Growing Momentum Behind a New EU-Wide Company Framework

The European Parliament has thrown its support behind plans for a new EU-wide corporate legal framework aimed at enabling faster company creation and facilitating cross-border expansion within the European Union.

Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) approved their report on 20 January, coinciding with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s presentation of the proposed framework, referred to as the “28th regime”, at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

The European Commission is expected to formally present its proposal for the 28th regime in March. Rather than replacing national corporate laws, the initiative is intended to offer an optional, harmonised legal framework that companies can choose to adopt. The goal is to simplify expansion into multiple EU Member States and make it easier to attract cross-border investment.

In addition, MEPs called for targeted measures to strengthen partnerships between companies operating under the EU-wide framework and universities, research organisations, and technology transfer offices. Such collaboration is seen as a key driver for accelerating the commercialisation of research results and boosting Europe’s innovation capacity.