The Directives on the European Disability Card and the European Parking Card were published in the Official Journal of the EU today! This marks the last step in making the Directives an official law and starts the countdown for Member States to implement them.
They now have a maximum of 30 months to adapt the laws into national rules (called the transposition process) and a maximum of 42 months, counting from today, to set up the systems required and start issuing the Cards.
This means that the European Disability Card should be a reality in all EU countries in 3 years and a half at most: by 5 June 2028. We encourage EU countries to make strong national laws a priority and start accepting and issuing the Cards as soon as possible.
In the meantime, we will support our members during this period with resources to ensure the national rules underpinning the Cards are ambitious and go beyond the minimum standards. We will also keep our advocacy towards the European Commission to ensure that the technical texts that still need to be developed (the Delegated and Implementing Acts) are as strong as possible.
Freedom of movement still not achieved
However, the Cards will not make full freedom of movement a reality for persons with disabilities. EDF plans to advocate for further legislation to guarantee that persons with disabilities can freely move and live anywhere in the EU, including the ability to live and work abroad without losing necessary support