Advisory Committee on Public Contracts

The Advisory Committee on Public Contracts (ACPC) is a consultative body established by Council Decision 71/306/EEC that brings together representatives of EU member states to advise the European Commission on matters relating to the coordination of public procurement. It is chaired by the Directorate-General for Internal Market (DG GROW) and meets periodically to discuss procurement policy developments, the application of the directives, and the preparation of guidance documents and legislative proposals.

What is the Advisory Committee on Public Contracts?

The ACPC operates as a standing forum for dialogue between the Commission and member state authorities responsible for public procurement policy. Its membership comprises procurement experts and officials from each EU member state, typically from the ministries or central procurement bodies responsible for transposing and applying the procurement directives.

Policy advisory function. The ACPC provides formal opinions and advice to the Commission on proposals related to the procurement directives, threshold regulations, standard forms, and implementing measures. When the Commission is preparing a legislative proposal or a significant piece of guidance, it uses the ACPC as a sounding board to test the practical implications with member states before finalising the text.

Threshold updates. The Commission consults the ACPC before publishing revised procurement thresholds every two years. The ACPC reviews the proposed threshold values, which are calibrated to the WTO Government Procurement Agreement values, and confirms their technical accuracy before the Commission adopts the regulation.

eForms and standard forms. The transition to the eForms regime (Implementing Regulation 2019/1780) was prepared in close collaboration with the ACPC. Member state representatives contributed technical knowledge about their national procurement portals and the practical challenges of migrating to structured data formats.

Horizontal policy issues. The ACPC also discusses broader policy topics such as the use of procurement for strategic objectives (sustainability, innovation, SME support), the functioning of national review bodies, and the treatment of joint cross-border procurement under Article 39 of Directive 2014/24/EU.

Why it matters for bidders

The ACPC is not a body that suppliers interact with directly, but its work shapes the regulatory environment in which all European public procurement takes place. Key implications for bidders include:

Threshold changes debated in the ACPC determine which contracts must be advertised on TED and therefore which opportunities are visible to suppliers across Europe. Early awareness of proposed threshold changes can inform market entry strategies.

Guidance documents developed through the ACPC process represent the agreed-upon interpretation of the directives by the member states themselves, giving them practical authority beyond their formal non-binding status.

The ACPC's discussions of national implementation differences can highlight divergences between member states' procurement rules that suppliers need to account for when operating across multiple European markets.

Example

During the preparation of the 2022 threshold regulation, the ACPC reviewed and endorsed the Commission's proposal to set the central government works threshold at EUR 5,382,000, aligned with the updated GPA schedule. This decision flowed directly into the regulation that determined which construction tenders across all EU member states must be published on TED.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can suppliers or business associations participate in ACPC meetings?

ACPC meetings are attended by member state representatives and Commission officials. They are not open to external participants. However, the Commission conducts broader stakeholder consultations separately when preparing major legislative proposals, and business associations can contribute to those processes.

Is the ACPC the same as the national procurement advisory bodies in each member state?

No. National procurement advisory bodies (such as the UK Crown Commercial Service, France's DAJ, or Germany's BMI procurement unit) are national institutions. The ACPC is an EU-level forum where representatives from these national bodies meet collectively to advise the Commission.

How does the ACPC relate to the procurement reform process?

When the Commission decides to propose a revision of the procurement directives, the ACPC is one of the first bodies consulted. Member state views expressed in the ACPC inform the Commission's impact assessment and the initial proposal, before the text goes to the European Parliament and the Council for the legislative process.