Basics
Tender terms glossary: what NIT, BOQ, corrigendum, LoA and other tender terms mean
Plain meanings of the tender terms bidders meet, from NIT, BOQ and corrigendum to bid validity, EMD, L1, QCBS, LoA, AOC and ATC on GeM, grouped by stage.
By GovtTenderHub editorial teamUpdated 11 min read
On this page
In short
- NIT is the notice inviting tender: the published notice that a buyer intends to buy, with enough detail for you to decide whether to bid.
- BOQ is the bill of quantities: the items and quantities you put prices against. On NIC portals it's the Excel sheet you upload as your financial bid.
- A corrigendum is a change to a tender issued before the bid deadline. It can move dates or change specifications and conditions, so check for one before you submit.
- An LoA (letter of award) tells the winner its bid is accepted. Bid validity is how long your offer must stay open for acceptance: 90 days if the tender doesn't say.
- On GeM, ATC means additional terms and conditions: the buyer's bid-specific terms, which override GeM's general and category terms where they conflict.
Tender documents have their own shorthand, and misreading one term can cost a bid: a price in the wrong cover, a bank guarantee that expires before the bid validity, a corrigendum nobody saw. This glossary explains the terms you meet from finding a tender to getting paid, grouped by stage, using the meanings in the government's own rules and manuals. Where one of our guides covers a term in depth, the definition links to it.
Finding a tender
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Tender, bid | A tender (or tender enquiry) is the document a buyer publishes to invite offers, and the process up to the award. Your offer is a bid, also called a quotation or proposal. |
| NIT (notice inviting tender) | The notice announcing that a buyer intends to buy, with enough information for you to decide whether and how to take part. Also called an invitation to bid. |
| Open tender (OTE) | An advertised tender that any firm meeting the eligibility can bid in. See types of government tenders. |
| Limited tender (LTE) | A tender sent only to firms on the buyer's registered list, more than three of them. Bids from firms that weren't invited aren't accepted. |
| Single tender (STE), PAC | A purchase from one chosen firm, allowed only for a sole manufacturer, an emergency or standardisation (Rule 166). A proprietary article certificate (PAC) records why only that make will do. |
| Global tender (GTE) | A tender that invites foreign firms as well. Central buyers can't use one up to ₹200 crore without special approval. |
| EOI (expression of interest) | A first-stage call in which firms show their experience and capability, without prices, so the buyer can shortlist them. |
| RFP (request for proposal) | The document sent to shortlisted firms, mostly consultants, asking for technical and financial proposals against the terms of reference (Rule 186). |
| Rate contract | An agreement fixing an item's price and terms for a period, typically a year, with no quantity guaranteed. Buyers place supply orders against it as needed. |
| Bid submission end date | The deadline for bids. The portal's server time is the reference, and late bids aren't considered (Rule 165). |
The tender document
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Tender document (bidding document) | The full set of papers: instructions to bidders, conditions of contract, schedule of requirements, specifications, price schedule and forms (Rule 168). |
| GCC, SCC | General conditions of contract are the standard terms. Special conditions of contract are specific to the tender and override the GCC where they conflict. |
| Eligibility criteria | The minimum experience, capability and financial strength a bidder must prove, such as similar work done and turnover. See documents required. |
| Corrigendum | A change to the tender issued before the bid deadline, on the buyer's own initiative or in answer to bidders' questions. A significant change extends the deadline by at least three days. |
| Pre-bid meeting | A meeting, sometimes online, where bidders raise questions, normally 15 to 21 days after the tender is issued. Minutes follow within seven days, with a corrigendum if the tender changes. |
| Bid validity | How long your bid must stay open for acceptance: the period in the tender, or 90 days if it doesn't say. A bid valid for less is rejected. |
| GTC, STC (GeM) | GeM's general terms and conditions apply to every GeM contract. Special terms and conditions apply to a product or service category and override the GTC. |
| ATC (GeM) | Additional terms and conditions: the buyer's bid-specific terms, which override the GTC and STC. Buyers can add them only through GeM's ATC module, not by pointing to outside documents. See how to read a GeM bid document. |
Money: EMD, fees and securities
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| EMD (earnest money deposit), bid security | A refundable deposit with your bid, ordinarily 2–5% of the estimated value (Rule 170), lost if you withdraw or change your bid during its validity, or win and don't sign or give performance security. See EMD in tenders. |
| EMD exemption | Micro and small enterprises, DPIIT-recognised startups and firms registered with the buyer don't pay EMD in central tenders (Rule 170). GeM asks for none in bids under ₹5 lakh. |
| Bid securing declaration | A signed undertaking in place of EMD: if you withdraw or change your bid, or win and don't sign or give performance security, you're suspended from that buyer's tenders for a stated period (Rule 170). |
| Tender fee (cost of tender document) | A charge for the tender document. Central buyers normally charge nothing for downloads (Rule 161) and give MSEs documents free, but many state and PSU tenders charge a fee. |
| Bank guarantee (BG) | A guarantee from a commercial bank, including an e-bank guarantee, accepted as EMD or performance security. Insurance surety bonds, demand drafts, fixed deposit receipts and online payment are also accepted (Rules 170 and 171). |
| Performance security (PBG) | The winner's guarantee for the contract: 3–5% of the value for goods and services, 3–10% for works counting security deposit, valid 60 days past all obligations including warranty (Rule 171). See performance security. |
| ePBG (GeM) | The term GeM bid documents use for performance security: up to 5%, due within 15 days of the award, and not needed for direct or L1 purchases. |
| Security deposit, retention money | In works, a share of each running bill, usually 5%, held back until final acceptance. Half is released at taking over, the rest after the defect liability period. |
Bidding and bid opening
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Cover (packet, envelope) | A separately sealed part of an e-bid. A two-cover tender has a technical and a financial cover, opened at different stages; some add a pre-qualification cover. |
| Technical bid | The cover with your eligibility documents, technical details and commercial terms, without prices. It's opened and evaluated first. |
| Financial bid (price bid) | Your price, opened only if your technical bid qualifies. On e-procurement portals, the others stay encrypted. |
| BOQ (bill of quantities) | The items and quantities you price; the priced BOQ is your financial bid. On NIC portals, fill values only in the cells provided and don't rename the Excel file or sheet. |
| Freezing the bid | The last step of an NIC portal submission, giving you an acknowledgement with a bid ID as proof. Online fee and EMD payments must go through first. |
| Resubmission, withdrawal | Where the tender allows, you can resubmit until the deadline, and only the latest version counts. Withdraw a bid on an NIC portal and you can't bid again in that tender. |
| Tender status | A tender's stage on an NIC portal: technical bid opening, technical evaluation, financial bid opening, financial evaluation, AOC, retender, cancelled or concluded. See tender status and results. |
| Responsive bid | A bid that meets the tender's requirements with no substantive deviation: nothing that affects scope, quality or performance, limits the buyer's rights, or would be unfair to others if corrected. |
| L1, L2 | The lowest and second-lowest evaluated prices among technically qualified bids; the contract ordinarily goes to L1. See L1 in tenders. |
| H1 | The highest price, which wins when the government sells, as in scrap auctions. In QCBS, H1 is the highest combined score. |
| QCBS (quality and cost based selection) | Evaluation combining technical and price scores with weights set in the RFP, such as 70:30, with quality at most 80% (Rule 192). Used mainly for consultancy. |
| Reverse auction (e-RA) | A live online auction in which bidders offer successively lower prices during a set time (Rule 167). See GeM reverse auction. |
| Bid to RA (GeM) | A GeM bid whose technically qualified sellers go on to a reverse auction: the lower-priced half, or all but the highest (H1), as the buyer chooses. |
| Purchase preference | When L1 isn't one of them, an MSE within 15% of L1 may match L1 and supply up to 25% of the order, and a Class-I local supplier within 20% may match L1 for half or, in some cases, all of it. See MSME benefits. |
Award and contract
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| LoA (letter of award), LoI (letter of intent) | The letter telling you your bid is accepted. Where performance security is required, the contract is formed once you furnish it, usually within 14 to 28 days. |
| Purchase order, work order | The contract itself: a purchase or supply order for goods, a work order for works and services. On GeM, the contract is the purchase order generated on the portal. |
| Contract agreement | The formal contract signed after the award. In works, it must be executed before the work starts (Rule 139). |
| AOC (award of contract) | Publication of who won and at what value. Central buyers must publish awards on CPPP (Rule 159), and NIC portals show AOC as a tender status. |
| Consignee | The person or office the goods are to be delivered to under the contract, sometimes through an interim consignee. |
| PRC, CRAC (GeM) | The provisional receipt certificate the consignee issues on delivery, and the consignee receipt-cum-acceptance certificate issued on acceptance. GeM payment for goods is due within 10 days of the CRAC and bill. |
| Liquidated damages (LD) | A pre-agreed deduction for late delivery: by the goods manual's standard, 0.5% of the delayed goods' price per week, up to 5% of the contract value, unless the contract says otherwise. |
| Force majeure | Events beyond control, such as natural calamities, war or riots, that suspend obligations while they last. Give notice promptly; after 90 days either side may end the contract without penalty. |
| Debarment | A ban from bidding: up to two years from a buyer's tenders for breaching the code of integrity, or up to three years from all tenders after certain convictions, such as under the Prevention of Corruption Act (Rule 151). |
Portals, registrations and policies
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| CPPP (GeM-CPPP) | The Central Public Procurement Portal, where central ministries, departments and autonomous bodies must publish tenders, corrigenda and awards (Rule 159). |
| GePNIC | NIC's Government eProcurement System, behind eprocure.gov.in and many state and PSU e-tender portals. You enrol on each portal and map your DSC. See government tender portals. |
| GeM | The Government e-Marketplace, where government buyers purchase common-use goods and services online, from order to payment. See GeM registration. |
| DSC (digital signature certificate) | The Class 3 certificate on a USB token you sign e-bids with; on NIC portals bidders need only a signing certificate. See DSC for e-tender. |
| Udyam registration | The Ministry of MSME's online registration for enterprises. Since July 2020 it's how MSEs qualify for procurement benefits. |
| MSE (micro and small enterprise) | Gets EMD exemption, free tender documents and purchase preference in central tenders, for goods it makes and services it provides. Traders and works contracts are excluded. |
| DPIIT-recognised startup | A startup recognised by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade: exempt from EMD (Rule 170), and eligible for relaxed prior experience and turnover (Rule 173). |
| Class-I, Class-II local supplier | Under the Make in India order, a supplier whose offer has at least 50% local content (Class-I) or 20% (Class-II), unless a ministry sets higher levels. Only Class-I gets purchase preference. See Make in India. |
| OEM (original equipment manufacturer) | The owner of the product's brand or trademark, or the actual maker of unbranded goods. On GeM, OEMs need a vendor assessment unless exempt. |
| MAF (manufacturer's authorisation) | The OEM's letter authorising a dealer to offer its product. Except for off-the-shelf items, a dealer quoting another company's product must attach it, or the bid can be rejected. |
| Registered supplier, empanelment | A firm on a buyer's approved list after checks, for one to three years at a time (Rule 150). Limited tenders go only to such firms; in works it's called enlistment. |
Common questions
What is the full form of NIT and BOQ in a tender?
NIT is notice inviting tender, the published notice of a tender. BOQ is bill of quantities, the list of items and quantities you price in your financial bid.
Can a buyer extend the bid validity?
It can ask, preferably before the validity runs out. Bidders who agree extend their bid and EMD without changing any terms, and a bidder who refuses doesn't lose its EMD.
What is the difference between EMD and performance security?
EMD comes from every bidder, unless exempt, with the bid, and secures the bid. Performance security comes only from the winner, after the award, and secures the contract.