European Citizens’ Initiative

It has been a busy year for the European Citizens’ Initiative, with 11 new registered initiatives and 8 opening for signature collection, many activities spreading the word to citizens across the EU (for example by launching the CitizenCentral podcast featuring real stories behind initiatives), and more.

As the year comes to a close, we’d like to thank everyone who has helped support the European Citizens' Initiative grow this year: the organisers – past and present – who share their passion for the causes they care about and the desire to help every European participate in democracy. To the supporters – who sign ECIs and help spread the word. To the teams of people behind the scenes – at the EU institutions, ECI Forum, ECI Ambassadors and partners, and those in the individual campaigns. Thank you!

We wish you all a happy and healthy holiday period, time with your loved ones, and a great start to 2022. We look forward to what the new year will bring, including the 10th Anniversary of the ECI!

Stay safe and #EUTakeTheInitiative!

The European Commission decided to register a new ECI on 14 December: Green VAT - An EU Green VAT to stimulate sustainable and eco-friendly products and services’. Organisers have formulated the objectives of the initiative as follows: “Reducing the VAT rate for green products and services”.

Organisers call on the Commission to initiate tax reductions for ecological, sustainably produced and environmentally friendly products in Europe, so that all Member States could actively support climate and environmental protection. This is the 11th citizens’ initiative registered in 2021. Organisers have 6 months to start signature collection.

The Commission also decided to refuse the registration of the “EVE initiative for the creation of the right to decision”. Despite the two-stage procedure applied, which allows the organisers to modify their objectives, the initiative was not admissible, as it would call for a Treaty modification. The ECI Regulation however only allows that initiatives invite the Commission, within the framework of its powers, to propose legal acts to implement the Treaties.

A new episode of the CitizenCentral podcast is out! Our host speaks with organisers from the ‘Reclaim your face’, and ‘Universal Basic Income’ initiatives. We also crisscross Europe to hear from a technology ethics specialist, the European Policy Centre, and more!

Tune in and discover the podcast on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Spotify, and SoundCloud. Subscribe and share CitizenCentral today!

The organisers of European citizens’ initiatives are obliged to inform the European Commission of the number of collected statements of support (both online and on paper) at least every two months. This information is then made visible on our website.

Congratulations to those organisers whose initiatives reached certain milestones recently, based on their reported signature collection figures. (This information will be updated and shared regularly).

• Over 400,000:

- Stop finning, Stop the Trade

• Over 300,000:

- Save cruelty free cosmetics – commit to a Europe without animal testing

• Over 200,000:

- Right to Cure

• Over 150,000:

- Start Unconditional Basic Incomes (UBI) throughout the EU

• Over 100,000:

- Ban Fossil Fuel Advertising and Sponsorships

• Over 60,000:

- Civil society initiative for a ban on biometric mass surveillance practices (Reclaim your face)

If you’d like to support any of the ongoing initiatives, please visit our website.

Looking for financial support for projects on citizens’ participation? Then, the citizens engagement and participation call is what you are looking for! This is another big call of the CERV (Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values) programmes with 17 million available to fund projects of transnational partnerships and networks directly involving citizens.

Deadline to apply is 10 February 2022.

Having sufficient resources is an important factor to turn your initiative into a success. Indicating the sources of your funding is equally important. Therefore, Darragh Power (Democracy International) explains how to base an initiative on solid finances and how to report it correctly. Learn from his blog on the ECI Forum.

The Discuss section of the European Citizens' Initiative Forum is the place for citizens to exchange views on matters related to the ECI. Learn about the latest issues and share your own ideas here.

How often do I need to report on financial support for my ECI campaign? In addition to when you register your initiative, organisers also need to report every two months the financial or non-financial support received.

Financial support above €500 per sponsor and non-financial support (such as in-kind donations) needs to be reported.

Check out our extensive FAQ page to learn more about the European Citizens’ Initiative. And hop on over to the ECI Forum – a peer-to-peer space to exchange ideas and help citizens’ initiatives succeed.