Accession of Serbia to the European Union

Serbia applied to join the European Union (EU) in 2009 and has been a candidate for membership since 2012 (along with nine other states), while negotiations started in 2014 and are still ongoing. Serbia is the largest country in Southeast Europe seeking entry into the EU.^[4][5][6]

Accession of Serbia to the European Union
Status	Candidate negotiating
Earliest possible entry	2029
Application European perspective 21 June 2003 Potential candidate 21 June 2003 Membership application 22 December 2009 Candidate status 1 March 2012 Screened & negotiations commence 25 March 2015
Negotiations Clusters open 2 Chapters open 22 Clusters closed 0 0% complete Chapters closed 2† 8.6% complete †Chapter 25 – Science and research and Chapter 26 – Education and culture are provisionally closed. Chapter 34 - Institutions is currently not applicable.
Memberships & Treaties Association Agreement 1 September 2013 Economic and monetary policy EU Free Trade Agreement 1 September 2013 World Trade Organization (WTO) Undergoing accession process.[1] Euro & the Eurozone The euro is widely accepted in Serbia, although it has no formal approval, and the official currency of the country is the Serbian dinar Travel Schengen visa liberalisation 19 December 2009 Energy Energy Community Member since 9 August 2006 Euratom Serbia is not a member. Serbia does not have any nuclear power, but it does have a moratorium on the development of nuclear energy.[2] ENTSO-E Elektromreža Srbije is a member. Foreign and military policy North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Individual Partnership Action Plan since 15 January 2015 Main article: Serbia–NATO relations Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) 1 August 1975 (as Yugoslavia) Human rights and international courts Council of Europe (CoE) since 2003 (as Serbia and Montenegro) International Criminal Court (ICC) Serbia and Montenegro deposited their instrument of ratification of the Rome Statute on 6 September 2001. The Rome Statute entered into force on 1 July 2002.[3] International Court of Justice (ICJ) Main articles: Bosnian genocide case and Croatia–Serbia genocide case
Impact (27+1) Population 446,828,803 455,052,321 1.5% Area 4,233,262 km2 1,634,472 mi2 4,310,736 km2 1,664,385 mi2 1.8% (excluding Kosovo) HDI 0.896 0.890 0.67% GDP (PPP) $25.399 trillion $25.572 trillion 0.68% GDP per capita (PPP) $56,928 $56,196 1.29% GDP $17.818 trillion $17.256 trillion 0.4% GDP per capita $39,940 $37,920 5.3% Gini 30.0 30.1 0.39% Official Languages 24 25 Serbian 1

History

Relations between the European Union and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (later the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro) got a fresh start following the overthrow of Slobodan Milošević in 2000, and the EU officially declared the Balkan states potential candidates for membership following the EU-Western Balkans Summit in Thessaloniki in 2003.^[7]

On 7 November 2007, Serbia initiated a Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) with the European Union. The SAA came into force on 1 September 2013. The European Commission recommended making Serbia an official candidate on 12 October 2011. The Council of the European Union also made the recommendation on 28 February 2012. Serbia received full candidate status on 1 March 2012. In December 2013, the Council of the European Union approved opening negotiations for Serbia's accession. Serbia officially applied for European Union membership on 22 December 2009 and was granted official candidate status on 1 March 2012. Negotiations on accession to the EU started on 21 January 2014.

Until 2020, Serbia had been receiving €2.9 billion of developmental aid from the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance, a funding mechanism for EU candidate countries.

In 2024, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić stated that Serbia would meet all the criteria to join the European Union by 2026 or 2027, however, not promising an immediate accession in either 2026, 2027, or even 2028.^[8] These statements reflect his earlier ones, when he stated that Serbia would probably have to wait for six years to join the European Union, in 2030.^[9] The 2030 target was later supported by the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, during the Bled Strategic Forum, who stated that such enlargement should be ready to proceed by 2030.^[10] However, in 2025, during a meeting in Rome regarding the Western Balkans "expansion", Minister of Foreign Affairs of Italy, Antonio Tajani, with the presence of the European Commissioner for Enlargement, Marta Kos, stated that a possible entry year for the nation could be 2029 instead.^[11][12]

Chronology of relations with the EU

Timeline

Date	Event
1998	The Council of the European Union establishes political and economic conditionality for the development of bilateral relations.
21 June 2003	The Stabilisation and Association Process is confirmed as the European Union's policy for the Western Balkans countries.
October 2004	The European Council conclusions open up a process for a Stabilisation and Association Agreement.
October 2005	Negotiations for a Stabilisation and Association Agreement started.
1 November 2007	Stabilisation and Association Agreement is initialed.
1 January 2008	Entry into force of the Visa Facilitation and Readmission Agreement.
18 February 2008	The European Council adopts revised European Partnership for Serbia.
29 April 2008	The Stabilisation and Association Agreement and Interim agreement on trade and trade-related issues signed.
19 December 2009	Visa requirements lifted for Serbian citizens travelling to Schengen Area.
22 December 2009	Application for Membership in the European Union.
14 June 2010	Ratification process of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement by EU member states started.
31 January 2011	Responses to the European Commission's Questionnaire submitted.
14 October 2011	The European Commission announced its opinion on the Application for membership in the European Union, recommending granting Serbia the status of a Candidate for EU membership.
1 March 2012	The European Council grants the status of a Candidate for EU membership.
28 June 2013	The European Council endorsed the European Commission's recommendation to start membership negotiations.
1 September 2013	Entry into force of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement.
25 September 2013	Screening of the EU acquis started.
21 January 2014	Start of membership talks, first Intergovernmental Conference held.
25 March 2015	Screening of the EU acquis completed.
14 December 2015	Opening of chapters 32 ("Financial Control") and 35 ("Other Issues – Item 1: Normalisation of relations between Serbia and Kosovo*").
18 July 2016	Opening of chapters 23 ("Judiciary and Fundamental Rights") and 24 ("Justice, Freedom and Security").
13 December 2016	Opening of chapters 5 ("Public Procurement") and 25 ("Science and Research"); Chapter 25 ("Science and Research") provisionally closed.
27 February 2017	Opening of chapters 20 ("Enterprise and Industrial Policy") and 26 ("Education and Culture"); Chapter 26 ("Education and Culture") provisionally closed.
20 June 2017	Opening of chapters 7 ("Intellectual Property Law") and 29 ("Customs Union").
11 December 2017	Opening of chapters 6 ("Company Law") and 30 ("External Relations").
25 June 2018	Opening of chapters 13 ("Fisheries") and 33 ("Financial and Budgetary Provisions").
10 December 2018	Opening of chapters 17 ("Economic and Monetary Policy") and 18 ("Statistics").
27 June 2019	Opening of Chapter 9 ("Financial Services").
9 December 2019	Opening of Chapter 4 ("Free Movement of Capital").
1 February 2021	Entry into force of new methodology for membership talks.
14 December 2021	Opening of chapters 14 ("Transport Policy"), 15 ("Energy"), 21 ("Trans-European Networks"), and 27 ("Environment and Climate Change").

Membership talks

No further progress on the opening or closing of chapters have been achieved since December 2021. Benchmarks were met for the opening of all three remaining chapters in cluster 3 (chapter 10, 16 and 19) in December 2024, but this was postponed due the opening being conditional on "substantial further progress made by Serbia, in particular in accordance with...the rule of law (chapter 23+24) and the normalisation of relations with Kosovo".^[13][14]

Screening and Chapter Dates

Progression	34 / 34 100% complete	34 / 34 100% complete	22 / 34 64.7% complete	2 / 34 5.9% complete
Acquis Chapter[15]	Screening Started	Screening Completed	Chapter Opened	Chapter Closed
Overview	34 out of 34	34 out of 34	22 out of 34	2 out of 34
1. Free Movement of Goods	2014-06-17	2014-09-12	–	–
2. Freedom of Movement For Workers	2014-01-23	2014-03-25	–	–
3. Right of Establishment & Freedom To Provide Services	2014-01-30	2014-03-13	–	–
4. Free Movement of Capital	2014-10-13	2014-12-15	2019-12-10	–
5. Public Procurement	2014-03-21	2014-05-13	2016-12-13	–
6. Company Law	2014-12-11	2015-02-05	2017-12-11	–
7. Intellectual Property Law	2014-09-24	2014-11-13	2017-06-20	–
8. Competition Policy	2014-03-31	2014-11-05	–	–
9. Financial Services	2015-01-21	2015-03-17	2019-06-27	–
10. Information Society & Media	2014-05-22	2014-07-02	–	–
11. Agriculture & Rural Development	2014-03-18	2014-09-16	–	–
12. Food Safety, Veterinary & Phytosanitary Policy	2014-02-03	2014-10-24	–	–
13. Fisheries	2014-09-30	2014-11-14	2018-06-25	–
14. Transport Policy	2014-12-16	2015-02-27	2021-12-14	–
15. Energy	2014-04-29	2014-06-12	2021-12-14	–
16. Taxation	2014-10-14	2015-03-06	–	–
17. Economic & Monetary Policy	2014-12-02	2015-03-12	2018-12-10	–
18. Statistics	2014-05-20	2014-11-26	2018-12-10	–
19. Social Policy & Employment	2014-02-10	2014-06-26	–	–
20. Enterprise & Industrial Policy	2014-04-03	2014-07-02	2017-02-27	–
21. Trans-European Networks	2014-04-29	2015-02-27	2021-12-14	–
22. Regional Policy & Coordination of Structural Instruments	2014-10-01	2015-01-29	–	–
23. Judiciary & Fundamental Rights	2013-09-25	2013-12-10	2016-07-18	–
24. Justice, Freedom & Security	2013-10-02	2013-12-13	2016-07-18	–
25. Science & Research	2014-10-06	2014-12-01	2016-12-13	2016-12-13
26. Education & Culture	2014-02-20	2014-04-04	2017-02-27	2017-02-27
27. Environment	2014-09-15	2014-11-21	2021-12-14	–
28. Consumer & Health Protection	2014-12-04	2015-02-04	–	–
29. Customs Union	2014-03-26	2014-06-04	2017-06-20	–
30. External Relations	2014-07-02	2014-10-09	2017-12-11	–
31. Foreign, Security & Defence Policy	2014-07-15	2014-10-10	–	–
32. Financial Control	2013-10-17	2013-11-26	2015-12-14	–
33. Financial & Budgetary Provisions	2015-01-27	2015-03-24	2018-06-25	–
34. Institutions	–	–	–	–
35. Other Issues: Relations with Kosovo*	2014-01-22	2015-03-25	2015-12-14	–
Progression	34 / 34 100% complete	34 / 34 100% complete	22 / 34 64.7% complete	2 / 34 5.9% complete

October 2024 European Commission Report^[16]

Progression	12 Unopened Chapters 22 Open Chapters 2 Closed Chapters 5.9% complete	Some level of preparation 4 / 34 Moderately prepared 19 / 34 Good level of preparation 10 / 34
Acquis chapter	Chapter Status	Acquis Status
1. Free Movement of Goods	Unopened	Moderately prepared
2. Freedom of Movement For Workers	Unopened	Moderately prepared
3. Right of Establishment & Freedom To Provide Services	Unopened	Moderately prepared
4. Free Movement of Capital	Open	Moderately prepared
5. Public Procurement	Open	Moderately prepared
6. Company Law	Open	Good level of preparation
7. Intellectual Property Law	Open	Good level of preparation
8. Competition Policy	Unopened	Moderately prepared
9. Financial Services	Open	Moderately prepared
10. Information Society & Media	Unopened	Moderately prepared
11. Agriculture & Rural Development	Unopened	Some level of preparation
12. Food Safety, Veterinary & Phytosanitary Policy	Unopened	Moderately prepared
13. Fisheries	Open	Moderately prepared
14. Transport Policy	Open	Good level of preparation
15. Energy	Open	Moderately prepared
16. Taxation	Unopened	Good level of preparation†
17. Economic & Monetary Policy	Open	Good level of preparation†
18. Statistics	Open	Good level of preparation†
19. Social Policy & Employment	Unopened	Moderately prepared
20. Enterprise & Industrial Policy	Open	Moderately prepared
21. Trans-European Networks	Open	Good level of preparation†
22. Regional Policy & Coordination of Structural Instruments	Unopened	Moderately prepared
23. Judiciary & Fundamental Rights	Open	Some level of preparation
24. Justice, Freedom & Security	Open	Moderately prepared††
25. Science & Research	Chapter Closed	Good level of preparation
26. Education & Culture	Chapter Closed	Good level of preparation
27. Environment & Climate Change	Open	Some level of preparation
28. Consumer & Health Protection	Unopened	Moderately prepared
29. Customs Union	Open	Good level of preparation
30. External Relations	Open	Moderately prepared
31. Foreign, Security & Defence Policy	Unopened	Moderately prepared
32. Financial Control	Open	Moderately prepared
33. Financial & Budgetary Provisions	Open	Some level of preparation
34. Institutions	Currently not applicable for Serbia	Currently not applicable for Serbia
35. Other Issues – Normalisation with Kosovo	Open	Further efforts needed
Legend: Chapters in bold indicate completed chapters. † indicates chapters in which the European Commission has simultaneously awarded the chapter both "moderately prepared" AND "good level of preparation". †† indicates chapters in which the European Commission has simultaneously awarded the chapter both "some level of preparation" AND "moderately prepared".   totally incompatible   early stage   considerable efforts needed   some level of preparation   further efforts needed   moderately prepared   no major difficulties expected   good level of preparation   well prepared / well advanced

Report History

Acquis chapter	2010[17]	2012[18]	2013[19]	2014[20]	2015[21]	2016[22]	2018[23]	2019[24]	2020[25]	2021[26]	2022[27]	2023[28]	2024[16]
1. Free Movement of Goods	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
2. Freedom of Movement For Workers	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
3. Right of Establishment & Freedom To Provide Services	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
4. Free Movement of Capital	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
5. Public Procurement	Considerable efforts needed	Considerable efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
6. Company Law	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation
7. Intellectual Property Law	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation
8. Competition Policy	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Good level of preparation	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
9. Financial Services	Considerable efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
10. Information Society & Media	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
11. Agriculture & Rural Development	Early stage	Early stage	Considerable efforts needed	Considerable efforts needed	Early stage	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation
12. Food Safety, Veterinary & Phytosanitary Policy	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
13. Fisheries	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
14. Transport Policy	Some level of preparation	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation
15. Energy	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
16. Taxation	Further efforts needed	Considerable efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Good level of preparation†
17. Economic & Monetary Policy	Further efforts needed	Considerable efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Good level of preparation†	Good level of preparation†
18. Statistics	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Good level of preparation†
19. Social Policy & Employment	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
20. Enterprise & Industrial Policy	Some level of preparation	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
21. Trans-European Networks	Considerable efforts needed	Considerable efforts needed	Considerable efforts needed	Some level of preparation	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Good level of preparation†
22. Regional Policy & Coordination of Structural Instruments	Considerable efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
23. Judiciary & Fundamental Rights	Considerable efforts needed	Some level of preparation	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation
24. Justice, Freedom & Security	Considerable efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Moderately prepared††
25. Science & Research	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation
26. Education & Culture	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Some level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation
27. Environment	Early stage	Considerable efforts needed	Considerable efforts needed	Some level of preparation	Early stage	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation
28. Consumer & Health Protection	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
29. Customs Union	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation	Good level of preparation
30. External Relations	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
31. Foreign, Security & Defence Policy	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Further efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
32. Financial Control	Early stage	Early stage	Considerable efforts needed	Considerable efforts needed	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared	Moderately prepared
33. Financial & Budgetary Provisions	Early stage	Early stage	Early stage	Early stage	Early stage	Early stage	Early stage	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation	Some level of preparation
34. Institutions	Currently not applicable for Serbia	Currently not applicable for Serbia	Currently not applicable for Serbia	Currently not applicable for Serbia	Currently not applicable for Serbia	Currently not applicable for Serbia	Currently not applicable for Serbia	Currently not applicable for Serbia	Currently not applicable for Serbia	Currently not applicable for Serbia	Currently not applicable for Serbia	Currently not applicable for Serbia	Currently not applicable for Serbia
35. Other Issues Normalisation with Kosovo	Early stage	Early stage	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed	Further efforts needed
Legend: Chapters in bold indicate completed chapters. † indicates chapters in which the European Commission has simultaneously awarded the chapter both "moderately prepared" AND "good level of preparation". †† indicates chapters in which the European Commission has simultaneously awarded the chapter both "some level of preparation" AND "moderately prepared".   totally incompatible   early stage   considerable efforts needed   some level of preparation   further efforts needed   moderately prepared   no major difficulties expected   good level of preparation   well prepared / well advanced

Clusters of negotiating chapters^[29]

Clusters	Acquis Chapter	State of Play	Cluster Opened	Cluster Closed
Overview	Overview	22 out of 34	2 out of 6	0 out of 6
Fundamentals	23. Judiciary & Fundamental Rights	Opened	Opened	–
	24. Justice, Freedom & Security	Opened
	Economic criteria	–
	Functioning of democratic institutions	–
	Public administration reform	–
	5. Public Procurement	Opened
	18. Statistics	Opened
	32. Financial Control	Opened
Internal Market	1. Free Movement of Goods	Serbia working on fulfilment of opening benchmarks	–	–
	2. Freedom of Movement For Workers	Draft EU Common Position in Council
	3. Right of Establishment & Freedom To Provide Services	Draft EU Common Position in Council
	4. Free Movement of Capital	Opened
	6. Company Law	Opened
	7. Intellectual Property Law	Opened
	8. Competition Policy	Serbia working on fulfillment of opening benchmarks
	9. Financial Services	Opened
	28. Consumer & Health Protection	Draft EU Common Position in Council
Competitiveness and inclusive growth	10. Information Society & Media	Draft EU Common Position in Council	–	–
	16. Taxation	Opening Benchmarks Assessment Report in Council
	17. Economic & Monetary Policy	Opened
	19. Social Policy & Employment	Opening Benchmarks Assessment Report in Council
	20. Enterprise & Industrial Policy	Opened
	25. Science & Research	Closed
	26. Education & Culture	Closed
	29. Customs Union	Opened
Green agenda and sustainable connectivity	14. Transport Policy	Opened	Opened	–
	15. Energy	Opened
	21. Trans-European Networks	Opened
	27. Environment	Opened
Resources, agriculture and cohesion	11. Agriculture & Rural Development	Opening Benchmarks Assessment Report in Council	–	–
	12. Food Safety, Veterinary & Phytosanitary Policy	Serbia working on fulfilment of opening benchmarks
	13. Fisheries	Opened
	22. Regional Policy & Coordination of Structural Instruments	Opening Benchmarks Assessment Report in Council
	33. Financial & Budgetary Provisions	Opened
External relations	30. External Relations	Opened	–	–
	31. Foreign, Security & Defence Policy	Screening Report in Council
	34. Institutions	–	–	–
	35. Other Issues: Relations with Kosovo*	Opened	Opened	–

Main political issues

Obstacles for accession include the requirement to recognize statehood for Kosovo, foreign policy alignment with Russia, democratic backsliding, and domestic policies such as rule of law and media freedom.^[30][5][31]

Kosovo

See also: Kosovo–Serbia relations and Kosovo independence precedent

The biggest obstacle to Serbia's accession to the EU is its strained relationship with Kosovo, which escalated after the 2008 Kosovo declaration of independence.^[5] The Serbian government has declared that the status of Kosovo should not be tied to the EU negotiations. In 2012, the EU Enlargement Commissioner, Štefan Füle, denied that the European Union would insist on Serbia's recognition of Kosovo before it can join the organisation.^[32]

In 2013, the governments of Kosovo and Serbia completed the Brussels Agreement, which was hailed as a major step towards normalising relations and enabled the start of EU accession talks with Serbia.^[33] Later that year, Kosovo's Minister of Foreign Affairs Enver Hoxhaj suggested that the EU should approve the accession of Kosovo and Serbia simultaneously due to concerns that if Serbia was admitted first they could veto Kosovo's membership.^[34] However, Serbia's accession negotiations were not halted.

In 2021, the European Parliament adopted a report on Serbia, which, amongst other things, emphasized that the normalization of relationships between Serbia and Kosovo is "a priority and a requirement for EU accession."^[35]

In 2024, the opening of remaining chapters in Cluster 3 was postponed partially due to "substantial further progress made by Serbia, in particular in accordance with...the normalisation of relations with Kosovo", further evidencing an expectation that the country address the issue as part of accession negotiations.^[13][14]

Alignment with the EU's foreign policy

See also: Serbia–Russia relations

Serbia refused to join international sanctions against Russia following its 2022 invasion of Ukraine. In response, the European Parliament passed a resolution that stated in part it "strongly regrets Serbia’s non-alignment with EU sanctions against Russia, which damages its EU accession process."^[36]

Public opinion on EU membership

Serbian public support for the country joining the EU has significantly waned over the years, while at the same time leaning toward maintaining strong ties with Russia and China which are seen as reliable allies. Serbia’s EU membership has experienced growing skepticism stemming from slow accession negotiations progress, the Kosovo dispute, and media-driven anti-Western sentiment.^[37]

The European Union's push for Serbia to normalize relations with Kosovo, which is seen in Serbia as including implicit recognition, in particular is a major factor contributing to waning support. The vast majority of the Serbian public view Kosovo as an integral part of Serbia, and the EU’s stance is seen as pressuring Serbia to relinquish its sovereignty. Russia and China’s support for Serbia’s position on Kosovo (non-recognition) bolsters their favorability over the EU.^[38]

The most recent poll, from March 2025, found that if a referendum on joining the EU took place, 38.9% would vote in favour of joining the EU, with 43.2% voting against, and 17.9% unsure or abstaining.^[39]

Data by the Serbian Ministry of European Integration

Date	Question	Yes	No	Undecided
2002[40]	Join EU?	68%	13%	19%
2003[40]	Join EU?	72%	8%	20%
2004[40]	Join EU?	71%	12%	17%
2005[40]	Join EU?	64%	12%	24%
2006[40]	Join EU?	70%	12%	18%
2007[41]	Join EU?	69%	15%	15%
2008[42]	Join EU?	61%	13%	26%
2009[43]	Join EU?	65%	14%	21%
2010[44]	Join EU?	57%	18%	25%
2011[45]	Join EU?	51%	28%	21%
2012[46]	Join EU?	41%	31%	27%
2013[47]	Join EU?	51%	22%	27%
2014[48]	Join EU?	44%	25%	31%
2015[49]	Join EU?	48%	28%	24%
2016[50]	Join EU?	47%	29%	24%
2017[51]	Join EU?	52%	24%	24%
2018[52]	Join EU?	55%	25%	20%
2019[53]	Join EU?	54%	24%	22%
2022[54]	Join EU?	43%	32%	25%

Data by polling agencies

Date	Agency	Question	Yes	No	Undecided
2008[55]	Strategic Marketing	How would you vote on a referendum on joining EU?	61%	–	–
2010[56]	Gallup Balkan Monitor	Do you support accession of Serbia to EU?	63%	–	–
2011[57]	NSPM	Do you support accession of Serbia to EU?	49.7%	37.6%	12.7%
2012[58]	B92/Ipsos Strategic Marketing	How would you vote on a referendum on joining EU?	49%	34%	5%
2013[59]	Ipsos Strategic Marketing	Do you support accession of Serbia to EU?	53%	–	–
2014[60]	Eurobarometer	Do you support the enlargement of EU?	58%	26%	16%
2015[61]	NSPM	Do you support accession of Serbia to EU?	46.8%	31.5%	11.7%
2016[62]	NSPM	Do you support accession of Serbia to EU?	44.5%	43.0%	12.5%
2017[63]	NSPM	Do you support accession of Serbia to EU?	51.2%	36.3%	12.5%
2018[64]	NSPM	Do you support accession of Serbia to EU?	46.5%	38.7%	14.8%
2019[65]	NSPM	Do you support accession of Serbia to EU?	47.1%	34.9%	18.0%
2021[66]	NSPM	Do you support accession of Serbia to EU?	42.7%	38.9%	18.4%
2022[67]	Ipsos	How would you vote on a referendum on joining EU?	35%	44%	21%
2023[68]	Smart Plus	How would you vote on a referendum on joining EU?	44%	30%	15%
2024[69]	NSPM	Do you support accession of Serbia to EU?	42.8%	36.8%	20.4%
2025[70]	NSPM	How would you vote on a referendum on joining EU?	38.9%	43.2%	17.9%

Bilateral relations with EU member states

Austria Belgium Bulgaria Croatia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark

Estonia Finland France Germany Greece Hungary Ireland

Italy Latvia Lithuania Luxembourg Malta Netherlands Poland

Portugal Romania Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden

See also

• Accession of Albania to the European Union
• Accession of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the European Union
• Accession of Kosovo to the European Union
• Accession of Montenegro to the European Union
• Accession of North Macedonia to the European Union
• Yugoslavia–European Communities relations
• Central European Free Trade Agreement
• Open Balkan
• Craiova Group