EU policies aim to ensure the free movement of people, goods, services, and capital within the internal market,[12] enact legislation in justice and home affairs, and maintain common policies on trade,[13] agriculture,[14] fisheries, and regional development.[15] Within the Schengen Area, passport controls have been abolished.[16] A monetary union was established in 1999 and came into full force in 2002, and is composed of 19 EU member states which use the euro currency.
The EU operates through a hybrid system of supranational and intergovernmental decision-making.[17][18] The seven principal decision-making bodies—known as the institutions of the European Union—are the European Council, the Council of the European Union, the European Parliament, the European Commission, the Court of Justice of the European Union, the European Central Bank, and the European Court of Auditors.