The EU has a number of institutions and bodies that play important roles in the day-to-day running of the EU. There are also a host of specialised agencies and decentralised bodies that handle a range of technical, scientific and management tasks.
Read on to learn what they are and what they do.
European Parliament
The European Parliament is made up of directly elected members from each EU country, who debate and amend laws
European Council
The European Council is where the EU heads of state and government meet. Chaired by its President, it sets the general political direction of the EU.
Council of the European Union
The Council of the EU brings together national ministers who adopt laws and coordinate policies in various areas. It is currently chaired by France.
European Commission
The European Commission proposes laws, upholds EU treaties and takes care of the day-to-day running of the EU.
Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU)
The European Court of Justice makes sure EU law is applied the same way across the 27 Member States.
European Central Bank (ECB)
The ECB takes care of the euro. It aims to keep prices stable and contributes to the safety and soundness of European banks.
European Court of Auditors (ECA)
The European Court of Auditors checks that EU funds are spent correctly and efficiently. Find out more about how the auditors work and about how they help to protect EU citizens' money.
European External Action Service (EEAS)
The EEAS is the EU’s diplomatic service. It helps the EU's foreign affairs chief, Josep Borrell, represent the EU in the world. The EEAS has its headquarters in Brussels but also manages 143 EU delegations around the globe.
European Economic and Social Committee (EESC)
The EESC is a consultative body of the EU. It consists of representatives of civil society organisations from member states that contribute to EU law-making.
European Committee of the Regions (CoR)
The European Committee of the Regions is the voice of regions and cities in the EU. It represents local and regional authorities and gives its advice on new laws that have an impact on regions and cities.
European Investment Bank (EIB)
The EIB is the EU bank. It finances small and medium-sized enterprises and invests in innovation, infrastructure, climate and the environment.
European Ombudsman
An independent body that helps people, businesses and organisations by investigating complaints about the EU administration.
European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS)
The European Data Protection Supervisor ensures that EU institutions and bodies protect personal information when processing data.
European Data Protection Board (EDPB)
The European Data Protection Board provides guidelines and recommendations on how to apply data protections rules in the EU.
Publications Office
The official publisher of the EU institutions, agencies and bodies and a central point of access to official EU information.
European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO)
EPSO provides high-quality selection procedures to recruit staff for the EU institutions, bodies and agencies.
Decentralised agencies
Learn about decentralised EU agencies performing technical and scientific tasks that help the EU institutions implement policies and make decisions.