Snapshot
Treaty competences, institutions, agencies, operational responsibility, funding layers and fundamental-rights control.
Module status
- •Track: EU foundations
- •Last verified: 2026-07-31
- •Legal cut-off: Legislation adopted before 28 May 2024.
- •Scope: Independent competition training; official sources always prevail.
Competence comes before instrument
Start every policy problem by identifying the legal basis, the actor and the instrument. The Union can act only within competences conferred by the Treaties. Subsidiarity controls non-exclusive competence; proportionality controls the content and form of Union action.
| Area | Treaty anchor | Core consequence |
|---|---|---|
| Civil protection | Article 196 TFEU | Union action supports, coordinates and supplements Member States; harmonisation is excluded |
| Humanitarian aid | Article 214 TFEU | Union and national measures complement and reinforce each other |
| Solidarity clause | Article 222 TFEU | Union and Member States act jointly after terrorism or a natural/man-made disaster |
| Border checks, asylum and immigration | Articles 77–80 TFEU | Area of freedom, security and justice; solidarity and fair sharing apply |
| Police cooperation | Article 87 TFEU | Operational cooperation among competent authorities is enabled |
| Judicial cooperation in criminal matters | Articles 82–86 TFEU | Mutual recognition, approximation and bodies such as Eurojust and EPPO |
Institutions under pressure
The Commission proposes legislation, manages programmes, monitors implementation and can bring infringement actions. The Parliament and Council normally legislate together. The Council also provides Member-State political coordination. The European Council sets strategic direction but does not legislate.
Agencies support implementation without replacing national responsibility. Frontex supports European integrated border management. Europol supports and strengthens Member-State action against serious cross-border crime and terrorism but does not exercise autonomous coercive powers. eu-LISA manages large-scale justice and home-affairs information systems. EUAA supports a consistent application of the common asylum system.
Policy, operations and funding are different layers
A policy officer must keep three layers separate:
- •Normative: Treaty, regulation, directive, decision and implementing act.
- •Operational: national authority, EU agency, coordination centre, deployed team or response asset.
- •Financial: programme objective, eligibility, award, control, monitoring, evaluation and recovery.
Confusing the layers creates classic MCQ errors. Funding a capacity does not transfer command. Coordination does not erase Member-State competence. An agency mandate is not a general power to legislate.
Fundamental-rights control
The Charter of Fundamental Rights binds EU institutions and Member States when they implement EU law. Relevant guarantees include dignity, liberty, data protection, asylum, non-refoulement, effective remedy and rights of the child. Limitations must have a legal basis, respect the essence of the right and satisfy necessity and proportionality.