What is the CPV?

The CPV is the Common Procurement Vocabulary employed in the procurement field throughout the EU in order to identify the precise nature of tenders being advertised in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU). The CPV could be thought of as the matchmaking service between contracting authorities and economic operators interested in seeking out business throughout the EU.

The CPV is a standardised numerical vocabulary enabling ease of identification in all the Member States to assist advertising in the OJEU.   It is a critical tool for searching for contract opportunities used by economic operators.

It begins by identifying the types of contracts as supplies, works or services as follows:

This coding system was last updated in 2008.

In Ireland, the primary system used to advertise in the OJEU, is the Irish Government portal www.etenders.gov.ie.   Most Member States now operate similar portals, all of which are fully open to economic operators in every Member State.  When contracting authorities are advertising, they are obliged to use the relevant CPV codes and the economic operators using eTenders can register their interest in as many codes as they like.   Registered economic operators will receive email notifications when tenders of interest to them are published.

The CPV system consists of a main 8-digit vocabulary, which defines the type of contract; in addition to a subsidiary vocabulary, which adds further qualitative information about the contract. The main vocabulary is made up of approximately 9450 terms, listing supplies, works and services which are commonly used.

Hierarchy

The CPV operates on pyramid type structure.  The first two digits ending with six (6) zeros is the topmost level of the hierarchy and may be summarised as below.  Under each heading there are further sub-headings which get into more detail as you drill down.   When it is difficult to find a precise code, it is advisable to use the nearest higher-level code meeting your needs.

The CPV Code

The 8-digit code is the code which is chosen to best describe the procurement.  Some CPV divisions are very precise, while others require you to use the nearest suitable code.   In the event that you experience difficulty in identifying an appropriate CPV you should choose a higher level CPV.

Title

This is the official description of the code.  This is used by the OJEU for automatic translation into all the other EU Member State languages.

Category

This relates to the definition of the contract type pertaining to the specific code.

Supply

This is a contract for the supply of a products or goods.  It may involve siting and installation.   It is a supply, even when it is rented, leased and purchased by hire purchase.

Works

This is a contract involving works, usually relating to building or civil engineering and may involve design and execution.  However, it can involve aspects on a broader definition – please refer to Annex II of Directive 2014/24/EU / Annex I of Directive 2014/25/EU.

Service

This is a standard service, which is not categorised as a Title III Service.  The majority of CPV codes for services relate to such services.  They incur the lower threshold relevant to services (e.g. €139k/€214k/€428k).

Title III Service

This relates to social and other specific services as defined in Art. 74 of Directive 2014/24/EU / Annex XIV and Article 91 of Directive 2014/25/EU / Annex XVII.   Only a few articles of the Directive apply when procuring these services.  They are known as “Light Touch Regime” services and have flexibility around choice of procedure, threshold, duration of frameworks, choice of criteria, etc.   They include social services, education services, legal services, etc.  They are services which are considered less suitable for cross border trade.

Reserved Service

A small number of CPV Codes (114) are capable of being reserved for award to certain types of organisation designated as pursuing a “public service mission”.    They are a sub-set of the Title III services.  If an authority chooses to reserve who can tender, they are limited to awarding a three (3) year contract/framework.   They are however free not to limit who can tender, in which case the duration is not limited to 3 years.  Reserved services can be awarded using the “Light Touch Regime”.

Title III/Reserved Service

This identifies the codes which fall into both categories, i.e. Title III and Reserved.

Central Government

This refers to the type of contracting authority.   It refers to the State and essentially covers Central Government Department and Agencies who are directly controlled by Government Departments.

Sub-Central Government

This refers to the type of contracting authority.  It refers to agencies one step removed from Central Government, being either set up by statute or including local and regional authorities and bodies governed by public law or associations of bodies governed by public law.   The sub-central threshold also applies to agencies not directly linked to the public sector, but funded from public money, such as non-governmental organisations like Leader Groups, Charities, etc.

Utility

This refers to a specific type of contracting entity operating within the field of Water, Energy, Transport and Postal services.  These entities may be publicly owned or privately owned.  They may operate on a special or exclusive right, generally operate a network and often constitute public undertakings and not public authorities.

** Additional levels for Works under CPV 45

Note: there is a NACE Nomenclature for works to be found at Annex II of EU Directive 2014/24/EU and Annex I of Directive 2014/25/EU (the Utilities Directive).

In the event of any difference of interpretation between the CPV and the NACE, the CPV nomenclature will apply.

Research and Development Services (Article 14 (2014/24/EU) / Article 32 (2014/25/EU)
The Procurement Directives shall only apply to (public) service contracts for research and development services which are covered by CPV codes

provided that both of the following conditions are fulfilled:

(a) the benefits accrue exclusively to the contracting authority for its use in the conduct of its own affairs, and

(b) the service provided is wholly remunerated by the contracting authority.

NOTE: if both (a) and (b) are not applicable, then the procurement would not be subject to the Directives