Key Facts
On average, the EU Commission receives 812.8 notifications per week.
The European Commission is often described as the guardian of the treaties, responsible for ensuring that national laws align with EU legislation. This role involves overseeing a complex legal architecture designed to maintain consistency across Member States, particularly within the internal market.
One of the tools at the Commission’s disposal is the Notification Procedure, which requires national governments to inform Brussels about planned regulations that could affect the free movement of goods or services.
While this process is presented as a technical mechanism to avoid legal fragmentation, in practice it opens the door to corporate lobbying long before a law takes effect. Trade associations, multinational companies, and law firms use the Notification Procedure to delay or dilute national policies—especially in areas like environmental protection, consumer safety, and social standards.
Under the guise of ensuring market compatibility, powerful economic actors gain privileged access to shape domestic legislation across the EU.
Before passing certain laws, Member States must submit draft proposals to the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship, and SMEs (DG GROW). This is mandatory for laws that could affect trade between Member States. The aim is to “ensure compliance” with EU law, but in practice, it often subjects national policymaking to external pressures. Governments must pause their legislative process while the EU evaluates their proposal. This creates an early-stage intervention point where external actors can influence national lawmaking.
Once notified, the draft law is published in an EU database, opening a three-month review period. The Commission examines the proposal, while other Member States and business groups assess its impact. This process allows corporate lobbyists to intervene early, claiming that new regulations could “distort” competition or create trade barriers. Public interest groups have far less influence in this stage compared to well-funded industry actors. While framed as a legal review, this phase is often an arena for economic lobbying.
During the review period, Member States, the Commission, and stakeholders can submit comments or detailed opinions demanding changes to the draft law. Large corporations and industry groups frequently challenge new regulations, citing threats to the free movement of goods, services, or capital. They argue that social or environmental policies could “fragment the market,” creating pressure to weaken national laws. Governments must respond to these concerns and, in many cases, adjust their proposals to avoid legal challenges. This dynamic often results in national policies being watered down before they even take effect.
If a Member State receives comments or detailed opinions from the Commission or other governments, it must formally reply. A detailed opinion can extend the review period, delaying the legislative process. In theory, Member States can ignore objections, but in practice, they often modify their proposals to avoid escalation. The Commission has the power to launch infringement proceedings if it believes a law violates EU rules. This final stage reinforces the EU’s market-first approach, prioritizing economic concerns over national social or environmental policies.
On average, the EU Commission receives 812.8 notifications per week.
While the Notification Procedure helps coordinate national rules within the EU’s single market, it has serious shortcomings. Below are five reasons why it deserves public scrutiny.
Most people have never heard of the Notification Procedure — yet it shapes the laws we live by. From food regulations to digital platforms, hundreds of laws are reviewed under this system every year without public debate or visibility.
While companies receive alerts and track upcoming notifications, civil society and the wider public remain largely excluded.
The Commission presents the procedure as a tool for detecting barriers to trade — not for democratic scrutiny.
Its email alert system for tracking new notifications is called the
Corporate Notification System
—
underscoring who this process is designed to serve.
It prioritizes business concerns over broader societal interests, as the following quote from the website shows:
“In your business, success is very important. In order to achieve it, you try to detect obstacles before they have any negative effects.
The same principle applies in the internal market for technical barriers.”
Source: European Commission
The outcome is predictable: feedback comes most often from industry. Companies and trade associations make up the bulk of participants.