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Knowledge about European public tenders
Articles on the documents and rules of a European public tender, from the thresholds to the award decision. You read how to go through the instructions and purchasing conditions, what selection criteria and exclusion grounds ask for and how to use the clarification round. Also: writing for points, references and CVs, the best price-quality ratio, and what can still change after the award.
- European public tenderARVODI, ARIV and the VNG model: Dutch government purchasing conditions explained for biddersWhich general purchasing conditions Dutch public buyers use, from ARVODI-2025 and ARIV-2026 to the VNG model for municipalities, what to check as a bidder, what the Proportionality Guide says and how to ask for changes in the clarification round.November 2026 · 10 min read
- European public tenderModifying a public contract after award: when is it a substantial modification?What EU and Dutch procurement law allow when a public contract changes after award: the de minimis rule, review clauses, additional work up to 50%, unforeseen circumstances, and when a change becomes a substantial modification. Seen from the contractor’s side.November 2026 · 10 min read
- European public tenderLots in public tenders: which lots should you bid for?Why Dutch public buyers divide a tender into lots (percelen), how limits on the number of lots you may bid for or win work, when you can bid for a combination of lots, and how to choose which lots to bid for.November 2026 · 10 min read
- European public tenderDynamic purchasing system (DPS): how it works and how to get admitted in the NetherlandsWhat a dynamic purchasing system is under Dutch and EU procurement law, how admission to a DPS works and how fast the buyer must decide, how a specific contract within the DPS is awarded, and how it differs from a framework agreement.November 2026 · 10 min read
- European public tenderCVs and key staff in a public tender: requirements, scoring and replacementWhen a public buyer asks for CVs or key staff in a tender, what that means for who you must deploy, how to write a CV for a bid, and what the GDPR asks of you.November 2026 · 10 min read
- European public tenderEU procurement thresholds 2026 and 2027: when a public contract becomes a European tenderThe EU procurement thresholds for 2026 and 2027 by type of contract, excluding VAT, with how a public buyer estimates the contract value and what the threshold changes for you as a bidder, explained with the Dutch rules.November 2026 · 9 min read
- European public tenderReading tender documents: get to the core in one hourHow to read the tender documents of a Dutch public tender: what each document covers, a fixed reading order for the first hour, what to do with contradictions and which document prevails, with a checklist.November 2026 · 10 min read
- European public tenderExclusion grounds and the Dutch certificate of conduct for tenders (GVA): what to prove and whenWhich exclusion grounds are mandatory and which are discretionary in Dutch public procurement, how long a conviction or failing counts, and how to get the certificate of conduct for tenders (Gedragsverklaring Aanbesteden) from Justis: cost, processing time and how old it may be.November 2026 · 11 min read
- European public tenderMarket consultation before a public tender: how to get something out of it as a bidderWhat a preliminary market consultation (marktconsultatie) is in Dutch public procurement, which rules apply to companies that take part, where to find one, what to share and what to keep back, and how to help shape requirements, lots and time limits without weakening your position in the tender that follows.November 2026 · 9 min read
- European public tenderTeaming up for a public tender: consortium, subcontracting or relying on third partiesTeaming up for a public tender in the Netherlands works as a consortium, with a subcontractor, or by relying on the capacity of another company. What the difference is, what the buyer may require, who fills in which ESPD, and when joint bidding with a competitor is allowed.November 2026 · 9 min read
- European public tenderThe Dutch Proportionality Guide: what it means for you as a bidderWhat the Gids Proportionaliteit is, why a Dutch public buyer must follow it or explain why not, which rules matter most in practice, and how to challenge a disproportionate requirement: with a question, a complaint or through the Dutch Public Procurement Expert Committee.November 2026 · 7 min read
- European public tenderSustainability as an award criterion: how to score points with itHow public buyers weigh sustainability, why a concrete plan for this contract beats a general story, and how the Dutch CO2 Performance Ladder works as an award advantage.October 2026 · 3 min read
- European public tenderSocial return: what is asked and how to deliver itHow social return works in Dutch public tenders, how contributions are valued per type of hire or activity, what it costs you, and why it often fails at the handover from sales to operations.October 2026 · 3 min read
- European public tenderFramework agreements: bidding when the volume is not fixedWhat a framework agreement is, why a buyer must state an estimated and a maximum quantity, and how to price when the volume is uncertain.October 2026 · 3 min read
- European public tenderAn error in your bid: what can you still correct?When a public buyer may let you correct an error or missing document, why it does not have to, and why checking is the only real protection.October 2026 · 3 min read
- European public tenderAbnormally low tenders: when must a price be justified?What an abnormally low tender is, what the buyer has to investigate, how to back up your own sharp price, and when it makes sense to challenge a competitor.October 2026 · 3 min read
- European public tenderThe final week: how to submit without anything going wrongWhy your bid should be finished days before the deadline, what to check in those last days, and which small mistakes make a good bid invalid.October 2026 · 4 min read
- European public tenderReferences: which ones to choose, and how to use themWhat a public buyer may ask for in references, how to choose when you have more than you need, and why you always call a referee first.October 2026 · 3 min read
- European public tenderA method statement that scores pointsWhat sets an excellent method statement apart from an average one: concrete, measurable, light on the buyer, honest about risks, and short.October 2026 · 3 min read
- European public tenderSelection criteria and knock-outs: read them, challenge them, or team upWhich requirements a public buyer may set, when a requirement is too heavy, how a question can get it changed, and when you are better off working with another company.October 2026 · 4 min read
- European public tenderAfter the award decision: learn from losing, and from winningWhat an award decision should contain, how to analyse the reasoning, why you also ask why you won, when an objection makes sense, and how to carry the lessons into your next bid.October 2026 · 3 min read
- European public tenderAward criteria: how to write for pointsThe difference between a sufficient and an excellent answer to a quality question, where to find added value, why you write for someone who does not know your trade, and why every promise needs proof.October 2026 · 4 min read
- European public tenderBest price-quality ratio (BPKV): why 70/30 does not mean what you thinkWhich scoring models are common, why the percentage split says little, and how one better score on one quality question can make up for a large price difference.October 2026 · 5 min read
- European public tenderInstructions, specifications and clarification questions: how to influence a public tenderHow the documents in a public tender fit together, in which order to read them, and how a well-made clarification question can get a requirement changed or dropped.October 2026 · 6 min read
- European public tenderCan a small business win a European public tender?Yes, more often than you think. Where smaller companies get stuck, what Dutch procurement law does for you, how to approach it and when you are better off not bidding.October 2026 · 5 min read
READ ON
- GuideEuropean public tenders: the complete guideFrom finding a tender to the award, in seven phases. All our articles on European public tenders, in the order you need them.
- Free calculatorBPKV: how much price or quality do you need to win?How much lower to bid or how many more quality points you need to come first, against your estimate of the competition.
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