Die Kriterien der EU für die Binnenmarktteilnahme von Nicht-Mitgliedstaaten

The EU’s criteria for the participation of non-member states in the internal market The project was initially entitled “The Principle of Homogeneity in EU Association Agreements”. The starting point was the idea that homogeneity is arguably the most important methodological principle in the EEA Agreement. The aim is to ensure that the legal framework and interpretation of the internal market — which has expanded to include the three EFTA states of Liechtenstein, Iceland, and Norway — are as uniform as possible. In practice, however, it has become apparent that the concept of homogeneity is anything but clear. In the meantime, a French dissertation entitled “L’Espace économique européen: recherche sur l’homogénéité au regard du droit de l’intégration européenne” has been published, covering a similar area to the originally intended research project. While there is still plenty of scope for independent work alongside this dissertation, it was decided to shift the focus slightly.

Under the new working title, a comparative perspective will be adopted. The elements theoretically required by the EU Commission, including the principle of homogeneity, will be compared with the provisions of various association agreements, including the EEA Agreement and the EU’s treaties with Switzerland, Andorra, San Marino, and so on. The aim is to develop a theory of internal market participation for non-EU member states.