Procurement glossary

Procurement terms covering universal vocabulary, EU procurement law, and country-specific systems across 25 markets. Built by procurement intelligence specialists for buyers and suppliers navigating modern public procurement.

Universal procurement vocabulary (50 terms)

Tender — A tender is a formal, structured offer made by a supplier in response to a public procurement opportunity. The same word also describes the procurement…
Bid — A bid is the formal commercial and technical offer that a supplier submits to a contracting authority in response to a procurement opportunity. The bid sets…
Bidder — A bidder is the individual, company, or consortium that submits a bid in response to a published procurement opportunity. Bidders are also called tenderers,…
Tenderer — A tenderer is the supplier who submits a tender in response to a procurement opportunity. The word is most commonly used in the United Kingdom, the European…
Procurement — Procurement is the structured process by which an organisation identifies needs, sources suppliers, negotiates terms, and acquires goods, services, or works.…
Public Procurement — Public procurement is the process by which governments, state-owned enterprises, local authorities, and other public bodies acquire goods, services, and works…
RFP (Request for Proposal) — A Request for Proposal, commonly abbreviated as RFP, is a formal document issued by a buyer to invite suppliers to propose solutions to a clearly defined…
RFI (Request for Information) — A Request for Information, abbreviated as RFI, is a formal document a buyer uses to gather information from the market before launching a procurement. Unlike…
RFQ (Request for Quotation) — A Request for Quotation, abbreviated as RFQ, is a procurement document used to invite suppliers to submit price offers for a clearly defined product, service,…
ITT (Invitation to Tender) — An Invitation to Tender, abbreviated as ITT, is the formal document a contracting authority issues to invite qualified suppliers to submit binding tenders for…
EOI (Expression of Interest) — An Expression of Interest, abbreviated as EOI, is a preliminary procurement document a buyer publishes to identify suppliers genuinely interested in a future…
PIN (Prior Information Notice) — A Prior Information Notice, abbreviated as PIN, is an official notice that a contracting authority publishes to signal its intention to launch a procurement…
ToR (Terms of Reference) — Terms of Reference, abbreviated as ToR, is a procurement document that defines the scope, objectives, deliverables, timeline, and other conditions of a…
SoW (Statement of Work) — A Statement of Work, abbreviated as SoW, is a procurement document that defines the activities, deliverables, timelines, and acceptance criteria a supplier…
Tender Dossier — A tender dossier is the complete set of documents that a contracting authority publishes when launching a procurement procedure. The dossier brings together…
Tender Documents — Tender documents are the official set of files a contracting authority publishes to inform suppliers about a procurement opportunity and to enable them to…
Contract Notice — A contract notice is the formal public announcement that a contracting authority publishes to initiate a public procurement procedure. The notice tells the…
Award Notice — An award notice is the official announcement that a contracting authority has awarded a public procurement contract to a specific supplier. Award notices are…
VEAT (Voluntary Ex Ante Transparency Notice) — A Voluntary Ex Ante Transparency Notice, abbreviated as VEAT, is a notice that a contracting authority publishes before signing a contract that has been…
Modification Notice — A modification notice is a public announcement that an awarded public contract has been modified after the original award. Modification notices are required…
Cancellation Notice — A cancellation notice is the official announcement a contracting authority publishes when it decides to terminate a public procurement procedure before…
Going Out to Tender — Going out to tender is the common business phrase describing the act of formally launching a competitive procurement process. When a contracting authority or…
Tender Opening — Tender opening is the formal procedural step where submitted tenders are revealed and recorded by the contracting authority after the tender submission…
Tender Evaluation — Tender evaluation is the formal assessment of submitted tenders against published criteria to identify the supplier most suited to win the contract. Tender…
Tender Addendum — A tender addendum is an official modification, clarification, or addition to tender documents issued by a contracting authority during the tender period.…
Tender Clarification — Tender clarification is the formal process where bidders ask questions about the tender documents during the tender period and the contracting authority…
Open Procedure — The open procedure is the most common public procurement procedure in the European Union and most modern procurement frameworks. Under the open procedure, any…
Restricted Procedure — The restricted procedure is a two-stage public procurement procedure under which suppliers first request to participate, and only those who pass a…
Competitive Dialogue — Competitive dialogue is a public procurement procedure used for particularly complex contracts where the buyer cannot define the technical solution or…
Negotiated Procedure — The negotiated procedure is a public procurement procedure that allows the contracting authority to negotiate directly with bidders to reach the best contract…
Design Contest — A design contest is a public procurement procedure where the contracting authority invites participants to submit design proposals and awards a prize, a…
Innovation Partnership — An innovation partnership is a public procurement procedure introduced in the 2014 European Union procurement directives to enable contracting authorities to…
Direct Award — A direct award is a procurement decision in which the contracting authority awards a contract to a specific supplier without running a competitive tender.…
Framework Agreement — A framework agreement is a long-term procurement arrangement that establishes the terms under which a contracting authority can award future contracts to one…
Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) — A Dynamic Purchasing System, abbreviated as DPS, is an electronic procurement vehicle that allows contracting authorities to procure routine goods, services,…
Mini-Competition — A mini-competition is a competitive call-off process used to award specific contracts under a multi-supplier framework agreement or a Dynamic Purchasing…
MEAT (Most Economically Advantageous Tender) — Most Economically Advantageous Tender, abbreviated as MEAT, is the dominant evaluation methodology in modern public procurement. Under MEAT, the contracting…
Award Criteria — Award criteria are the published rules a contracting authority uses to evaluate tenders and select the winning supplier. Award criteria are the procurement…
Selection Criteria — Selection criteria are the eligibility requirements suppliers must meet to qualify for participation in a procurement procedure. Selection criteria operate as…
Qualitative Criteria — Qualitative criteria are the non-price dimensions of tender evaluation under the Most Economically Advantageous Tender methodology. Where price criteria score…
Price-Quality Ratio — The price-quality ratio is the conceptual basis underlying Most Economically Advantageous Tender evaluation. The ratio captures how contracting authorities…
Lowest Price — Lowest price evaluation is a procurement methodology that awards the contract to the supplier offering the cheapest compliant bid. Among compliant tenders…
Tender Bond — A tender bond, also called a bid bond in some jurisdictions, is a financial guarantee that a bidder submits with their tender to demonstrate their commitment…
Performance Bond — A performance bond is a financial guarantee that a contractor will deliver a public or private contract according to its terms. The bond is issued by a bank…
Bid Bond — A bid bond is a financial guarantee submitted alongside a bid that the bidder will honour the offer if selected and will enter into the contract on the bid…
Standstill Period — The standstill period is the mandatory waiting time between announcing a procurement award decision and signing the contract. During the standstill period,…
Tender Protest — A tender protest is the formal mechanism by which an unsuccessful bidder challenges a procurement decision they believe was unlawful. Protests are typically…
Procurement Compliance — Procurement compliance is the framework of rules, procedures, and controls that ensure procurement activities are conducted lawfully, ethically, and…
Conflict of Interest — A conflict of interest in procurement arises when a person involved in procurement decisions has personal, financial, or relational interests that could…
Market Consultation — Market consultation is the practice of engaging with the supplier market before launching a formal procurement procedure. Through market consultation,…

EU directives and extended vocabulary (50 terms)

OJEU (Official Journal of the European Union) — The Official Journal of the European Union, abbreviated as OJEU, is the official publication of the European Union. The procurement supplement of the OJEU,…
TED (Tenders Electronic Daily) — Tenders Electronic Daily, abbreviated as TED, is the European Union's online portal for publishing above-threshold public procurement notices. TED operates as…
CPV Codes (Common Procurement Vocabulary) — Common Procurement Vocabulary, abbreviated as CPV, is a standardised classification system for public procurement contracts used across the European Union.…
NUTS Codes — NUTS codes are a hierarchical classification system for European Union geographical territories. The acronym stands for Nomenclature of Territorial Units for…
ESPD (European Single Procurement Document) — The European Single Procurement Document, abbreviated as ESPD, is a standardised self-declaration form that suppliers use to demonstrate eligibility in…
e-Certis — e-Certis is an online tool operated by the European Commission that maps national documentary requirements across European Union member states. The tool helps…
Contracting Authority — A contracting authority is a public body that is subject to European Union public procurement directives when buying goods, services, or works. The legal…
Contracting Entity — A contracting entity is an organisation operating in regulated utilities sectors that is subject to specific European Union procurement rules. While classical…
Sub-threshold Procurement — Sub-threshold procurement covers public contracts below the value thresholds of the European Union procurement directives. Above the thresholds, full EU…
Above-threshold Procurement — Above-threshold procurement covers public contracts at or above the value thresholds of the European Union procurement directives. Above the thresholds, the…
EU Procurement Directives — The European Union Procurement Directives are the legal framework that governs public procurement across all twenty-seven EU member states. The directives set…
Cross-border Procurement — Cross-border procurement is the practice of suppliers bidding on public procurement contracts in countries other than their home country. Cross-border…
Joint Procurement — Joint procurement is the practice of multiple contracting authorities combining their procurement activities under a single procurement procedure to achieve…
Centralised Purchasing Body — A Centralised Purchasing Body, often abbreviated as CPB, is a contracting authority that procures goods, services, or works on behalf of multiple downstream…
EU Funds Procurement — EU funds procurement covers public contracts financed wholly or partly by European Union funds rather than purely from national resources. Major EU funding…
Public Sector Buyer — A public sector buyer is any government, public authority, or publicly funded entity that procures goods, services, or works from external suppliers. The…
Government Agency — A government agency is an organisational unit of central government, typically with delegated responsibility for specific policy areas, services, or…
Local Authority — A local authority is a sub-national government body responsible for local services and administration within a defined geographic area. Local authorities…
Municipality — A municipality is a local government unit responsible for serving a defined geographic area, typically a city, town, or rural district, with a range of local…
State-owned Enterprise — A state-owned enterprise, often abbreviated as SOE, is a commercial organisation that is owned wholly or substantially by a national, regional, or local…
Utility Company — A utility company is an organisation operating in regulated essential service sectors, including energy, water, transport, and postal services. Utility…
Defence Procurement — Defence procurement covers the acquisition of military equipment, services, and works by national defence establishments and related security authorities.…
Healthcare Procurement — Healthcare procurement covers the acquisition of medical equipment, pharmaceuticals, clinical services, and supporting goods and services by hospitals, health…
Education Procurement — Education procurement covers the acquisition of goods, services, and works by schools, universities, education authorities, and other organisations…
Infrastructure Procurement — Infrastructure procurement covers the acquisition of major physical works including roads, railways, water and sanitation systems, energy networks,…
Supplier — A supplier is any individual, company, or consortium that provides goods, services, or works to a buyer under a procurement contract. The term supplier is…
Vendor — A vendor is a supplier of goods or services to a buyer. The term is functionally synonymous with supplier in most contexts, although vendor is more common in…
Contractor — A contractor is a supplier responsible for delivering works or services under a contract with a buyer. The term is most commonly used in construction,…
Subcontractor — A subcontractor is a supplier providing inputs through a prime contractor rather than directly to the buyer. Subcontractors typically deliver specific…
Consortium — A consortium is a temporary association of two or more companies that join together to bid for and deliver a procurement contract. Consortia are common in…
Joint Venture (JV) — A joint venture, often abbreviated as JV, is a business structure where two or more companies combine resources, capabilities, and risk-taking to pursue…
Prime Contractor — A prime contractor is the supplier holding the primary contract with the buyer and bearing overall responsibility for delivery of the contracted work. The…
SME (Small and Medium Enterprise) — A Small and Medium Enterprise, abbreviated as SME, is a business below defined size thresholds based on employee count and financial measures. The European…
Pre-qualification — Pre-qualification is the formal procurement stage where suppliers demonstrate eligibility against published criteria before being invited to submit bids for…
Vendor Registration — Vendor registration is the process by which a supplier becomes formally approved to participate in procurement opportunities with a buyer organisation. Vendor…
Public Procurement Law — Public procurement law is the body of legal rules governing how public bodies buy goods, services, and works from external suppliers. The law exists to ensure…
Procurement Audit — A procurement audit is a formal review of procurement procedures, decisions, and outcomes to assess compliance with applicable rules, efficiency of process,…
Due Diligence — Due diligence in procurement is the structured process of investigating supplier characteristics, capabilities, financial standing, ethical posture, and risk…
Anti-Corruption — Anti-corruption in procurement covers the legal frameworks, organisational controls, and operational practices that prevent corruption in contract awards and…
Whistleblowing — Whistleblowing in procurement is the practice of reporting suspected misconduct, regulatory violations, fraud, corruption, or other serious concerns through…
Tender Appeal — A tender appeal is a legal challenge against a procurement decision filed with a court, tribunal, or specialised review body. While the term tender protest…
Beneficial Ownership — Beneficial ownership identifies the natural persons who ultimately own or control a legal entity, regardless of how the entity is structured legally.…
Sanctions Screening — Sanctions screening is the process of checking suppliers, their beneficial owners, and other relevant parties against applicable sanctions lists to ensure…
Debarment — Debarment is the formal exclusion of a supplier from public procurement participation for a defined period, typically following serious misconduct, criminal…
Blacklist — A blacklist in procurement is a formal list of excluded suppliers maintained by a contracting authority, national procurement body, or international…
Procurement Fraud — Procurement fraud covers deceptive practices that misuse procurement processes for unlawful gain at the expense of contracting authorities, taxpayers, or…
Bid Rigging — Bid rigging is the illegal practice where suppliers coordinate their bids to manipulate procurement outcomes, undermining the competitive process that…
Sustainability in Procurement — Sustainability in procurement covers the integration of environmental, social, and economic sustainability considerations into procurement decisions.…
Social Value — Social value in procurement covers the broader social, economic, and environmental benefits that public spending can deliver beyond the direct goods,…
Green Public Procurement (GPP) — Green Public Procurement, often abbreviated as GPP, is the practice of integrating environmental criteria into public buying decisions to reduce environmental…

Country-specific procurement systems (42 terms)

Iepirkumi (Latvia Public Procurement) — Iepirkumi is the Latvian word for procurement, used to describe both the activity of acquiring goods, services, and works and the specific contracts that…
EIS (Elektroniskā Iepirkumu Sistēma) — EIS, short for Elektroniskā Iepirkumu Sistēma, is the centralised electronic procurement system of the Republic of Latvia. EIS serves as the national platform…
IUB (Iepirkumu Uzraudzības Birojs) — IUB, short for Iepirkumu Uzraudzības Birojs, is the Latvian Procurement Monitoring Bureau, the supervisory authority responsible for overseeing public…
Mazās vērtības iepirkumi (Latvia Small-value Procurement) — Mazās vērtības iepirkumi is the Latvian term for small-value public procurement, covering contracts below specific value thresholds where simplified…
Centralizētie iepirkumi (Latvia Centralised Procurement) — Centralizētie iepirkumi is the Latvian term for centralised public procurement, referring to procurement frameworks operated by the Latvian Centralised…
Viešieji pirkimai (Lithuania Public Procurement) — Viešieji pirkimai is the Lithuanian term for public procurement, covering all formal procurement activity by Lithuanian state, regional, and municipal…
CVP IS (Lithuania Central Public Procurement Information System) — CVP IS, short for Centrinė Viešųjų Pirkimų Informacinė Sistema, is the Central Public Procurement Information System of Lithuania. CVP IS serves as the…
Riigihanked (Estonia Public Procurement) — Riigihanked is the Estonian term for public procurement, covering all formal procurement activity by Estonian state, regional, and municipal authorities,…
RHR (Estonia Public Procurement Register) — RHR, short for Riigihangete register, is the Estonian public procurement register and electronic procurement platform. RHR serves as the national…
Contracts Finder (UK) — Contracts Finder is the United Kingdom's online portal for publishing public sector procurement opportunities below the Find a Tender Service thresholds.…
Find a Tender Service (FTS) — Find a Tender Service, abbreviated as FTS, is the United Kingdom's online portal for publishing above-threshold public sector procurement opportunities. The…
CCS (Crown Commercial Service) — Crown Commercial Service, abbreviated as CCS, is the United Kingdom government's central commercial body responsible for managing procurement frameworks and…
G-Cloud Framework — G-Cloud is the United Kingdom government's framework for procuring cloud computing and digital services across the public sector. Operated by Crown Commercial…
Digital Outcomes Framework — The Digital Outcomes Framework is a United Kingdom government framework supporting public sector procurement of digital service development, including user…
NHS Procurement — NHS Procurement covers the acquisition of medical equipment, pharmaceuticals, clinical services, and supporting goods and services across the National Health…
Doffin (Norway Public Procurement) — Doffin, short for Database for offentlige innkjøp, is Norway's national public procurement portal for publishing tender notices and managing public…
HILMA (Finland Public Procurement) — HILMA is Finland's national public procurement notification service, providing the central platform for publishing public procurement notices and supporting…
TendSign (Nordic E-Tendering) — TendSign is a Nordic electronic tendering platform supporting public procurement procedures across Sweden and other Nordic markets. Operated by Visma…
Mercell (Nordic Procurement Platform) — Mercell is a Nordic-headquartered procurement platform that has expanded substantially across European procurement markets, serving both public sector…
Avropa (Sweden Framework Call-off) — Avropa is the Swedish term for calling off contracts under framework agreements in public procurement. The activity covers individual contract awards made by…
Licitação (Brazil Public Procurement) — Licitação is the Portuguese term used in Brazil for public procurement, covering all formal procedures used by Brazilian public bodies to contract goods,…
Pregão (Brazil Reverse Auction Procedure) — Pregão is the Brazilian public procurement procedure that uses a reverse auction format, where qualified bidders compete by progressively lowering their…
ComprasNet (Brazil Federal Procurement Portal) — ComprasNet is the Brazilian federal government's primary procurement portal for publishing tender opportunities and managing federal procurement procedures.…
Modalidade (Brazil Procurement Modality Types) — Modalidade refers to the procurement modality types defined in Brazilian public procurement law, each appropriate for different procurement situations based…
SRP (Sistema de Registro de Preços) — SRP, short for Sistema de Registro de Preços, is the Brazilian price registration framework system that allows multiple public sector buyers to access…
ChileCompra (Chile Government Procurement System) — ChileCompra is Chile's centralised government procurement system, operating one of the most modern and integrated public procurement infrastructures in Latin…
Mercado Público (Chile Public Marketplace) — Mercado Público is Chile's central public procurement marketplace, the platform where Chilean public sector buyers publish procurement opportunities and…
Convenio Marco (Chile Framework Agreement) — Convenio Marco is the Chilean framework agreement structure operated through ChileCompra, supporting efficient call-off procurement across Chilean public…
SECOP (Colombia Procurement Portal) — SECOP, short for Sistema Electrónico de Contratación Pública, is Colombia's electronic public procurement system, providing the central platform for…
Trato Directo (Latin America Direct Award) — Trato Directo is the Latin American term for direct contracting without competitive procurement procedures, used in specific situations defined by national…
Acuerdo Marco (Latin America Framework Agreement) — Acuerdo Marco is the Spanish-language term for framework agreements in Latin American public procurement, used across multiple national procurement systems…
SAM.gov (US System for Award Management) — SAM.gov, short for the System for Award Management, is the United States federal government's official system for managing federal contractor registration,…
GSA Schedule (US General Services Administration) — GSA Schedule is the United States General Services Administration's framework programme for federal procurement, providing pre-qualified supplier pools that…
RFP Federal (US Federal Request for Proposals) — RFP Federal refers to Request for Proposals procedures used in United States federal procurement, governed by the Federal Acquisition Regulation, abbreviated…
Bid Match (Procurement Opportunity Matching) — Bid Match is the procurement intelligence concept of automatically matching public procurement opportunities to supplier capabilities, preferences, and…
eTenders Portal (South Africa) — The eTenders Portal is South Africa's national online platform for publishing public procurement opportunities and supporting tender procedures across the…
CIDB (South Africa Construction Industry Development Board) — CIDB, short for Construction Industry Development Board, is the South African statutory body regulating construction industry registration and grading for…
PPDA (Uganda Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Authority) — PPDA, short for Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Authority, is Uganda's statutory body regulating public procurement and disposal of public…
AGPO (Kenya Access to Government Procurement Opportunities) — AGPO, short for Access to Government Procurement Opportunities, is Kenya's affirmative procurement programme supporting designated disadvantaged groups…
BPP (Nigeria Bureau of Public Procurement) — BPP, short for Bureau of Public Procurement, is Nigeria's federal supervisory authority for public procurement across the Nigerian federal government and…
OCDS (Open Contracting Data Standard) — OCDS, short for Open Contracting Data Standard, is the global open data standard for publishing public procurement information consistently across…
Procurement Intelligence — Procurement Intelligence is the systematic gathering, analysis, and application of data about procurement opportunities, buyers, suppliers, and market…

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