selection Criteria

Candidates must fulfill selection criteria related to legal and regulatory capacity, economic and financial standing, and technical and professional qualifications as specified in the tender specifications. Applicants must declare that they do not have conflicting interests that could negatively affect contract performance. Detailed evidence requirements are outlined in the procurement documents.

Key Deadlines

Deadline for Requests to Participate:08 June 2026 at 16:00 Tel Aviv time (UTC+03:00) ³. This deadline was extended from the original date of 01 June 2026 due to delayed publication of the contract notice.

Publication Date:The contract notice was published on 04 May 2026 in the Tenders Electronic Daily (TED) with reference 303452-2026, and amended on 05 May 2026 with reference 306897-2026.

Submission and Award Process

Submission Method:All submissions must be made electronically through the EU Funding and Tenders Portal eSubmission system at [[webgate.ec.europa.eu. An EU Login account with two-factor authentication is required.

Language:Requests to participate and tenders must be submitted in English.

Award Criteria:The contract will be awarded based on the best price-quality ratio. Specific weighting criteria for evaluation are detailed in the procurement documents.

Required Documentation

Applicants must submit a Declaration on Honour regarding exclusion criteria, selection criteria, restrictive measures, and established debt to the Union. This declaration must be signed with a qualified electronic signature (QES) in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 (eIDAS Regulation) or with a handwritten signature if electronic signature is not available. Supporting evidence such as judicial records, tax certificates, and professional qualifications documentation may be required ².

Contact Information

For inquiries regarding this procurement, applicants should contact the EU Delegation to Israel at delegation-israel-fca-tenders@eeas.europa.eu. The contracting authority is the European Commission, MENA.B.2 - Palestinian Territories, Israel and Eastern Mediterranean, located at Paz Tower, 5-7 Shoham Street, 16th floor, Ramat Gan, Israel. Additional information is available at [[north-africa-middle-east-gulf.ec.europa.eu.

Strategic Context

This procurement is part of the European Union's broader strategic engagement with the Middle East and North Africa region. The newly established Directorate-General for the Middle East, North Africa and the Gulf (DG MENA), headed by Commissioner Dubravka Suica, aims to build strong partnerships with countries in these regions based on mutual interest and to ensure common sustainable prosperity and resilience. The EU has committed significant resources to the region, with announcements of €42.5 billion in funding from 2028 onwards for initiatives including renewable energy, security, and development cooperation.

Important Notes for Applicants

• This is a restricted procedure; only invited candidates may submit full tenders after the first stage
• Applicants must register with a Participant Identification Code (PIC) in the EU Participant Register if not already registered
• File attachments must not exceed 50 MB each, with a maximum of 200 files per submission
• The contracting authority reserves the right to extend deadlines if electronic communication systems experience disruptions in the final 5 calendar days before submission
• Applicants should subscribe to the call for tenders to receive notifications of any updates or additional documents
• Two-factor authentication will be mandatory for EU Login accounts as of 30 June 2026
• The Government Procurement Agreement (GPA) does not apply to this procurement
• Up to 50 percent of the initial contract value may be entrusted to the initial contractor through negotiated procedure without prior publication for similar services or works

Access to Procurement Documents

Complete procurement documents, including the tender specifications, evaluation criteria, and declaration templates, are available on the EU Funding and Tenders Portal at [[ec.europa.eu. The TED notice is published at [[ted.europa.eu.

Footnotes

1. 1The estimated contract value of €635,593 is provided for indicative purposes. Actual contract value may vary based on the evaluation of submitted tenders and the best price-quality ratio assessment.
2. 2Detailed selection and exclusion criteria, including specific evidence requirements and documentation standards, are set out in the Declaration on Honour form and the tender specifications available in the procurement documents.
3. 3The deadline was extended from 01 June 2026 to 08 June 2026 due to delayed publication of the contract notice. Applicants should verify the current deadline on the EU Funding and Tenders Portal before submitting their requests to participate.