European Union

European laws must be either implemented in full (in the case of Regulations) or transposed into Dutch law (in the case of Directives). The Netherlands receives grants from the EU each year and makes annual financial contributions to the EU budget.

The Netherlands Court of Audit regularly audits how the money that the Netherlands receives from and pays to the European Union is spent. We examine whether European grants are spent in accordance with the rules, and whether they are effective. And we audit what is known about problems implementing EU regulations in the Netherlands. We also assess whether the Dutch government provides a proper account of the way in which EU grants are spent.

Our EU web pages highlight three main themes. Each theme centres on a number of questions. Click on a question to view the answer. Our EU landing page also lists all our audits involving the EU.

Questions on…

Financial flows to and from the EU:

• How much does the Netherlands pay into the EU budget and how much does it receive?
• Does the Netherlands spend EU grants in accordance with the rules?
• What are the benefits of EU grants for the Netherlands?
• How will Brexit affect the Netherlands?

EU policy:

• How do the Netherlands comply with EU law?

• How does the EU ensure that its member states keep their budgets in check?

• What is the European banking union and will it prevent a future banking crisis?

• Have the European emergency funds achieved their objectives, and when will the loans be repaid?

• How has the EU responded to the COVID-19 crisis and what is the impact on the Netherlands?

• What measures has the EU taken in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine?

Institutional aspects:

• How is the EU organised and what mechanisms exist for democratic control and accountability for EU policy?

• Who are our European partners, and how do we work together?

Latest update 15 June 2023.

Information on this website is derived from public sources. Hyperlinks to the relevant sources have been placed on the relevant pages. The Court of Audit updates the web pages and checks the hyperlinks four times a year. The date of the latest update is shown on the landing page, Frequently used sources are:

• The Netherlands Court of Audit’s website for references to its audits.
• The European Court of Auditors’ website for references to its audits.
• The websites of other supreme audit institutions in the EU for references to their audits.
• The websites of the European Commission, the European Council and the European Parliament for information on and references to specific EU policies.
• The House of Representatives’ website for relevant parliamentary documents.

Information and publications have also been retrieved from the websites of the Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis (CPB), the Council of State, the European Central Bank (ECB), the Single Resolution Board (SRB) and the European Stability Mechanism (ESM).