Bosnia and Herzegovina formally applied for EU membership on 15 February 2016, following years of constitutional reforms and engagements with the Dayton Agreement.

[3] It is one of nine current EU candidate countries, together with Albania, Georgia, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Turkey and Ukraine.

As a "potential candidate country", Bosnia was allowed to finance projects under the first two IPA components, Transition Assistance and Institution Building and Cross-Border Cooperation.

Bosnia and Herzegovina was receiving EUR 822 million of developmental aid until 2020 from the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance, a funding mechanism for EU candidate countries.

The same year, in June, the European Council in Thessaloniki confirmed the SAP as the main framework of the relations between the EU and the Western Balkans, recalling the perspective of accession for all the countries of the region.

The initialing came in the wake of successful negotiations by Miroslav Lajčák in regards to passing his new quorum rules laws and also the commitment of Bosnian and Herzegovinian politicians to implementing police reform.

[49] There was somewhat of a split over ethnic lines: Bosnia and Herzegovina formally applied for EU membership on 15 February 2016, following years of constitutional reforms and engagements with the Dayton Peace Agreement.

It remains a potential candidate country until it can successfully answer all of the questions on the European Commission's questionnaire sheet as well as "ensure the functioning of the Stabilisation and Association Parliamentary Committee and develop a national programme for the adoption of the EU acquis".

[52] These include the fulfillment of 14 key concepts proposed by the EU that seek progress in the strengthening of democracy and human rights, as well as 8 further objectives that must be met: "judicial reform, prevention of conflicts of interests, fight against corruption and organised crime, border and migration management, media freedom, protection of journalists and the creation of preventive mechanisms against torture and ill-treatment.

On 2 March 2022, two former High Representatives for Bosnia and Herzegovina Valentin Inzko and Christian Schwarz Schilling appealed to the EU for a faster accession of Bosnia and Herzegovina to it: "February 24, 2022 represents a dark day in the history of Europe, because there is a danger that this kind of aggression against a sovereign state could encourage other dictators to take similar steps".

With these words, two former high representatives in Bosnia and Herzegovina, addressed the President of the European Commission, reacting to the dramatic development of the situation in Ukraine and the Russian army's attacks on civilian targets.

This agreement allowed Bosnia and Herzegovina to use all the benefits of EU members, to receive support and assistance in terms of education, equipment, schooling, but also to eliminate the consequences of natural disasters.

The 2023 enlargement package report was released by the European Commission on 8 November 2023, including updates on Bosnia' acquis alignment and a recommendation for the Council to open accession negotiations once certain conditions were met.

[61][62] On 12 March 2024, the European Commission recommended for EU membership negotiations to open for Bosnia and Herzegovina, praising the country's progress on undertaking important reforms.

[63][4] The Commission's Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations claimed, among other things, that "the public commitment of the political leadership to the strategic goal of European integration was taken forward by important reforms and have brought positive results.

Bosnia and Herzegovina has reached and maintained full alignment with the EU Common Foreign and Security Policy, which is a significant positive step and crucial in these times of geopolitical turmoil.

[68][66] The state claimed to meet 98% of conditions demanded by the European Commission by passing a 2024 budget and Growth Plan reform package on 19 July 2024.

[74] On 25 December 2024, the National Assembly of Republika Srpska adopted conclusions on an alleged erosion of the legal order in Bosnia and Herzegovina, claiming the Dayton Agreement had been violated by illegal actions made by the current as well as all past High Representatives, the Constitutional Court and Prosecutor's Office.

The National Assembly demanded "annulment of all acts resulting from unconstitutional actions by foreign individuals (High Representatives) who lack the constitutional authority to propose or enact laws", and "requires representatives from Republika Srpska in state institutions to suspend decisions related to European integration (as well as all decision-making concerned to the overall level of the country) until the process aligns with democratic principles and the rule of law".

[76] The High Representative issued an order on 2 January 2025 that prohibited the implementation with immediate legal effect of the entirety of these adopted conclusions from 24-25 December 2024, due to having found them to violate Republika Srpska's obligations and commitments under the Dayton Agreement.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Elmedin Konakovic, condemned the statement made by Dodik, which he alleged was an attempt to block the country’s European path in favor of Russian interests.

[78] On 8 January 2025, the Dodik further elaborated that he would seriously reconsider whether Republika Srpska should pursue the European path, as he instead preferred efforts to secede the entity from Bosnia and Herzegovina, and rejected the authority of the Constitutional Court and High Representative.

The EU urges the political leadership of the Republika Srpska to refrain from and renounce provocative, divisive rhetoric and actions, including questioning the sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of the country.