How to bid for public tenders in North Macedonia

North Macedonia at a glance


Main law	Law on Public Procurement (Official Gazette 24/2019), amended 2025
Regulator	Public Procurement Bureau (BJN), Ministry of Finance
Portal	ESPP at e-nabavki.gov.mk, mandatory, with an English interface
Registration	Required; EUR 170 a year plus VAT for foreign operators
E-signature	Qualified certificate; foreign ones accepted
Foreign bidders	No local entity needed; WTO GPA party since 2023
Domestic preference	None in the law
Language	Procedures and system documents in Macedonian
Challenges	State Appeals Commission within 10 / 5 / 3 days

Where tenders appear

One system. All notices, tender documents, bids, e-auctions and appeals go through the Electronic System for Public Procurement (ESPP) at e-nabavki.gov.mk. It has an English version, and an updated version went live on 1 April 2025.
Who runs it. The Public Procurement Bureau (BJN), part of the Ministry of Finance, runs the system, issues guidance and checks large tenders before publication.
The Official Gazette also carries notices for the main procedures, but your bid period runs from ESPP publication.
EU Official Journal. Notices above EUR 130,000 (goods, services), EUR 5,000,000 (works) and EUR 750,000 (special services) must also go to TED. We couldn’t confirm how consistently they actually appear there.
Alerts. Registered bidders get a daily digest of notices in their chosen categories.
Defence purchases fall under a separate defence and security procurement law.

Thresholds and procedures

Amounts in the law are in euros, paid in Macedonian denars (MKD) at the equivalent value, excluding VAT.

Procedure	When	Minimum time to bid
Outside the law	Under EUR 1,000 (goods, services), EUR 5,000 (works), EUR 10,000 (special services)	None; published on a quarterly register
Small-value	Up to EUR 10,000 (goods, services) or EUR 20,000 (works)	7 days by notice, or via the ESPP e-market
Simplified open	Up to EUR 70,000 (goods, services) or EUR 500,000 (works)	15 days
Open	Any value	30 days; 20 with a qualifying prior notice or urgency
Restricted	Any value	30 days to apply, then 25 to bid

Other procedures include competitive negotiation, competitive dialogue, innovation partnership and negotiated procedures, plus framework agreements and e-catalogues. Negotiated procedures were only 1.5% of procedures in 2024.
The e-market handles small-value buys of standard goods and services. The buyer posts its intent at least 48 hours ahead, and the lowest compliant price wins.
One clock for everyone. There are no separate national and international bid periods.
Late changes in the last 8 days (6 for simplified open, 4 for small-value) mean the deadline must be extended.
Utilities have their own, higher thresholds.

Who can bid

Anyone, alone or in a group. The law sets no nationality or residence requirement, and equal treatment is a core principle.
Treaty partners. North Macedonia has been a WTO GPA party since 30 October 2023. Operators from GPA parties can’t be treated less favourably.
No price preference. The only exception is food, where criteria can favour fresh, quality-scheme or low-transport products. US Commerce reports that a few tenders, notably in defence, are restricted to domestic firms.
Registration. Every bidder and consortium member must register on the ESPP.
Consortia need no legal form to bid. The group agreement names the lead, the signatory and the invoicing member. Members are jointly and severally liable.
Proving eligibility.
- Registration for the relevant activity under your home country’s rules, plus any licence the law requires. We couldn’t confirm how foreign construction licences are recognised.
- Exclusion grounds. Certificates from North Macedonian or home-country authorities, or an ESPD-type statement. If your country doesn’t issue them, a statement certified before a competent authority will do. Documents can be no older than 6 months.
- Finance and experience. Financial records for up to 3 years, and reference lists for 3 years (goods, services) or 5 years (works).
Exclusion. Recent convictions for crimes such as corruption or money laundering, unpaid taxes, bankruptcy, false data or a negative reference keep you out.
Language. Procedures and system documents are reportedly in Macedonian. Tender documents can allow technical documentation in a foreign language. We couldn’t confirm whether buyers accept a full bid in English.
Currency. Price excluding VAT, in denars or a currency the documents allow. Bids are compared at National Bank rates from 14 days before the deadline.

Bidding, step by step

Get a qualified e-signature from a provider authorised in your home country, or a Macedonian one. It must stay valid until the bid deadline.
Register as a foreign operator on e-nabavki.gov.mk, in English. Pick 1 to 3 categories for alerts, name a local administrator, and activate via the email link within 24 hours.
Pay the subscription: EUR 170 plus VAT a year, plus EUR 40 per extra category. Card payment activates your profile at once.
Download the documents. This also signs you up for amendment alerts.
Ask questions through the ESPP, by 15:30 on the last allowed day.
Prepare the bid. Fill in the ESPP price form, sign your documents with your qualified signature, and attach certificates and any bid guarantee or statement.
In simplified open procedures, you can start with a capability statement. If you rank first, you get at least 3 working days to deliver the documents.
Submit before the deadline. The ESPP blocks late bids.
Join the e-auction if invited.
Answer any arithmetic correction within at least 2 working days. Silence means you accept; refusing means exclusion.
If you win, provide any performance guarantee, and sign once the award decision is final.

Securities and payment

Bid security. A bank guarantee of at most 3% of the bid value, or a bid-seriousness statement. No bank guarantee is allowed in small-value or simplified open procedures.
Negative references. Withdraw your bid, reject a correction, refuse to sign or skip the performance guarantee, and you’re excluded from all public procurement for 6 months, plus 3 per further reference, up to 1 year.
Performance guarantee. Optional: 5% to 15% of the contract value, returned within 14 days of completion. Not used for consultancy, design contests or frameworks.
Advance payments are capped at 20%, against a bank guarantee of the same amount.
Payment terms. Public buyers can’t agree terms over 60 days (90 for public health bodies).
Subcontractors can ask to be paid directly by the buyer.

How bids are evaluated

Best value on paper. Awards go to the most economically advantageous tender, on price, life-cycle cost or price-quality ratio.
Lowest price in practice. Quality criteria appeared in only 5.4% of notices in 2024.
Not price alone for software, architecture and engineering, translation and consultancy.
Abnormally low bids must be explained when more than 50% below the average and 20% below the next bid.
Ties go to the bid submitted first.

E-auctions

Optional, and capped. Since 2025 a buyer may use e-auctions in at most 40% of its notices. Some older guides still call them mandatory.
Price only. Bidding goes downward, on working days between 08:00 and 16:00, for at least 15 minutes. You’re invited at least 2 days ahead.
Extensions. A bid in the last 3 minutes adds 3 minutes.

Challenging a decision

Where. The State Commission for Appeals on Public Procurement (SAC), via the ESPP. The buyer gets a copy at the same time.
Deadlines.
- 10 days in open, restricted, negotiated and dialogue procedures;
- 5 days in simplified open and small-value procedures;
- 3 days for e-market purchases.
Use it or lose it. Points about the notice or documents can’t be raised later if you miss that window.
Fees. EUR 50 to 200 by bid value, plus an administrative tax. We couldn’t confirm the tax amount. The loser pays costs.
Suspension. An appeal automatically stops signature of the affected lot. The procedure continues unless the SAC grants interim measures.
Timing. The SAC decides within 15 days of a complete file (3 for e-market cases). It handled 1,014 appeals in 2024.
After the SAC. You can bring an administrative dispute before the Administrative Court, which must decide within 30 days. We couldn’t confirm the filing deadline.

What changed in 2025–2026

January 2025: amendments added BJN pre-checks of large tenders, the 40% e-auction cap, a 3-day e-market appeal and an arithmetic-correction procedure.
1 April 2025: pre-checks began, and an updated ESPP went live.
1 January 2026: a new ESPP fee tariff applied.
May 2026: a new ESPP Rulebook and a new manual for economic operators.
2 September 2026: the Government adopted a draft amendment requiring “best value for money” awards instead of automatic lowest price. We couldn’t confirm whether Parliament has passed it.
September 2026: institutions reportedly issued a joint opinion on procurement during an election period. We couldn’t confirm what it says.

Live North Macedonian tenders

Questions

Do I need a North Macedonian company or branch to bid?

No. You register on the ESPP as a foreign operator and prove registration under your home country’s rules. A consortium may be asked to take a legal form only after it wins.

What does it cost to bid in North Macedonia?

Foreign operators pay an annual ESPP subscription of EUR 170 plus VAT, from 1 January 2026. It includes 3 procurement categories for alerts; each extra category costs EUR 40.

Is there a preference for local firms in North Macedonia?

No. The Law on Public Procurement has no domestic price preference, and bidders from WTO GPA countries must not be treated less favourably. Defence tenders fall under a separate law, and a few are restricted to domestic firms.

How long do I get to prepare a bid in North Macedonia?

At least 30 days in an open procedure (20 with a qualifying prior information notice or urgency), 15 days in a simplified open procedure and 7 days for small-value procurement by notice. The same periods apply to all bidders.

What guarantees are required in North Macedonian tenders?

A bid bank guarantee of at most 3%, or a bid-seriousness statement; no bank guarantee in small-value or simplified open procedures. A performance guarantee, if required, is 5% to 15%. Advances are capped at 20%, against an equal guarantee.

How do I challenge a tender decision in North Macedonia?

Appeal electronically through the ESPP to the State Commission for Appeals on Public Procurement: 10 days in most procedures, 5 in simplified open and small-value ones, 3 for e-market purchases. The fee is EUR 50 to 200 plus an administrative tax. Next comes the Administrative Court.

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.