EU membership
Union state status
EU membership is the status of being a member state of the European Union, the political and economic bloc of European nations.
Member states participate in shared governance, follow EU law, and enjoy benefits like free movement of goods and people across borders.
The UK ended its EU membership in 2020.
Countries seeking EU membership must meet political and economic criteria before joining.
- acquis communautaireCollective EU legal framework
- single marketIntegrated trading bloc
- eurozoneMonetary union sharing currency
- customs unionTariff-aligned trading partnership
- level playing fieldEqual competitive conditions
freedom of movement · sovereignty · directives · European Parliament · regulations · treaties · supranationalism · subsidiarity · fiscal policy · trade bloc · enlargement · veto · bloc · bureaucracy · opt-out clause · integration · borders · withdrawal