What the EU does According to EU legislation, support given by a Member State or through state resources should not unfairly impact competition and trade within the EU by favouring certain companies or the production of certain goods. To achieve this, the legislation sets specific conditions on “state aid”, which is defined as any type of advantage provided by national public authorities to specific companies on a selective basis. This can include grants, state-guaranteed loans, interest-free loans, tax relief or providing goods and services on preferential terms. State aid may be beneficial when it pursues public interests that prevail over the distortion of competition. The European Commission is responsible for assessing whether proposed aid meets this standard. By controlling state aid, the Commission helps to preserve a level playing field in the EU internal market and ensures that companies compete based on their merits, and not because they receive preferential treatment from a government. To monitor the impact of state aid, the Commission regularly collects data measuring how the Member States implement their state aid measures. Facts about state aidIn 2024, EU Member States granted aid to the amount of €168.23 billion or 0.94% of total GDP. This includes: €68.82 billion to support environmental protection and energy savings €14.16 billion to support research and development and innovation€13.42 billion to support regional development Source: 2025 State aid Scoreboard Areas of actionCasesSearch the European Commission’s database of past and present state aid cases awaiting a decisionComplaintsAccess the official complaint form to use if an unlawful state aid case is suspectedLegislationSee the different types of legislation in place that govern state aid in the EUProceduresRead more about the procedures that must be followed to process a state aid request, from notification and investigation to formal decision and recoveryNational CourtsFind out more about the role national courts play in the application of EU state aid lawReference/discount rates and recovery interest ratesSee more on past and current state aid recovery interest rates and reference/discount rates for EU countriesScoreboardLearn more about the Scoreboard, the Commission’s benchmarking instrument for state aid, published annuallyTax rulingsConsult the list of the Commission’s final decisions adopted since 2014 concerning tax planning practices and formal ongoing investigations with EU countriesImportant Projects of Common European InterestFind out more about Important Projects of Common European Interest which typically provide a significant contribution to economic growth and competitiveness for the EU Key achievements EU state aid control delivers the following benefits to EU citizens and businesses:It preserves fair competition between companies within the EU’s Single Market.It ensures that public financial support is targeted to where the market cannot or does not deliver.It prevents Member States from competing with one another with the use of subsidies, which would put smaller Member States at a disadvantage and increase the burden on taxpayers in all Member States. In addition, EU state aid rules are sufficiently flexible to address unforeseen shocks to the EU’s economy, as shown by: the State aid Temporary Framework, which helped EU countries weather the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic,the State aid Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework which helped EU countries deal with the economic problems linked to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the Middle East crisis Temporary State aid Framework to support the most exposed sectors of the economy in the context of the Middle East crisis. In focus Temporary state aid for sectors affected by the Middle East crisisThe Commission put forward a temporary and targeted state aid framework to address the effects of the Middle East crisis on some of the most exposed sectors of the economy. Companies working in agriculture, fishery, transport and energy-intensive industries can access aid based on actual consumption to cover part of the price increases for fuel or fertilisers, while there is also a simplified approach for small amounts of aid. The measureswill be in place until 31 December 2026. During this period, the Commission will keep their content, scope and duration under review, in light of developments in the Middle East and the more general economic situationRead more Latest news Press release5 June 2026Commission approves €100 million Austrian State aid scheme to support cleantech manufacturing capacity3 min readPress release4 June 2026Commission approves €25 million Spanish State aid for fishing companies facing increased fuel prices3 min readSee all Related informationCompetition policy This page was last reviewed on 22 May 2026
According to EU legislation, support given by a Member State or through state resources should not unfairly impact competition and trade within the EU by favouring certain companies or the production of certain goods. To achieve this, the legislation sets specific conditions on “state aid”, which is defined as any type of advantage provided by national public authorities to specific companies on a selective basis. This can include grants, state-guaranteed loans, interest-free loans, tax relief or providing goods and services on preferential terms. State aid may be beneficial when it pursues public interests that prevail over the distortion of competition. The European Commission is responsible for assessing whether proposed aid meets this standard. By controlling state aid, the Commission helps to preserve a level playing field in the EU internal market and ensures that companies compete based on their merits, and not because they receive preferential treatment from a government. To monitor the impact of state aid, the Commission regularly collects data measuring how the Member States implement their state aid measures.
CasesSearch the European Commission’s database of past and present state aid cases awaiting a decision
ProceduresRead more about the procedures that must be followed to process a state aid request, from notification and investigation to formal decision and recovery
National CourtsFind out more about the role national courts play in the application of EU state aid law
Reference/discount rates and recovery interest ratesSee more on past and current state aid recovery interest rates and reference/discount rates for EU countries
ScoreboardLearn more about the Scoreboard, the Commission’s benchmarking instrument for state aid, published annually
Tax rulingsConsult the list of the Commission’s final decisions adopted since 2014 concerning tax planning practices and formal ongoing investigations with EU countries
Important Projects of Common European InterestFind out more about Important Projects of Common European Interest which typically provide a significant contribution to economic growth and competitiveness for the EU
Temporary state aid for sectors affected by the Middle East crisisThe Commission put forward a temporary and targeted state aid framework to address the effects of the Middle East crisis on some of the most exposed sectors of the economy. Companies working in agriculture, fishery, transport and energy-intensive industries can access aid based on actual consumption to cover part of the price increases for fuel or fertilisers, while there is also a simplified approach for small amounts of aid. The measureswill be in place until 31 December 2026. During this period, the Commission will keep their content, scope and duration under review, in light of developments in the Middle East and the more general economic situationRead more
Press release5 June 2026Commission approves €100 million Austrian State aid scheme to support cleantech manufacturing capacity3 min read
Press release4 June 2026Commission approves €25 million Spanish State aid for fishing companies facing increased fuel prices3 min read
