EU thresholds and conversion rate from EUR to PLN for 2024 and 2025
As of 1 January 2024, the EU thresholds for public procurement and the average euro exchange rate for converting threshold amounts from euros into Polish zlotys have changed.
The new thresholds and new conversion rate result from the announcement of the president of the Polish Public Procurement Office of 3 December 2023 on the current EU thresholds, their equivalent in Polish zlotys, the equivalent in Polish zlotys of amounts expressed in euros, and the average PLN to EUR exchange rate as the basis for converting the value of public procurement contracts or competitions, published in Monitor Polski no. 1344 of 6 December 2023.
On 15 November 2023, the European Commission published regulations introducing new public procurement value thresholds, effective 1 January 2024 (Commission Delegated Regulations (EU) of 15 November 2023, nos. 2023/2495, 2023/2496 and 2023/2510).
Additionally, the European Commission Communication determining the equivalent of the thresholds set out in Directives of the European Parliament and Council 2014/23/EU, 2014/24/EU, 2014/25/EU and 2009/81/EC was published in EU Official Journal C no. 902 of 16 November 2023. It sets out the binding conversion rate into euro of national currencies other than euro for determining the threshold amounts for the obligation to communicate contract notices to the Publications Office of the European Union.
Starting from 1 January 2024, the EUR to PLN conversion rate has been set at EUR 1 = PLN 4.6371. The following table presents the individual thresholds after their conversion into Polish zlotys at the new conversion rate.
As of 1 January 2024, the threshold for construction works, previously EUR 5,382,000, was raised to EUR 5,538,000.
The existing threshold of EUR 140,000 for supply or service contracts awarded by contracting authorities from the public finance sector was increased slightly, to EUR 143,000.
Other thresholds have changed as follows:
- The threshold for supplies and services ordered by local government contracting authorities rose from EUR 215,000 to EUR 221,000
- The threshold for supplies and sectoral services and in the fields of defence and security rose from EUR 431,000 to EUR 443,000.
The procurement thresholds for social services again remain unchanged (they were also unchanged in the previous two-year period):
- EUR 750,000 for social services and other special services procured by classic contracting authorities
- EUR 1,000,000 for social and other specific services procured by sectoral contracting entities and in the fields of defence and security.
Above the threshold—different rules
It should be remembered that conducting a procedure for award of a contract with a value at or above the EU thresholds not only requires the use of a different site for publication of the contract notice, but also means that the procurement is subject to Book II of the Public Procurement Law. Therefore, the modes of the procedure and formalities related to participation in these procedures are different.
Raising the value of the EUR to PLN conversion rate at the currently low euro exchange rate makes the increased thresholds expressed in euros even higher when converted to Polish zlotys. This is best seen in the case of the thresholds for social service contracts, which were unchanged in euro but more than PLN 100,000 higher when converted into Polish currency (rising from PLN 3,340,200 to 3,477,825 and from PLN 4,453,600 to 4,637,100). But despite the rise of thresholds, high inflation may result in more contracts being awarded under EU procedures.
Anna Prigan, attorney-at-law, Infrastructure, Transport, Public Procurement & PPP practice, Wardyński & Partners
