COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL AND THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT Report on progress in Bosnia and Herzegovina – March 2024
Date: 2024-03-12
Institutions: Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations, European Commission
Subjects: Bosnia and Herzegovina, accession criteria, accession negotiations, democracy, migration, pre-accession strategy, rule of law

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   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 12.3.2024  COM(2024) 129 final  COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL AND THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT Report on progress in Bosnia and Herzegovina – March 2024   
 
 
Report on progress in Bosnia and Herzegovina – March 2024 

1.  Introduction 

In its 2019 Opinion on Bosnia and Herzegovina’s application for membership of the European 
Union, the  Commission noted that the negotiations for the accession to the European Union 
should be opened with Bosnia and Herzegovina once the country has achieved the necessary 
degree of compliance with the membership criteria and in particular the Copenhagen political 
criteria requiring the stability of institutions guaranteeing notably democracy and the rule of 
law and identified 14 key priorities in this regard. The Opinion was endorsed by the European 
Council in December 2019. 

In its conclusions on Enlargement and Stabilisation and Association Process of 13 December 
2022,  the  Council  recommended  to  grant  the  status  of  candidate  country  to  Bosnia  and 
Herzegovina, subject to confirmation by the European Council, on the understanding that the 
steps  (“8  steps”)  specified  in  the  Commission’s  recommendations1  are  taken,  in  order  to 
strengthen  the  rule  of  law,  the  fight  against  corruption  and  organised  crime,  migration 
management  and  fundamental  rights.  Further,  the  Council  underlined  the  urgency  for  the 
country  to  move  forward  on  its  EU  path,  in  particular  via  fulfilling  all  14  key  priorities  as 
identified in the Commission’s Opinion and endorsed by the Council in 2019.   

On  15  December  2022,  the  European  Council  endorsed  the  Council  conclusions  of  13 
December  2022  on  Enlargement  and  Stabilisation  and  Association  Process,  and  agreed  to 
grant the status of candidate country to Bosnia and Herzegovina.   

In  its  2023  Communication  on  enlargement  policy,  the  Commission  welcomed  the  reforms 
efforts undertaken by Bosnia and Herzegovina since the meeting of the European Council of 
December 2022 granting candidate status to the country. The Commission noted that, overall, 
further efforts are required for Bosnia and Herzegovina to fulfil the 14 key priorities set out in 
the  Commission  Opinion  on  its  EU  membership  application  and  the  steps  specified  in  the 
Commission  recommendation  for  candidate  status,  all  of  which  remain  fully  valid.  The 
Commission  has  also  recommended  the  opening  of  EU  accession  negotiations  with  Bosnia 
and  Herzegovina,  once  the  necessary  degree  of  compliance  with  the  membership  criteria  is 
achieved.  The  Commission  stated  it  will  report  to  the  Council  on  progress  at  the  latest  in 
March 2024”.2 

In  line  with  the  Commission’s  recommendation,  in  December  2023,  the  European  Council 
decided  that  it  will  open  accession  negotiations  with  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina,  once  the 
necessary  degree  of  compliance  with  the  membership  criteria  is  achieved.  The  European 
Council  invited  the  Commission  to  report  to  the  Council  on  progress  at  the  latest  in  March 
2024, with a view to making a decision.3  

Since the granting of candidate status by the European Council in December 2022, the public 
commitment of political parties in Bosnia and Herzegovina to the strategic goal of European 
integration  has  brought  some  positive  results.  This  report  provides  a  factual  outline  of  the 
latest developments since the enlargement report of 8 November 2023.  

1 2022 Communication on EU Enlargement Policy, COM(2022) 528 final  
2 2023 Commission communication on enlargement, COM(2023) 690 final, paragraph 11.   
3 European Council conclusions, 14 December 2023, paragraph 17 

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2.  Progress on the implementation of reforms 

Step 1: ensure a track record in the functioning at all levels of the coordination mechanism 
on EU matters including by developing and adopting a national programme for the adoption 
of the EU acquis. 

The  Directorate  for  European  Integration    has  finalised  the  programme  for  EU  integration, 
and submitted it to the European Commission in early March for comments. The programme 
for  EU  integration  is  expected  to  be  later  adopted  by  the  Council  of  Ministers.  This 
programme  for  EU  integration  is  a  key  step  towards  developing  and  adopting  the  national 
programme for the adoption of the EU acquis (NPAA).  

Consultations are ongoing in the Council of Ministers to appoint the national IPA coordinator 
(NIPAC) for IPA III. 

Step  2:  adopt,  as  a  matter  of  priority,  integrity  amendments  in  the  existing  law  of  High 
Judicial and Prosecutorial Council. 

The  Parliament  adopted  the  integrity  amendments  to  the  HJPC  Law  in  September  2023. 
Certain  provisions  that  hampered  the  right  of  international  experts  to  access  personal  data 
were  corrected  in  January  2024.  The  integrity  checks  on  judicial  office  holders  and  HJPC 
members may now start.  

Step 3: adopt a new law on the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council and adopt the law on 
Courts of Bosnia and Herzegovina 

Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  authorities  are  working  towards  a  new  Law  on  the  HJPC,  which 
should  be  finalised  and  adopted  in  line  with  the  opinion  of  the  Venice  Commission.  A 
working  group has  been formed to  develop  amendments. The new law on the HJPC should 
also ensure the right of the HJPC to request additional data in the asset declaration verification 
system. Bosnia and Herzegovina’s authorities  expect to  finalise the draft by April  2024 and 
submit  it to the Venice Commission  for  a new  opinion, prior to  adoption by the Council of 
Ministers and submission for parliamentary procedure.  

The Ministry of Justice is finalising the draft Law on the Courts of Bosnia and Herzegovina 
and expected to submit it to the Council of Ministers for adoption in March. The Commission 
expects  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  to  submit  the  draft  law  to  the  Venice  Commission  for  a 
follow-up opinion, prior to adoption by the Houses of Parliament. 

Step 4: adopt the Law on prevention of conflict of interest.  

The new law on the prevention of conflict of interest was adopted by the Council of Ministers 
on 6 March then it was adopted by both Houses of Parliament on 8 March. The law aims to 
improve the level of compliance with European standards at state level.  

Step  5:  take  decisive  steps  to  strengthen  the  prevention  and  fight  against  corruption  and 
organised crime. 

A law on anti-money laundering and countering terrorism financing (AML/CFT) was adopted 
by  the  Council  of  Ministers  in  December  2023  and  by  the  Parliament  in  February  2024.  It 
improves provisions on risk assessment and provides for a permanent coordinating body of all 
authorities in charge of preparing it, in line with the EU acquis. 

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A Risk Assessment for the AML/CFT on virtual assets accompanied with an Action Plan for 
2024-2027 was adopted by the Council of Ministers on 1 February 2024. 

Bosnia and Herzegovina authorities have finalised at working group level the draft new law 
on  personal  data  protection,  which  is  a  precondition  for  the  entry  into  force  of  the  Eurojust 
cooperation agreement. The draft law is undergoing e-consultation until 8 March. It has been 
translated and shared with the Commission for acquis compliance check, pending submission 
of  correlation  tables.  After  receiving  opinions  from  other  institutions,  the  Ministry  of  Civil 
Affairs is expected to submit the draft law to the Council of Ministers for adoption, prior to 
submission for parliamentary procedure.  

A strategy on public procurement 2024-2028 has been finalised and is  pending  adoption by 
the Council of Ministers.  

Bosnia and Herzegovina should strengthen cooperation among law enforcement agencies, and 
adopt a strategic approach towards fighting serious and organised crime. 

In January 2024 the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina confirmed on appeal the sentence in the 
Novalić  et  al.  case  related  to  public  procurement  fraud,  including  against  the  then-acting 
Prime Minister of the Federation entity, who was sentenced to 4 years for abuse of office and 
forging of documents. This is a first final court ruling on high level corruption. 

Step  6:  decisively  advance  work  to  ensure  effective  coordination,  at  all  levels,  of  border 
management and migration management capacity, as well as ensuring the functioning of the 
asylum system. 

Migration management continues to improve. The Council of Ministers adopted a migration 
strategy  and  action  plan.  The  Parliament  adopted  a  Law  on  foreigners  in  August  2023. 
Reception capacities are sufficient. Readmission agreements and implementing protocols are 
implemented  overall  satisfactorily.  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  needs  to  assign  an  appropriate 
budget for migration management, continue efforts for the return of irregular migrants to their 
countries of origin and take further steps to  ensure a functioning  asylum system.    Obstacles 
persist to ensuring effective access to asylum.  

In December 2023 the Council of Ministers adopted the negotiating mandate on the Frontex 
status  agreement.  The  Presidency  endorsed  it  in  February  2024,  and  a  chief  negotiators  has 
been appointed, allowing the start of negotiations with the Commission.  

In January 2024 Bosnia and Herzegovina further aligned with the EU visa policy by removing 
Oman from its list of visa-free countries. 

The  authorities  of  Bosnia  and  Herzegovinafinalised  the  draft  new  law  on  border  control, 
aimed  at  improving  compliance  with  European  standards.  The  Ministry  of  Security  is 
expected to submit it to the Council of Ministers for adoption  

A new draft strategy and action plan 2024-2029 on integrated border management, aimed at 
aligning with the EU acquis, are ready for adoption by the Council of Ministers.  

Step  7:  ensure  prohibition  of  torture,  notably  by  establishing  a  national  preventive 
mechanism against torture and ill-treatment. 

In  October  2019  the  Constitutional  Court  repealed  the  reference  to  death  penalty  in  the 
Constitution of the Republika Srpska entity. In August 2023 the Parliament amended the Law 

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on  the  human  rights  Ombudsman  to  designate  it  as  national  preventive  mechanism  against 
torture and ill-treatment – an international obligation of the country.  

Step 8: guarantee freedom of expression and of the media and the protection of  journalists, 
notably  by  ensuring  the  appropriate  judicial  follow-up  to  cases  of  threats  and  violence 
against journalists and media workers. 

All  prosecutors’  offices  and  law  enforcement  agencies  have  appointed  contact  points  for 
journalists, to be publicised on the platform safejournalists.net. The first EU-funded training 
of contact point took place in late February. 

As a first step to urgently address the financial situation of the state-level public broadcaster, 
in  February  2024  the  Council  of  Ministers  granted  it  funds  from  the  revenues  of  the 
Communication Regulatory Agency. A working group is being established to draft a new law 
on the public broadcasting system. 

3.  Conclusions 

Since  the  European  Council  of  December  2022  has  granted  candidate  status  to  Bosnia  and 
Herzegovina,  the  public  commitment  of  the  political  leadership  to  the  strategic  goal  of 
European  integration  was  taken  forward  by  important  reforms  and  have  brought  positive 
results.  The  dedication  and  the  commitment  of  the  political  leadership  to  the  principles  for 
ensuring a functional Bosnia and Herzegovina that advances on the European path is highly 
welcomed by the Commission.     

Stronger  engagement  in  policy  dialogue  with  the  EU  is  witnessed  by  High  Level  Political 
Forums,  the  latest  one  held  in  Brussels  on  6  December  2023  where  the  participants  have 
acknowledged  the  political  importance  and  opportunity  provided  by  the  Commission 
recommendation  to  open  accession  negotiations  once  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  achieves  the 
necessary degree of compliance with the membership criteria.  

This strengthens even further the need for Bosnia and Herzegovina to deliver on the necessary 
reforms. The authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina have also reiterated their commitment to 
advance  on  EU-related  reforms  during  the  joint  visit  of  the  President  of  the  European 
Commission  with  the  Prime  Ministers  of  Croatia  and  of  the  Netherlands  in  Sarajevo  on  23 
January 2024. 

Despite  some  developments  referred  to  in  the  report,  which  are  going  against  the  positive 
momentum,  the  general  commitment  to  the  country’s  EU  path  has  translated  into  tangible 
results. This has to be continued with resolute steps to finalise key reforms in the upcoming 
period in line with EU rules and standards.        

Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  has  also  reached  and  maintained  full  alignment  with  the  EU 
Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) which is a more significant signal then ever of 
shared values and strategic orientation in the new geopolitical context. 

In  light  of  the  results  achieved  since  2022  the  Commission  considers  that  Bosnia  and 
Herzegovina  achieves  the  necessary  level  of  compliance  with  the  membership  criteria. 
Therefore  the  Commission  recommends  to  the  Council  to  open  accession  negotiations  with 
Bosnia and Herzegovina in accordance with point 17. of the European Council conclusions of 
14  and  15  December  2023.  Furthermore,  the  Commission  recommends  that  the  Council 
adopts the negotiating framework once Bosnia and Herzegovina has taken further steps in line 
with the Commission’s report. The Commission is ready to report back to the Council about 
the progress made by BiH in relation to these steps. 

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Annex 

Additional elements of progress in EU reforms 

1.  Stabilisation and Association Process 

The  Stabilisation  and  Association  Parliamentary  Committee  (SAPC)  has  become  fully 
operational.  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina’s  Parliament  and  the  European  Parliament  held  a  full 
session of the SAPC in late October 2023. A second one is scheduled in March 2024.  

2.  Reconciliation to overcome the legacies of the war 

The Council of Ministers appointed a supervisory body for the implementation of the national 
war crimes processing strategy. 

In  January  2024  the  Ministry  of  Justice  signed  a  memorandum  of  understanding  with  the 
International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) to include in the domestic 
criminal  records  the  judgements  of  the  International  Criminal  Tribunal  for  the  former 
Jugoslavia (ICTY). 

The Peacebuilding Steering Committee has become operational on 19 February 2024, which 
is also the platform for policy dialogue on reconciliation.  

3.  Public adminsitration reform 

All  levels  of  government  have  been  implementing  the  action  plan  on  public  administration 
reform (PAR), the comprehensive and countrywide public finance management strategy, and 
their own individual strategies on public financial management, while preparing  a new action 
plan on public administration reform for 2022-2027.  

The  Coordinating  Committee  for  PAR  (at  prime  ministers’  level)  met  for  the  first  time  in 
February 2024 as the main political decision-making body tasked to steer reforms in the area 
as  regards  financial  support  to  PAR,  improved  capacities  of  PAR  coordinators  and 
functionality of implementation structures.  

In  February  2024  the  Parliament  adopted  in  first  reading  amendments  to  the  law  on  civil 
service  in  state-level  institutions  which  aim  to  improve  transparency  in  recruitment  and 
introduce human resources management tools. These amendments were fully adopted by the 
Parliament in second reading on 8 March 2024.  

Preparations are ongoing to hold the first EU-BiH dialogue on public finance management. 

4.  Functioning of the state institutions 

The Program of Economic Reforms 2024 – 2026 was adopted in the Council of Ministers on 
28 February 2024. 
The  Working  Team  for  the  Growth  Plan  Reform  Agenda  appointed  by  the  Council  of 
Ministers on 17 January 2024 and presented the priority list for their Reform Agenda. 
The Global Framework of Fiscal Balance and Policy in BiH for 2024 – 2026 was adopted on 
the State level, which is a precondition for the adoption of the 2024 State Budget (23 January 
2024).  

The 2024 budgets were adopted on entity level - in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina 
on 24-25 January 2024; in the Republika Srpska on 15 December 2023; in the Brcko District 
on  23  December  2023;  in  Posavina  Canton  20  December  2023;  in  Sarajevo  Canton  on  30 
December  2023;  in  the  Zenica-Doboj  Canton  on  22  Dec  2023  and  in  Mostar  City  on  25 
January 2024. 

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The  Decision  on  the  quality  of  liquid  fuels  was  adopted  by  the  Council  of  Ministers  in 
December 2023. This is an important step for the accession of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the 
WTO. It is also a measure implementing the Action Plan for the Energy Support Package. 

As previously reported, the Republika Srpska entity continues not to recognise the decisions 
of the Constitutional Court, including those quashing the entity laws on the non-application of 
the  decisions  of  the  Constitutional  Court  and  of  the  High  Representative,  as  well  as  on  the 
unconstitutionality of certain entity-level’s criminal provisions on defamation.  

In  December  2023,  the  Republika  Srpska  entity  adopted  in  first  reading  a  draft  law  on 
immunity  that,  if  fully  adopted,  would  curtail  the  accountability  of  political  representatives 
and challenge legal certainty.  

Furthermore, in December 2023, the Republika Srpska entity adopted in first reading a draft 
law on referendums and civic initiatives that, if fully adopted, would provide the legal basis 
for a separate electoral administration in the entity.  

The  Grand  Chamber  of  the  Constitutional  Court  is  no  longer  functional,  which  has 
considerable consequences for the efficiency of the Court. As already reported, both entities’ 
assemblies should swiftly appoint judges to the vacant seats and ensure the full composition 
of the Constitutional Court.  

5.  Freedom of association and freedom of assembly 

The  Ministry  of  Justice  is  drafting  a  strategy  for  an  enabling  environment  for  civil  society 
organisations,  which  should  be  submitted  to  the  Council  of  Ministers  for  adoption.  The 
Zenica-Doboj  Canton  (in  December  2023)  and  the  Una-Sana  Canton  (in  January  2024) 
adopted laws aiming to align with European standards on freedom of assembly. 

As  previously  reported,  while  the  overall  legal  and  regulatory  framework  is  broadly  in  line 
with  the  EU  acquis,  the  Republika  Srpska  entity  adopted  in  the  first  reading  a  draft  law 
targeting  civil  society  actors  as  ‘foreign  agents’  which,  if  fully  adopted,  would  mark  a  step 
backwards.   

6.  Alignment with EU foreign policy 

Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  reached  and  maintained  full  alignment  with  the  EU  Common 
Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP), signalling its clear commitment to the EU path. 

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