European Semester
European Semester
Timeline
Preparatory phase: analysis of the situation and follow-up on the previous year
Phase 1: policy guidance at EU level
Phase 2: country-specific guidance
Phase 3: implementation
A new cycle starts towards the end of the year, when the Commission provides an overview of the economic situation for the coming year.
Who does what?
The European Commission publishes the ‘autumn package’:
- economic and fiscal policies: annual sustainable growth survey
- draft recommendation for the euro area
- socio-economic coordination: draft joint employment report
- macro-economic imbalances: alert mechanism report (in-depth reviews of countries at risk of macro-economic imbalances)
The Council of the EU:
- debates and approves conclusions on the growth survey and the alert mechanism report
- approves euro area recommendations
- adopts a final joint employment report
The European Parliament:
- may discuss and publish its own report on the growth survey
- provides an opinion on the employment guidelines
The European Council (heads of state or government) provides policy guidance.
The member states:
- outline their specific objectives, priorities, and reform and investment plans
- prepare an annual progress report (from 2025).
The European Commission publishes country-specific recommendations, country reports and an updated classification of countries under the macroeconomic imbalance procedure (‘spring package’).
The Council of the EU agrees final country-specific recommendations.
The European Council discusses them.
The Council of the EU adopts them.
The member states take the recommendations into account in the process of national decision-making on the next year’s national budgets.
Last review: 4 February 2025