EU countries have until November 30 to communicate how much they want to borrow in the second SAFE round, worth €21.3 billion

Governments have until November 30, 2026, to indicate the amounts they want to borrow, a European Commission spokesperson told Rapporteur. The second SAFE round is open to all 27 countries and uses the €21.3 billion remaining under the existing ceiling. Indicative allocations will be communicated within two weeks of the deadline at the latest.

EU member states wishing to participate in the second SAFE round have until November 30, 2026, to inform the European Commission how much they want to borrow, an institutional spokesperson told Rapporteur on October 29. The call opened that same day makes available the €21.3 billion remaining from the €150 billion ceiling for loans intended for defense investments.

In brief

The November 30 deadline concerns the communication of interest and the amounts requested. The Commission will inform governments of the indicative allocations within two weeks at the latest.

All 27 countries can participate, including those that did not request loans in the first round. Funding depends on the assessment of the plans and on decisions by the Council of the EU.

The €21.3 billion comes from the existing SAFE ceiling of €150 billion. Member states contract and repay the loans. The Commission is encouraging them to include joint procurements with Ukraine.

The call of October 29 followed the announcement the previous day, when the Commission was preparing the round and estimated the available resources at just over €21 billion. Thomas Regnier said at the launch briefing that Andrius Kubilius, the Commissioner for Defence and Space, had sent the invitation to all governments. The call is also addressed to countries that did not participate in the first round.

After the requested amounts are communicated, the Commission will send the indicative allocations within two weeks of the deadline at the latest. Governments will then be able to submit investment plans. The Commission will assess them and propose to the Council of the EU financing decisions for applications that meet the conditions of the regulation. Loan agreements will be concluded after these decisions are adopted.

In the first round, 19 member states requested loans. On October 29, the Commission reported 16 agreements signed and nearly €13.5 billion disbursed as pre-financing to 11 countries. The €21.3 billion available in the second round represents the lending capacity remaining under the instrument.

The Commission is encouraging governments to include joint procurements with Ukraine in their plans and to address urgent defense needs, including air and missile defense, drones, counter-drone systems, ammunition and missiles. Ukraine and its defense industry can participate in joint procurements under the conditions of the SAFE regulation. The loans are granted to member states, which repay them.

The deadline communicated for this round concerns the amounts targeted by governments. The regulation separately sets December 31, 2026, as the final date for launching an additional call if resources remain, and June 30, 2027, as the deadline for adopting Council decisions on the loans. For Romania, any additional allocation depends on a government request, the investment plan and its approval.