Special member state territories and the European Union in the context of "Maastricht Treaty"

French Guiana, or Guyane in French, is an overseas department and region of France located on the northern coast of South America in the Guianas and the West Indies. Bordered by Suriname to the west and Brazil to the east and south, French Guiana covers a total area of 84,000 km (32,000 sq mi) and a land area of 83,534 km (32,253 sq mi). As of January 2025, it is home to 292,354 people.

French Guiana is the second-largest region of France, being approximately one-seventh the size of European France, and the largest outermost region within the European Union. It has a very low population density, with only 3.6 inhabitants per square kilometre (9.3/sq mi). About half of its residents live in its capital, Cayenne. Approximately 98.9% of French Guiana is covered by forests, much of it primeval rainforest. Guiana Amazonian Park, the largest national park in the European Union, covers 41% of French Guiana's territory.

The Canary Islands (/kəˈnɛəri/ ; Spanish: Canarias [kaˈnaɾjas] ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost autonomous community of Spain, located about 100 kilometres (62 miles) off the northwest coast of Africa. The archipelago has a population of approximately 2.27 million inhabitants, making it the most populous overseas special territory of the European Union.

The seven main islands are from largest to smallest in area, Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, La Palma, La Gomera, and El Hierro. The only other populated island is La Graciosa, which administratively is dependent on Lanzarote. The archipelago includes many smaller islands and islets, including Alegranza, Isla de Lobos, Montaña Clara, Roque del Oeste, and Roque del Este. It includes a number of rocks, including Garachico and Anaga. The island chain used to be referred to as "the Fortunate Isles". The Canary Islands are the southernmost region of Spain, and the largest and most populous archipelago of Macaronesia. It is also the largest and most populated archipelago in Spain. Because of their location, the Canary Islands have historically been considered a link between Africa, Europe, and the Americas.

Ceuta (UK: /ˈsjuːtə/, US: /ˈseɪuːtə/, Spanish: [ˈθewta, ˈsewta] ; Moroccan Arabic: سَبْتَة, romanized: Sabtah) is an autonomous city of Spain on the North African coast. Bordered by Morocco, it lies along the boundary between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Ceuta is one of the special member state territories of the European Union.

Phoenicians founded a settlement in the peninsula of Almina, which had continuity under Roman and Byzantine rule (Septem Fratres). It was annexed to the early Arab Caliphates upon the Islamic conquest of the Maghreb, only to be destroyed during the Berber Revolt. It was rebuilt in the 9th century by Majkasa Ghomaras, and for much of the middle ages, regional powers north and south of the Strait of Gibraltar vied for control over Ceuta, which was a key contested port in the so-called Battle of the Strait. In 1415, it was annexed to the Kingdom of Portugal, and subsequently, after 1580, to the Hispanic Monarchy, with the city choosing to stay in the latter after 1640. Ceuta was a regular municipality belonging to the Spanish province of Cádiz prior to the passing of its Statute of Autonomy in March 1995, as provided by the Spanish Constitution, henceforth becoming an autonomous city.

Mayotte (/maɪˈɒt/ my-OT; French: Mayotte, [majɔt] ; Shimaore: Maore, IPA: [maˈore]; Kibushi: Maori, IPA: [maˈori]), officially the Department of Mayotte (French: Département de Mayotte), is an overseas department and region and single territorial collectivity of France. It is one of the overseas departments of France as well as one of the 18 regions of France, with the same status as the departments of Metropolitan France. It is an outermost region of the European Union and, as an overseas department of France, part of the eurozone.

Mayotte is located in the northern part of the Mozambique Channel in the western Indian Ocean off the coast of Southeastern Africa, between the northwestern part of the island of Madagascar and northeastern Mozambique on the continent. Mayotte consists of a main island, Grande-Terre (or Maore), a smaller island, Petite-Terre (or Pamanzi), as well as several islets around these two. Mayotte's land area is 374 square kilometres (144 sq mi) and, with its 320,901 people according to January 2024 official estimates, is very densely populated at 858 inhabitants per km (2,228 per sq mi). The biggest city and prefecture is Mamoudzou on the larger Grande-Terre. The Dzaoudzi–Pamandzi International Airport is located on the neighbouring smaller island of Petite-Terre. The territory is also known as Maore, the native name of its main island.

Greenland, an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark (which also includes the territories of metropolitan Denmark and Faroe Islands) is one of the EU members’ overseas countries and territories (OCT) associated to the European Union. Greenland receives funding from the EU for sustainable development and has signed agreements increasing cooperation with the EU.

The associated relationship with the EU also means that all citizens of the Realm of Denmark residing in Greenland (Greenlandic nationals) are EU citizens. This allows Greenlanders to move and reside freely within the EU.

Dominica, officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island country in the Caribbean. It is part of the Windward Islands chain in the Lesser Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean Sea. The capital, Roseau, is located on the western side of the island. Dominica's closest neighbours are two constituent territories of the European Union, both overseas departments of France: Guadeloupe to the northwest and Martinique to the south-southeast. Dominica comprises a land area of 750 km (290 sq mi), and the highest point is Morne Diablotins, at 1,447 m (4,747 ft) in elevation. The population was 71,293 at the 2011 census.

The island was settled by the Arawak arriving from South America in the fifth century. The Kalinago displaced the Arawak by the 15th century. Christopher Columbus is said to have passed the island on Sunday, 3 November 1493. It was later colonised by Europeans, predominantly by the French from the 1690s to 1763. The French trafficked slaves from West Africa to Dominica to work on coffee plantations. Great Britain took possession in 1763 after the Seven Years' War, and gradually established English as its official language. The island gained independence as a republic in 1978.

The Caribbean Netherlands (Dutch: Caribisch Nederland, pronounced [kaˈribis ˈneːdərlɑnt] ) is a geographic region of the Netherlands located outside of Europe, in the Caribbean, consisting of three special municipalities. These are the islands of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba, as they are also known in legislation, or the BES islands for short. The islands are officially classified as public bodies in the Netherlands and as overseas territories of the European Union; as such, European Union law does not automatically apply to them.

Bonaire (including the islet of Klein Bonaire) is one of the Leeward Antilles and is located close to the coast of Venezuela. Sint Eustatius and Saba are in the main Lesser Antilles group and are located south of Sint Maarten and northwest of Saint Kitts and Nevis. The Caribbean Netherlands, a term distinct from the comprehensive Dutch Caribbean, has a population of 31,980.

Overseas Countries and Territories Association (OCTA; French: Association des pays et territoires d'outre-mer de l'Union européenne, PTOM) is an international organisation founded on 17 November 2000 during the conference of prime ministers of overseas countries and territories in Brussels, Belgium. It includes almost all special member state territories of European Union whose purpose is to improve economic development in overseas countries and territories and cooperation with the European Union. It currently has 13 members. On 25 June 2008, a Cooperation Treaty between the EU and OCTA was signed in Brussels.

Prior to Brexit, until 31 January 2020, there had been 22 Overseas Countries and Territories associated with the European Union and members of OCTA.

The border of the European Union consists of the land borders that member states of the EU share with non-EU states adjacent to the union. The EU shares land borders with 21 countries and 3 dependencies.