Legal Officer - European Commission (AD5, Brussels)

About this position

The summary below is published by European Commission on the official vacancy notice. Our own analysis — salary realism, comparable openings, career trajectory, language profile — follows further down the page.

Key responsibilities

According to the vacancy notice, the role centres on the following duties:

• Provide legal advice and analysis on deforestation and forest degradation matters
• Contribute to development and implementation of EU action against deforestation at EU and global level
• Prepare for entry into application of Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 (EUDR) and its implementation
• Provide legal advice on deforestation-free supply chains and interplay with customs, trade, and sustainability legislation
• Provide replies to stakeholder questions on EUDR FAQs and Guidance
• Prepare possible future updates of FAQs
• Serve as contact point with the Legal Service on EUDR
• Work with Member States on harmonised implementation, compliance assurance and simplification solutions

Are you eligible?

Check these requirements from the notice before investing time in an application:

• Education: Legal academic background in environmental law; completed university studies of at least 3 years attested by a diploma
• Experience: Demonstrated experience in environmental law and policies, in particular deforestation related; experience working at the European Commission on positions involving legal and policy work including drafting of policy documents and legislative proposals; proven experience in international relations work, in particular bilateral relations; proven experience in dealing with stakeholders, in particula…
• Languages: English (C1), German (C1), French (C1), Spanish
• Key skills: Strong analytical skills, Capacity to master technical details while translating complex challenges into workable policy solutions, Ability to work autonomously with high sense of initiative and good sense of judgement, Political savviness, Excellent drafting skills, Very good communication, negotiation and networking capacities, Collegiality and team-work, Excellent social skills, Team spirit, Resilience and capacity to deal with high workload and stress in politically sensitive context
• Eligibility: Citizen of a Member State of the EU and enjoy full rights as a citizen; have fulfilled any obligations imposed by applicable laws concerning military service; physically fit to perform the duties linked to the post; produce appropriate character references as to suitability for performance of duties

Selection process

The notice describes the following selection steps:

• Submit CV and completed application form in single PDF

Contract and working arrangements

Contract duration: Temporary agent position.

Hiring unit: Unit ENV.F1 - 'Planetary Common Goods, Universal Values & Environmental Security', DG Environment, Brussels.

Position details

Reference

ENV/COM/2026/1405

Directorate-General

ENV – Environment

Vacancy Notice

Download PDF

Last Verified

16 September 2026

Position overview

This is the official EU Careers listing for Legal Officer at European Commission based in Brussels at the AD5 grade level (Temporary Agent). The vacancy reference is ENV/COM/2026/1405. It is hosted by ENV – Environment, the Directorate-General responsible for this policy area. The role falls under the Environment domain.

MAKE A DIFFERENCE - JOIN THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Do you want to help shape the future of the European Union? Make the planet greener, promote a fairer society, or support businesses and innovation across the EU? Then come and work for the European Commission where you can really make a difference!

Commission staff are a diverse group of people, who are motivated to help make Europe – and the world – a better place. They come from the 27 Member States of the European Union. Different nationalities, backgrounds, languages and cultures make the Commission a vibrant and inclusive place to work.

WE OFFER GREAT JOBS AND GREAT WORKING CONDITIONS:

- Interesting and challenging jobs with plenty of opportunities for training and acquiring new skills and competencies throughout your whole career

- Opportunities to move between different policy areas throughout your career

- A package of flexible working conditions including the possibility of teleworking – we care about your work-life balance

- A competitive financial package, including comprehensive healthcare, accident and pension schemes

- A multilingual, multicultural workplace where personal and career development are strongly promoted

- Multilingual schools for your children

We recruit from a wide range of backgrounds and actively promote diversity and inclusion:

We do not only recruit political scientists and lawyers but are also looking for all kinds of profiles, including scientists, linguists, IT experts, data analysts and economists, as well as drivers and engineers.

We are committed to equal opportunities and to fostering a rich, diverse and inclusive working environment. We aim for our workforce to be representative of European society and strongly welcome applications from all qualified candidates. We actively seek to create a workplace where each staff member feels valued and respected, can give their best and can develop to their full potential. 2ENV/COM/2026/1405

To promote diversity and establish a geographically balanced pool of candidates, we strongly encourage applicants from Member States which are currently underrepresented in the European Commission workforce to apply. These Member States are currently Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, the Netherlands, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Sweden 1. Recruitment will however remain strictly based on the merits of all applicants and no positions will be reserved for nationals of any specific Member State.

For more information ec.europa.eu/work-with-us

STAFF RECRUITED ON CONTRACTS

In addition to permanent officials, the European Commission offers non-permanent positions. There are two categories of non-permanent staff:

temporary agents are recruited to fill vacant positions for a set amount of time or

to perform highly specialised tasks.

contract agents may provide additional capacity in specialised fields where an

insufficient number of officials is available or carry out a number of administrative or manual tasks. They are generally recruited for fixed-term contracts (maximum 6 years in any EU Institution), but in some cases they can be offered contracts for an indefinite duration (in offices, agencies, delegations or representations).

For more information on different staff categories

1Please note that the list of underrepresented Member States may be subject to future amendment based on potential data changes over time.

3ENV/COM/2026/1405

Legal Officer – International Forestry

Policy and Legislation

Directorate - General Environment (DG ENV ) of the European

Commission

Selection reference: ENV /COM/202 6/1405

Domain: Environment

Where : Unit ENV.F1 - “Planetary Common Goods, Universal Values & Environmental Security” , Brussels

Staff category and Function Group : Temporary agent 2b – Administrator

Grade range: AD5 -7

Publication deadline : 30/09/2026 - 12.00 (Brussels time)

WE ARE

A team of about 20 colleagues working towards a healthier planet in the Unit "Planetary Common

Goods, Universal Values & Environmental Security" (Unit F1). We are part of DG Environment’s

Directorate of Green diplomacy and Multilateralism (Directorate F) whose policies aim to reduce the

impact of third countries on the EU's environment and vice versa while providing a level playing

field abroad for the EU's green businesses. Within the Unit, the Team working on the EU

Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) is responsible for this EU flagship instrument for halting global

deforestation and forest degradation.

WE PROPOSE

A position related to the Deforestation Regulation in a Unit with highly professional people working

for a greener world. By joining the Deforestation Team of Unit F1, you will work as a Legal Officer

on a highly technical but also political file.

You will contribute to the development and implementation of EU action against deforestation and

forest degradation at EU and global level, including the preparations of the entry into application

of Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 (EUDR) and its subsequent implementation.

A key element of the job is to provide legal advice and analysis within the unit and to the

hierarchy and Cabinet on all matters relating to deforestation -free supply chains and the interplay

with customs, trade, and other sustainability legislation. In that role and with good policy

knowledge, you will provide replies to stakeholder questions on the EUDR FAQs and Guidance and

prepare possible future updates of the FAQs. You will be the contact point with the Legal Service

on EUDR, and you will work closely with Member States, in particular DE and AT, but also BE, NL,

FR and ES on harmonised implementation of the law, compliance assurance (enforcement) and 4ENV/COM/2026/1405

targeted simplification solutions.

Understanding the IT system underpinning the EUDR and providing advice on its legal aspects will

be part of the job and will imply close contacts with the IT Unit in DG ENV.

As regards the external dimension of the EUDR, you will do outreach and actively engage with a

number of third countries, including the US, to explain EUDR, support their implementation efforts

and address their questions; you will also be in charge of some of the seven specific EUDR

commodities, including soy.

The job requires stress resilience, the ability to manage a number of issues simultaneously and to

produce high quality output often within very short deadlines.

WE LOOK FOR

We are looking for a highly motivated, competent, hard working and well -organised colleague with

specialised legal skills who enjoys working both independently and as part of a team and has the

capacity to deal with complex, political and technical issues.

S/he should have:

- A legal academic background in environmental law, while a focus on European or

international law would be an asset.

- Demonstrated experience in environmental law and policies, in particular deforestation

related.

- Experience working at the European Commission on positions involving legal and policy

work and in particular the drafting of policy documents of all levels as well as legislative

proposals, implementing and delegated acts , would be an asset.

- Proven experience in international relations work, in particular bilateral relations. Prior

experience in working on EU -US matters would be an asset.

- Proven experience in dealing with stakeholders, in particular businesses.

- Strong analytical skills; a capacity to master technical details while translating complex

challenges into workable policy solutions.

- Ability to work autonomously with a high sense of initiative and a good sense of

judgement, including political savviness.

- Excellent drafting skills, very good communication, negotiation and networking capacities,

collegiality and team -work.

- Excellent social skills, team spirit, resilience and capacity to deal with a high workload and

stress in a politically sensitive context.

- A very good command of English, German and French is necessary; command of Spanish

would be an asset. 5ENV/COM/2026/1405

Despite heavy workloads, the Unit strives to foster a positive and supportive working environment

where colleagues feel secure and are valued.

HOW TO EXPRESS YOUR INTEREST?

You should send your documents in a single pdf in the following order:

1. your CV 2. completed application form.

Please send these documents by the publication deadline to Ms Sarah Nelen, Head of Unit,

[email protected] and the functional mailbox of the unit ENV -F01 [email protected]

indicating the selection reference ENV /COM/202 6/1405 in the subject.

No applications will be accepted after the publication deadline. 6ENV/COM/2026/1405

ANNEX

1. Selection

➢ Am I eligible to apply?

You must meet the following eligibility criteria when you validate your application :

Our rules provide that you can only be recruited as a temporary agent at the European Commission if you:

General criteria:

- Are a citizen of a Member State of the EU and enjoy full rights as a citizen

- Have fulfilled any obligations imposed by applicable laws concerning military service

- Are physically fit to perform the duties linked to the post

- Produce the appropriate character references as to suitability for the performance of the duties.

Qualifications:

In order to be recruited for this position, you must have at least a level of education which

corresponds to completed university studies of at least 3 years attested by a diploma.

Only qualifications issued or recognised as equivalent by EU Member State authorities (e.g. by the

Ministry of Education) will be accepted. Furthermore, before recruitment, you will be required to

provide the documents that corroborate the eligibility criteria (diplomas, certificates and other

supporting documents).

Salary at this grade

Basic monthly salary at AD5 runs from €6,153 (step 1) to €6,961 (top step), giving an annual range of roughly €73,836 to €83,532 before tax and allowances. Steps increase automatically every two years; the figures here are taken from the salary grid in the EU Staff Regulations.

Eligible staff posted away from their country of nationality also receive an expatriation allowance worth 16% of basic salary (around €984 per month at step 1 of AD5) together with household, dependent-child, and education allowances where applicable. Take-home pay is then adjusted by the country correction coefficient for Brussels. For a worked example see our correction coefficients guide and the EU salaries overview.

Application timeline

This vacancy was first listed on 16 September 2026, today.

The application deadline is 30 September 2026, 12 days from today. Late applications are not accepted, so submit through the official EU Careers portal well in advance.

Last verified against the EU Careers feed on 16 September 2026.

Where to learn more

For full responsibilities, requirements, and career progression at AD5 see our AD5 grade page; for headcount, mission, and other open vacancies at European Commission see the European Commission institution page; for the cost of living, correction coefficient, and other postings in Brussels see our Brussels location page; for related vacancies in the Environment field browse our Environment domain page.

New to EU careers? Our beginner's guide walks through entry routes, EPSO competitions, and what to prepare. For application logistics see application tips and EPSO competitions.