Official Journal of the European Union in Procurement Law 2026

The OJEU is the official publication medium for EU-wide contract notices. Structure, Supplement (TED) and significance for bidders explained.

Definition: The Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) is the official publication medium of the EU institutions; in procurement law its Supplement (formerly the "S series", today TED — Tenders Electronic Daily) is particularly relevant, since all EU-wide contract notices by public contracting authorities must be published there.

Last updated: January 2026 · Legal status: Art. 51 Directive 2014/24/EU; Regulation (EU) No 216/2013; Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/1780 (eForms)

What is the OJEU in the procurement context?

The Official Journal of the European Union is the only legally binding publication medium for EU-wide contract notices and thereby guarantees Union-wide transparency in public procurement. Contracting authorities that award contracts above the EU thresholds are obliged to publish their contract notices in the Supplement to the Official Journal (Art. 51 Directive 2014/24/EU). Publication in the Supplement is a precondition for triggering the minimum time limits for tenders and requests to participate.

Structure of the OJEU

The OJEU is published in two main series:

Series L (Legislation): Binding EU legal acts such as regulations, directives and decisions
Series C (Information and Notices): Non-binding acts, opinions, notices

For procurement law, the Supplement (S series / TED) is decisive, which since 2016 is available exclusively electronically and is published daily.

TED — Tenders Electronic Daily

TED (Tenders Electronic Daily) is the database and platform through which the Supplement to the OJEU is electronically accessible and on which all EU-wide contract notices can be published, searched and downloaded.

TED is accessible at https://ted.europa.eu and offers:

Several thousand new notices daily
Search filters by CPV code, country, contracting authority, type of contract
Download capability in XML and PDF format
Alert function (email notification on new notices)
Access to historical notices

eForms — new standard forms since 2023

Since 25 October 2023, the eForms standard forms (Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/1780) are mandatory for all EU-wide contract notices. The eForms replace the previous standard forms (Regulation (EU) No 842/2011) and introduce structured, machine-readable data formats, more transparency and better analysability. Contracting authorities must produce notices in the new eForms and submit them via the TED eSender system.

Significance for bidders

For bidders, TED is the primary source of EU-wide tender information. Structured TED monitoring by relevant CPV codes and country filters is an essential tool of sales management for undertakings active in the public procurement market. Many commercial providers offer TED-based tender services with enhanced filtering capabilities.

FAQ

Is publication in the OJEU free of charge? Yes, publication of contract notices on TED is free for public contracting authorities. Access to TED is also free for bidders.

In which languages are notices published? Notices are published in the respective official language of the contracting authority's country. Machine translation into other EU languages is available via TED.

What is the difference between a prior information notice and a contract notice in the OJEU? The Prior Information Notice (PIN) is an optional announcement of a planned procurement and can shorten the tender deadlines. The actual contract notice formally launches the procurement procedure.

Last updated: January 2026 All information provided without warranty. For legally binding advice, consult a law firm specialising in public procurement law.