Four Freedoms of the EU Single Market

The EU single market is an area in which economic activity can cross Member State borders with fewer internal barriers. Its foundation is the free movement of goods, persons, services and capital, collectively called the four freedoms.

Treaty basis

Article 26(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union defines the internal market as an area without internal frontiers in which the four freedoms are ensured according to the Treaties.

The four freedoms

• Goods, Articles 28-37 TFEU: Member States form a customs union, while customs duties, equivalent charges and unjustified quantitative restrictions on intra-EU trade are prohibited.
• Persons, Articles 21 and 45-55 TFEU: EU citizens may move and reside across Member States under EU law; workers receive mobility and equal-treatment rights, while establishment provisions enable self-employed persons and businesses to operate in another Member State.
• Services, Articles 56-62 TFEU: Providers may offer services across borders without necessarily establishing a permanent presence in the destination state.
• Capital, Articles 63-66 TFEU: Restrictions on capital movements and payments are generally prohibited, including between Member States and, subject to Treaty qualifications, between Member States and third countries.

How the freedoms create a single market

The freedoms extend market integration beyond tariff removal by addressing discrimination and regulatory obstacles. They operate alongside common EU rules, competition policy and recognition of rights across borders, but remain subject to Treaty-based exceptions and proportionate public-interest regulation.

• The four freedoms are mutually reinforcing because movement of businesses, workers, finance and traded output often occurs together.
• Brexit illustrates why a free trade agreement does not by itself recreate single-market membership: tariff preferences cannot fully replace rights concerning mobility, establishment, services and regulatory access.

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