On 1 February 2022, new public procurement rules entered into force in Sweden. The aim of the changes is to simplify the procedure of the procurement process and to give contracting authorities more flexibility.
The new rules apply to procurement below the EU thresholds, procurement of social services and to post-advertising. The changes affect all legislation in the field of public procurement. Many of the changes do not introduce new rules as such but do move existing rules to other chapters of the law for greater clarity.
Some notable changes include:
- The requirement to use a specific procurement procedure for contracts below the thresholds is removed. Contracting authorities may design their procurement in the way that is most appropriate. The approach chosen must however still be compatible with the principles of EU law.
- New direct award thresholds for certain goods and services (SEK 700 000 for procurement according to the Public Procurement Act and SEK 1 200 000 for defence and security procurement as well as procurement in the utilities sector; for social services the direct award threshold is around SEK 7.8 million).
- New possibility of direct award in the case of judicial review. The exemption allows a contracting authority to make a procurement necessary to meet an urgent need arising from certain circumstances during an appeal procedure. The exemption applies only to procurements below the relevant thresholds.
- A lower limit is introduced for when a post-advertisement is to be carried out. The threshold for the obligation to advertise is SEK 700 000 in the Public Procurement Act and SEK 1 200 000 for defence and security procurement, irrespective of the goods or services to be procured.
For more information, please refer to the legislative proposal (in Swedish) here.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
