Voluntary Ex-Ante Transparency Notice (VEAT)

A Voluntary Ex-Ante Transparency Notice (VEAT) is a publication a contracting authority makes on ted when it intends to award a contract without running an open competition, typically under a direct award or negotiated procedure without prior publication. Publishing a VEAT triggers a 30-day standstill period during which any party may challenge the decision before the contract is signed.

What is a VEAT?

When an authority awards a contract without publishing a contract-notice and running a competitive procedure, it is required in most cases to justify the exception. Publishing a VEAT is a way for the authority to voluntarily put that decision on record and give potential challengers a formal window to object. If the VEAT is published and the 30-day standstill period expires with no successful legal challenge, the contract gains protection from certain ineffectiveness remedies even if the direct award later turns out to have been unlawful. This protection is why authorities use VEATs: it limits the legal risk of a contract being declared ineffective long after signature.

From a market-monitoring perspective, VEATs on ted are a stream of single-source and sole-supplier award decisions. They document which supplier an authority chose to approach directly and why. Because they appear in the eforms-structured TED feed, they are searchable by cpv code, country, and authority.

Why a VEAT matters for bidders

VEATs signal that a contracting authority is awarding directly rather than competitively, which is both intelligence and a legal opening. For competitors who believe they could have offered an equivalent or superior solution, the 30-day standstill is the window to seek a review. For a supplier building market intelligence, VEATs reveal recurring sole-supplier relationships between specific authorities and specific vendors, which is useful both for competitive analysis and for positioning as an alternative supplier for future contracts. A supplier that monitors VEATs in its sector often identifies account relationships it was previously unaware of.

FAQ

Does publishing a VEAT mean the direct award is legal?

Not necessarily. The VEAT does not validate the decision; it only triggers the standstill period. If a court later finds the direct award was unjustified, the contract may still be declared ineffective if a challenge was brought within the standstill window.

How long is the standstill period after a VEAT?

The standstill period is 30 calendar days from the date of publication of the VEAT. Once it expires without a successful challenge, the contract cannot be declared ineffective on most grounds.

Where are VEATs published?

VEATs are published on ted in the same way as contract notices and contract award notices, and are accessible through the TED API using the notice type filter.