Dutch Justice System Splits Its Translation Services Between Two Language Providers

Standfirst

The Netherlands' Ministry of Justice and Security has awarded translation services for the Public Prosecution Service and the Judiciary to AVB Language Group and thebigword, covering an estimated 34 million words of translation annually across the country. The contract anticipates rising demand tied to asylum and refugee case volumes.

Introduction

Courts and prosecutors cannot function without accurate translation, whether for a criminal case involving a non-Dutch speaking defendant, a document that needs certified translation, or interpretation support tied to an asylum related legal process. Behind that need sits a large, ongoing translation services contract now split between two specialist providers.

Why This Contract Matters

This contract explicitly anticipates growth. Its options clause references a significant expected increase in the number of people in the Netherlands due to the reception of asylum seekers and refugees, noting that while the proportion of criminal cases is expected to stay roughly stable, the absolute number will rise with population. That built in flexibility signals the buyer expects translation demand tied to the justice system to keep growing.

Contract Timeline

Winners for both lots were selected on 11 August 2026 and both contracts were concluded on 24 August 2026. The notice recording these awards was dispatched on 27 August 2026 and published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 28 August 2026, under OJ S issue 166/2026. Lot 1's intended start date is 15 June 2026 and each lot runs for an initial 27 months.

Contract Overview

The Ministerie van Justitie en Veiligheid ran an open procedure under Directive 2014/24/EU for translation services on behalf of the Public Prosecution Service and the Judiciary, classified under CPV code 79530000, Translation services. The overall procedure anticipates 34,000,000 words of translation annually.

The contract is split into two geographic lots. Lot 1 covers Northern and Western Netherlands, anticipating 16,000,000 words annually, with an estimated value of 12,982,499.00 EUR. Lot 2 covers the remaining regions, with an estimated value of 11,610,121.00 EUR. Three tenders were received for Lot 1 and three for Lot 2 (with a further statistical field recording two for one sub-measure).

Key Contract Details

Project Scope

The contract covers translation services for the Public Prosecution Service and the Judiciary across the Netherlands. The options clause allows the buyer to expand scope for technical solutions developed by the contractor or its subcontractors to make translation delivery faster, better or more secure and explicitly anticipates more translation assignments than currently forecast due to a significant expected increase in the Dutch population from asylum seeker and refugee reception. Contractors are also expected to actively propose innovations that improve service delivery over the contract term.

A notable cross-lot mechanism allows the Public Prosecution Service or Judiciary, in consultation with the buyer, to redirect work from one lot's contractor to the other lot's contractor for a full quarter if performance KPIs are not met, or to place work with an entirely different party outside the contract if the value involved in that period does not exceed 50,000 euros.

About the Contracting Authority

Ministerie van Justitie en Veiligheid

The Ministerie van Justitie en Veiligheid is a central government authority with public order and safety as its classified activity, based in The Hague. It ran this procurement on behalf of the Openbaar Ministerie (Public Prosecution Service) and de Rechtspraak (the Judiciary), with Rechtbank Den Haag serving as an additional contact point and also holding review organisation responsibilities.

About the Organisations Involved

AVB Language Group B.V.

AVB Language Group B.V., based in Amstelveen and classified as a medium sized enterprise, won Lot 1, covering Northern and Western Netherlands. It operates under the ELAN Languages brand.

thebigword B.V.

thebigword B.V., based in Amsterdam and classified as a medium sized enterprise, won Lot 2, covering the remaining regions. thebigword is part of an international language services group with a substantial public sector translation and interpreting practice across Europe.

Procurement Analysis

Both lots attracted three tenders, a solid competitive field for a specialised translation services contract of this scale. Award criteria for Lot 1 place a fixed 175 point weighting on delivery reliability as a quality criterion, alongside data security and confidentiality, both assessed by reference to a separate award criteria annex rather than detailed weighting disclosed directly in this notice.

Splitting the contract geographically between two providers, rather than awarding it all to one, gives the Ministry built in resilience: the cross-lot KPI failure mechanism means one contractor's underperformance can be offset by shifting work to the other, without needing an emergency re-tender.

Additional Procurement Facts

Neither lot is financed with EU funds and both are covered by the Government Procurement Agreement. The contract includes a bridging extension option of up to 12 months if delays outside the buyer's control prevent a new agreement being signed before the current term ends.

Market and Industry Perspective

Both winning firms are established players in the European language services and legal translation market. Splitting a large national justice sector translation contract between two providers, rather than consolidating with one, reflects a risk management approach increasingly common in public sector language services procurement.

Economic Significance

At a combined estimated value of roughly 24.6 million euros across both lots for the initial term, with room to grow given the explicit population and demand growth clause, this is a substantial and potentially expanding investment in the Dutch justice system's language access capability.

Future Procurement Opportunities

With renewal options extending well beyond the initial 27 month term and an explicit volume growth clause tied to asylum and refugee reception trends, actual contract value could rise meaningfully over time without requiring a new competitive tender.

Opportunities for Suppliers

Language services providers should note the contract's built in innovation clause, inviting contractors to propose new technical solutions that could expand their role and compensation within the existing agreement, offering an ongoing route to grow business without waiting for the next full tender cycle.

What Businesses Should Watch

Translation and interpreting firms serving the European public sector should watch for how translation demand tied to asylum and refugee case volumes evolves in the Netherlands, since this contract's own terms anticipate that trend directly affecting its ultimate scale.

NetherlandsTenders.com Procurement Intelligence

This award illustrates how the Dutch justice system is building resilience and flexibility into a core support service, splitting translation work between two providers, building in cross contractor failover for underperformance and explicitly anticipating rising demand tied to migration trends rather than treating current volumes as fixed.

Its strategic importance lies in what the demand growth clause signals about the Ministry's own expectations: rather than treating this as a static services contract, it is structured to flex with population and caseload changes over its term, a design choice other public sector language services buyers facing similar demographic pressures may want to study.

Supplier Takeaways

• Both lots attracted three tenders, reflecting solid competitive interest in this translation services contract
• The contract includes an explicit clause anticipating rising translation volumes tied to asylum and refugee reception
• A cross-lot failover mechanism lets work move between the two contracted providers if KPIs are not met
• An innovation clause allows contractors to propose new technical solutions that expand scope and compensation over time
• Renewal options extend well beyond the initial 27 month term, including a bridging extension provision

Key Takeaways

• The Dutch Ministry of Justice and Security has awarded translation services to AVB Language Group (Lot 1) and thebigword (Lot 2)
• The contract anticipates 34 million words of translation annually across both lots
• Combined estimated values are 12.98 million euros for Lot 1 and 11.61 million euros for Lot 2
• Both lots drew three tenders and contracts were concluded on 24 August 2026
• The contract explicitly anticipates growing translation demand tied to asylum and refugee population trends

Conclusion

This award secures translation capacity for the Dutch Public Prosecution Service and Judiciary across the whole country, split deliberately between two providers for resilience and built to flex as demand grows. For AVB Language Group and thebigword, it is a substantial, multi year engagement at the heart of how the Dutch justice system communicates across language barriers.

Source: Tenders Electronic Daily (TED), Contract Award Notice 595263-2026, Official Journal of the European Union, OJ S issue 166/2026, published on 28/08/2026.