EU Knowledge
Legislative Procedures
Questions about how EU laws are made: ordinary and special legislative procedures.
Overview
Legislative procedure questions test your understanding of how EU law is created. The ordinary legislative procedure (co-decision) accounts for most legislation, with Parliament and Council as co-legislators. Special procedures, consent, and consultation apply in specific policy areas.
What is tested
- Steps of the ordinary legislative procedure (first reading, second reading, conciliation)
- Roles of Commission, Parliament, and Council in law-making
- Types of EU legal acts: regulations, directives, decisions
- Special legislative procedures and when they apply
Preparation tips
- Commission has the monopoly of initiative — only it can propose legislation (with some exceptions)
- Regulations are directly applicable; directives must be transposed into national law
- Most legislation is adopted at first reading through informal trilogues
- Consultation procedure: Council decides alone after consulting Parliament (used for taxation, competition)
Preparation requires structured EU knowledge
This test category draws on a broad understanding of EU institutions, treaties, procedures, and policies. Our EU Knowledge Database covers all 17 thematic chapters tested by EPSO.
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