WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE REGULATION?

Regulation (EC) No 2866/98 sets the irrevocable conversion rates between the euro and the national currencies of the European Union (EU) Member States adopting the euro as their official currency.
By providing the precise exchange rates at which their national currencies are converted into euro, it ensures legal certainty and consistency across the euro area.
The first conversion rates were set on 31 December 1998 when the first 11 Member States adopted the euro (Belgium, Germany, Ireland, Spain, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal and Finland). Further rates were set in subsequent years when more Member States adopted the euro as their official currency, adding up to a current total of 21 members.

KEY POINTS

To become a member of the euro area, the third stage of the EU’s economic and monetary union, a Member State must bring their national legislation in line with relevant EU law and fulfil certain economic conditions. These are known as convergence criteria or Maastricht criteria and are designed to ensure that Member States can demonstrate stability – within certain defined limits – in prices, in their government’s financial position, in exchange rates and in long-term interest rates.
Regulation (EC) No 2866/98 has been amended several times to set the conversion rates of new Member States joining the euro area:
- Greece in 2001;
- Slovenia in 2007;
- Cyprus and Malta in 2008;
- Slovakia in 2009;
- Estonia in 2011;
- Latvia in 2014;
- Lithuania in 2015;
- Croatia in 2023;
- Bulgaria in 2026.
In accordance with Article 140 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, the conversion rates between the euro and the currencies of the Member States are set by the Council of the European Union. The Council decides with the unanimity of the Member States in which the currency is the euro and the Member State concerned, acting on a proposal from the European Commission and after consulting the European Central Bank.

List of irrevocably fixed rates to 1 euro:

40.34	Belgian franc
1.96	Bulgarian lev
1.96	German mark
15.65	Estonian kroon
340.75	Greek drachma
166.39	Spanish peseta
6.56	French franc
7.53	Croatian kuna
0.79	Irish pound
1 936.27	Italian lira
0.59	Cyprus pound
0.70	Latvian lats
3.45	Lithuanian litas
40.34	Luxembourg franc
0.43	Maltese lira
2.20	Dutch guilder
13.76	Austrian schilling
200.48	Portuguese escudo
239.64	Slovenian tolar
30.13	Slovak koruna
5.95	Finnish markka

BACKGROUND

For further information, see:

Euro
The euro (European Commission)
Overview of the euro (European Central Bank)
Our money (European Central Bank)
The euro area in comparison (European Central Bank)
The euro in a changing world (European Central Bank)

EU economic and monetary union (summary)
Economic and monetary union (EMU) (European Central Bank)
Convergence criteria (European Central Bank)
Convergence report, June 2025 (European Central Bank)
Converting to the euro (European Commission)
Determination of the euro conversion rates (European Central Bank).

MAIN DOCUMENT

Council Regulation (EC) No 2866/98 of 31 December 1998 on the conversion rates between the euro and the currencies of the Member States adopting the euro (OJ L 359, 31.12.1998, pp. 1–2).

Successive amendments to Regulation (EC) No 2866/98 have been incorporated into the original text. This consolidated version is of documentary value only.

Conversion rates between the euro and the national currencies of the EU Member States adopting the euro

SUMMARY OF:

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE REGULATION?

KEY POINTS

FROM WHEN DOES THE REGULATION APPLY?

BACKGROUND

MAIN DOCUMENT