2026 EU budget deal: EP boosts research, competitiveness and security

On Saturday morning, negotiators from the European Parliament and the Council reached a provisional agreement on the 2026 EU Budget, before the deadline of the conciliation period.

Negotiators agreed to set the overall level of commitment appropriations for 2026 (legal promises to pay in the same year or later) at €192.8 billion, and payment appropriations (actual payments made to beneficiaries) at €190.1 billion. The provisional agreement restores €1.3 billion cut by EU governments to the levels originally proposed by the Commission on commitment appropriations.

Parliament secured additional funding for key EU programmes

Parliament successfully negotiated an additional €372.7 million in funding beyond the Commission’s initial proposal, focusing on programmes and policies aimed at improving people’s lives, boosting competitiveness, and addressing defence challenges. Detailed figures will be available in due course.

Research and infrastructure

MEPs secured an increase of allocations for Horizon Europe by €20 million and transport and energy networks by €23.5 million in order to boost competitiveness, job-creation and cross-border infrastructure. MEPs strengthened support for education by adding €3 million to the Erasmus+ programme.

Agriculture and environment

The EU’s environment and climate action instrument, the LIFE programme, will receive an additional €10 million in funding, while the EU4Health programme will benefit from a further €3 million. In line with Parliament’s priorities, and to create new opportunities, particularly for young farmers, funding for measures promoting European agricultural products under the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund has been increased by €105 million. This increase was made possible by higher-than-expected revenue and carried-over funds.

Response capabilities and military mobility

Parliament secured an additional €10 million to the Civil Protection Mechanism and RescEU to improve coordination and disaster response in light of the increasing frequency of natural disasters. Playing an essential role in the EU’s defence preparedness, military mobility gets an additional €10 million funding. MEPs also ensured that border management will be reinforced with an additional €10 million.

Geopolitical instability, global crises

Parliament pushed for an additional €35 million for the EU’s Southern Neighbourhood, and a €25 million increase for the Eastern Neighbourhood. It also secured a €35 million increase in humanitarian aid, in response to growing geopolitical instability, accelerating global humanitarian crises, and climate change-induced emergencies.

Repayment costs for the NextGenerationEU recovery package

The EU faces an unexpected €4.2 billion overrun in borrowing costs for NextGenerationEU in 2026, double the Commission’s forecast. MEPs guaranteed that should not reduce funding for essential programmes like Erasmus+ or EU4health and reversed some of the cuts made by EU governments to the original amounts estimated by the Commission. The overrun costs are dealt with as agreed previously in the “cascade mechanism”, designed to manage the reimbursement of escalating NextGenerationEU borrowing costs and to protect flagship programmes.

Quotes

“At the heart of the EU budget are the needs of its citizens: prosperity, security and solidarity. The EU delivers on research, border security, military mobility, cybersecurity and Erasmus+, while working to strengthen our single market. We live in turbulent times, with rising expectations and increasing demands on the EU budget. As citizens’ priorities evolve, it’s essential for the Parliament and EU institutions to listen and respond effectively. Progress is being made, but the budget alone will only get us so far. Continued effort and further steps will be needed to enhance competitiveness,” chair of the Committee on Budgets, Johan Van Overtveldt (ECR, BE) said.

“Thanks to a strong European Parliament position and broad support across political groups, we secured an agreement on key priorities. This includes enhanced security for our citizens, in particular reinforced border management and military mobility, strengthened food security and health, and new opportunities for businesses, farmers, and young people, with additional support for Horizon Europe research initiatives, the promotion of agricultural products, and a strengthened Erasmus+ programme,” general rapporteur for the EU’s 2026 budget (for section III – Commission), Andrzej Halicki (EPP, PL), said.

“I welcome today’s budgetary agreement, which is firmly grounded in Parliament’s priorities and strengthens Europe’s capacity to act. By increasing support for cybersecurity and the rule of law, we equip key EU institutions with greater resilience and accountability, while safeguarding our shared values. This budget also shows that we remain attentive to citizens’ needs and committed to ensuring that the Union functions efficiently,” rapporteur for the other sections, Matjaž Nemec (S&D, SI) said.

Next steps

Once the Council formally adopts the compromise, it will be discussed in the Committee on Budgets next Thursday (20 November), then voted on in plenary in the European Parliament (during the November session in Strasbourg) and signed into law by its President.

Background

More than 93% of the EU budget goes directly into EU programmes that support people and projects across member states. The annual EU budget, which serves 27 countries and 450 million Europeans, is relatively small – on average €160-200 billion during 2021-27. This is comparable to the national budget of Poland, which serves 39 million people, or the equivalent of 30% of the budget of Germany, which serves 84 million people.

More information: European Parliament