Member States of the European Union

The 27 European states that are members of the European Union (EU) are referred to as member states of the European Union or EU member states, in short: EU member states or EU member states . They are also referred to as union members and, more rarely, union member states .

Member States of the EU

Overview

country Name in local language code 01  Belgium België • Belgique • Belgium BE 02  Bulgaria България BG 03  Denmark Danmark DK 04th  Germany Germany DE 05  Estonia Eesti EE 06th  Finland Suomi • Finland FI 07th  France France FR 08th  Greece Ελλάδα / Ελλάς GR 09  Ireland Éire • Ireland IE 10  Italy Italia IT 11  Croatia Hrvatska MR 12  Latvia Latvija LV 13  Lithuania Lietuva LT 14th  Luxembourg Lëtzebuerg • Luxembourg • Luxembourg LU 15th  Malta Malta MT 16  Netherlands Nederland NL 17th  Austria Austria AT 18th  Poland Polska PL 19th  Portugal Portugal PT 20th  Romania România RO 21st  Sweden Sverige SE 22nd  Slovakia Slovensko SK 23  Slovenia Slovenija SI 24  Spain España IT 25th  Czech Republic Česko CZ 26th  Hungary Magyarország HU 27  Cyprus Κύπρος • Kıbrıs CY Candidate countries  Albania Shqipëria AL  Montenegro Crna Gora • Црна Гора ME  North Macedonia Северна Македонија • Severna Makedonija • Maqedonia e Veriut MK  Serbia Србија • Srbija RS  Turkey Türkiye TR former member  United Kingdom GB

Canarias = Canaries (ES) Mad. = Madeira (PT) GP = Guadeloupe (FR) MQ = Martinique (FR) Açores = Azores (PT) GF = French Guiana (FR) RE = Réunion (FR) YT = Mayotte (FR)

List of Member States

The official designation for statistical measurements are:

• EWG-6: up to and including 1972 (see European Economic Community )
• EG-9: up to and including 1980
• EG-10: up to and including 1985
• EG-12: up to and including 1994 (see European Communities )
• EU-15: up to and including April 2004
• EU-25: up to and including 2006 (see EU enlargement 2004 )
• EU-27_2007 (originally EU-27 ): up to and including June 2013
• EU-28: up to and including January 2020
• EU-27_2020 (partly also EU-27_2019 ): since February 1, 2020 (see UK exit from the EU )

see also EA / Euro-11 to 19 for the Eurozone

By sorting the list according to the year of accession, the individual countries of these statistical groups can be read; for more details see EU enlargement .

Country	ISO 3166 Alpha-2	accession	Capital	Population 2018	Area in km²	Inhabitants / km²	GDP in billion euros 2016	GDP per capita 2016 in euros	GDP per capita in PPS 2016
Belgium	BE	January 1, 1958	Brussels	11,398,589	30,528	373	423,048	37,500	118
Germany	DE	January 1, 1958 (October 3, 1990)	(Bonn) Berlin	82,792,351	357.340	232	3,144.050	38,100	123
France	FR	January 1, 1958	Paris	66.962.166	632.834	106	2,228,857	33,300	104
Italy	IT	January 1, 1958	Rome	60,483,973	302.073	200	1,680,523	27,700	97
Luxembourg	LU	January 1, 1958	Luxembourg	602.005	2,586	233	53.005	90,700	258
Netherlands	NL	January 1, 1958	Amsterdam	17.181.084	41,540	414	702.641	41,300	128
Denmark	DK	1st January 1973	Copenhagen	5,781,190	42,921	135	277,489	48,400	124
Ireland	IE	1st January 1973	Dublin	4,830,392	69,797	69	275.567	58,800	183
Greece	GR	January 1, 1981	Athens	10,741,165	131,957	81	174.199	16,200	68
Portugal	PT	January 1, 1986	Lisbon	10.291.027	92,225	112	185.180	17,900	77
Spain	IT	January 1, 1986	Madrid	46,658,447	505.970	92	1,118,522	24,100	92
Finland	FI	January 1, 1995	Helsinki	5,513,130	338.435	16	215.615	39,200	109
Austria	AT	January 1, 1995	Vienna	8,822,267	83,879	105	353.297	40,400	128
Sweden	SE	January 1, 1995	Stockholm	10.120.242	438,574	23	465.186	46,900	123
Estonia	EE	May 1, 2004	Tallinn	1,319,133	45.227	29	21,098	16,000	75
Latvia	LV	May 1, 2004	Riga	1,934,379	64,573	30th	24.927	12,700	65
Lithuania	LT	May 1, 2004	Vilnius	2,808,901	65,300	43	38.668	13,500	75
Malta	MT	May 1, 2004	Valletta	475.701	316	1,505	9,927	22,700	96
Poland	PL	May 1, 2004	Warsaw	37,976,687	312,679	121	425.980	11,100	68
Slovakia	SK	May 1, 2004	Bratislava	5,443,120	49,035	111	81.154	14,900	77
Slovenia	SI	May 1, 2004	Ljubljana	2,066,880	20,273	102	40,418	19,600	83
Czech Republic	CZ	May 1, 2004	Prague	10.610.055	78,867	135	176.564	16,700	88
Hungary	HU	May 1, 2004	Budapest	9,778,371	93.024	105	113.731	11,600	67
Cyprus	CY	May 1, 2004	Nicosia	864.236	9,251	93	18.123	21,300	83
Bulgaria	BG	January 1, 2007	Sofia	7,050,034	111.002	64	48.129	6,800	49
Romania	RO	January 1, 2007	Bucharest	19,530,631	238.391	82	169.578	8,600	58
Croatia	MR	July, 1st 2013	Zagreb	4,105,493	56,594	73	46.382	11,100	60
European Union	EU	-	Brussels	446.141.649	4,215,191	106	12,511.874	29,100 *	100 *

* outdated data including the UK

Notes on the list

1. ↑ Originally the abbreviation EU-27 referred to the 27 member states before the accession of Croatia. Since this designation is not clear due to the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the EU (Brexit), the Statistical Office of the European Union (Eurostat) has decided to use the designation EU-27_2007. In the Eurostat databases, this change will take effect on 3 March 2020.
2. ↑ For the 27 EU member states remaining after Brexit, the designation EU-27_2019 was initially chosen with regard to the planned exit date. However, since the exit did not take place until 2020, the name EU-27_2020 results. In the Eurostat databases, this change will take effect on 3 March 2020.

Candidate countries (candidate countries)

→ Main article : Candidate countries for the European Union

code	country	Capital	population 2017	Area in km²	GDP 2013 (billion euros)	GDP per capita in PPS 2013 ( euros )	GDP per capita in PPS 2016 (EU28 = 100)	status
AL	Albania	Tirana	2,886,026	28,748	21.7	7,800	29	Candidate status since June 24, 2014
MK	North Macedonia	Skopje	2,073,702	25,713	18.7	9,000	37	Candidate status since December 17, 2005
ME	Montenegro	Podgorica	622,387	13,812	6.7	10,700	45	Accession negotiations since June 29, 2012 (3 of 33 chapters closed, 33 opened)
RS	Serbia	Belgrade	7,040,272	77,474	66.5	9,300	37	Accession negotiations since January 21, 2014 (2 of 34 chapters closed, 18 opened)
TR	Turkey	Ankara	79.814.871	779.452	1,067.8	14,100	64	Accession negotiations since October 3, 2005 (1 of 33 chapters closed, 18 opened, 8 suspended)

Other potential candidate countries are Bosnia and Herzegovina (application for membership submitted on February 15, 2016) and Kosovo .   

Special areas

→ Main article : Territory of the European Union

Some areas that belong to or are administered by EU states have a special legal status vis-à-vis the European Union. In many cases these are overseas and former colonial areas.

Overseas territories of Member States that are wholly part of the EU

Some EU member states have overseas territories, which, however, are fully integrated into their state structure and do not have any special role vis-à-vis the EU. They have the same status as other regions in mainland Europe. It refers to:

• Portuguese Autonomous Regions:
  • Azores ( North Atlantic )
  • Madeira (North Atlantic)
• Spanish Autonomous Region:
  • Canary Islands (Atlantic)

Territories that belong to the EU but not to the customs union

Some areas belong to EU member states and are also part of the EU, but do not take part in the internal market and do not belong to the customs territory of the EU, but mostly to the euro zone (marked with *)

• the German communities of Helgoland * and Büsingen on the Upper Rhine *
• the French overseas departments:
  • French Guiana ( South America ) *
  • Guadeloupe ( Caribbean ) *
  • Martinique (Caribbean) *
  • Mayotte ( Indian Ocean ) *
  • Réunion (Indian Ocean) *
• the French overseas authority Saint-Martin (Caribbean) *
• the Spanish areas of Ceuta and Melilla ( exclaves on the Moroccan Mediterranean coast) *
• the Greek Mount Athos *
• the Italian municipality of Livigno *. (Until December 31, 2019 also Campione d'Italia and the Italian part of Lake Lugano )
• the Finnish archipelago of Åland *

Associated areas

Some overseas territories of EU member states are associated with the European Union as overseas countries and sovereign territories within the meaning of Part 4 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union , but are not part of it. In these countries and territories only individual aspects of European law apply , e.g. B. sporadic membership of the Eurozone (marked with *)

• French territories:
  • French Polynesia (Pacific)
  • French Southern and Antarctic Lands (Indian Ocean)
  • New Caledonia (Pacific)
  • Saint-Barthélemy (Caribbean) *
  • Saint-Pierre and Miquelon (North Atlantic) *
  • Wallis and Futuna (Pacific)
• Dutch areas:
  • Aruba (Caribbean)
  • Curaçao (Caribbean)
  • Sint Maarten (Caribbean)
  • Caribbean Netherlands = Bonaire , Sint Eustatius and Saba (Caribbean)
• Danish autonomous area:
  • Greenland (North Atlantic, left the EC in 1985)

Areas that do not belong to the EU

Some other areas are represented in foreign policy by EU member states, but do not belong to the territory of the EU and are not associated with it:

• Faroe Islands as a Danish autonomous region (was never part of the EC)
• Algeria (from 1957 to 1962 as a colony of France, member of the EC)

European dwarf states

European mini states with special EU legal status

The EU maintains special and intensive relationships with the European miniature states. Each small state is fully independent , but is in a customs and currency union with a neighboring country, which itself maintains close ties to the EU, either through its own membership or through bilateral agreements . As a result, the dwarf state also benefits from the EU customs regulations , although Liechtenstein has special regulations due to the customs union with Switzerland . Apart from Liechtenstein, the dwarf states have been using the euro as their currency unit since 2002 ; Andorra , Monaco , San Marino and Vatican City have their own euro coins. Nevertheless, these states are not members of the EU:

European small states

Small state	Customs and Monetary Union with
Principality of Andorra	Kingdom of Spain
Principality of Liechtenstein	Swiss Confederation
Principality of Monaco	French Republic
Republic of San Marino	Italian Republic
Vatican City State	Italian Republic

Often counted among the European dwarf states , Malta has been a full member of the EU since the EU was enlarged in 2004 . Luxembourg, which is also very small, is a founding member of the EU's predecessor, the European Economic Community (EEC).

See also

Portal: European Union  - Overview of Wikipedia content on the subject of the European Union

• List of the governments of the states of the European Union

literature

• Andreas von Gehlen: Party democracies. To legitimize the EU member states through political parties . De Gruyter Oldenbourg, Berlin / Boston 2017, ISBN 978-3-11-056412-9 .
• Armin von Bogdandy , Pedro Cruz Villalón , Peter M. Huber (eds.): Handbuch Ius Publicum Europaeum :
  • Volume 1. Diana Zacharias, Leonard Besselink: Basics and basic features of state constitutional law . CF Müller, Heidelberg 2007, ISBN 978-3-8114-3541-4 .
  • Volume 2. Diana Zacharias, Stanisław Biernat: Open statehood; Science of Constitutional Law . CF Müller, Heidelberg 2007, ISBN 978-3-8114-6301-1 .
  • Volume 3. Diana Zacharias, Jean-Bernard Auby: Administrative Law in Europe: Basics . CF Müller, Heidelberg 2010, ISBN 978-3-8114-9808-2 .
• Constitutions of the EU member states . Text edition, introduction and subject index by Adolf Kimmel and Christiane Kimmel (dtv 5554: Beck texts in dtv ). 6th, updated edition, dtv / Beck, Munich 2005, ISBN 3-423-05554-5 (dtv) / ISBN 3-406-53461-9 (Beck).

Web links

• Official website of the European Union on the common online portal of the EU institutions and bodies (europa.eu), managed bythe European Commission's Directorate-General for Communication (COMM).

Individual evidence

1. ↑ See an overview of all EU countries (here for the individual countries: EU member states ), The EU - in brief (here: (EU) member states, member states ), search for member states ; European Union website, accessed June 22, 2019.
2. ↑ Glossary: ​​EU enlargements and Glossary: ​​Euro area enlargements , both Eurostat, epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu
3. ↑ ^{a b} European Commission> Eurostat> Help> Frequently asked questions> Brexit. Retrieved February 3, 2020 . 
4. ↑ Eurostat , Population on 1st January. As of 2018.
5. ↑ Eurostat: Area by NUTS 3 Region. Status 2014.
   Note: In addition to the eponymous data set for the NUTS 3 level, the Eurostat source also contains aggregated data for NUTS 2, NUTS 1 and the relevant national level NUTS 0).
6. ↑ ^{a b} Eurostat , gross domestic product at market prices. As of December 20, 2017, accessed on January 3, 2018.
7. ↑ Eurostat , GDP per capita in PPS. As of December 1, 2017, accessed on January 3, 2018.
8. ↑ This population information is for the entire French Republic.
9. ↑ According to the World Fact Book of the CIA, the area of ​​the entire French Republic is 643,801 km², which is about 11,000 km² above the Eurostat value. According to the Foreign Office, the area of ​​the " French metropolitan area " without overseas islands and territories is 543,965 km² , according to the CIA 551,500 km² .
10. ↑ Sweden without the four great lakes Vänern, Vättern, Mälaren and Hjälmaren.
11. ↑ Eurostat , Population on 1st January (as of 2017, accessed on 3rd January 2018)
12. ↑ Gross domestic product in PPS List of countries based on gross domestic product data from 2013
13. ↑ Gross domestic product per capita in PPS List of countries according to gross domestic product per capita data from 2013
14. ↑ Eurostat , GDP per capita in PPS (as of December 1, 2017, accessed on January 3, 2018)
15. ↑ www.tagesspiegel.de
16. ↑ Delegation of the European Union in Liechtenstein, the Principality of Liechtenstein and the EU ; see also resolution of the EEA Council No. 1/95 of March 10, 1995 on the entry into force of the EEA Agreement for the Principality of Liechtenstein .