France said it would alter some of its laws following the storm over the government's expulsions of Roma gypsies to countries in eastern Europe.

France, locked in a stand-off with the EU over the expulsion of some of Europe's poorest minorities, was given until midnight yesterday by the European Commission to fully implement the EU's directive on freedom of movement across the 27-nation bloc or face legal action. EU spokesman Matthew Newman said the EU executive received documents from the French authorities last night, shortly before the deadline.

"We will analyse the documents during the weekend," he said.

The Foreign Ministry said France was willing to amend its laws to match EU regulations but did not spell out the exact changes. The EU requires the expelling nation to follow procedures such as issuing a written expulsion order and giving people the possibility of appeal – those issues are among the EU's complaints about France.

In recent months, France has expelled more than 1,000 Roma immigrants, mostly to Romania, and demolished hundreds of illegal Roma camps.

It says its actions are part of a crackdown on illegal immigration and crime and that most of the migrants are leaving France voluntarily, with a small payment. But critics say France is unfairly targeting an ethnic minority and lumping together communities instead of handling expulsions case by case.

The EU has stopped short of formally accusing France of discrimination, but expressed serious concerns about other aspects of France's expulsions.