What the RFI, PQQ and ITT badges mean
Updated 2 Oct 2026
A stage badge tells you how far along a procurement is, so you know whether to start preparing, register interest or submit a bid.
A stage badge tells you where a tender sits in the buyer's process. Some notices are an early conversation with the market, some are a shortlisting step, and some are a full invitation to submit priced bids. Reading the badge first helps you decide how much effort the notice deserves right now.
Where you will see stage badges
Stage badges appear at the top of each tender page, next to the other status badges, and on the matches list of a saved search. On the tender page, hover over a badge to see a one-line explanation.
The four stage badges
Market engagement
Market engagement means the buyer is gathering market insight and is not yet inviting bids. It is a good moment to introduce your business, join a supplier event if one is offered, and shape what the buyer later asks for.
RFI
RFI stands for Request for Information. The buyer is gathering supplier information ahead of a formal tender. Responding is usually quick, and it puts you on the buyer's radar before the competition opens.
PQQ
PQQ covers the Pre-Qualification or Selection stage. Suppliers are shortlisted before being invited to tender. Expect questions about your experience, finances and policies, so it helps to keep standard answers ready.
ITT
ITT stands for Invitation to Tender. The buyer is inviting priced bids. The deadline on an ITT is for priced bids, so check the closing date straight away. See Deadlines and time zones for how we show it.
How to use a stage badge
- Open a tender from your Dashboard, Browse or a saved search's matches.
- Look for a stage badge beside the tender title (Market engagement, RFI, PQQ or ITT).
- Read the description and the Key details.
- Decide your next step: introduce yourself for market engagement, reply to an RFI, prepare answers for a PQQ, or build your bid for an ITT.
- Use Add to watchlist if you want to come back to the notice. See Watch a tender.
Good to know
- Not every tender has a stage badge. A badge appears when the notice makes its stage clear. A tender with no stage badge is still a normal tender, and the notice itself tells you what the buyer wants.
- Stage badges are a guide, not a filter. Open a tender to see its badge.
- A stage badge sits alongside other labels. A tender can also show badges such as Hard to find, a contract type or a region. See What "Hard to find" means.
- Early notices are often labelled Early signal or Planned Contract instead. See Early signals and planned contracts.
- Awarded, amended and cancelled notices keep their own labels instead of a stage badge.
- Always read the notice itself before you act. The buyer's own wording is the final word on what they are asking for and by when.
If you are new to tender stages, a sensible habit is to keep an eye on RFI and market engagement notices in your sectors, because they show what the buyer is planning before the formal tender opens.
More in Understanding a tender
- What "Hard to find" means on a tenderThe Hard to find badge marks a tender that is not on any national portal, so you would not spot it by checking those portals yourself.
- Early signals and planned contractsEarly signal and Planned Contract labels mark opportunities that are coming, so you can prepare before a tender opens for bids.
- Deadlines and time zonesDeadlines are shown in UK time, with a days-left chip, a countdown on the closing day and a note when the buyer gave no time.
- Get the bid documents and submit your bidOpen the bid documents from the tender page, then use the Respond to this tender button to go to the buyer and submit your bid.
- Find the buyer's contact detailsThe Contact section of a tender page shows who to ask about the notice; everyone sees it on tenders also on a national portal, and Pro adds Hard to find tenders.
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