The Problem
On 1 April 2026, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine approved the National Programme for the Adaptation of Ukrainian Legislation to European Union LawIt is worth noting that Measure 2 of Strategic Outcome 5 of the section ‘Policy Development and Coordination’ of the Roadmap on Public Administration Reform provides that the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopts a draft law approving the National Adaptation Programme. (EU acquis) (hereinafter – the National Adaptation Programme). The document comprises 1,875 tasks, providing for the implementation of more than 1,600 EU legal acts. Ukraine has set the ambitious goal of fully completing legislative adaptation by 2027, taking into account possible transitional periods. For Parliament, this means adopting almost 300 laws envisaged by the National Adaptation Programme.
At the same time, the Rules of Procedure of the Verkhovna Rada contain no separate procedure for processing and adopting draft laws aimed at adapting Ukrainian legislation to European Union law (the EU acquis). Moreover, neither the concept of a European integration draft law nor exhaustive criteria for defining one have been established in legislation.
In the absence of a dedicated procedure for adopting European integration draft laws, their priority consideration is not guaranteed, which may delay the adoption of laws needed to fulfil Ukraine’s European integration commitments. The lack of a legally defined status for European integration draft laws, and of requirements applying to them, complicates the systematic review of draft laws for compliance with EU law.
Developing, adopting and implementing legislation on a dedicated procedure for preparing, initiating, considering and adopting European integration draft laws is one of the Verkhovna Rada’s commitments under the Roadmap on the Functioning of Democratic Institutions. The deadline for this measure was set for the fourth quarter of 2025, yet a separate procedure for adopting European integration laws has still not been established.
MPs have registered several legislative initiatives to address this problem, but none has been considered at a plenary sitting of Parliament. The regulation of procedures for considering European integration draft laws currently remains fragmentary.
Legislative Framework for Adopting European Integration Laws
For a long time, the key piece of specialised legislation was the Law of Ukraine ‘On the State Programme for Adaptation of Ukrainian Legislation to the Legislation of the European Union’. This law sets out no separate requirements for adopting European integration laws, but it does provide for the examination of draft laws submitted to Parliament for compliance with the EU acquis at every stage of consideration. However, the law has not been amended in connection with Ukraine’s EU accession process: although it remains formally in force, it is effectively inoperative.
After Ukraine obtained candidate status, Parliament adopted Resolution No. 2483-IX ‘On Certain Measures to Fulfil Ukraine’s Commitments in the Field of European Integration’, which introduced some additional tools for adopting European integration laws.
The Resolution designates the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine as the principal initiator of European integration draft laws, although in practice most draft laws aimed at European integration — and marked as such on the draft law’s registration card — have been registered by MPsAs of 01.06.2026, 268 draft laws defined as European integration draft laws had been registered in the Verkhovna Rada. Of these, 153 were registered by MPs, 104 by the Government and 11 by the President.. Draft laws initiated by MPs account for more than half of all European integration laws adopted.
The adopted National Adaptation Programme designates ministries and central executive authorities as responsible for drafting laws. They submit draft laws to the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine no later than six months before the date set by the National Adaptation Programme for their adoption by Parliament. In other words, the Government allows a minimum of six months for completing all internal procedures within the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine (inter-ministerial approval of the draft law, the conduct of examinations, and so on) and for the Verkhovna Rada to adopt the draft law — which, given the slowdown in Parliament’s work, may be insufficient.
The National Adaptation Programme also provides that, when drafting laws, ministries and central executive authorities must ensure cooperation with parliamentary committees and MPs, in particular by presenting and discussing the concepts of such draft laws at meetings of the relevant committees.
A separate instrument intended to give weight to European integration draft laws is the Legislative Work Plan of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, which is meant to ensure coordination between Parliament and the Government. For example, the Legislative Work Plan for 2026 contains a separate section listing the European integration draft laws that need to be adoptedIt contains 160 draft laws (41% of the total number of draft laws in the Legislative Work Plan for 2026).. Under this Plan, parliamentary committees were expected to ensure the priority consideration of European integration draft laws. However, the Legislative Work Plan is not a particularly effective planning instrument (for example, Parliament fully implemented only 12% of the 2024 Plan): neither the Government nor Parliament takes it into account in its work.
Since the Rules of Procedure of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine do not establish separate procedures for adopting European integration draft laws, MPs consider them under the ordinary procedure. The Rules of Procedure allow the use of accelerated proceduresFor example, shortening the deadline for submitting alternative draft laws, or shortening the deadline for submitting amendments and proposals for the second reading. that speed up the consideration of laws. During the 15th sessionThe 15th session of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine of the 9th convocation began on 03.02.2026., such procedures were not applied to European integration laws. The Rules of Procedure also allow laws to be adopted as a whole at first reading. During the 15th session, the Verkhovna Rada adopted eight European integration laws, seven of which went throughOne law concerned Ukraine’s accession to the Convention on International Access to Justice. The Verkhovna Rada adopts decisions on the ratification or denunciation of international treaties at first reading, both as a basis and as a whole. the full two-reading procedure.
While the European integration procedure is still not enshrined in the legislation, the Verkhovna Rada is attempting to introduce fragmented innovations through its resolutions.
Resolution No. 2483-IX (adopted in 2022) introduces innovations such as an additional examination of a European integration draft law before the second and subsequent readings, and provides that committees must take into account tables of the draft law’s compliance with EU law as well as the official translation of EU legislation.
Resolution No. 2483-IX also gives preference to considering European integration draft laws under the two-reading procedure. A European integration draft law may be adopted only where there is a positive opinion from the examination conducted by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine. Given the provisions on additional discussionResolution No. 2483-IX provides for the floor to be given to a representative of the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the European Union and, at the chair’s discretion, to a representative of the main committee responsible for adapting Ukrainian legislation to the provisions of European Union law (the EU acquis) and for fulfilling Ukraine’s international legal obligations in the field of European integration., Resolution No. 2483-IX is aimed more at the thorough preparation and consideration of a draft law than at an accelerated procedure for its adoption.
In June 2026, the Verkhovna Rada adopted another resolution, No. 4912-IX ‘On Parliamentary Support for the Negotiation Process on Ukraine’s Accession to the European Union’[20]. This Resolution additionally requires the Cabinet of Ministers to inform Verkhovna Rada committees of the outcomes of consultations with the European Union on the content of draft laws being prepared for registration in the Verkhovna Rada, as well as of legislative initiatives already registered.
Resolution No. 4912-IX also provides that draft laws submitted by the Government to implement the National Adaptation Programme are granted ‘European integration’ status. In addition, other draft laws (including alternative onesThe Rules of Procedure of the Verkhovna Rada provide that draft laws are considered alternative where they contain provisions regulating the same range of issues and, in essence, replicate provisions governing the same social relations.) relating to Ukraine’s fulfilment of its European integration commitments may be granted such status by decision of the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the European Union.
Legislative Initiatives on a Separate Procedure for Adopting European Integration Laws
Several draft laws proposing to regulate the process of adopting European integration laws have been registered in the Verkhovna Rada.
In November 2022, the leadership of the Verkhovna Rada registered Draft Law No. 8242, which provides for a special procedure for considering European integration draft laws. Under this draft law, European integration draft laws are placed on the agenda without an additional vote and are subject to higher requirements for their supporting documents (such as the inclusion of a translation of the relevant EU legislation and a clause-by-clause compliance table). Draft Law No. 8242 gives priority to applying the two-reading procedure when considering European integration draft laws, and allows the text of draft laws to be revised between readings to reflect the comments set out in the opinions of the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the European Union, the Government, and the expert and legal units of the Verkhovna Rada Secretariat. The main committeeThe main committee responsible for the preparation and preliminary consideration of Draft Law No. 8242 is the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Parliamentary Ethics and Administration of Verkhovna Rada’s Work. issued an opinion recommending that the Verkhovna Rada adopt this draft law as a basis, but it was not considered at a plenary sitting.
In August and September 2025, MPs registered Draft Law No. 13653 and an alternative to it, Draft Law No. 13653-1. Both draft laws propose amending not only the Rules of Procedure of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, but also the Laws of Ukraine ‘On the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine’ and ‘On the Committees of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine’.
There are conceptual differences between the two draft laws. Draft Law No. 13653 envisages a leading role for the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, which approves the National Adaptation Programme and acts as the principal initiator of adaptation draft laws, as well as an accelerated procedure for adopting draft laws. The alternative, Draft Law No. 13653-1, by contrast, strengthens the role of the parliamentary Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the European Union in determining the status of such initiatives and allows for broader participation by MPs.
| Draft Law No. 13653 | Draft Law No. 13653-1 |
| Establishes a special procedure for considering adaptation draft laws — that is, draft laws aimed at adapting Ukrainian legislation to European Union law (the EU acquis). | Establishes a special procedure for considering European integration draft laws: adaptation draft laws and other draft laws relating to the fulfilment of European integration commitments. |
| Establishes identical requirements for the supporting documents accompanying adaptation draft laws for all legislative initiators. They must submit a comprehensive assessment of compliance with Ukraine’s European integration commitments, information on the timeline and implementation plan for the draft law, a clause-by-clause compliance table, a list of secondary legislation required to implement the law, the translated text of the relevant EU legal act, and so on. If a submitted adaptation draft law does not meet the requirements of the Rules of Procedure, it will not be considered by the Verkhovna Rada until it is brought into compliance. | Establishes different requirements for the supporting documents accompanying European integration draft laws for different legislative initiators. MPs submit a general assessment of compliance with Ukraine’s European integration commitments. The Government and the President, by contrast, must also submit a clause-by-clause compliance table, a list of secondary legislation required to implement the law, and so on. |
| The Secretariat of the Verkhovna Rada assigns a special ‘European integration’ mark to adaptation draft laws that comply with the requirements of the Rules of Procedure. As regards other draft laws, the relevant committee or the Government may recognise a draft law as one containing adaptation provisions. However, the Verkhovna Rada will not consider such a draft law until the legislative initiator brings the supporting documents into compliance with the requirements of the Rules of Procedure. | The Secretariat of the Verkhovna Rada assigns a special ‘European integration’ mark to adaptation draft laws that comply with the requirements of the Rules of Procedure. As regards other draft laws, the relevant committee may mark a draft law as a European integration draft law — at the Government’s request or on its own initiative — if the draft law relates to European integration obligations. The committee may also determine that a draft law does not qualify as a European integration draft law. |
| Allows MPs to submit proposals on a draft law within seven days of receiving it (before the first reading). | Allows MPs to submit proposals on a draft law within seven days after it has been reviewed by the main committee (before the first reading). |
| Establishes a shorter period (seven days) for committees and structural units of the Secretariat to provide expert opinions. | Establishes shorter periods (14 days) for committees and structural units of the Secretariat to provide expert opinions. In addition, the main committee is required to address the comments contained in the opinions of the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the European Union. |
At the same time, both draft laws shorten the deadlines for submitting alternative draft laws as well as the deadlines for committees to provide their opinions. Both also propose introducing two routes for considering draft laws aimed at European integration: (1) an accelerated route (at first reading), where there are no comments from the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the European Union and the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine; and (2) the two-reading procedure. Where a draft law is considered under the two-reading procedure, MPs may table amendments and proposals for the second reading only with a justification of how they relate to European integration commitments. The Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the European Union and the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine prepare an expert opinion on a draft law that has been prepared for the second or repeat second reading.
Both draft laws also include a provision repealing the 2004 Law of Ukraine ‘On the State Programme for Adaptation of Ukrainian Legislation to the Legislation of the European Union’.
At the same time, these draft laws do not strike a balance between the speed and the quality of considering European integration draft laws. Draft Law No. 13653 provides that, at one stage of consideration, the Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the European Union must deliver its expert opinion within three days. This period may prove insufficient for providing an expert opinion, particularly for large draft laws and given the committee’s overall workload. Another shortcoming of the draft is the requirement to ‘add’ supporting documents to a draft law if it is recognised as a European integration draft law after registration. In that case, the speed of considering and adopting the draft law will depend on the legislative initiator’s capacity to carry out a swift assessment of compliance with EU law and to prepare a clause-by-clause compliance table.
These draft laws have still not been considered by the main committeeThe committee designated for the preparation and preliminary consideration is the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Parliamentary Ethics and Administration of Verkhovna Rada’s Work. and therefore cannot be brought to a plenary sitting.
Recommendations
- The Verkhovna Rada should develop a new draft law, or refine the existing ones, on introducing a separate accelerated procedure for adopting European integration draft laws. It should establish exhaustive criteria for defining draft laws as European integration draft laws, as well as requirements for the supporting documents accompanying such draft laws.
- For a separate European integration procedure, the abuse of accelerated procedures for considering draft laws must not be permitted. Minimum periods should be set to allow sufficient time for MPs to review draft laws and for the committees and the structural units to provide examination opinions. These periods should take into account the real capacity of the committees and the structural units of the Verkhovna Rada Secretariat to process the text of a draft law.
- At the same time, the mere existence of such a procedure does not guarantee the swift processing and consideration of European integration draft laws. A significant proportion of European integration initiatives are still pending under review of the main committees, despite the current provision on their priority processing.
This infobrief was compiled with the support of the International Renaissance Foundation. Its content is the exclusive responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily reflect the views of the International Renaissance Foundation.
