European Union legislative procedure

The European Union adopts legislation through a variety of legislative procedures. The procedure used for a given legislative proposal depends on the policy area in question. Most legislation needs to be proposed by the European Commission and approved by the Council of the European Union and European Parliament to become law.

European Union legislative procedure

1 December 2009 (2009-12-01)

Belgium
since 1 January 2024

Roberta Metsola, EPP

No official division by political groups

EPP Group (187)
S&D (148)
Renew (97)
ID (76)
Greens–EFA (68)
ECR (61)
The Left (39)
NI (29)

10 configurations

Agriculture and fisheries
Competitiveness
Economic and financial affairs
Education, youth, culture and sport
Employment, social policy, health and consumer affairs
Environment
Foreign affairs
General affairs
Justice and home affairs
Transport, telecommunications and energy

Conciliation committee

Over the years the power of the European Parliament within the legislative process has been greatly increased from being limited to giving its non-binding opinion or excluded from the legislative process altogether, to participating equally with the Council in the legislative process.

The power to amend the Treaties of the European Union, sometimes referred to as the Union's primary law, or even as its de facto constitution, is reserved to the member states and must be ratified by them in accordance with their respective constitutional requirements. An exception to this are so-called passerelle clauses in which the legislative procedure used for a certain policy area can be changed without formally amending the treaties.

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#0__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#0__subtitleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#0__call_to_action.textDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__descriptionDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

allow the Council of Ministers to act on the basis of qualified majority in areas where they used to have to act on the basis of unanimity, except for decisions with defence or military implications.

allow for legislation to be adopted on the basis of the ordinary legislative procedure where it previously was to be adopted on the basis of a special legislative procedure.

Cooperation procedure

Recasting (EU Law)

Craig, P.; de Búrca, G. (2003). (3rd ed.). Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-925608-X.

EU Law: Text, Cases and Materials

Voermans, Wim (2010). . Legislacao. 50 (50): 391–413.

"Is the European Legislator after Lisbon a real Legislature?"

; Beglinger, Jacques (2018), Essential EU Law in Charts (4th ed.), Budapest: HVG-ORAC / E.M.Meijers Institute of Legal Studies, Leiden University. ISBN 978-963-258-394-5. See Chapter 5 (in particular Chart 5|5 = p.3), www.eur-charts.eu.

Tobler, Christa

Corbett, Richard; Jacobs, Francis; Shackleton, Michael (2011), (8 ed.), London: John Harper Publishing, ISBN 978-0-9564508-5-2

The European Parliament

EU website about decision-making

European Parliament: Procedures

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__subtextDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--2DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--2DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--2DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--3DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--3DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--3DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--4DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--4DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--4DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--5DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--5DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--5DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--6DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--6DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--6DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--7DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--7DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--7DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--8DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--8DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--8DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--9DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--9DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--9DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--10DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--10DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--10DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--11DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--11DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--11DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--12DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--12DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--12DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--13DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--13DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--13DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--14DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--14DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--14DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--15DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--15DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--15DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--16DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--16DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--16DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--17DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--17DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--17DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--18DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--18DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--18DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__quote--19DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__name--19DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__company_or_position--19DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#4__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#4__subtextDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#4__quote--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#4__name--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#4__company_or_position--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#4__quote--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#4__name--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#4__company_or_position--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#5__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#5__subtextDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#5__quote--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#5__name--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#5__company_or_position--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#5__quote--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#5__name--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#5__company_or_position--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#6__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#6__subtextDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#6__quote--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#6__name--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#6__company_or_position--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#6__quote--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#6__name--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#6__company_or_position--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#3__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#3__subtextDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#3__quote--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#3__name--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#3__company_or_position--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#3__quote--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#3__name--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#3__company_or_position--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

European Union legislative procedure