Western Balkans: The Desire for Exemptions

All five Western Balkan nations have officially obtained the status of candidate states for full EU membership. However, the pace of their EU integration varies, as some obtained candidate status over a decade ago, while others have achieved this status more recently. Formal membership negotiations have commenced with all countries, yet some have not opened any negotiation clusters to date. This paper examines the legal aspects of the European integration of Western Balkan states, with a particular focus on exceptions to the EU acquis requested officially by these countries. Negotiation positions for each open chapter are analysed, as they typically include requests for exemptions (derogations) from specific EU regulations or transitional periods for the full implementation of the acquis following accession. Such requests must be clearly defined in terms of objectives and timelines and are granted only in exceptional cases. A key challenge in this analysis lies in the fact that most Western Balkan countries have not yet opened or closed all negotiation chapters, leaving them with limited opportunities to negotiate exceptions or derogations thus far.