What changed

DRAFT EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION

CONTENTS

on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the Single Market and Customs Programme for the period 2028-2034 and repealing Regulations (EU) 2021/444, (EU) 2021/690, (EU) 2021/785, (EU) 2021/847 and (EU) 2021/1077

– having regard to Rules 60 and 58 of its Rules of Procedure,

– having regard to the opinionsreport of the Committee on Budgetary Control and the Committee onInternal EconomicMarket and MonetaryConsumer Affairs,Protection (A10-0216/2026),

– having regard to the report of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (A100000/2026),

1. Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out;

3. Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Recital 4: (4) In accordance with Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509, Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council4 , Council Regulations (EC, Euratom) No 2988/955 , (EC, Euratom) No 2185/966 and (EU) 2017/19397 , the financial interests of the Union are to be protected through proportionate measures, including the prevention, detection, correction and investigation of irregularities and fraud, the recovery of funds lost, wrongly paid or incorrectly used and, where appropriate, the imposition of administrative sanctions. In accordance with Regulations (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 and (EC, Euratom) No 2185/96, the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) is empowered to carry out investigations, including on-the-spot checks and inspections, with a view to establishing whether there has been fraud, corruption or any other illegal activity affecting the financial interests of the Union. In accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/1939, the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) is empowered to investigate and prosecute fraud and other illegal activities affecting the financial interests of the Union as provided for in Directive (EU) 2017/1371 of the European Parliament and of the Council8 . In accordance with Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509, any person or entity receiving Union funds is to fully cooperate in the protection of the Union’s financial interests, to grant the necessary rights and access to the Commission, OLAF, the EPPO and the European Court of A…

Recital 1: (1) This Regulation lays down an indicative financial envelope for the ‘Single Market, and Customs Programme for the period 2028-2034’ (the ‘programme’). That envelope should be implemented through a transparent and traceable programming structure, including a clear, publicly accessible breakdown of commitments and payments by programme component, by objective and by type of action. For the purpose of this Regulation, current prices are calculated by applying a fixed 2% deflator.

Recital 7: (7) The Single Market is governed by the fundamental principles of free movement of goods, services, people, and capital and has been a major contributor to growth, competitiveness and employment. A well-functioning and safe-guarded Single Market is a pre-requisite for a competitive, safe, resilient and secure Union economy and for advancing the Savings and Investments Union. As stressed by the new approach proposed by the Single Market Strategy, more action is needed to address the barriers, stimulate reforms, reduce fragmentation and complete the Single Market, especially in the context of new global challenges. This has been and will continue to be reinforced by an effective cohesion policy as an additional key condition for the success of the Single Market. The Member States, local and regional authorities, where relevant, and the Commission share the responsibility for enforcing Union law to ensure compliance with Single Market rules and to protect people’s and businesses’ rights. The Union-level responsibility combines three main aspects: removal of barriers, collaboration between Member States, across all levels of government, and corrective implementation and enforcement actions and stimulating reforms. Barriers such as knowledge and data gaps, and regulatory fragmentation are obstacles for citizens, consumers, businesses, investors, economic operators to access and operate within the Single Market. Capacity building, administrative and operational cooperation, includ…

Recital 2: (2) In a rapidly changing economic, social and geopolitical environment, recent experience has shown the need for a more flexible multiannual financial framework and Union spending programmes. To that effect, and in line with the objectives of this regulation, the consolidation of the predecessor programmes into a single programme should primarily serve to simplify the administrative structure of the multiannual financial framework and to reduce the administrative burden on implementing bodies and beneficiaries. The funding should consider the evolving policy needs and Union’s priorities as identified in relevant documents published by the Commission, in Council conclusions and Parliament resolutions while ensuring sufficient predictability for the budget implementation, without resulting in competition for funding between the distinct policy areas supported by this programme and ensuring that reallocation of resources does not weaken core enforcement capacities, in particular customs control and market surveillance.

Recital 9: (9) With economic and security uncertainty caused by geopolitical challenges, security risks and trade tensions, the Single Market is our anchor for stability and resilience. At the same time, as global competition is intensifying and technological development accelerating at rapid speed, the internal market is facing critical challenges on several fronts, including in digital markets, the rapid development of e-commerce, trade distortions, a rise in fraud and illegal activities. Those challenges require a collective and coordinated Union response considering their scale and the high levels of interdependence among Member States and regions. In addition, a high level of protection and resulting benefits for citizens, consumers, investors and businesses could not be achieved solely through actions at national level, nor could it generate economies of scale, especially given the cross-border nature of those benefits.

Recital 4: (4) In accordance with Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509, Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council4 , Council Regulations (EC, Euratom) No 2988/955 , (EC, Euratom) No 2185/966 and (EU) 2017/19397 , the financial interests of the Union are to be protected through proportionate measures, including the prevention, detection, correction and investigation of irregularities, fraud, corruption as well as any types of conflict of interest and maladministration, the recovery of funds lost, wrongly paid or incorrectly used and, where appropriate, the imposition of administrative sanctions. In accordance with Regulations (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 and (EC, Euratom) No 2185/96, the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) is empowered to carry out investigations, including on-the-spot checks and inspections, with a view to establishing whether there has been fraud, corruption or any other illegal activity affecting the financial interests of the Union. In accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/1939, the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) is empowered to investigate and prosecute fraud, corruption and other illegal activities affecting the financial interests of the Union as provided for in Directive (EU) 2017/1371 of the European Parliament and of the Council8 . In accordance with Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509, any person or entity receiving Union funds is to fully cooperate in the protection of the Union’s financial interests, to grant the n…

Recital 9 a (new): (9a) Safeguarding the Single Market and Customs Union from fraud and illegal activities affecting the financial interests of the Union is a key objective of the programme. Article 325 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) establishes shared responsibility between, the Union and the Member States to counter fraud and any other illegal activities affecting the financial interests of the Union. Protecting the financial interests of the Union should cover all aspects of the Union budget, on both the revenue and expenditure sides. VAT fraud has a substantial negative impact on both the Union and Member States’ revenue and distorts competition in the Single Market. The European Court of Auditors (ECA), the OLAF and EPPO have repeatedly identified VAT fraud as one of the most significant sources of losses to Union budget and to the Union’s own resources. Hence, in the context of the ongoing review of the Union anti-fraud architecture, the programme should continue supporting Member States in improving fraud detection, irregularity reporting and cooperation with investigate authorities.

Recital 5: (5) The programme is to be implemented in accordance with the provisions, rules and objectives defined in Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2025/XXXX of the European Parliament and of the Council9 (the ‘Performance Regulation’).

Recital 10: (10) Union funding is required to enable the Commission and Member States to ensure obligations under Union law, which cannot be delegated or met by another level of action than the Unionlevel, are fulfilled, in particular in the areas of customs, market surveillance, product safety and compliance, consumer protection, financial services, standard setting, competition policy, the provision of European statistics, taxation and anti-fraud.

Recital 7: (7) The Single Market is governed by the fundamental principles of free movement of goods, services, people, and capital and has been a major contributor to growth, competitiveness and employment. A well-functioning and safe-guarded Single Market is a pre-requisite for a competitive, safe, resilient, sustainable and secure Union economy as well as for advancing the Savings and Investments Union. As stressed by the new approach proposed by the Single Market Strategy, more action is needed to address the unjustified barriers, stimulate reforms, reduce fragmentation and complete the Single Market, especially in the context of new global challenges. Deepening of the EU Single Market should contribute to upward convergence, social cohesion and ensuring a high level of environmental, consumer, safety, social and labour standards and rights. This has been and will continue to be reinforced by an effective cohesion policy as an additional key condition for the success of the Single Market. The Member States, local and regional authorities, where relevant, and the Commission share the responsibility for enforcing Union law to ensure compliance with Single Market rules and to protect people’s, businesses’ and workers’ rights. The Union-level responsibility combines three main aspects: removal of barriers, collaboration between Member States, across all levels, and corrective implementation and enforcement actions and stimulating reforms. Barriers such as access to information and knowl…

Recital 11: (11) It is therefore appropriate to establish a programme to deepen and enhance the functioning of the Single Market and a strong Customs Union and to protect the financial and economic interests of the Union and the Member States, with a design fostering flexibility, streamlining and synergies, while ensuring a high level of predictability, transparency and accountability, as well as adequate funding safeguards for core policy objectives, legal obligations and mandatory systems, and supporting the horizontal policy mainstreaming priorities including what is set out in Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2025/XXXX of the European Parliament and of the Council17 establishing a budget expenditure tracking and performance framework and other horizontal rules for the Union programmes and activities. In addition, in light of the European Court of Auditor’s findings showing that EU budget flexibility instruments were often activated without adequate analysis or documentation, that their use reduced the visibility of reallocations and that limitations in their designed contributed to early depletion in the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2021-2027, it is critical that the programme flexibility is utilised responsibly, with sound and long-term financial management, transparency and clear prioritisation criteria at the core. The following four programmes should therefore be merged in one single programme: parts of the Single Market Programme, excluding the small and medium-sized enterprise…

Recital 8: (8) Under the multiannual financial framework for the years 2021 to 2027 laid down in Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/209311 , the Single Market Programme (‘SMP’) established by Regulation (EU) 2021/690 of the European Parliament and of the Council12 supports the design, implementation and enforcement of Union legislation underpinning the proper functioning of the Single Market, so that it can reach its full potential. The Customs programme established by Regulation (EU) 2021/444 of the European Parliament and of the Council13 and the Fiscalis programme established by Regulation (EU) 2021/847 of the European Parliament and of the Council14 accompany the customs and tax policies in the Union by supporting Union level digital solutions for customs and taxation, which are essential for the effective implementation of Union law, project based collaborative activities as well as human competency building activities. In addition, the Customs Control Equipment Instrument established as part of the Integrated Border Management Fund by Regulation (EU) 2021/1077 of the European Parliament and of the Council15 , contributes to increasing the efficient and effective customs controls, essential for the facilitation of legitimate trade, while ensuring sufficient level of protection at the external borders. The Union Anti-Fraud Programme (‘UAFP’) established by Regulation (EU) 2021/785 of the European Parliament and of the Council16 funds actions which aim to prevent and combat fraud,…

Recital 12: (12) In this regard, the programme should enable the implementation of the following generic types of actions: (a) digital capacity building and analysis tools, development and operation of centralised and decentralised European electronic systems and digital solutions, implementation tools and data; (b) support to policy, regulatory and enforcement work, for example, through studies, communication, impact assessment, evaluation and simplification proposals; (c) collaboration and cooperation between Member States, the Commission, Union agencies, bodies and national, regional and local authorities and with stakeholders; (d) administrative and operational/technical capacity building, including purchase, maintenance, upgrade of equipment – notably customs control equipment – infrastructure and related costs; (e) human competency building; (f) joint tools, methods, data and statistics to support policy making (g) other actions to achieve the general and specific objectives, such as innovation, testing.

Recital 9: (9) With economic and security uncertainty caused by multitude of geopolitical challenges, including external shocks, strategic dependencies, climate change, security risks and trade tensions, the Single Market is our anchor for stability and resilience. At the same time, as global competition is intensifying and technological development accelerating at rapid speed, the internal market is facing critical challenges on several fronts, including in digital markets, the rapid development of e-commerce with the rise of uncompliant and illegal imported goods, trade distortions, a rise in fraud and illegal activities. Those challenges require a collective and coordinated Union response considering their scale and the high levels of interdependence among Member States and regions. In addition, a high level of protection and resulting benefits for citizens, consumers, investors and businesses could not be achieved solely through actions at national level, nor could it generate economies of scale, especially given the cross-border nature of those benefits.

Recital 13: (13) In light of the growing digitalisation of the economy and society, there is an increasing need for citizens, consumers, investors, economic operators, businesses, and public administrations to have timely, accurate and accessible information and advice on the functioning of the Single Market and their rights and obligations under Union law. Furthermore, reinforced cooperation and integration to ensure digitally enabled, seamless implementation, consistent and effective enforcement across the Union and to prevent barriers and limitations hindering the proper functioning of the Single Market, taxation cooperation, tax fraud prevention, anti-fraud investigations and policies and the Customs Union should be enabled. Union authorities and bodies should maintain effective rulemaking, standard setting, as well as implementation and enforcement of Union law in the face of changing circumstances and to ensure enforcement of restrictive measures in the management of Union funds.

Recital 9 a (new): (9a) Safeguarding the Single Market and Customs Union from fraud and illegal activities affecting the financial interests of the Union is a key objective of the programme. Article 325 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) establishes shared responsibility between the Union and the Member States to counter fraud and any other illegal activities affecting the financial interests of the Union. Protecting the financial interests of the Union should cover all aspects of the Union budget, on both the revenue and expenditure sides. VAT fraud has a substantial negative impact on both the Union and Member States’ revenue and distorts competition in the Single Market. The ECA, the OLAF and EPPO have repeatedly identified VAT fraud as one of the most significant sources of losses to Union budget and to the Union’s own resources. Hence, in the context of the ongoing review of the Union anti-fraud architecture, the programme should continue supporting Member States in improving fraud detection, irregularity reporting and cooperation with investigate authorities.

Recital 14: (14) The programme should therefore further improve the functioning of the Single Market, including the external dimension, protect and empower citizens, consumers and businesses. That should be achieved by developing, implementing and enforcing Union law, offering digital tools and solutions, facilitating market access and public procurement, ensuring resilience, management of emergencies and security threats or crisis, standard setting, and supporting the development of the Union regulatory framework. The programme’s actions should cover the areas of intellectual property rights, company law, anti-money laundering, the protection of Union financial interests, and contract law, and ensure a high level of consumer protection, including protection of passenger rights, and market surveillance, financial literacy, the free movement of capital and financial services, effective and efficient competition enforcement, customs, anti-fraud, effective and efficient enforcement of Union restrictive measures and taxation. The programme should also enhance cooperation between the competent authorities of Member States and the Commission, and relevant Union agencies and bodies, in particular cooperation and increased synergies between various national, regional and local authorities, including national enforcement bodies, as well as cooperation between Member States, the Commission and third countries, including by providing digital solutions to improve information sharing among national a…

Recital 10: (10) Union funding is required to enable the Commission to meet legal obligations of the Union that cannot be delegated to Member States, ensuring obligations under Union law are fulfilled, in particular in the areas of customs, market surveillance, product safety and compliance, including the products sold online, consumer protection, financial services, standard setting, competition policy, the provision of European statistics, taxation and anti-fraud as well as the digital economy.

Recital 15: (15) European statistics are essential, as they underpin the design, monitoring and evaluation of all Union policies and empower all members of society to make informed decisions and to actively participate in the democratic process. Relevant, high-quality, reliable and comparable official European statistics should be produced and disseminated, in a timely manner, to provide valuable insights and address knowledge gaps, allowing citizens, consumers, investors and businesses to benefit fully from the Single Market. Funding should support the production of high-quality European statistics, modernising statistical systems, promoting statistical innovation and integrating digital tools to improve accuracy and speed. In view of its horizontal character, the legal framework for the development, production and dissemination of European statistics established by Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council18 is subject to specific requirements, and in particular those laid down in that Regulation, with regard to respect for statistical principles, as well as the functioning of the European Statistical System and its governance, including the role and tasks assigned to the European Statistical System Committee and to the Commission (Eurostat), and the establishment and implementation of the programming of the statistical activities.

Recital 11: (11) It is therefore appropriate to establish a programme to deepen and enhance the functioning of the Single Market and a strong Customs Union and to protect the financial and economic interests of the Union and the Member States, and strengthen the Union’s strategic autonomy, with a design fostering European added value and flexibility, streamlining and creating synergies, while ensuring a high level of predictability, transparency and accountability, as well as adequate funding safeguards for core policy objectives, legal obligations and mandatory systems, and supporting the horizontal policy mainstreaming priorities including what is set out in the Performance Regulation. In addition, in light of the European Court of Auditor’s findings showing that EU budget flexibility instruments were often activated without adequate analysis or documentation, that their use reduced the visibility of reallocations and that limitations in their designed contributed to early depletion in the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2021-2027, it is critical that the programme flexibility is utilised responsibly, with sound and long-term financial management, transparency and clear prioritisation criteria at the core. The following four programmes should therefore be merged in one single programme: parts of the Single Market Programme, excluding the small and medium-sized enterprises and food and feed strands, the Customs programme, including the Customs Control Equipment Instrument type int…

Recital 12: (12) In this regard, the programme should enable the implementation of the following generic types of actions: (a) digital capacity building and analysis tools, development and operation of centralised and decentralised European electronic systems and digital solutions, implementation tools and data; (b) support to policy, regulatory and enforcement work, for example, through studies, communication, capacity building, impact assessment, evaluation and simplification proposals; (c) collaboration and cooperation between Member States, the Commission, Union agencies, bodies and national, regional and local authorities and with stakeholders, including social partners, the civil society organisations and academia; (d) administrative and operational/technical capacity building, including purchase, maintenance, upgrade of equipment – notably customs control equipment – infrastructure and related costs; (e) human capacity and competency building; (f) joint tools, methods, data and statistics to support policy making and anti-fraud investigations; (g) other actions to achieve the general and specific objectives, such as innovation, testing. Those solutions should be interoperable with national systems.

Recital 12 a (new): (12a) In accordance with the objectives set out in the 2030 Consumer Agenda, which aims to empower consumers for the green and digital transitions while ensuring a high level of consumer protection across the Union, the programme should contribute to strengthening consumer resilience, trust, and participation in a fair and sustainable internal market. In particular, the programme should support actions that enhance consumers’ access to reliable information, promote sustainable consumption patterns, and address vulnerabilities exacerbated by digitalisation.

Recital 13: (13) In light of the growing digitalisation of the economy and society, there is an increasing need for citizens, consumers, investors, economic operators, businesses, and public administrations to have timely, accurate and accessible information, advice and direct support and services concerning the functioning of the Single Market and their rights and obligations under Union law. Furthermore, reinforced cooperation and integration to ensure digitally enabled, seamless implementation, consistent and effective enforcement across the Union and to prevent barriers and limitations hindering the proper functioning of the Single Market, taxation cooperation, tax fraud prevention, anti-fraud reporting, investigations and policies and the Customs Union, as well as to ensure high level of consumer protection, including online, and enforcement of EU citizens’ digital rights, should be enabled. Union authorities and bodies should maintain effective rulemaking, standard setting, as well as implementation and enforcement of Union law in the face of changing circumstances and to ensure enforcement of restrictive measures in the management of Union funds.

Recital 14: (14) The programme should therefore further improve the functioning of the Single Market, including the external dimension, protect and empower citizens, consumers and businesses. That should be achieved by developing, implementing and enforcing Union law, offering digital tools and solutions, facilitating market access and public procurement, ensuring resilience, management of emergencies and security threats or crisis, standard setting, and supporting the development of the Union regulatory framework. The programme’s actions should cover the areas of intellectual property rights, company law, anti-money laundering, the protection of Union financial interests, and contract law, and ensure a high level of consumer protection, including online, and protection of passenger rights, and market surveillance, financial and digital literacy, the free movement of capital and financial services, effective and efficient competition enforcement, customs, anti-fraud, effective and efficient enforcement of Union restrictive measures and taxation. The programme should also enhance cooperation between the competent authorities of Member States, the Commission, and relevant Union agencies and bodies, such as OLAF and EPPO, in particular cooperation and increased synergies between various national, regional and local authorities, including national enforcement bodies, as well as cooperation between all levels of government of Member States, the Commission and third countries, including by pro…

Recital 15: (15) Reliable and comparable European statistics are essential, as they underpin the design, monitoring and evaluation of all Union policies and empower all members of society to make informed decisions and to actively participate in the democratic process. Relevant, high-quality, accurate, and comparable official European statistics should be produced and disseminated, in a timely manner, to provide valuable insights and address knowledge gaps, allowing citizens, consumers, investors and businesses to benefit fully from the Single Market. Funding should support the production of high-quality European statistics, modernising statistical systems, promoting statistical innovation and integrating digital tools to improve accuracy and speed. In view of its horizontal character, the legal framework for the development, production and dissemination of European statistics established by Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council[1] is subject to specific requirements, and in particular those laid down in that Regulation, with regard to respect for statistical principles, as well as the functioning of the European Statistical System and its governance, including the role and tasks assigned to the European Statistical System Committee and to the Commission (Eurostat), and the establishment and implementation of the programming of the statistical activities.

Recital 16: (16) The programme should ensure that the interests of consumers, including the end users of financial services, are represented at the Union level so that developments in the Single Market also respond to their needs and foster consumer and investor trust in the Single Market.

Recital 18: (18) Activities in market surveillance are instrumental in meeting the objectives of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 of the European Parliament and of the Council21 and other Union legal acts requiring the Commission to recognise accreditation bodies and support networks. Such activities should improve the cooperation between Member States and support the harmonisation of ways of working and e-commerce surveillance. Market surveillance activities contribute to protecting competitiveness of Union businesses, consumer safety and facilitate cross-border collaboration and sharing of expertise. Market surveillance ensures that non-food products on the Union market do not endanger Union consumers and workers. It also ensures the protection of other public interests such as environmental protection and climate action, security and fairness in trade. Market surveillance has an important role to play in helping the EU delivering its Green Deal agenda, for example by ensuring that prohibitions and restrictions related to sustainability are properly implemented on imported products. The governance of the Single Market could be improved to address structural problems in the area of standardisation, conformity assessment and market surveillance. The Single Market Strategy proposes to take effective action to increase product compliance by tapping into synergies with capacities of the EU and national customs and market surveillance authorities and establishing an EU Market Surveillance Authority…

Recital 17: (17) The programme aims to foster business, consumer and investor trust in the Single Market and the Customs Union by ensuring regulatory streamlining, efficient processes and a high-level of consumer protection, including the protection of passengers and consumers online, product safety and consumer empowerment and education, thereby enabling consumers to fully benefit from the Single Market and their rights and to contribute to a competitive, innovative, and dynamic Single Market. The programme should promote consumers’ safety and rights, their financial interests and integrity, including online, as well as their legal and economic interests through concrete and effective measures which support, supplement and monitor the policy implemented by the Member States. Moreover, consumers should be empowered and encouraged to make sustainable and informed choices, exercise their rights for repair as set out in Directive 2024/1799, and assistance given to competent authorities in enforcing the provisions under Directive 2005/29/EC. It is necessary to ensure that consumer protection, rights and product safety requirements are effectively implemented, uniformly enforced, and consistently upheld across the Union, thereby contributing to the creation of a level-playing field for consumers, investors and businesses. Consumer organisations at both national and Union-level play a crucial role in promoting the interests of consumers, representing the interests of consumers in policy making…

Recital 19: (19) European standards play an important role in supporting a well-functioning Single Market, fostering harmonisation across the Union and supporting key policy objectives. It is essential to ensure Union interests are represented in international standardisation landscape, while also enabling the participation of all relevant stakeholders. Harmonisation of standards and digital regulation can address the fragmentation in Union rulemaking and enforcement as a barrier to a well-functioning Single Market. The programme should deliver stronger coordination mechanisms, harmonised regulatory standards, and enhanced Union-level oversight.

Recital 18: (18) Activities in market surveillance are instrumental in meeting the objectives of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 of the European Parliament and of the Council21 and other Union legal acts requiring the Commission to recognise accreditation bodies and support networks. Such activities should improve the cooperation between Member States and support the harmonisation of ways of working and e-commerce surveillance. Market surveillance activities contribute to protecting competitiveness of Union businesses, consumer safety and facilitate cross-border collaboration and sharing of expertise. Market surveillance ensures that non-food products produced in or imported to the Union market do not endanger Union consumers and workers. It also ensures the protection of other public interests such as environmental protection and climate action, security and fairness in trade. Market surveillance has an important role to play in helping the EU delivering its Green Deal agenda, for example by ensuring that prohibitions and restrictions related to sustainability are properly implemented on imported products. The governance of the Single Market could be improved to address structural problems in the area of standardisation, conformity assessment and market surveillance. The Single Market Strategy proposes to take effective action to increase product compliance by tapping into synergies with capacities of the EU and national customs and market surveillance authorities and establishing an EU Marke…

Recital 20: (20) TFEU includes a system of rules ensuring that competition is not distorted in the internal market and provides that the Union has exclusive competence in establishing competition rules. The programme should contribute to the Union’s competition policy and the well-functioning of the Single Market, fostering a clean, just, competitive and digital transition of the economy and business environment. Using the right technology and skills to monitor markets, collect, process and analyse information more effectively is crucial for strengthening and speeding up the enforcement of competition rules. Those technologies should modernise competition policy and help to enhance the analysis and assessment of market developments. It is also essential that the programme supports networks, reinforces cooperation with national authorities and courts, strengthens international cooperation, and ensures an outreach to a wider group of stakeholders in communicating and explaining the rights, benefits and obligations of the Union’s competition policy. The programme should also foster cooperation between competition authorities and other sectoral regulators, including in data protection and digital areas, to prevent data-related distortions of competition and ensure a coordinated enforcement consistent with Union level digital market legislation and national competition rules. The programme should contribute to fair competition and a level playing field, including at global level, and empower …

Recital 19: (19) European standards play an important role in supporting a well-functioning Single Market, fostering harmonisation across the Union and supporting key policy objectives. It is essential to ensure Union interests are represented and promoted in international standardisation landscape, while also enabling the participation of all relevant stakeholders. Harmonisation of standards and digital regulation can address the fragmentation in Union rulemaking and enforcement as a barrier to a well-functioning Single Market. The programme should deliver stronger coordination mechanisms, harmonised regulatory standards, and enhanced Union-level oversight.

Recital 22: (22) The development of the Union regulatory framework in the areas of company law and corporate governance, and contract law, is essential to make businesses more efficient and competitive, while providing protection for stakeholders, in particular workers, affected by company operations, and to respond to emerging policy challenges. The support to appropriate evaluation, implementation (including digital development) and enforcement of the relevant acquis, which inform and assist stakeholders, facilitate secure information exchange and ensure legal certainty with regard to the companies in the Single Market. The upcoming European Innovation Act and 28th22 regime for companies will directly contribute to the Union competitiveness. A clear and well-adapted legal framework for the data economy and innovation is necessary including digitalisation and sharing between companies and administrations using the European Business Wallet, the Single Digital Gateway or other digital means for placing products in the Single Market such as the Digital Product Passport. It would enhance legal certainty with regard to contractual and extra contractual obligations, in particular with regard to liability, security, ethics and privacy in the context of advanced and emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence and quantum technologies. .

Recital 19 a (new): (19a) To ensure that European standards reflect the public interest and Union policy objectives, the programme should provide stable and multi-annual funding to the European stakeholder organisations representing consumers, SMEs, environmental interests, and social interests in the standardisation process, as identified in Annex III to Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012. This funding is essential to allow these organisations to maintain the high-level technical expertise necessary to effectively participate in the work of the European and international standardisation organisations.

Recital 23: (23) The Customs Union remains the foundation of the Union and a fundamental enabler and guardian of the competitive Single Market and other Union political priorities, including European economic security. The Customs Union is instrumental in implementing the Union’s commercial policy, in protecting the financial and economic interests of the Union and its Member States as well as ensuring safety and security within the Union. In response to the need to address the challenges, including the necessity to facilitate fair and rules-based international trade in the best interest of consumers and European businesses, the Customs Union and the related economic operators, as well as the national customs authorities face, in light of the evolution of their role and of the business models in which they operate, on 17 May 2023, the Commission put forward a proposal23 for the most ambitious and comprehensive reform of the Customs Union since its establishment in 1968. A more cost-efficient and effective cooperation framework governing the Customs Union is to be established, based on a new partnership among customs authorities, all relevant national authorities and Union bodies and agencies, and between customs and businesses, and by establishing the EU Customs Authority which should coordinate and facilitate operational cooperation between the customs authorities of Member States, as well as develop and manage the EU Customs Data Hub.

Recital 20: (20) The TFEU includes a system of rules ensuring that competition is not distorted in the internal market and provides that the Union has exclusive competence in establishing competition rules. The programme should contribute to the Union’s competition policy and the well-functioning of the Single Market, in particular effectively tackle the significant challenges resulting from the global market developments and the digitalisation, and fostering a clean, just, competitive and digital transition of the economy and business environment. Using the right technology and skills to monitor markets, collect, process and analyse information more effectively is crucial for strengthening and speeding up the enforcement of competition rules and for ensuring their effective and consistent application throughout the Union. Those technologies should modernise competition policy and help to enhance the analysis and assessment of market developments including through the development and deployment of common or interoperable digital tools, secure data-sharing systems and harmonised analytical methodologies. It is also essential that the programme supports networks, reinforces cooperation with national authorities and courts, strengthens international cooperation, and ensures an outreach to a wider group of stakeholders in communicating and explaining the rights, benefits and obligations of the Union’s competition policy. The programme should contribute to fair competition and a level playing…

Recital 24: (24) Union tax policy plays a key role in the seamless functioning of the competitive internal market. It supports consistent tax practices across Member States, fostering a level playing field and minimising barriers to cross-border trade. Union tax policy does not only combat fragmentation and discrimination but also safeguards the financial interests of the Union and its Member States, promoting fair economic growth and encouraging investment within a competitive framework. Tax policy also contributes to the EU’s climate and environmental objectives. Preventing and fighting tax fraud, tax evasion and tax avoidance, including aggressive tax planning and double non-taxation, through enhanced cooperation and exchange of information is crucial for safeguarding those interests, alignment with the Union's wider objectives and maintaining the trust of citizens and businesses in the integrity of the internal market. An efficient functioning of the Single Market also requires simplification of tax systems and digitalisation of public administrations to improve transparency and consistency, thereby promoting a competitive economic environment across Member States. Acknowledging the impact of digitalisation on public administrations, including tax authorities, Union tax policy should leverage those digital opportunities to ensure fair taxation and efficient tax collection while offering a leaner and more efficient framework that reduces compliance burdens.

Recital 22: (22) The development of the Union regulatory framework in the areas of company law and corporate governance, and contract law, is essential to make businesses more efficient and competitive, while providing protection for all relevant stakeholders, in particular workers, affected by company operations, and to respond to emerging policy challenges. The support to appropriate evaluation, implementation (including digital development) and enforcement of the relevant acquis, which inform and assist stakeholders, facilitate secure information exchange and ensure legal certainty with regard to the companies in the Single Market. The upcoming European Innovation Act and 28th[1] regime for companies could directly contribute to the Union competitiveness. A clear and well-adapted legal framework for the data economy and innovation is necessary including digitalisation and information sharing between companies and administrations using the European Business Wallet, the Single Digital Gateway or other digital means for placing products in the Single Market such as the Digital Product Passport that should include relevant data in line with Union law. It would enhance legal certainty with regard to contractual and extra contractual obligations, in particular with regard to liability, security, ethics and privacy in the context of advanced and emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence and quantum technologies.

Recital 25: (25) In line with the established and future legal commitments at Union level, it is crucial to continue developing and operating Union components of digital solutions in the customs, taxation and market surveillance fields. Those common components are essential for establishing a modern and efficient Customs Union and tax systems across the Union, and for enhancing the Union’s competitiveness at global level and ensuring the protection of consumers at Union level.

Recital 23: (23) The Customs Union remains the foundation of the Union and a fundamental enabler and guardian of the competitive Single Market and other Union political priorities, including European economic security. The Customs Union is instrumental in implementing the Union’s commercial policy, in protecting the financial and economic interests of the Union and its Member States as well as ensuring safety and security within the Union. In response to the need to address the challenges, including the necessity to facilitate fair and rules-based international trade in the best interest of consumers, European businesses and competitiveness, the Customs Union and the related economic operators, as well as the national customs authorities face, in light of the evolution of their role and of the business models in which they operate, on 17 May 2023, the Commission put forward a proposal23 for the most ambitious and comprehensive reform of the Customs Union since its establishment in 1968.A more cost-efficient and effective cooperation framework governing the Customs Union is to be established, based on a new partnership among customs authorities, all relevant national authorities and Union bodies and agencies, and between customs and businesses, and by establishing the EU Customs Authority which should coordinate and facilitate operational cooperation between the customs authorities of Member States, as well as develop and manage the EU Customs Data Hub.

Recital 26: (26) The programme should enable the continuation of the Customs programme including customs control equipment support interventions deployed in the 2021-2027 period by the Customs Control Equipment Instrument, and the Fiscalis programme and their predecessors. In that respect, the programme should enable the continuation of supporting the work of the customs and tax authorities not only by ensuring a solid digital customs and tax environment but also by reinforcing expert networks, the sharing of know-how and good practices, as well as by complementing the national efforts for training customs, market surveillance, law enforcement and tax officials and professionals with Union level solutions. In that sense, the programme should support the continued collaboration and cooperation between the national customs authorities as well as between national tax authorities and their cooperation with the Commission, Union bodies and agencies, and with other national authorities, and their digital, administrative, human and operational capacity building (development and operation of electronic systems and digital solutions and tools, equipment, infrastructure, training, innovation, studies, evaluations, etc.). The importance of ensuring adequate and equivalent results of customs controls, – amongst other aspects – calls for the availability and optimal use of relevant and state-of-the-art customs control equipment, which should be facilitated by the programme, to protect the integrity o…

Recital 23 a (new): (23a) Customs authorities are the lead authorities for the control of goods entering the Single Market at the Union’s external borders. Effective customs controls are essential to protect consumers and to prevent unfair competition. In particular, the rise of e-commerce and the immense inflow of non-compliant low value parcels to the Single Market, that distorts competition and endangers consumers, pose significant challenges to customs authorities, the level playing field, health and safety of consumers, and the wider EU economy. The reform of the Union Customs Code aims to equip customs authorities with the tools and abilities needed to tackle these challenges. The Union Customs Code established a new digital infrastructure as the primary tool for ensuring a unified and effective European risk management strategy, through increased coordination and the EU Customs Data Hub. This will require adequate and dedicated resources to ensure a successful transition and a high-level performance at full capacity, and robust cybersecurity and resilience. Resources made available under the programme for cooperation between customs authorities and with market surveillance authorities and for the development of the EU Customs Data Hub should be clearly specified in the annual work programmes.

Recital 28 a (new): (28a) In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this programme through annual or multiannual work programmes, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council1a. The examination procedure should apply for the adoption of implementing acts relating to programmes with substantial implications. / 1a Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 laying down the rules and general principles concerning mechanisms for control by the Member States of the Commission's exercise of implementing powers (OJ L 55, 28.2.2011, p. 13, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2011/182/oj)

Recital 24: (24) Union tax policy plays a key role in the seamless functioning of the competitive internal market. It supports consistent tax practices across Member States, fostering a level playing field and minimising barriers to cross-border trade. Union tax policy does not only combat fragmentation and discrimination but also safeguards the financial interests of the Union and its Member States, promoting fair economic growth and encouraging investment within a competitive framework. Tax policy also contributes to the EU’s climate and environmental objectives. Preventing and fighting tax fraud, VAT fraud, tax evasion, tax avoidance and harmful tax practices, including aggressive tax planning and double non-taxation, through enhanced cooperation and exchange of information is crucial for safeguarding those interests, alignment with the Union's wider objectives and maintaining the trust of citizens and businesses in the integrity of the internal market. At a time when both national and EU budgets are under pressure due to global instability and rising costs, protecting national and the Union’s financial interest and combatting public revenue losses due to tax and customs fraud should remain a key policy priority. An efficient functioning of the Single Market also requires simplification of tax systems and digitalisation of public administrations to improve transparency and consistency, thereby promoting a competitive economic environment across Member States. The functioning of Union …

Recital 29: (29) Europe must protect its security interest, including economic, financial, technological and digital, against suppliers which could pose a security or sovereignty risk to the Union, through the potential interference from third countries. It is therefore necessary to reduce the risk of one-sided or persisting dependency on high-risk suppliers in the internal market, including in the ICT supply chain, as they could have serious potential negative impacts on security for consumers, users and companies across the Union and the Union’s critical infrastructure in terms of the integrity of data and services as well as the availability of service. Protective restrictions or actions should be based on a proportionate risk assessment and associated mitigation measures as defined in the Union policies and laws. In this context the programme should contribute to reinforcing the security of digital solutions in the customs, market surveillance, tax and financial areas developed at national and Union levels.

Recital 25: (25) In line with the established and future legal commitments at Union level, it is crucial to continue developing and operating Union components of digital solutions in the customs, taxation and market surveillance fields, including the EU Customs Data Hub. Those common components are essential for establishing a modern and efficient Customs Union and tax systems, for enhancing cooperation between national authorities and Union institutions, and for strengthening the preparedness, resilience and economic security of the Single Market. They contribute to enhancing the Union’s competitiveness at global level, supporting European businesses and ensuring the protection of consumers at Union level.

Recital 31: (31) Article 325 TFEU requires the Union and the Member States to counter fraud, corruption and any other illegal activities affecting the financial interests of the Union. The Union should support activities in those fields. In accordance with Council Regulation (EC) No 515/9725 and Council Decision 2009/917/JHA26 the Union is to support mutual assistance between the administrative authorities of the Member States and cooperation between the latter and the Commission, and Union bodies and agencies, including the EPPO, where appropriate, in respect of those Member States participating in enhanced cooperation pursuant to Council Regulation (EU) 2017/1939, to ensure the correct application of the law on customs, tax and agricultural matters. That support covers not only anti-fraud activities in relation to combating customs fraud and tax fraud, but also in relation to illicit trade in the fields of safety and security, health and the protection of the environment and is provided to a number of operational activities. Those include the Anti-Fraud Information System (AFIS), an information technology platform which consists of a set of applications operated under a common information system, managed by the Commission. That common information system comprising AFIS and IMS requires stable and predictable financing over the years in order to ensure its sustainability, which should be made available under the programme, given the Commission’s legal obligations in that respect and the…

Recital 26: (26) The programme should enable the continuation of the Customs programme including customs control equipment support interventions deployed in the 2021-2027 period by the Customs Control Equipment Instrument, and the Fiscalis programme and their predecessors. The content and scope of the Fiscalis component should be maintained, given its proven success in supporting national tax cooperation and digital infrastructure. In that respect, the programme should enable the continuation of supporting the work of the customs and tax authorities not only by ensuring a solid digital customs and tax environment but also by reinforcing expert networks, the sharing of know-how and good practices, as well as by complementing the national efforts for training customs, market surveillance, law enforcement and tax officials and professionals with Union level solutions. In that sense, the programme should support the continued collaboration and cooperation between the national customs authorities as well as between national tax authorities and their cooperation with the Commission, Union bodies and agencies, and with other national authorities, and their digital, administrative, human and operational capacity building (development and operation of electronic systems and digital solutions and tools, equipment, infrastructure, training, innovation, studies, evaluations, etc.). The importance of ensuring adequate and equivalent results of customs controls, – amongst other aspects – calls for the…

Recital 33: (33) In line with the Commission’s commitment to ensure the coherence and simplification of funding programmes, set out in its Communication of 11 February 2025 on ‘The road to the next multiannual financial framework’28 , resources should be shared with other Union funding instruments if the actions envisaged under the programme pursue objectives that are common to various funding instruments, excluding double financing.

Recital 28: (28) In accordance with Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509, the work programmes and the call documents are the appropriate place to set out more technical and policy implementation details for the budget across the set of policies supported by the programme, including specific eligibility and award criteria depending on the instrument of budget implementation, whether grant or procurement, and the specific policy objectives pursued. In order to ensure transparency and facilitate monitoring and evaluation, the work programmes should clearly demonstrate Union added value, and identify prioritisation choices, expected trajectories and indicative milestones for implementation. In accordance with Article 136 of the Financial Regulation, security requirements should be applied. Restrictions to high-risk suppliers should apply according to the relevant applicable provisions.

Recital 28 a (new): (28a) The power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 of the TFEU should be delegated to the Commission in respect of supplementing this Regulation by adopting work programmes. It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement on Better Law-Making of 13 April 2016. In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States' experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts.

Recital 29: (29) Europe must protect its security interest, including economic, financial, technological and digital, against suppliers which could pose a security or sovereignty risk to the Union, through the potential interference from third countries. It is therefore necessary that, for security reasons and in accordance with Union law, eligibility restrictions apply to high-risk suppliers, in order to reduce the risk of one-sided or persisting dependency on high-risk suppliers in the internal market, including in the ICT supply chain, as they could have serious potential negative impacts on security for consumers, users and companies across the Union and the Union’s critical infrastructure in terms of the integrity of data and services as well as the availability of service. This restriction should be based on a proportionate risk assessment and associated mitigation measures as defined in the Union policies and laws. In this context, the programme should contribute to reinforcing the security of customs control and scanning equipment, and digital solutions in the customs, market surveillance, tax and financial areas developed at national and Union levels.

Recital 31: (31) Article 325 TFEU requires the Union and the Member States to counter fraud, corruption and any other illegal activities affecting the financial interests of the Union. The Union should support activities in those fields. In accordance with Council Regulation (EC) No 515/97[1] and Council Decision 2009/917/JHA[2] the Union is to support mutual assistance between the administrative authorities of the Member States and cooperation between the latter and the Commission, and Union bodies and agencies, including the EPPO, where appropriate, in respect of those Member States participating in enhanced cooperation pursuant to Council Regulation (EU) 2017/1939, to ensure the correct application of the law on customs, tax and agricultural matters. That support covers not only anti-fraud activities in relation to combating customs fraud and tax fraud, but also in relation to illicit trade in the fields of safety and security, health and the protection of the environment and is provided to a number of operational activities. Those include the Anti-Fraud Information System (AFIS), an information technology platform which consists of a set of applications operated under a common information system, managed by the Commission, aimed to exchange fraud-related information between the competent national and EU administrations in a timely and secure manner and to store and analyse relevant data. That common information system comprising AFIS and IMS, dedicated to report to the Commission irr…

Recital 32: (32) Third countries which are members of the European Economic Area (‘EEA’) may participate in the programme in the framework of the cooperation established under the Agreement on the EEA[1], which provides for the association to the programmes on the basis of a decision adopted under that Agreement. Third countries may also participate on the basis of other legal instruments. Third countries should be required to grant the necessary rights and access required for the authorising officer responsible, OLAF and ECA to comprehensively exercise their respective competences. To ensure a fair balance of overall costs, the financial contributions of all third countries participating in the programme will be set out in the association agreements for participation and establish both an operational contribution and a participation fee. The financial contributions should be calculated following a GDP-based approach, which ensures financial contributions are fair, proportionate and predictable, while reflecting each country’s income level as well as its geographical and political proximity to the Union.

Recital 33: (33) In line with the Commission’s commitment to ensure the coherence and simplification of funding programmes, as set out in its Communication of 11 February 2025 on ‘The road to the next multiannual financial framework’[1], resources should be shared with other Union funding instruments if the actions envisaged under the programme pursue objectives that are common to various funding instruments, excluding double financing.

Recital 33 a (new): (33a) Actions under the programme should ensure coherence in the use of the Union’s resources supporting tax policy and its proper implementation in line with the Commission's legal obligations in the Union tax acquis. Through the development, continued operation and modernisation of the key digital infrastructures for taxation, enhanced cooperation and capacity building, the programme should further improve the capabilities of the Union to deliver a fair and efficient tax system. Such support should be linked to measurable improvements in tax compliance, reductions in VAT gaps and strengthened cross-border fraud detection capacity. The allocation of IT funding should follow transparent and risk-based criteria.

Recital 33 b (new): (33b) The complementarity between the programme and other Union instruments should not come at the expense of the traceability of expenditure or of the prerogatives of the budgetary authority. The contribution of the programme to jointly financed operations should remain explicitly identifiable at all stages of the budgetary cycle and should be duly reflected in the Programme Performance Statement.

Recital 34: (34) Since the objectives of this Regulation, namely to deepen and enhance the well-functioning of a competitive Single Market and a strong Customs Union, and to protect the financial and economic interests, security and the safety of the Union and its Member States, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States alone but can rather, by reason of legal obligation, scale and effects of the action, be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union. In accordance with the principle of proportionality as set out in that Article, this Regulation does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives.

Article 1 – paragraph 1: This Regulation establishes the Single Market and Customs Programme (the ‘programme’) and lays down the objectives of the programme, its budget for the period from 1 January 2028 to 31 December 2034, the forms of Union funding and the rules for providing such funding. The duration of the programme is aligned to the duration of the MFF.

Recital 37 a (new): (37a) It is essential that the provisions of this Regulation as well as its governance arrangements are conducive to proper decision-making by the budgetary authority and to appropriate parliamentary oversight. In particular, in line with Article 47(2) of the Financial Regulation, any specification of the programme’s internal architecture should be duly reflected in the budget nomenclature through the introduction of corresponding chapters and budget lines.

Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2: (2) ‘customs authorities’ means customs authorities as defined in Article 5, point (1), of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council29 or the equivalent bodies in the third countries participating in the programme.

Recital 37 b (new): (37b) The implications of this Regulation for the Union budget have been assessed1a pursuant to Article 310(4) of the TFEU. Sufficient financial and human resources should be provided for its implementation, while considering the impact of the financing on other Union programmes or policies and ensuring its compatibility with the multiannual financial framework, the system of own resources and the corresponding interinstitutional agreement, as well as with the budgetary principles laid down in Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509 of the European Parliament and of the Council1b. / 1a Pro memoria: Budgetary assessment of the European Parliament’s Committee on Budgets of 25 June 2026 on the proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the Single Market and Customs Programme for the period 2028-2034 and repealing Regulations (EU) 2021/444, (EU) 2021/690, (EU) 2021/785, (EU) 2021/847 and (EU) 2021/1077 (COM(2025)0590) / 1b Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 September 2024 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union (OJ L, 2024/2509, 26.9.2024, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/2509/oj)

Article 3 – paragraph 1: 1. The general objectives of the programme are to deepen and enhance the functioning of the Single Market and the Customs Union, to protect and empower citizens, consumers and businesses, to foster competitiveness, a level playing field and fair competition in the Union, support safety, security, and protect the financial and economic interests of the Union and its Member States, with a design fostering flexibility, simplification and synergies, while ensuring a high level of predictability, transparency and accountability, and supporting the Union’s horizontal policy mainstreaming priorities.

Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2: (2) ‘customs authorities’ means customs authorities as defined in Article 5, point (1), of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council29 or the equivalent bodies in the third countries participating in the programme;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point a: (a) to promote the interests of consumers and ensuring a high level of consumer protection and product safety, empower and educate consumers, investors, civil society representatives, and businesses by providing information, guidance and advice and support financial and digital literacy, enabling them to make informed decisions, and ensure that all consumers have access to efficient redress mechanisms, can fully exercise their consumer rights and reap the full benefits of the Single Market, and to support representative organisations in their participative role;

Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 8: (8) ‘market surveillance’ means market surveillance as defined in Article 3, point (3), of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020;

Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 9: (9) ‘market surveillance authority’ means market surveillance authority as defined in Article 3, point (4), of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020;

Article 3 – paragraph 1: 1. The general objectives of the programme are to deepen and enhance the functioning of the Single Market and the Customs Union, to protect and empower citizens, consumers and businesses by enforcing Union law, promoting standard setting, to foster competitiveness, sustainable growth and fair competition in the Union, ensure safety, security, and protect the financial and economic interests of the Union, its Member States and its citizens, with a design fostering flexibility, simplification and synergies, while ensuring a high level of predictability, transparency and accountability, supporting the Union’s horizontal policy mainstreaming priorities and placing EU added value at its core.

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point -a a (new): (-aa) to contribute to the completion of and improve the functioning of the Single Market and promote a competitive, fair and sustainable economy by fostering legal certainty and a level playing field, facilitating market access, reducing fragmentation and contributing to remove and prevent unjustified barriers and unnecessary administrative burden and to support the uniform and effective implementation and enforcement of Union law, including digital rules, relating to the Single Market, inter alia through strengthened market surveillance to ensure a high level of consumer protection and that only safe and compliant products, including products sold online, are made available in the Union market;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point -a b: (-ab) to support the Customs Union, national customs authorities and the EU Customs Authority working together and acting as one in achieving their mission and contributing to Europe’s economic security; to ensure effective development and management of the EU Customs Data Hub; to support the detection and control capabilities of customs authorities, particularly in light of the increase of distance sales and e-commerce, and to ensure effective and coordinated customs controls and market surveillance, ensuring a high level of consumer protection, product conformity and safety;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point a: (a) to empower consumers, investors, economic operators, civil society representatives, businesses and authorities at all levels of government to fully and easily access the opportunities of the Single Market and make informed decisions, including by providing information, guidance, services and advice, and supporting financial and digital literacy; to promote the interests of consumers and ensure a high level of consumer protection, product safety, fairness and trust in the internal market; to support the effective implementation and uniform enforcement of consumer protection rules in the Union, and ensure that all consumers, including the most vulnerable, have full access to efficient redress mechanisms and adequate information on markets and consumers rights and to support representative organisations in their participative role; to combat unfair commercial practices and to promote sustainable consumption;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point b: deleted

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point b a (new): (ba) to improve the functioning of the Single Market and promote competitiveness, social fairness and sustainable growth, by facilitating the removal of unjustified barriers and reduce fragmentation, support the implementation end enforcement of Union law in the areas of the Single Market, including by supporting effective and strengthened market surveillance throughout the Union, with a view to ensuring that only safe and compliant products offering a high level of protection of consumers and other end-users are made available on the Union market, and fostering legal certainty, a level playing field and fair governance of the Single Market;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point c: (c) to facilitate harmonised standard-setting and reinforce the development of European and international standards, including high-quality international financial and non-financial reporting and auditing standards; to support business compliance with Union regulations; to enable the inclusive and balanced participation of all relevant stakeholders in setting up standards; to ensure the effective design, uniform interpretation and implementation as well as the enforcement of Union law and monitoring of market fragmentation risks, also in relation with the verification of the conformity with the EU acquis by acceding countries, candidate countries and potential candidates;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point c: (c) to facilitate harmonised standard-setting and reinforce the development of European and international standards, to enable the participation of all relevant stakeholders in setting up standards, to ensure the effective design, uniform interpretation and implementation as well as the enforcement of Union law and monitoring of market fragmentation risks, also in relation with the verification of the conformity with the EU acquis by acceding countries, candidate countries and potential candidates;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point e: (e) to protect the Union’s and its Member States’ economic, financial and other interests by preventing and combating national and cross-border fraud including tax and customs fraud, corruption and other illegal activities, including money laundering or any types of conflict of interest, risks related to expenditure, revenue and assets, as well as reputational risks, by supporting the functioning of the EU anti-fraud architecture and Member States’ technical and operational investigation capacities, including the development of digital, data-driven and innovative anti-fraud analytical tools, and their digital interoperability, and to support cooperation activities, including for reporting irregularities, information exchange, and investigations between Member States, and between Member States and the Commission, and Union bodies and agencies;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point d: (d) to support the Customs Union, customs authorities and the EU Customs Authority working together and acting as one in achieving their mission and contributing to Europe’s economic security, to ensure effective and coordinated customs controls and market surveillance, and a high level of consumer protection, product conformity and safety;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point e a (new): (ea) to support a fair and efficient tax system in the Union through tax policy and the proper implementation of Union law on taxation, by strengthening cooperation, information exchange and the interoperability of Union and national taxation systems through digitalisation and improved administrative capacity of authorities; to improve the taxation systems and tax collection with a view to deliver fair taxation outcomes for citizens and business, enhance Europe’s competitiveness, and protect the Union’s and its Members States’ financial and economic interests from tax fraud in particular VAT fraud, tax evasion, and tax avoidance and profit shifting;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point e: (e) to protect the Union’s and its Member States’ economic, financial and other interests from fraud, corruption and other illegal activities, including risks related to expenditure, revenue and assets, as well as reputational risks, support Member States’ technical and operational investigation capacities, cooperation and activities, including for reporting irregularities, facilitate information exchange, and investigations between Member States, and between Member States and the Commission, and Union bodies and agencies, to support the prevention, detection and reduction of tax and customs fraud and other illegal activities;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point f: deleted;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point e a (new): (ea) to support tax policy and the implementation of Union law relating to taxation, and to improve the taxation systems and tax collection with a view to enhancing Europe’s competitiveness, and protecting the Union’s and its Members States’ financial and economic interests from tax fraud, tax evasion and tax avoidance, and to improve tax collection;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point g: (g) to provide high-quality, reliable relevant and comparable official European statistics in a timely and impartial manner and in accordance with the quality criteria laid down in Article 12(1) of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009, as set out in the Annex to this Regulation;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point f: deleted

Article 3 – paragraph 2 a (new): 2a. The programme has the following horizontal objectives: / (a) to foster cooperation and facilitate exchange of information among national authorities, and between Member States national authorities, the Commission and other Union bodies and agencies in all programme areas, including the preparedness and the economic security of the Single Market, and its response to crises; / (b) to design, deploy, implement, run, maintain and support Union-level digital solutions and support the connection of IT systems and their interoperability, enabling in particular the exchange of data necessary for authorities to fulfil their obligations and to avoid duplicate reporting requirements; to ensure Union sovereignty including by promoting and developing digital services and tools, including based on open source and user-friendliness; / (c) boost the human, operational, technical, and administrative capacities of, and where relevant supporting mutual assistance between, national authorities, including customs, law enforcement, consumer protection, market surveillance, administrative and tax authorities, among other means through the use of digital implementation tools, human capacity building, skills development, training activities and technical equipment; / (d) to improve the understanding of the Single Market and its challenges by supporting data collection and acquisition activities, research, analyses and improve evidence-based and digital-ready policy making as well as mutualising p…

Article 3 – paragraph 2 a (new): 2a. The programme has the following horizontal objectives: / (a) to foster cooperation among Member States national authorities, and between Member States national authorities, the Commission and other Union bodies and agencies in all programme areas, including / (i) the preparedness and the economic security of the Single Market, and its response to crises; / (ii) designing, deploying, implementing, running, maintaining and supporingt the common components of Union-level digital solutions and support the connection to them; and / (iii) boosting the operational, technical, and administrative capacities of, and where relevant supporting mutual assistance between, national authorities, including customs, law enforcement, consumer protection, market surveillance and tax authorities; / (b) to improve evidence-based and digital-ready policymaking, and the use of digital implementation tools, as well as mutualising public data, to support the specific objectives set out in points (a) to (e);

Article 3 – paragraph 3: 3. The programme shall support the implementation of Union-level legal obligations relating to Single Market resilience and implementation tools, market surveillance, product conformity, standards, public procurement, intellectual property rights, competition policy, financial services policy, anti-money laundering, Union restrictive measures, company and corporate governance law, consumer policy, European statistics, customs legislation, taxation, and anti-fraud, as well as other actions pursuing the general and specific objectives referred to in paragraphs 1, 2 and 2a.

Article 4 – paragraph 1 a (new): 1a. Within the amount referred to in paragraph 1 the following indicative amounts shall be allocated to the following objectives: / (a) EUR 1 844 901 to the objective referred to in Article 3(2), points (a), (ba) and (c); / (b) EUR 2 721 700 to the objective referred to in Article 3(2), point (d) / (c) EUR 362 721 to the objective referred to in Article 3(2), point (e); / (d) EUR 475 402 to the objective referred to in Article 3(2), point (ea); / (e) EUR 833 448 to the objective referred to in Article 3(2), point (g);

Article 4 – paragraph 1: 1. The programme envelope for the implementation of Regulation for the period 2028-2034 shall be EUR 6 871 148 000 in current prices (EUR 6 100 000 000 in 2025 prices);

Article 4 – paragraph 1 b (new): 1b. In order to respond to unforeseen situations or to new developments and needs, the Commission may, within the annual budgetary procedure, deviate from the amounts referred to in paragraph 11a up to a maximum of 5 %. The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 11a to amend the indicative amounts set out in paragraph 1a if it proves necessary to exceed them.

Article 4 – paragraph 1 a (new): 1a. Within the amount referred to in paragraph 1 and taking into account the general and horizontal objectives as referred to in Article 3(1) and Article 3(2a), the following indicative amounts shall be allocated as follows: / (a) EUR 2 032 053 215 to the objective referred to in Article 3(2), points (a), (-aa) and (c); / (b) EUR 2 997 894 798 to the objective referred to in Article 3(2), point (-ab); / (c) EUR 399 529 485 to the objective referred to in Article 3(2), point (e); / (d) EUR 523 645 215 to the objective referred to in Article 3(2), point (ea); / (e) EUR 918 025 287 to the objective referred to in Article 3(2), point (g);

Article 4 – paragraph 1 c (new): 1c. The additional financial resources in Article 5 shall be implemented in accordance with the indicative distribution set out in paragraph 1a, on a pro-rata basis;

Article 4 – paragraph 4: 4. The financial envelope referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article and the amounts of additional resources referred to in Article 5 may also be used for technical and administrative assistance for the implementation of the programme, such as preparatory, monitoring, control, audit and evaluation activities, corporate information technology systems and platforms, information, communication and visibility activities, including corporate communication necessary for programme awareness and beneficiary information on the political priorities of the Union, and all other technical and administrative assistance or staff-related expenses incurred by the Commission for the management of the programme. In order to ensure maximum availability of the programme to finance actions covered by the objectives of the programme, the total costs of administrative and technical support shall not exceed 5 % of the value of the financial envelope referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article.

Article 4 – paragraph 4: 4. The financial envelope referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article and the amounts of additional resources referred to in Article 5 may also be used for technical and administrative assistance for the implementation of the programme, such as preparatory, monitoring, control, audit and evaluation activities, corporate information technology systems and platforms, information, communication and visibility activities, including corporate communication on the political priorities of the Union, and all other technical and administrative assistance or staff-related expenses incurred by the Commission for the management of the programme. In order to ensure maximum availability of the programme to finance actions covered by the objectives of the programme, the total costs of administrative and technical support shall not exceed 5 % of the value of the financial envelope referred to in paragraph 1.

Article 5 – paragraph 1 a (new): 1a. The allocation and implementation of the external assigned revenue as referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article shall be monitored and the Commission shall publish, alongside each annual work programme, a comprehensive overview of all external assigned revenues expected to be mobilised, their origin and their allocated use.

Article 6 – paragraph 1: 1. The programme shall be implemented in synergy with other Union programmes. An action that has received a Union contribution from another programme may also receive a contribution under this programme. The rules of the relevant Union programme shall apply to the corresponding contribution, or a single set of rules may be applied to all contributions and a single legal commitment may be concluded. If the Union contribution is based on eligible cost, the cumulative support from the Union budget shall not exceed the total eligible costs of the action and may be calculated on a pro-rata basis in accordance with the documents setting out the conditions for support. The Commission shall address synergies between the programme and other Union programmes in the Programme Performance Statement set out in Article 41 (3) (h) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509 and in relevant programming and reporting documents.

Article 7 – title: Participation of third countries in the programme

Article 9 – paragraph 2 – point b: (b) entities established in a third country associated to the Programme;

Article 7 – paragraph 1 – introductory part: 1. The programme may be opened to the participation of the following third countries through full or partial participation, in accordance with the objectives laid down in Article 3 and in accordance with the relevant international agreements or any decisions adopted under the framework of those agreements and applicable to:

Article 9 – paragraph 2 – point d: (d) other entities established in a country which is not associated to the programme, as listed in the work programme, where the funding of such entities is essential for implementing the action and contributes to the objectives laid down in Article.

Article 7 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 – point e: (e) ensure the protection of security, defence and public order interests and, where relevant, the strategic autonomy of the Union and its Member States.

Article 9 – paragraph 6 a (new): 6a. For actions regarding European statistics, the following legal entities shall be eligible: / (a) bodies operating in the field of statistics other than the national statistical institutes and other national authorities as referred to in Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009, for actions supporting collaborative networks, as referred to in Article 15 of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009; / (b) non-profit making entities which are independent of industry, commercial and business or other conflicting interests, and have as their primary objectives and activities the promotion and support of the implementation of the European statistics Code of Practice referred to in Article 11 of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 or the implementation of new methods of production of European statistics aiming to achieve efficiency gains and quality improvements at Union level.

Article 7 – paragraph 2 a (new): 2a. For funding provided in the context of customs control equipment, Member States funding needs shall be prioritised and third countries, as referred to in paragraph 1, shall only benefit in the absence of priority funding needs among Member States.

Article 10 – paragraph 1 – point 1: (1) for actions in the area of market surveillance, the market surveillance authorities of the Member States as referred to in Article 10 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020, as well as the EU Market Surveillance Authority;

Article 8 – paragraph 3: 3. Where Union funding is provided in the form of a grant, funding it shall be provided in the form of actual eligible cost reimbursement or, where necessary under simplified cost options, in accordance with Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509.

Article 10 – paragraph 1 – point 8: (8) for actions regarding customs or taxation, customs or tax authorities of Member States, and EU Customs Authority, and customs or tax authorities of third countries participating in the programme, provided that the conditions set out in Article 7 of this Regulation are met.

Article 8 a (new): Article 8a / Co-financing rate / 1. The co-financing rate for grants awarded under the programme, where provided in the form of actual eligible cost reimbursement, shall not exceed 95% of the eligible costs. / 2. Any funding in excess of the ceiling set out in paragraph 1 of this Article, up to 100% of the eligible costs, shall only be granted in exceptional and duly justified cases, which shall be defined in the work programmes referred to in Article 11.

Article 10 – paragraph 1 – point 8 a (new): (8a) for actions regarding the protection of the financial interests of the Union, including preventing and combatting fraud, corruption and any other illegal activities, the administrative, law enforcement, customs, tax or other competent public authorities, of Members States or in third countries participating in the programme, provided that the conditions set out in Article 7 of this Regulation are met;

Article 9 – paragraph 2 – point b: (b) entities established in a third country participating in the programme;

Article 11 – paragraph 1 a (new): Tthe work programmes shall be adopted by the Commission by means of implementing acts. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure as referred to in Article 11b (3).

Article 9 – paragraph 2 – point d: (d) other entities established in a country which is not participating in the programme, as listed in the work programme, where the funding of such entities is essential for implementing the action and contributes to the objectives laid down in Article 3.

Article 11 – paragraph 1 b (new): The work programmes shall aim to achieve the objectives set out in Article 3. They shall set out in detail: / (a) for each action, the objectives pursued and the expected results, in accordance with the objectives set out in Article 3; / (b) the amount allocated to each action and, where relevant, the total amount for all actions; / (c) the method of implementation and an indicative implementation timetable; / (d) the total amount of additional resources referred to in Article 5, and the distribution of those additional resources allocated to the objectives of the programme referred to in Article 3.

Article 9 – paragraph 3: 3. In addition to Article 168(2) and (3) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509, the participating third countries referred to in Article 7(1) of this Regulation may, where relevant, participate in, and benefit from, any of the procurement mechanisms set out in Article 168(2) and (3) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509. Rules applicable to Member States shall be applied, mutatis mutandis, to participating third countries.

Article 11 – paragraph 1 c (new): Priorities set out in Annex to this Regulation implementing the specific objectives referred to in point (g) of Article 3(2) of this Regulation shall be implemented in accordance with Articles 13, 14 and 17 of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009.

Article 9 – paragraph 4: 4. In accordance with Article 136 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509, award procedures affecting security or public order, in particular concerning strategic assets and interests of the Union or its Member States, including the protection of the integrity of digital infrastructure, communication and information systems, and related supply chains, shall be restricted and eligibility restrictions shall high-risk suppliers in line with EU law, for security reasons. / Eligibility criteria shall, in particular, for award procedures relating to customs control and scanning equipment, take into account the need for safety, data security, digital sovereignty and of any unintended disclosure of EU data to third countries. In this respect, Union funding awarded under this programme may only be used for the procurement of customs control and scanning equipment from suppliers that are legally established in the Union and not that are not controlled, directly or indirectly by a third-country entity. / By way of derogation from the second subparagraph, procurement from a supplier which is established in the Union but is controlled, directly or indirectly, by a third-country entity shall be eligible if this third-country entity has been subject to screening within the meaning of Regulation (EU) 2019/452 and, where necessary, to appropriate mitigation measures.

Article 11 – paragraph 1 d (new): The Commission shall ensure that stakeholders are consulted in the development of the work programmes.

Article 9 – paragraph 6 a (new): 6a. For actions regarding European statistics, the following legal entities shall be eligible: / (a) national statistical institutes and other national authorities as referred to in Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009; / (b) for actions supporting collaborative networks, as referred to in Article 15 of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009, bodies operating in the field of statistics other than the authorities referred to in point (a) of this paragraph. / (c) non-profit making entities which are independent of industry, commercial and business or other conflicting interests, and have as their primary objectives and activities the promotion and support of the implementation of the European statistics Code of Practice referred to in Article 11 of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 or the implementation of new methods of production of European statistics aiming to achieve efficiency gains and quality improvements at Union level.

Article 11 a (new): Article 11a / Exercise of the delegation / 1. The power to adopt delegated acts is conferred on the Commission subject to the conditions laid down in this Article. / 2. The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in Article 4(1b) shall be conferred on the Commission until 31 December 2034. The Commission shall draw up a report in respect of the delegation of power not later than nine months before that date. The delegation of power shall be tacitly extended for periods of an identical duration, unless the European Parliament or the Council opposes such extension not later than three months before the end of each period. / 3. The delegation of power referred to in Article 4(1b) may be revoked at any time by the European Parliament or by the Council. A decision to revoke shall put an end to the delegation of power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the validity of any delegated acts already in force. / 4. Before adopting a delegated act, the Commission shall consult experts designated by each Member State in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making. / 5. As soon as it adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to the European Parliament and to the Council. / 6. A delegated act adopted pursuant to Article 4(1b) s…

Article 9 – paragraph 6 b (new): 6b. Eligibility criteria shall include the need for accountability and transparency of the allocation of Union funding, enabling monitoring and oversight, and preventing fraud.

Article 11 b (new): Article 11b / Committee procedure / 1. The Commission shall be assisted by a committee. That committee shall be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011. / 2. The committee shall, where appropriate, convene in configurations reflecting the specific objectives of the programme. / 3. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.

Article 9 – paragraph 7: 7. The work programme adopted in accordance with Article 11 may further specify the eligibility criteria set out in this Regulation or set additional eligibility criteria for specific actions.

Article 13 – paragraph 1: 1. This Regulation shall not affect the continuation or modification of the actions carried out, under Regulations (EU) 2021/444, (EU) 2021/690, (EU) 2021/785, (EU) 2021/847 and (EU) 2021/1077, which shall continue to apply to those actions, until their closure.

Article 10 – paragraph 1 – point 1: (1) for actions in the area of market surveillance, including online, the market surveillance authorities of the Member States as referred to in Article 10 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020, as well as for actions to further coordinate cooperation between the Commission and national market surveillance;

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Article 10 – paragraph 1 – point 8: (8) for actions regarding customs or taxation, customs or tax authorities of Member States, and EU Customs Authority, and customs or tax authorities of third countries participating in the programme, provided that the conditions set out in Article 7 are met;

The Single Market is at the heart of the European project. It is the engine of our economies, the springboard to our businesses and safe home for European consumers. As we now enter a new financial cycle, the Single Market is under pressure. In addition to persistent challenges, including inter alia regularity fragmentation, unjustified internal barriers, limitations in enforcement, our internal market is also faced with unprecedented challenges in a volatile geopolitical situation. These include an intensified global competition, the weaponization of dependencies, the rise of digital markets, sharp inflows of non-compliant and illegal goods, and mounting threats to the Union’s financial interests, including by fraud and illegal activities.

Article 10 – paragraph 1 – point 8 a (new): (8a) for actions regarding the protection of the financial interests of the Union, including preventing and combatting fraud, corruption and any other illegal activities, the administrative, law enforcement, customs, tax or other competent public authorities, of Members States or in third countries participating in the programme, provided that the conditions set out in Article 7 are met;

Article 11 – paragraph 1: 1. The programme shall be implemented by annual work programmes as referred to in Article 110 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509.

Article 11 – paragraph 1 a (new): 1a. The Commission shall adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 11c to supplement this Regulation by adopting the work programmes.

Article 11 – paragraph 1 b (new): 1b. The work programmes shall implement the objectives set out in Article 3. They shall for each action set out in detail the total amount of additional resources referred to in Article 5, and the distribution of those additional resources allocated to the objectives of the programme referred to in Article 3.

Article 11 – paragraph 1 c (new): 1c. Actions set out in the Annex to this Regulation implementing the specific objectives referred to in point (g) of Article 3(2) of this Regulation shall be implemented in accordance with Articles 13, 14 and 17 of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009.

Article 11 – paragraph 1 d (new): 1d. The Commission shall ensure that stakeholders are consulted in the development of the work programmes.

Article 11 a (new): Article 11a / Monitoring and reporting / 1. Without prejudice to the Performance Regulation, the Commission may adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 11c to supplement this Regulation by setting out performance indicators to be used, where relevant, in addition to or instead of the indicators set out in Annex I to the Performance Regulation for the purpose of monitoring the implementation of the programme. Such performance indicators shall be used in the assessments and evaluations undertaken by the Commission in accordance with Articles [9 and 10 of the Performance Regulation];

Article 11 b (new): Article11b / Exercise of the delegation / 1. The power to adopt delegated acts is conferred on the Commission subject to the conditions laid down in this Article. / 2. The power to adopt delegated acts shall be conferred on the Commission until 31 December 2034. The Commission shall draw up a report in respect of the delegation of power not later than nine months before that date. The delegation of power shall be tacitly extended for periods of an identical duration, unless the European Parliament or the Council opposes such extension not later than three months before the end of each period. / 3. The delegation of power may be revoked at any time by the European Parliament or by the Council. A decision to revoke shall put an end to the delegation of power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the validity of any delegated acts already in force. / 4. Before adopting a delegated act, the Commission shall consult experts designated by each Member State in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making. / 5. As soon as it adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to the European Parliament and to the Council. / 6. A delegated act adopted shall enter into force only if no objection has been expressed either by the European …

Article 13 – paragraph 1: 1. This Regulation shall not affect the continuation or modification of the actions carried out under Regulations (EU) 2021/444, (EU) 2021/690, (EU) 2021/785, (EU) 2021/847 and (EU) 2021/1077, which shall continue to apply to those actions, until their closure.

The Single Market is at the heart of the European project. It is the engine of our economies, the springboard to our businesses and safe home for European consumers. As we enter a new financial cycle, the Single Market is under pressure. In addition to persistent challenges, including inter alia regularity fragmentation, unjustified internal barriers, limitations in enforcement, the internal market is also faced with unprecedented challenges in a volatile geopolitical situation. These include an intensified global competition, a weaponization of dependencies, the rise of digital markets, sharp inflows of non-compliant and illegal goods, and mounting threats to the Union’s financial interests, including by fraud and illegal activities.

The Single Market is our best anchor for stability, driver for prosperity and shield to counter external pressure. However, to achieve its full potential and secure the integrity of our internal market, protecting the interests of our economies, business and citizens, we need to build on its strengths and reduce its weaknesses. A collective and coordinated Union response, to strengthen the Single Market, our Union’s interests and our resilience, will be key. The Single Market and Customs Programme will be a critical and strategic instrument to achieve this.

As part of the post-2027 Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) package, the Commission proposes a new Single Market and Customs Programme (SMCP) for the 2028-2034 period, bringing together four programmes, supporting activities in different policy areas, under one consolidated framework. The SMCP aims to strengthen the Single Market, the Customs Union, tax cooperation and the fight against fraud. The reduced design aims to foster flexibility, simplification and synergies, supporting the Union’s horizontal policy mainstreaming priorities.

Overall, the RapporteurIMCO Report welcomes the new Single Market and Customs Programme,Programme and supports the objective to increase synergies with a more integrated approach to improve the well-functioning internal market. With the SMCP, key and interconnected policy areas such as customs, market surveillance and anti-fraud activities, which are operationally closely connected, are strategically brought together under the same financial envelope and governance model. The Rapporteur isReport also positivereflects tothe European Parliament position on the proposedoverall increaseEU long-term budget for the period 2028-2034 as adopted in the MFF Interim Report in April, and welcomes the increase of the total financial envelope,envelope of the SMCP of approximately ten percent given the criticality of strengthening the Single Market in times of increased pressure and uncertainty.

However, the Rapporteur also identifies some weaknesses and several points of improvements inNevertheless, the Commission's proposal andIMCO henceReport proposes a numberseveral ofkey changes to enhance the overall package, improve clarity on key objectives, and strengthen the governance structure.structure of the programme.

Accountability and predictability

While the Rapporteur sees merit in a flexible approach, in particular in regard to responsiveness to changing needs and circumstances over time, this must be balanced by an adequate level of predictability, transparency, and mechanisms for accountability. This is important for several reasons. To provide enough predictability for beneficiaries, to ensure consistency and financial continuity for core objectives, systems and legally mandated activities, and to ensure that democratic oversight, control and governance is safeguarded. In this context, the RapporteurReport proposes, inter alia, more clearly defined programme objectives, an improved structure on horizontal versus programme specific objectives, aligned with a budget breakdown allocating funds to the respective key elements of the programme accordingly. In addition, the Rapporteur also suggests introducing new provisions to limit the level of flexibility to shift funds without adopting a delegated act.

Clarity on objectives

The RapporteurReport proposesaims to clarify the objectives of the programme, while maintaining a simpler, yet comprehensive structure. Specifically, the Rapporteur sees a need to reinforce and add more granular language in regard totext severalreinforces key elements. Theseelements includeincluding to empower and protect consumers, improve the well-functioning of the Single Market, putstrengthen morethe emphasisEU oncustoms aunion, levelempower playingand fieldprotect andconsumers, ensuring fair competition, as well as protect the Union’s financial interests, including by supporting and strengthening anti-fraud activities. In addition, the Rapporteur proposes to streamlinea thestreamlined structure with the aim to make sub-objectives to a larger extent mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive, as well as align Article 3 on programme objectives to the proposed budgetary allocation. This improves the link between objectives and budget allocations, enabling better oversight, legal basis for prioritisation and stronger governance.

Performance framework

Monitoring, reporting and evaluation

A strong performance framework is a key priorityto formonitor and evaluate the Rapporteur.progress and performance of the Programme. Increased flexibility cannot come at the expense of oversight, monitoring, and evaluation. On the contrary, a higher level of flexibility needs to be mirrored by an even stronger performance framework. Nevertheless, the RapporteurReport appreciatesrecognises the value in athe centralizedhorizontal performance framework in the new MFF cycle,cycle and hence refrains from introducing programme specific provisions on reporting, monitoring, and evaluation at this stage.evaluation. The Rapporteur stresses, however, that the new centralized Performance Regulation needs to deliver clear, timely, meaningful and comparable performance mechanisms and indicators to ensure that the programme can be properly monitored and scrutinized, and its impact is comprehensively assessed and evaluated.

Implementation

As the Commission’s proposal does not provide sufficient information on how the new programme will be implemented,Furthermore, the RapporteurReport suggests introducing implementingdelegated acts for the adoption of work programmes. This would give Parliament clear information rights and allow better oversight and scrutiny of the implementation of the programme. Considering the programme’s strategic importance for the Single Market and the Union, such a mechanism is important for adequate democratic oversight and governance.

Pursuant to Article 8 of Annex I to the Rules of Procedure, the rapporteur declares that he included in his report input on matters pertaining to the subject of the file that he received, in the preparation of the report, prior to the adoption thereof in committee, from the following interest representatives falling within the scope of the Interinstitutional Agreement on a mandatory transparency register, or from the following representatives of public authorities of third countries, including their diplomatic missions and embassies:

The list above is drawn up under the exclusive responsibility of the rapporteur.

Where natural persons are identified in the list by their name, by their function or by both, the rapporteur declares that he has submitted to the natural persons concerned the European Parliament's Data Protection Notice No 484 (https://www.europarl.europa.eu/data-protect/index.do), which sets out the conditions applicable to the processing of their personal data and the rights linked to that processing.

25.6.2026

for the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection

on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the Single Market and Customs Programme for the period 2028-2034 and repealing Regulations (EU) 2021/444, (EU) 2021/690, (EU) 2021/785, (EU) 2021/847 and (EU) 2021/1077

(COM(2025)0590 – C100198/2025 – 2025/0590(COD))

Rapporteur for budgetary assessment: Danuše Nerudová

The Committee on Budgets has carried out a budgetary assessment of the proposal under Rule 58 of the Rules of Procedure and has reached the following conclusions:

The Committee on Budgets,

A. whereas the proposal brings together parts of five separate programmes existing under the current multiannual financial framework (MFF), creating therefore a single envelope in the area of the single market, customs, taxation and anti-fraud;

B. whereas in the current geopolitical context, removing barriers and reducing fragmentation is essential to unlocking new opportunities of growth across the economies of the Union and its Member States;

C. whereas the absence of indicative sub-envelopes in the single market and customs programme’s (SMCP) budgetary architecture affords the Commission a degree of discretion over spending priorities during implementation that is incompatible with the principle of sound financial management and with the prerogatives of the budgetary authority; whereas the establishment of transparent sub-allocations per programme strand is a prerequisite for effective parliamentary scrutiny and accountability;

D. whereas customs duties constitute a traditional own resource of the Union, and the effective functioning of customs authorities is therefore directly linked to the protection of the Union budget; whereas the proliferation of low-value consignments from third countries, often misclassified or undervalued, represents a direct threat to Union budget revenues, compounded by the exponential growth of e-commerce which has substantially increased the volume and complexity of customs operations without a commensurate increase in the resources allocated to customs authorities under the current MFF;

E. whereas the presence of low-cost imported goods from third countries, frequently placed on the Union market in non-compliance with Union safety, environmental, labelling and consumer protection standards, creates unfair competitive conditions for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) based in the EU that bear the full cost of regulatory compliance; whereas the programme should contribute to addressing this asymmetry through strengthened market surveillance and customs enforcement at the Union’s external borders;

F. whereas the rapid growth of e-commerce has significantly increased low-value imports, creating substantial challenges for the competitive position of Union businesses and for customs and market surveillance authorities in ensuring compliance with Union standards; whereas the EU Customs Reform introduced a Union handling fee per parcel in order to tackle high e-commerce volumes, applicable from July 2026;

G. whereas the European Court of Auditors delivered its Opinion 08/2026;

H. whereas the European Economic and Social Committee delivered its Opinion INT/1104;

I. whereas the 2026 Annual Single Market and Competitiveness Report noted that only 20.6 % of single market procedures are fully available online for cross-border users, imposing an unnecessary administrative burden on citizens, entrepreneurs and businesses, in particular micro-companies and SMEs, and limiting their ability to fully benefit from the single market;

1. Considers that the programme envelope should be increased from EUR 6.2 billion (EUR 5.5 billion in 2025 prices) to EUR 6.9 billion (EUR 6.1 billion in 2025 prices), in order to deepen the single market while promoting convergence, strengthen the capacity of customs and market surveillance authorities, and protect the safety, security, and financial and economic interests of the Union and its Member States;

2. Considers that sufficient resources, including human, technical and IT resources, must be available from the outset and throughout the entire programming period of the 2028-2034 MFF to ensure an effective implementation of the SMCP, while ensuring that existing resources are used efficiently and avoiding unnecessary administrative burdens; underlines that customs authorities must be equipped with the digital tools, risk-profiling capacities and inter-agency coordination mechanisms necessary to detect and intercept non-compliant consignments at scale, including through the development and deployment of data analytics models and artificial intelligence-based risk assessment systems, as well as to ensure interoperability between national databases;

3. Stresses that the growth of e-commerce has resulted in a significant workload increase for customs authorities, which must therefore be provided with appropriate resources to carry out their functions; recalls that the new European Customs Authority Agency will be established in order to support and coordinate the work of national customs authorities; underlines that customs duties constitute a traditional own resource of the Union and that customs authorities therefore serve the interest of the Union as a whole;

4. Considers that, while some degree of flexibility would enable timely adjustment to evolving spending priorities, above all in view of the on-going review of the EU’s customs code and the EU anti-fraud architecture, predictability and internal safeguards should be ensured in particular for mandatory programme functions; strongly deplores the lack of breakdown of the budget of SMCP; notes that this would give the Commission great latitude to shift and decide on spending priorities during implementation; expresses concern that the overly aggregated budgetary architecture would substantially facilitate transfers not subject to budgetary authority decisions; stresses that simplification and flexibility must not come at the expense of transparency and oversight of the budgetary authority; further regrets that the impact assessment accompanying the proposal does not sufficiently analyse how flexibility mechanisms should be prioritised or balanced across strands with differing operational needs, cost structures and implementation horizons; strongly recommends, therefore, that the basic act include indicative sub-envelopes for core programme functions, and that decision-making criteria and documentation requirements governing the use of carry-overs, external assigned revenue and cumulative funding under Articles 4 to 6 are defined;

5. Stresses, in particular, that flexibility must not jeopardise the continuity of mandatory programme functions, which require predictable long-term investment, namely customs IT systems, taxation IT systems, the Anti-Fraud Information System, the Irregularity Management System and European statistics, and underlines the importance of introducing prioritisation safeguards in the basic act to ensure that these systems are adequately protected in the context of internal reallocations during annual programming;

6. Recalls that the budgetary nomenclature must be established in line with Article 47(2) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509 (the Financial Regulation), which provides that each title must correspond to a policy area and each chapter, as a rule, to a programme or an activity, in line with the principles of specification, sound financial management and transparency; considers, therefore, that the basic act should include a budgetary nomenclature that adequately reflects the sub-envelopes established in the basic act, with reference amounts for specific objectives; recommends that the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection amend the proposal to include an annex defining the nomenclature of the programme; insists that the budgetary nomenclature forms an integral part of Parliament’s negotiating position and must be discussed in interinstitutional negotiations; considers, in this regard, that the revised Legislative Financial and Digital Statement (LFDS) must form part of the final political agreement;

7. Deplores the lack of a sufficiently detailed indicative budgetary nomenclature proposed in the LFDS; considers that this will hamper the budgetary authority’s ability to steer accurately policy priorities in the annual budgetary procedure; expresses concerns that the overly aggregated budgetary architecture would dramatically increase the Commission’s discretion in transferring and reallocating resources without a decision from the budgetary authority, and would severely limit parliamentary oversight; recommends, therefore, a more detailed nomenclature that properly reflects the objectives and structure of SMCP and enhances transparency, accountability and parliamentary control;

8. Insists that sufficiently detailed and sound legislation, with an appropriate level of governance, is a condition for proper budgetary decision-making and adequate parliamentary oversight during budget implementation; recommends introducing provisions to strengthen control over how the budget is mobilised and spent; considers that the so-called steering mechanism can in no way be a substitute for Parliament’s legislative and budgetary powers, and cannot be conceived without a sound governance architecture that ensures the effective exercise of such powers;

9. Believes that all substantive policy choices such as programme objectives, spending priorities, financial allocations, funding rates, eligibility, selection and award criteria, conditions, definitions and calculation methods must be determined in the basic act, with full respect for Parliament’s prerogatives as a co-legislator and one arm of the EU’s budgetary authority, and that any non-essential elements entailing policy choices that are not included in the basic act must be adopted through delegated acts, including work programmes, where appropriate;

10. Underlines that, given the diversity of activities covered by SMCP, consolidation into a single framework will require an appropriate level of governance, a coherent prioritisation system, transparent resource allocation and robust monitoring and evaluation mechanisms, thereby ensuring efficient resource use and avoiding duplication and unnecessary complexity; stresses, with a view to reducing the administrative burden, the importance of modernising and standardising digital infrastructure and ensuring the practical usability of Union-level digital tools for administrations and economic operators across all Member States, as well as for enforcement-related activities, in order to ensure that goods placed on the Union market comply with applicable Union safety, environmental and consumer protection rules;

11. Takes note of the suggested complementarity between SMCP and other programmes such as National and Regional Partnership Plans, the European Competitiveness Fund, Horizon Europe, the Connecting Europe Facility and Global Europe; highlights that while synergies and coordination between programmes are important, their governance structures must preserve their distinct objectives, legal basis and decision-making autonomy; emphasises, in this context, that SMCP should retain its specific focus on the proper functioning and enforcement of the single market and should not be driven by broader competitiveness objectives; stresses that enhanced complementarity between instruments must not come at the expense of traceability of expenditure or the prerogatives of the budgetary authority nor lead to double funding; underlines that the contribution of SMCP to operations financed jointly with other instruments must be explicitly identifiable at all stages of the budgetary cycle; stresses, in this regard, that any such contribution must be duly reflected in the programme performance statement for the SMCP programme; notes, in particular, that programmes supporting digital infrastructure, customs cooperation and product compliance databases should be coordinated with other Union instruments to maximise the effectiveness of enforcement across the single market without undermining the transparency of these financial actions and of other Union programmes; insists that the budgetary authority retain full control over how resources are combined across instruments and over the effective contribution of each programme to EU priorities, specifically through detailed budgetary nomenclature; stresses that enhanced complementarity between programmes must not lead to disproportionate complexity for beneficiaries; calls for EU funding to be clearer, more accessible and more coherent in order to facilitate uptake and maximise the impact of investments;

12. Calls for the programme to support simplified procedures and practical digital tools, in particular those designed to reduce cross-border compliance costs, that enable SMEs to operate more easily across the single market and reduce the burden created by fragmentation and administrative complexity;

13. Recommends the lead committee to ensure that entities participating in actions involving the development, deployment or use of IT systems and digital tools under this programme retain full control over critical infrastructures and data to protect the financial interests of the Union; stresses the importance of relying on the use of open standards, ensuring transparency of software components, and safeguarding against strategic dependencies on third-country providers;

14. Stresses that the use of external assigned revenue under SMCP must be clearly circumscribed, fully transparent and subject to effective parliamentary scrutiny, while fully respecting the prerogatives of the budgetary authority; takes note, in that regard, of the provisions relating to additional contributions to the programme; recalls the importance of ensuring the traceability of external assigned revenue; underlines that, should the lead committee consider amending provisions relating to external assigned revenue, this should be done in coordination with the Committee on Budgets and the other committees in order to ensure a consistent approach; calls on the Commission to publish, alongside each annual work programme, a comprehensive overview of all external assigned revenue expected to be mobilised, their origin and their allocated use, and underlines that any broadening of the scope of external assigned revenue beyond that expressly provided for in the basic act must require the prior agreement of the budgetary authority;

15. Stresses that public procurement accounts for 15 % of EU GDP and that, in the light of the upcoming revision of the directives, particular focus should be given to actions that support the integration of qualitative, environmental, social and innovation-related considerations into public procurement procedures through the systematic use of the best price-quality ratio, rather than only relying on lowest-price criterion; notes that such actions can include capacity-building and guidance for contracting authorities on how to apply those criteria in the context of the award of public contracts, while safeguarding the principles of transparency, equal treatment and fair competition;

16. Recalls the proposal for a regulation on establishing a budget expenditure tracking and performance framework and other horizontal rules for the Union programmes and activities (the ‘performance regulation’), which establishes a single streamlined list for performance indicators and monitoring and evaluation provisions, some of which are relevant for SMCP; expresses concern that the highly heterogeneous activities funded under SMCP might affect the reliability of the performance indicators, and calls for clearer identification of strand-specific results and greater emphasis on results rather than outputs, while avoiding an increase in administrative burdens and ensuring the proportionality of requirements and harmonised national data-quality requirements; underlines that any change to the architecture, objectives and eligible actions under the programme will need to be appropriately reflected in Annex I of the performance regulation, as part of the process of amending and negotiating that regulation; points out that, while sectoral legislation can supplement the performance regulation, for instance as regards programme evaluations, it should remain consistent with the provisions of that regulation;

17. Calls for the programme to support the development of a fair, competitive and more coherent single market based on clear, consistent and effectively enforced rules, in order to ensure a level playing field, reduce legal fragmentation, promote fair competition and regulatory clarity, and improve access to clear and predictable cross-border rules;

18. Stresses that the programme should ensure a sufficient level of administrative capacity, digital preparedness and enforcement capability, to prevent a de facto multi-speed single market; underlines that customs, market surveillance, anti-fraud and digital implementation capacities must be supported in a balanced manner across the Union, so that all Member States can effectively enforce Union law and ensure a comparable level of protection for citizens, consumers and businesses;

19. Calls for the programme to support, where relevant, the continuity and completion of strategic projects launched under previous Union instruments, including projects started under the Recovery and Resilience Facility, in particular in the areas of digitalisation, customs, market surveillance and anti-fraud.

SHORT JUSTIFICATION

The proposal put forward by the European Commission seeks to merge four existing programmes into a single, streamlined instrument, with the objective of contributing to the smooth functioning of the Single Market and the Customs Union, while supporting taxation and anti-fraud objectives and fostering greater synergies across policy areas. The imperative of flexibility underlying this approach, including the possibility of transferring funds between priorities and adapting to emerging needs, is fully understood and reflects the need for a more coherent and efficient use of Union resources. However, this increased flexibility does not provide sufficient guarantees in terms of transparency, accountability, and democratic scrutiny, particularly for the European Parliament, as the proposal does not clearly define prioritisation between core functions, lacks clear implementation trajectories, and does not require work programmes to demonstrate alignment with policy needs. In line with the observations of the European Court of Auditors, the draft opinion therefore aims to restore an appropriate balance by strengthening monitoring, reporting, and evaluation requirements, ensuring that work programmes clearly identify priorities, expected progress, and measurable outcomes, and facilitating meaningful political scrutiny. Furthermore, while the integration of Fiscalis into a broader instrument is understood in light of the objective of simplification, its disappearance as a stand-alone programme raises specific concerns, especially given the strong performance, clear Union added value, and tangible revenue gains demonstrated by its interim evaluation. The draft opinion therefore seeks to clarify and reinforce the tax policy and statistical strands of the programme by reaffirming their objectives, embedding tax priorities more explicitly in the regulation, and ensuring that eligibility criteria and implementation measures reflect the programme’s role in supporting tax authorities, improving tax collection, and combating tax fraud, tax evasion, and tax avoidance. In doing so, the opinion supports the overall objectives of the Commission’s initiative while ensuring that flexibility is balanced with robust guarantees for transparency, effective oversight, and the protection of the Union’s core taxation and statistical interests.

AMENDMENTS

The Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs submits the following to the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection, as the committee responsible:

Recital 5: (5) The programme is to be implemented in accordance with Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2025/XXXX of the European Parliament and of the Council9 establishing a budget expenditure tracking and performance framework and other horizontal rules for the Union programmes and activities, including rules for ensuring a uniform application of the principles of ‘do no significant harm’ and gender equality referred to in Article 33(2), points (d) and (f), of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509 respectively,the principles of preparedness and climate resilience by design, rules for monitoring and reporting on the performance of Union programmes and activities, rules for establishing a Union funding portal, rules for the evaluation of the programmes, as well as other horizontal provisions applicable to all Union programmes such as those on information, communication and visibility. The Commission should ensure sound financial management and transparency in the implementation of the programme. Transparency should include publication of allocation criteria and details on progress towards measurable objectives.

Recital 7: (7) The Single Market is governed by the fundamental principles of free movement of goods, services, people, and capital and has been a major contributor to growth, competitiveness and employment. A well-functioning and safe-guarded Single Market is a pre-requisite for a competitive, safe and secure Union economy and for advancing the Savings and Investments Union. As stressed by the new approach proposed by the Single Market Strategy, more action is needed to address the barriers, stimulate reforms, reduce fragmentation and complete the Single Market, especially in the context of new global challenges.This has been and will continue to be reinforced by an effective cohesion policy as an additional key condition for the success of the Single Market. The Member States and the Commission share the responsibility for enforcing Union law to ensure compliance with Single Market rules and to protect people’s and businesses’ rights. The Union-level responsibility combines three main aspects: removal of barriers, collaboration between Member States, and corrective implementation and enforcement actions and stimulating reforms. Barriers such as knowledge and data gaps, administrative complexity, in particular in cross-border activities, and gold plating are obstacles for citizens, consumers, businesses, investors, economic operators to access and operate within the Single Market. Capacity building, administrative and operational cooperation, including digital cooperation, and integrat…

Recital 8: (8) Under the multiannual financial framework for the years 2021 to 2027 laid down in Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/209311 , the Single Market Programme (‘SMP’) established by Regulation (EU) 2021/690 of the European Parliament and of the Council12 supports the design, implementation and enforcement of Union legislation underpinning the proper functioning of the Single Market, so that it can reach its full potential. The Customs programme established by Regulation (EU) 2021/444 of the European Parliament and of the Council13 and the Fiscalis programme established by Regulation (EU) 2021/847 of the European Parliament and of the Council14 accompany the customs and tax policies in the Union by supporting Union level digital solutions for customs and taxation, which are essential for the effective implementation of Union law, project based collaborative activities as well as human competency building activities. In addition, the Customs Control Equipment Instrument established as part of the Integrated Border Management Fund by Regulation (EU) 2021/1077 of the European Parliament and of the Council15 , contributes to increasing the efficient and effective customs controls, essential for the facilitation of legitimate trade, while ensuring sufficient level of protection at the external borders. The Union Anti-Fraud Programme (‘UAFP’) established by Regulation (EU) 2021/785 of the European Parliament and of the Council16 funds actions which aim to prevent and combat fraud,…

Recital 9: (9) With economic and security uncertainty caused by geopolitical challenges and trade tensions, as well as other challenges such as customs and VAT fraud and excise fraud, the Single Market is our anchor for stability and resilience. Those challenges require a collective and coordinated Union response considering their scale and the high levels of interdependence among Member States and regions. In addition, an adequate level of protection and resulting benefits for citizens, consumers, investors and businesses could not be achieved solely through actions at national level, nor could it generate economies of scale, especially given the cross-border nature of those benefits.

Recital 10: (10) Union funding is required to enable the Commission to meet legal obligations of the Union that cannot be delegated to Member States, ensuring obligations under Union law are fulfilled, in particular in the areas of customs, market surveillance, product conformity, consumer protection, financial services, standard setting, competition policy, the provision of European statistics, taxation and anti-fraud, given their cross-border nature and impact on the integrity of the Single Market.

Recital 11: (11) It is therefore appropriate to establish a programme to enhance and deepen the functioning of the Single Market and a strong Customs Union and to protect the financial and economic interests of the Union and the Member States, with a design fostering flexibility, simplification and synergies, and supporting the horizontal policy mainstreaming priorities including what is set out in Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2025/XXXX of the European Parliament and of the Council17 establishing a budget expenditure tracking and performance framework and other horizontal tax rules for the Union programmes and activities. The following four programmes should therefore be merged in one single programme: parts of the Single Market Programme, excluding the small and medium-sized enterprises and food and feed strands, the Customs programme, including the Customs Control Equipment Instrument type interventions, the Fiscalis programme and the Union Anti-Fraud programme. A continuous and agile funding should be ensured in the areas of the Single Market, customs, taxation and anti-fraud, including research, funding for cooperation between national administrations encompassing activities such as streamlining administrative processes, harmonising rules across Member States, or facilitating quicker responses to evolving challenges with a comprehensive preparedness and crisis-response framework. While the overall objective is to enhance coherence, simplify access to Union funding, and reduce administrat…

Recital 12: (12) In this regard, the programme should enable the implementation of the following generic types of actions: (a) digital capacity building, development and operation of centralised and decentralised European electronic systems and digital solutions, implementation tools and data; (b) support to policy, regulatory and enforcement work, for example, through studies, communication, impact assessment, evaluation and simplification proposals; (c) collaboration and cooperation between Member States, the Commission, Union agencies and national authorities and with stakeholders; (d) administrative and operational/technical capacity building, including purchase, maintenance, upgrade of equipment – notably customs control equipment – infrastructure and related costs; (e) human competency building; (f) joint tools, methods, data and statistics to support policy making and anti-fraud investigations, in particular into VAT fraud and excise fraud; (g) other actions to achieve the general and specific objectives, such as innovation, testing.

Recital 13: (13) In light of the growing digitalisation of the economy and society, there is an increasing need for citizens, consumers, investors, economic operators, businesses, and public administrations to have timely, accurate and accessible information and advice on the functioning of the Single Market and their rights and obligations under Union law. Furthermore, reinforced cooperation and integration to ensure digitally enabled, seamless implementation, consistent and effective enforcement across the Union and to prevent barriers and limitations hindering the proper functioning of the Single Market, taxation, anti-fraud reporting, investigations and policies and the Customs Union should be enabled. Union authorities and bodies should maintain effective rulemaking, standard setting, as well as implementation and enforcement of Union law in the face of changing circumstances and to ensure enforcement of restrictive measures in the management of Union funds.

Recital 14: (14) The programme should therefore further improve the functioning of the Single Market, including the external dimension, protect and empower citizens, consumers and businesses. That should be achieved by developing, implementing and enforcing Union law, offering digital tools and solutions, facilitating market access and public procurement, ensuring resilience, management of emergencies and security threats or crisis, standard setting, and supporting the development of the Union regulatory framework. The programme’s actions should cover the areas of intellectual property rights, company law, anti-money laundering, and contract law, and by ensuring a high level of consumer protection, including protection of passenger rights, and market surveillance, financial literacy, the free movement of capital and financial services, effective and efficient competition enforcement, customs, anti-fraud, effective and efficient enforcement of Union restrictive measures and taxation. The programme should also enhance cooperation between the competent authorities of Member States and the Commission, in particular cooperation and increased synergies between various national authorities, including national enforcement bodies, as well as cooperation between Member States, the Commission and third countries, including by providing digital solutions to improve information sharing among national authorities and with relevant stakeholders. It should allow to develop, produce and disseminate high-…

Recital 15: (15) European statistics are essential, as they underpin the design, monitoring and evaluation of all Union policies and empower all members of society, including policy makers, businesses, academia, citizens and the media to make informed decisions and to actively participate in the democratic process. High-quality, timely, reliable and comparable official European statistics should be produced and disseminated to provide valuable insights and address knowledge gaps, allowing citizens, consumers, investors and businesses to benefit fully from the Single Market. Funding should support the production of high-quality European statistics, modernising statistical systems, promoting statistical innovation and integrating digital tools to improve accuracy and speed. In view of its horizontal character, the legal framework for the development, production and dissemination of European statistics established by Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council18 is subject to specific requirements, and in particular those laid down in that Regulation, with regard to respect for statistical principles, as well as the functioning of the European Statistical System and its governance, including the role and tasks assigned to the European Statistical System Committee and to the Commission (Eurostat), and the establishment and implementation of the programming of the statistical activities.

Recital 17: (17) The programme aims to foster business, consumer and investor trust in the Single Market and the Customs Union by ensuring proportionality in regulatory burden, efficient processes and a high-level of consumer protection, including the protection of passengers, consumers of financial services, product safety and consumer empowerment, thereby enabling consumers to fully benefit from the Single Market and to contribute to a competitive, innovative, and dynamic Single Market. The programme should safeguard consumers’ safety and rights as well as their legal and economic interests through concrete and effective measures which support, supplement and monitor the policy implemented by the Member States. Moreover, consumers should be empowered and encouraged to make sustainable and informed choices. In the area of financial services, that includes ensuring that consumers and end-users, through strengthening financial literacy and understanding of the sector, are equipped to understand the risks and costs of different categories of financial products and services. It is necessary to ensure that consumer protection, rights and product safety requirements are effectively implemented, uniformly enforced, and consistently upheld across the Union, thereby contributing to the creation of a level-playing field for consumers, investors and businesses. Consumer organisations at both national and Union-level play a crucial role in promoting the interests of consumers, representing the inte…

Recital 20: (20) The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) includes a system of rules ensuring that competition is not distorted in the internal market and provides that the Union has exclusive competence in establishing competition rules. A level playing field within the Union benefits consumers and strengthens the competitiveness of its businesses and underpins the Union's economic weight globally. The programme should contribute to the Union’s competition policy and, in particular, tackle the significant implications for competition and the functioning of the Single Market resulting from the clean, just, competitive and digital transition of the economy and business environment. Using the right technology and skills to monitor markets, collect, process and analyse information more effectively is crucial for strengthening and speeding up the enforcement of competition rules and for ensuring their effective, uniform and consistent application throughout the Union. Those technologies should modernise competition policy and help to enhance the analysis and assessment of market developments including through the development and deployment of common or interoperable digital tools, secure data-sharing systems and harmonised analytical methodologies. It is also essential that the programme supports networks, in particular the European Competition Network. It is also essential that the programme supports networks, reinforces cooperation with national authorities and courts, st…

Recital 24: (24) Union tax policy plays a key role in the seamless functioning of the competitive internal market. It supports consistent tax practices across Member States, fostering a level playing field and minimising barriers to cross-border trade. Union tax policy does not only combat fragmentation and discrimination but also safeguards the financial interests of the Union and its Member States, promoting economic growth and encouraging investment within a competitive framework. Tax policy also contributes to the EU’s climate and environmental objectives. Preventing and fighting tax fraud, tax evasion and tax avoidance through enhanced cooperation and exchange of information is crucial for safeguarding those interests, alignment with the Union's wider objectives and maintaining the trust of citizens and businesses in the integrity of the internal market. Union tax policy should also contribute to ensuring that the rules agreed within the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) are implemented fully and consistently by all participating jurisdictions. The integrity and effectiveness of the global agreement depend on its uniform and faithful application. Any divergence, selective implementation or delay risks fragmenting the international tax architecture and further undermining the level playing field it seeks to establish. An efficient functioning of the Single Market also requires simplification of tax systems and digitalisation of public administrat…

Recital 25: (25) In line with the established and future legal commitments at Union level, it is crucial to continue developing and operating Union components of digital solutions in the customs and taxation fields. Those common components are essential for establishing a modern and efficient Customs Union and tax systems, for enhancing cooperation between national authorities and Union institutions, and for strengthening the preparedness, resilience and economic security of the Single Market. They contribute to enhancing the Union’s competitiveness at global level, and to improving evidence-based and digital-ready policymaking in the field of taxation and to measurable improvements in tax compliance, reductions in VAT gaps and strengthened cross-border fraud detection capacity.

Recital 28: (28) In accordance with Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509, the work programmes and the call documents are the appropriate place to set out more technical implementation details for the budget across the set of policies supported by the programme, including specific eligibility and award criteria depending on the instrument of budget implementation, whether grant or procurement, and the specific policy objectives pursued. In order to ensure transparency and facilitate monitoring and evaluation, the work programmes should clearly demonstrate Union added value, and identify prioritisation choices, allocated budget, expected trajectories and indicative milestones for implementation. In accordance with Article 136 of the Financial Regulation, security requirements should be applied. Restrictions to high-risk suppliers should apply according to the relevant applicable provisions.

Recital 31: (31) Article 325 TFEU requires the Union and the Member States to counter fraud, corruption and any other illegal activities affecting the financial interests of the Union. The Union should support activities in those fields. In accordance with Council Regulation (EC) No 515/9725 and Council Decision 2009/917/JHA26 the Union is to support mutual assistance between the administrative authorities of the Member States and cooperation between the latter and the Commission, to ensure the correct application of the law on customs and agricultural matters. That support covers not only anti-fraud activities in relation to customs fraud but also in relation to illicit trade in the fields of safety and security, health and the protection of the environment and is provided to a number of operational activities. Those include the Anti-Fraud Information System (AFIS), an information technology platform which consists of a set of applications operated under a common information system, managed by the Commission. That common information system comprising AFIS and IMS, dedicated to report to the Commission irregularities detected in areas where the Union provides financial support, requires stable and predictable financing over the years in order to ensure its sustainability, which should be made available under the programme, given the Commission’s legal obligations in that respect and the importance of the system for the protection of the Unions and the Member States economic and financial…

Article 3 – paragraph 1: 1. The general objective of the programme is to enhance and deepen the functioning of the Single Market and the Customs Union, to protect safety, security, and the financial and economic interests of the Union and its Member States, including from tax fraud, tax evasion and profit-shifting, to support tax authorities, to foster a fair and efficient tax system, and to improve tax collection, with a design fostering flexibility, simplification, synergies and the digital transformation of the Single Market, and supporting the Union’s horizontal policy mainstreaming priorities, while ensuring transparency, efficient implementation in practice and accountability towards the European Parliament.

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point a: (a) to empower citizens, consumers, investors, economic operators and businesses by providing information, guidance and advice enabling them to make informed and practical decisions and to fully and easily access the opportunities of the Single Market for goods, people, services and capital, thereby contributing to the completion of the Single Market; to that end, actions shall include improving digital and financial literacy, ensuring fair and equal access to redress mechanisms and supporting representative organisations in their participative role, thereby strengthening trust and ensuring a high level of consumer protection;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point a a (new): (aa) to enhance the functioning of the Single Market by removing and preventing barriers and reducing administrative burden, and by ensuring the uniform application and enforcement of Union rules and a level playing field with fair competition across Member States; to strengthen the competitiveness of Union businesses, in particular SMEs and scale-ups, and drive industrial modernisation by fostering entrepreneurship, digital transformation and access to international markets;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point b: (b) to foster cooperation and facilitate exchange of information among Member States national authorities, and between Member States national authorities, the Commission and other Union bodies in all programme areas, including the preparedness and economic security of the Single Market, and response to crises; to develop and operate the common components of Union-level digital solutions and support the connection to them, ensuring user-friendliness and interoperability in order to avoid duplicative reporting requirements; to boost the operational, technical, and administrative capacities of national authorities, including customs and tax authorities;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point e: (e) to protect the Union’s and its Member States’ economic, financial and other interests from fraud, corruption and other illegal activities, including risks related to expenditure, revenue and assets, as well as reputational risks, support Member States’ operational cooperation and investigation activities alongside the EPPO and through the increased use of data and digital tools for fraud analysis; to support tax policy and implementation of Union law relating to taxation and improve the Union taxation systems and tax collection in view of enhancing Europe’s competitiveness and investments, while facilitating compliance and reducing unnecessary administrative burden;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point e a (new): (ea) to support a fair and efficient tax system in the Union through tax policy and the proper implementation of Union law on taxation by strengthening the harmonisation and interoperability of Union taxation systems and corresponding national systems through digitalisation and strengthening administrative capacity of tax authorities; to deliver fair taxation outcomes for citizens and business, protect the financial and economic interests of the Union and its Member States, including from tax fraud, tax evasion and profit-shifting, and improve tax collection; to foster tax cooperation and the exchange of tax information including through progressive modernisation of reporting, auditing and software tools, the exchange of best practices, technical support for staff training, thereby enhancing Europe’s competitiveness and attractiveness for investment;

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point g: (g) to provide high-quality, reliable and comparable official European statistics, in a timely and impartial manner and in accordance with the quality criteria laid down in Article 12(1) of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009, to better support economic governance, competitiveness, defence, housing, social, environmental, and demographic policies, as set out in the Annex to this Regulation.

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point g a (new): (ga) to provide paneuropean research and independent impact assessment.

Article 3 – paragraph 3: 3. The programme shall prioritise allocation of funding for the implementation of Union-level legal obligations, including relating to Single Market resilience and implementation tools, market surveillance, product conformity, standards, public procurement, intellectual property rights, competition policy, financial services policy, anti-money laundering, Union restrictive measures, company and corporate governance law, consumer policy, European statistics, customs legislation, taxation, and anti-fraud, as well as other actions pursuing the general and specific objectives referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2.

Article 3 – paragraph 3 a (new): 3a. The Programme shall pursue its objectives in a manner that ensures a high level of transparency and democratic accountability in the allocation, implementation and, where this is considered appropriate, in the reallocation of Union funds.

Article 5 – paragraph 1 a (new): 1a. The allocation and implementation of the external assigned revenue as referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article shall be monitored and the Commission shall periodically inform the European Parliament, the Council and the European Court of Auditors about the findings of such monitoring.

Article 5 – paragraph 2 a (new): 2a. Additional contributions to the programme, whether financial or non-financial, shall be implemented in accordance with the internal control framework and the principles of sound financial management laid down in Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509. They shall be subject to monitoring and reporting in accordance with Article 11b of this Regulation and shall be duly reflected in the evaluations carried out pursuant to Article 11c of this Regulation.

Article 9 – paragraph 1: 1. Actions implemented to attain the objectives set out in Article 3, including the following, shall be eligible for funding: / (a) meetings and similar ad hoc events; / (b) project-based structured collaboration; / (c) IT capacity-building actions, in particular the development and operation of European electronic systems; / (d) human competency and capacity-building actions; / (e) support actions including: / (i) studies and other relevant written material; / (ii) innovation activities, in particular proof-of-concepts, pilot projects and prototyping initiatives; / (iii) jointly developed communication actions; / (iv) any other relevant actions provided for in the work programmes referred to in Article 11 which are necessary for attaining or are in support of the objectives set out in Article 3.

Article 9 – paragraph 1 a (new): 1a. Actions referred to in paragraph 1 shall cover the following priority topics: / (a) the effective exchange of information and the development of usable formats taking into account initiatives at international level, including OECD standards for data; / (b) removing obstacles to cross-border cooperation; / (c) combating cross-border VAT and excise frauds; / (d) exchange of best practices on recovery of taxes, including taxes not paid and support for administrative cooperation, including the effective implementation, application and enforcement of provisions laid down in Directive 2011/16/EU (“DAC”), as amended, in particular as regards automatic exchange of information and risk assessment; / (e) supporting the implementation of Council Directive (EU) 2025/50 on faster and safer relief of excess withholding taxes (FASTER); / (f) supporting the implementation of rules adopted under the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS), including those laid down in Council Directive (EU) 2022/2523; / (g) supporting the consistent and effective implementation of the measures introduced under the VAT in the Digital Age (“ViDA”) package, including digital reporting requirements, electronic invoices, and the VAT treatment of the platform economy, with a view to enhancing tax compliance, reducing administrative burden and combating fraud; / (h) Union-level digital solutions through the implementation of unified national IT tools, the deployment of common or i…

Article 11 – paragraph 1 a (new): The Commission shall adopt implementing acts establishing the work programmes. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure as referred to in Article 11a(2).

Article 11 – paragraph 1 b (new): Prior to their adoption, the Commission shall transmit the draft work programmes simultaneously to the European Parliament and to the Council, and ensure that stakeholders are consulted throughout the development process. The draft work programmes shall clearly indicate the prioritisation choices, allocated budget, expected trajectories and key milestones for implementation. They shall demonstrate that the future actions foreseen under the programme generate Union added value and are aligned with Union-wide policy priorities.

Article 11 – paragraph 1 c (new): When preparing the work programmes, the Commission shall take into account the need to ensure user-friendly digital solutions and interoperability of digital systems in order to avoid duplication of reporting requirements and to better achieve the specific objectives referred to in Article 3(2).

Article 11 a (new): Article 11a / Committee procedure / 1. The Commission shall be assisted by a committee. That committee shall be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011. / 2. The committee shall, where appropriate, convene in configurations reflecting the specific objectives of the programme. / 3. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.

Article 11 b (new): Article 11b / Monitoring and Reporting / 1. The Commission shall monitor the implementation of the programme and report on its performance and progress towards achieving the specific objectives set out in Article 3. / 2. Performance reporting shall be based on the indicators established in accordance with Regulation (EU) .../...1a+ and any programme-specific indicators defined in this Regulation. / 3. The performance reporting system shall ensure that data for monitoring the implementation and the results of the programme are collected efficiently, effectively and in a timely manner. To that end, proportionate reporting requirements shall be imposed on recipients of Union funds. / 4. Priorities set out in the Annex to this Regulation implementing the specific objectives referred to in point (g) of Article 3(2) of this Regulation shall be implemented in accordance with Articles 13, 14 and 17 of Regulation (EC) No 223/2009. / 1a Regulation (EU) .../... of ... establishing a budget expenditure tracking and performance framework and other horizontal rules for the Union programmes and activities (OJ...). / + OJ: Please insert in the text the number of the Regulation contained in document 2025/0545(COD), and insert the number, date, title and OJ reference of that Regulation in the footnote.

Article 11 c (new): Article 11c / Evaluation / 1. Evaluations of the programme shall be carried out in a timely manner to feed into the decision-making process and improve the quality of implementation. The Commission shall make those evaluations publicly available. / 2. The Commission shall carry out an interim evaluation of the programme once sufficient information on its implementation becomes available, but no later than three years after the start of the programme implementation. The interim evaluation shall assess in particular: / (a) the effectiveness, efficiency, relevance, coherence and Union added value of the programme; / (b) progress towards the achievement of its objectives; / (c) the continued relevance of the priorities and implementation arrangements. / 3. In view of the mid-term review of the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), the interim evaluation shall be accompanied by a set of recommendations based on the evaluations carried out until then with the aim of improving efficiency and effectiveness. Where appropriate, those recommendations shall inform any proposal for a revision of the MFF and shall be implemented during the second half of the period referred to in Article 1. / 4. At the end of the implementation period, and no later than one year after the end of the period referred to in Article 1, the Commission shall carry out a final evaluation of the programme. The final evaluation shall also be accompanied by a set of recommendations to be implemented in the next MFF…