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The codecision procedure was introduced by the Maastricht Treaty on European Union (1992), and extended and made more effective by the Amsterdam Treaty (1999). With the Lisbon Treaty that took effect on 1 December 2009, the renamed ordinary legislative procedure became the main legislative procedure of the EU´s decision-making system.
Ordinary legislative procedure gives the same weight to the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union on a wide range of areas (for example, economic governance, immigration, energy, transport, the environment and consumer protection). The vast majority of European laws are adopted jointly by the European Parliament and the Council.
The Commission sends its proposal to Parliament and the Council.
The general outline of this procedure is as follows:
Usually, it is the Commission which presents a proposal for a legislative act. However, the European Parliament may also adopt a legislative initiative and, in the case of the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice, the proposal may originate either from the Commission or from a quarter of the Member States. A request for adoption of a legislative act may be presented also by the Court of Justice or the European Investment Bank or a recommendation for a legislative act may be proposed by the European Central Bank.
The legislative proposal is presented to the European Parliament and the Council and made available to the parliaments of the Member States.
Within eight weeks, the national parliaments may send to the Presidents of the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission a reasoned opinion on whether a draft legislative act complies with the principle of subsidiarity.
Parliament adopts its position at first reading on the legislative proposal. There is no time limit set for the first reading.
Parliament's rapporteur prepares a draft report which is then discussed within the political groups and amended in the EP committee(s) responsible.
In plenary, Parliament adopts its position by a simple majority. The position may contain amendments to the original legislative proposal.
If the Parliament´s position does not contain any amendments, and if the Council also accepts the original proposal, the act is adopted by the Council by qualified majority, then signed by the Presidents of the European Parliament and of the Council and published in the Official Journal.
If Parliament adopts its position with amendments:
If the Council approves all the amendments and does not change the original proposal otherwise, the act is adopted by the Council by qualified majority and then signed and published.
If the Council does not approve all the amendments or rejects them, it adopts its position by qualified majority, which is then forwarded to Parliament for its second reading. It must provide a full explanation of its reasons for adopting its position. The Commission informs Parliament of its opinion.
At second reading, Parliament examines the Council position. Within a time limit of 3 months (extensible to 4 months) it may:
approve the Council position or take no decision within the time limits. The act is thus deemed adopted and then signed and published;
reject the Council position by an absolute majority of its Members. The procedure is closed definitively;
propose amendments to the Council position by an absolute majority of its members. The Parliament´s position is then submitted to the Council and to the Commission. The Council has 3 months (extensible to 4 months) to act.
Texts which could not be adopted in the first two readings are subject to a conciliation procedure.
A conciliation committee is convened, bringing together representatives of the 27 Member States and an equal number of Members of the European Parliament, grouped in an EP delegation which respects the relative strength of the political groups.
The committee considers the Council position and Parliament’s amendments from the second reading. It has six weeks (extensible to eight weeks) to find a compromise and draw up a joint text.
If the conciliation committee does not agree on a joint text within the agreed time period, the act is deemed not to have been adopted and the procedure is terminated.
If the conciliation committee approves the joint text, it is presented to the Council and Parliament for their approval. The Council and Parliament have six weeks (extensible to eight weeks) to approve it; the Council takes a decision by qualified majority and Parliament by a majority of the votes cast. After both institutions approve the text, it is signed and published.
The (1) Commission presents a legislative proposal to (2) Parliament and the (3) Council simultaneously.
Parliament adopts (4) its position and submits it to the Council
If the Council agrees with the outcome of Parliament’s first reading : (5) the legislative text is adopted
If the (1) Council does not accept Parliament’s first reading position, it draws up its (2) position.
(3) Parliament has 3 months (an extension to 4 months can be requested) to react. It may approve the Council position or take no decision, and the (4) legislative text is adopted in the form of the Council position
Or Parliament may table amendments to the Council position (subject to certain restrictions). In this case :
After an agreement has been reached, the (1) Conciliation Committee adopts a (2) ‘joint text’ based on the Council position and the EP’s second reading amendments.
If the Council and (3) Parliament approve the ‘joint text’ in its entirety, the (4) act is adopted.
If the Conciliation Committee cannot agree on a ‘joint text’, or if Parliament or the Council does not approve it, the (5) act is deemed not to have been adopted.