Delegated regulation - Main contents

This legally binding act of the European Union is directly applicable in all member states of the European Union. The delegated regulation is similar to national legislation in terms of the impact and direct effect it generates.

Delegated regulations are limited in what they can set out to regulate. Delegated regulations can be used to supplement existing legislation on non-essential parts or amend specific and non-essential elements of a legislative act.

Area of application

Delegated regulations are directly applicable and need not be transposed into national legislation. This should lead to a uniform implementation througout the European Union. Member states are obliged to implement delegated regulations, and should a delegated regulation conflict with national legislation the former takes precedence.

Delegated regulations can only seek to supplement or amend non-essential elements of legislation. What constitutes non-essential elements is laid down in each individual act. Delegated regulations cannot address anything outside of such frameworks and a delegated regulation cannot broaden the scope of the legislative act it seeks to supplement or amend.

Delegated regulations in general address delineated topics with little or no political controversy, and/or which are detailed technical issues by nature. The politically sensitive and key elements of legislation will have been addressed in the original legislative act.

Legal entities may make a direct appeal to delegated regulations in a court of law in relation to both a state as well as other legal entities.

Adopting delegated regulations

For adopting delegated regulations the procedure or delegated acts i is used. The European Commission may, based on a legislative act, put forward a proposal for a delegated regulation. Experts drawn from the member states are then consulted. Both the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers can raise objections to the proposal, as well as raise objections to a delegated regulation that is in force.

The delegated regulation is based on the Treaty on the functioning of the European Union (TfEU).

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  instrument: part six TfEU title 1 chapter 2 section 1 art. 290