The European Commission on Thursday announced plans to phase out its state aid Covid Temporary Framework, which allowed EU member states to offer struggling businesses financial support during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The commission relaxed its normally strict regulations against anti-competitive practices for member states in March 2020 when the first lockdowns came into force in the European Union.
Falling infection numbers and relatively high vaccination rates across the bloc were "a great relief also for our economies," EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said in a statement announcing the executive's decision.
Tight EU regulations designed to prevent state aid such as cash subsidies or tax benefits giving certain companies unfair advantages over their competitors are to be reinstated from June 30 in most cases, the commission said.
Other EU Covid-19 support measures, such as investment and solvency support, are to remain in place until the end of 2022 and 2023 respectively "to kick-start the economy and crowd-in private investment for a faster, greener and more digital recovery," said Vestager.
Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the commission has granted exemptions for the economic impact of the war on Europe.
The European Commission estimated that it had approved over €3 trillion ($3.1 trillion) in state aid since the pandemic began.
