Tender Fee is the amount paid by the bidder to the tender issuing authority for purchase of a tender document. It is a non-refundable fee and is charged towards processing of a bid and its evaluation.

Unearthing the exact Tender Fee before a bid

The tender fee is clearly mentioned in a Tender Notice. A tender notice is released by a government agency or a private company when they announce a new project to invite bids from vendors. The tender notice specifies the eligibility criteria,  tender fee charges, tender fee rules like the mode of payment and the necessary documents that need to be submitted by the bidder for processing of the bid. In most cases, a deposit receipt of the tender fee, the EMD, along with the requisite documents have to be submitted together during the submission of a bid.

How does a Tender Fee differ from an EMD?

Payment of tender fee charges and EMD (Earnest Money Deposit), if asked, are mandatory for the opening and processing of a bid document. A tender fee is charged for the evaluation of documents during the bidding process. The tender fee charges are non-negotiable and non-refundable. EMD on the other hand, is like a security deposit so that the bidder doesn’t change his mind after a contract is awarded to them. It is mandatory to pay EMD during a bid submission. If the bid gets rejected, the purchasing party refunds the EMD to the vendor, unlike the tender fee charges. In case the bidder withdraws or makes an amendment to the offer after a project is awarded to them, the EMD naturally, is not refunded by the buyer.

Purpose of having Tender Fee Charges

As mentioned earlier, tender fees are levied by organisations issuing tenders to cover the costs associated with processing and evaluation of bids. Charging a tender fee is the prerogative of the organisation issuing the tender. The purpose of having tender fees are to cover the following:

  • Administrative costs – Cost of staff time, advertising and resources for fair evaluation of bids to select a contract winner.
  • Avoiding fraudulent and spurious bids – Charging a fee would ensure only serious vendors would participate in the bidding process.
  • Revenue generation – At times, the purpose of a tender fee is also to generate revenues for the tender issuing organisation.

Are there any hidden charges?

The GST on the tender fee for processing of documents is reported to be 18%. The e procurement portal may charge a certain amount that would already be mentioned on its website. These amounts are reasonable and reflect only the cost of typing, printing or publishing in an electronic format along with its delivery to prospective bidders. Other than that, there are no hidden charges on the tender fee. One has to be careful as a bidder to not get duped while paying the tender fee charges and read the tender fee rules properly before submitting a bid.

Tender Fee Rules – Avoiding Common Pitfalls

The tender fee rules are simple – The tender fee should be paid on time using the correct mode of payment. It is absolutely necessary and important to make timely payments of tender fee and EMD, failing to do so will make your bid null and void. Secondly, one must procure the receipts for the tender fee and the EMD and attach them with the bid documents. Thirdly, the mode of payment should be as per the tender fee rules and guidelines mentioned on the tender notice.

Is the tender fee an investment of a gamble?

When you consider a tender that charges a fee, it is important to weigh the pros and cons and to carefully analyse if the cost of the fee with respect to the potential value of the contract is worth bidding for it. Aside from that, one must understand the criteria of evaluation and invest only when one is confident of a competitive proposal.

Find the right tenders on BidAssist.com

With so many portals in business now, how does one keep up with the latest tenders issued by various authorities? We, at Bidassist.com offer you a comprehensive platform to help you boost your business by bringing in the largest database of tenders in India and globally under one roof. It features 1,50,000 active tenders from India and 2,80,000 active tenders globally and these tenders are organised under 50 categories to ease out your searching endeavours. BidAssist also maps your results to help you build bidding intelligence to win more tenders. We help you create bidder profiles, product catalogues and help in the documentation process. 

You can reach out to the BidAssist’s customer service team at BidAssist support for any sort of help regarding tender fee charges or their modes of payment as per the tender fee rules. We will be happy to assist you in getting the best tenders for your business.