A basic income for everyone in the European Union.
A newly registered European Citizens’ Initiative is asking the European Commission to take concrete steps towards an unconditional basic income in every member state — the third attempt to put the idea on the European Parliament’s agenda.
What counts as an unconditional basic income
Four conditions define the initiative’s demand. It is framed as an addition to the welfare state, not a replacement for it.
For everyone
No means test and no asset test. Every person qualifies regardless of age, background, nationality or occupation.
Paid per person
Independent of marital status, cohabitation or a household member’s income — so that everyone’s freedom to choose stays intact.
No strings attached
No requirement to seek work, no obligation in return, no conditions on behaviour. A right, not a favour.
Enough to live on
At least at the level of the poverty threshold — 60% of national median income — enough for a dignified existence.
From registration to a Commission response
A European Citizens’ Initiative follows a fixed procedure once the Commission accepts it.
Initiative registered
The European Commission formally admits the initiative, confirming it meets the legal conditions to proceed.
Campaign preparation
Organisers across Europe build their campaign within the six-month window that follows registration. This is where things stand now.
Signature collection opens
The official collection begins. Citizens of every member state can sign online or on paper.
Commission review
If enough valid signatures are gathered, the Commission is required to respond substantively to the call for EU-wide steps towards UBI.
Why now?
Organisers point to the rapid advance of artificial intelligence and robotics: as the amount of available paid work shifts, they argue, there simply won’t be enough jobs to go round — so people’s basic security needs to be decoupled from selling their labour.
They also note that more unpaid work is already being done than paid work — much of it by women — while a share of paid work adds little social value in return. A basic income, in this view, doesn’t replace the welfare state; it complements it.
The Dutch poverty threshold per month for a single-person household in 2025 — 60% of median income, and the reference point for how high the proposed basic income should be.
Source: Eurostat, via basisinkomen.euSignatures don’t open until January 2027
There’s plenty to do before then — here’s where the organisers are asking for help.
Get in touch
Email the organisers with a few lines on how you’d like to help, or join the Signal broadcast channel for campaign news.
info@basic-income.eu →Start a UBI-City
Organise a local group of basic income supporters in your own city and connect it to the wider campaign.
Become a UBI-City →Read the registered text
See the exact wording the European Commission admitted, and track the initiative’s official status.
Official EU page →Hear about it the moment signing opens
Subscribe to the mailing list or follow the campaign’s social channels for updates as 4 January 2027 approaches.