Twinning projects are built around jointly agreed EU policy objectives and are based on a small number of basic principles:

• Beneficiary country (BC) - in liaison with the EC- chooses its EU MS partner(s), after a competitive procedure based only on quality of the proposal;
• Twinning projects must yield a concrete operational result in terms of the Beneficiary Administration (BA) meeting a requirement in connection with the EU acquis or other EU policies open for co-operation;
• The Twinning partners commit themselves to achieve the mandatory result and not only the means to achieve it. Twinning projects involve the sharing of hands-on public sector experience and expertise and are built upon the true nature of partnership;
• A Twinning project does NOT aim at replicating a particular MS administrative system but rather strives to help introduce EU wide best practices in connection with Community legislation.
• Twinning is a joint project of a grant nature. It is not a one-way delivery of technical assistance from an EU member state to a BC. It is a joint project covering a process, in which each partner takes on responsibilities. The BC commits itself to undertaking and funding reforms, the MS to accompanying the process for the duration of the project.
• To underpin the credibility of their commitment, the Twinning partners draft a detailed Twinning work plan, before starting work. It may be adapted in the course of its implementation, but it must fix clear benchmarks to allow for close monitoring of progress towards the final result;
• At the end of the project a new or adapted system must function under the sole responsibility and means of the BC.
• The final and sole ownership of the mandatory result lies with the BC

The average duration of a Twinning Project is between 12 and 24 months. At the completion of the a Twinning project the Beneficiary country should have a significantly improved organization enabling  it to properly fulfil its objectives in relation to the EU acquis or in relation to the relevant area of co-operation with the EU.

Twinning activities are ideally suited to projects with the following features:

• the goal should be clearly defined, results should be realistic and measurable;
• sufficient political wish exists in the BC to create the best possible conditions for reform, drafting and adoption of the relevant legislation;
• sufficient BC commitment exists to ensure that the required resources (financial, staff, etc.) are mobilised for a Twinning project.