Quantum Computing Laws and Regulations 2026 – European Union

Commercial trends and public initiatives

The topic of quantum computing is gaining increasing importance in EU political discussions and growing awareness among the general public. Quantum computing is considered to have tremendous economic and societal potential, for example in the fields of chemistry and medicine.  At the same time, there has been growing awareness of the possible threats to traditional encryption methods posed by future quantum computers.  Against this backdrop, the European Commission published an EU Quantum Strategy in July 2025, with the aim of further developing a quantum ecosystem within the EU and establishing Europe as a leading global player (cf. section I.1).  The planned future Proposal for a Quantum Act, which is currently being prepared and expected to be tabled in mid-2026, is intended to create a binding framework for achieving these goals (cf. section I.2).  In June 2025, the EU also published “A Coordinated Implementation Roadmap for the Transition to Post-Quantum Cryptography” (cf. section V).

There are various public funding programmes and initiatives to promote quantum computing, both at the EU and national level.  At European level, these include, for example:

• The Quantum Flagship, [i] a billion-Euro research and innovation initiative to develop and commercialise quantum technologies;
• Euro High Performance Computing (EuroHPC) Joint Undertaking,[ii] a public–private partnership to develop and procure leading supercomputers, which also extends to quantum computers; and
• QuantERA, [iii] a programme that fosters international research cooperation.

At the Member State level, there are particularly large funding programmes in Germany and France, amongst others.

The above measures have supported the EU’s strong scientific base in the field of quantum computing and contributed to a growing landscape of startups.  However, the EU is lagging in terms of commercialising its quantum capabilities and attracting private investment.[iv]  While pre-seed and seed funding from public sources is widely available, Europe attracts only 5% of global private quantum funding, compared to over 50% for the US.[v] This funding gap is particularly pronounced in later stages of development.[vi] In terms of public funding, the EU is outspent by China.[vii]  Five of the top 10 tech companies globally in terms of quantum investment are based in the US and four in China, with none located in the EU.[viii]  In terms of patents filed for quantum technologies, the EU only ranks third globally, after the US and China.

Various underlying structural issues have contributed to the apparent inability of the EU to make the transition from “lab to fab to market”.  These include, inter alia:

• fragmented research and innovation – lack of coherence between national and EU actions, leading to duplication of efforts and missed synergies;
• industrial capacity and investment gap – insufficient EU pilot lines, lack of manufacturing and design capability for quantum chips and hardware; high dependencies on enabling technologies (cryogenics, lasers, etc.) from outside the EU; fragmented procurement; and
• supply-chain vulnerabilities and governance gaps – no systematic monitoring of critical inputs, intellectual property assets or risk of shortages, leading to the risk of chokepoints and “leakage” of technology to non-EU countries, worsened by an inconsistent approach to direct foreign investment screening.

The complex landscape of rules at EU and national level also weakens the EU’s competitiveness.  Finally, cultural aspects such as greater risk aversion in Europe also play a role.

This chapter examines the EU’s legal and strategic framework for the development and commercialisation of quantum computing and protection against data decryption.  It is intended to help stakeholders navigate the complex situation in the EU.

To read the full chapter click here.