Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Central Bank, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions and the European Bank. Ninth report on the practical preparations for the future enlargement of the euro area.

Abstract

Following the latest enlargement of the euro area to Slovakia on 1 January 2009, nine European Union Member States are now bound to adopt the euro once they fulfil the criteria prescribed by the Treaty on the functioning of the EU. Apart from fulfilling the Maastricht criteria, the countries preparing for the introduction of the euro have to undertake extensive practical preparations which involve all sectors of the countries' economies, the public sector and also the public at large. Some Member States have already fixed a national target date for the introduction of the euro, while the others do not yet have a deadline. Estonia has chosen the nearest national changeover target date, so its practical preparations for the introduction of the euro are currently the most intensive. This report summarizes the progress in the practical preparations for introducing the euro in the Member States concerned and it also provides an overview of the citizens' opinions on some aspects of the euro in the new Member States which are not yet part of the euro area1. The attached Commission Staff Working Document provides details of the practical preparations in the form of summary tables.