Policy and Legal Advice Centre (PLAC V)

Policy and Legal Advice Centre (PLAC V) is a restricted tender under the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA III) to support the Serbian administration in aligning national legislation with the EU acquis and strengthening institutional capacity for accession negotiations. The contract is a fee-based service (CPV 80000000) with an estimated value of €3,000,000 (excluding VAT) and a maximum duration of 30 months, provisionally starting November 2026. Eligible applicants are natural persons and legal entities established in EU Member States or eligible IPA III countries, including consortia, and requests to participate must be submitted electronically via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal by 08/05/2026 10:00 Europe/Belgrade.

What it funds

Scope

A fee-based services contract to provide legal and policy advice, training and institutional capacity building to the Serbian administration to support EU accession negotiations, alignment with EU acquis and management of pre-accession assistance.

Estimated value:€3 000 000 (estimated total value for the lot).

Contract duration and start:Up to 30 months; provisional start November 2026.

Who can apply

Eligibility highlights

1. 1Natural persons and legal entities established in EU Member States or eligible countries under IPA III; international and regional organisations may participate.
2. 2Consortia allowed; consortium partners are jointly and severally liable.
3. 3Selection requires demonstrated economic, professional and technical capacity (see procurement documents).

Key selection and award criteria

Short-listing (restricted procedure) will invite 4 to 8 candidates to tender. Selection includes financial thresholds, staffing and relevant contract experience; award by best price-quality ratio.

Deadlines, submission & contacts

Requests to participate must be submitted electronically via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal (eSubmission). Deadlines: 01/01/2026 08:00:59 UTC (metadata) and main deadline for receipt of requests to participate 08/05/2026 10:00 (Europe/Belgrade). TED publication 08/04/2026.

Lead contracting authority:European Union, represented by the European Commission on behalf of and for the account of Serbia. Procurement documents and submission link available on the Funding & Tenders Portal: Funding and Tenders Portal.

Footnotes

1. 1Consult the procurement documents and the Additional information to the Contract Notice for full eligibility, submission instructions and exact deadlines.

Basic Opportunity Data

Opportunity Title:Policy and Legal Advice Centre (PLAC V). Procedure identifier: EC-ENEST/BEG/2026/EA-RP/0037 (TED reference 68/2026 239591-2026). Type: Call for tenders / restricted procedure. Submission method: Electronic via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal (eSubmission). Language of procedure and submissions: English.

Deadlines:Requests to participate must be received by 08/05/2026 10:00:59 Europe/Belgrade (UTC+02:00). Tender deadlines: provisional invitation to tender in June 2026; provisional contract commencement November 2026.

Estimated Value and Duration:Estimated total value: €3,000,000 (excluding VAT). Maximum contract duration / period of implementation: 30 months. Nature: fee-based service contract; education and training services (CPV 80000000). Award method: best price-quality ratio; framework agreement approach is indicated.

Purpose and Context

Overall objective:to assist the Serbian administration in effectively conducting EU accession negotiations and to strengthen management of EU integration and pre-accession assistance towards EU membership. The procurement is financed under the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA III) and falls under the European Integration Facility / Annual Work Programme for 2026.

Eligibility and Participation Rules

Participation is open to natural persons (nationals) and legal persons effectively established in an EU Member State or in eligible countries/territories as defined under Article 11 of Regulation (EU) No 2021/1529 (IPA III). International and regional organisations may participate. Candidates may participate individually or as a consortium (grouping). A candidate may submit only one request to participate or tender (one per lot if multiple lots exist). Sub-contracting is permitted. Short-listed candidates may not change consortium composition without prior approval; short-listed candidates may not form alliances with each other to bid.

Geographic and Operational Location:Place(s) of performance: Serbia (Europe apart from EU). Main working location noted as Belgrade / Serbia.

Selection and Award Criteria

This is a two-stage restricted tender. Short-listing will select between 4 and 8 candidates to invite to submit full tenders. If fewer than 4 eligible candidates meet the criteria, fewer may be invited; if more than 8 meet criteria, re-examination ranking rules apply.

1. 1Selection: Economic and financial capacity, professional capacity, and technical capacity as set out below.
2. 2Award: Best price-quality ratio. Exact weighting and scoring percentages are in the procurement documents and must be consulted by candidates.

Selection Criteria — Economic and Financial Capacity:Average annual turnover requirement: not less than €1,800,000 for the last three financial years for which accounts have been closed. Public bodies should provide equivalent information.

Selection Criteria — Professional Capacity:Staffing: On average, during the current year and previous two years, at least 8 personnel directly employed or legally contracted (permanent or non-permanent) with specialist knowledge relevant to this contract. The candidate must not have professional conflicting interests that could negatively affect performance; declared via Declaration on Honour and related documents.

Selection Criteria — Technical Capacity:Experience: Completion of at least 2 contracts during the last four years before the submission deadline, each with value not less than €1,200,000, in the domain of aligning national legislation with EU acquis and strengthening capacities of national institutions to support accession negotiations. Documentary evidence required (reports, deliverable approvals, proof of payment, certificates). If projects were implemented in consortia, the candidate must clearly evidence the part performed and its value.

Ranking for short-listing if more than 8 eligible candidates:first apply criterion of highest number of qualifying contracts meeting technical capacity; if tie persists for the last positions, apply highest cumulative value of qualifying services.

Application Process and Submission Requirements

Requests to participate must be submitted exclusively via the F&T Portal / eSubmission system. A EU Login account and a Participant Identification Code (PIC) in the Participant Register are required. Group submissions (consortia) require each member to be registered with a PIC. Supporting documents must be uploaded in specified attachment sections in the portal.

Required Forms and Declarations:Requests to participate must use the official request to participate form available from the Annexes page (procurement annexes). A Declaration on Honour on Exclusion and Selection criteria using the provided template must accompany submissions. A signed declaration regarding exclusion grounds (PRAG Section 2.6.10.1) is mandatory. If relying on capacity-providing entities or subcontractors, those entities must provide the same declarations.

Attachments to Upload in eSubmission:Upload under the Attachments section: Request to participate form under "Other documents"; Declaration referenced in point 7 of the request to participate form under "Other documents"; Declaration on Honour on Exclusion and Selection under the tab "Declaration on Honour".

Technical and Administrative Notes

1. 1System and file rules: eSubmission supports specified file types; maximum single attachment size must be < 50 MB and maximum number of uploaded files is 200. Follow the System Requirements and naming rules in eSubmission documentation.
2. 2Currency and financial conversions: Financial data must be stated in EUR. If amounts originally in other currencies are used, convert using the InforEuro exchange rate of April 2026 (or applicable month/year per procurement documents). See the InforEuro link in the procurement documents InforEuro exchange rates.
3. 3Confidentiality/integrity: Uploaded documents are encrypted by the system; after submission the content cannot be accessed as attachments are encrypted.
4. 4Clarifications: Questions must be submitted via the TED eTendering Q&A tab; registration on TED eTendering required. Clarifications must be requested no later than 21 days before the deadline; clarifications will be published at the latest 8 days before the deadline.

Consortia, Subcontracting and Capacity Providers

A consortium can be permanent or constituted for this procurement. All partners are jointly and severally liable. Candidates may rely on capacity-providing entities; such entities must meet the same eligibility/nationality rules and provide supporting documentation and commitments. Short-listed candidates cannot change their composition without prior contracting authority approval and may not form alliances with each other for the contract.

Selection Process Stages and Numbers

1. 1Stage 1: Submission of Request to Participate via eSubmission by the deadline. Evaluation of eligibility and selection criteria.
2. 2Stage 2: Short-listing of between 4 and 8 candidates (if fewer than 4 meet criteria, fewer may be invited).
3. 3Stage 3: Invited candidates submit detailed tenders; award decision based on best price-quality ratio.

Number of Evaluation Stages:Three main stages (request to participate; invitation to tender and tender submission; award).

Success Rates:Not explicitly stated. Indicative short-list will select 4 to 8 candidates; therefore the probability of being shortlisted depends on number of eligible applicants. Final award: single winner per lot. Overall success rate from initial candidate pool to final award cannot be numerically determined from the published documents.

Eligibility Summary — Eligible Applicant Types

Eligible applicant types:legal persons (companies, NGOs, consultancies), natural persons (experts/consultants) who are nationals of or effectively established in EU Member States or eligible IPA III countries, international organisations, regional organisations, public bodies (with equivalent information provided). Consortiums (consortia) permitted. Subcontractors allowed but must be declared; subcontractors still subject to exclusion rules in declarations.

Categorisation Answers (Structured)

Templates and Application Structure Guidance

Mandatory templates and form structure:use the official Request to Participate form available from the procurement Annexes page on the F&T Portal. Include the following sections and supporting documents as attachments in eSubmission in the specified tabs:

1. 1Request to Participate form (completed) — upload under "Other documents".
2. 2Declaration regarding exclusion clauses and selection criteria (signed) — upload under "Other documents"; template available in Annexes.
3. 3Declaration on Honour on Exclusion and Selection criteria (signed) — upload under "Declaration on Honour" using the provided template.
4. 4Evidence for economic capacity: annual accounts for last three closed years or equivalent; expressed in EUR (if other currency used, convert using InforEuro April 2026 rate).
5. 5Evidence for professional capacity: staffing lists, contracts of employment or service, CVs demonstrating at least 8 relevant personnel on average over the current and previous two years.
6. 6Evidence for technical capacity: documentary evidence for at least 2 contracts in last 4 years, each >= €1,200,000, including contract descriptions, deliverables, certificates, proof of payment or acceptance, and clear delineation of the candidate's role if part of a consortium.
7. 7If relying on capacity-providing entities: signed commitments by those entities and their supporting declarations and evidence; include separate documents for third-party capacities as required.
8. 8Any legal registration documents or PIC information (Participant Identification Code) via the Participant Register.

Follow the eSubmission System Requirements for file types, size limits (<50 MB per attachment), maximum number of attachments (200), naming conventions, and supported browsers (latest Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox recommended).

Contacts, Procurement Documents and Further Information

Contracting authority / buyer:European Union, represented by the European Commission on behalf of and for the account of Serbia. Contact email provided in the notice: DELEGATION-SERBIA-PPMT@eeas.europa.eu. Procurement documents (Invitation to submit a request to participate, Additional information to the contract notice, Annexes and templates) are available on the Funding & Tenders Portal tender page and must be consulted for full requirements and scoring weights Funding & Tenders Portal - PLAC V documents ¹.

Final Summary — What this Opportunity Is About

This is a restricted procurement procedure for a fee-based service contract (PLAC V) funded under the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA III) to support Serbia's EU accession process. The successful contractor will provide policy and legal advice, training and institution-building services to help the Serbian administration align legislation with the EU acquis, strengthen institutional capacity and manage accession negotiations and pre-accession assistance. The procurement has an estimated value of €3,000,000 over up to 30 months. Eligible bidders include organisations and experts established in EU Member States or eligible IPA III countries, as well as international/regional organisations. Candidates must meet financial, professional and technical capacity thresholds, including turnover and demonstrated high-value experience in EU alignment and institution strengthening. The procedure is two-stage: requests to participate are evaluated and a shortlist of 4-8 candidates will be invited to tender; award will be on best price-quality ratio. Submissions are electronic via the F&T Portal and must follow the prescribed templates and declarations.

Footnotes

1. 1Primary procurement documents and the official Invitation to submit a request to participate (Additional information to the Contract Notice) and Annexes including the Request to Participate form are available on the F&T Portal tender page for EC-ENEST/BEG/2026/EA-RP/0037.

The Policy and Legal Advice Centre (PLAC V) is a restricted tender procedure under the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA III) aimed at supporting the Serbian administration in conducting EU accession negotiations and managing EU integration processes towards membership. The project focuses on aligning national legislation with EU acquis and strengthening institutional capacities.

Key Details

Procedure Identifier:EC-ENEST/BEG/2026/EA-RP/0037

TED Reference:68/2026 239591-2026

Estimated Total Value:€3,000,000 (excluding VAT)

Maximum Contract Duration:30 months, with provisional commencement in November 2026

Nature of Contract:Fee-based services, classified under CPV 80000000 - Education and training services

Place of Performance:Serbia (Europe apart from EU)

Timeline

1. 1TED Publication Date: 08/04/2026
2. 2Deadline for Requests to Participate: 08/05/2026 10:00 Europe/Belgrade
3. 3Provisional Invitation to Tender: June 2026
4. 4Provisional Contract Start: November 2026

Eligibility and Participation

Open to natural persons who are nationals of, and legal persons established in, EU Member States or eligible countries/territories under Article 11 of Regulation (EU) No 2021/1529 (IPA III), including international and regional organisations. Consortia are allowed (permanent or informal), with joint and several liability. Sub-contracting is permitted. No more than one request per entity or per lot. Short-listing: 4-8 candidates invited to tender.

Exclusion Grounds

Candidates must declare they are not in situations listed in Section 2.6.10.1 of the Practical Guide (PRAG), including EU restrictive measures. Capacity-providing entities and subcontractors must provide similar declarations.

Selection Criteria

Applied to consortia as a whole (unless specified otherwise). Cannot rely on experience leading to contract breach/termination. If >8 eligible candidates, ranked by number and value of qualifying contracts.

• Economic and Financial Capacity: Average annual turnover >= €1,800,000 over last 3 closed financial years.
• Professional Capacity: Average of at least 8 personnel in specialist areas over current + previous 2 years; no conflicting interests.
• Technical Capacity: At least 2 contracts completed in last 4 years, each >= €1,200,000, in aligning legislation with EU acquis and strengthening institutions for accession negotiations.

Award Criteria

Best price-quality ratio.

Submission Process

Electronic submission only via EU Funding & Tenders Portal. Requires EU Login and PIC registration (Participant Identification Code) for individuals and consortia members. Submit: Request to Participate form, Declaration on Honour (exclusion/selection), supporting documents under specified tabs. All communications in English. Financial data in EUR using InforEuro rate for April 2026 Link Title. Forms available at Annexes.

Clarifications via TED eTendering (Q&A tab), at least 21 days before deadline; responses published 8 days prior. Notifications via email to contact provided.

Portal:EU Funding & Tenders Portal

Contracting Authority

European Union, represented by the European Commission on behalf of and for the account of Serbia. Contact: DELEGATION-SERBIA-PPMT@eeas.europa.eu.

Background on PLAC Projects

PLAC V continues a series of projects (e.g., PLAC III, IV) providing legal/policy advice for Serbia's EU accession, focusing on legislation harmonization, capacity building, and negotiation support across key chapters ¹.

Footnotes

1. 1Previous PLAC projects supported drafting 190+ laws/by-laws, strategic documents, and training; covered chapters like 1,3,8,9,12,15,27,32.