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Hungary has formally notified the European Commission that it has implemented the reforms required under the EU's Rule of Law Conditionality Regulation, a step that could unlock roughly EUR 4.2bln in blocked cohesion funding and restore access to Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe. Separately, the government says it has met all milestones and super-milestones under its EUR 10bln Recovery and Resilience Facility plan.
Hungary has formally notified the Commission that it has adopted the reforms addressing the EU's rule-of-law concerns, potentially unlocking EUR 4.2bln in cohesion funding and restoring access to Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe. The Commission has one month to assess the reforms before a possible referral to the Council, which alone can lift the conditionality mechanism. Roughly EUR 2bln remains separately blocked over concerns relating to asylum, child protection and academic freedom.
On the RRF track, Transport and Investment Minister Dávid Vitézy announced that Hungary had met all milestones and super-milestones under its revised recovery plan by the 31 August deadline, following the adoption of more than 100 new laws in the final weeks and paving the way for approximately EUR 10bln in funding. Confirmation from Brussels is still pending, as the Commission will assess actual fulfilment retrospectively based on payment requests due by 30 September.
Together, these developments point to a broader normalisation of Hungary's EU funding relationship, with two parallel tracks, cohesion funds and RRF, both approaching release. If confirmed, they would directly affect companies bidding on or delivering EU-cofinanced infrastructure, research and social projects, and restore Hungarian participation in Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe.
Public-sector bodies and contractors delivering EU-funded infrastructure; universities, students and researchers relying on Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe; financial institutions handling disbursement; and construction and public-procurement contractors bidding on EU-co-financed projects.
The Commission's one-month rule-of-law assessment and any potential referral to the Council; its retrospective verification of Hungary's RRF milestones following the 30 September payment request; and whether the remaining approximately EUR 2bln in blocked cohesion funds are released in parallel. Contractors and investors should prepare for a resumption of EU-funded procurement in Q4 2026 as funds become available.
Gabor
Kulcsar
Associate
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