On 6 May 2025, the European Parliament adopted the new BRIDGEforEU Regulation – an outcome welcomed by the European Commission. The adoption is the result of 10 years of negotiation among the Commission, the Parliament, and Member States. This process has led to a proposal that will concretely impact border regions without creating unnecessary burdens for national and regional administrations. The Regulation establishes a new instrument “to facilitate identifying and resolving cross-border obstacles.”
Around 150 million Europeans live close to a border, in regions with vast potential for economic growth and integration. However, development and interactions in these areas are often hindered by legal and administrative discrepancies. According to a study funded by the Commission, removing 20% of current obstacles would boost GDP by 2% in cross-border regions and create over one million jobs.
With BRIDGEforEU, Member States will be encouraged to establish Cross-Border Coordination Points to assess requests from local stakeholders on potential obstacles and relay them to the national authorities. After an obstacle is assessed and recognised, Member States and regions can use the Cross-Border Facilitation Tool, a voluntary standard procedure designed to resolve administrative and legal obstacles. While each request must be answered, the decision on whether to resolve an obstacle remains the prerogative of the competent national authorities.
One of the key compromises reached in the negotiations concerns maritime borders. While maritime regions remain within the scope of the Regulation, cross-border coordination points will not be mandatory for maritime borders, even if some Member States have chosen to establish them for land borders. Additionally, island Member States with only maritime borders will be exempt from any obligation under this framework.
Another important decision was to limit the actors who can initiate cross-border cases. Under the Regulation, natural persons are excluded from submitting cross-border files, with the process reserved for institutional and administrative entities. Furthermore, the obligation to provide detailed information on each cross-border file applies only to Member States that have opted to establish Cross-Border Coordination Points.
BRIDGEforEU will enter into force 20 days after its publication in the Official Journal of the EU. It will be a powerful tool to sew together borders in Europe, promoting the development of these laboratories of European integration.
The full text of the Regulation is available here.
