How do public tenders work in Croatia?

Law and buyers

Public procurement in Croatia is based on EU directives 2014/24/EU, 2014/25/EU and 2014/23/EU, transposed by the Zakon o javnoj nabavi (Public Procurement Act, NN 120/16, amended by NN 114/22 and NN 48/26). Policy is set by the Ministarstvo gospodarstva (Ministry of Economy) through its Uprava za politiku javne nabave (Directorate for Public Procurement Policy), which runs the Portal javne nabave (javnanabava.hr). Buyers include ministries and other state bodies, counties, cities and municipalities, hospitals, schools, public companies and utilities. The Središnji državni ured za središnju javnu nabavu (Central State Office for Central Public Procurement) runs joint procurement for state administration bodies, the Government, Parliament and the Office of the President.[1][3][7][8]

Where tenders are published

All notices are published in the Elektronički oglasnik javne nabave Republike Hrvatske (EOJN RH, eojn.hr), the state-owned e-procurement system operated by Narodne novine d.d. Contracts above EU thresholds are also published in TED. In TED data for 2025, Croatia had 7,492 contract notices and 99.8 percent of them linked to EOJN RH, so commercial tender platforms play almost no role. EOJN RH is used for the whole procedure: downloading documents, asking questions, filling in the ESPD, submitting encrypted tenders and filing appeals through e-Žalba. Registration is mandatory to bid, and the law requires that downloading documents and submitting tenders is free of charge for economic operators. A tender submitted through EOJN RH is binding even without an electronic signature, although the documents may ask for signed annexes.[3][4][6]

Procedures and thresholds

Contracts at or above the EU thresholds are procurement of large value (nabava velike vrijednosti), and contracts between the national and EU thresholds are procurement of small value (nabava male vrijednosti). Both use the same procedures: the open procedure (otvoreni postupak), restricted procedure (ograničeni postupak), competitive procedure with negotiation, competitive dialogue, innovation partnership and the negotiated procedure without prior publication. Below the national thresholds the ZJN does not apply and buyers use simple procurement (jednostavna nabava) under their own internal rules. Since 1 September 2026 these national thresholds were raised, simple procurement above a set value must run through a dedicated module in EOJN RH, and above a higher value it needs a public notice there. Procedures started before an amendment took effect are completed under the old rules. Framework agreements and dynamic purchasing systems are common.[2][3][6]

Documents and language

Every tender includes the European Single Procurement Document (ESPD, europska jedinstvena dokumentacija o nabavi), completed electronically in EOJN RH as preliminary evidence on exclusion grounds and selection criteria. Before the award decision the buyer must, in large-value procedures, and may, in small-value procedures, ask the best tenderer for updated supporting documents within a period of at least five days. Typical evidence includes criminal record extracts, a certificate that taxes and social contributions are paid, a register extract and evidence of financial and technical capacity such as references. Buyers can check Croatian registers directly through EOJN RH. Tenders are drawn up in Croatian and Latin script unless the procurement documents state otherwise, and prices are given in euros. Foreign bidders may use equivalent documents from their home country; e-Certis helps to find equivalents.[3][4][6][12]

Deadlines, award and challenges

In the open procedure of large value the minimum time limit is 35 days from dispatch of the notice, which can be shortened by five days when tenders are submitted electronically. In restricted procedures the minimum is 30 days for requests to participate and 30 days for tenders. In small-value procedures these minimums may be shortened to 20 days. The award criterion is the most economically advantageous tender; public buyers may not use price or cost alone, and the weight of price or cost may not exceed 90 percent except in specific cases. After the award decision a standstill period (rok mirovanja) of 10 days applies. Appeals go to the Državna komisija za kontrolu postupaka javne nabave (DKOM) through e-Žalba in EOJN RH: 15 days for the notice or documents, 10 days after receiving the award decision. A fee applies, from 1,320 euros.[2][3][4][9]

How to win a tender in Croatia

Croatian public buyers may not use price or cost as the only award criterion, and in principle the weight of price or cost may not exceed 90 percent, so there is almost always a quality component, often staff qualifications and experience, delivery time or after-sales service. Find out exactly how those points are awarded and answer each criterion with verifiable facts. You can influence the documents even before the tender: for works and large-value supplies and services the buyer must put the draft specifications, price list and criteria out for prior consultation (prethodno savjetovanje) for at least seven days. During the tender, a request for additional information, explanations or changes is on time if it arrives by the eighth day before the deadline; the buyer must publish the answer without naming you by the sixth day before. To know the buyer, read its annual procurement plan and contract register, both published in EOJN RH. A tender that looks abnormally low must be explained within at least five days. The award decision states the reasons, characteristics and advantages of the selected tender.[2][3][6]

1. Comment on the draft documents during the prethodno savjetovanje on EOJN RH.
2. Map your evidence to each quality criterion; price rarely decides alone.
3. Send questions by the eighth day before the deadline so an answer is mandatory.
4. Review the buyer's procurement plan and contract register in EOJN RH.
5. Compare the winner's stated advantages in the award decision with your tender.

Clarification round: Zahtjev za dodatne informacije, objašnjenja ili izmjene (request for additional information, explanations or changes)

Tips for bidders

Create your EOJN RH account before you find the tender you want, so that registration problems do not cost you time close to a deadline. Check the procurement documents for language rules: tenders are in Croatian by default, so plan for translation of the tender and key annexes. Keep criminal record extracts and tax certificates ready, because the best tenderer often gets only five days to provide them. Since the 2026 amendment, objections to a notice or the documents must first be raised with the buyer through EOJN RH within ten days of publication, and an appeal can only follow three days later. Budget for the appeal fee and attach proof of payment, as DKOM rejects appeals without it. Watch the simple procurement module in EOJN RH as well: many smaller contracts below the national thresholds are now published there.[2][4][6][9]

Platforms in Croatia

Share of the 7,492 TED notices from 2025 whose documents sit on this platform.

• EOJN RH99.8%

  Register on the new EOJN RH before use (old logins no longer work); for simple procurement only registered operators can be invited.

  How it works →Website

Frequently asked questions

Sources

1. Zakon o javnoj nabavi, Narodne novine 120/16 (original text)
2. Zakon o izmjenama i dopunama Zakona o javnoj nabavi, Narodne novine 48/26 (thresholds, simple procurement in EOJN RH, appeals)
3. Zakon o javnoj nabavi, consolidated text NN 120/16, 114/22, 48/26 (zakon.hr)
4. gov.hr: Javna nabava (EOJN RH, ESPD, appeals and fees)
5. Point of Single Contact Croatia: Public procurement
6. Elektronički oglasnik javne nabave RH (EOJN RH)
7. Portal javne nabave, Ministarstvo gospodarstva, Uprava za politiku javne nabave
8. Središnji državni ured za središnju javnu nabavu
9. Državna komisija za kontrolu postupaka javne nabave (DKOM)
10. Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/2152 (thresholds 2026-2027, Directive 2014/24/EU)
11. Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/2150 (thresholds 2026-2027, Directive 2014/25/EU)
12. e-Certis, European Commission

Checked on 15 October 2026. Made by TenderRender from official sources. Not legal advice: check the notice and documents of each tender.

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