European Union (EU) concepts, acronyms, and jargon are a terminology set that has developed as a form of shorthand, to quickly express a (formal) EU process, an (informal) institutional working practice, or an EU body, function or decision, and which is commonly understood among EU officials or external people who regularly deal with EU institutions.

The European Union executive institutions

European Council

Accession Treaty The Treaty of Accession 1972 was the agreement between the European Communities and four countries (Denmark, Ireland, Norway and the United Kingdom) concerning their accession to the EC. It was signed on 22 January 1972 and Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom became full member states on 1 January 1973 following the ratification procedures. Norway did not ratify the treaty after it was rejected in a referendum held in September 1972.

The Treaty of Accession 1979 was the agreement between the European Communities and Greece concerning its accession to the EC. It was signed on 28 May 1979 and Greece became a full member state on 1 January 1981 following the ratification procedure.

The Treaty of Accession 1985 was the agreement between the European Communities and two countries (Spain and Portugal) concerning their accession to the EC. It was signed on 12 June 1985 and Spain and Portugal became full member states on 1 January 1986 following the ratification procedures.

The Treaty of Accession 1994 was the agreement between the European Union and four countries (Austria, Finland, Sweden and Norway) concerning their accession to the EU. It was signed on 26 July 1994 and Austria, Finland and Sweden became full member states on 1 January 1995 following the ratification procedures. Norway again failed to join because its referendum did not pass.

The Treaty of Accession 2003 was the agreement between the European Union and the ten countries (Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia, Slovakia), concerning their accession into the EU. It was signed on 16 April 2003 and they became full member states on 1 May 2004 following the ratification procedures.

The Treaty of Accession 2005 was the agreement between the European Union and two countries (Bulgaria and Romania) concerning their accession to the EU. It was signed on 25 April 2005 and they became full member states on 1 January 2007 following the ratification procedures.

The Treaty of Accession 2011 was the agreement between the European Union and Croatia concerning its accession to the EU. It was signed on 9 December 2011 and Croatia became a full member state on 1 January 2013 following the ratification procedure.

Copenhagen criteria The Copenhagen criteria are the rules that define whether a country is eligible to join the European Union. The criteria require that a state have the institutions to preserve democratic governance and human rights, a functioning market economy, and that the state accept the obligations and intent of the EU.

Dublin Convention An inter-governmental agreement between EU member states on asylum, obliging the country in which an asylum seeker arrives to handle the application for asylum on behalf of all other member states. The objective was to prevent asylum seekers from launching multiple asylum requests. The agreement was reached in 1990 but became binding only in 1997.

European Conference The European Conference was the name of the meeting that brought together 10 countries aspiring to join the EU. It met for the first time in London on 12 March 1998, then in Luxembourg on 6 October 1998 and then finally in Brussels on 19 July 1999.

Fouchet Plan The Fouchet Plan was drawn up by Christian Fouchet as Charles De Gaulle's unofficial spokesman for European affairs. The Fouchet Plan aimed at restructuring the European Community into a voluntary union of member states with a new headquarters in Paris, and by subjecting EU law to national law. The rejection of the Fouchet Plan by the other 5 member states had far-reaching consequences, such as the vetoing of the UK's entry into the EU, the empty chair crisis, and the Luxembourg compromise.

Gymnich meeting

Helsinki six The Helsinki European Council in December 1999 authorised accession negotiations with six candidate countries: Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Romania and Slovakia. These countries are therefore known as the "Helsinki six".

Ioannina Compromise An informal meeting of foreign ministers held in Ioannina, Greece, on 29 March 1994, which discussed Council decision making and the national veto. The Treaty of Nice has since put an end to what was agreed in the Ioannina compromise.

ISPA The Instrument for Structural Policies for Pre-Accession (ISPA) was created by the Berlin European Council of March 1999 for increasing pre-accession aid in the field of transport and environment to European Union accession candidate countries.

Luxembourg compromise The Luxembourg compromise was a compromise (not recognised by the European Commission nor the European Court of Justice) that extended the lifespan of the national veto beyond what was foreseen in the Treaty of Rome. It originated from the "empty chair crisis" instigated by President De Gaulle, and its effect was that Qualified Majority Voting was used far less often and Unanimity became the norm.

Luxembourg six The Luxembourg European Council in December 1997 authorised accession negotiations with six candidate countries: Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovenia. These countries are therefore known as the "Luxembourg six".

Merger Treaty The Merger Treaty, signed in Brussels on 8 April 1965 and in force from 1 July 1967, provided for a single Commission and a single Council of the then three European Communities (European Coal and Steel Community, European Economic Community and Euratom).

PHARE The Poland and Hungary: Assistance for Restructuring their Economies (PHARE) programme was created in 1989 to assist Poland and Hungary in their preparations for joining the European Union.

SAPARD The Special Accession Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development (SAPARD) was established by the Berlin European Council in March 1999 to aid the countries of central and eastern Europe in the areas of agricultural and rural development. It supplemented the PHARE program.

Schengen Agreement The Schengen Agreement, dealing with cross-border legal arrangements and the abolition of systematic border controls among the participating countries, was created independently of the European Union. However, the Treaty of Amsterdam incorporated the developments brought about by the agreement into the European Union framework, effectively making the agreement part of the EU.

European Commission The European Commission is independent of national governments and its job is to represent and uphold the interests of the European Union as a whole. It drafts proposals for new European laws, which it presents to the European Parliament and the Council.

It is also the EU's executive arm, responsible for implementing the decisions of Parliament and the council, implementing its policies, running its programmes and spending its funds. Like the Parliament and Council, the European Commission was set up in the 1950s under the EU's founding treaties.

ACP African, Caribbean and Pacific countries (ACP), beneficiaries of the European Development Fund (EDF).

Agenda 2000 A framework presented by the European Commission (July 1997) for the development of the European Union and its policies (especially concerning enlargement and the financial framework) after the year 2000.

Acquis Communautaire The body of Community law, as well as all acts adopted under the second and third pillars of the European Union and the common objectives laid down in the Treaties.

CFCU The Central Financing and Contracting Unit (CFCU) is a body setup in all enlargement candidate countries for the administration of budgets, tendering, contracts, payments, accounting and financial reporting of all procurement contracts for EU funded programmes. It is a body of the government of the candidate country, and not of the European Commission. However, the EC representation in the candidate country receives regular reports on its activities.

Checchini Report In 1988, a study called "The Costs of Non-Europe" was commissioned to evaluate the gains achieved from creating the European Single Market, and since known as the "Checchini Report". Although its growth projections were too optimistic, it nevertheless predicted that the single market would be a great success.

Competence See Subsidiarity (European Union)#EU competences

ECSC The European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was founded by the Treaty of Paris (1951). Its members were France, West Germany, Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands who pooled their steel and coal resources and create a common market for those products. It was the predecessor of the European Communities. The ECSC was abolished in 2002.

Élysée Treaty The Élysée Treaty also known as the Treaty of Friendship, was concluded by Charles de Gaulle and Konrad Adenauer in 1963, and established a process of reconciliation for ending the rivalry between France and Germany.

EDF The European Development Fund is the main instrument for European Community aid for development cooperation in the African, Caribbean and Pacific countries, as well as the Overseas Countries and Territories (OCT).

Europe Agreement Europe Agreement is the common name of the Accession Agreement that implies prospects for EU membership.

de Larosière report The de Larosière report, issued by a panel led by the former French central banker Jacques de Larosière, calls for an overhaul of Europe's financial-regulation system. It proposes the creation of a regional supervisor, the European Systemic Risk Council, which would be led by the president of the European Central Bank and include central bankers from across Europe and some national regulators. The report was ordered by the European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and was issued in February 2009.

Messina Conference The Messina Conference was held in Messina, Italy, in 1955 and discussed the subject of a customs union. The conference entrusted Paul-Henri Spaak with the creation of a report that eventually led to the creation of 1957 Treaty of Rome.

OCT Overseas Countries and Territories (OCT), beneficiaries of the European Development Fund (EDF).

PSD, PSD2 An EU Directive, administered by the European Commission (Directorate General Internal Market) to regulate payment services and payment service providers throughout the European Union (EU) and European Economic Area (EEA).

Rome Treaty The Treaties of Rome established the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (EURATOM) and were signed in Rome on 25 March 1957 by the six founding members: Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and West Germany. They entered into force on 1 January 1958.

Safeguard Clause A rapid reaction measure which can be invoked by a Member State whenever a new member state would fail to live up to its obligations in the areas of the internal market or justice and home affairs.

Single European Act The Single European Act (SEA) was the first major revision of the Treaty of Rome establishing ECC, and aimed at creating the Single European Market by 31 December 1992.

Stuttgart Declaration The Stuttgart Declaration was the solemn declaration calling for the creation of the European Union and signed by the then 10 heads of state and governments on 19 June 1983.

Subsidiarity