The key facts

  • About 175,000 applications for the 2026 EPSO exam, of which almost 80,000 are from Italy (Euronews).
  • Germany and France are at 64% and 73% of their staffing targets; in Germany, a wave of retirements will affect 16% of current posts.
  • The 2025 staffing framework legally requires inviting at least one candidate from 15 underrepresented countries to final interviews.

A record imbalance in applications

The European Commission has faced a record geographic imbalance in recruitment to the EU's permanent civil service. According to Euronews, of roughly 175,000 candidates for the 2026 EPSO general exam, almost 80,000 applied from Italy. Since the exam is a blind, merit-based test scored purely on points, Italian candidates and the broader influx from Southern Europe are mathematically positioned to dominate the final recruitment lists, while young people from Northern and Western Europe largely ignore the competition.

Why it matters: underrepresented countries and staffing shortfalls

The recruitment context is a chronic imbalance in the service's staffing: Germany and France stand at only 64% and 73% of their staffing targets, and a wave of retirements is estimated to free up 16% of current German officials' posts. To address the situation, the Commission adopted an internal staffing framework in 2025 prioritising 15 'underrepresented' member states: it legally obliges managers to invite at least one candidate from these countries to final interviews. The rule applies to those who pass this year's exam and enter the EU vacancies reserve list.

What remains unclear

The Euronews publication raises an open question — how the Commission will ensure both fairness and representation — but offers no solution or forecast: the final recruitment lists have not yet been drawn up, and the outlet has launched an anonymous reader survey whose results it plans to use in its coverage of the topic. The source does not report the Commission's reaction to the record share of Italian applications.