NACE 82.1 – Office Administrative and Support Activities | Public Tenders

Definition: NACE 82.1 covers general office activities and administrative services for third parties, including postal services, document management, records management and general office communications. This group is a permanently demanded service area in public procurement.

Legal basis: NACE Rev. 2 (Regulation (EC) No 1893/2006) · Last updated: January 2026

What does NACE 82.1 cover?

NACE 82.1 (Office administrative and support activities) classifies companies that provide administrative services to public and private clients — from the mailroom to digital archiving.

Group 82.1 within Section N (administrative and support service activities) and Division 82 is divided into the following classes:

Public contracting authorities under NACE 82.1 are federal and regional authorities, municipalities, courts, social insurance providers, universities and public undertakings that outsource administrative service activities.

Public Tenders: NACE 82.1 in Practice

Office and postal services are among the frequently tendered support services of public bodies — in particular mailroom outsourcing, records management and digitisation projects are regularly awarded as framework agreements.

Typical types of contract

• Mailroom operations and courier services: External operation of public-authority mailrooms, processing of incoming and outgoing post, courier services between authority sites
• Records management and archiving: Physical and digital file management, storage of registry material, audit-proof long-term archiving
• Document management: Scanning services, indexing, transfer into document management systems (DMS)
• Data entry and capture: Manual data entry from forms and documents, quality assurance of captured data
• Reprographics and printing services: Large-volume printing contracts, enveloping, franking, dispatch preparation
• Office support and administrative assistance: Provision of temporary office staff for administrative tasks

Thresholds and procedure types

Service contracts in the area of NACE 82.1 are subject to EU-wide tendering on TED above EUR 221,000 (upper threshold for supply and service contracts of public contracting authorities, as of 2024/2025). Below this threshold, national procedures apply. Multi-year framework agreements with terms of two to four years are frequently concluded.

Relevant CPV Codes for NACE 82.1

For targeted searches for tenders in the area of office services, the following CPV codes are relevant:

Current tenders with these CPV codes are published on TED (Tenders Electronic Daily) and on national procurement platforms.

Who is NACE 82.1 relevant to in procurement law?

Public Contracting Authorities

The public sector is increasingly outsourcing routine administrative tasks to specialist providers. In Germany, federal ministries, federal authorities (e.g. Federal Central Tax Office, Federal Employment Agency) and regional and municipal authorities regularly award mailroom and document management services. In Austria, the Federal Computing Centre, federal ministries and social insurance providers are typical contracting authorities. Courts and public prosecutors frequently award file digitisation projects.

Companies and Bidders

Companies in the area of NACE 82.1 typically need to provide the following evidence for public-sector tenders:

• References: Comparable projects in document management or mailroom operations for public or private clients
• Data protection: Evidence of GDPR-compliant processes, confidentiality undertakings, and where applicable security clearance for personnel
• Certifications: ISO 9001 (quality management), ISO 27001 (information security) for IT-related services
• Economic capacity: Annual turnover, liability insurance, no insolvency

For large-volume framework agreements, bidding consortia combining a postal service provider, a scanning provider and a DMS operator are common in practice.

NACE 82.1 in Context: Section N and Division 82

NACE 82.1 is part of Division 82 (office administrative, support and other business support activities) within Section N.

• NACE N – Administrative and support service activities: Parent section
• NACE 82 – Office administrative, support and other business support activities: Parent division
• NACE 82.2 – Activities of call centres: Telephone customer contact and public-authority hotlines
• NACE 82.3 – Organisation of conventions and trade shows: Event management
• NACE 82.9 – Business support service activities n.e.c.: Debt collection, credit checks, copy-typing services

Frequently Asked Questions on NACE 82.1 and Public Tenders

Which companies fall under NACE 82.1?
Service providers whose principal turnover comes from the provision of general office and administrative services to third parties — including mailroom operators, scanning providers, archiving companies and typing services.

Are postal services for public contracting authorities subject to procurement obligations?
Yes, where the contract value exceeds the relevant thresholds. Some postal services fall under the Postal Act and are subject to special regulation; the award is nevertheless subject to general procurement law.

What data protection requirements apply to records management for public authorities?
Service providers must act as data processors within the meaning of the GDPR, conclude a data processing agreement and demonstrate appropriate technical and organisational measures (TOMs). For particularly sensitive data, security clearance of personnel may be required.

Are office services often split into lots?
Yes, particularly for large framework agreements geographic lots (by site) or functional lots (post, archive, print) are typically formed to involve SMEs.

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