International Atomic Energy Agency - Membership

Membership

The process of joining the IAEA is fairly simple. Normally, a State would notify the Director General of its desire to join, and the Director would submit the application to the Board for consideration. If the Board recommends approval, and the General Conference approves the application for membership, the State must then submit its instrument of acceptance of the IAEA Statute to the United States, which functions as the depositary Government for the IAEA Statute. The State is considered a member when its acceptance letter is deposited. The United States then informs the IAEA, which notifies other IAEA Member States. Signature and ratification of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) are not preconditions for membership in the IAEA.

The IAEA has 155 member states. Most UN members and the Holy See are Member States of the IAEA.

Non-Member States are:

Of these, the Cook Islands and Niue are not UN members, and have limited sovereignty due to their free association with New Zealand. In addition, most of the states with limited recognition (i.e., those that are not UN members) are not Member States of the IAEA. Cape Verde, Rwanda, and Togo as non-member states, have been approved for membership, and will each become a Member State once it deposits the necessary legal instrument.

Two states have withdrawn from the IAEA. North Korea was a Member State from 1974–1994, but withdrew after the Board of Governors found it in non-compliance with its safeguards agreement and suspended most technical cooperation. Cambodia became a member in 1958, withdrew its membership in 2003, and rejoined 2009.