EU enlargement and the euro
On 1 May 2004 ten countries – the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia – joined the European Union. Bulgaria and Romania became EU members on 1 January 2007 and Croatia on 1 July 2013.
Joining the euro area
To adopt the euro, countries need to fulfil certain economic criteria, namely, a high degree of price stability, a sound fiscal situation, stable exchange rates and converged long-term interest rates.
The European Central Bank contributes to the decision-making on future euro area members by preparing convergence reports in which it analyses whether the countries concerned fulfil the necessary conditions for adoption of the euro.
Participation in decision-making bodies
The Governors of the central banks of the non-euro area EU countries are members of the General Council of the ECB but they do not join the main decision-making body - the Governing Council - until they adopt the euro. The Member States central banks’ experts are also members of the committees of the European System of Central Banks (ESCB).