How do public tenders work in Kosovo?

Law and buyers

Kosovo is a potential EU candidate, so EU procurement directives do not apply directly. The legal basis is Law No. 04/L-042 on Public Procurement, amended by Laws 04/L-237, 05/L-068 and 05/L-092. A new procurement law aligned with the EU acquis has been drafted, but in June 2026 the European Commission was still urging Kosovo to adopt it, so the 2011 law as amended remains the reference. The Public Procurement Regulatory Commission (Komisioni Rregullativ i Prokurimit Publik, KRPP) sets the rules and runs the e-procurement system. Contracting authorities include central government bodies, municipalities and publicly owned enterprises. The Central Procurement Agency (Agjencia Qendrore e Prokurimit, AQP) under the Ministry of Finance runs procurements that the minister assigns to it, such as common goods for several institutions. All prices and payments are in euro.[1][5][7][8]

Where tenders are published

Contracting authorities submit their notices (indicative notices, contract notices, award notices and contract signing notices) to the KRPP, which publishes them on its website and in the Public Procurement Register within two days. In practice everything runs through the national portal e-Prokurimi, which is owned and administered by the KRPP; its terms of use state that procurement transactions must be carried out through this system. Tender documents are downloaded and tenders submitted there. Economic operators must create an account and accept the terms of use first. Companies registered in Kosovo only enter their fiscal number and the system fills in data from the tax administration; foreign companies select their country and enter all details themselves. The official terms and registration manual mention no registration fee. Kosovo tenders are not published on TED.[1][2][3][4]

Procedures and thresholds

The default procedures are the open procedure (procedura e hapur) and the restricted procedure (procedura e kufizuar), in which only shortlisted candidates are invited to tender. Under specific conditions the law also allows the competitive negotiated procedure, the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice (for example in extreme urgency), design contests and framework contracts with mini-competitions. For low and minimal value contracts for readily available goods and services, or repair and maintenance works, authorities may use the price quotation procedure (kuotimi i çmimeve), and the KRPP sets a separate procedure for minimal value contracts. Which procedure and which rules apply depends on the value class: large, medium, low or minimal value. Thresholds differ for supplies and services versus works.[1]

Documents and language

Tenderers must prove with certificates, attestations or other sufficient evidence that no exclusion ground applies, that they are professionally suitable, and that they meet the financial, technical and professional requirements in the tender dossier. The KRPP rules define which documents are accepted and allow declarations under oath or notarised statements where certain documents are not available in a country. Tenderers that fail to submit required evidence are disqualified. Consortia must include a signed statement from each member and are jointly and severally liable. For large and medium value contracts the authority may require a tender security, and a performance security may be required from the winner. Tenders may be submitted in Albanian, Serbian or English. Large value tender dossiers must be issued in Albanian, Serbian and English; for smaller contracts English is optional.[1][5]

Deadlines, award and challenges

In open procedures the minimum time to submit a tender is 40 days for large value contracts and 20 days for other contracts. In restricted procedures it is 20 days for requests to participate and 40 days for tenders (large value), or 15 and 20 days for other contracts. Accelerated deadlines in urgent cases are at least 15 or 10 days, and price quotations at least 5 days. The contract is awarded to the lowest-priced responsive tender or to the most economically advantageous tender. The contract may be signed no earlier than 10 days after the award notice is published. Complaints first go to the contracting authority (within 5 days before the tender deadline for dossier issues, or 5 days after notification of the award), then within 10 days to the Procurement Review Body (Organi Shqyrtues i Prokurimit, OSHP), and finally within 30 days to the Basic Court.[1][6]

How to win a tender in Kosovo

Under Kosovo's Law on Public Procurement (No. 04/L-042, as amended) the award criterion is either lowest price only or the economically most advantageous tender (Article 52). With the second, the contract notice and tender dossier must state every criterion and its weighting, criteria must be objectively assessable and disclosed in advance, and each element is converted into points with the published formula. If quality counts, answer each criterion against that formula. Article 53 sets the question deadline by the length of the tender period: at least 20 days before receipt of tenders when the period is 40 days or more, 15 or 10 days for shorter periods. If the authority finds the information is needed, it sends it to all who received the dossier without naming you, and extends the deadline when the answer comes late. To know the buyer, read its procurement forecast and earlier notices and contracts on e-Prokurimi. Follow the dossier exactly, provide the required evidence or sworn declarations, and submit in Albanian, Serbian or English as allowed. Tenders fail when late, non-responsive or abnormally low without a convincing written explanation. Article 54 requires eliminated tenderers to receive written reasons, including the winner's name and relative advantages.[1][9][10]

1. Check whether lowest price or weighted criteria decide, and study the formula.
2. Send questions before the Article 53 deadline stated in the dossier.
3. Read the buyer's procurement forecast and earlier contracts on e-Prokurimi.
4. Prepare certificates or sworn declarations for every required item.
5. Answer any abnormally low price request in writing and promptly.
6. Use the Article 54 notice to decide on a complaint within five days.

Clarification round: Request for additional or clarifying information (kërkesë për informata shtesë ose sqarime)

Tips for bidders

Register on e-Prokurimi well before the deadline, because foreign companies have to enter all company data manually and the account is needed to download documents and submit. Check the value class of each tender first, as it determines deadlines, languages and procedures. For large value tenders the dossier is available in English and you may bid in English, which makes Kosovo accessible to foreign bidders. Prepare sworn or notarised declarations in case documents from your home country do not exist in the requested form. Keep the short complaint windows in mind: five days to challenge the dossier before the deadline or an award decision. A complaint to the OSHP requires a fee, and complaints judged entirely frivolous can lead to a penalty of up to EUR 5,000.[1][3][6]

Platforms in Kosovo

This country does not publish on TED, so there are no shares. These are the platforms from our market map, public ones first.

• E-Prokurimi (Kosovo)

  Register as an economic operator on e-Prokurimi, then prepare and submit bids electronically; the PPRC publishes manuals for registration, bidding and complaints.

  How it works →Website

Frequently asked questions

Sources

1. Law No. 04/L-042 on Public Procurement, consolidated English version (amended by 04/L-237, 05/L-068, 05/L-092)
2. e-Prokurimi: information for economic operators (registration manual, terms of use)
3. e-Prokurimi: economic operator registration manual (Regjistrimi OE)
4. e-Prokurimi: terms and conditions of use
5. Public Procurement Regulatory Commission (KRPP)
6. Procurement Review Body (OSHP)
7. Agjencia Qendrore e Prokurimit (AQP), Central Procurement Agency
8. EEAS: 8th EU-Kosovo SAA Sub-committee on Internal Market (18 June 2026), revised procurement law still to be adopted
9. Rules and Operational Guidelines for Public Procurement (KRPP)
10. e-Prokurimi

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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