## 2. GENERAL INFORMATION ON TENDERING 

## 2.1. Legal basis: what are the rules? 

This call for tenders is governed by the provisions of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 July 2018 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union (the Financial Regulation)$^{1}$. 

The Contracting authority  has chosen to award the contract resulting from this call for tenders through a competitive procedure with negotiation pursuant to Article 164(1) (f) of the Financial Regulation, point 12.1(b)(i) Annex I (the needs of the contracting authority cannot be met without adaptation of a readily available solution) 

An economic operator who has submitted a request to participate is referred to here below as candidate whereas a candidate who has submitted a tender is referred to as tenderer . 

In the first step only the exclusion and selection criteria are assessed and in the second step the award criteria are evaluated. 

## 2.2. Rules on access to procurement: who may submit a tender? 

Participation in this call for tenders is open on equal terms to all natural and legal persons coming within the scope of the Treaties, as well as to international organisations. 

It is also open to all natural and legal persons established in a third country which has a special agreement with the European Union in the field of public procurement on the conditions laid down in that agreement. Where the Agreement on Government Procurement$^{2}$ concluded within the World Trade Organisation applies, the participation to this call for tenders is open to all natural and legal persons established in the countries that have ratified this Agreement, on the conditions laid down therein. 

The rules on access to procurement do not apply to subcontractors. Subcontracting may not be used with the intent to circumvent the rules on access to procurement. 

To enable the Contracting authority to verify the access, each candidate/tenderer must indicate its country of establishment (and in case of joint tender – the country of establishment of each group member) and must present the supporting evidence normally acceptable under the law of that country/-ies. The same document(s) could be used to prove 

