Accession countries is commonly used to refer to countries that have or will join the European Union ("EU"). Although the term should properly be used for countries that have yet to join the EU but whose date of accession has been finalized, the term came into common usage prior to May, 2004, when 10 states joined the Union; in this context, Accession Countries may refer to Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia, or to some subset of these countries. As Bulgaria and Romania joined the EU in January 2007, they may also be referred to as accession countries.

At present, accession countries may be used to refer to countries that are candidates or potential candidates to join the EU, and include Croatia, Bosnia, the Republic of Macedonia, Turkey, Montenegro, Serbia, and Albania. As of March 2007, the accession dates for these countries have not been finalized. Motto none Anthem Intermeco Bosnia and Herzegovina() on the European continent()  —  [] Capital (and largest city) Sarajevo Official languages Bosnian Croatian Serbian Government Parliamentary democracy  -  Presidency members NebojÅ¡a Radmanović1 Haris Silajdžić2 Željko KomÅ¡ić3  -  Chairman of the Council of Ministers Nikola Å pirić  -  High Representative 4 Independence... For an explanation of terms related to Macedonia, see Macedonia (terminology). ... Anthem Oj, svijetla majska zoro Oh, the bright dawn of May Montenegro() on the European continent()  —  [] Capital (and largest city) Podgorica Official languages Serbian (Ijekavian dialect)1 Government Republic  -  President Filip Vujanović  -  Prime Minister Željko Å turanović Independence due to the dissolution of Serbia and Montenegro   -  Declared June 3, 2006   -  Recognized... Anthem Serbia() on the European continent() Capital (and largest city) Belgrade Official languages Serbian language 1 Recognised regional languages Hungarian, Croatian, Slovak, Romanian, Rusyn 2 Albanian, English 3 Government Parliamentary republic  -  President Boris Tadić  -  Prime Minister Vojislav KoÅ¡tunica Establishment  -  Formation 8th century   -  Independence c. ...

Once a country has joined the EU, it is no longer an accession country, although in common usage this distinction may not be respected.

See also

Enlargement of the European Union
European Union
Treaty of Accession 2003
Treaty of Accession 2005 The European Union (EU) was created by six founding states in 1957 (following the earlier establishment by the same six states of the European Coal and Steel Community in 1952) and has grown to 27 member states. ... The Treaty of Accession 2003 was the agreement between the European Union and ten countries (Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia, Slovakia), concerning these countries accession into the EU. At the same time it changed a number of points which were originally laid down in the... European Union 2007  Member states The Treaty of Accession 2005 is an agreement between the member states of European Union and Bulgaria and Romania. ...