On 15 April 2014, the European Parliament passed a proposal to reform the rules of origin for the European market. Presently, a product could be labeled 'made in Country A' even though it was mainly assembled in Country B, reflecting the regulation of individual EU member states.
The new provisions are based on the idea of 'last substantial transformation' and regulations at the national level are not longer valid. Therefore the measure is considered a simplification to the current labeling rules and may well facilitate trade.
 
The new regulation also forsees a 'Made in EU' label in case a product is mainly produced by two or more different member states.
 
It is unlikely that the new regulation will enter into force before the vote of the European parliament in May 2014 and the Council of Ministers will still need to agree on the reform.