International tenders: read a notice and check your eligibility in 15 minutes

To check in fifteen minutes whether an international tender is open to you, read the notice in a fixed order: subject and CPV code, lots, deadline and value; then the source of funding, which sets the nationality and origin rules; and finally the local rules (regional headquarters, domestic preference, local content), the guarantees and the language. If a single criterion blocks you, the notice is set aside or handled with a local partner.

This sorting matters, because foreign companies rarely win on their own. In the EU, contracts awarded to a company from another Member State remained at around 5% of procedures from 2011 to 2021 (European Court of Auditors, 4 December 2023). In value terms, these direct awards accounted for 3.5% from 2009 to 2015, compared with more than 20% for indirect awards, won through a subsidiary or a partner established in the buyer's country (European Commission, May 2017).

Where are international notices published?

Four sources publish notices open to French companies, with different access rules.

In 2025, France was the UN's 6th largest supplier, with $724.5 million (DG Trésor, 17 July 2026).

Minutes 0 to 5: what should you read first in the notice?

The subject and the CPV code. The CPV (Common Procurement Vocabulary) is the European nomenclature that describes the subject of a contract by an eight-digit code, for example 31170000 for transformers. Compare the main code and the supplementary codes with your catalogue: a mismatch on the main code is often enough to set the notice aside.

The lots. A contract may be divided into lots. Check which one is relevant to you and whether the buyer limits the number of lots that can be awarded to a single bidder.

The deadline. In the EU, the open procedure allows at least 35 days between dispatch of the notice and submission of tenders, a period that can be shortened in particular for electronic submission or where a prior information notice has been published (Directive 2014/24/EU, Art. 27). Also note the deadline for questions and the time zone.

The value. It shows whether the EU publication rules apply (thresholds above) and whether your turnover covers the financial capacity required.

The language. Only the version published in the language chosen by the buyer is authentic; the other languages receive only a summary (Directive 2014/24/EU, Art. 51). A machine translation is no substitute for reading the original tender specifications.

Minutes 5 to 10: is the company eligible?

First, look at who is funding the contract. The World Bank's procurement regulations accept firms from all countries; a borrower may exclude a country only where there is a legal prohibition on trading with it or in application of a decision of the UN Security Council (World Bank, 7th edition, September 2025, paras 3.20 to 3.22). The same regulations allow a 15% preference for goods manufactured in the borrowing country. In Ukraine, procurement financed by the Ukraine Facility is reserved for companies and subcontractors from eligible countries, including EU Member States, and for supplies originating in those countries (Ukrainian Ministry of Economy).

Next come the national rules. Four examples show how far they reach.

In Saudi Arabia, there is also a 10% price preference for national products: foreign bids are evaluated as if they were 10% more expensive (Clyde & Co, September 2026).

Minutes 10 to 15: which conditions can eliminate the bid?

Guarantees. The bid security commits the company's bank. In Ukraine, it is capped at 3% of the value for goods and services and 0.5% for works, in the form of an unconditional bank guarantee valid for at least 90 days (Chambers, 22 October 2025). Also check the performance guarantee required in the event of award.

Registration and formalities. In Ukraine, a qualified electronic signature and documents in Ukrainian are normally required (Chambers). On Etimad, in Saudi Arabia, bidding in practice requires a Saudi commercial registration, according to a consultancy (Setup in Saudi). At the UN, the UNGM registration level depends on the amount.

Required capacities. Minimum turnover, comparable references, certifications: a single missing criterion makes the bid non-compliant.

Debarments. Since 2010, a debarment of more than one year imposed by the World Bank, the AfDB, the Asian Development Bank, the EBRD or the Inter-American Development Bank has in principle been applied by the others (World Bank, 9 April 2010). Check your partners and subcontractors against these lists.

Bid alone or with a local partner?

The European figures argue for a partner: indirect wins are worth more than five times direct wins in value terms. Yet competition is weak: 41.8% of EU procedures received only one bid in 2021, compared with 23.5% in 2011 (European Court of Auditors). Outside Europe, local distributors win a visible share of equipment lots: in Ukraine, UNOPS medical lots were awarded to Ukrainian companies (UNGM).

Three formulas exist: supply the local distributor that bids, form a consortium with a local company, or bid alone and subcontract on-site installation. The choice follows directly from the fifteen minutes of reading: an open notice, funded by a multilateral bank and with no local content threshold, lends itself to a direct bid; a notice subject to a regional headquarters rule, a domestic preference or local registration calls for a partner.