Proposal for a Interinstitutional Agreement between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on sound financial management
Date: 2025-07-16
Institutions: Directorate-General for Budget, European Commission
Subjects: budgetary cooperation, budgetary discipline (EU), financial management, interinstitutional agreement, interinstitutional cooperation (EU)

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 16.7.2025  COM(2025) 572 final  Proposal for a Interinstitutional Agreement between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on sound financial management  
 
 
Proposal for an 

INTERINSTITUTIONAL AGREEMENT 

between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the 
European Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters 
and on sound financial management 

THE  EUROPEAN  PARLIAMENT,  THE  COUNCIL  OF  THE  EUROPEAN  UNION  AND 
THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION, 

hereinafter referred to as the Institutions, 

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS: 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

1 
2 

3 
4 

The  purpose  of  this  Agreement,  adopted  in  accordance  with  Article  295  of  the 
Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union  (TFEU),  is  to  implement 
budgetary discipline and improve the functioning of the annual budgetary procedure 
and cooperation between the institutions on  budgetary matters as well as  to  ensure 
sound financial management. 

This Agreement is binding on the Institutions for as long as it is in force. The Annex 
to this Agreement forms an integral part thereof. 

This Agreement does not alter the respective budgetary powers of the institutions as 
laid down in the Treaties, in Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 20XX/XXX 1 ('the 
MFF  Regulation')  in  Regulation  (EU,  Euratom)  2024/2509  of  the  European 
Parliament and of the Council 2 ('the Financial Regulation')] and in Council Decision 
(EU,  Euratom)  20XX/XX 3  (the  ’Own  Resources  Decision’),  and  is  without 
prejudice to the powers of national parliaments in respect of own resources. 

Any  amendment  of  this  Agreement  requires  the  common  agreement  of  all  the 
Institutions. 

This Agreement is divided in three parts: 

– 

– 

– 

Part I relates to interinstitutional cooperation in relation to the the multiannual 
financial framework (MFF) and to the special instruments. 

Part II relates to interinstitutional cooperation in budgetary matters. 

Part III relates to interinstitutional cooperation during the budgetary procedure. 

This Agreement enters into force on XX XX XX and replaces the Interinstitutional 
Agreement of 16 December 2020 between the European Parliament, the Council and 
the Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on 
sound financial management, as well as on new own resources, including a roadmap 
towards the introduction of new own resources4. 

OJ L.., p. 
Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 September 
2024 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union, (OJ L, 2024/2509, 26.9.2024, 
ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/2509/oj). 
Council Decision [(EU, Euratom) 20XX/XX of […][] (OJ L.., p. …, ELI…).. 
OJ L 433I, 22.12.2020, p. 28, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/agree_interinstit/2020/1222/oj. 

2 

 
 
PART I 
Interinstitutional cooperation in relation to the multiannual 
financial framework (MFF) 

A. PROVISIONS RELATED TO INTERINSTITUTIONAL COOPERATION 
THROUGHOUT THE PROCEDURE LEADING TO THE ADOPTION OF THE FINANCIAL 
FRAMEWORK 

7. 

In line with Article 312(5) TFEU, the Institutions shall take any measure necessary 
to facilitate the adoption of a new MFF or a revision thereof, in accordance with the 
special legislative procedure referred to in Article 312(2) TFEU. Such measures will 
include  regular  meetings  and  exchange  of  information  between  the  European 
Parliament and the Council and, on the initiative of the Commission, meetings of the 
Presidents  of  the  Institutions  as  set  out  in  Article  324  TFEU  in  order  to  promote 
consultation  and  the  reconciliation  of  the  positions  of  the  Institutions.  Where  a 
proposal  for  a  new  MFF  or  for  a  substantial  revision  has  been  presented,  the 
Institutions  will  seek  to  determine  specific  arrangements  for  cooperation  and 
dialogue between them throughout the procedure leading to its adoption. 

B. PROVISIONS RELATED TO THE SPECIAL INSTRUMENTS 

Flexibility Instrument 

8. 

The  Commission  shall  submit  a  proposal  for  the  mobilisation  of  the  Flexibility 
Instrument  as referred to  in  Article  8  of the MFF Regulation  after it has examined 
the  possibilities  for  reallocating  appropriations  within  the  heading  requiring 
additional expenditure. 

The proposal for mobilisation of the Flexibility Instrument shall identify the needs to 
be  covered  and  the  amount.  Such  a  proposal  may  be  made  in  relation  to  a  draft 
budget or a draft amending budget. 

The Flexibility Instrument may be mobilised by the European Parliament and by the 
Council in the framework of the budgetary procedure set out in Article 314 TFEU. 

Single Margin Instrument 

9. 

The mobilisation of all or part of the amounts referred to in Article 7(1), point (c) of 
the MFF Regulation (‘Contingency Margin’) shall be proposed by the Commission 
after it has ascertained that the necessary commitment or payment appropriations, as 
the  case  may  be,  cannot  be  financed  otherwise.  Such  a  proposal  may  be  made  in 
relation to a draft budget or draft amending budget. 

The  Contingency  Margin  may  be  mobilised  by  the  European  Parliament  and  the 
Council in the framework of the budgetary procedure set out in Article 314 TFEU. 

3 

 
 
 
 
PART II 
IMPROVEMENT OF INTERINSTITUTIONAL 
COOPERATION IN BUDGETARY MATTERS 

A. INTERINSTITUTIONAL COOPERATION PROCEDURE 

Incorporation of financial provisions in legislative acts 

10. 

Where a legislative act  concerning multiannual programmes or instruments, adopted 
in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure, contains a provision in which 
the  legislator  lays  down  the  indicative  financial  envelope  for  the  programme,  this 
amount shall constitute the prime reference for the European Parliament and for the 
Council during the annual budgetary procedure.   

The  European  Parliament  and  the  Council,  and  the  Commission  when  it  draws  up 
the draft budget, undertake not to depart by more than 20 % from that amount for the 
entire duration of the programme or instrument concerned, unless  duly justified new 
circumstances  arise,  including  in  relation  to  the  Union’s  policy  priorities,  with 
account being taken of the results obtained from implementing the programmes and 
instruments. 

This  point  does  not  apply  to  appropriations  pre-allocated  per  Member  State  under 
Regulation [(EU) XXXX/XX] [National and Regional Partnership Fund]. 

Financial programming 

11. 

In  order  to  provide  precise  and  reliable  forecasts  of  the  budgetary  implications  of 
basic  acts  within  the  meaning  of  Article  2(4)  of  the  Financial  Regulation  and  of 
pending  legislative  proposals,  the  Commission  shall  attach  to  the  draft  budget  a 
complete indicative  financial programming  for headings 2 and 3 of the  MFF. That 
programming, structured by heading, policy area and budget line, should identify: 

(a) 

the  basic  acts,  with  a  distinction  being  drawn  between  multiannual 
programmes,  legal  acts  establishing  or  entrusting  tasks  to  decentralised 
agencies, and annual actions: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

for  multiannual  programmes  the  Commission  should  indicate  the 
procedure  under  which  they  were  adopted,  the  duration  of  the 
programmes,  the  total  indicative  financial  envelope  and  the  share 
allocated to administrative expenditure; 

for  legal  acts  establishing  or  entrusting  new  tasks  to  decentralised 
agencies,  the  Commission  should  indicate  the  legal  basis  under  which 
they were adopted and provide multiannual estimates; 

for  annual  actions  (relating  to  pilot  projects,  preparatory  actions)  and 
actions  financed  under  the  prerogatives  of  the  Commission,  the 
Commission should provide multiannual estimates; 

(b)  pending  legislative proposals  from  the Commission  with  the latest update on 
their  potential  budgetary  impact  including,  when  necessary,  the  related  need 
for reprogramming in case of adoption. 

The indicative financial programming shall show transparently unallocated reserves 
and ‘cushions’ within multiannual programmes. 

4 

 
12. 

the  financial 
The  Commission  should  consider  ways  of  cross-referencing 
programming with its legislative programming to provide more precise and reliable 
forecasts. For each legislative proposal, the Commission should indicate whether it 
is included in the programming communicated at the time of the presentation of the 
draft  budget  or  after  the  final  adoption  of  the  budget.  The  Commission  should 
inform the European Parliament and the Council in particular of: 

(a) 

all  new  legislative  acts  adopted  and  all  pending  proposals  presented  but  not 
included in programming communicated at the time of the draft budget or after 
the final adoption of the budget (with the corresponding amounts); 

(b) 

legislation foreseen in  the Commission's annual  legislative work programme, 
with an indication of whether the actions are likely to have a financial impact. 

Whenever  necessary,  the  Commission  should  indicate  the  reprogramming  entailed 
by new legislative proposals. 

The  indicative  financial  programming  shall  be  updated  after  the  adoption  of  the 
budget to incorporate the results of the budgetary procedure and any other relevant 
decision. 

B. DECENTRALISED AGENCIES AND EUROPEAN SCHOOLS 

Before  presenting  a  proposal  for  the  creation  of  a  new  decentralised  agency,  and 
after  having  considered  the  assignment  of  the  envisaged  tasks  to  an  existing 
institution, agency or body, the Commission should produce a sound, complete and 
objective impact assessment, taking into account, inter alia, the critical mass of staff 
and  competencies  needed,  cost-benefit  aspects,  coherence,  subsidiarity  and 
proportionality,  the  impact  on  Union  activities,  and  the  budgetary  implications  for 
the  expenditure  heading  concerned.  On  the  basis  of  that  information  and  without 
prejudice to the legislative procedures governing the setting up of the decentralised 
agency,  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  commit  themselves,  in  the 
framework  of  budgetary  cooperation,  to  arrive  at  a  timely  agreement  on  the 
financing of the proposed decentralised agency. 

The following procedural steps shall be applied: 

— 

— 

— 

firstly, the Commission shall systematically present any proposal for setting up 
a  new  decentralised  agency  to  the  first  budgetary  trilogue  following  the 
adoption of its proposal, and shall present the financial statement accompanying 
the  legislative  proposal  for  the  creation  of  the  decentralised  agency  and  shall 
illustrate  the  consequences  thereof  for  the  remaining  period  of  the  financial 
programming; 

secondly,  during  the  legislative  process,  the  Commission  shall  assist  the 
legislator in assessing the financial consequences of the amendments proposed; 
those financial consequences should be considered during the relevant steps of 
the applicable legislative procedure; 

thirdly, before the  conclusion of the  legislative process,  the Commission  shall 
present  an  updated  financial  statement 
into  account  potential 
amendments  by the legislator; that final  financial  statement shall  be discussed 
before a final agreement is reached and be formally endorsed by the legislator; 
it  shall  also  be  placed  on  the  agenda  of  a  subsequent  budgetary  trilogue  (in 

taking 

5 

 
urgent  cases,  in  simplified  form),  in  view  of  reaching  an  agreement  on  the 
financing; 

— 

fourthly,  the  agreement  reached,  taking  into  account  the  Commission's 
budgetary assessment with regard to the content of the legislative process, shall 
be  confirmed  in  a  joint  declaration;  that  joint  declaration  shall  be  subject  to 
approval  by  the  European  Parliament  and  by  the  Council,  each  in  accordance 
with its own rules of procedure. 

The same procedure should be applied to any amendment to a legal act concerning a 
decentralised agency which would have an impact on the resources of the agency in 
question. 

Should  the  tasks  of  a  decentralised  agency  be  altered  substantially  by  means  of  a 
legal act which does not encompass an amendment to the legal act originally setting 
up  the  agency  in  question,  the  Commission  shall  inform  the  European  Parliament 
and  the  Council  by  means  of  a  revised  financial  statement,  so  as  to  allow  the 
European  Parliament  and  the  Council  to  arrive  at  a  timely  agreement  on  the 
financing of the agency. 

Relevant provisions from the Common Approach annexed to the Joint Statement of 
the  European  Parliament,  the  Council  of  the  European  Union  and  the  European 
Commission on decentralised agencies signed on 19 July 2012 should be duly taken 
into account in the budgetary procedure. 

When  the  creation  of  a  new  European  school  is  envisaged  by  the  Board  of 
Governors  of  the  European  Schools,  a  similar  procedure  is  to  be  applied,  mutatis 
mutandis, for its budgetary implications on the Union budget. 

13. 

14. 

C. BUDGETARY SCRUTINY PROCEDURE FOR AN ACT OF THE COUNCIL UNDER 
ARTICLE 122 TFEU WITH POTENTIAL APPRECIABLE  IMPLICATIONS FOR THE 
UNION BUDGET 

15. 

16. 

Where the Commission submits a proposal for the adoption of an act of the Council 
under  Article  122  TFEU  with  potential  appreciable  implications  for  the  Union 
budget,  the  following  arrangements  for  a  procedure  of  budgetary  scrutiny  between 
the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  with  the  active  assistance  of  the 
Commission may apply. 

The  Commission  will  accompany  any  proposal  for  an  act  of  the  Council  under 
Article 122 TFEU by  an assessment of the budgetary implications of the proposed 
legal  act  and  will  indicate  whether  the  act  in  question  may,  in  its  view,  have 
appreciable  implications  for  the  Union  budget.  On  that  basis,  the  European 
Parliament and the Council may request that the procedure be initiated. 

The procedure will take place in a Joint Committee consisting of representatives of 
the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  at  the  appropriate  level.  The 
Commission will participate in the work of the Joint Committee. 

Without  prejudice  to  the  powers  of  the  Council  under  Article  122  TFEU,  the 
European Parliament and the Council will engage in a constructive dialogue with a 
view to seeking a joint understanding of the budgetary implications of the envisaged 
legal act having due regard to the urgency of the matter. 

6 

 
The procedure should take place during a period not exceeding two months, unless 
the act in question must be adopted before a specific date or, if the urgency of the 
matter so requires, within a shorter time limit fixed by the Council. 

7 

 
PART III 
INTERINSTITUTIONAL COOPERATION IN THE ANNUAL 
BUDGETARY PROCEDURE 

17. 

The Institutions shall take measures to facilitate the annual budgetary procedure. 

The Institutions shall cooperate in good faith throughout the procedure with a view 
to  reconciling  their  positions.  The  Institutions  shall,  at  all  stages  of  the  procedure, 
cooperate  through  appropriate  interinstitutional  contacts  in  order  to  monitor  the 
progress of the work and analyse the degree of convergence. 

The Institutions shall ensure that their respective calendars of work are coordinated 
as far as possible, in order to enable proceedings to be conducted in a coherent and 
convergent way, leading to the final adoption of the general budget of the Union. 

Budgetary trilogues may be held at all stages of the procedure and at different levels 
of  representation,  depending  on  the  nature  of  the  expected  discussions.  Each 
institution,  in  accordance  with  its  own  rules  of  procedure,  shall  designate  its 
participants for each meeting, set out its mandate for the negotiations and inform the 
other institutions in good time of the arrangements for the meetings. 

The  details  of  interinstitutional  cooperation  during  the  budgetary  procedure  are  set 
out in the Annex. 

18. 

The Institutions shall, for the purpose of sound financial management, ensure as far 
as  possible  during  the  budgetary  procedure  and  at  the  time  of  the  adoption  of  the 
annual  budget  that sufficient margins  are left  available beneath  the ceilings  for the 
various headings of the MFF. 

A. BUDGET IMPLEMENTATION, PAYMENTS AND RESTE À LIQUIDER (RAL) 

19. 

Given  the  need  to  ensure  an  orderly  progression  of  the  total  appropriations  for 
payments  in  relation  to  the  appropriations  for  commitments  so  as  to  avoid  any 
abnormal shift of outstanding commitments (RAL), the Institutions agree to monitor 
closely the payment forecasts and the level of the RAL so as to mitigate the risk of 
hampering the implementation of Union programmes because of a lack of payment 
appropriations at the end of the MFF. 

In the course of the budgetary procedure, the Institutions shall meet regularly with a 
view  to  jointly  assessing  the  state  of  play  and  the  outlook  for  budgetary 
implementation in the current and future financial years. That assessment shall take 
the  form  of  dedicated  interinstitutional  meetings  at  the  appropriate  level,  before 
which  the  Commission  shall  provide,  as  appropriate,  a  detailed  state  of  play  on 
payment  implementation,  on  payment  claims  received  and  revised  forecasts, 
including long-term forecasts, where applicable, as well as relevant information on 
contingent liabilities. 

B. EXPENDITURE RELATING TO FISHERIES AGREEMENTS 

20. 

Expenditure on fisheries agreements shall be subject to the following specific rules. 

8 

 
The  Commission  undertakes  to  keep  the  European  Parliament  regularly  informed 
about  the  preparation,  conduct  and  completion  of  the  negotiations  on  fisheries 
agreements, including their budgetary implications. 

In  the  course  of  the  legislative  procedure  relating  to  fisheries  agreements,  the 
Institutions undertake to make every effort to ensure that all procedures are carried 
out as quickly as possible. 

Amounts provided for in the budget for new fisheries agreements or for the renewal 
of  fisheries  agreements  which  are  expected  to  enter  into  force  or  to  be  applied 
provisionally by 1 January of the financial year concerned shall be  included in the 
main operational budget line. 

Amounts provided for in the budget for new fisheries agreements or for the renewal 
of  fisheries  agreements  which  enter  into  force  or  are  applied  provisionally  after  1 
January of the related financial year shall be put in reserve. 

If  appropriations  relating  to  fisheries  agreements  (including  the  reserve)  prove 
insufficient, the Commission shall provide the European Parliament and the Council 
with  the  necessary  information,  on  the  causes  of  the  situation,  and  on  measures 
which  might  be  adopted  under  established  procedures.  Where  necessary  and  as 
appropriate, the Commission shall propose adequate measures. 

Each  quarter,  the  Commission  shall  present  to  the  European  Parliament  and  the 
Council  detailed  information  about  the  implementation  of  fisheries  agreements  in 
force and a financial forecast for the remainder of the year. 

Without  prejudice  to  the  relevant  procedure  governing  the  negotiation  of  fisheries 
agreements,  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  commit  themselves,  in  the 
framework of budgetary cooperation, to arrive at a timely agreement on the adequate 
financing of fisheries agreements. 

C. FINANCING OF THE COMMON FOREIGN AND SECURITY POLICY (CFSP) 

The  total  amount  of  CFSP  operating  expenditure  shall  be  entered  entirely  in  one 
budget  chapter,  entitled  CFSP.  That  amount  shall  cover  the  real  predictable  needs, 
assessed in the framework of the establishment of the draft budget, on the basis of 
forecasts  drawn  up  annually  by  the  High  Representative  of  the  Union  for  Foreign 
Affairs and Security Policy (the ‘High Representative’). A reasonable margin shall 
be allowed for to cover unforeseen actions. No funds may be entered in a reserve. 

As regards CFSP expenditure which is charged to the general budget of the Union in 
accordance with  Article 41 of the Treaty  on European Union, the  Institutions  shall 
endeavour, in the Conciliation Committee as referred to in Article 314(5) TFEU, and 
on the basis of the draft budget established by the Commission, to secure agreement 
each year on the amount of the operating expenditure, and on the distribution of that 
amount  between  the  articles  of  the  CFSP  budget  chapter.  In  the  absence  of 
agreement, it is understood that the European Parliament and the Council shall enter 
in the budget the amount contained in the previous budget or the amount proposed in 
the draft budget, whichever is the lower. 

The  total  amount  of  CFSP  operating  expenditure  shall  be  distributed  between  the 
articles of the CFSP budget chapter as suggested in the third paragraph. Each article 
shall cover actions already adopted, actions which are foreseen but not yet adopted 

21. 

22. 

23. 

9 

 
24. 

and amounts for future — that is unforeseen — actions to be adopted by the Council 
during the financial year concerned. 

Within the CFSP budget chapter, the articles into which the CFSP actions are to be 
entered could read along the following lines: 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

civilian  Common  Security  and  Defence  Policy  missions,  including  single 
major  missions  as  referred  to  in  Article  52(1)  point  (g)  of  the  Financial 
Regulation, 

other civilian CFSP actions, 

emergency and preparatory measures for these missions, 

non-proliferation and disarmament, 

European Union Special Representatives. 

Since, under the Financial Regulation, the Commission has the authority to transfer 
appropriations autonomously  between articles within  the CFSP budget  chapter, the 
flexibility  deemed  necessary  for  speedy  implementation  of  CFSP  actions  shall 
accordingly  be  assured.  In  the  event  of  the  amount  of  the  CFSP  budget  chapter 
during  the  financial  year  being  insufficient  to  cover  the  necessary  expenses,  the 
European Parliament and the Council shall seek a solution as a matter of urgency, on 
a proposal from the Commission. 

Each  year,  the  High  Representative  shall  consult  the  European  Parliament  on  a 
forward-looking  document,  which  shall  be  transmitted  by  15  June    of  the  year  in 
question, setting out the main aspects and basic choices of the CFSP, including the 
financial  implications  for  the  general  budget  of  the  Union,  an  evaluation  of  the 
measures  launched  in  the  year  n-1  and  an  assessment  of  the  coordination  and 
complementarity  of  CFSP  with  the  Union’s  other  external  financial  instruments. 
Furthermore, the High Representative shall keep the European Parliament regularly 
informed  by  holding  joint  consultation  meetings  at  least  three  times  a  year,  in  the 
framework of the regular political dialogue on the CFSP, to be agreed at the latest on 
30 November each year. Participation in those meetings shall be determined by the 
European  Parliament  and  the  Council  respectively,  bearing  in  mind  the  objective, 
and the nature of the information exchanged in those meetings. 

The Commission shall be invited to participate in those meetings. 

If the Council adopts a decision in the field of the CFSP entailing expenditure, the 
High  Representative  shall  immediately,  and  in  any  event  no  later  than  30  days 
thereafter,  send  the  European  Parliament  an  estimate  of  the  costs  envisaged  (a 
‘financial statement’), in particular those costs regarding time-frame, staff employed, 
use  of  premises  and  other  infrastructure,  transport  facilities,  training  requirements 
and security arrangements. 

Once  a  quarter,  the  Commission  shall  inform  the  European  Parliament  and  the 
Council about the implementation of CFSP actions and the financial forecasts for the 
remainder of the financial year. 

10 

 
 
Done at Brussels,  

For the European Parliament 
The President 

For the Council 
The President 

For the Commission 
The President 

11 

 
 
 
ANNEX 
INTERINSTITUTIONAL COOPERATION DURING THE ANNUAL 
BUDGETARY PROCEDURE 

Part A. Calendar of the budgetary procedure 

1. 

The  Institutions  shall  agree  a  pragmatic  calendar  each  year  in  due  time  before  the 
start of the budgetary procedure on the basis of present practice. 

Part B. Priorities for the budgetary procedure 

2. 

3. 

In due time before the adoption of the draft budget by the Commission, a budgetary 
trilogue  shall  be  convened  to  discuss  the  funding  priorities  for  the  budget  of  the 
coming  financial  year.  The  discussions  will  take  into  account  the  Union’s  policy 
priorities identified by the Institutions in relevant documents and will aim to inform 
the budgetary procedure and explore how the priorities can best be reflected in the 
next budget. 

The trilogue will also discuss any questions arising from the implementation of the 
budget  of  the  current  financial  year  on  the  basis  of  information  provided  by  the 
Commission in accordance with point 19 of this Agreement. 

Part C. Establishment of the draft budget and updating of estimates 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

8. 

9. 

The institutions, other than the Commission, are invited to adopt their statement of 
estimates before the end of March. 

The Commission shall, each year, present a draft budget showing the Union's actual 
financing requirements in line with the Union’s policy priorities and with due regard 
to the financial programming referred to in point 11 of this Agreement. 

The European Parliament and the Council undertake to bear in mind the assessment 
of  the  possibilities  for  implementing  the  budget  made  by  the  Commission  in  its 
drafts and in connection with the implementation of the current budget. 

In  the  interests  of  sound  financial  management  and  owing  to  the  effect  of  major 
changes  in  the  titles  and  chapters  of  the  budget  nomenclature  on  the  management 
reporting responsibilities of Commission departments, the European Parliament and 
the Council undertake to discuss any major changes with the Commission during the 
conciliation procedure. 

The Institutions shall, as far as possible, avoid entering items in the budget involving 
insignificant amounts of expenditure on operations. 

In the interest of loyal and sound institutional cooperation, the European Parliament 
and  the  Council  commit  to  maintaining  regular  and  active  contacts  at  all  levels, 
through their respective negotiators, throughout the whole budgetary procedure and, 
in  particular,  during  the  conciliation  period.  The  European  Parliament  and  the 
Council  undertake  to  ensure  the  timely  and  constant  mutual  exchange  of  relevant 
information  and  documents  at  both  formal  and  informal  levels,  as  well  as  to  hold 
technical  or  informal  meetings  as  needed,  during  the  conciliation  period,  in 
cooperation  with  the  Commission.  The  Commission  shall  ensure  timely  and  equal 
access to information and documents for the European Parliament and the Council. 

10. 

Until such time as the Conciliation Committee is convened, the Commission may, if 
necessary, submit letters of amendment to thedraft budget in accordance with Article 

12 

 
314(2) TFEU, including a letter of amendment updating, in particular estimates for 
agriculture.  The  Commission  shall  submit  information  on  updates  to  the  European 
Parliament and the Council for their consideration as soon as it is available. It shall 
provide the European Parliament and the Council with all the duly justified reasons 
they may require. 

Part D. Budgetary procedure before the conciliation procedure 

11. 

12. 

A budgetary trilogue shall be convened in good time before the Council’s reading, to 
allow the institutions to have an exchange of views on the draft budget. 

In  order  for  the  Commission  to  be  able  to  assess  in  due  time  the  executability  of 
amendments,  envisaged  by the European Parliament and the Council, which create 
new  preparatory  actions  or  pilot  projects  or  which  prolong  existing  ones,  the 
European  Parliament  and  the  Council  shall  inform  the  Commission  of  their 
intentions  in  this  regard,  so  that  a  first  discussion  may  already  take  place  at  that 
budgetary trilogue. 

13. 

A budgetary trilogue could be convened before the votes in plenary of the European 
Parliament. 

Part E. Conciliation procedure 

14. 

15. 

16. 

17. 

5 

If  the  European  Parliament  adopts  amendments  to  the  Council's  position,  the 
President  of  the  Council  shall,  during  the  same  plenary  sitting,  take  note  of  the 
differences in the positions of the two institutions and give his/her agreement for the 
President  of  the  European  Parliament  to  convene  the  Conciliation  Committee 
immediately.  The  letter  convening  the  Conciliation  Committee  shall  be  sent  at  the 
latest  on  the  first  working  day  of  the  week  following  the  end  of  the  parliamentary 
part-session during which the plenary vote was delivered, and the conciliation period 
shall  start  on  the  following  day.  The  21-day  time  period  shall  be  calculated  in 
accordance with Regulation (EEC, Euratom) No 1182/71 of the Council5. 

If  the  Council  cannot  agree  on  all  the  amendments  adopted  by  the  European 
Parliament,  it  should  confirm  its  position  by  letter  sent  before  the  first  meeting 
foreseen  during  the  conciliation  period.  In  such  case,  the  Conciliation  Committee 
shall proceed in accordance with the conditions laid down in the following points of 
this Annex. 

The  Conciliation  Committee  shall  be  chaired  jointly  by  representatives  of  the 
European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council.  Meetings  of  the  Conciliation  Committee 
shall  be  chaired  by  the  co-chair  from  the  institution  hosting  the  meeting.  Each 
institution,  in  accordance  with  its  own  rules  of  procedure,  shall  designate  its 
participants  for  each  meeting  and  define  its  mandate  for  the  negotiations.  The 
European Parliament and the Council shall be represented at an appropriate level in 
the  Conciliation  Committee,  such  that  each  delegation  can  commit  politically  its 
respective  institution,  and  that  actual  progress  towards  the  final  agreement  may  be 
made. 

In  accordance  with  Article  314(5)  TFEU,  second  subparagraph,  the  Commission 
shall  take  part  in  the  Conciliation  Committee's  proceedings  and  shall  take  all 

Regulation (EEC, Euratom) No 1182/71 of the Council of 3 June 1971 determining the rules applicable 
to 
ELI: 
dates 
http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/1971/1182/oj). 

8.6.1971, 

periods, 

limits 

time 

124, 

(OJ 

and 

1, 

p. 

L 

13 

 
 
18. 

19. 

20. 

21. 

necessary  initiatives  with  a  view  to  reconciling  the  positions  of  the  European 
Parliament and the Council. 

Budgetary  trilogues  shall  take  place  throughout  the  conciliation  procedure,  at 
different  levels  of  representation,  with  the  aim  of  resolving  outstanding  issues  and 
preparing the ground for an agreement to be reached in the Conciliation Committee. 

Meetings  of  the  Conciliation  Committee  and  budgetary  trilogues  shall  be  held 
alternately  at  the  premises  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council,  with  a 
view to an equal sharing of facilities, including interpretation facilities. 

The dates of the meetings of the Conciliation Committee and the budgetary trilogues 
shall be set in advance by agreement of the Institutions. 

A common set of documents (‘input documents’) comparing the various steps of the 
budgetary  procedure  shall  be  made  available  to  the  Conciliation  Committee  (6). 
Those documents shall include ‘line by line’ figures, totals by MFF headings and a 
consolidated  document  with  figures  and  remarks  for  all  budget  lines  deemed 
technically  ‘open’.  Without  prejudice  to  the  final  decision  of  the  Conciliation 
Committee, a specific document shall list all budget lines deemed technically closed 
(7). Those documents shall be classified by budgetary nomenclature. 

Other documents shall also be attached to the input documents for the Conciliation 
Committee, including a letter of executability from the Commission on the Council's 
position  and  the  European  Parliament's  amendments,  and  any  letter(s)  from  other 
institutions  concerning  the  Council's  position  or  the  European  Parliament's 
amendments. 

22. 

With a view to reaching agreement by the end of the conciliation period, budgetary 
trilogues shall: 

(a)  define the scope of the negotiations on the budgetary issues to be addressed; 

(b) 

endorse  the  list  of  the  budget  lines  deemed  technically  closed,  subject  to  the 
final agreement on the entire budget of the financial year; 

(c)  discuss  issues  identified  under  point  (a)  with  a  view  to  reaching  possible 

agreements to be endorsed by the Conciliation Committee;, 

(d) 

address thematic issues, including by headings of the MFF; 

Tentative  conclusions  shall  be  drawn  jointly  during  or  immediately  after  each 
trilogue, and, simultaneously, the agenda of the following meeting shall be agreed. 
Those conclusions shall be registered by the institution hosting the trilogue and shall 
be  deemed  provisionally  approved  after  24  hours,  without  prejudice  to  the  final 
decision of the Conciliation Committee. 

23. 

The  conclusions  of  budgetary  trilogues  and  a  document  for  possible  endorsement 
shall  be  available  to  the  Conciliation  Committee  at  its  meetings,  together  with  the 

6  

7  

The  various  steps  include:  the  budget  of  the  current  financial  year  (including  adopted  amending 
budgets); the initial draft budget; the Council's position on the draft budget; the European Parliament's 
amendments to the Council's  position and the letters of amendment  presented by the Commission (if 
not yet fully approved by all institutions). 
A  budget  line  deemed  technically  closed  is  a  line  for  which  there  is  no  disagreement  between  the 
European Parliament and the Council, and for which no letter of amendment has been presented. 

14 

 
 
24. 

budget  lines  in  respect  of  which  an  agreement  has  been  tentatively  reached  during 
the trilogues. 

The  joint  text  provided  for  in  Article  314(5)  TFEU  shall  be  established  by  the 
secretariats of the European Parliament and of the Council with the assistance of the 
Commission. It shall consist of a letter of transmission addressed by the chairs of the 
two  delegations  to  the  Presidents  of  the  European  Parliament  and  Council, 
containing  the  date  of  the  agreement  at  the  Conciliation  Committee,  and  annexes 
which shall include: 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

line  by  line  figures  for  all  budget  items  and  summary  figures  by  MFF 
headings; 

a consolidated document, indicating the figures and final text  of all lines that 
have been modified during the conciliation procedure; 

the list of the lines not modified with regard to the proposal containing a draft 
budget or the Council's position on it; 

the  Conciliation  Committee  may  also  approve  conclusions  and  possible  joint 
statements in relation to the budget. 

25. 

The joint text shall be translated into the official languages of the institutions of the 
Union  (by  the  services  of  the  European  Parliament)  and  shall  be  submitted  for  the 
approval  of  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  within  a  period  of  14  days 
from the date of the agreement on the joint text pursuant to point 24 of this Annex. 

The budget  shall be subject  to  legal-linguistic finalisation after the  adoption of the 
joint  text  by  integrating  the  annexes  of  the  joint  text  with  the  budget  lines  not 
modified during the conciliation procedure. 

26. 

The institution hosting the meeting (budgetary trilogue or conciliation) shall provide 
interpretation  facilities  with  a  full  linguistic  regime  applicable  to  the  Conciliation 
Committee meetings and an ad hoc linguistic regime for the trilogues. 

The institution hosting the meeting shall provide for the copying and distribution of 
room documents. 

The services of the Institutions shall cooperate in the encoding of the results of the 
negotiations in order to finalise the joint text. 

Part F. Amending Budgets 

General principles 

27. 

Bearing  in  mind  that  amending  budgets  are  frequently  focused  on  specific  and 
sometimes urgent issues, the Institutions agree on the following principles to ensure 
appropriate  interinstitutional  cooperation  for  a  smooth  and  swift  decision-making 
process for amending budgets while avoiding, as far as possible, having to convene a 
conciliation meeting for amending budgets. 

28. 

As far as possible, the Institutions shall endeavour to limit the number of amending 
budgets. 

Calendar 

29. 

The Commission shall inform the European Parliament and the Council in advance 
of the possible dates of adoption of draft amending budgets, without prejudice to the 
final date of adoption. 

15 

 
30. 

31. 

Each in accordance with its internal rules of procedure, the European Parliament and 
the Council shall endeavour to examine the draft amending budget proposed by the 
Commission at an early opportunity after its adoption by the Commission. 

In order to  speed up the procedure, the European Parliament and the Council shall 
ensure  that  their  respective  calendars  of  work  are  coordinated  as  far  as  possible  in 
order to  enable proceedings to  be conducted in  a coherent  and convergent  fashion. 
They shall therefore seek as soon as possible to establish an indicative timetable for 
the various stages leading to the final adoption of the amending budget. 

The  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  shall  take  into  account  the  relative 
urgency  of  the  amending  budget  and  the  need  to  approve  it  in  due  time  to  be 
effective during the financial year concerned. 

Cooperation during the readings 

32. 

The Institutions shall cooperate in good faith throughout the procedure, clearing the 
way, as far as possible, for the adoption of amending budgets at an early stage of the 
procedure. 

When  appropriate,  and  when  there  is  a  potential  divergence,  the  European 
Parliament  or  the  Council,  before  each  takes  its  final  position  on  the  amending 
budget,  or  the  Commission  at  any  time,  may  propose  that  a  specific  trilogue  be 
convened to discuss the divergences and to try to reach a compromise. 

All  draft  amending  budgets  proposed  by  the  Commission  and  not  yet  finally 
approved  shall  be  entered  systematically  on  the  agenda  of  budgetary  trilogues 
planned for the annual budgetary procedure. The Commission shall present the draft 
amending  budgets  and  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  shall,  as  far  as 
possible, make known their respective positions ahead of the budgetary rilogue. 

If  a  compromise  is  reached  during  a  budgetary  trilogue,  the  European  Parliament 
and  the  Council  undertake  to  consider  the  results  of  the  budgetary  trilogue  when 
deliberating  on  the  amending  budget  in  accordance  with  the  Treaties  and  their 
respective rules of procedure. 

33. 

34. 

Cooperation after the readings 

35. 

36. 

If  the  European  Parliament  approves  the  position  of  the  Council  without 
amendments, the amending budget shall be adopted in accordance with the Treaties. 

If  the  European  Parliament  adopts  amendments  by  a  majority  of  its  component 
members,  point  (c)  of  Article  314(4)  TFEU  shall  apply.  However,  before  the 
Conciliation Committee meets, a budgetary trilogue shall be called: 

(a) 

(b) 

if  an  agreement  is  reached  during  the  budgetary  trilogue  and  subject  to  the 
agreement  of  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  on  the  results  of  the 
budgetary  trilogue,  the  conciliation  shall  be  closed  by  an  exchange  of  letters 
without a meeting of the Conciliation Committee; 

if  no  agreement  is  reached  during  the  budgetary  trilogue,  the  Conciliation 
Committee  shall  meet  and  organise  its  work  in  accordance  with  the 
circumstances,  with  a  view  to  completing  the  decision-making  process  as 
much  as  possible  before  the  21-day  deadline  laid  down  in  Article  314(5) 
TFEU. The Conciliation Committee may conclude by an exchange of letters. 

16