What Is the Main Law Governing Public Procurement in Italy?

The main law governing public procurement in Italy is the Public Contracts Code, enacted as Decreto Legislativo 31 March 2023, n. 36 (Legislative Decree 36/2023) and subsequently refined by the corrective Decreto Legislativo 31 December 2024, n. 209 (Corrective Decree 209/2024). Together, these instruments consolidate every rule that contracting authorities and economic operators must follow when awarding works, supply, service and concession contracts with public funds. For bidders, in-house counsel and compliance teams active in Italy, understanding this framework, including the revised EU public procurement thresholds for 2026 and the available remedies through ANAC and the TAR, is now a front-line operational priority.

Quick Statutory Snapshot, Legislative Decree 36/2023 and Corrective Decree 209/2024

Italy’s public procurement landscape was comprehensively overhauled when Legislative Decree 36/2023 replaced the former Codice dei Contratti Pubblici (D.Lgs. 50/2016). The new Public Contracts Code was published in the Gazzetta Ufficiale on 13 April 2023 and became fully operative on 1 July 2023. It transposes Directive 2014/24/EU (public sector), Directive 2014/25/EU (utilities) and Directive 2014/23/EU (concessions) into Italian law, while introducing distinctly Italian features such as enhanced digitalisation mandates, a reformed role for the Responsabile Unico del Procedimento (RUP) and streamlined award procedures.

Roughly eighteen months later, the legislature adopted Corrective Decree 209/2024, published in the Gazzetta Ufficiale on 31 December 2024. This corrective instrument amended dozens of provisions across the Code, clarifying ambiguities that had emerged in practice and adjusting procedural mechanics.

Legislative Timeline

Key Changes Introduced by Legislative Decree 36/2023

• Principle of results. Article 1 introduces a new overarching principle requiring contracting authorities to pursue timely and efficient outcomes, balancing legality with effectiveness.
• Digitalisation of the entire procurement cycle. From planning to contract execution, every stage must be managed through certified digital platforms linked to ANAC’s national database.
• Reformed RUP role. The Responsabile Unico del Procedimento becomes the central figure accountable for the lawfulness and efficiency of each procedure.
• Simplified below-threshold procedures. Direct awards and negotiated procedures without prior publication receive clearer thresholds and conditions.

What Corrective Decree 209/2024 Fixes

• Clarifications on exclusion and self-cleaning criteria (Articles 94–98 of the Code).
• Adjustments to subcontracting limits and cascading obligations.
• Refinements to the digital procurement platform requirements and interoperability standards.
• Updated provisions on economic and financial standing requirements for consortium members.

Who and What the Public Contracts Code Covers, Scope, Contracting Authorities, Contract Types

The Public Contracts Code applies whenever a contracting authority, or an entity operating under special or exclusive rights in the utilities sectors, awards a contract for works, supplies, services or concessions using public funds or under public-law obligations. Understanding who qualifies as a contracting authority and what contract types fall within scope is essential for determining whether the full EU regime or Italy’s simplified below-threshold rules apply.

Under the Code, contracting authorities are divided into central government bodies (ministries, state agencies listed in Annex I) and sub-central authorities (regions, provinces, municipalities, public health bodies and other entities governed by public law). This distinction matters because different EU threshold values apply to each category, directly affecting whether a contract must be advertised on TED (Tenders Electronic Daily) and conducted under full EU procedures.

The Code also covers concessions (both works and services), design contests, and public-private partnerships. Below-threshold contracts remain subject to the Code’s general principles but benefit from simplified procedural requirements, notably direct awards for very low-value contracts and negotiated procedures without prior publication for contracts within defined value bands.

EU Public Procurement Thresholds 2026, How They Change Procurement Obligations in Italy

The EU public procurement thresholds for 2026 were set by a European Commission communication published in the Official Journal on 23 October 2025, establishing the values applicable for the 2026–2027 biennium. These thresholds determine when a contract must follow the full EU procurement regime, including mandatory advertisement on TED, compliance with minimum time limits and the dilatory standstill period before contract signature.

Any contract whose estimated value (net of VAT) meets or exceeds the applicable threshold falls under the EU-level regime and must be conducted under one of the procedures mandated by Directive 2014/24/EU (open, restricted, competitive dialogue or innovation partnership). Italy’s Public Contracts Code mirrors these thresholds and cross-references them to the Commission’s biennial update.

2026 Public Procurement Thresholds, Italy (per Commission Communication, OJ 23 Oct 2025)

When a Contract Must Follow the EU Procedure, Practical Examples

A municipality (sub-central authority) tendering an IT services contract estimated at €250,000 exceeds the €221,000 threshold and must advertise on TED, apply minimum time limits and respect the standstill period. If the same contract were valued at €180,000, below-threshold rules would apply, allowing a negotiated procedure without prior publication, provided the municipality invites an adequate number of operators and respects the Code’s general principles.

For works, the €5,538,000 threshold means that most major infrastructure contracts, roads, public buildings, utility networks, will fall under full EU rules, while maintenance and renovation contracts below that figure can be managed under simplified procedures. Industry observers expect the 2026 threshold revision to bring a modest number of previously below-threshold service contracts into the EU-level regime, particularly affecting central government IT and consulting procurements.

Core Principles of Public Procurement in Italy and Their Practical Implications for Bidders

The Public Contracts Code enshrines seven core principles that bind every contracting authority and that bidders can invoke as grounds for challenge if a procedure violates them. Articles 1–12 of D.Lgs. 36/2023 codify these principles, and the corrective decree reinforced their practical enforceability.

1. Principle of results (Art. 1). Contracting authorities must pursue timely, efficient and quality outcomes. Bidders can challenge procedures that prioritise formalism over substance.
2. Principle of trust (Art. 2). Public officials are presumed to act lawfully. This principle limits excessive caution that leads to procedural paralysis.
3. Transparency (Art. 3). All procedural steps, evaluation criteria and decisions must be publicly accessible and adequately reasoned.
4. Equal treatment and non-discrimination (Art. 3). All bidders, domestic and EU, must be treated identically. Specifications cannot favour particular operators or nationalities.
5. Proportionality (Art. 3). Requirements for participation, technical capability and financial standing must be proportionate to the contract’s value and complexity.
6. Competition (Art. 3). Procedures must be structured to maximise participation and avoid artificial restrictions on the number of bidders.
7. Sound financial management (Art. 3). Award criteria must reflect value for money, life-cycle costs and the efficient use of public resources.

For bidders, these principles are not abstract. They form the legal basis for challenging exclusion decisions, restrictive technical specifications, disproportionate qualification requirements or evaluation criteria that effectively pre-determine the winner. Each principle is directly invocable before ANAC and the TAR.

Digitalisation and New Platforms, Supplier Identifiers, ANAC Platform, TED and MePA

One of the most consequential features of Italy’s reformed public procurement framework is the mandatory digitalisation of the entire procurement lifecycle. The Public Contracts Code requires contracting authorities to manage every phase, from needs assessment and planning through to contract execution and final payment, on certified digital platforms that interface with ANAC’s national data infrastructure.

Since 1 January 2024, all contracting authorities have been required to use digital platforms that interoperate with ANAC’s Piattaforma dei Contratti Pubblici. This platform serves as the centralised hub for publishing notices, transmitting procurement data and managing the Codice Identificativo di Gara (CIG), the unique identifier assigned to each procurement procedure. The corrective decree tightened interoperability requirements and clarified the timeline for full digital migration.

How to Check Notices on TED and ANAC

• TED (Tenders Electronic Daily). Above-threshold contract notices must be published on TED. Bidders can set up alerts by CPV code, region or contracting authority.
• ANAC Piattaforma dei Contratti Pubblici. All Italian procurement notices, including below-threshold procedures, are published through ANAC’s platform. Bidders should monitor both TED and ANAC to capture all relevant opportunities.
• MePA (Mercato Elettronico della Pubblica Amministrazione). For below-threshold supplies and services, many contracting authorities use Consip’s electronic marketplace. Registration on MePA is essential for suppliers targeting lower-value public contracts.

Bidders that fail to register on the required platforms or obtain the necessary digital supplier identifiers risk being unable to submit tenders. Early registration and regular monitoring of both TED and the ANAC platform are baseline operational requirements under the current framework.

Remedies When Things Go Wrong, Filing an ANAC Complaint in Italy

When a bidder believes that a contracting authority has violated procurement rules, the first available administrative remedy is a complaint (segnalazione) to ANAC, Italy’s national anti-corruption and procurement supervisory authority. This administrative route does not replace judicial remedies but can trigger powerful supervisory interventions, including recommendations, binding opinions and referrals to prosecutors.

Step-by-Step: How to File an ANAC Complaint

1. Identify the ground. ANAC receives complaints concerning breaches of transparency, unlawful exclusions, irregularities in evaluation, conflicts of interest and anti-competitive conduct in procurement procedures.
2. Prepare your submission. Gather the following evidence:
   • Copy of the tender documentation (bando, disciplinare, capitolato)
   • Your exclusion notice or the award decision, if issued
   • Correspondence via PEC (certified electronic mail) with the contracting authority
   • Any documents showing the alleged irregularity (evaluation minutes, scoring sheets, clarification responses)
3. Submit via ANAC’s online module. Complaints are filed through the dedicated Segnalazioni contratti pubblici e anticorruzione section on ANAC’s website. The module requires structured fields (CIG number, contracting authority, description of the alleged violation) and allows document uploads.
4. Await ANAC’s preliminary assessment. ANAC reviews the complaint for admissibility. Industry observers expect initial acknowledgement within a few weeks, though complex cases may take longer.
5. ANAC action. If ANAC finds merit, it may issue a recommendation to the contracting authority, adopt a binding opinion, impose sanctions or refer the matter to the competent prosecutor or the Corte dei Conti.

When ANAC Intervenes Versus When It Transfers to TAR or Prosecutors

ANAC’s supervisory powers are administrative in nature. It cannot annul a procurement decision or award damages, those remedies require judicial action before the TAR. In practice, ANAC intervenes most effectively in cases involving systemic transparency failures, conflicts of interest or anti-competitive specifications. Where the complaint reveals potential criminal conduct (bid-rigging, corruption, fraud), ANAC refers the matter to the competent public prosecutor. Where the complainant’s primary objective is suspension of the procedure or annulment of the award, a TAR appeal is the appropriate route, and the timelines are strict.

Judicial Challenges, TAR Appeals and Interim Measures in Italian Procurement

The most powerful remedy available to aggrieved bidders is a judicial appeal before the Tribunale Amministrativo Regionale (TAR), Italy’s first-instance administrative court. Procurement disputes fall under the TAR’s exclusive jurisdiction, and the Code of Administrative Procedure (D.Lgs. 104/2010) provides a rito speciale appalti (special procurement procedure) with compressed timelines to ensure rapid adjudication.

Key Deadlines for a TAR Appeal in Italy

• Filing deadline. The appeal must be filed within 30 days from notification or publication of the challenged act (e.g., exclusion decision, award notice). This is a peremptory term, missing it extinguishes the right to challenge.
• Interim measures (misure cautelari). A request for interim suspension can be filed simultaneously with the appeal. The TAR typically schedules a camera di consiglio (chamber hearing) within days of the filing. In cases of extreme urgency, the president of the TAR section can grant decreto monocratico, a unilateral interim suspension, before the chamber hearing.
• Hearing and judgment. Under the special procurement rite, the TAR should schedule the merit hearing within a compressed timeframe. The judgment can annul the challenged decision, order reinstatement of the excluded bidder, or award damages.
• Appeal to Consiglio di Stato. The TAR’s judgment can be appealed to the Consiglio di Stato (Italy’s supreme administrative court) within 30 days.

Checklist, Preparing a TAR Appeal in Italian Procurement

1. Preserve all PEC correspondence. Certified email exchanges with the contracting authority constitute critical evidence and establish the timeline for computing deadlines.
2. Obtain the full procurement file. Exercise your right of access (accesso agli atti) to obtain evaluation minutes, scoring matrices and all documents relied upon by the contracting authority.
3. Engage a qualified administrative lawyer. TAR proceedings require representation by a lawyer admitted to the administrative courts. Choose counsel experienced in the rito speciale appalti.
4. Draft the interim measures request. Clearly articulate the fumus boni iuris (arguable case on the merits) and the periculum in mora (irreparable harm if the procedure continues).
5. File within 30 days. Do not rely on informal contacts or pre-litigation negotiation to extend this deadline, it is absolute.
6. Monitor the standstill period. If the contracting authority has not yet signed the contract, the standstill period (typically 35 days from the transmission of the award notice) may still be running, providing an additional window for effective interim relief.

The likely practical effect of combining an ANAC complaint with a simultaneous TAR appeal is to maximise pressure on the contracting authority. While ANAC addresses systemic and regulatory issues, the TAR provides the enforceable suspension and annulment orders that directly protect the bidder’s commercial position.

Practical Compliance Checklist for Bidders and Contracting Authorities

Whether you are a bidder preparing a tender or a contracting authority designing a procurement procedure under the Public Contracts Code, the following checklist covers the operational essentials:

• Verify the applicable threshold. Determine whether the contract value crosses the 2026 EU threshold for your entity category. This determines whether you must publish on TED and follow EU procedures.
• Confirm platform registration. Ensure registration on ANAC’s Piattaforma dei Contratti Pubblici and, if applicable, MePA. Obtain the necessary digital supplier identifiers.
• Review exclusion grounds. Cross-check your entity against the exclusion criteria in Articles 94–98 of the Code (criminal convictions, tax arrears, professional misconduct, false declarations). Self-cleaning documentation should be prepared proactively.
• Assess consortium and subcontracting compliance. If bidding as a consortium or using subcontractors, verify compliance with the Code’s qualification-sharing rules and the corrective decree’s amendments to subcontracting obligations.
• Preserve evidence from day one. Save every PEC, every clarification request and every contracting authority response. These form the evidentiary foundation for any later ANAC complaint or TAR appeal.
• Monitor challenge deadlines. The 30-day filing window for TAR appeals begins running from the date you receive notification of the challenged act. Diarise this immediately.
• Evaluate direct award and two-stage risks. Contracting authorities using direct awards or restricted procedures must document the justification. Bidders should scrutinise whether the chosen procedure complied with the Code’s conditions, in particular the value and complexity thresholds for simplified procedures.
• Conduct pre-tender due diligence. For significant contracts, review the contracting authority’s procurement history, any ANAC sanctions or TAR judgments, and the composition of the evaluation committee for conflicts of interest.

Conclusion, The Main Law Governing Public Procurement in Italy and Next Steps

To summarise: the main law governing public procurement in Italy is the Public Contracts Code, enacted as Legislative Decree 36/2023 and updated by Corrective Decree 209/2024. These instruments set out the complete framework, from planning and publication through procedure selection, award and remedies, that binds every contracting authority and economic operator in Italy. With the 2026 EU thresholds now in force and ANAC’s digital platforms fully operational, bidders and contracting authorities alike need to ensure that their procurement practices are aligned with the current rules. For disputes, the combination of ANAC complaints and TAR appeals, including interim measures in Italian procurement, provides robust avenues for redress.

Those requiring guidance on a specific procurement dispute or compliance question should consult an experienced administrative litigation practitioner via the Global Law Experts lawyer directory.

Sources

1. Gazzetta Ufficiale, D.Lgs. 36/2023 (Codice dei Contratti Pubblici)
2. Gazzetta Ufficiale, D.Lgs. 209/2024 (Correttivo al Codice)
3. Normattiva, D.Lgs. 36/2023 (consolidated text)
4. ANAC, Segnalazioni contratti pubblici e anticorruzione
5. EUR-Lex, Official Journal (Commission communication on procurement thresholds 2026–2027)
6. TED, Tenders Electronic Daily
7. Giustizia Amministrativa, Il portale della giustizia amministrativa