As a result of Brexit, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) is to be moved from London to another European country. The EU Council has published selection criteria for a new location.

The search for a new location

Due to the UK’s withdrawal from the EU, a new location is being sought for the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in one of the remaining 27 EU countries. The Member States have until 31 July 2017 to submit an offer to host EMA. A final decision on the new location will be made by the Member States in autumn 2017.  

The Council of the European Union has drawn up and published criteria for the selection process. One important point is that the EMA should be able to continue work at its new location immediately following the UK’s exit from the EU. The new location should offer enough space for offices and meeting rooms as well as good IT infrastructure and security standards. In addition, the new location should have good transport infrastructure so that it can be easily reached from the other Member States.  

The location should also be attractive to highly qualified staff. This includes ensuring the education of employees’ children through multilingual, European-oriented schools. The new location should guarantee access to the labour market for employees, their spouses and children, as well as social security and good medical care.  

Application process

In their offer, Member States should indicate how they can fulfil the aforementioned criteria. So far, 21 of the 27 EU countries have put forward an offer. Only Poland, Bulgaria, Luxembourg, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have shown no interest in hosting EMA. Germany has put forward Bonn as the new base for EMA. Bonn is making a joint offer with the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices, which will provide excellent support and easy access to EMA. 

More information on the UK’s withdrawal from the EU can be found here.