This article provides an overview of the legal status of the European Union Member States outsidethe euro area. It analyses the differences between Member States with derogation and Member States withopt-outs. The article also deals with the strict interpretation of the Maastricht convergence criteria when assessingnew applicant countries. A discrepancy was noted when comparing the so called “first-wave” MemberStates and the newcomers – Lithuania is taken as a case study Member State for this purpose. This raises thequestion of the “principle of equal treatment”. A closer look is dedicated to Sweden, having a controversialand unique position within the group of Member States with derogation. More attention is given also to theUnited Kingdom as a traditional euro-sceptic country.
The Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union (“FiscalCompact”) was concluded by Heads of State or Government of 25 EU Member States in March 2012 asanother instrument the objective of which is strengthening the fiscal discipline and stabilization of the euroarea as a whole. Similar to the preceding initiative – the Euro Plus Pact – this treaty also envisages deeper coordinationof economic policies of the participating Member States. It is, however, a legally binding agreementin which not all EU Member States participate and which was concluded outside the framework of the EUlaw. The article deals with legal but to some extent also economic aspects of the Fiscal Compact and it focusesin particular on four problematic issues: 1) its relationship to EU law and ensuing obligations for the MemberStates; 2) the use of EU institutions for its implementation; 3) its relationship to the Czech Constitution andevaluation of its constitutional classification; 4) the question to what degree it changes the functioning ofthe economic and monetary union within the euro area.