Public Procurement Glossary
Plain-language definitions of procurement terms: tenders, framework agreements, CPV codes, NAICS codes, and more. A reference for bid teams.
What Is a Tender?
A tender (also called a bid, proposal request, or solicitation) is a formal invitation from a buyer—typically a government agency—for suppliers to submit offers to provide goods, services, or works.
Read more GlossaryTED — Tenders Electronic Daily
TED (Tenders Electronic Daily) is the online supplement to the Official Journal of the European Union, dedicated to public procurement notices.
Read more GlossarySAM.gov — System for Award Management
SAM.gov is the US federal government’s official website for entity registration and contract opportunity discovery.
Read more GlossaryWhat Is a Framework Agreement?
A framework agreement is a long-term arrangement between a contracting authority and one or more suppliers that sets the terms for future contracts over a defined period.
Read more GlossaryCPV Codes Explained
CPV (Common Procurement Vocabulary) codes are the classification system used across EU public procurement. Every tender published on TED is tagged with CPV codes that describe the goods, services, or works being procured.
Read more GlossaryNAICS Codes for Government Contracting
NAICS (North American Industry Classification System) codes classify businesses by industry across the US, Canada, and Mexico. In government contracting, NAICS codes determine which opportunities your company is eligible to bid on.
Read more GlossaryWhat Is an Open Tender?
An open tender (also called an open procedure) is a procurement method where any interested and qualified supplier can submit a bid. It is the most common and most transparent form of public procurement.
Read more GlossarySet-Aside Contracts for Small Business
Set-aside contracts are government procurement opportunities reserved exclusively for small businesses. In the US, the Small Business Administration (SBA) oversees programs that direct a portion of federal spending to small, disadvantaged, women-owned, and veteran-owned businesses.
Read more GlossaryBid/No-Bid Decision Framework
A bid/no-bid decision is the structured evaluation process teams use to determine whether to invest resources in responding to a specific tender. With limited proposal-writing capacity, choosing the right opportunities is as important as winning them.
Read more GlossaryWhat Is a Notice of Intent (NOI)?
A Notice of Intent (NOI), also called a pre-solicitation notice or prior information notice (PIN), is an advance announcement that a contracting authority plans to issue a procurement. It signals upcoming opportunities before the formal tender is published.
Read more GlossaryWhat Is a Request for Proposal (RFP)?
A Request for Proposal (RFP) is a formal document issued by a contracting authority inviting suppliers to submit detailed proposals for providing specific goods, services, or works. RFPs are the most common solicitation type in government procurement.
Read more GlossaryHow to Find Government Tenders
Finding government tenders is the first step to winning public contracts. Governments publish procurement opportunities on official portals, but these are scattered across dozens of platforms with different search interfaces, languages, and classification systems. This guide covers where to look, how to search, and how to automate the process.
Read more GlossaryHow to Bid on Government Contracts: Step-by-Step Guide
Government procurement represents over $13 trillion in annual spending worldwide, yet most businesses never submit a single bid. The process rewards preparation and compliance over size—in the US alone, small businesses won $178 billion in federal contracts in FY2023, accounting for 28.4% of all federal procurement dollars. Whether you’re targeting US federal contracts on SAM.gov, EU tenders on TED, UK opportunities on Find a Tender, or national procurement portals across 50+ countries, this guide walks you through every step from initial registration to contract award and beyond.
Read more GlossaryWhat Is E-Procurement?
E-procurement (electronic procurement) is the use of digital platforms and processes for purchasing goods, services, and works. In the public sector, e-procurement covers everything from publishing tender notices online to accepting electronic bid submissions and managing contracts digitally.
Read more GlossaryITT vs RFP vs RFQ: Tender Document Types
Government procurement uses different solicitation types depending on what’s being bought and how proposals are evaluated. Understanding the differences between an ITT (Invitation to Tender), RFP (Request for Proposal), and RFQ (Request for Quotation) helps you allocate proposal resources correctly and respond appropriately.
Read more GlossaryWhat Is Tender Monitoring?
Tender monitoring is the systematic process of tracking government procurement portals for new contract opportunities that match your business capabilities. It can be done manually (checking portals daily) or automatically (using software that scans portals and delivers matching tenders to you).
Read more GlossaryMultilingual Tender Alerts
Jorpex delivers tender notifications and AI summaries in 17 European languages. Search in any language, receive alerts in yours.
Read more GlossaryEU Procurement Thresholds 2026-2027
EU procurement thresholds determine which public contracts must be advertised EU-wide on TED and which follow national rules only. Updated every two years, the 2026-2027 thresholds took effect on 1 January 2026 — most were revised downward due to currency fluctuations.
Read more GlossaryNUTS Codes: European Regional Classification for Procurement
NUTS (Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics) codes are the EU's hierarchical system for classifying geographic regions. In procurement, NUTS codes specify where a contract will be performed — making them essential for filtering TED tenders by location.
Read more GlossaryStandstill Period in Public Procurement
The standstill period is a mandatory waiting period between a contracting authority's contract award decision and the actual signing of the contract. It gives unsuccessful bidders time to review the decision and, if necessary, challenge it before the contract becomes binding.
Read more GlossaryDynamic Purchasing System (DPS) in Public Procurement
A Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) is an electronic procurement process that allows new suppliers to join at any point during its operation — unlike traditional framework agreements, which are closed after the initial competition. DPS is increasingly popular in the EU and UK for commonly purchased goods and services.
Read more GlossaryWTO Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
The Government Procurement Agreement (GPA) is a plurilateral treaty within the WTO framework that opens government procurement markets to international competition. For suppliers, GPA membership means the right to bid on public contracts in signatory countries — even if you're based outside their borders.
Read more GlossaryProcurement Act 2023: UK Procurement Reform Explained
The Procurement Act 2023 is the UK’s single regulatory framework for public procurement, replacing four EU-derived regulations that had governed UK buying since the 1990s. It received Royal Assent in October 2023 and took effect on 28 October 2024, applying to all public procurement in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
Read more GlossaryCrown Commercial Service (CCS): UK Government Buying
Crown Commercial Service (CCS) is the UK government’s central purchasing body, managing over £40 billion in annual commercial agreements on behalf of public sector organisations. CCS establishes and manages the frameworks, Dynamic Purchasing Systems, and commercial agreements that central government departments, NHS trusts, local authorities, and other public bodies use to buy goods and services.
Read more GlossarySocial Value Act 2012: UK Procurement Requirements
The Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012 requires UK public sector commissioners to consider how the services they procure might improve the economic, social, and environmental well-being of the relevant area. Since PPN 06/20 made social value a mandatory evaluation criterion in central government procurement, understanding social value has become essential for winning UK government contracts.
Read more GlossaryG-Cloud & Digital Marketplace: UK Government IT Procurement
G-Cloud is the UK government’s flagship framework for buying cloud computing services, and the Digital Marketplace is the online catalogue where buyers browse and purchase G-Cloud-listed services. Together, they have facilitated over £15 billion in public sector technology procurement since launch, making them the single most important channel for IT suppliers targeting UK government.
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