Methodology for the Co-Legislators’ Amendment Assessment

In its communication A Simpler, Clearer and Better Enforced EU Rulebook, adopted on 28 April 2026, the Commission proposes a common methodology so that the European Parliament and the Council each assess the substantial amendments they make to Commission proposals. The Commission says that in practice the institutions proposing such amendments do not assess their impact, despite their commitment to do so, and that this leaves the analysis of a law's expected impacts incomplete. It proposes three strands of joint work. First, the institutions should reach a shared understanding of what constitutes a substantial amendment, for example extending a proposal's scope to micro-companies or SMEs or adding compliance costs or reporting requirements. Second, the institution tabling such an amendment would assess its impacts and quantify costs or savings using a simple cost calculation method, with the standard cost model for administrative costs. Third, the impacts would be presented in a concise template covering expected costs and benefits, affected stakeholders, and effects on competitiveness and innovation.