Translation and post-editing services of standardised technical texts in the field of Intellectual Property Rights (European Union Trade Marks (EUTM))...

Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union (CDT/2026/OP/0001, TED ref 52/2026 181616-2026) invites tenders for framework agreements to provide translation and post-editing of standardised technical texts related to European Union Trade Marks (EUTM) between official EU languages, divided into language-specific lots. The estimated total value is €10,552,000 with individual lot ceilings around €246,000 and maximum contract duration up to 48 months; submissions are electronic via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal with key deadlines in April–May 2026. Award will be by best price-quality ratio, with quality heavily weighted and bidders required to demonstrate IP/EUTM terminology expertise, CAT tool compatibility (SDLXLIFF), and capacity for post-editing. The framework is without reopening of competition and will operate as cascade lists with specific orders placed as needed under the draft framework contract terms.

What it funds

Scope

Framework call for translation and post-editing of standardised technical texts in the field of Intellectual Property Rights (European Union Trade Marks EUTM). Texts are mainly lists of goods and services (Nice Classification headings) and related short technical items; work is delivered in SDLXLIFF and requires use of CAT tools and adherence to supplied translation memories and terminology.

Estimated total value:€10,552,000 (total estimated value for the procedure). Individual lot ceilings are shown in the procurement documents; example: Lot 10 estimated value €246,000 ¹

Who can apply

Eligible applicants

Open to legal persons and groups of economic operators established in the EU and third countries where access rules allow. Freelance translators and translation companies may bid. Tenderers must register in the Participant Register (PIC) and the Translation Centre call portal; subcontracting and relying on other entities is permitted but must be declared.

Key practical facts

1. 1Procedure type: Open procedure leading to multiple framework contracts in cascade (up to 3 contractors per lot).
2. 2Lots: 22 target-language lots covering all official EU languages; each lot includes multiple source combinations.
3. 3Contract duration: Initial 12 months from 1 September 2026 with possible annual renewals up to 31 August 2030.
4. 4Deliverables: Translation and full post-editing when machine translation is provided; work returned via the Translation Centre’s portals.
5. 5Quality and eligibility: Tenderers must meet selection criteria on turnover, minimum experience per language combination and provide linguistic teams, CVs and technical tender documentation.

Award method is best price-quality ratio. Prices must be submitted per language combination (EUR per 1,500 characters) and the Translation Centre applies weighting for TM/MT matches in invoicing. Machine translation and translation memories will often be supplied in SDLXLIFF; cloud processing is prohibited unless fully self-hosted.

How to apply:Submit electronically via eSubmission on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal and via the CdT Call for tenders Portal. Register in the Participant Register (PIC) and complete required annexes: Declaration on Honour, Financial form (Annex 6), Technical annexes (Annex 7–11), and the online Linguistic team form (Annex 8) ¹

Footnotes

1. 1Full procurement documentation, lots, tender specifications, annexes and submission details are published on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal: Translation Tender (CDT/2026/OP/0001)

Title:Translation and post-editing services of standardised technical texts in the field of Intellectual Property Rights (European Union Trade Marks EUTM) from official EU languages into other official EU languages. Procedure reference: CDT/2026/OP/0001. Procedure type: Open procedure (calls for tenders published on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal). Lead contracting authority: Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union (CdT). Main CPV: 79530000 - Translation services.

Deadlines:Two main tender milestones published: Deadline for receipt of tenders: 04/05/2026 14:00 Europe/Luxembourg. Date and time of public opening: 05/05/2026 15:00 Europe/Luxembourg. TED publication date: 16/03/2026. Note: the call documents show an additional timestamp 2026-01-01T12:00:59.000Z listed in metadata, but official portal deadlines are those in the tender notice (May 4, 2026 submission).

Estimated total value and lot structure:Estimated total value for the entire procurement: €10 552 000 (as published). The procurement is divided into 22 lots. Each lot covers translation and post-editing INTO one target official EU language from up to 22 source official EU languages. Example: Lot 1 (into Bulgarian) estimated value €246 000 (maximum contract duration 48 months), framework agreements without reopening of competition, award method best price-quality ratio. Each lot is awarded independently; tenders may be submitted for one or more lots.

Services requested and technical scope

Subject:conclusion of framework contracts for the provision of translation and post-editing services of standardised technical texts in the domain of Intellectual Property Rights (European Union Trade Marks EUTM). Core tasks: translation of lists of goods and services and product indications (Nice classification headings and other EUTM content), plus short disclaimers, colour lists and logo descriptions. Texts are highly standardised but can include non-standard terms across many product/service classes, requiring specialist terminology knowledge across technical fields.

Deliverable formats and tools:Most assignments will be supplied as bilingual SDLXLIFF files (pre-processed by Translation Centre CAT tools), often containing translation memory (TM) matches and machine translation (MT) proposals when available. Contractors must use CAT tools compatible with SDLXLIFF. Use of third-party cloud-based tools (including generative AI) is prohibited unless fully self-hosted and compliant with confidentiality and data protection requirements. Contractors must handle deliveries via the Translation Centre’s Freelance Portal or other designated digital delivery systems.

Contract model and duration

Framework agreements (FWC) are planned. Each lot will result in a separate framework contract. The FWC modality is multiple framework contracts in cascade with a maximum of three contractors per lot. Initial FWC period: 12 months starting 1 September 2026, with up to two tacit one-year renewals (and a third renewal possibility) not extending beyond 31 August 2030. Maximum individual framework contract duration and orders governed by the draft framework contract published with tender documents.

Volume, frequency and deadlines

Indicative workload:historical distribution of source languages in 2025 shows English 45%, German 17%, French 9%, Spanish 5%, Italian 4%, Dutch 5%, Polish 5%, other languages combined the remaining share. The Translation Centre forecasts an average file length around 500 characters and a weekly forecast volume in the order of 700–1 200 files per week. Files are dispatched in several batches per week; contractors must meet delivery deadlines indicated on each order form. Bank and national holidays are considered working days for contract purposes unless otherwise stated.

Pricing and invoicing

Price unit:price per standard page defined as 1 500 characters (excluding spaces). Tenderers must complete Annex 6 (financial tender form) with a price per standard page (EUR) and a minimum daily capacity per language combination. Prices must be expressed in euro, inclusive of all costs (salaries, management, overheads, insurance, software licences, backups, communication, terminology resources, etc.). CdT is tax-exempt; VAT should be quoted separately where applicable. The Translation Centre applies content reusability weightings based on TM match rates and customised MT to compute payable volume for invoicing (ranges from 100% down to 0% for 100% TM locked segments). Electronic invoicing and matching rules described in the draft framework contract apply.

Quality, checks and sanctions

Quality expectation:deliverables must be publication-ready and correspond to high-quality human translation into the translator's native language. The contracting authority will assess assignments with the Standard Assessment Sheet (Annex VI of the draft framework contract). Confirmed poor quality results can trigger negative evaluations; five confirmed negative evaluations for a lot may lead to contract termination for that contractor and substitution by the next-ranked contractor. The contracting authority reserves the right to apply price reductions, liquidated damages for delay and other contractual remedies set out in the draft framework contract.

Confidentiality and data protection

All working documents are confidential. Contractors must ensure confidentiality of staff and subcontractors and must not process assignments through third-party cloud services unless fully self-hosted and compliant with contractual confidentiality rules. Personal data processing is governed by Regulation (EU) 2018/1725; the contracting authority is the data controller for procurement-related processing. The contractor must implement technical and organisational security measures, report personal data breaches within 48 hours and comply with controller's instructions. The draft contract contains detailed obligations (Article II.9).

Intellectual property

The FWC grants the Translation Centre ownership of results created for the Centre; pre-existing materials incorporated in results remain the contractor’s or third-party rights but must be licensed to the Centre on a royalty-free, non-exclusive, irrevocable basis sufficient for the Centre’s intended exploitation modes (use, reproduction, adaptation, translation, distribution, database extraction, patent or trademark actions where applicable). Tenderers must identify pre-existing rights and provide supporting evidence upon delivery and invoicing. Moral rights and creators’ consents (e.g. for images, sound) must be cleared by the contractor.

Eligibility, exclusion and selection

Eligible applicants:natural or legal persons established in the EU and entities from third countries where applicable by procurement access rules. UK operators are not eligible under the call (as stated). Tenderers must NOT be subject to restrictive EU measures. Exclusion: situations in Article 138(1) of the Financial Regulation (bankruptcy, grave professional misconduct, fraud, corruption, money-laundering, terrorist offences, etc.). Evidence: Declaration on Honour (Annex 2) plus supporting documents when requested. Selection criteria include legal and regulatory capacity, economic and financial capacity (criterion F1: average yearly turnover last three years above €350 000, consolidated assessment), and technical and professional capacity (criteria T1 and T2).

1. 1Criterion T1 (consolidated): translation/full post-editing experience in IP field — minimum 350 standard pages per language combination for at least 12 of the 22 language combinations included in the lot(s) to which the tenderer applies; experience acquired in the last 12 years; evidence: Annex 7 and third-party signed certificates for each reference (must state task, volume, years, language combination).
2. 2Criterion T2 (consolidated): capacity to provide minimum numbers of linguists and minimum daily translation capacities by source language (for example EN: 28 pages/day; major EU languages: 8 pages/day; other EU languages: 4 pages/day). Tenderers must complete the online Linguistic team form via CdT Call for Tenders Portal and include validated Annex 8 in the submission; CVs for each proposed linguist to be included using Annex 9.

Award criteria and evaluation

Award:best price-quality ratio. Quality weighting: 70%; Price weighting: 30%. Only tenders reaching at least 60/100 points for quality are considered for price-quality calculation. Quality is evaluated on: academic qualifications and specialized IP training and demonstrated experience of proposed linguists (max 40 points); team organisation, continuity, quality control, terminology and workflow (max 45 points); technical assistance and tools (max 15 points). Price evaluation uses a weighted virtual average calculation per lot based on the Distribution X weights provided in tender specifications (section 1.7) and the tenderer’s Annex 6 prices for each language combination in the lot. The ranking formula R = (70 × Q / Qmax) + (30 × Pmin / P) is applied to derive the final ranking per lot.

Consortium, subcontracting and reliance on third parties

Tenders may be submitted by single entities or groups (joint tenders). Joint tenders must nominate a group leader (single point of contact) and submit an Agreement/Power of attorney (Annex 3); all group members are jointly and severally liable. Subcontracting is allowed; identified subcontractors (those whose individual share > 10% or whose capacities are relied upon for selection criteria) must be listed in Annex 4 and provide a signed commitment letter (Annex 5.1). Where the tenderer relies on other entities (not subcontractors) to meet selection criteria, a signed commitment letter (Annex 5.2) is required. The contractor remains fully responsible for subcontracted performance.

How to apply and mandatory documents

Submission method:electronic submission via eSubmission (EU Funding & Tenders Portal). EU Login account / Participant Register PIC required. Registration on CdT Call for Tenders Portal is mandatory to fill the Linguistic team form per lot. Tenders must be complete and submitted before the official portal deadline (04/05/2026 14:00 Europe/Luxembourg). Documents to upload (see Annex 1 to tender specifications): Declaration on Honour (Annex 2); Agreement/Power of attorney (if joint tender, Annex 3); List of identified subcontractors (Annex 4) and associated commitment letters (Annex 5.1) or reliance letters (Annex 5.2); Financial tender (Annex 6, completed for every language combination bid); Professional experience (Annex 7, with third-party certificates); Linguistic team (Annex 8 validated form via CdT Portal); CVs (Annex 9 for each linguist); Technical tender (Annex 10); Sample texts and Nice Class Headings (Annex 11 provided).

Submission practicalities and support:Use supported browsers and file formats per eSubmission guidance and create submission early to avoid technical issues. Contact eSubmission Helpdesk for technical problems. Questions about the procurement documents must be submitted via the F&T Portal Q&A mechanism; contracting authority is not bound to reply to questions submitted after 23/04/2026 23:59 Europe/Luxembourg for this call.

Templates and forms (what to complete)

The tender package contains the following mandatory templates and documents (published on the portal): Tender Specifications (detailed requirements), Annex 2 Declaration on Honour (exclusion and selection), Annex 3 Agreement/Power of attorney (for joint tenders), Annex 4 List of identified subcontractors, Annex 5.1 Commitment letter by identified subcontractor, Annex 5.2 Commitment letter by entity on whose capacities is relied, Annex 6 Financial tender form (one price per 1 500 characters per language combination; and minimum daily capacity), Annex 7 Professional experience (table of references + third-party signed certificates), Annex 8 Linguistic team (online form via CdT Call for Tenders Portal), Annex 9 CV template (use Europass-like structure), Annex 10 Technical tender questionnaires (team organisation, QA, tools), Annex 11 Nice Classification Headings (sample texts per target language), Draft Framework Contract and Model Specific Contract/Order Form.

1. 1Annex 6 Financial tender: complete per target language the price per standard page and minimum daily capacity for each source-to-target combination included in the lot.
2. 2Annex 7 Professional experience: for each reference provide client-signed certificates stating task executed (translation or full post-editing), volume (standard pages), year(s), language combination and subject matter.
3. 3Annex 8 Linguistic team: complete online per lot via CdT Portal; validate and include the exported/validated form in the tender as Annex 8.
4. 4Annex 9 CVs: provide a CV for each proposed linguist, stating principal language, academic qualification, specialised IP training, CAT tool skills, language combinations (direct or via pivot), and IP translation/post-editing experience (pages and years).
5. 5Annex 10 Technical tender: complete the team organisation and quality control questionnaires and the technical assistance, tools and expertise table (CAT tools, licences, backup, disaster recovery, file types handled including SDLXLIFF, TMX, XML).

Key contractual clauses to note

Framework contract will be concluded in cascade with up to 3 contractors per lot; specific contracts/order forms issued against the FWC. Contractors must not refuse service requests within declared minimum capacity; refusal can trigger termination, liquidated damages, substitution. Payments are subject to content reusability weightings and invoicing rules in the FWC (match-based remuneration). The contracting authority conducts quality assessments; persistent poor performance may lead to termination. The FWC includes audit and control rights, data protection obligations, confidentiality and IP ownership/licensing arrangements as previously summarised.

Eligible applicant types (detailed)

Eligible applicants include legal persons and natural persons established in the EU and other jurisdictions allowed under the general rules on access to procurement; typical applicant profiles are language service providers, translation agencies, specialised IP translation teams, freelancers organised into legal entities, consortia of translation companies, and translation departments of larger organisations. The call explicitly excludes UK entities under current access rules. Subcontractors and entities on whose capacity a tenderer relies are permitted subject to declaration and supporting commitment letters.

Funding and contract type

Funding type:public procurement (services). Financial mechanism: framework service contracts leading to specific service orders. Award method: best price-quality ratio. Nature of support: monetary payments for services provided under specific contracts; no grant funding. Contracts are service contracts and are not grants, loans or equity.

Consortium requirement and beneficiary scope

Consortium requirement:not mandatory; single applicants or joint tenders allowed. If joint tender submitted, an Agreement/Power of attorney (Annex 3) is mandatory and the group leader acts as single contracting and invoicing point. Beneficiary geographic scope: applicants established in the EU and other jurisdictions as permitted under procurement rules; contracting authority is an EU body and the contract is executed under EU procurement law.

Target sector and project stage

Target sector:intellectual property rights domain (European Union trade marks), translation services, language technology (CAT/MT) and terminology management. Expected project stage: operational/service delivery (ongoing translation and post-editing, production-ready outputs).

Mentioned countries

All official EU languages are explicit in the tender:Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, German, Greek, English, Spanish, Estonian, Finnish, French, Croatian, Hungarian, Italian, Lithuanian, Latvian, Maltese, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovenian, Swedish. Geographic region: European Union / EEA eligibility rules apply.

Funding amount and contract ceilings

Estimated total value:€10 552 000. Example lot-level estimate: Lot 1 (into Bulgarian) estimated at €246 000. Each lot has its own framework contract ceiling indicated in the contract notice and draft contract. Tenderers must respect the financial limits of their offers and the FWC ceilings.

Application type and process stages

Application type:open call via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal and eSubmission. Stages in the procurement procedure: 1) Submission, 2) Opening, 3) Exclusion and selection checks (Declarations on Honour, supporting evidence), 4) Quality and financial evaluation against award criteria, 5) Ranking and award. The request-for-specific-contracts implementation phase follows the award (order forms).

1. 1Stage 1: Electronic submission via eSubmission (full documents and Annexes uploaded).
2. 2Stage 2: Formal opening (virtual public opening).
3. 3Stage 3: Administrative, exclusion and selection checks (Declarations on Honour, LEAR/PIC checks, documentary evidence).
4. 4Stage 4: Technical/quality evaluation and financial scoring (quality first, threshold 60/100).
5. 5Stage 5: Award decision per lot and signature of framework contract(s); cascade list established for each lot.

Success rates and co-funding

Success rates:not published by the Translation Centre and depend on number and quality of tenders received per lot. No co-funding contribution from applicants is required because this is a procurement of services; contractors are paid for services executed and must cover their own costs within their price per standard page. There is no grant co-financing requirement.

Templates: structure and guidance for submission

Key templates and how they look and must be completed:Annex 2 Declaration on Honour (tick boxes for exclusion/selection statements; signed by authorised representative). Annex 3 Agreement/Power of Attorney (for joint tenders listing group members, joint and several liability provisions, appointment of group leader). Annex 4 List of identified subcontractors (name, role/tasks, % subcontracting). Annex 5.1 Commitment letter by identified subcontractor (signed letter confirming availability for subcontracted work). Annex 5.2 Commitment letter by entity on whose capacities is being relied (signed letter authorising tenderer to rely on technical/economic capacities). Annex 6 Financial Tender form (a matrix per target language listing each source language -> target language combination, price per standard page in EUR, minimum daily capacity; signed). Annex 7 Professional experience (table of references with client name, task, volume in standard pages, language combination, year; supported by signed certificates from clients). Annex 8 Linguistic team (online form per lot on the CdT Call for Tenders Portal; validated export must be included in the tender). Annex 9 Curriculum vitae (template fields: personal details, principal language, education, specialised IP training, CAT tools, translation/post-editing IP experience, language combinations direct/via pivot). Annex 10 Technical tender (structured questions: academic qualifications of proposed linguists; team continuity, quality control procedures, tools, hardware/backup/disaster recovery, CAT tools and licences, certified standards). Annex 11 Nice Classification Headings (sample texts per language for test and reference). Draft Framework Contract (detailed contractual clauses including pricing, invoicing rules, confidentiality, audits, IP, termination).

Other compliance and obligations

Tenderers must ensure compliance with applicable EU environmental, social and labour law obligations listed in the tender specifications. The contracting authority may require further documentary evidence to validate legal existence, financial capacity, selection and exclusion evidence via the Participant Register and EU Validation Services. The tenderer must ensure that the proposed linguists are the actual persons who will perform the work; substitution is only allowed with the contracting authority's written authorisation.

Final summary

What is this opportunity about and how to explain it:This is a multi-lot procurement by the Translation Centre to establish multiple framework agreements (cascade lists) for specialist translation and full post-editing services of EU Trade Mark (EUTM) standardised technical texts between all official EU languages. It targets experienced language service providers and translation teams with demonstrated experience in IP domain translation/post-editing and strong CAT/terminology workflows. Bidders must comply with technical, quality, security and confidentiality rules, demonstrate minimum experience and capacity across a minimum set of language combinations per lot, complete a detailed financial offer per language combination and accept the draft framework contract terms. The award is based on a quality-first evaluation (70%) with price as a meaningful factor (30%). Successful contractors will be called for specific orders through the framework contracts and are expected to deliver production-ready, terminology-consistent translations following TM/MT weighting and invoicing rules. Interested providers should register in the Participant Register, the CdT Call for Tenders Portal (to complete the linguistic team forms), complete and sign all required annexes and submit a fully compliant electronic tender via eSubmission before the official deadline on 04 May 2026 at 14:00 Europe/Luxembourg.

Opportunity Overview

This is a call for tenders issued by the Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union for the provision of translation and post-editing services of standardised technical texts in the field of Intellectual Property Rights, specifically European Union Trade Marks (EUTM). The tender covers translation services from official EU languages into other official EU languages. The estimated total contract value across all lots is €10,552,000, with a maximum contract duration of 48 months per lot. This is a framework agreement without reopening of competition, awarded on a best price-quality ratio basis.

Tender Reference:CDT/2026/OP/0001. TED reference: 52/2026 181616-2026.

Context and Purpose:The EUTM system is a unitary trademark registration that provides protection across all 27 EU member states through a single application ¹. EUTM applications can be filed in any of the 23 official EU languages, making the provision of high-quality standardised technical texts across all EU languages essential for the operation and administration of the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO). These technical texts include examination guidelines, procedural information, classification materials, and other reference documents that support EUTM applicants and practitioners throughout the EU.

Tender Structure

The tender is divided into 23 individual lots, each covering translation services into one official EU language. Bidders may participate in one or more lots according to their language capabilities. The lots cover translation into the following target languages: Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, German, Greek, English, Spanish, Estonian, Finnish, French, Croatian, Hungarian, Italian, Lithuanian, Latvian, Maltese, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovenian, and Swedish.

Each lot requires translation and post-editing of standardised technical texts from all other EU official languages into the target language. For example, Lot 10 (Bulgarian) involves translation from Czech, Danish, German, Greek, English, Spanish, Estonian, Finnish, French, Croatian, Hungarian, Italian, Lithuanian, Latvian, Maltese, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovenian, and Swedish into Bulgarian.

Key Deadlines

1. 1Questions deadline: 23 April 2026, 23:59 Luxembourg time
2. 2Tender submission deadline: 4 May 2026, 14:00 Luxembourg time
3. 3Public opening date: 5 May 2026, 15:00 Luxembourg time

Financial Information:The estimated total value for the entire tender is €10,552,000. Individual lot values vary; based on available information, each lot is estimated at approximately €246,000. The maximum contract duration for each lot is 48 months from the commencement date.

Eligibility and Participation

This is an open tender procedure with no stated nationality or domicile restrictions mentioned in the available documentation. Bidders must be capable of providing professional translation and post-editing services in the relevant language pairs. The tender is open to translation service providers including individual translators, translation companies, and other qualified service providers meeting the specified requirements.

Participation is on a lot-by-lot basis, allowing bidders to submit proposals for one or multiple lots depending on their language capabilities and business capacity. Bidders should note that participation in multiple lots may require demonstrated capacity to manage concurrent translation workloads across different language combinations.

Technical Requirements and Scope

The scope of work involves translation and post-editing of standardised technical texts in the field of Intellectual Property Rights related to EUTM. These texts cover guidelines, procedures, examination standards, and reference materials necessary for the operation of the EUTM system ¹. The texts are described as standardised, indicating that formatting, terminology, and style consistency are likely critical requirements.

Bidders must demonstrate expertise in Intellectual Property Rights terminology and the EUTM system specifically. The work requires not only linguistic proficiency but also subject matter knowledge to ensure accuracy in translating technical and legal concepts. Post-editing services are an integral part of the requirement, suggesting that machine-assisted translation may be involved in the workflow.

Award Criteria and Selection

The award method is best price-quality ratio. This means evaluation will consider both the cost of services and the quality of the proposed delivery. Bidders should prepare detailed proposals that address quality assurance measures, terminology management, project delivery timelines, and resource allocation alongside competitive pricing.

Contract Type and Duration

This is a framework agreement without reopening of competition. The framework agreement structure means that the selected contractor(s) will have a formalised relationship with the Translation Centre for a defined period, with work orders placed as needed rather than a single fixed-volume contract. The absence of reopening of competition means that new bidders cannot be added during the framework period if additional capacity is needed. The maximum contract duration is 48 months per lot.

Submission and Procedure

Submission method is electronic only. Bidders must submit proposals through the dedicated electronic portal on the EU Funding and Tenders Portal. All required documentation must be submitted by the deadline; late submissions will not be accepted.

Tender specifications and supporting documents are available for download from the tender portal, including the invitation to tender, draft framework contract, financial tender form, declaration on honour, curriculum vitae requirements, Nice Classification headings (relevant to EUTM goods and services classification), and annexes containing detailed requirements and evaluation criteria.

Documentation and Support

• CDT-2026-OP-0001 (TM26-EU) Tender Specifications
• CDT-2026-OP-0001 (TM26-EU) Annex 6 - Financial Tender
• CDT-2026-OP-0001 (TM26-EU) Annex 2 - Declaration on Honour
• CDT-2026-OP-0001 (TM26-EU) Draft Framework Contract
• CDT-2026-OP-0001 (TM26-EU) Annex 9 - Curriculum Vitae
• CDT-2026-OP-0001 (TM26-EU) Annex 11 - Nice Classification Headings
• CDT-2026-OP-0001 (TM26-EU) Invitation to Tender

All documents were published on 16 March 2026 and are available for download from the tender portal. Bidders can submit questions through the platform until the questions deadline of 23 April 2026. No public questions and answers have been posted at this time.

Contracting Authority and Classification

The lead contracting authority is the Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union, the EU institution responsible for providing translation services to other EU institutions and bodies. The tender is classified under CPV code 79530000 - Translation services.

Strategic Considerations for Potential Bidders

This tender represents a significant contract opportunity for translation service providers with specialisation in Intellectual Property Rights and EUTM systems. The framework agreement structure with a 48-month duration provides long-term work stability for successful bidders. However, the scope is highly specialised, requiring demonstrable expertise in EUTM terminology and procedures.

Bidders should note that this is a competitive procurement with multiple lots available. Submitting proposals for multiple related language pairs may strengthen competitiveness by demonstrating capacity and economies of scale. Quality is weighted equally or perhaps more heavily than price given the technical nature of the texts being translated; therefore, proposals should emphasise quality assurance mechanisms, subject matter expertise, and EUTM system familiarity.

The standardised nature of the texts suggests that bidders may benefit from developing translation memories and terminology databases for EUTM-related content. Demonstrating familiarity with the Nice Classification system, EUIPO guidelines, and EUTM procedures will strengthen proposals. Bidders should also address their capacity to handle post-editing work, as this is an explicit requirement beyond traditional translation.

Footnotes

1. 1The EUTM system is a unitary trademark registration managed by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) that provides trademark protection across all 27 EU member states with a single application and unified legal protection, eliminating the need for separate national registrations in each country. Applications can be filed in any of the 23 official EU languages, demonstrating the importance of high-quality multilingual technical documentation and support materials for system users.