TENDER SPECIFICATIONS - European...

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1 EUROPEAN COMMISSION DIRECTORATE-GENERAL REGIONAL AND URBAN POLICY Audit The Director CALL FOR TENDERS N° CCI 2016CE16BGT002 Provision of external audit services to Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy, Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries and Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development TENDER SPECIFICATIONS

Transcript of TENDER SPECIFICATIONS - European...

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION DIRECTORATE-GENERAL REGIONAL AND URBAN POLICY Audit

The Director

CALL FOR TENDERS

N° CCI 2016CE16BGT002

Provision of external audit services to Directorate-General for Regional

and Urban Policy, Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs

and Inclusion, Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries

and Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development

TENDER SPECIFICATIONS

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. INFORMATION ON TENDERING .......................................................................... 4

1.1. Participation ....................................................................................................... 4

1.2. Contractual conditions ....................................................................................... 4

1.3. Compliance with applicable law ........................................................................ 4

1.4. Joint tenders ....................................................................................................... 4

1.5. Subcontracting ................................................................................................... 5

1.6. Content of the tender ......................................................................................... 5

1.7. Identification of the tenderer ............................................................................. 5

1.8. Presentation of bids ........................................................................................... 6

2. TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS .............................................................................. 6

2.1. Title of the contract ............................................................................................ 6

2.2. Introduction ....................................................................................................... 6

2.3. Background ........................................................................................................ 7

2.4. Subject of the contract ....................................................................................... 8

2.5. Tasks .................................................................................................................. 9

2.6. Standards ......................................................................................................... 12

3. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CONTRACT .......................................................... 12

3.1. Nature of the Contract ..................................................................................... 12

3.2. Duration and maximum volume of the Contract ............................................. 12

3.3. Possible use of е-request and e-invoicing ........................................................ 13

3.4. Location for performance of services .............................................................. 13

3.5. Organisation of the work of the Framework contract ...................................... 13

3.6. Specific contracts ............................................................................................. 16

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4. EVALUATION AND AWARD ............................................................................... 19

4.1. Verification of non-exclusion .......................................................................... 19

4.2. Selection criteria .............................................................................................. 20

4.3. Award criteria .................................................................................................. 24

4.4. Technical offer ................................................................................................. 25

4.5. Financial offer .................................................................................................. 25

5. ANNEXES ................................................................................................................ 27

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1. INFORMATION ON TENDERING

1.1. Participation

Participation in this procurement procedure 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 Union in the field of public procurement on the conditions laid

down in that agreement. Where the plurilateral Agreement on Government Procurement1

concluded within the World Trade Organisation applies, the participation to this procedure

is also open to all natural and legal persons established in the countries that have ratified

this Agreement, on the conditions it lays down.

1.2. Contractual conditions

The tenderer should bear in mind the provisions of the draft contract which specifies the

rights and obligations of the contractor, particularly those on payments, performance of the

contract, confidentiality, and checks and audits.

1.3. Compliance with applicable law

The tender must comply with applicable environmental, social and labour law obligations

established by Union law, national legislation, collective agreements or the international

environmental, social and labour conventions listed in Annex X to Directive 2014/24/EU2.

1.4. Joint tenders

A joint tender is a situation where a tender is submitted by a group of economic operators

(natural or legal persons). Joint tenders may include subcontractors in addition to the

members of the group.

In case of joint tender, all members of the group assume joint and several liability towards

the Contracting Authority for the performance of the contract as a whole, i.e. both financial

and operational liability. Nevertheless, tenderers must designate one of the economic

operators as a single point of contact (the leader) for the Contracting Authority for

administrative and financial aspects as well as operational management of the contract.

1 See http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_E/gproc_e/gp_gpa_e.htm

2 Directive 2014/24/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on public

procurement and repealing Directive 2004/18/EC (OJ L 94, 28.3.2014, p. 65).

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After the award, the Contracting Authority will sign the contract either with all members of

the group, or with the leader on behalf of all members of the group, authorised by the other

members via powers of attorney.

1.5. Subcontracting

Subcontracting is permitted in the tender but the contractor will retain full liability towards

the Contracting Authority for performance of the contract as a whole.

Tenderers must give an indication of the proportion of the contract that they intend to

subcontract.

Tenderers are required to identify subcontractors whose share of the contract is above 10%.

During contract execution, the change of any subcontractor identified in the tender or

additional subcontracting will be subject to prior written approval of the Contracting

Authority.

1.6. Structure and content of the tender

The tenders must be presented as follows:

Part A: Identification of the tenderer (see section 1.7)

Part B: Evidence for exclusion criteria (see section 4.1)

Part C: Evidence for selection criteria (see section 4.2)

Part D: Technical offer (see section 4.4)

Part E: Financial offer including Price Table (see section 4.5)

1.7. Identification of the tenderer

The tender must include a cover letter signed by an authorised representative presenting

the name of the tenderer (including all entities in case of joint tender) and identified

subcontractors if applicable, and the name of the single contact point (leader) in relation to

this procedure.

In case of joint tender, the cover letter must be signed either by an authorised

representative for each member, or by the leader authorised by the other members with

powers of attorney. The signed powers of attorney must be included in the tender as well.

Subcontractors that are identified in the tender must provide a letter of intent signed by an

authorised representative stating their willingness to provide the services presented in the

tender and in line with the present tender specifications.

All tenderers (including all members of the group in case of joint tender) must provide a

signed Legal Entity Form with its supporting evidence. The form is available on:

http://ec.europa.eu/budget/contracts_grants/info_contracts/legal_entities/legal_entities_en.

cfm

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Tenderers that are already registered in the Contracting Authority’s accounting system (i.e.

they have already been direct contractors) must provide the form but are not obliged to

provide the supporting evidence.

The tenderer (or the leader in case of joint tender) must provide a Financial Identification

Form with its supporting documents. Only one form per tender should be submitted. No

form is needed for subcontractors and other members of the group in case of joint tender.

The form is available on:

http://ec.europa.eu/budget/contracts_grants/info_contracts/index_en.cfm

The tenderer (and each member of the group in case of joint tender) must declare whether

it is a Small or Medium Size Enterprise in accordance with Commission Recommendation

2003/361/EC. This information is used for statistical purposes only.

1.8. Presentation of bids

Bids must be submitted in duplicate (i.e. one original and one copy) and an electronic copy

contained on a USB stick for each of the technical and financial offers.

They must include all the information required by the Contracting Authority (see points

under 1.6 above).

They must be clear and concise.

They must be signed by the legal representative.

They must be submitted in accordance with the specific requirements of the invitation to

tender, within the deadlines laid down.

2. TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

2.1. Title of the contract

Framework contract for assistance to Commission services with the execution of audits,

controls and related audit activities in the fields of the European Union's Regional and

Urban Policy, Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries

and Agriculture and Rural Development.

2.2. Introduction

The European Commission, referred to as "the Commission", and the following

contracting authorities, the Directorate-Generals for Regional and Urban Policy (REGIO),

Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion (EMPL), Agriculture and Rural Development

(AGRI) and Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (MARE) collectively "the Contracting

Authority", are launching an invitation to tender for audit services on programmes and

projects financed from the Union Budget either under direct, indirect or under shared

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management mode3 with a view to concluding a multiple framework contract in cascade

with a maximum of three companies, valid for an initial period of one year from the

starting date of the contract, with a possibility of renewal for a further three years.

The aim of the framework contract is to provide audit services to the Contracting Authority

for the audit of programmes and projects co-financed under the programming periods

2014-2020, 2007-2013 and to a lesser extent 2000-2006 and 1994-1999. The possible

funds for co-financing these projects are the European Regional Development Fund

(ERDF), the Cohesion Fund (CF), the European Social Fund (ESF), the European

Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD), the European Maritime & Fisheries

Fund (EMFF), the EU Solidarity Fund (EUSF), the Fund for European Aid to the Most

Deprived (FEAD), the Youth Employment Initiative (YEI), the European Agricultural

Guarantee and Guidance Fund (EAGGF), the European Fisheries Fund (EFF), the

Financial Instrument for Fisheries Guidance (FIFG), the Instrument for Pre-accession

Assistance (IPA) and the technical assistance budget of the Contracting Authority.

2.3. Background

The Directorates-General (DGs) making up the Contracting Authority implement their part

of the budget of the European Union using the management methods set out for each

policy in the corresponding basic instrument.

For the funds in REGIO, EMPL and MARE, the policies are delivered through the shared

management method of implementation with agreement on multi-annual development and

investment programmes between the Commission, Member States and regions. These

programmes are implemented by Member State authorities who report annually on

progress. These multi-annual programmes ensure consistency and continuity over a seven-

year period. In addition to the work on the current programming period (2014-2020), the

DGs continue to cooperate with Member States audit authorities to ensure that the funds

still available for the 2007-2013 periods are effectively and soundly spent and used to the

best possible effect. Preparations for closing 2007-2013 will also be starting in 2016. Work

could also be needed on the financial follow-up of irregularities that have been reported by

the Member States to OLAF for earlier programming periods (1994-1999 and 2000-2006).

For details on the programmes managed by the concerned DGs, please refer to their

respective websites4.

For the current programming period 2014-2020, Cohesion Policy is delivered through three

main funds: the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the Cohesion Fund (CF)

and the European Social Fund (ESF). Together with the European Agricultural Fund for

Rural Development (EAFRD) and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF),

they make up the European Structural and Investment (ESI) Funds. The ESI Funds are the

main EU funds for the 2014-2020 period for supporting jobs and growth across the EU.

3 Art. 58 of Regulation No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and the Council of 25 October 2012. 4 Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy:

http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/regional_policy/index_en.htm

Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion:

http://ec.europa.eu/social/home.jsp?langId=en

Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries:

http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/maritimeaffairs_fisheries/index_en.htm

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Under the shared management method of implementation the Member State designates an

audit authority for each operational programme (along with a managing authority and

certifying authority). The audit authority is a national, regional or local public authority or

body responsible for verifying the effective functioning of the management and control

system. It also monitors project compliance with national and European regulations.

The audit authority's tasks include checking whether the management and control systems

are working efficiently through system audits and controls focusing specifically on

declared expenditure (audits on operations). To provide assurance to the Commission the

audit authority has to deliver documents including annual control reports, annual audit

opinions, and system audit reports.

For the funds EAGGF and EAFRD in AGRI5, the Union finances, either in the context of

shared management or in a centralised manner, agricultural expenditure.

In order to protect the financial interests of the Union, it is essential that the expenditure

referred to above is properly controlled. Under shared management, the national authorities

are responsible for the necessary controls related to the payments. These tasks have been

attributed to accredited Paying Agencies of the EU Member States.

The Contracting Authority also provides grants and contracts under direct management

from its technical assistance budget mainly for studies and conferences, which additionally

need to be audited and controlled.

2.4. Subject of the contract

In order to gain assurance on the effective functioning of the management and control

systems and the legality and regularity of the expenditure for the programming periods

(2014-2020 and 2007-2013), on the financial follow-up of irregularities for the 2000-2006

and 1994-1999 programming periods and on direct management expenditure by the

contracting DGs, the Contracting Authority will require support for its audit activities and

will contract out services by concluding multiple framework contracts with up to three

companies for the supply of audit services. These outsourced services will be carried out

under the direct control and supervision of Commission officials and are not intended as a

means of securing staff to perform public-authority duties.

The Commission needs to be able to perform several types of audits of programmes,

projects, grants and contracts financed from the Union Budget and in particular within the

framework of the programmes managed by Directorates-General for Regional and Urban

Policy, Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, Agriculture and Rural Development and

Maritime Affairs and Fisheries in their policy areas.

The audits and controls can take place at any time during the performance of the

programme or the project with respect to the beneficiaries, projects, transactions or

systems, using methodologies ranging from audit opinions to agreed-upon procedures and

including different types of audit (system audits, financial audits, audits of operations, IT

audits, etc. as defined in 2.5 Tasks), as well as audits before delegating to other bodies the

5 Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development:

http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/agriculture/index_en.htm

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budget-implementation tasks. The audits and controls will be made up of desk and on-the-

spot audit work in all Member States or candidate countries and shall be performed by

auditors mastering English, French or German and the language of the Member State for

which the audits or controls are being performed. Several audits could be executed

simultaneously and a homogenous network of audit offices in each Member State should

be available to allow the audit work to take place in all Member States.

The contract also covers desk audit work as described under heading 2.5.2.

2.5. Tasks

2.5.1. Assistance to the Contracting Authority's services with execution of

audits and controls - On-the-spot audit work:

The contractor may be required to perform and assist with the performance of on-the-spot

audit work that could include fact finding missions, risk-based compliance audits on the

legality and regularity of expenditure included in programme accounts, audits on the

quality and reliability of established systems for reporting performance data, other targeted

thematic audits on specific risky areas such as verification of public procurement

procedures, State aid and IT systems, as described in more detail below. In addition the

contractor may be requested to carry out "on the spot checks" of expenditure under direct

or indirect management.

The Contracting Authority's staff may also accompany the contractor on audit missions.

The following list of audits is a non-exhaustive list explaining the different types of audits

that could be requested. The first group in the list would not require an opinion by the

contractor. The second group of audits would require an opinion by the contractor unless

otherwise stated in the specific contract.

Group 1 – audits for which an opinion will generally not be required

System audit - intended to verify the capacity of the management and control system to

provide reasonable assurance that legal requirements have been complied with and

that the audited systems function effectively, this may include re-performance of the

work carried out by programme auditors.

Re-performance audit - intended to verify the work of the audit authority, reviewing

the capacity of the management and control system to provide reasonable assurance

that legal requirements have been complied with and that the audited systems function

effectively. Can cover system audits/audits of operations performed by the audit

authorities.

Audits of operations - the report to be produced is intended to provide assurance that

the operations have been carried out in line with the applicable laws and regulations,

(inter alia Cohesion Policy regulations for different programming periods, financial

regulations, public procurement and State aid regulations, national and programme

eligibility rules etc.).

Audit of recoveries and financial corrections - to verify that statements on the amounts

withdrawn and recovered during the accounting year are accurate, true, complete and

reliable and that they correspond to effective and accurate corrections of irregularities.

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Closure audits (2007-2013) - audits in order to establish that requests for final

payments are accurate and based on reliable documentation and to verify the legality

and regularity of the expenditure declared under the winding-up declaration.

Specific audit assignments or ad-hoc audits - to verify particular gaps in the

management and control systems of the auditee (e.g. respect of public procurement

procedures, fact finding missions, fraud assessment etc.) or audits meeting very

specific needs not listed above, e.g. the ex-ante verification of Simplified Cost Options

or Joint Action Plans (JAPs).

Agreed upon procedures - procedures of an audit nature giving rise to reporting of

factual findings established on the basis of criteria and tests set by the Commission

services.

Group 2 – audits for which an opinion will generally be required

Information technology (IT) audits – to examine the reliability of systems for reporting

performance data. These audits will also cover the compliance with the IT

requirements and standards for the IT system used.

IT audits could also be audits of the IT systems of Member States in relation to the

implementation of Agricultural and Rural development measures under shared

management.

Audits on the reliability of data on performance indicators – audit to ensure that the

data relating to progress of the operational programme in achieving its objectives and

relating to its indicators and milestones is reliable and of high quality and to verify the

systems and procedures in place for the storage of this data.

Performance audit - to examine to what extent the audited entity has used the funds

received for performing its activity or action in accordance with the principles of

economy, efficiency and effectiveness.

Audit on the operability of the project – intended to provide an opinion on the physical

implementation of the project, requiring for example engineering or other scientific or

technical expertise.

Audit of accounts/financial statements - intended to provide an assurance regarding the

completeness, accuracy and veracity of the programme annual accounts to be

submitted to the Commission by 15 February each year and includes the audit of the

accounts provided annually by the beneficiary countries.

On-the-spot checks of expenditure under direct management - ex-post controls relating

to grant agreements directly concluded between the Contracting Authority and the

beneficiaries.

Financial audits/expenditure verifications – to confirm that all payments were made

on the basis of eligible expenditure, to verify the reliability of the financial statements,

to assess the accounting system procedures and that the accounting records are

properly kept.

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2.5.2. Assistance to the Contracting Authority's services with associated desk

audit work

The Contracting Authority would request assistance from the external auditor for the

development of audit and control strategies and methodological tools, to provide advice

and guidance for the Contracting Authority and for support with desk reviews and

analysis. In addition there may be some tasks relating to desk based checks of expenditure

under direct or indirect management. Typically the assignments will involve the drafting

of reports prepared following desk research; the following non-exhaustive types of audit

related tasks are possible:

Support for desk reviews and analysis: including reviews or analysis for REGIO, EMPL

and MARE of the annual audit opinion, annual control reports, national system audit

reports, the acceptance of accounts and closure declarations submitted by national

authorities and the analysis of other audit related documents such as system descriptions

for antifraud measures and eligibility rules. These desk reviews could also include

accounting activities and analysis of the certification bodies reports related to the annual

financial clearance for AGRI.

Support for development of methods, tools and techniques: review and validation of the

methods, tools and techniques developed or planned (such as the types of audit to be

defined, auditing standards to be respected, methods for sampling of audit populations,

analysis of audit risks, planning, and monitoring, especially via databases and evaluating

audits and checks, design of specific audit checklists) within the framework of the

development of strategies for audit and control.

Support for implementation and adaptation of audit tools: external support for the

implementation and improvement of audit methodologies, tools and techniques or their

adaptation to the specific environment.

Support for ex-ante control of simplified cost options: external support for ex-ante desk

based reviews of methodologies and data proposed by Member States to underpin

simplified cost options devised in accordance with Article 67 of the Common Provisions

Regulation, JAPs or proposed Delegated Acts under Article 14.1 of the ESF Regulation.

Support for the financial follow-up of irregularities: Article 5§2 requests6: including

consulting the latest data in the Irregularity Management System (IMS) database managed

by OLAF, checking the amounts with the Member States, reviewing and updating OLAF's

opinions and preparing relevant consultations, correspondence and draft decisions.

6 Regulation (EC) N° 1681/94, as amended, lays down the provisions on the reporting of irregularities

and the recovery of sums wrongly paid in the area of structural policies. Article 5§2 of this regulation

establishes under which conditions a Member State may ask the Commission to decide about the

liability in relation to irrecoverable amounts. Regulation (EC) N° 2035/2005 amending Regulation (EC)

N° 1681/94 raised the threshold for communication from € 4.000 to € 10.000 ("de minimis policy") and

removed the obligation to report cases of simple bankruptcies, with the exception of cases of suspected

fraud.

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2.6. Standards

The audit firm (or the audit firms of a consortium) undertakes to comply with generally

and internationally accepted standards for auditing and accounting (in public and in private

sector). Audit work is carried out in accordance with ISSAI standards of the International

Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI); The Commission service will

request the contractor to perform the audit work in line with the relevant ISSAI standard.

3. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CONTRACT

3.1. Nature of the Contract

A multiple framework contract is a procedure whereby identical contracts are concluded

separately between the Commission and a number of contractors to ensure that the contract

can be performed successively by one or other of the contractors, in the event of a conflict

of interests or the unavailability of the first one of the list. The model framework contract

applicable in this instance is reproduced in Annex I. Tenderers must declare that they

accept this model contract, and take it into account when preparing their bids.

The services under the framework contract will be requested by the Contracting Authority,

as and when necessary, by way of subsequent specific contracts through its Orders for

Services system as described in point 3.6.1 below. The Contracting Authority will also

provide, via these specific contracts, the contractor with the audit methodology to be

followed and will define the tasks to be performed.

Tenderers' attention is drawn to the fact that the framework contract does not constitute

placement of an order but is merely designed to set the legal, financial, technical and

administrative terms governing relations between the contracting parties during the

contract term. Orders may be placed solely on the basis of specific contracts in accordance

with the provisions of Annex III to the framework contract in Annex I of these

specifications.

Signature of the framework contract does not commit the Contracting Authority to placing

orders and does not give the contractor any exclusive rights regarding the services covered

by the framework contract. In any case, the Contracting Authority reserves the right, at any

time during the framework contract, to cease placing orders, without the contractor having

the right to any compensation.

3.2. Duration and maximum volume of the Contract

The duration of the framework contract will be one year from the date of signature by the

last contracting party. The framework contract shall be renewed automatically up to 3

times under the same conditions, unless written notification to the contrary is sent by one

of the contracting parties and received by the other, in accordance with the provisions set

out in the model framework contract in Annex 1.

The maximum amount of this framework contract is estimated at EUR 18 600 000, over

the four year period. It will comprise the remuneration and all expenses to be paid to the

contractor in return for services rendered in accordance with the framework contract. The

expected split of the work between the Contracting Authority's Directorate Generals is

three quarters REGIO, EMPL and MARE (to a lesser extent) with one quarter AGRI.

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The Contracting Authority reserves the right to use a negotiated procedure for increasing the

ceiling of the framework contract based on Article 134(1)(e), of the Rules of application of

Financial Regulation7.

No price revisions to the contract shall be allowed except the ones foreseen in Article I.5.2

of the draft framework contract.

3.3. Possible use of е-request and e-invoicing

In the future the intention is that the ordering procedure between the Commission and the

contractors will be automated by use of the е-request application. By the same token, the

invoicing procedure between the Commission and the contractor will be automated by the

use of the е-invoicing application.

Tenderers are informed that, at the request of the Commission, the use of both e-request

and e-invoicing may become mandatory for contractors during the lifetime of the contract.

Tenderers should be aware of the fact that other applications related to logistics aspects

that are currently under development by the European Commission may be implemented

on a voluntary basis during the execution of the contract.

3.4. Location for performance of services

Audits and controls may at the Contracting Authority's request, be carried out on

documents and/or on the spot in any place where the Union funds in question are managed

or used (almost exclusively in the 28 Member States or the candidate countries) or on the

contractor's premises and on the Contracting Authority's premises in Brussels (Belgium).

3.5. Organisation of the work of the Framework contract

3.5.1. Overall management of the Framework contract

REGIO will be the overall manager for the framework contract defined in these tender

specifications, which includes the role of contact point for the contractors, general

coordination and keeping an overview on the use of the framework contract.

The management of the specific contracts will rest with the tendering Contracting

Authority service. The tendering Contracting Authority service will hence have the sole

responsibility for the budget and financial management of each specific contract.

The Contracting Authority will issue service requests for specific audit tasks to the

contractor under the system described in point 3.6.1 below and in the draft framework

contract. The language for communication with the contractor will be either English or

French. The contractor shall respect the confidentiality of all information obtained in the

course of the ordered audit work.

7 COMMISSION DELEGATED REGULATION (EU) No 1268/2012 of 29 October 2012 on the rules of

application of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on

the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union (OJ L 362, 31.12.2012, p. 1).

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The selected contractor will work closely with the Contracting Authority so that the latter

is able to guide and monitor the implementation of tasks within the specified timeframe.

When necessary, the relevant services of the Contracting Authority will meet the

contractor in Brussels, in particular:

- at the start of the requested service, when instructions will be given,

- at the end of the work when the company submits its final report and operational

conclusions are drawn,

- if requested by REGIO at least once a year, at the framework contract level, to

assess the progress of its implementation.

3.5.2. Progress reports in the context of managing the Framework contract

The following reports must be produced on all the work carried out by the contractor in

performance of the framework contract. Contractors who have signed a specific contract

must supply REGIO, at the address indicated in Art. I.8 of the framework contract in

Annex I, by electronic mail as follows:

Interim activity reports

Every three months, the contractor must submit an interim activity report.

This report must summarise the work performed and the results obtained for the previous

three months. It will indicate in particular:

- the quantity and the price of the work performed during the reference period;

- a cumulative summary table of the work containing the contract number attributed

by the user department and contact person, the date of signature of the contract, a

high level summary of the deliverables, the number of audits carried out, the

contractor's contact person, the maximum amount of the contract, the end date of

the contract, a statement of payments, the state of play of the contract and any

comments to clarify a problem or the reasons for a delay;

- the work programme scheduled for the following period.

The reports must be sent to REGIO within 30 days of the end of the reference period.

Final activity report

One month before the end of the framework contract at the latest, the contractor must also

submit a final cumulative activity report containing, in consolidated form, all the elements

that must be included in each interim activity report.

The cost of producing the above reports must be borne exclusively by the contractor; the

Contracting Authority will not participate in any way in the expenditure incurred, whether

it relates to the drafting, production or distribution of the reports required.

3.5.3. Organisation of the key expert staff in the Framework contract

The key experts staff are considered to be those of category 1 and category 2 (see also

4.2.2.b). During the audits, the key expert staff of the contractor shall, inter alia, perform

the following tasks and will have the responsibilities described below. The contractor will

designate a co-ordinator, who will be responsible for the management and co-ordination of

the services requested by the Contracting Authority in the specific contracts and team

leaders in charge of the execution of the specific contracts:

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The audit co-ordinator (category 1) shall:

- be an audit and control partner and have the statutory capacity to commit the

company in writing;

- maintain all contacts with the Contracting Authority and the auditing teams;

- he/she will sign each draft and final report sent to the Contracting Authority,

after having ensured their conformity with the corresponding specific contract,

their quality, completeness and consistency and their conformity with

International Standards on Auditing.

- transmit to the relevant Contracting Authority services all required

documentation and reports on behalf of the contractor and as specified in the

framework contract and the specific contract;

- transfer all the documents, related to the audit services to be carried out, from

the Contracting Authority to the contractor's auditing teams;

- plan desk reviews and/or on-the-spot audits according to detailed audit

objectives, scope and methodology (including sample projects to be audited) and

instructions provided by the Contracting Authority (attached to each specific

contract);

- instruct, supervise and monitor the audit teams on the work to be carried out;

- be responsible for the contractor’s travel arrangements and accommodation on-

the spot;

- (if necessary) request a meeting with the Contracting Authority, to clarify any

issues that have not been resolved;

- ensure that the auditing teams made available by the contractor are staffed with

the quality and number of auditors necessary to meet the definition in the

specific contract,

- ensure that the timetable for implementation of the audits is respected and

inform the Contracting Authority without delay of possible issues with the

audited operations/organisations (these problems could include, but are not

limited to, non-cooperation from the auditee, lack of supporting documents for

the costs claimed, in-appropriate book-keeping and elements of suspected

financial irregularity, including possible fraud);

- ensure a coordinated and uniform approach towards the beneficiary countries in

relation to audit findings;

- at any time provide the Contracting Authority with all the elements to support

and defend the conclusions reached in cases of disagreement with the audited

organisation on the conclusions made by the auditors.

The necessity of an audit team leader will be assessed by the Contracting Authority for

each specific contract.

The audit team leader (category 2) will:

- be responsible for the execution of the individual specific contracts;

- ensure that the audit teams are familiar with the financial and operational

provisions of the framework contract, the operation(s) to be audited and any

particular methodologies and standard reporting formats to be used;

- plan the audit tasks in accordance with the specific contract;

- clarify and resolve any problems that the auditing teams may encounter during

an audit;

- manage the audit team;

- analyse evidence gathered, deduce findings and recommendations;

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- discuss findings and come to agreement on recommendations with the audited

body;

- review the working papers and reports of the audit team;

- ensure that the quality of such report is compliant with the guidelines provided

by the audit coordinator;

- ensure that audit standards are adhered to.

The Contracting Authority will do its utmost to ensure that the contractor’s staff receives

the cooperation of the management of the body to be audited in the execution of the

ordered audit work. If either the contractor or the Contracting Authority establishes that the

ordered audit work cannot be accomplished because of the lack of co-operation of the body

to be audited or the Member State, it shall immediately inform the other party. In this

event, the Contracting Authority may decide to stop the audit engagement, notifying the

contractor forthwith. In this event, the contractor shall be remunerated for work actually

performed and for the expenses incurred up to the date of the cessation of the audit

engagement, in accordance with the provisions of Article II.14.3 of the framework

contract, but shall have no claim for further compensation.

3.6. Specific contracts

3.6.1. Methodology for supply of specialised services under the specific

contracts system

A specific contract is a Commission document sent to the contractor, pursuant to which the

contractor is required to carry out a particular task for the former in accordance with the

terms and conditions laid down in the framework contract. The specific contracts will

define the more specific matters related to each audit mission such as nature and scope of

audit work, starting and ending dates, place of delivery and linguistic skills required.

The three-step procedure is as follows:

Step one: A request for services will be drawn up and sent by the Contracting Authority to

the Contractor. These requests will be accompanied by the Tender Specifications defining

the services to be performed and may include an estimate of the working days and types of

profiles needed for the work.

Step two: The contractor must, within 10 working days, submit an offer detailing the

expert or teams to whom they propose to entrust the carrying out of the services, a planned

methodology and a price. This must then be approved by the Contracting Authority.

Step three: The Contracting Authority will confirm its request for services by means of a

specific contract. The specific contract will be accompanied by precise and detailed

contractual specific Tender Specifications from the above-mentioned Step one about the

services to be performed, with a clear and detailed indication of the methodology, the fixed

duration of the corresponding mission, the fixed deadlines for the delivery of reports and

for services, and the fixed contractual expected inputs in working days of nominated

experts. The contractor's offer including the retained experts' CVs will also be attached to

this specific contract.

The specific contract shall be formally registered on the part of the Contracting Authority

and signed by the authorised Commission official. Each specific contract will be given its

own reference number. This reference number, together with the reference number of the

framework contract, must be quoted by the contractor in all correspondence with the

Contracting Authority relating to this specific contract.

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3.6.2. The replacement of key experts in a specific contract

The Framework contractor shall not make changes to the agreed key experts of a specific

contract without the prior written approval of the Contracting Authority. The Framework

contractor must on its own initiative propose a replacement in the following cases:

- in the event of illness or accident of a member of staff;

- if it is necessary to replace a member of staff for any other reasons beyond the

Framework contractor’s control (e.g. resignation).

(a) Moreover, in the course of performance, and on the basis of a written and justified

request, to which the Framework contractor may provide his own and the staff member's

observations, the Contracting Authority can ask for a replacement if it considers that a

member of staff is inefficient or does not perform his/her duties in accordance with the

contract.

(b) Where a member of staff must be replaced, the replacement must have at least

equivalent qualifications and experience, and his/her remuneration cannot exceed that

received by the member of staff who has been replaced. Where the Framework contractor

is unable to provide a replacement with at least equivalent qualifications and/or experience,

the Contracting Authority may either decide to terminate the contract, if the proper

performance of it is jeopardised, or, if it considers that this is not the case, accept the

replacement, provided that the fees of the latter are renegotiated to reflect the appropriate

remuneration level.

(c) Additional costs incurred by the replacement of staff are the responsibility of the

Framework contractor. The Contracting Authority makes no payment for the period when

the expert to be replaced is absent. The replacement of any expert, whose name is listed in

the specific contract, must be proposed by the Framework contractor within 5 working

days from the first day of the expert's absence. If after this period the Framework

contractor fails to propose a replacement in accordance with point (a) above, the

Contracting Authority may apply a penalty up to 10% of the remaining fees of that expert

to be replaced.

3.6.3. Training of experts

The Contracting Authority requires that all the contracted experts become familiar with the

applicable legislation and with all the documents provided in support of the specific

contract that are needed to carry out the audit.

3.6.4. Content, Structure and reporting requirements of the final deliverables

within specific contracts

Interim report

For specific contracts over 80.000€, the contractor may submit an invoice for an interim

payment accompanied by a progress report or any other document, in accordance with the

description of this document provided in the specifications for the relevant specific

contract.

Draft report and final report

Except where the specific contracts contain provisions to the contrary, each of the services

provided by the contractor under a specific contract will be the subject of a draft report

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followed by a final report. The contractor must report on the services rendered in

performing the specific contracts.

The contractor shall assure that the software that they use is compatible with the

Commission's standard software (MS-Word for texts and MS-Excel for tables and figures,

MS-PowerPoint for presentations).

The draft report must arrive at the Contracting Authority not later than 20 working days

counting from the end date of the field work indicated in the specific contract. The

Contracting Authority shall have 20 working days to approve or reject the Draft Report. If

the Draft Report is rejected, then the contractor has another 10 working days to submit a

new Draft Report.

If the Contracting Authority approves the Draft Report, then the contractor may send the

Final Report in the form of an unlocked electronic document within 10 working days after

the approval of the draft report by the Contracting Authority.

Approval of the final report by the Contracting Authority is one of the requirements for

payment to the Contractor (see article I.6 and article II.21.6 of the framework contract).

The Contracting Authority shall have 60 days from receipt to approve or reject the final

report and proceed with the payment of the relevant invoice. A rejection of the final report

interrupts the 60 day deadline for payment.

The cost of producing the above reports must be borne exclusively by the contractor; the

Contracting Authority will not participate in any way in the expenditure incurred, whether

it relates to the drafting, production or distribution of the reports required.

Content of draft and final reports

Each draft report and final report must be submitted in either English or French as

indicated in the related specific contract. In addition, if requested by the specific contract a

translation of the final report into the official language of the country in which the audit

was carried out must be provided in the same format, except for candidate countries. The

reports should be sent in unprotected electronic versions and if specified in the specific

contract also in hard copy.

The report shall describe the work carried out in respect of the specific contract.

The contractor shall maintain sufficient records of the audit work performed to

demonstrate the work done. The Contracting Authority shall have the right to obtain and

review/control the records and to discuss the operational conclusions of the draft report

with the contractor.

The contractor should prepare working papers which are sufficiently complete and detailed

with an adequate audit trail to provide an overall understanding of the audit. Working

papers may be in the form of data stored on paper, electronic or other media.

The contractor should document matters which are important in providing evidence to

support the audit opinion and provide evidence that the audit was carried out in accordance

with the International Standards on Auditing.

The contractor should record in the working papers information on planning the audit

work, the nature, timing and extent of the audit procedures performed, the corresponding

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results and the conclusions drawn from the audit evidence obtained. Working papers

should include the contractor’s reasoning on all significant matters which require the

exercise of judgement, together with the contractor’s conclusion. In areas involving

questions of principle or judgement, working papers will record the relevant facts.

Each finding listed in the final report should be accompanied by a reference to the relevant

working paper justifying what has been found and the relevant conclusion. The working

papers will accompany the final report and all these documents are the property of the

Contracting Authority.

The format of the final report will be described in the specifications of each specific

contract.

4. EVALUATION AND AWARD

The evaluation is based solely on the information provided in the submitted tender. It

involves the following:

Verification of non-exclusion of tenderers on the basis of the exclusion criteria

Selection of tenderers on the basis of selection criteria

Verification of compliance with the minimum requirements set out in these tender

specifications

Evaluation of tenders on the basis of the award criteria

The contracting authority may reject abnormally low tenders, in particular if it established

that the tenderer or a subcontractor does not comply with applicable obligations in the

fields of environmental, social and labour law.

The tenders will be assessed in the order indicated above. Only tenders meeting the

requirements of one step will pass on to the next step.

4.1. Verification of non-exclusion

All tenderers shall provide a declaration on honour (see Annex II), duly signed and dated

by an authorised representative, stating that they are not in one of the situations of

exclusion listed in the Annex II.

In case of joint tender, each member of the group must provide a declaration on honour

signed by an authorised representative.

In case of subcontracting, all subcontractors whose share of the contract is above 10%

must provide a declaration on honour signed by an authorised representative.

The successful tenderer shall provide the documents mentioned as supporting evidence in

the declaration of honour before signature of the contract and within a deadline given by

the Contracting Authority. This requirement applies to each members of the consortium in

case of joint tender and to subcontractors whose intended share of the contract is above

10%.

A tenderer (or a member of the group in case of joint tender, or a subcontractor) is not

required to submit the documentary evidence if it has already been submitted for another

procurement procedure and provided the documents were issued not more than one year

before the date of their request by the contracting authority and are still valid at that date.

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In such cases, the tenderer must declare on its honour that the documentary evidence has

already been provided in a previous procurement procedure, indicate the reference of the

procedure and confirm that that there has been no change in its situation.

A tenderer (or a member of the group in case of joint tender, or a subcontractor) is not

required to submit a specific document if the contracting authority can access the

document in question on a national database free of charge.

4.2. Selection criteria

Tenderers must prove their legal, regulatory, economic, financial, technical and

professional capacity to carry out the work subject to this procurement procedure.

The tenderer may rely on the capacities of other entities, regardless of the legal nature of

the links which it has with them. It must in that case prove to the Contracting Authority

that it will have at its disposal the resources necessary for performance of the contract, for

example by producing an undertaking on the part of those entities to place those resources

at its disposal.

The tender must include the proportion of the contract that the tenderer intends to

subcontract.

4.2.1. Declaration and evidence

The tenderers (and each member of the group in case of joint tender) and subcontractors

whose capacity is necessary to fulfil the selection criteria must provide the declaration on

honour (see Annex II), signed and dated by an authorised representative, stating that they

fulfil the selection criteria applicable to them. In case of joint tender or subcontracting, the

criteria applicable to the tenderer as a whole will be verified by combining the various

declarations for a consolidated assessment.

This declaration is part of the declaration used for exclusion criteria (see section 4.1) so

only one declaration covering both aspects should be provided by each concerned entity.

After contract award, the successful tenderer will be required to provide the evidence

mentioned below before signature of the contract and within a deadline given by the

contracting authority. This requirement applies to each member of the group in case of

joint tender and to subcontractors whose capacity is necessary to fulfil the selection

criteria.

A tenderer (or a member of the group in case of joint tender, or a subcontractor) is not

required to submit the documentary evidence if it has already been submitted for another

procurement procedure and provided the documents were issued not more than one year

before the date of their request by the contracting authority and are still valid at that date.

In such cases, the tenderer must declare on its honour that the documentary evidence has

already been provided in a previous procurement procedure, indicate the reference of the

procedure and confirm that that there has been no change in its situation.

A tenderer (or a member of the group in case of joint tender, or a subcontractor) is not

required to submit a specific document if the contracting authority can access the

document in question on a national database free of charge.

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4.2.2. Legal and regulatory capacity

Tenderers must prove that they are allowed to pursue the professional activity necessary to

carry out the work subject to this call for tenders. The tenderer (including each member of

the group in case of joint tender) must provide the following information in its tender if it

has not been provided with the Legal Entity Form:

- For legal persons, a legible copy of the notice of appointment of the persons authorised to

represent the tenderer in dealings with third parties and in legal proceedings, or a copy of

the publication of such appointment if the legislation applicable to the legal person requires

such publication. Any delegation of this authorisation to another representative not

indicated in the official appointment must be evidenced.

- For natural persons, if required under applicable law, a proof of registration on a

professional or trade register or any other official document showing the registration

number.

4.2.3. Economic and financial capacity criteria and evidence

In order to prove their economic and financial capacity, the tenderer (i.e. in case of joint

tender, the combined capacity of all members of the consortium and identified

subcontractors) must comply with the following criteria:

The following economic and financial evidence should be provided:

- Statement of overall turnover and turnover in respect of the services to which the

contract relates for the previous two financial years of at least EUR 15 million per

year (applicable to a consortium as a whole),

- Copy of the profit & loss account and balance sheet for the last two years for

which accounts have been closed (including net income figures),

- Failing that, appropriate statements from banks

- Evidence of professional risk indemnity insurance.

If, for some exceptional reason which the Contracting Authority considers justified, a

tenderer is unable to provide one or other of the above documents, he or she may prove his

or her economic and financial capacity by any other document which the Contracting

Authority considers appropriate. In any case, the Contracting Authority must at least be

notified of the exceptional reason and its justification in the tender. The Contracting

Authority reserves the right to request any other document enabling it to verify the

tenderer's economic and financial capacity.

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4.2.4. Technical and professional capacity criteria and evidence

a. Criteria relating to tenderers

Tenderers (in case of a joint tender the combined capacity of all tenderers and identified

subcontractors) must comply with the following criteria:

- A full description of the tenderer's references in the domain concerned. This should

include examples of work covering at least three years' work directly related to

these services and products, indicating how the tenderer has carried out similar

types of work in the past for public or private sector recipients.

- The availability of a co-ordination office, to ensure close co-operation with the

Contracting Authority. A co-ordinator will be designated by the tenderer and will

be in charge of the co-ordination office.

- The presentation of a homogeneous network of audit offices covering the Member

States. For each audit office, evidence of their technical and professional

competence should be presented. Particular attention should be paid to the

presentation of sufficient information about the presence, staffing levels,

qualifications and the work experience of the tendering parties in the 28 Member

States.

- Evidence of affiliation to a body such as the IFAC (International Federation of

Accountants), the IIA (Institute of Internal Auditors) or equivalent. In the absence

of such an affiliation, the tenderer should demonstrate how they will undertake to

comply with international audit standards.

- The audit firm must ensure that their own standards in relation to all security

matters including, but not limited to, physical security, data security, and virus

protection shall be in accordance at all times with the highest possible standards,

best industry practice, and any relevant legislation or code of practice with which

they are bound to comply.

- The tenderer must prove capacity to mobilise audit teams in all Member States and

to draft reports in all EU languages.

b. Criteria relating to the team delivering the service:

The team delivering the service should include, as a minimum, the following profiles:

The name, CV, evidence of educational and professional qualifications of

Audit partner/co-ordinator - Staff Category 1 (see also 3.5.3)

Be an audit partner who should have:

- at least fifteen years' professional experience carrying out audit and control

missions,

- at least five years' experience managing a department,

- should have an excellent command of English or French (at least CEFR Proficient

user C1),

- status of certified auditor,

- the statutory capacity to commit the company in writing.

Audit team leader - Staff Category 2 (see also 3.5.3)

- at least ten years' professional experience carrying out audit and control missions,

- at least five years' professional experience managing teams of at least 5 people,

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- should have an excellent command of English or French (at least CEFR Proficient

user C1),

- status of certified auditor.

Audit specialist (for example in Fraud/IT/Law) - Staff Category 2

- at least ten years professional experience carrying out audit and control missions,

- at least five years professional experience in the specialised audit field,

- should have an excellent command of English or French (at least CEFR Proficient

user C1),

- status of certified auditor.

Audit senior - Staff Category 3

- at least three years' professional experience carrying out audit and control missions,

- should have an excellent command of English, French or German (at least CEFR

Proficient user C1),

- status of certified auditor.

Audit junior - Staff Category 4

- at least one year professional experience carrying out audit and control missions,

- should have an excellent command of English, French or German (at least CEFR

Proficient user C1),

- sound knowledge of audit and control theory.

The following technical and professional evidence should be provided to fulfil the above

criteria:

- A list of services proving experience in auditing public administrations' expenditure in

various beneficiary countries. The provision of services directly relevant to the tender

submitted must have been provided within the last three years. The list should include

at least ten audits, each one invoiced over €5 000, with at least one audit of each of the

following types:

financial audit,

IT audit,

compliance audit,

system audit,

- The list should also include the amount, date and public or private recipients of the

services.

- The tenderer should prove the linguistic capacity of the team to audit in all Member

State languages.

- If supplied to contracting authorities, evidence must be provided in the form of

certificates issued or countersigned by the competent authority; if supplied to private

purchasers, provision of service is to be certified by the purchaser or, failing this,

simply declared by the tenderer to have been provided.

- The educational and professional qualifications of the persons who will provide the

service for this tender (3 CVs for each staff category except 1 CV for category I)

including the management staff. Each CV provided should indicate the intended

function in the delivery of the service.

- The CVs provided should show proof of coverage within the team of at least 5 different

Member State languages in total.

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4.3. Award criteria

The tender will be awarded according to the "best-value-for-money" procedure.

4.3.1. Quality criteria

The quality of the tender will be evaluated based on the following criteria. The maximum

total quality score is 100 points.

Qualitative award criteria - Tenders must score minimum 50% for each criterion and

sub-criterion, and minimum 60% in total

Award criteria

Information to be provided Points

1. Quality and relevance

of the proposed

methodology and work

organisation for

performing the audit

tasks

Sub-criterion 1.1 –

Management, and

coordination of the

contract

Tenderers should show how they will

distribute and coordinate the work. The

communication/coordination between

members of the audit team, between the

contractor and the Contracting Authority and

between the contractor and the auditees must

also be explained.

If the tender involves either sub-contracting or

a consortium they should indicate clearly the

roles played by all the participants in the

delivery of the requested services.

(max 20

points)

Sub-criterion 1.2 –

Organisation of the

future work including

measures to assure

continuity of service

for both on-the-spot

and desk audit work

Detailed description of organisational structure

to be set up to manage the different tasks

required to perform the services covered by the

invitation to tender.

The mechanisms that will be used for ensuring

timely availability of the audit expertise

needed and a continuous service should be

described.

(max 20

points)

Sub-criterion 1.3 –

Methodology,

planning and tools for

the audit tasks

A description should be provided of the

methodologies and tools that will be used to

undertake the different audit tasks defined for

the call, including how they will cover audits

in each of the Member States.

Tendering parties should explain in detail how

they would ensure that a homogeneous

approach would be applied to audit work

carried out in all the beneficiary countries.

(max 20

points)

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2. Measures to achieve

high quality services

Sub-criterion 2.1 –

System of quality

control to guarantee

quality of services and

adherence to deadlines

Presentation of methods and systems intended

to control the quality of the services, and to

ensure that they are provided within agreed

deadlines and budgets

(max 10

points)

Sub-criterion 2.2 –

Measures to ensure

sufficient training and

guidance of auditors

The contractor should describe how adequate

and appropriate training and guidance are

provided to the experts used for the audit

work.

(max 10

points)

3. Balance of profiles

and breakdown of tasks

The tenders must explain how the tasks are

going to be distributed, the roles, profiles,

responsibilities and lines of reporting within

their own hierarchy. Description of the general

composition of audit teams for on-the spot

audit work should also be included.

(max 10

points)

4. Confidentiality The contractor's arrangements to guarantee the

confidentiality of audit elements when

required (documents, checklists, contracts,

records of meetings, audit reports).

(max 10

points)

Tenders that do not reach the minimum quality thresholds will be rejected and will not be

ranked.

4.3.2. Price criteria

After evaluation of the quality of the tender, the tenders are ranked using the formula

below to determine the tender offering " best-value-for-money ".

A weight of 70/30 is given to quality and price.

Score for tender X = (total quality score (out of 100) for all award criteria of

tender X) *70% + (cheapest price / price of tender X) *100*30%

The 3 tenderers obtaining the highest score when applying the above formula will be

proposed for award of the contract in descending order. This will determine the order of

calls for tender when a specific contract is requested.

4.4. Technical offer

The technical offer must cover all aspects and tasks required in the technical specification

and provide all the information needed to apply the quality award criteria under 4.3.1.

Offers deviating from the requirements or not covering all requirements will be rejected on

the basis of non-compliance with the tender specifications and will not be evaluated.

4.5. Financial offer

The price for the tender must be quoted in euro. Tenderers from countries outside the euro

zone have to quote their prices in euro. The price quoted may not be revised in line with

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exchange rate movements. It is for the tenderer to assume the risks or the benefits deriving

from any variation.

Prices must be quoted free of all duties, taxes and other charges, including VAT, as the

European Union is exempt from such charges under Articles 3 and 4 of the Protocol on the

privileges and immunities of the European Union. The amount of VAT may be shown

separately.

Services will be provided on fixed unit prices, under specific contracts. The unit price

should cover the experts' fees including travel expenses, subsistence expenses of the

contractor and his staff (covering the expenditure incurred by experts on trips outside their

normal place of work), accommodation and administrative expenses. Translation prices of

final reports for on the spot audits should also be included in the unit price.

The price used to determine the tender which offers the best value for money is based on

the following weighted purchase scenario derived from fixed unit prices.

Price table

Daily rate at the contractor's premises in € Days

Daily rate at the Contracting Authority's premises in Brussels in € Days

Daily rate for on-the-spot mission in Europe in € Days

Category 4 – Junior auditor 10 10 10

Category 3 – Senior auditor 20 20 20

Category 2 – Team leader/Manager 5 5 5

Category 1 – Partner/co-ordinator 1 1 1

(a) (b) (c)

(a), (b) and (c) are the sums of the unit costs multiplied by the related number of days.

For example: (a) = unit cost for an Category 4 x 10 + unit cost for a Category 3 x 20 + unit cost for a Category 2 x 5 +

unit cost for a Category 1 x 1

The unit price applicable for Europe is the price of an expert who is on an audit mission and not based at the contractor's

or the Contracting Authority's premises.

The daily rates should include any air fares, living expenses and administrative expenses – see above paragraph.

Europe area is defined as the 47 members of the Council of Europe at the date if the 1st of February 2015;

http://www.coe.int/web/portal/home.

Price = (a) + (b) + (c)

The price table, to be filled in by the Tendering Parties, will constitute the future

contractual basis for the specific contracts pricing by both parties. To this end it will be an

integral part of the Framework Contract. Tendering parties are also reminded that only

prices included within this table will be taken into account for the basis of concluding the

framework contract. All prices for additional cost of co-ordination, general administration

etc, will be ignored – such costs must be included as part of the price offer in the Table of

Unit Prices.

Tendering parties must leave the presentation of this price table unchanged.

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5. ANNEXES

Annex I: Model Framework Contract

Annex II: Declaration on honour on exclusion criteria and selection criteria

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Annex I – Draft Framework Contract

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Annex II – Declaration on honour on

exclusion criteria and selection criteria