When a framework contract (FWC) is managed through the F&T Portal, the contracting authority sends the requests for specific contracts through the portal.

The FWC Primary Coordinator Contacts (PCoCos) and Coordinator Contacts (CoCos) receive email notification when the contractor is invited to reply to a request for specific contract. The notification (accessible also in the F&T Portal section My notifications of the logged on user) includes a link to the F&T Portal section My Invitation(s) where the invitation, including all the documents attached to the request, can be found.

The F&T Portal sends to the PCoCo/CoCos also a reminder about the approaching submission deadline 5 days before the deadline (the reminder is sent only if a PCoCo/CoCo has created a draft submission in the F&T Portal).

If the contracting authority decides to cancel the request for specific contract, the PCoCo/CoCos receive a   cancellation notification by email, available also in the F&T Portal section My notifications . 

Acknowledge receipt

This first step allows you to acknowledge that your organisation has received the request for specific contract.

Open the Action menu (3) next to the invitation you wish to respond to. Select the Acknowledge Receipt option.

The status of the invitation becomes Acknowledged.

Acknowledging the invitation allows the contractor to view the request data (1), including the applicable deadlines (2), and the request documents (3) . 

You will click on Show less / Show more (4) to display less or more data and hide/unhide the request documents. 

Y ou can choose the display language by using the button at the top right of the screen:

After receiving a request for specific contract under a single or cascade FWC, the invited contractor must first express its willingness to participate, i.e. its intention to reply to the request or not. This must be done within the deadline to express willingness indicated in the request.

The contractor can start the reply submission process only after expressing willingness to participate in the request by clicking Yes and then Save. The status of the invitation becomes Accepted.

If the contractor does not intend to reply to the request, he needs to select No and provide reasons in the Comment field before clicking Save. The status of the invitation becomes Rejected.

The contracting authority is notified immediately of the contractor's positive or negative response.

If the contractor does not react within the willingness deadline, the contracting authority has the right to cancel the request or, in case of cascade FWC, send the request to the next contractor in the cascade.

The contractor can change the willingness response at at any time before the submission deadline.

Click on View willingness in the Action menu next to your invitation and then Change Willingness on the next screen.

After the submission deadline you can only view your willingness response:

After consulting the request data/documents and expressing your willingness to participate in the request if the request is made under a single or cascade FWC, you can start your submission. 

Tick the box (1) to accept the  Terms and Conditions, acknowledge that you have read and understood the Data Protection Notice and click on New submission (2) .

You can start the submission also from the Action menu of the invitation - click on Start New Submission.

You can always leave eSubmission when drafting your submission - click on the Leave   button at the top of the page. The submission will be saved as Draft which can be resumed at any time before the submission deadline. To resume the draft, find the invitation under the section My Invitation(s) from the F&T Portal menu on the left and click on View willingness under the Action button - the eSubmission screen opens where you can choose whether to resume the draft or start a new submission.

Alternatively, you can resume the draft by expanding the submissions line next to the invitation Action button and then clicking on Edit under the Action button of the draft submission.

When you start your submission you will see a progress line on top of the screen. This line shows all the steps of the submission process and your current step.

You can always consult the request data and documents by clicking on the procedure reference number button on the left side of the screen.

Identification of the participant

The submission process starts with the identification of the participant - the contractor details (in case of a consortium the details of the consortium leader and the consortium members) are retrieved from the FWC data and cannot be edited.  

The FWC Primary Coordinator Contact (PCoCo) is automatically defined as the c ontact person but the PCoCo/CoCo drafting the submission can change it by c licking on the edit icon  (1) .

This contact person becomes the PCoCo (Primary Coordinator Contact) for the submission and, if the contractor is successful, the resulting contract. Read here about PCoCo's permissions.

A form will pop up listing all contact persons already identified for the organisation in previous submissions. The name of the last person identified as contact person appears at the top of the list. If you want to designate another contact person, either select another member from the list or indicate a new contact person. If this person does not have an EU Login account, a temporary EU Login account will be automatically created based on the indicated email address. The person will be invited by email to complete the EU Login registration. The invitation will be an automatic system message with no reference to the request procedure.

Click Done after defining the contact person and then Next (2) to continue your submission.

Upload the tender data

In the step 'Tender data' you will see a field to encode the total amount of your submission (1). 

  If your total amount exceeds the contracting authority’s maximum budget announced in the request, you will receive a warning. The warning does not prevent you from proceeding with your submission - you should check the request for specific contract documents for the legal consequences. 

In requests under FWCs with reopening of competition, you need to confirm that your specific tender complies with the minimum requirements specified in the request documents or, if it does not, to provide an explanation (2). This statement will be reflected in the submission report.

Make sure you always click the Save button after entering the total amount and the confirmation about the (non) compliance.

Upload your submission documents in the Attachments section. Click on the system requirements hyperlink to view the list of accepted file types.

First, select which type of document you are uploading from the list on the right (4). T hose marked with asterisk are mandatory. 

Then, drag and drop the file in the dashed area. Alternatively, click on C hoose file to browse your computer.

  You can see which documents have been uploaded by clicking on the Submission documents button on the left side of the screen. 

To proceed click on Next (5) . T he button will be active only if all mandatory data and documents have been provided.

At this stage, your draft submission, including all your documents, is not submitted yet.

Preview the submission report

The submission report is generated by the system and is part of the submission. The report lists all the documents included in the submission and includes the details of the contact person and the person making the submission.

eSubmission automatically generates  and adds the submission report to your submission. You can consult the report on the screen or download it for your own records (before submitting the tender). You don’t need to sign and upload the signed report in eSubmission.

Note that if you do not download the submission report at this stage, you will not be able to view it anymore as it will not be accessible on eSubmission or the F&T Portal. 

To download the submission report click on this button:

The submission report is not a proof of submission. You have not submitted yet . Please proceed to the next step and   click on Submit to finalise the submission.

Submit .

The system will display a confirmation message similar to this one. 

Click Yes if you want to confirm and continue the submission. You will then no longer be able to modify this submission.

After you have submitted:

• An email notification will be sent to the email address of the contact person indicated in the submission (PCoCo) and the email address (if different) linked to the EU Login account used to submit (CoCo). 
• Both the person making the submission and the designated contact person get the notifications in the F&T Portal as well (F&T Portal section My notifications).
• This email notification contains a link to the F&T Portal where you can find the submission receipt.

• A message is displayed where you can click on the Display your submission link to open the relevant section in the F&T Portal and find the Submission Receipt.
  

• Your submission will be available under My Invitation(s) section of the F&T Portal. Search for the invitation and click on the submission link in order to display the submission. In the Action menu, you will find the option to view the receipt.

The Submission Receipt constitutes proof of compliance with the time limit for receipt of submissions.

Resume a submission draft

If the invitation status is "acknowledged" (1) , y ou can click on the submission link (2) in order to display the draft submission (3). The Action menu next to the draft submission shows an option to edit (4) this draft submission. Clicking on it will re-direct you to eSubmission.

Delete a submission draft

Search for invitation to participate in the F&T portal and click on the submission link (1) in order to display the draft submission. The Action menu next to the draft submission shows an option to delete (2) this draft submission. Clicking on it will re-direct you to eSubmission where you will confirm that you want to delete it and you will be asked to provide the reason for deletion.

The Action menu is not available for the tenders with the status Deleted. Once a draft tender has been deleted, it cannot be retrieved by the tenderer. 

Multiple submissions

Unless your FWC foresees a maximum number of submissions per contractor in response to a request for specific contract, you may prepare and submit several submissions until the submission deadline is reached.

The latest submission will be considered for the evaluation.

You can withdraw your submission only in case the request for specific contract is made under a FWC with reopening of competition and only until the submission deadline is reached.

Search for the invitation to participate in the F&T portal and click on the submission link (1) in order to display the submission. The Action menu next to the submitted submission will show an option to withdraw the submission (2) . Clicking on it will re-direct you to eSubmission where you need to confirm the withdrawal and provide the reason for it.

After confirming the withdrawal, you can use the Display your submission link to open the relevant section in the F&T Portal and find the withdrawal receipt. Search for the invitation under My Invitation(s) in the portal and click on the submission link in order to display the submission. In the Action menu, you will find the option to view the withdrawal receipt (1) .

Once you have withdrawn a submission, you cannot view, edit or submit it again.