Accession of Serbia to the European Union

Serbia applied to join the European Union (EU) in 2009 and has been a candidate for membership since 2012, along with nine other states. Serbia is the largest country in Southeast Europe seeking entry into the EU.

After initial popular support for Serbia's entry, it has held unfavorable domestic approval with support weakening since 2014. International support for their accession is similarly mixed with concerns over Serbia's claim over Kosovo, regional geopolitical tensions, foreign policy alignment with Russia, and domestic policies. Serbia's issues with democratic backsliding has been identified by the Financial Times as a long-term obstacle to the state's entry into the EU.

Identification
Negotiations with the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (later the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro) intensified following the election defeat and ousting of Slobodan Milošević in 2000, and the EU officially declared the Balkan states potential candidates for membership following the EU-Western Balkans Summit in Thessaloniki on 21 June 2003.

Stabilisation and Association Agreement
On 7 November 2007, Serbia initiated a Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) with the European Union. The SSA came into force on 1 September 2013.

Recommendation
The European Commission recommended making Serbia an official candidate on 12 October 2011. The Council also made the recommendation on 28 February 2012.

Candidacy
Serbia received full candidate status on 1 March 2012. In December 2013, the Council of the European Union approved opening negotiations for Serbia's accession.

Application
Serbia officially applied for European Union membership on 22 December 2009.

Developmental Aid
Until 2020, Serbia had been receiving €2.9bn of developmental aid from the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance, a funding mechanism for EU candidate countries.

Foreign Policy
Serbia refused to join international sanctions against Russia following its 2022 invasion of Ukraine. In response, the European Parliament passed a resolution that stated in part it "strongly regrets Serbia’s non-alignment with EU sanctions against Russia, which damages its EU accession process."

Serbia and Kosovo
The biggest obstacle to Serbia's accession to the EU is its strained relationship with Kosovo, which declared its independence on 17 February 2008. The Serbian government has declared that the status of Kosovo should not be tied to the EU negotiations. In September 2012, the EU Enlargement Commissioner, Štefan Füle, denied that the European Union would insist on Serbia's recognition of Kosovo before it can join the organisation.

On 19 April 2013, the governments of Kosovo and Serbia completed the Brussels Agreement, which was hailed as a major step towards normalising relations and enabled the start of EU accession talks with Serbia. In November 2013, Kosovo's Minister of Foreign Affairs Enver Hoxhaj suggested that the EU should approve the accession of Kosovo and Serbia simultaneously due to concerns that if Serbia was admitted first they could veto Kosovo's membership. However, Serbia's accession negotiations were not halted.

In March 2021, the European Parliament adopted a report on Serbia, which, amongst other things, emphasized that the normalization of relationships between Serbia and Kosovo is "a priority and a requirement for EU accession."

Public opinion
Serbia was initially supportive of accession in the past due to better relationships with countries in the European Union, as well as for economic reasons. In the last decades because of the support of Kosovo's independence by most European countries, the economic crisis, the better relationships with the United States in addition to giving sanctions against Russia during the Russian invasion in Ukraine, support for EU membership went down. Serbia has become more opposed to the Western NATO bloc and prefer better ties and relationships with, for example, Russia for its shared Eastern Orthodox Christian Slavic traditions and China with its large economy and similar soft alliance with Russia.

A February 2024 NSPM poll recorded that 42.8% were for joining the EU, with 36.8% against. The rest were undecided or refused to give the answer. Another poll recorded the question "Would you support joining the EU if recognizing the independence of Kosovo was a condition for joining it?", 76% answered no, compared to 12.2% who said yes.

An October 2023 Smart Plus poll found that if a referendum on joining the EU would take place, 44% would vote in favour of joining the EU, with 30% voting against, 15% undecided and 10% abstaining.

Visa liberalisation process
On 1 January 2008, the Visa Facilitation and Readmission Agreement between Serbia and the EU came into effect. On 19 December 2009, Visa requirements were lifted for Serbs travelling to Schengen countries.