Commissioner Kubilius, in a written answer on 1 July 2026, confirmed that the EU Space Act proposal, tabled on 25 June 2025, is progressing through the ordinary legislative procedure and will include legally binding obligations for space debris prevention and mitigation, but will not establish a harmonised EU liability regime for damage caused by space debris on EU territory or infrastructure.
The answer was given to a question by Giuseppe Antoci (The Left), who had raised concerns about the risks from uncontrolled re-entry of space debris, citing recent luminous trails over Sicily and European Space Agency data on increasing orbital objects. Antoci noted that the current EU regulatory framework is fragmented, with the EU mainly focusing on monitoring through the Space Surveillance and Tracking system, and welcomed the Space Act as a first step toward a more coherent regime.
Kubilius stated that the Space Act aims to strengthen competitiveness and resilience of the European space sector by establishing an internal market for space. It lays down harmonised rules for safety, resilience, and environmental sustainability in authorisations for space activities. The safety requirements address risks from orbit congestion caused by proliferating satellite constellations. The Act includes collision avoidance measures, space debris mitigation rules, trackability requirements for spacecraft, and coordination with air and maritime authorities to prevent debris generation both in space and on Earth.
However, Kubilius clarified that liability aspects of space activities are outside the proposal's scope, as it preserves national prerogatives of Member States regarding authorisation and supervision of space activities. This means no harmonised EU liability regime for space debris damage will be proposed. The Commission services are committed to supporting co-legislators during the ongoing legislative process.
binding debris mitigation rules but no EU-level liability harmonisation, leaving Member States to handle liability under national law. This split impacts satellite operators, who will face uniform safety requirements but potentially divergent liability regimes across Member States. EU citizens and infrastructure may benefit from reduced debris risks but lack a single compensation mechanism for damage. The Space Act's timeline depends on co-legislator progress, with no specific deadline given.