Public procurement: non-qualified authorities must also delegate market surveys

Non-qualified public authority: market surveys must also be delegated to the central purchasing body

Contracting authorities may purchase goods and services only within the limits of their qualification level. This qualification is obtained through ANAC’s recognition of the requirements set out in Annex II.4, such as the presence of an internal office or department dedicated to procurement procedures, the availability of digital procurement platforms, and other relevant criteria. As a result, where a contracting authority does not hold the required qualification, it must rely, for above-threshold procedures, on central purchasing bodies or other qualified entities included in the ANAC register. The purpose of the new qualification system, as outlined in Articles 62 and 63 of the Public Contracts Code, is to ensure greater efficiency, professionalisation and rationalisation in public procurement.The Italian Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport has recently addressed an interpretative issue: where a procedure is entrusted by a non-qualified authority to a central purchasing body, can the market survey be published and carried out by the non-qualified authority itself? The question fits within the framework developed by administrative case law, which qualifies expressions of interest as a pre-tender phase with a purely exploratory purpose. With opinion no. 4184 of 21 April 2026, the Ministry provided a clear answer: in the absence of the required qualification, the entire procedure, from the market survey through to the award, must be managed exclusively by the qualified entity. It follows that no fragmentation of the procedure is permitted, as all stages, including preliminary phases, require the involvement of qualified entities. For further information:· Opinion no. 4184 of 21 April 2026 – Italian Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport;· Articles 62 and 63, Annex II.4, Legislative Decree no. 36/2023