The Montenegro Accession Program to the European Union (EU) for the period 2026-2027, which the Government adopted at yesterday's session, represents a clear and operational roadmap for the closure of all negotiation chapters by the end of 2026, thus entering the final phase of the negotiation process, the Ministry of European Affairs (MEP) announced today.
The government department added that this strategic document precisely defines the dynamics of adopting national legislative and strategic acts, fully complementary to the government's plan for closing negotiation chapters and successfully finalizing negotiations with the EU.
The statement states that Minister of European Affairs Maida Gorčević said that the Accession Program 2026-2027 confirms the readiness of the institutions to enter the final stages of negotiations with clear deadlines and measurable results.
"This is the year in which we are entering the final stages of negotiations, with a clear plan, realistic deadlines and full institutional responsibility. Institutions are taking their part of the job responsibly, which gives us grounds for realistic optimism that the reforms in 2026 will be implemented as planned and lead to a successful conclusion of the negotiations," said Gorčević.
The MEP statement states that the Accession Program includes a total of 581 acts within all 33 negotiation chapters, of which the adoption of 77 strategic documents and 504 acts in the legislative framework is planned.
"Given the Government's goal to close all negotiation chapters by the end of 2026, the largest part of the obligations is planned for the current year. Thus, in 2026, the adoption of 495 acts is planned, of which 67 strategic documents, 119 laws and 309 by-laws, while a total of 86 obligations are planned for 2027," said the MEP.
Gorčević emphasized that the Accession Agenda clearly separates key obligations leading to the closure of chapters from the ongoing process of alignment with the EU acquis.
"The Accession Programme is not just a technical document - it is a political roadmap for the last year of negotiations. We have focused on obligations that are directly related to fulfilling the final benchmarks, because our goal is clear: closing the chapters by the end of this year and preparing Montenegro for membership," said Gorčević.
The MEPs said that the obligations related to the closure of negotiation chapters are planned for implementation in the first two quarters of 2026.
"The largest number of commitments is planned in six negotiating chapters: Chapter 12 - Food Safety, Veterinary and Phytosanitary Affairs (80 commitments), Chapter 14 - Transport Policy (75), Chapter 1 - Free Movement of Goods (71), Chapter 13 - Fisheries (55), Chapter 27 - Environment and Climate Change (37) and Chapter 23 - Judiciary and Fundamental Rights (28)," MEPs said.
They also stated that the institutions with the largest number of planned acts are the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management, the Food Safety Administration, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Development of the North, the Civil Aviation Agency, the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Economic Development and the Ministry of Health.
"By adopting the Accession Programme 2026–2027, Montenegro confirms its political determination and administrative readiness to achieve the key strategic goal - membership in the European Union - in the final phase of negotiations," the MEPs said.
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