EU Institutions, Bodies & Agencies

The European Union (EU) “works” through a constitutional order and a web of institutions and specialised entities that turn political priorities into binding rules and programmes. At the core is primary law - the Treaties (TEU, TFEU, Euratom) and the Charter of Fundamental Rights. Primary law sets competences, decision-making procedures, and institutional roles. Secondary law consists of legal acts adopted on the basis of the Treaties—regulations (directly applicable), directives (binding as to result, needing transposition), decisions (binding on addressees), and soft-law instruments (recommendations, communications, guidelines), which steer practice without binding force.