Related links

• Single Programming Documents 10th EDF (OCT)
• Single Programming Documents 9th EDF (OCT)
• OCT-EU Forum

Press releases

• Budget support for Mayotte to boost the economy and livelihoods

EU relations with Overseas Countries and Territories

In detail

Which are the OCTs?

• Anguilla (UK)
• Aruba (NL)
• Bermuda (UK)*
• Bonaire (NL)
• British Antarctic Territory (UK)**
• British Indian Ocean Territory (UK)**
• British Virgin Islands (UK)
• Cayman Islands (UK)
• Curação (NL)***
• Falkland Islands (UK)
• French Polynesia (FR)
• French Southern and Antarctic Territories (FR)**
• Greenland (DK)
• Mayotte (FR) ****
• Montserrat (UK)
• New Caledonia and Dependencies (FR)
• Pitcairn (UK)
• Saba (NL)***
• Saint Barthelemy (FR)
• Sint Eustatius (NL)***
• Sint Maarten (NL)***
• South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands (UK)**
• Saint Helena, Ascension Island, Tristan da Cunha (UK)
• St. Pierre and Miquelon (FR)
• Turks and Caicos Islands (UK)
• Wallis and Futuna Islands (FR)

(*) Bermuda has never applied the association regime.

(**) OCTs, without a permanent local population.

(***) Curação, Sint Maarten, Bonaire, Saba and Sint Eustatius were, up to 10.10.2010 part of the Netherlands Antilles.

(****) Following the accession of Mayotte to the status of "département d’outre-mer" on the 31 March 2011 and according to the Council decision 2012/419/UE of 11 July 2012 amending the status of Mayotte with regard to the European Union, this territory will become an outermost region of the EU as from 1 January 2014.

Some specifics of the OCTs

There are significant differences between the OCTs themselves in terms of the degree of autonomy vis-à-vis the Member States to which they are linked, but also in economic and social indicators, geography and climate.

They do, however, have characteristics in common: none is a sovereign country, they are all islands and parliamentary democracies, the size of their populations is very small and they are extraordinarily ecologically rich compared to continental Europe. All are also relatively vulnerable to external shocks and are, in general, dependent on a narrow economic base mainly revolving around services.

Reference service within the European Commission

Within the European Commission and Directorate-General for Development and Cooperation – EuropeAid, the OCT Task Force coordinates all activities in the sphere of EU/OCT relations. It also has the primary responsibility of implementing the regulatory framework established pursuant the Treaty provisions dedicated to OCT. The OCT Task Force chairs the Commission Inter-Service group on OCTs.

The role of the OCT Task Force is to define, lead and update the association of the OCTs with the EU. It also leads and coordinates the programming of European aid for all OCTs and plans, coordinates and supervises the Directorate-General’s activities and reporting on relations with the OCTs. The OCT Task Force organises and chairs partnership meetings between the Commission’s services, the OCTs and the four Member States to which they are linked (annual OCT-EU Forum, tripartite meetings and partnership working parties).

What form do EU-OCT relations take?

OCTs benefit from agreements in many fields, such as:

• trade – favourable rules of origin and advantageous trade arrangements;
• sustainable development – through greener production and trade, human/social development, cultural and social cooperation;
• regional cooperation/integration – improvement of a free movement of people, goods, services, work and technologies, liberalisation of transfers/payments, sectoral reforms.

Furthermore, there is a constant dialogue between the partners, e.g. through:

• the annual OCT-EU forum (Commission, all OCTs and all the Member States to which they are linked);
• regular tripartite meetings (Commission, all OCTs and the Member States to which they are linked); and
• partnership meetings (Commission, individual OCT and related Member State).

The main legal framework

Under Part IV of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (Articles 198 to 204 TFEU), "the Member States agree to associate with the Union the non-European countries and territories which have special relations with Denmark, France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom" (Article 198). Detailed rules and procedures are provided for by the Council Decision of 27 November 2001 on the association of the OCTs with the European Community and referred to as the Overseas Association Decision (OAD)¹.

The EU also has a comprehensive partnership with Greenland, which is complementary to the OCT association arrangements under the OAD, and based on: (i) the Greenland (Council) Decision of 17 July 2006²; and (ii) the Fisheries Partnership Agreement of 30 July 2006³ between the European Community on the one hand, and the Government of Denmark and the Home Rule Government of Greenland, on the other.

¹Decision 2001/822/EC of the Council of 27 November 2001 on the association of the overseas countries and territories with the European Community, (OJ L 314/1, 30.11.2001) [2 MB] . Decision as amended by Decision 2007/249/EC (OJ L 109/33, 26.04.2007) and Decision 2012/528 (OJ L 264, 29.9.2012)

²Decision 2006/526/EC of 17 July 2006 [45 KB] on relations between the European Community on the one hand, and Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark on the other (OJ L208/8, 2907.2006)

³Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Community on the one hand, and the Government of Denmark and the Home Rule Government of Greenland, on the other hand – Fourth Protocol (OJ L 209/2, 02.08.2001) [257 KB] .

The need to revise the current legal framework

The OAD and the Greenland Decision lay the foundations for the European Commission's policies and strategies towards the OCTs. The OAD and Greenland Decision both expire on 31 December 2013. The European Commission adopted a proposal for a post-2013 Overseas Association Council Decision in July 2012⁴ and a proposal for a Greenland Decision in December 2011⁵, both of which have been transmitted to EU institutions and national Parliaments.

The 2001 Decision has proven to be beneficial for OCTs but is also outdated. Thus, the legislative proposal intends to turn the association into a vehicle via which the EU and the OCTs can address contemporary challenges in a targeted manner.

The Commission's proposal is the result of a long process initiated by the Green Paper on future relations between the EU and the OCTs⁶ on 25 June 2008. A wide public consultation followed between 1 July and 17 October 2008, the outcome of which was subsequently presented in the Commission Communication, "Elements for a new partnership between the EU and the OCTs"⁷. Following its publication, the Council adopted on 22 December 2009⁸ conclusions welcoming "the Commission’s reflections on how to best further develop and strengthen the EU-OCT partnership and foster sustainable development in the OCTs". The essential elements of the new partnership suggested by the European Commission were further discussed in March 2010 at the 9^th OCT-EU Forum which gathered political representatives of the EU, the OCTs and the Member States. At the 10^th OCT-EU Forum in March 2011, the OCTs and the Member States to which they are linked, adopted a Joint Position Paper⁹– a crucial document for the revision of the OAD. At the same time, several studies and evaluations were conducted and provided valuable information.

According to the Commission's proposal, the new EU-OCT association is based on the mutual interest of all parties involved – a core consideration in the reflection and consultation period. The new OAD will provide the legal basis on priority areas for future cooperation with the OCTs. Areas prioritised under the proposal include the environment, trade and regional integration. Its objectives include:

• The establishment of close economic relations between the EU and the OCTs as a whole, amongst others through an improvement of the trade arrangements;
• The establishment of a more reciprocal relationship between EU and OCTs based on mutual interests and shared values;
• The enhancement of OCTs' competitiveness;
• The strengthening of OCTs' resilience and reduction of their vulnerability;
• The promotion of cooperation of OCTs with third partners;
• The promotion of EU's values, standards and interests in the wider world via the OCTs.

The proposal also offers a modernised trade regime that focuses on three main areas: trade in goods, trade in services and cooperation on trade-related issues. The proposed changes are expected to have a positive effect on the OCT trading environment. They will rank OCTs among the EU's most favoured trading partners. not only because of the OCTs' duty- and quota-free access to the EU market for goods, but also because the OCTs will automatically receive better terms of trade in services and establishment. In addition, by changing the conditions under which OCT goods and services access the EU market, it should become easier for OCTs to translate market openings into real export opportunities.

⁴Proposal for a Council Decision on the association of the overseas countries and territories with the European Union (Overseas Association Decision) COM/2012/0362 final [2 MB]

⁵Proposal for a Council Decision on relations between the European Union on the one hand, and Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark on the other COM/2011/0846 final [159 KB]

⁶Commission Green Paper [70 KB] on Future relations between the EU and the Overseas Countries and Territories, COM (2008) 383 final, 25 June 2008.

⁷Commission, Communication on Elements for a new partnership between the EU and the overseas countries and territories (OCTs), COM(2009) 623 final [55 KB] , 6 November 2009

⁸Council's conclusions adopted on 22 December 2009 [92 KB]

⁹Joint Position Paper (28.2.2011) [226 KB]

EU financial support for OCTs

The EU provides financial support for the development strategy of each OCT (set out in a 'single programming document').

Total EU funding for all OCTs for the period 2008-13 is €286 million, through the European Development Fund (EDF):

• €195 million for special programmes (all OCTs with per-capita GNP lower than that of EU)
• €40 million for regional cooperation and integration
• €30 million to finance the European Investment Bank investment facility for OCTs
• €6 million for technical assistance
• €15 million for emergency help.

The OCTs can also get funding under European programmes (e.g. research, education and training, innovation and competitiveness, culture and media, etc.).

Greenland – eligible for funding under the EU general budget – receives around €25 million per year under the Partnership Agreement between the EU, Denmark and Greenland. The Programming Document for the Sustainable Development of Greenland (PDSD) – agreed and signed in 2007 – identifies education and vocational training as the focal sector for cooperation for the period 2007-13.

Territorial Allocations under the 10th EDF
Overseas Country or Territory		indicative allocation (in € million)
New Caledonia		19.81
French Polynesia		19.79
Wallis and Futuna		16.49
Mayotte		22.92
St Pierre et Miquelon		20.74
Aruba		8.88
Former Netherlands Antilles		24
Former Netherlands Antilles	Curaçao	Per island		11.25
	Sint-Maarten			4.75
	Bonaire			3
	Sint-Eustatius			2
	Saba			3
Falkland Islands		4.13
Turks and Caicos		11.85
Anguilla		11.7
Montserrat		15.66
Saint Helena, Ascension Island & Tristan da Cunha		16.63
Pitcairn		2.4
Total		195
Regional Allocations under the 10th EDF
Strand		indicative allocation (in € million)
Technical Assistance to Association of Overseas Countries and Territories		5
Territorial Strategies for Innovation		5
Caribbean strand		15
Pacific strand		12
Indian Ocean		3
Total		40
Humanitarian, Emergency, Refugee Aid & Additional Support
indicative allocation (in EUR million)		15
Investment Facility (EIB)
indicative allocation (in EUR million)		30

Cooperation with Greenland (Budget line 21 07 02) 2007-13

Greenland
indicative allocation (in EUR million)		175 (25 per year)

As for post-2013 funding possibilities for the OCTs, discussions on the next Multiannual Financial framework are on-going. The Commission has tabled its proposal and priorities for the period 2014-20¹⁰, which foresee substantial financial means for the OCTs: €217.8 million under the General Budget for the partnership with Greenland and €343.4 million under the 11th EDF for the other OCTs.

¹⁰Commission Communication on Preparation of the multiannual financial framework regarding the financing of EU cooperation for African, Caribbean and Pacific States and Overseas Countries and Territories for the 2014-2020 period (11th European Development Fund (COM(2011)837) [75 KB] and Commission Communication "A Budget for Europe 2020" (COM(2011)500), Part 1 [113 KB] and Part 2 [435 KB] .