The European Union updated the Natura 2000 lists in sixteen Member States adding significant marine areas.

Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Luxemburg, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden and the UK.
The number of "Sites of Community Importance" has increased by 166 to a total of 22 558, expanding the SCI network by 2.6 % or by nearly 18 800 km².

The latest additions cover six of the EU's nine bio-geographical regions – the Alpine, Atlantic, Boreal, Continental, Mediterranean and Pannonian regions.

This updating round adds a significant area of the EU's marine habitats to the Natura 2000 network, primarily in the Atlantic biogeographic region (the UK, France and Belgium), but also in the Mediterranean (Greece and Cyprus). The terrestrial part of the Natura 2000 network has primarily been increased in Lithuania, Hungary, Cyprus and Italy.

In some Member States (Austria, Germany, Spain, Ireland, Luxemburg, the Netherlands, Poland and Sweden) the update mostly concerns modifications, such as adaptations to site areas or deletions/additions of smaller sites. This has resulted in rather small overall changes to the total area covered by the network in these Member States.