Request to Participate
The first step in a two-stage procurement procedure, in which a supplier applies to be selected and shows it meets the selection criteria before any tender is submitted. Only the candidates the buyer selects are invited to tender.
In Detail
A request to participate is how a supplier enters any procedure that has a selection stage before tendering. Under Directive 2014/24/EU, this covers the restricted procedure (Article 28), the competitive procedure with negotiation (Article 29), competitive dialogue (Article 30), the innovation partnership (Article 31) and admission to a dynamic purchasing system (Article 34). Any economic operator may submit a request in response to the contract notice, but only those the buyer invites after assessing the requests go on to tender, negotiate or join the dialogue.
The request usually consists of the European Single Procurement Document (ESPD), a self-declaration that the supplier is not excluded and meets the selection criteria, plus any information the buyer asks for to rank candidates when it limits their number. In the UK, the equivalent document has traditionally been the selection questionnaire, which replaced the pre-qualification questionnaire (PQQ). The buyer must state in the contract notice the objective criteria it will use to choose candidates and the minimum number it will invite: at least five in a restricted procedure and at least three in the other two-stage procedures, where enough suitable candidates apply.
The deadline for requests to participate (the entry deadline) is different from the tender deadline. In a restricted procedure the minimum time limit for requests is 30 days from the date the contract notice is sent, and the tender deadline for selected candidates comes later, often set only in the invitation to tender, so it may not appear in the notice at all. Missing the entry deadline rules a supplier out even if the tender deadline is weeks away. For a DPS, requests can be made at any time while the system runs, and the buyer normally assesses each within 10 working days.
Practical Context
How it works in practice
Bid teams treat the request to participate as a short but decisive submission: candidates are compared on experience, references and capacity, so it is the stage where many suppliers are filtered out. A reusable ESPD and a library of case studies make it quick to respond. On Tender Radar, these notices are labelled 'Request to participate' and the date shown is the entry deadline, labelled 'Requests to participate by', 'Express interest by' or, for a DPS, 'Apply to join until'; when a notice publishes both the entry deadline and the tender deadline, both are shown.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a request to participate and a tender?
A request to participate shows that you are eligible and capable: it answers the exclusion grounds and selection criteria, usually through the ESPD. A tender is your actual offer for the contract, evaluated against the award criteria. In a two-stage procedure you submit the request first and tender only if you are selected.
Which deadline should I plan for?
The request deadline. It comes first, and if you miss it you cannot take part at the tender stage. The tender deadline applies only to selected candidates and is often set later, in the invitation to tender.
Is a request to participate the same as an expression of interest?
They are closely related. 'Expression of interest' is the term used when a sub-central buyer uses a prior information notice as the call for competition in a restricted procedure or competitive procedure with negotiation, and it is also common with international organisations such as UN agencies. In each case you register interest first, and the buyer then invites suppliers to the next stage.
Related Terms