Social and Other Specific Services in Procurement Law 2026

Social and other specific services: privileged procurement regime with higher threshold and simplified procedural requirements under EU procurement law.

Definition: Social and other specific services within the meaning of EU procurement law are an exhaustively enumerated category of services in Annex XIV of Directive 2014/24/EU (mainly health, social and educational services) for which a privileged procurement regime applies, with an increased threshold of EUR 750,000 and simplified procedural requirements.

Last updated: January 2026 · Legal basis: Directive 2014/24/EU Art. 74 et seq. and Annex XIV, BVergG 2018 §§ 148 et seq., GWB § 130, VgV §§ 64 et seq.

Background and Justification of the Special Regime

A separate, privileged procurement regime applies to social and other specific services, taking account of the particular nature of these services: they are often provided locally, culturally shaped and require close continuity between contracting authority and contractor. The EU legislator recognised that the full procurement regime with its strict formal requirements is often disproportionate for these services and cross-border competition is limited in practice. It therefore introduced a "light regime" for this category in Art. 74 et seq. of Directive 2014/24/EU.

Affected Service Categories (Annex XIV)

Annex XIV of Directive 2014/24/EU exhaustively lists the covered services. Key categories are:

Health and social services (CPV 75121000, 85000000 et seq.): hospital services, outpatient care, social care
Educational and training services (CPV 80000000 et seq.): school and vocational training
Library and museum services (CPV 92511000 et seq.)
Sports and recreational services (CPV 92600000 et seq.)
Political services and services related to trade unions (CPV 75200000 et seq.)
Religious services (CPV 98131000)

The Privileged Procurement Regime

The light regime under Art. 74 et seq. Directive 2014/24/EU is characterised by the following features:

Increased Threshold

The EU threshold for social and other specific services is EUR 750,000 (net) – compared to EUR 143,000 for regular service contracts of public contracting authorities. Below this limit, only national rules apply.

Simplified Procedural Requirements

Publication obligation: a publication obligation also applies to social services (prior information or contract notice in TED).
Free choice of procedure: the contracting authority can generally freely choose the award procedure but must ensure transparency, equal treatment and non-discrimination.
No mandatory open procedure: restricted procedures and negotiated procedures are permissible without the strict conditions of the regular regime having to be met.

Consideration of Qualitative Aspects

For social services, the EU legislator expressly encourages the consideration of quality criteria, continuity, accessibility and the special needs of vulnerable user groups in the award decision (recital 114 of Directive 2014/24/EU).

National Implementation

Austria (BVergG 2018)

In Austria, social and other specific services are regulated in §§ 148 et seq. BVergG 2018. The threshold is likewise EUR 750,000. Below this, the provisions for the below-threshold range apply.

Germany (VgV)

In Germany, §§ 64 et seq. VgV are applicable. The provisions largely correspond to EU law and also provide for a publication obligation and simplified procedural requirements.

Distinction from the Open House Procedure

Social services are often discussed in connection with the open house procedure but must be distinguished from it. The open house procedure aims to bypass procurement law entirely (no selection procedure); the light regime, in contrast, is a simplified but procurement-law-mandated procedure for covered services.

Related Terms

FAQ

Does the light regime apply to all social services? No. It applies only to the service categories exhaustively listed in Annex XIV of Directive 2014/24/EU. Other services in the social sector are subject to the regular regime.

Must an open procedure be used for social services? No. The light regime gives the contracting authority more freedom in choosing the procedure, as long as transparency and equal treatment are ensured.

Do no procurement obligations apply to social services in the below-threshold range? Yes, they do, but the national rules for the below-threshold range apply, which are generally less strict than the EU regime.

Last updated: January 2026 All information is provided without guarantee. For legally binding advice, please consult a law firm specialising in procurement law.