Supporting EU Enlargement through Legal Alignment Checks

Since 2023, Milieu has been supporting the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union (DG FISMA) in verifying the alignment or approximation of the national legal frameworks of candidate, potential candidate, and associated countries with the EU acquis in the financial sector and the area of competition policy.

This alignment assessment process provides the European Commission with essential information on the completeness and conformity of relevant legislation in 13 third countries, covering five different chapters of the EU acquis. These assessments play a key role in ongoing negotiations and agreements between the EU and enlargement countries—including candidate and potential candidate countries—as well as Microstates and countries within the Eastern Neighbourhood Policy. The work directly contributes to shaping the future of EU integration.

The checks cover national legislation in the following areas:

• Payments
• Banking
• Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing
• Insurance and Insurance Services

Completed alignment checks have so far included Moldova, Albania, Serbia, and North Macedonia, with ongoing work in Kosovo and Montenegro. Further assessments for additional countries are expected in the coming months.

This work supports the European Commission in evaluating the readiness of applicant countries to meet the accession criteria defined by the European Council in Copenhagen in 1993, particularly their preparedness to assume the obligations of EU membership.