How to bid for public tenders in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina at a glance


Main law	Law on Public Procurement (ZJN) of 2014, amended in 2022 and 2024; one law for every level of government
Institutions	Public Procurement Agency; Procurement Review Body for complaints
Portal	e-Nabavke at ejn.gov.ba
Currency	Convertible mark (BAM, locally KM), fixed at 1.95583 BAM = EUR 1
Upper class from	BAM 250,000 goods and services (government institutions); BAM 9,000,000 works
Language	Bosnian, Croatian or Serbian
Domestic preference	None since 1 July 2021
WTO GPA	Not a party; the US Trade Representative says BiH isn’t yet a WTO member
Challenges	Complaint usually within 10 days, fee BAM 750–15,000

Where tenders appear

e-Nabavke. Contracting authorities must publish all notices on e-Nabavke (ejn.gov.ba), with the tender documents attached. Documents must be provided at no charge.
One law, every level. It covers the state, the two entities, Brčko District, cantons, cities, municipalities, public-law bodies and utilities.
The gazette. A summary of each notice also appears in the procurement bulletin of the Službeni glasnik BiH.
Plans. Authorities must post annual procurement plans on the portal within 30 days of adopting their budget.
English summaries. For upper-class contracts, an English summary of the notice is mandatory. The documents themselves stay in an official language.
Codes. Items use the EU’s CPV, called JRJN locally.
New interface. A newer public view at next.ejn.gov.ba has been reported, but we couldn’t confirm it.

Thresholds and procedures

Estimated values in convertible marks (BAM), with rough euro equivalents.

Contract	Procedure
Up to BAM 6,000 (about EUR 3,100)	Direct agreement: a price from one or more firms; negotiation allowed. Same-type buys capped at BAM 10,000 a year
Goods and services under BAM 50,000 (about EUR 25,600); works under BAM 80,000 (about EUR 40,900)	Competitive request for bids, published on the portal
From there to the upper thresholds	Middle class: open, restricted, negotiated, design contest or competitive dialogue
Goods and services from BAM 250,000 (government institutions), BAM 400,000 (public-law bodies) or BAM 800,000 (utilities); works from BAM 9,000,000	Upper (“international”) class

Defaults. Open and restricted procedures are the norm. Negotiated procedures and competitive dialogue need a listed ground.
Minimum bid periods:
- Competitive request: 10 days.
- Middle class: 20 days for an open procedure; restricted and similar ones need 15 days to request participation, then 15 to bid.
- Upper class: 45 days for an open procedure; restricted and similar ones need 30 days to request participation, then 35 to bid.
- After a prior information notice (52 days to 12 months ahead), periods can drop to 25 days (upper) or 13 days (middle).
Questions are allowed up to 10 days before the deadline. A substantial change, or a needed site visit, extends the deadline by at least 7 days.
Frameworks. One summary of the law gives a normal maximum of 4 years.

Who can bid

No local entity needed. Any registered person or group can bid. The law requires equal treatment and bars rejecting a bid only because of legal form.
Home-country rules count. Exclusion grounds (convictions, bankruptcy, unpaid taxes or social contributions) are judged under BiH law or your home country’s law. Professional registration can be proved from your own country’s registers.
Evidence at bid stage. A sworn statement certified by a competent authority covers exclusion grounds. Financial documents can be plain copies plus a statement you certify. You may rely on other firms’ capacity.
Legalisation. Exclusion documents from outside BiH need no extra legalisation. We couldn’t confirm whether an apostille or certified translation is needed for other documents.
If you win, supply originals or certified copies no older than 3 months, or the award passes to the next bidder.
Consortia can bid without forming a company. Members are jointly and severally liable, and no firm may join two bids in one procedure.
Seals. Stamp your bid if your country’s law provides for company seals, or show that it doesn’t.
Language. Bids must be in Bosnian, Croatian or Serbian. Printed catalogues can usually stay untranslated.
Domestic preference. A 30% preference ran from June 2020 to June 2021 and wasn’t renewed. The Agency confirmed none applies to procedures started from 1 July 2021. The Council of Ministers can still bring one back by decision, and the EU’s 2025 report says complex procedures in practice favour domestic suppliers.
Treaties. According to the US Trade Representative, BiH isn’t a WTO member, so it isn’t in the GPA. Foreign access rests on the law’s non-discrimination rule.
Construction licences. Reportedly, buildings in the Federation of BiH’s competence may be built only by firms authorised by the Federal Ministry of Spatial Planning; Republika Srpska and some cantons have their own licences. We couldn’t confirm what a foreign contractor needs, or when.

Every document, step by step. Who issues each certificate, who can get it for you, what it costs and how long it stays valid: Every step to bid in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Bidding, step by step

Monitor e-Nabavke for notices and plans; for large contracts, use the English summary.
Register as a portal user. The online form generates an application that you print, sign, stamp and send to the Public Procurement Agency for approval. It asks for a BiH tax ID (IDB/JIB); we couldn’t confirm how foreign firms without one complete it, so ask the Agency early.
Download the documents. Check the language, guarantees, award criteria and any planned e-auction.
Review them at once. Complaints about the documents are due within 10 days of publication.
Ask questions through the portal, up to 10 days before the deadline.
Prepare one bid in an official language: price, any bid guarantee, the certified sworn statement and qualification evidence. The law describes a firmly bound bid with numbered pages.
Submit by the deadline, as the documents specify. Late bids are returned unopened; the opening is public. We couldn’t confirm whether electronic submission is offered in 2026.
Join the e-auction if there is one. You must be an activated e-Nabavke user.
If you win, deliver your documents, performance guarantee and required permits, then sign after the 15-day standstill.

Securities and payment

Bid guarantee. Only when the estimated value is at least BAM 100,000 (about EUR 51,000), capped at 1.5%.
Performance guarantee. Up to 10% of the contract value. Without it, the award moves to the next bidder.
Foreign guarantees must be accepted if they meet the tender conditions.
Bid validity. At least 30 days. You may refuse an extension without losing your bid guarantee.
Payment terms. The procurement law sets none. In the Federation of BiH, public-law bodies pay within 60 days (exceptionally 90), or 30 days if the contract is silent. We couldn’t confirm the terms in Republika Srpska or Brčko District.

How bids are evaluated

Two criteria: lowest price or the most economically advantageous tender, with sub-criteria and scoring in the documents.
No negotiation in open or restricted procedures.
Abnormally low prices must be explained in writing, or the bid is rejected.
Budget ceiling. A bid above the buyer’s secured funds is unacceptable.
E-auctions. Buyers awarding on lowest price must plan one in at least 60% of eligible procedures. You get 48 hours’ notice; auctions run 10–30 minutes on working days, with each price cut between 0.1% and 10%.
Thin competition. The European Commission counted 1.75 bids per tender on average in 2024; over half drew a single bid, and 75.2% of contracts went on price alone.

Challenging a decision

How. Address the complaint to the Procurement Review Body, but lodge it through the contracting authority, in person, by registered post, or electronically if the documents allow. File 3 copies, in an official language.
Deadlines. 10 days from publication of the notice or documents; 5 days from the bid-opening record; 10 days from a qualification, award or cancellation decision; 5 days in a competitive request. Direct agreements can’t be challenged.
Fees (since 31 July 2024). BAM 2,000 if the value is unknown; lost if the complaint is unfounded.

Estimated value	Fee
Up to BAM 50,000	BAM 750
BAM 50,001 – 80,000	BAM 1,200
BAM 80,001 – 250,000	BAM 3,000
BAM 250,001 – 400,000	BAM 5,250
BAM 400,001 – 800,000	BAM 7,500
BAM 800,001 – 9,000,000	BAM 11,250
BAM 9,000,000 or more	BAM 15,000

Proof of payment must accompany the complaint within the deadline, or it’s rejected with no chance to fix it.
Suspension. An admissible complaint automatically suspends the procedure and the contract until the Review Body decides.
Standstill. No signature for 15 days after bidders are told of the award, with some exceptions.
Review Body. Decides within 15 days of a complete file, at most 30 days after receipt (complex cases can take 30 more). Its decision is final.
Court. An administrative dispute before the Court of BiH within 30 days, with judgment due within 60 days.

What changed in 2025–2026

Still relevant, 2022 and 2024: amendments from 10 December 2022 added procurement plans on the portal, conflict-of-interest rules and procurement officers. From 31 July 2024, complaint fees rose about 50%, fee proof became mandatory and the complaint clock started at publication.
June 2025: the House of Representatives passed a bill adding criminal penalties for procurement abuse. Improved search of review decisions also went live.
November 2025: the EU’s 2025 report found the law only “partially” aligned and called for a new law and better e-procurement.
September 2026: the bill was still not adopted at the end of the parliamentary term. We couldn’t confirm whether it lapses after the 4 October 2026 elections.
Next: the 2024–2028 Strategy aims at a new, EU-aligned law. We found no draft.

Live Bosnian tenders

Questions

Can a foreign company bid in Bosnia and Herzegovina without a local entity?

Yes. The law sets no BiH-registration requirement and bans discrimination. You prove exclusion grounds and registration with home-country documents. Permits that BiH law requires may still be needed before signature.

Is there a price preference for local firms in Bosnia and Herzegovina?

Not since 1 July 2021. The last one was 30%, in 2020–21. The Council of Ministers can reintroduce a preference by decision, but we found no new decision.

Can I bid in English in Bosnia and Herzegovina?

No. Bids must be in Bosnian, Croatian or Serbian. Large tenders publish only an English summary of the notice. Catalogues can usually stay untranslated.

What guarantees will I need in Bosnia and Herzegovina?

A bid guarantee only when the estimated value is at least BAM 100,000, capped at 1.5%. A performance guarantee of up to 10%. Guarantees issued outside BiH can’t be refused just for being foreign.

How long do I get to prepare a bid in Bosnia and Herzegovina?

At least 45 days for large open tenders, 20 days for mid-value ones and 10 days for competitive requests. After a prior information notice, these can drop to 25 or 13 days.

How do I challenge a tender decision in Bosnia and Herzegovina?

Lodge a complaint through the contracting authority, usually within 10 days (5 for a competitive request), with proof that the BAM 750–15,000 fee was paid. It suspends the procedure. After the Procurement Review Body decides, you have 30 days to go to the Court of BiH.

Sources

This guide explains the rules in plain English; it isn’t legal advice. Procurement rules change, and each tender document sets its own conditions — it always prevails.