Information to bidders: Committee's response to new request for clarification

BLS International and IVS Global submitted requests for clarification regarding the interpretation of Clause 3.6.1 of Annex I, Clause 10.7 of Annex VII, and item 7.1.1 of the Notice of Bidding. Queries 1 and 2 below were presented by BLS International on 22 August 2025. Query 3 was presented by IVS Global on 25 August 2025.

Query 1: "As per Annex I Clause 3.6.1. Companies participating in the bidding must provide a Plan for Commencement of Activities together with their financial proposal. Our query is since BLS is already the incumbent service provider and the required VAC, IT and Non IT Infra is ready, trained and skilled manpower is in place and operational, the timeline for BLS to commence operations is "ZERO" days or immediate, business as usual. In this regard, can it be clarified what is BLS expected to submit as a Plan of Commencement?"

Query 2: "As per Annex VII, Clause 10.7 - the CONTRACTED PARTY agrees to take all possible measures to protect confidential data and information and to keep them in its own physical files, servers and storage media. The CONTRACTED PARTY may not store such data and information in third-party systems or in “cloud” format. BLS International possesses the full technical capability and proven experience to comply with the data residency and protection requirements outlined in this clause. We are successfully managing multiple visa processing projects within the People's Republic of China, all of which operate in strict compliance with applicable laws on personal data protection. Each of these projects has been deployed on a secure Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) architecture, specifically designed to cater to all applicable data protection guidelines and standards. Therefore, we respectfully request that the tendering authority approve a VPC-based deployment model fully compliant with required data protection norms."

Query 3: (on item 7.1.1 - Legal Qualification - of the Notice of Bidding) "The clause states that bidders must submit proof of compliance with all legal requirements, including copies of the operating license. We would be grateful if you could kindly clarify whether the submission of an operating license is mandatory for the bidder itself in order to qualify to participate in the tendering process, or whether it would suffice for the bidder to participate on the basis of the operating license of a local partner, or if the bidder may obtain the operating license prior to the commencement of the contract."

Clarifications Issued by the Special Bidding Committee

The requests for clarification have been submitted in a timely manner and are addressed below in turn.

Query 1. The contents of the Plan for Commencement of Activities are clearly outlined in item 3.6.2 of the Basic Project (transcribed below for reference). They apply to all bidders. If a company participating in the bidding process considers that it is already capable of performing any activity provided for in the contract - even prior to the contract’s entry into force - it may indicate as much in its Plan for Commencement of Activities.

"3.6.2. The Plan for Commencement of Activities must specify a detailed schedule indicating the measures to be taken and the tasks to be completed by the company so that it is able to perform all the activities provided for in the contract from the date of entry into force of the contract, including:

3.6.2.1. The establishment of the Brazilian visa processing centers referred to in item 3.2.3.

3.6.2.2. The operation of the electronic platform for online scheduling referred to in item 3.2.6.

3.6.2.3. Indication of the steps to be followed for the implementation of the visa processing system in electronic form, as per item 3.3.

3.6.2.4. The establishment of the call center provided for in item 3.4."

Query 2. The Special Bidding Committee confirms that, under Clause 10.7 of Annex VII to the Notice of Bidding, the Contracted Party may store data and information using a secure virtual private cloud (VPC) architecture, provided that the deployment model fully complies with applicable data protection and security laws.

The Committee further clarifies that, even when data is stored on a VPC, all other provisions of Clause 10.7 and other relevant clauses and items remain in full effect. In particular, the Contracted Party must: acknowledge "that it will be storing data and information on visa applications that contain personal and confidential information of the applicants and that must be protected against leaks to unauthorized third parties, in accordance with applicable laws on personal data protection”; agree "to take all possible measures to protect confidential data and information; and that "in the event of information leakage attributable to the CONTRACTED PARTY, the CONTRACTED PARTY shall solely bear all financial losses and legal liabilities arising therefrom".

Query 3. The Special Bidding Committee confirms that, pursuant to item 7.1.1 of the Notice of Bidding, it is sufficient for a bidder to present the operating license of a local partner.