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REPORT (COM(2025)0123 – C100063/2025 – 2025/0084(COD))

On the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulations (EU) 2021/1058 and (EU) 2021/1056 as regards specific measures to address strategic challenges in the context of the mid-term review

A-10-2025-0129

Committee on Regional Development · Rapporteur: Dragoş Benea

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Parliament's amended version of the proposed regulation amends cohesion policy rules to address strategic challenges, adding new specific objectives for defence, civil preparedness, housing, water, energy, and public services, and increasing pre-financing and co-financing rates.

Committee position. The Committee on Regional Development proposes to amend the Commission proposal to broaden the scope of new specific objectives, increase flexibility for regions, and add safeguards for rule of law and local authorities.

Key points

  1. Adds new specific objectives for ERDF and Cohesion Fund: defence capabilities, civil preparedness, affordable and sustainable housing, water resilience, energy interconnectors, long-duration storage, and public services in rural areas.
  2. Allows 100% co-financing and 30% exceptional pre-financing for dedicated priorities supporting these objectives, with pre-financing paid if programme amendment submitted by 31 December 2025.
  3. Extends eligibility for productive investments in non-SMEs to less developed and transition regions, and to more developed regions in Member States with GDP below EU-27 average, while preserving focus on SMEs.
  4. Allows ERDF support for IPCEI projects in all regions, prioritising less developed regions, and for projects with Sovereignty Seal or in PCI/PMI lists.
  5. Removes the ban on ERDF support for greenhouse gas emission reduction from activities listed in Annex I to Directive 2003/87/EC, and deletes the proposed exception for Sovereignty Seal fossil fuel projects.
  6. Increases additional pre-financing to 4.5% (9.5% for NUTS2 regions bordering Russia, Belarus, Ukraine) for programmes reallocating at least 10% of resources to new priorities, and extends eligibility deadline to 31 December 2030.
  7. Requires consent of local and regional authorities for reallocations from integrated territorial development, and excludes suspended commitments from programme amendments.
  8. Adds provisions for confidentiality derogations for defence-related operations and for Commission implementing acts on reform eligibility criteria.
  9. For the Just Transition Fund, allows support for productive investments in non-SMEs only if necessary for job creation in the territory, and adds support for long-duration storage and recharging infrastructure.
  10. Deletes the proposed exclusion of fossil fuel investments from JTF, and deletes the provision allowing costs of reforms not linked to investments.
  11. Allows Member States to count amounts for new strategic priorities towards thematic concentration requirements, with flexibility for climate contribution calculation.
  12. Calls for ex post impact assessment of new measures and for future major amendments to be preceded by impact assessment.

Who is affected

  • Member states and regions, especially those bordering Russia, Belarus, or Ukraine, can access higher co-financing and pre-financing for defence and resilience investments.
  • Local and regional authorities gain more say in reallocations and benefit from simplified procedures for urban and innovative actions.
  • SMEs and regional clusters in dual-use technologies, cybersecurity, and AI are prioritised for defence-related investments.
  • Beneficiaries of defence-related operations are exempt from certain transparency requirements for security reasons.

Figures and deadlines

  • 30% exceptional one-off pre-financing for dedicated priorities, paid within 60 days of approval, if amendment submitted by 31 December 2025.
  • 100% maximum co-financing rate for dedicated priorities and for programmes in NUTS2 regions bordering Russia, Belarus, or Ukraine.
  • 4.5% additional pre-financing in 2026, increased to 9.5% for border regions, for programmes reallocating at least 10% of resources.
  • Eligibility deadline extended to 31 December 2030 for programmes reallocating at least 10% of resources.
  • Front-loading of payments estimated at EUR 3.6 billion in 2026.

Legal basis: Article 294(2) and Articles 175, 177, 178 and 322 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union