Talk:European Economic Area

message: Membership question: are the '2004' EU memebers, members of the EEA? are the 2007 candidates? I've found this via a google search:
 ... (the EEA) currently has 31 member countries. These are the 15 EU Member States; Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein, which are members of the European Economic Area; and the 13 EU accession and candidate countries, namely Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, the Slovak Republic and Turkey (from this month). The EEA is the first EU body to take in the accession countries. Negotiations on EEA membership are also under way with Switzerland.
:This is wrong, EU candidates are not members of EEA, the EEA is not a EU body and Switzerland is not seeking to join the EEA as far as I know. Besides, this text contradicts itself as it claims that 31 countries are EEA members but also states (correct at the time it was written) that the EEA is EU15+IS+NO+LI. --Bjarki 21:01, 1 November 2005 (UTC)
replies: text: You are wrong. the newest 10 EU members have negotiated their EEA membership before joining the EU and they have joined both the EEA and EU at the same time (I can find a link somewhere about this later).Alinor 10:02, 18 December 2005 (UTC)
replies: text: Yes, that's what I said. EU candidates are not EEA members. --Bjarki 13:13, 18 December 2005 (UTC)

text: It's not wrong, it's just about the European Environment Agency.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 169.229.101.39 (talk) 08:32, 17 September 2014 (UTC)

text: Da li je tačno da su Slovenija,Italija i Malta do decembra 2023. ratifikovale hrvatski EGP i da Hrvatska u EGP ulazi u januaru 2024.? 82.118.14.134 (talk) 20:37, 15 December 2023 (UTC)
thread_title: Membership question

message: Since the EEA has only 3 members, it might be nice to put a clear green circle around Liechtenstein? Now looking at the map, I wouldn't know they were one of the 3.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.157.94.3 (talk) 20:35, 9 November 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Green circle around Liechtenstein?

message: Cyprus and Malta are missing on the map of EEA countries.
MaartenVidal 01:07, 11 December 2005 (UTC)
thread_title:  Map: Cyprus and Malta 

message: The map is not clear. If you want to present the "Members of the EEA", then present it on a map, do not mix them with another "European Union" stuff. The map is complicated to read, and the label is confusing.
:Thank you for the constructive comment. How exactly does the map and the label confuse you? --Bjarki 12:32, 19 March 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: The problem persists in 2017. It should be a map about the EEA in the first place.--146.52.211.5 (talk) 15:30, 19 June 2017 (UTC)
replies: text: I agree that map is not optimal, but I do think distinction between EU and EFTA members should remain. I vote to remove Switzerland altogether from that map, change the color for Croatia to light blue (more similar to EU) and give a more distinctive color to EEA EFTA states - so that Liechtenstein is more prominent. --Merkhet (talk) 11:01, 20 June 2017 (UTC)
thread_title:  Map: Your map and maplabel sucks 

message: I just want to say that the list of acronyms in the opening paragraph is BEAUTIFUL!  Rock on!  Zweifel 08:13, 6 February 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: I always intended to kill that, thanks for the reminder. --Bjarki 00:43, 8 February 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Acronyms 

message: Maybe it would be useful to have a history section on the EEA?
The EEA was created on 1994-01-01, consisting of the EC + SE, FI, AT, NO and IS (treaty signed 1992-05-02, Swiss referendum 1992-12-06, these dates according to Swedish Wikipedia).
SE, FI and AT joined the EU on 1995-01-01, thus superseeding the EEA treaty.
LI joined at a later point (1995-05-01 according to German Wikipedia).
When 10 countries joined the EU in 2004, the EEA treaty had to be renegotiated, and the new treaty was decided upon on 2004-01-29 in Norway (according to Norwegian Wikipedia).
More can probably be mentioned. (58.188.97.134 18:38, 7 March 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  History section? 

message: Isn't the map wrong?  It states that Svalbard (part of Norway) is part of the EEA, but as far as I know, it isn't, because the EEA treaty is incompatible with the Svalbard Treaty (mainly on the free movement of people chapter: anyone, including non-EEA citizens, may move to Svalbard and start working there without the need for visas or permits). (Stefan2 16:28, 5 August 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: I believe that Stefan is right here.  Norway -- except for Svalbard -- is a member of the EEA.  Someone should please slice off the top of that map!  (I don't know how, or I'd do it.)  Thanks, - Hordaland (talk) 15:37, 15 March 2009 (UTC)

text: I am not sure about this. Do we have a source mentioning Svalbard as excluded? Please look at the table for EFTA-EU relations. In the Schengen agreement Svalbard is explicitely mentioned as excluded. In the EEA agreement it stated that "When ratifying the EEA Agreement, the Kingdom of Norway shall have the right to exempt the territory of Svalbard from the application of the Agreement." - so if it is excluded there should be some declaration/whatever about this and thus we should put a reference to it. Else - it is covered in the EEA (as EFTA covers the Svalbard - see point 2 of the same protocol 40). Alinor (talk) 11:06, 17 October 2009 (UTC)
replies: text: I am not a lawyer, nor a politician, but in what seems to be the two main laws implementing EEA in Norwegian law, Svalbard is excluded. http://www.lovdata.no/all/tl-19921127-109-0.html#6 and http://www.lovdata.no/all/tl-19921127-112-0.html#3 --V79 (talk) 02:48, 26 October 2009 (UTC)

text: I found exclusion source here:  and changed the EFTA-EU table appropriately. Alinor (talk) 07:25, 14 April 2010 (UTC)
thread_title:  Map 

message: Although part of the UK, are these islands included in the EEA? I have heard otherwise. Kelvingreen (talk) 14:34, 10 April 2008 (UTC)
replies: text: The Channel Islands are neither part of the UK nor part of the EEA. Halx (talk) 14:36, 22 August 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  Jersey and Guernsey 

message: I added a  to the membership section with this reason: Please provide a simple list of member countries. The article is currently deficient in that it does not tell the casual reader this information. The Euler diagram, nice as it is, does not satisfy the reader's needs. -84user (talk) 19:27, 31 July 2011 (UTC)
replies: text: @84user 65.18.124.36 (talk) 14:47, 3 April 2024 (UTC)
thread_title:  SImple list needed 

message: NC and EEA: From the legal point of view:
1. The agreement is not applied to Northern Cyprus. Protocol 10 of the treaty of accession of the European Union to Cyprus suspended the application of the EU acquis to Northern Cyprus: Protocol No 10 on Cyprus (23.09.2003) "Official Journal of the European Union", pages=955  "Turkish Cypriot Community", European Commission: EEA agreement states that it only applies to the territories of EU member states to which the EU treaties apply: "AGREEMENT ON THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AREA" "European Free Trade Association", p. 40.
A joint declaration to the Final Act of treaty on accession of Cyprus to the EEA confirmed that this included the Protocol on Cyprus: "AGREEMENT on the participation of ..the Republic of Cyprus..in the European Economic Area", 29.04.2004, European Union 
Practically, Northern Cyprus is also regarded as part of EEA by some countries: 
2. Northern Cyprus is part of the EEA according to UK Council for International Students Affairs (UKCISA): UKCISAFor categories where the residence area includes the EEA, the residence area is made up of all 30 countries in the EEA including the whole of the island of Cyprus (that is, including Northern Cyprus 
3. University of Cambridge, University of Cambridge, Undergraduate Admissions Handbook 2014-15The European Economic Area (EEA) is considered to be made up of the countries of the EU plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. For the purposes of residence, this includes the whole of the island of Cyprus (including Northern Cyprus).
Danlaycock reverted by stating: "what a specific university charges for tuition has no legal effect. treaties clearly say otherwise.". I do not say NC is a part of EEA from legal points. What I say, in practice some countries handle NC as being a part of EEA. Also, U. of Cambridge is not the only university of UKCISA; all of the universities in UK are members of UKCISA.
4. Leeds University, Southampton University, Nottingham University: For categories where the residence area includes the EEA, the residence area is made up of all 30 countries in the EEA including the whole of the island of Cyprus (that is, including Northern Cyprus).Ayka3b (talk) 17:48, 31 May 2015 (UTC)
replies: text: "Practically, Northern Cyprus is also regarded as part of EEA by some countries" - No, you have not demonstrated that at all.  All you have shown is that a few universities have decided to asses the residency status of students from NC the same way as other EEA students.  The same often applies to Switzerland (ie ).  That of course doesn't mean that the UK government considers Switzerland to be part of the EEA.  UKCISA does not represents the government nor does it set policy, so even if it did say "NC is part of the EEA" (which it did not) using this to state that "Northern Cyprus is part of the EEA" is a misrepresentation of the facts.  Listing the tuition practises of UKCISA on this page is very WP:UNDUE.   TDL (talk) 18:18, 31 May 2015 (UTC)
replies: text:  You are right. Thank you for clarifying this to me. A better phrasing might be: "Northern Cyprus is sometimes handled by some institutions of EEA countries as if it is a part of EEA" or "Northern Cyprus is sometimes given the same rights of the member countries of EEA by some institutions of EEA". Or, your suggestion? Ayka3b (talk) 19:20, 31 May 2015 (UTC)
replies: text: Northern Cyprus is not a country or entity recognised by any EEA state. If and when Cyprus is reunited the northern part of the island would be an EU member state. Until then, as Protocol 10 clearly indicates, it remains an area over which the application of the EU Treaties is suspended. Residents of this part of Cyprus have no legal basis on which to claim EU or EEA rights. The fact that some educational institutions may nevertheless recognise them as EEA/EU nationals does not change this. Lamberhurst (talk) 19:40, 31 May 2015 (UTC)
replies: text: Agreed with Lamberhurst.  I don't see why a policy with regards to a very specific issues at a few institutions in a single EEA member state is notable enough to mention here as it doesn't have any effect on the legal situation.  If IKEA decided to treat Ukraine as an EEA state for shipping purposes we wouldn't mention that here because it simply isn't notable.  TDL (talk) 22:31, 31 May 2015 (UTC)
replies: text:  You are right to some extent. On the other hand, the situation is much bigger than u depict: Almost all UK universities take the same stance on this. I do not know what the situation is in terms of the other EEA countries. If the same applies for them as well, then one cannot minimize the situation with IKEA example, I think.Ayka3b (talk) 20:37, 3 June 2015 (UTC)
replies: text:  While that is very nice of them, it doesn't change its legal status. Merkhet (talk) 10:07, 4 June 2015 (UTC)
thread_title: Northern Cyprus and EEA: Legal and practical aspects 

message: The first sentence in the article does not state what European Economic Area is. Instead it talks about what it provides. Later in the first paragraph something referred to as 'The Agreement' is mentioned, without explaining what The Agreement is. The article introduction should be made clearer. --62.16.186.44 (talk) 22:14, 27 April 2016 (UTC)
replies: text: The problem is that we are referring to the "European Economic Area" rather than the "European Economic Area Agreement". The agreement "provides for the free movement of persons, goods, services and capital within the internal market of the European Union". "internal market" is a broader term than "EEA", referring to all EU policies that facility the concept of a single harmonised EU market. However the EEA agreement is by far the primary component, providing provisions for a single market, and superseded prior agreements on the common market when it was enacted in 1994. So "EEA" is more of a technical term when referring to customs or border controls. The first sentence could do with some clarification, but it still can only refer to what the agreement provides (provisions for a single market within the EU's internal market). Otherwise it gets confusing when compared with Internal market of the EU. Possibly that article could do with some clarification also. Rob984 (talk) 05:59, 28 April 2016 (UTC)
thread_title:  First sentence 

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thread_title:  Dr. Benchimol's comment on this article 

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thread_title:  Dr. Jambor's comment on this article 

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thread_title:  External links modified 

message: So no criticisms how interesting...  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 108.171.128.174 (talk) 10:34, 15 June 2017 (UTC)
thread_title:  Criticisms? 

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thread_title:  External links modified 

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thread_title:  External links modified 

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thread_title:  External links modified 

message: The UK has left. 2.25.230.114 (talk)  — Preceding undated comment added 23:16, 31 December 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  Map etc need updating 

message: The UK has been an EEA member from the start, and it now doesn't apply to it anymore. I would prefer to indicate it in our map (either using this image, or -if other languge versions of wikipedia that also use the image don't agree- a new image), with a separate colour, and consider it wp:recentism not to note that it was a member in the map. Former members are also indicated on other maps (eg the Kyoto protocol and Paris Agreement). My change to the map and the legend was reverted however. Looking for ideas on what's the best way forward.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by L.tak (talk • contribs) 11:56, 1 January 2021 (UTC)
thread_title:  UK on map? 

message: I made a simplier membership map:
I don't think it's relevant in this map to show Switzerland, which signed but never ratified the agreement, especially considering the UK also signed the agreement and subsequently withdrew.
Rob984 (talk) 04:25, 8 January 2021 (UTC)
replies: text: It's completely unnecessary to have a separate coloring for Croatia. The fact that the accession agreement is provisionally applied has no practical effects. It's just a formality, which is also the reason why many member states are really slow ratifying the agreement. --Glentamara (talk) 08:56, 8 January 2021 (UTC)
replies: text: I would suggest using this simple map in the infobox at the top, and the more detailed map in the body in the membership section to illustrate the history.  TDL (talk) 17:27, 10 January 2021 (UTC)
replies: text: Done. Brainiac242 (talk) 10:33, 14 July 2022 (UTC)
thread_title:  Simpler membership map 

message: We have had changes (mainly by non-registered users) contending that Croatia is a full member. Although it applies EEA, the accession process only ends with entry into force of the treaty (see [https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/documents-publications/treaties-agreements/agreement/?id=2014013 the agreement ratifications which indicate that ao France and Malta have not ratifed). L.tak (talk) 13:29, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
replies: text: Croatia is a full member of EEA through the provisional application of its accession protocol. The finalization of the ratification process is just a formality, with no practical meaning. That's probably why many member states have not even bothered to finalize the process after almost 10 years. --Nablicus (talk) 20:39, 15 February 2023 (UTC)

text: By the way, I think it is reasonable to point out the provisional application of the accession agreement of Croatia somewhere in the article. However, making a big fuss out of it by marking the country differently on the maps and mentioning it in the lead etc. is to give too much attention to this purely technical aspect. --Nablicus (talk) 20:41, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
replies: text: The last information from May '23. It says the Croatian EEA membership is ratified by 25 out of 30 parties! In August still the same situation?! 78.99.51.26 (talk) 19:14, 13 August 2023 (UTC)
thread_title:  status of Croatia 

message: 27 out 30 states have now approved Croatia’s EEA accession. 130.243.212.38 (talk) 11:26, 24 October 2023 (UTC)
thread_title:  Semi-protected edit request on 24 October 2023