Commission undecided on legal shape of EU's startup reform
All still to play for as the EU executive's plan for a so-called "28th regime" has not yet settled the directive or regulation question, per a Commission spokesperson
The Commission has not yet made up its mind whether an incoming startup-friendly reform of company founding rules – the so-called 28th regime – will be a directive or a regulation, a spokesperson confirmed on Wednesday.
“It is currently too early to preempt the exact scope or shape that the proposal will take,” the Commission spokesperson said at the EU executive’s daily press briefing today.
The Commission is “considering different legal approaches” for the 28th regime, they told reporters, adding that “the exact legal instrument will be determined by the content of the proposal”.
The remarks follow the publication on Tuesday of the Commission’s 2026 work programme, which sets out a legal basis for the startup reform that points to it being a directive, as we reported earlier.
A leaked draft of the work programme last week quickly triggered an outcry from startup lobby groups and founders – who have been loudly pushing for the 28th regime to be a regulation.
Commission sources familiar with talks surrounding the project have told Euractiv that while discussions are ongoing there is political pressure to present an ambitious proposal that takes the form of a regulation.
The EU’s Startup Commissioner, Ekaterina Zaharieva, openly supported this approach in remarks to Parliament last week.
Last month, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also hinted that the 28th regime will be “something completely new”, rather than just tweak national systems to bring them closer together – which is what a directive would do.
(nl)
