SR and EU

The relationships between Slovak Republic and European Union are based on the European Association Agreement, signed on 4 October 1993.

The application of Slovakia for integration into European Union has been submitted by the Prime Minister of Slovakia, Vladimír Mečiar, at session of European Group in Cannes, on 27. June 1995.

The Treaty of Accession between Slovak Republic together with other nine acceding countries and the European Union was signed on 16 April 2003.

Slovakia became a full member of the EU on I May 2004. Slovakia did not seek any derogation from the implementation of the acquis communautaire during accession negotiations. However, it did seek the establishment of transition periods, justified in light of the need to improve the performance levels of the Slovak economy or to secure extensive capital investments.

The following transition periods were negotiated by Slovakia:

(a) free movement of persons (seven years);

(b) freedom to provide services (three years);

(c) free movement of capital (seven years);

(d) energy (five years);

(e) environment (in most cases three years);

(f) taxation (from one to five years, depending on the type of goods);

(g) transport (two years);

(h) agriculture (from three (production of certain foods) to ten years (direct payments to the agriculture sector); and

(i) competition (from five to six years).

Slovakia joined the Schengen Agreement on 21 December 2007, enabling a higher degree of free movement of individuals among the participating states and regulating the protection of common external borders.

Slovakia ratified the European Union's Lisbon Treaty in April 2008.

As the last step in European integration, Slovakia adopted the euro as its official currency on I January 2009.

The Treaty of Accession in .zip version (zip, 32 MB)

Source: European Commission