2 February 2022

Preventing gold-plating is once again reinstated by the EU as an important measure to reduce barriers to the single market. Gold-plating is not in line with the EU legislature’s goal of keeping the single market differences to a minimum. Typically, it translates into undue and adverse burdens to all. It does not only disadvantage nationals but also makes the EU less attractive to foreign investments.

The main reason why gold-plating has not been abolished is that the measures to tackle it are not accompanied by responsibility and enforcement powers, which makes them ineffective.

Including gold-plating risk-assessment in the ex-ante and ex-post regulatory impact assessment would significantly aid in tackling gold-plating cases. Notably, some Member States have already established guidelines on avoiding gold-plating but they are not paired with enforcement mechanisms thus making them de facto null.