Proposal for a Council Decision on the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Community and its Member States, of the one part, and the Swiss Confederation, of the other part, to counter fraud and all other illegal activities affecting their financial interests
Date: 2004-08-16
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Switzerland, administrative cooperation, cooperation agreement (EU), fraud, fraud against the EU, judicial cooperation, ratification of an agreement

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 16.08.2004 
COM(2004) 559 final 

2004/0187 (CNS) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

concerning the signature of the Agreement between the European Community and its 
Member States, of the one part, and the Swiss Confederation, of the other part, to 
counter fraud and all other illegal activities affecting their financial interests 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Community and its Member 
States, of the one part, and the Swiss Confederation, of the other part, to counter fraud 
and all other illegal activities affecting their financial interests 

(presented by the Commission) 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

Background of the negotiations 

The negotiations for an Agreement between the European Community and its Member States, 
of the one part, and the Swiss Confederation, of the other, to combat fraud and all other illegal 
activity  to  the  detriment  of  their  financial  interests  were  conducted  by  the  Commission 
following the authorisation given by the Council on 14 December 2000.  

The Commission respected fully the negotiating directives attached to the Council decision by 
taking  into  account,  in  particular,  the  current  acquis  communautaire  and  its  future 
development in the area of co-operation. 

This is specifically reflected in Articles 7 and 25 of the Agreement where it is stated that more 
favourable provisions of bilateral or multilateral Agreements between the Contracting Parties 
are not affected by the provisions contained in the Agreement.  

This  is  equally  the  conclusion  achieved  in  the  European  Union-Switzerland  summit  on  19 
May  2004  (http://www.europa.admin.ch/nbv/medien/2004/d/pr_040519_2_e.pdf)  when  it  was 
agreed  that:  “concerning  the  Agreement  on  cooperation  against  fraud,  both  sides  will  grant 
each  other  full  judicial  co-operation  and  administrative  assistance  on  fraud  and  all  other 
illegal activities, including customs and indirect tax offences in connection with the trade of 
goods  and  services.  Co-operation  against  money  laundering  will  be  improved  considerably, 
covering in particular also serious cases of fraud and smuggling”.  

Administrative  cooperation  will  be  granted  in  accordance  with  the  standards  of  the 
Convention on mutual assistance and cooperation between customs administrations, OJ C 24, 
23.1.1998,  p.  2  (the  Naples  II  Convention).  Judicial  cooperation  by  means  of  coercive 
measures (search and seizure) will be subject to the dual criminality requirement as set out in 
Article  31  of  the  Agreement,  a  provision  corresponding  to  Article  51  of  the  Convention 
Implementing the Schengen Agreement (SIC), OJ L 239, 22.9.2000. Should dual criminality 
for  letters  rogatory  for  search  and  seizure  be  abandoned  in  Schengen  in  the  future,  the  new 
Schengen rules will fully apply in areas covered by the present Agreement. According to the 
summit  conclusions  referred  to  above,  Switzerland  has  been  granted  in  the  Agreement 
between  the  European  Union,  the  European  Community  and  the  Swiss  Confederation 
concerning  the latter’s association with the implementation, application and development of 
the Schengen Acquis a derogation concerning the acceptance of future acquis related to letters 
rogatory for search and seizure only in the field of direct taxation. 

Cooperation on matters of money laundering will be granted in line with the material scope of 
Directive  91/308/EEC  on  prevention  of  the  use  of  the  financial  system  for  the  purpose  of 
money laundering (OJ L 166, 28.6.1991, p. 77) as amended by Directive 2001/97/CE (OJ L 
344, 28.122001, p. 76), which refers in its Article 1 to the concept of serious fraud as defined 
in  Article  2  of  the  Convention  on  the  protection  of  the  European  Communities’  financial 
interests (fraud punishable by penalties involving deprivation of liberty which can give rise to 
extradition). 

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Provisions of the Agreement 

Title I: General provisions 

•  Articles 1 and 2 - “Subject matter” and “Scope” 

These Articles define the subject matter and scope of the Agreement, covering administrative 
assistance and judicial cooperation for the protection of the Communities' financial interests 
and certain financial interests of the Member States. 

Within the scope of the Agreement the terms “fraud and all other illegal activity” extend to all 
tax (VAT and excise duties) and customs offences (including smuggling), corruption, bribery 
and laundering of the proceeds of the activities covered by the Agreement subject to Article 
2(3). Money laundering is also covered if the  predicate  offence  is punishable by custody of 
more than six months, which includes in particular tax fraud and professional smuggling (EU-
Switzerland summit conclusions of 19 May 2004). 

The first indent of Article 2(1)a makes reference to “trade in goods” irrespective of whether 
the goods pass through the territory of the other Party (departure, destination or transit). The 
scope  of  the  Agreement  extends  to  tax  offences  connected  with  trade  of  both  goods  and 
services.  The  term  “trade”  referred  to  in  the  second  indent  of  Article  2(1)a  is  understood 
irrespective of whether goods pass through or the services have a link with the territory of the 
other  Party  (departure,  destination  or  transit)-  (EU-Switzerland  summit  conclusions  of  19 
May 2004). 

Article 2(2) states that cooperation may not be withheld on the sole ground that the legislation 
of  the  requested  Party  does  not  contain  the  same  legal  classification  of  the  facts  as  the 
legislation  of  the  requesting  Party.  This  means  that  the  application  of  the  Agreement  is  in 
principle  not  subject  to  the  dual  criminality  rule  which  only  applies  in  the  framework  of 
Articles 31 and 32 of the Agreement (EU-Switzerland summit conclusions of 19 May 2004). 

•  Article 3 - “Minor cases”  

This  Article  intends  to  avoid  being  faced  with  an  excessively  high  number  of  assistance 
requests relating to minor points.  

It  takes  over  the  content  of  Article  50(4)  of  the  Convention  Implementing  the  Schengen 
Agreement,  OJ  L  239,  22.9.2000,  p.19  (henceforth  SIC).  However,  in  respect  of  judicial 
cooperation, Article 50(4) SIC and Article 3 of this Agreement will no longer apply with the 
entry into force of the Protocol of 16 October 2001 to the Convention on Mutual Assistance in 
Criminal  Matters  between  the  Member  States  of  the  European  Union  for  Switzerland  since 
Article  8  of  the  Protocol  will  replace  Article  50  SIC.  The  Protocol  will  enter  into  force  for 
Switzerland  at  the  latest  on  the  date  of  its  entry  into  force  for  the  fifteenth  State,  being  a 
member  of  the  European  Union  at  the  time  of  the  adoption  by  the  Council  of  the  Act 
establishing this Protocol. 

•  Article 4 - “Public order” 

This Article includes the relevant grounds of public order in accordance with the cooperation 
Agreements, in particular, with Article 2b) of the European Convention on Mutual assistance 
in Criminal Matters of the Council of Europe (Strasbourg 20.4.1959). 

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Banking  secrecy  does  not  constitute  a  reason  for  refusing  mutual  assistance  in  the  sense  of 
this Article. 

•  Article 5 - “Transmission of information and evidence” 

This  Article  allows  exchange  between  the  Member States  and  with  the  Commission  of 
information and evidence obtained from Switzerland and vice versa by way of the assistance 
provided for by the Agreement.  

Article 5(1) makes reference to the rule of confidentiality to which officials are bound. Article 
5(2)  reflects  the  subsequent  transmission  of  information  and  evidence  received  by  the 
requesting  Party  as  a  consequence  of  the  assistance  provided  by  the  requested  authority. 
Article 5(3) ensures the effectiveness of this subsequent transmission of information.  

•  Article 6 - “Confidentiality” 

This Article refers to the confidentiality requirements applying to the handling of assistance 
requests by the requested Party. 

Title II: Provisions relating to administrative assistance for the protection of 
financial interests 

•  Article 7 - “Relationships with other Agreements”  

The  anti-fraud  Agreement  does  not  repeal  the  Protocol  on  mutual  assistance  in  customs 
matters  signed  with  Switzerland,  OJ  L  169,  27.6.97,  p.  81  which  can  continue  to  apply, 
especially for customs aspects outside the scope of the anti-fraud Agreement.  

•  Articles 8 and 9 - “Scope” and “Powers” 

These  Articles  of  the  Agreement  correspond  to  Articles  1  to  3  and  8  of  the  Convention  on 
mutual  assistance  and  cooperation  between  customs  administrations,  OJ  C  24,  23.1.98,  p.  2 
(henceforth the Naples II Convention). 

Administrative assistance under the Agreement corresponds to the standards of the Naples II 
Convention as far as appropriate. This includes the use of information for the purposes of the 
Agreement (see Article 19 of the agreement) (EU-Switzerland summit conclusions of 19 May 
2004).  The  anti-fraud  agreement's  scope  goes  beyond  the  exclusively  customs-related  scope 
of the Convention. The provisions of the Agreement will apply within the limits of the powers 
conferred  by  national  law  on  each  authority  concerned  in  the  framework  of  national 
proceedings, and do not amend or extend these powers.  

•  Article 10 - “Proportionality”.  

This  Article  reflects  the  concern  already  contained  in  Article  3  but  within  the  limits  of  the 
administrative assistance. 

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•  Article 11 - “Central Departments” 

This  Article  of  the  Agreement  is  in  line  with  the  content  of  Article 5  of  the  Naples II 
Convention  and  reflects  the  negotiating  brief's  requirement  for  clear  identification  of  the 
relevant authorities at central level.  

The central departments empowered to process the requests for administrative assistance are 
designated by each contracting Party.  

•  Article 12 - “Request for  information”-,  Article 13 - “Request for surveillance”- and 

Article 14 -“Notification and transmission by post” (1) and (2). 

These Articles of the Agreement are in line with the content of Articles 10, 11 and 13 of the 
Naples II Convention.  

•  Article  14(3)  aims  to  ensure  that  grant  recipients  and  contractors  for  the  Communities 
residing  in  Switzerland  may  be  contacted  directly  by  the  awarding  institution  and  may 
respond  to  requests  for  documents  and  information  directed  to  them  by  the  latter  in 
connection  with  the  grants  and  contracts  concerned.  In  the  absence  of  any  basis  in  an 
international instrument, such transmission of information would be likely to be caught by 
certain Swiss rules on the violation of business secrets and economic espionage. 

•  Article 15 - “Request for investigations”- and Article 16- “Presence of authorised staff 

of the authority of the requesting contracting Party” 

These Articles are in line with the content of Article 12 of the Naples II Convention. The use 
of all investigation facilities allowed by the legal system of the requested Party as referred in 
Article  15(2)  includes  questioning  persons,  searches  of  premises  and  means  of  transport, 
copies of documents, requests for information and seizures of objects, documents and items of 
value.  

Article 16 covers the possibility of authorised staff to be present during the execution of the 
request  for  assistance  and  to  consult  the  documents,  to  propose  questions  and  suggest 
measures  of  investigation  in  order  to  contribute  to  the  efficiency  of  mutual  assistance  and, 
where appropriate, to have access to the same premises and documents and information as the 
staff of the requested authority (EU-Switzerland summit conclusions of 19 May 2004). 

•  Article 17 - “Duty to cooperate” 

This  Article  is  a  corollary  of  Articles  15  and  16  of  the  Agreement  and  reflects  similar 
obligations  on  traders  in  the  Member States  in  respect  of  investigations  conducted  by  their 
authorities.  

•  Article 18 – “Form and content of the request for assistance” 

This Article is in line with the content of Article 9 of the Naples II Convention.  

•  Article 19 - “Use of information” 

This Article is similar to Article 11 of the Protocol on mutual assistance in customs matters 
signed with Switzerland (OJ L 169, 27.6.97, p. 81) and it reflects a speciality rule. The use of 

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information will remain confined to the protection of the Parties' financial interests as defined 
in Article 2 (EU-Switzerland summit conclusions of 19 May 2004). 

•  Article 20 - “Spontaneous assistance” 

This provision is broader than similar provisions contained in the Naples II Convention. 

•  Article 21 to Article 23 – “Special forms of cooperation” 

These Articles are in line with the content of some of the measures covered in Title IV of the 
Naples II  Convention.  They  are  drafted  in  such  a  way  as  to  leave  their  application  to  the 
discretion of the Parties' authorities. 

•  Article 24 - “Recovery” 

This Article takes over the essence of Articles 6, 7, 9, 10, and 13 of Directive 76/308/EEC of 
15 March 1976  on  mutual  assistance  for  the  recovery  of  claims  relating  to  certain  levies, 
duties, taxes and other measures, OJ 19.3.76 L73, p. 18. 

Title III: Provisions relating to mutual legal assistance in criminal matters for 
the protection of financial interests 

•  Article 25 - “Relationships with other Agreements” 

This  Article  is  based  on  the  same  rationale  of  the  complementarity  of  international 
instruments as Article 48 of the SIC and Article 1 of the Convention on Mutual Assistance in 
Criminal Matters between the Members of the European Union of 29 May 2000, OJ C 197, 
12.7.2000, p. 1. 

The  concept  of  multilateral  Agreements  between  the  Contracting  Parties  under  the  terms  of 
Article 25, paragraph 2 of the Agreement, includes in particular, once it has entered into force, 
the  Agreement  between  the  European  Union,  the  European  Community  and  the  Swiss 
Confederation  on  the  involvement  of  the  Swiss  Confederation  in  the  implementation, 
application and development of the Schengen acquis. 

•  Article 26 - “Procedures in which assistance is given”  

This  Article  is  in  line  with  the  content  of  Article 49  of  the  SIC  and  Article 3  of  the 
Convention of 29 May 2000 on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters between the Member 
States of the European Union.  

This  Article  is  now  focused  on  the  proceedings  where  judicial  assistance  is  afforded 
(including  as  regards  those  facts  or  offences  for  which  a  legal  person  could  be  liable). 
Paragraph 2  has  been  maintained  with  the  aim  of  extending  the  measures  laid  down  in  the 
Convention  on  Laundering,  Search,  Seizure  and  Confiscation  of  the  Proceeds  from  Crime 
(Strasbourg 8.11.1990) to offences covered by the anti-fraud Agreement. 

•  Article 27 - “Transmission of requests” 

This Article takes a flexible approach to transmission allowing both centralised transmission 
of  requests  and  direct  transmission  to  the  executing  authority.  It  is  especially  suited  to  the 

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Swiss case, where the existence of two levels of jurisdiction (federal and cantonal) means that 
the possibility of centralised transmission may prove useful in certain situations.  

The direct transmission of requests is in line with Article 6 of the Convention of 29 May 2000 
on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters between the Member States of the European Union 
and  will  avoid  unnecessary  delays.  Article  27(5)  provides  for  the  necessary  measures  to 
identify the competent central authorities.  

•  Article 28 - “Service by post”  

This  Article  is  in  line  with  the  content  of  Article 52  of  the  SIC  and  Article 5  of  the 
Convention  of  29  May  of  2000  on  Mutual  Assistance  in  Criminal  Matters  between  the 
Member States of the European Union. 

•  Article 29 - “Provisional measures”  

This Article corresponds to Article 24 of the Second Additional Protocol of 8 November 2001 
to  the  European  Convention  on  Mutual  Assistance  in  Criminal  Matters  of  the  Council  of 
Europe (Strasbourg 20.4.1959). Paragraph 2 corresponds to Article 11 of the Convention on 
Laundering,  Search,  Seizure  and  Confiscation  of  the  Proceeds  from  Crime  (Strasbourg 
8.11.1990). 

•  Article 30 - “Presence of the authorities of the requesting Contracting Party” 

This  Article  is  in  line  with  Article  4  of  the  European  Convention  on  Mutual  Assistance  in 
Criminal Matters of the Council of Europe (Strasbourg 20.4.1959) and Article 2 of the Second 
Additional  Protocol  to  the  European  Convention  on  Mutual  Assistance  in  Criminal  Matters 
(Strasbourg 8.11.2001). It is also inspired on Article 12(2) of the Naples II Convention. The 
aim of this Article is to facilitate the execution of the requests of judicial assistance in order to 
avoid supplementary requests that would delay the effectiveness of cooperation. 

As it was said for the administrative assistance (Article 16) this covers the possibility for the 
authorities  and  authorised  staff  of  the  requesting  Contracting  Party  to  be  present  during  the 
execution of the request for assistance and to consult the documents, to propose questions and 
suggest measures of investigation in order to contribute to the efficiency of mutual assistance 
and, where appropriate, to have access to the same premises and documents and information 
as the staff of the requested authority (EU-Switzerland summit conclusions of 19 May 2004). 

This provision does  not  however  oblige the requested authorities to address  an invitation to 
the requesting authorities to assist the execution of the measures requested by letter rogatory.  

•  Article 31 - “Search and seizures” 

Judicial  cooperation,  including  search  and  seizures,  will  be  granted,  including  in  matters  of 
indirect taxation and smuggling (EU-Switzerland summit conclusions of 19 May 2004). 

Article 31(1)a reproduces the wording of Article 51(a) of the SIC.  

Article  31(2)  corresponds  to  the  Community  anti-laundering  standards  under  Directive 
91/308/EEC  on  prevention  of  the  use  of  the  financial  system  for  the  purpose  of  money 
laundering  as  amended  by  Directive  2001/97/EC  (OJ  L  344,  28.12.01,  p.  76)and  under  the 
Second Protocol to the Convention on the protection of the European Communities' financial 

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interests  (OJ  C  222,  19.7.97,  p.  12).  Letters  rogatory  for  search  and  seizure  in  respect  of 
money  laundering  offences  have  to  be  executed  provided  that  the  predicate  offence  is 
punishable by custody of more than six months according to the law of the requesting and the 
requested Party. This means that tax fraud and professional smuggling will be covered (EU-
Switzerland summit conclusions of 19 May 2004). 

•  Article 32 - “Request for banking and financial information” 

Requests  for  information  on  bank  accounts,  on  banking  transactions  and  requests  for  the 
monitoring of banking transactions will be treated in compliance with the standards laid down 
in  the  Protocol  of  16  October  2001  to  the  Convention  on  Mutual  Assistance  in  Criminal 
Matters  between  the  Member  States  of  the  European  Union,  OJ  C  326,  21.11.2001,  p.  1, 
including, if necessary, the non-disclosure to the person concerned of investigative measures 
(see Articles 1 to 4 of the Protocol) (EU-Switzerland summit conclusions on 19 May 2004). 

•  Article 33 - “Controlled deliveries”.  

This  Article  is  modelled  on  Article  12  of  the  Convention  of  29  May  2000  on  Mutual 
Assistance in Criminal Matters between the Member States of the European Union. 

•  Article 34 - “Handing over for confiscation or return” 

This  Article  is  in  line  with  Article  8  of  the  Convention  on  Mutual  Assistance  in  Criminal 
Matters between the Member States of the European Union of 29 May 2000. 

•  Article 35 – “Speeding up mutual assistance” 

This Article reflects the negotiating directives adopted by the Council on 14 December 2000 
as  regards  avoiding  excessively  long  cooperation  procedures.  The  text  is  in  full  compliance 
with  Article  4  (2),  (3)  and  (4)  of  the  Convention  of  29  May  2000  on  Mutual  Assistance  in 
Criminal Matters between the Member States of the European Union.  

By execution of the request for judicial assistance under the terms of Article 35, paragraph I, 
it is also understood to cover the transmission of information and evidence to the authority of 
the requesting Contracting Party. 

•  Article 36 - “Use of evidence” 

This  Article  is  to  be  interpreted  in  full  respect  of  the  data  protection  rules  contained  in  the 
acquis communautaire and, in particular, in accordance with Article 23 of the Convention of 
29  May  2000  on  Mutual  Assistance  in  Criminal  Matters  between  the  Members  of  the 
European Union.  

•  Article 37 - “Spontaneous transmission of evidence” 

This Article is based on Article 7 of the Convention of 29 May 2000 on Mutual Assistance in 
Criminal  Matters  between  the  Member  States  of  the  European  Union.  The  additional 
reference in the Agreement to spontaneous transmission of evidence does not presuppose any 
substantive change compared with existing rules since the evidential value will of course be 
determined by criminal procedural law in the country of prosecution. 

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•  Article 38 - “Procedures in the requested Party” 

This  Article  is  justified  by  Swiss  case  law,  according  to  which  a  foreign  country  joining  a 
civil action to criminal proceedings in Switzerland may be refused access to the file as civil 
party  if  in  addition  to  these  proceedings  the  Swiss  authorities  are  handling  a  request  for 
mutual  assistance  from  a  judicial  authority  in  that  country  in  respect  of  the  same  case 
(Abacha,  judgment  of  the  Public  Law  Court  of  5 June 2001).  The  provision  is  designed  to 
ensure  that  the  Community  or  the  Member States  could  enjoy  their  full  rights  as  a  party  in 
proceedings should they join a civil claim to criminal proceedings in Switzerland. 

•  Article 39 - “Joint Committee” 

Title IV: Final provisions 

This  Article  sets  up  a  joint  committee  for  managing  the  Agreement,  settling  disputes 
(Article 40) and making recommendations on revising the Agreement (Article 42). 

•  Article 40 - “Dispute settlement” 

•  Article 41 - “Reciprocity” 

This Article sets out that no unilateral measures will be taken without prior consultation of the 
Joint Committee. 

•  Article 42 -“Revision” 

•  Article 43 -“Territorial scope”  

This Article is in line with the standard provisions on the matter. However, the Commission 
will send to the Swiss an indicative list of territories in which the Agreement applies. 

•  Article 44 - “Entry into force” 

Where  a  declaration  is  to  be  made  under  Article  44(3)  it  is  clear  that  it  could  only  be  the 
Community which could make a declaration on matters of Community competence and that 
any declaration could not concern relations between the Member States but only the relations 
with Switzerland.  

•  Article 45 -“Withdrawal” 

This Article contains the possibilities of denouncing the Agreement. 

•  Article 46 -“Application over time” 

This Article contains a clause for the application the Agreement to requests concerning illegal 
activities committed six months after the signature of the Agreement. 

•  Article 47 - “Extension of the Agreement to the new Members of the EU” 

This Article is designed to make it easier to extend the Agreement to the new Member States. 

•  Article 48 - “Authentic texts”. 

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Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

concerning the signature of the Agreement between the European Community and its 
Member States, of the one part, and the Swiss Confederation, of the other part, to 
counter fraud and all other illegal activities affecting their financial interests 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION 

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 
280 in conjunction with the first sentence of the first subparagraph of Article 300 (2) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission1, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

Following the authorisation by the Council on 14 December 2000 the Commission has 
negotiated,  on  behalf  of  the  Community  and  its  Member  States,  with  the  Swiss 
Confederation an Agreement to counter fraud and all other illegal activities affecting 
the financial interests of the Community and its Member States, including value added 
tax and excise duties. 

(2) 

Subject to its conclusion at a later date, it is desirable to sign the Agreement that was 
initialled on 25 June 2004, 

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: 

Sole Article 

Subject to its conclusion at a later date, the President of the Council is hereby authorized to 
designate  the  person  empowered  to  sign  on  behalf  of  the  European  Community  the 
Agreement between the European Community and its Member States, of the one part, and the 
Swiss Confederation, of the other part, to counter fraud and all other illegal activities affecting 
their financial interests and the accompanying Final Act. 

Done at Brussels,  

For the Council 
The President 

1 

OJ C […] […], p. […]. 

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2004/0187 (CNS) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Community and its Member 
States, of the one part, and the Swiss Confederation, of the other part, to counter fraud 
and all other illegal activities affecting their financial interests 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION 

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 
280 in conjunction with the first sentence of the first subparagraph of Article 300(2) and the 
first subparagraph of Article 300(3) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission2, 

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament3,  

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

On 14 December 2000, the Council authorised the Commission to negotiate with the 
Swiss  Confederation  an  Agreement  to  counter  fraud  and  all  other  illegal  activities 
affecting  the  financial  interests  of  the  Community  and  its  Member  States,  including 
value added tax and excise duties. 

According to Council Decision …./…./CE of ……2004, and subject to its conclusion 
at  a  later  date,  the  Agreement  was  signed on  behalf  of  the  European  Community  on 
….2004. 

The Agreement establishes a Joint Committee with decision-making powers in certain 
areas  and  it  is  thus  necessary  to  specify  who  represents  the  Community  within  this 
Committee. 

(4) 

The Agreement should be approved, 

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: 

Article 1 

The  Agreement  between  the  European  Community  and  its  Member  States,  of  the  one  part, 
and the Swiss Confederation, of the other part, to counter fraud and all other illegal activities 

2 
3 

OJ C […] […], p. […]. 
OJ C […] […], p. […].. 

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affecting  their  financial  interests  and  the  accompanying  Final  Act  are  hereby  approved  on 
behalf of the European Community. 

The text of the Agreement and the Final Act are attached to this Decision. 

Article 2  

The Community shall be represented on the Joint Committee set up under Article 39 of the 
Agreement by the Commission. 

The  position  to  be  taken  by  the  Community  in  the  course  of  the  implementation  of  the 
Agreement  as  regards  decisions  or  recommendations  of  the  Joint  Committee  shall  be  laid 
down by the Council, acting by qualified majority, on a proposal from the Commission. 

Article 3  

The President of the Council shall effect the notification provided for in Article 44(2) of the 
Agreement on behalf of the European Community4. 

Article 4 

This Decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union. 

Done at Brussels,  

For the Council 
The President 

4 

The date of entry into force of the Agreement will be published in the Official Journal of the European 
Union by the General Secretariat of the Council. 

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ANNEX  

Cooperation Agreement 

between the European Community and its Member States, of the one part, and the Swiss 
Confederation, of the other part, 

to combat fraud and any other illegal activity to the detriment of their financial interests 

___________________________________________________________________________ 

THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY, 

THE KINGDOM OF BELGIUM, 

THE CZECH REPUBLIC, 

THE KINGDOM OF DENMARK, 

THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY, 

THE REPUBLIC OF ESTONIA, 

THE HELLENIC REPUBLIC, 

THE KINGDOM OF SPAIN, 

THE FRENCH REPUBLIC, 

IRELAND, 

THE ITALIAN REPUBLIC, 

THE REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS, 

THE REPUBLIC OF LATVIA, 

THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA, 

THE GRAND DUCHY OF LUXEMBOURG, 

THE REPUBLIC OF HUNGARY, 

THE REPUBLIC OF MALTA, 

THE KINGDOM OF THE NETHERLANDS, 

THE REPUBLIC OF AUSTRIA, 

THE REPUBLIC OF POLAND, 

THE PORTUGUESE REPUBLIC, 

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THE REPUBLIC OF SLOVENIA, 

THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC, 

THE REPUBLIC OF FINLAND, 

THE KINGDOM OF SWEDEN, 

THE UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND, of the one 
part, 

and 

THE SWISS CONFEDERATION, of the other part, 

Hereinafter referred to as the Contracting Parties, 

CONSIDERING 
Member States, of the one part, and the Swiss Confederation, of the other part, 

relations  between 

the  European  Community  and 

the  close 

its 

DESIRING to be effective in combating fraud and any other illegal activity to the detriment 
of the Contracting Parties' financial interests, 

TAKING ACCOUNT of the need to step up administrative assistance in these areas, 

CONVINCED that judicial assistance, extending to searches and seizures, must be afforded, 
including in all cases of smuggling and evasion of indirect taxation, in particular value added 
tax and customs and excise duties, 

RECOGNISING the importance of combating money laundering, 

HAVE DECIDED TO CONCLUDE THIS AGREEMENT: 

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TITLE I GENERAL PROVISIONS 

Article 1 - Objective 

The objective of this Agreement is to extend administrative and judicial assistance in criminal 
matters  between  the  European  Community  and  its  Member States,  of  the  one  part,  and  the 
Swiss Confederation, of the other part, so as to combat the illegal activities to which Article 2 
applies. 

Article 2 - Scope 

1. 

This Agreement is applicable to: 

(a) 

the  administrative  and  criminal  prevention,  detection, 
investigation, 
prosecution  and  repression  of  fraud  and  any  other  illegal  activity  to  the 
detriment of the Contracting Parties' respective financial interests concerning: 

– 

– 

– 

trade in goods contrary to customs and agricultural legislation; 

trade  contrary  to  tax  legislation  applicable  to  value  added  tax,  special 
taxes on consumption and excise duties; 

the charging or retention of funds – including their use for purposes other 
than those for which they were initially granted – from the budget of the 
Contracting Parties or budgets managed by them or on their behalf, such 
as grants and refunds; 

– 

procedures for the award of contracts by the Contracting Parties; 

2. 

3. 

(b) 

the seizure and recovery of amounts due or wrongly received as a result of the 
illegal activities referred to in point (a). 

Cooperation  within  the  meaning  of  Titles  II  (Administrative  assistance)  and  III 
(Judicial assistance) may not be withheld on the sole ground that the request relates 
to an offence treated as a tax offence in the requested Contracting Party or that the 
legislation of the requested Contracting Party does not provide for the same type of 
levy  or  expenditure  or  does  not  contain  the  same  type  of  rules  or  the  same  legal 
characterisation of the facts as the legislation of the requesting Contracting Party. 

The scope of this Agreement includes the laundering of the proceeds of the activities 
covered by the Agreement provided that the activities which constitute the precursor 
offence  are  punishable  under  the  law  of  the  two  Contracting  Parties  by  a  penalty 
involving deprivation of liberty or a detention order of a maximum of more than six 
months. 

4. 

Direct taxes are excluded from the scope of this Agreement. 

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Article 3 

Minor cases 

1. 

2. 

The  authority  of  the  requested  Contracting  Party  may  refuse  a  request  for 
cooperation where the alleged amount of duty underpaid or evaded does not exceed 
EUR 25 000 or where the presumed value of the goods exported or imported without 
authorisation  does  not  exceed  EUR 100 000,  unless,  given  the  circumstances  or 
identity of the accused, the case is deemed to be extremely serious by the requesting 
Contracting Party.  

The  authority  of  the  requested  Contracting  Party  shall  inform  the  authority  of  the 
requesting Contracting Party without delay of its reasons for refusing the request for 
cooperation. 

Article 4 

Public policy 

Cooperation  may be withheld if the requested Contracting Party  considers  that execution of 
the request would be contrary to its sovereignty, security, public policy or other vital interests. 

Article 5 

Transmission of information and evidence 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

Information and evidence transmitted or received under this Agreement, whatever its 
form,  shall  be  subject  to  professional  confidentiality  and  shall  enjoy  the  protection 
enjoyed by comparable information conferred by the domestic law of the Contracting 
Party receiving it and by the corresponding provisions applicable to the Community 
institutions. 

In  particular,  such  information  and  evidence  may  not  be  divulged  to  persons  other 
than  those  who,  in  the  Community  institutions,  the  Member States  or  the  Swiss 
Confederation, are required by their functions to be acquainted with it, nor used by 
them for purposes that are not within the scope of this Agreement. 

The  information  and  evidence  obtained  by  the  requesting  Contracting  Party  under 
this Agreement may be transmitted to any Contracting Party if this Contracting Party 
is conducting an investigation in respect of which cooperation is not excluded or if 
there are clear indications that this Contracting Party could usefully conduct such an 
investigation. No such transmission may serve any purpose other than those of this 
Agreement. 

The  transmission  of  information  and  evidence  obtained  pursuant  to  this  Agreement 
by a Contracting Party to another Contracting Party or to more than one Contracting 
Party may not be open to appeal in the Contracting Party initially requested. 

Any Contracting Party to which information or evidence is transmitted in conformity 
with  paragraph  2  shall  respect  such  limits  as  are  put  by  the  requested  Contracting 
Party  on  the  use  of  the  information  by  the  requesting  Contracting  Party  of  the  first 
transmission. 

The  transmission  of  information  and  evidence  obtained  under  this  Agreement  by  a 
Contracting  Party  to  a  third  State  shall  be  subject  to  authorisation  from  the 
Contracting Party from which the information or evidence originated. 

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Article 6 

Confidentiality 

The requesting Contracting Party may ask the requested Contracting Party to ensure that the 
request  and  the  content  thereof  remain  confidential,  except  in  so  far  as  this  is  incompatible 
with  the  execution  of  the  request.  If  the  requested  Contracting  Party  cannot  comply  with 
confidentiality requirements, it shall inform the authority of the requesting Contracting Party 
in advance. 

Title II  ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANCE 

Chapter 1 General provisions 

Article 7 

Relationship with other Agreements 

This Title shall not affect the provisions applicable to judicial assistance in criminal matters or 
more  extensive  obligations  in  the  field  of  administrative  assistance  or  more  favourable 
provisions  of  bilateral  or  multilateral  cooperation  arrangements  between  the  Contracting 
the  Additional  Protocol  on  customs  cooperation  and  mutual 
Parties, 
administrative assistance in customs matters of 9 June 1997. 

in  particular 

Article 8 

Scope 

1. 

2. 

The  Contracting  Parties  shall  provide  each  other  with  mutual  assistance  to  combat 
illegal  activities  to  which  this  Agreement  applies,  in  particular  in  preventing  and 
detecting  operations  and  other  acts  of  commission  and  omission  contrary  to  the 
relevant legislation and in conducting investigations relating thereto. 

The assistance provided for by this Title shall apply to all administrative authorities 
in  the  Contracting  Parties  acting  in  the  exercise  of  administrative  investigation 
powers  or  criminal  prosecution  powers,  including  cases  where  these  authorities 
exercise powers at the request of the judicial authorities. 

If  a  criminal  investigation  is  conducted  by  or  under  the  direction  of  a  judicial 
authority,  such  authority  shall  determine  whether  related  requests  for  mutual 
assistance  or  cooperation  have  been  presented  on  the  basis  of  the  provisions 
applicable to judicial assistance in criminal matters or on the basis of this Title. 

Article 9 

Powers 

1. 

The  authorities  of  the  Contracting  Parties  shall  apply  this  Title  within  the  limits  of 
the  powers  conferred  on  them  by  their  domestic  law.  Nothing  in  this  Title  may  be 
construed  as  affecting  the  powers  conferred  under  domestic  provisions  upon  the 
authorities of the Contracting Parties within the meaning of this Title. 

They shall proceed as if they were acting on their behalf or at the request of another 
authority of the same Contracting Party. To that end they shall exercise all the legal 
powers which they enjoy under their domestic law in meeting the request. 

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2. 

Requests addressed to non-competent authorities shall be forwarded without delay to 
the competent authority.  

Article 10 

Proportionality 

The authority of the requested Contracting Party may refuse a request for cooperation where it 
is clear that: 

(a) 

(b) 

the  number  and  nature  of  the  requests  made  by  the  requesting  Contracting 
Party  in  the  course  of  a  given  period  impose  disproportionate  administrative 
burdens on the authority of the requested Contracting Party; 

the  authority  of  the  requesting  Contracting  Party  has  not  exhausted  the  usual 
sources  of  information  which,  in  the  circumstances,  it  could  have  used  to 
obtain  the  information  sought  without  running  the  risk  of  jeopardising  the 
chances of achieving the desired result. 

Article 11 

Central departments 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

Each Contracting Party shall designate one or more central departments empowered 
to process requests for administrative assistance under this Title. 

These  departments  shall  call  on  all  competent  administrative  authorities  for  the 
execution of the assistance requested. 

The central departments shall communicate directly with each other. 

The  activities  of  the  central  departments  shall  not,  especially  in  urgent  cases, 
preclude  direct  cooperation  between  the  other  authorities in  the  Contracting  Parties 
having  power  to  act  in  matters  to  which  this  Agreement  applies.  The  central 
departments  shall  be  informed  of  all  action  in  which  a  call  is  made  on  such  direct 
cooperation. 

The Contracting Parties, when making the notification provided for by Article 44(2), 
shall announce which are the authorities regarded as the central departments for the 
purposes of this Article. 

Chapter 2 Assistance on request 

Article 12 

Requests for information 

1. 

At the request of the authority of the requesting Contracting Party,  the authority of 
the  requested  Contracting  Party  shall  provide  the  former,  within  the  limits  of  the 
scope  of  this  Agreement,  with  all  the  information  available  to  it  or  to  other 
authorities  of  the  same  Contracting  Party  to  enable  it  to  prevent,  detect  and  punish 
the  illegal  activities  to  which  the  Agreement  applies  or  needed  to  recover  a  claim. 
The  authority  of  the  requested  Contracting  Party  shall  undertake  all  requisite 
administrative inquiries needed to gather such information. 

2. 

The reports and other documents, or certified copies of or extracts from the reports or 
documents, on which the information notified is based and which are available to the 

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authorities  of  the  requested  Contracting  Party  or  which  have  been  produced  or 
obtained to meet the request shall be attached to the information that is supplied. 

3. 

By Agreement between the authority of the requesting Contracting Authority and the 
authority  of  the  requested  Contracting  Party,  and  in  accordance  with  the  latter's 
detailed  instructions,  staff  duly  authorised  for  the  purpose  by  the  authority  of  the 
requesting  Contracting  Party  may  have  access  to  documents  and  information  to 
which  paragraph  1  applies,  held  in  the  offices  of  the  authorities  of  the  requested 
Contracting Party, which refers to specific illegal activities falling within the scope 
of  this  Agreement.  Such  staff  shall  be  authorised  to  make  copies  of  that 
documentation. 

Article 13 

Requests for surveillance 

At  the  request  of  the  authority  of  the  requesting  Contracting  Party,  the  authority  of  the 
requested Contracting Party shall wherever possible exercise surveillance over trade in goods 
in breach of the legislation referred to in Article 2. Such surveillance may relate to a person 
suspected on reasonable grounds of having participated or of participating in the commission 
of such illegal activities or of performing acts preparatory to the commission of such illegal 
activities, or to the premises, means of transport and goods connected with such activities. 

Article 14 

Notification and transmission by post 

1. 

2. 

3. 

At the request of the authority of the requesting Contracting Party,  the authority of 
the requested Contracting Party shall notify the addressee or cause him to be notified, 
in accordance with the domestic provisions of the requested Contracting Party, of all 
instruments  or  decisions  emanating  from  the  relevant  authorities  of  the  requesting 
Contracting Party which are within the scope of this Agreement. 

Requests for notification, which shall specify the object of the instrument or decision 
to  be  notified,  shall  be  accompanied  by  a  translation  in  an  official  language  of  the 
requested Contracting Party or in a language acceptable to that Contracting Party. 

The  Contracting  Parties  may  post  acts  of  notification  and  requests  for  information 
and  documents  direct  to  the  operators  concerned  by  the  third  and  fourth  indents  of 
Article 2(1)(a) residing in the other Contracting Party's territory. 

Such  persons  may  respond  thereto  and  provide  the  relevant  documents  and 
information in the form provided for by the rules and arrangements under which the 
funds were granted. 

Article 15 

Requests for investigations 

1. 

2. 

At  the  request  of  the  requesting  Contracting  Party,  the  requested  Contracting  Party 
shall  undertake  all  useful  investigations,  or  order  such  investigations  to  be 
undertaken,  into  operations  or  forms  of  conduct  that  constitute  illegal  activities  to 
which this Agreement applies or which prompt the requesting Contracting authority 
to suspect on reasonable grounds that such illegal activities have been committed.  

The requested Contracting Party shall make use of all investigation facilities allowed 
by its legal system as if it were acting on its own behalf or at the request of another 

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internal  authority,  including  the  involvement  or  authorisation  of  the  judicial 
authorities where required. 

This  provision  shall  be  without  prejudice  to  the  duty  of  economic  operators  to 
cooperate under Article 17. 

The  authority  of  the  requested  Contracting  Party  shall  communicate  the  results  of 
such investigations to the authority of the requesting Contracting Party. Article 12(2) 
shall apply mutatis mutandis. 

3. 

The  authority  of  the  requested  Contracting  Party  shall  extend  assistance  to  all 
circumstances, objects and persons apparently linked to the object of the request for 
assistance,  without  any  need  for  a  supplementary  request.  In  cases  of  doubt,  the 
authority  of  the  requested  Contracting  Party  shall  first  contact  the  authority  of  the 
requesting Contracting Party. 

Article 16 
Party 

Presence  of  authorised  staff  from  the  authority  of  the  requesting  Contracting 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

By  Agreement  between  the  authority  of  the  requesting  Contracting  Party  and  the 
authority of the requested Contracting Party, officials appointed by the authority of 
the requesting Contracting Party may be present at the administrative investigations 
referred to in the previous Article. Their presence shall not require the consent of the 
person or economic operator being investigated. 

Staff of the authority of the requested Contracting Party shall at all times conduct the 
investigations. Staff of the authority of the requesting Contracting Party may not of 
their  own  motion  exercise  the  powers  conferred  on  the  staff  of  the  authority  of  the 
requested Contracting Party. 

However, they shall have access to the same premises and the same documents as the 
staff  of  the  authority  of  the  requested  Contracting  Party,  through  them  and  for  the 
sole purposes of the investigation in hand. 

Conditions may be attached to the authorisation. 

The  information  brought  to  the  knowledge  of  the  authority  of  the  requesting 
Contracting  Party  may  not  be  used  as  evidence  until  the  transmission  of  the 
documents relating to execution has been authorised. 

Article 17 

Duty to cooperate 

Economic  operators  shall  be  required  to  cooperate  with  the  execution  of  the  request  for 
administrative  assistance  by  giving  access  to  their  premises,  means  of  transport  and 
documentation and providing all relevant information.  

Article 18 

Form and content of requests for assistance 

1. 

Requests for assistance shall be made in writing. They shall be accompanied by such 
documents as are regarded as helpful to the reply. 

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In cases of urgency, oral requests shall be accepted, but they must be confirmed in 
writing at the earliest possible opportunity. 

2. 

Requests shall be accompanied by the following information: 

(a) 

the requesting authority; 

(b) 

the measure requested; 

(c) 

the object and the grounds for the request; 

(d) 

the legislation, rules and other legal materials concerned; 

(e) 

(f) 

the clearest and fullest indications possible of the natural or legal persons to be 
investigated; 

a summary of the relevant facts and of the enquiries already carried out, except 
in cases provided for in Article 14. 

3. 

4. 

Requests shall be made in an official language of the requested Contracting Party or 
in a language that is acceptable to that Contracting Party. 

Incorrect  or  incomplete  requests  may  be  corrected  or  completed.  The  measures 
needed to act on the request shall be carried out in the meantime. 

Article 19 

Use of information 

1. 

2. 

3. 

The  information  obtained  shall  be  used  exclusively  for  the  purposes  of  this 
Agreement.  Where  a  Contracting  Party  asks  to  use  such  information  for  other 
purposes,  it  shall  request  the  prior  written  Agreement  of  the  supplying  authority. 
Such use shall then be subject to any restrictions laid down by that authority. 

Paragraph 1 shall not preclude the use of the information in judicial or administrative 
proceedings  for  failure  to  comply  with  the  legislation  to  which  the  request  for 
administrative assistance applies if the same forms of assistance would be available 
for these proceedings. The relevant authority of the Contracting Party which supplied 
the information shall be advised without delay of such use. 

The  Contracting  Parties  may  use  the  information  obtained  and  the  documents 
consulted in accordance with this Agreement by way of evidence in their reports and 
depositions and in proceedings and prosecutions in the courts. 

Chapter 3 Spontaneous assistance 

Article 20 

Spontaneous assistance 

1. 

The forms of cooperation established by the foregoing Chapter may be given without 
the prior request of another Contracting Party. 

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2. 

The  authority  of  the  Contracting  Party  transmitting  the  information  may,  in 
accordance with its domestic law, attach conditions to the use of the information by 
the authority of the recipient Contracting Party. 

3. 

All the authorities of the Contracting Parties shall be bound by such conditions. 

Chapter 4 Special forms of cooperation 

Article 21 

Joint operations 

1. 

2. 

On imports, exports and transit of goods, where the volume of transactions and the 
resultant risks in terms of taxes and grants are such that there are likely to be major 
losses  to  the  budget  of  the  Contracting  Parties,  those  Parties  may  agree  to  conduct 
joint cross-border operations for the prevention and prosecution of illegal activities to 
which this Agreement applies. 

The  coordination  and  planning  of  such  cross-border  operations  shall  be  the 
responsibility of the central department or of an office designated by it. 

Article 22 

Joint special investigation teams 

1. 

2. 

3. 

The authorities of several Contracting Parties may by Agreement among themselves 
establish a joint special investigation team located in a Contracting Party. 

The  joint  team  shall  conduct  difficult  investigations  entailing  the  mobilisation  of 
substantial resources and shall coordinate joint actions. 

Participation  in  such  a  team  shall  not  have  the  effect  of  conferring  on  the 
representatives of the participating Contracting Parties' authorities the power to act in 
the territory of the Contracting Party in which the investigations are conducted. 

Article 23 

Liaison officers 

1. 

2. 

The competent authorities of the Contracting Parties may decide on the secondment, 
for  a  fixed  or  indefinite  period,  of  liaison  officers  of  a  Contracting  Party  to  the 
competent  departments  of  another  Contracting  Party  in  order  to  provide  mutual 
support in the execution of administrative assistance. 

Liaison  officers  shall  have  the  task  of  providing  advice  and  assistance.  They  shall 
have no independent power to act in the territory of the host Contracting Party. With 
the  Agreement  or  at  the  request  of  the  competent  authorities  of  the  Contracting 
Parties, they may: 

(a) 

facilitate and accelerate the exchange of information; 

(b)  provide assistance with investigations; 

(c) 

assist in the processing of requests for assistance; 

(d) 

advise  and  assist  the  host  country  in  preparing  and  carrying  out  cross-border 
operations; 

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(e) 

perform  any  other  task  on  which  the  Contracting  Parties  may  agree  among 
themselves. 

The  competent  authorities  of  the  Contracting  Parties  shall  settle  the  details  by 
Agreement. 

Liaison officers may represent the interests of one or more Contracting Parties. 

3. 

4. 

Chapter 5 Recovery 

Article 24 

Recovery 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

At  the  request  of  the  requesting  Contracting  Party,  the  requested  Contracting  Party 
shall  proceed  to  the  recovery  of  claims  to  which  this  Agreement  applies  as  if  they 
were its own claims. 

The  request  for  recovery  of  a  claim  shall  be  accompanied  by  an  official  copy  or  a 
certified  copy  of  the  document  permitting  execution,  issued  by  the  requesting 
Contracting  Party  and,  where  appropriate,  the  original  or  a  certified  copy  of  other 
documents needed for recovery. 

The  requested  Contracting  Party  shall  take  precautionary  measures  to  ensure 
recovery of a claim.  

The authority of the Contracting Party requested shall transfer to the authority of the 
requesting  Contracting  Party  the  amount  of  the  claim  that  it  has  recovered.  In 
Agreement  with  the  requesting  Contracting  Party,  it  may  deduct  a  percentage 
corresponding to the administrative costs it has incurred. 

Notwithstanding paragraph 1, claims to be recovered shall not necessarily enjoy the 
same priority status as comparable claims arising in the requested Contracting Party. 

Title III  JUDICIAL ASSISTANCE 

Article 25 Relationship with other Agreements 

1. 

2. 

The  purpose  of  this  Title  is  to  complement  the  European  Convention  on  Mutual 
Assistance in Criminal Matters of 20 April 1959, and the Convention on Laundering, 
Search, Seizure and Confiscation of the Proceeds from Crime of 8 November 1990, 
and to facilitate their application between the Contracting Parties. 

More  favourable  provisions  of  bilateral  or  multilateral  Agreements  between  the 
Contracting Parties are not affected.  

Article 26 

Procedures in which assistance is given 

1. 

Judicial assistance shall also be given: 

(a) 

in  proceedings  for  offences that  are punishable in one of  the two Contracting 
Parties or in both Contracting Parties as infringements of the rules of law being 

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prosecuted  by  the  administrative  authorities  and  where  the  decision  may  give 
rise to proceedings before a court having jurisdiction in particular in criminal 
matters; 

in civil actions joined to criminal proceedings, as long as the criminal court has 
not given a final judgment; 

for  facts  or  offences  for  which  a  legal  person  of  the  requesting  Contracting 
Party may be liable. 

(b) 

(c) 

2. 

Assistance shall also be given for the purposes of investigations and proceedings for 
the seizure and confiscation of the instruments and products of these illegal activities.  

Article 27 

Transmission of requests 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

Requests  under  this  Title  shall  be  presented  by  the  authority  of  the  requesting 
Contracting Party either via a relevant central authority of the requested Contracting 
Party  or  direct  to  the  Contracting  Party's  authority  which  is  empowered  to  execute 
the  requesting  Contracting  Party's  request.  The  authority  of  the  requesting 
Contracting  Party  and,  where  appropriate,  the  authority  of  the  Contracting  Party 
requested shall send a copy of the request to its central authority for information. 

All documents relating to requests or the execution thereof may be sent by the same 
channels.  They,  or  at  least  a  copy,  must  be  sent  direct  to  the  authority  of  the 
requesting Contracting Party.  

If the authority of the Contracting Party receiving a request has no power to authorise 
assistance, it shall forthwith forward it to the competent authority. 

Defective  or  incomplete  requests  shall  be  applied  if  they  contain  the  information 
needed  to  satisfy  them,  without  prejudice  to  subsequent  regularisation  by  the 
authority of the requesting Contracting Party. The authority of the Contracting Party 
requested shall inform the authority of the requesting Contracting Party of the defects 
and allow it time to regularise them. 

The  authority  of  the  Contracting  Party  requested  shall  without  delay  send  the 
authority of the requesting Contracting Party all other indications that may help it to 
complete its request or extend it to include other measures. 

The Contracting Parties, when making the notification provided for by Article 44(2), 
shall  announce  which  are  the  competent  central  authorities  for  the  purposes  of  this 
Article. 

Article 28 

Service by post 

1. 

2. 

As a rule the Contracting Parties shall, in proceedings for illegal activities covered by 
this Agreement, address procedural documents directly by post to persons who are in 
the territory of the other Contracting Party. 

If the authority of the Contracting Party that issued the papers knows or has reason to 
believe  that  the  addressee  understands  only  some  other  language,  the  papers,  or  at 

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3. 

4. 

least the most important passages thereof, shall be accompanied by a translation into 
that other language. 

The  authority  of  the  serving  Contracting  Party  shall  advise  the  addressee  that  no 
measure of restraint or punishment may be enforced directly by that authority in the 
territory of the other Contracting Party. 

All  procedural  documents  shall  be  accompanied  by  a  report  indicating  that  the 
addressee  may  obtain  information  from  the  authority  identified  in  the  report 
regarding his or her rights and obligations concerning the documents. 

Article 29 

Provisional measures   

1. 

2. 

Within the limits of its domestic law and its respective powers and at the request of 
the  authority  of  the  requesting  Contracting  Party,  the  relevant  authority  of  the 
requested  Contracting  Party  shall  order  the  necessary  provisional  measures  for  the 
purpose of maintaining an existing situation, protecting endangered legal interests or 
preserving evidence, if the request for mutual assistance does not appear manifestly 
inadmissible. 

Preventive freezing and seizure of assets and proceeds of offences shall be ordered in 
cases where assistance is requested. If the proceeds of an offence no longer exist in 
whole  or  in  part,  the  same  measures  shall  be  ordered  in  relation  to  assets  located 
within the territory of the requested Contracting Party corresponding in value to the 
proceeds in question. 

Article 30 

Presence of the authorities of the requesting Contracting Party 

1. 

2. 

3. 

The  requested  Contracting  Party  shall,  at  the  request  of  the  requesting  Contracting 
Party,  authorise  the  representatives  of  the  latter  Party's  authorities  to  attend  the 
execution of the request for judicial assistance. Their presence shall not require the 
consent of the person concerned by the measure. 

Conditions may be attached to the authorisation. 

The persons present shall have access to the same premises and the same documents 
as  the  representatives  of  the  requested  Contracting  Party,  through  them  and  for  the 
sole  purposes  of  execution  of  the  request  for  judicial  assistance.  In  particular  they 
may be authorised to put or propose questions and suggest measures of investigation. 

Their  presence  shall  not  result  in  facts  being  divulged  to  persons  other  than  those 
authorised by virtue of the preceding paragraphs in breach of judicial confidentiality 
or the rights of the person concerned. The information brought to the knowledge of 
the authority of the requesting Contracting Party may not be used as evidence until 
the decision on transmission of the documents relating to execution has acquired the 
force of res judicata. 

Article 31 

Searches and seizures 

1. 

The Contracting Parties may not make the admissibility of letters rogatory for search 
or seizure dependent on conditions other than the following: 

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(a) 

the  act  giving  rise  to  the  letters  rogatory  is  punishable  under  the  law  of  both 
Contracting Parties by a penalty involving deprivation of liberty or a detention 
order of a maximum period of at least six months, or is punishable under the 
law of one of the two Contracting Parties by an equivalent penalty and under 
the law of the other Contracting Party by virtue of being an infringement of the 
rules  of  law  which  is  being  prosecuted  by  the  administrative  authorities,  and 
where  the  decision  may  give  rise  to  proceedings  before  a  court  having 
jurisdiction in particular in criminal matters; 

(b) 

execution  of  the  letters  rogatory  is  consistent  with  the  law  of  the  requested 
Contracting Party. 

2. 

Letters rogatory for purposes of search and seizure for laundering offences within the 
scope of this Agreement shall also be admissible provided that the activities making 
up the precursor offence are punishable under the law of the two Contracting Parties 
by a penalty involving deprivation of liberty or a detention order of a maximum of 
more than six months. 

Article 32 

Requests for banking and financial information 

1. 

Where  the  conditions  of  Article 31  are  met,  the  requested  Contracting  Party  shall 
execute  requests  for  assistance  in  obtaining  and  transmitting  banking  and  financial 
data, including: 

(a) 

(b) 

the identification of and information concerning bank accounts opened at banks 
established  in  its  territory  and  where  persons  under  investigation  are  the 
account holders, authorised signatories or in effective control; 

the  identification  of  and  information  concerning  banking  transactions  and 
operations conducted from, to or via one or more bank accounts or by specified 
persons during a specified period. 

To  the  extent  authorised  by  virtue  of  its  law  governing  criminal  proceedings  for 
similar  domestic  cases,  the  requested  Contracting  Party  may  order  surveillance  of 
banking  operations  conducted  from,  to  or  via  one  or  more  bank  accounts  or  by 
specified  persons  during  a  specified  period,  and  transmission  of  the  results  to  the 
requesting Contracting Party. The decision to monitor transactions and transmit the 
results  shall  be  taken  case  by  case  by  the  relevant  authorities  of  the  requested 
Contracting Party and shall comply with that Contracting Party's national legislation. 
The  practical  monitoring  measures  shall  be  determined  by  Agreement  between  the 
relevant authorities of the requesting and requested Contracting Parties. 

Each  Contracting  Party  shall  take  the  necessary  steps  to  ensure  that  the  financial 
institutions do not disclose to the person concerned or to third parties that measures 
are  being  executed  at  the  request  of  the  requesting  Contracting  Party  or  that  an 
investigation is under way, for such time as is necessary to avoid compromising the 
results. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

The authority of the Contracting Party issuing the request shall: 

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26 

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(a) 

(b) 

state the reasons why it considers that the information requested is likely to be 
vital for the investigation of the offence; 

state the reasons why it suspects that banks in the requested Contracting Party 
hold the relevant accounts and, if it has evidence, indicate which banks might 
be concerned; 

(c) 

transmit all such information as may facilitate the execution of the request. 

5. 

A  Contracting  Party  shall  not  invoke  banking  secrecy  as  grounds  for  rejecting  all 
cooperation on a request for mutual assistance from another Contracting Party. 

Article 33 

Controlled deliveries 

1. 

2. 

3. 

The competent authority in the requested Contracting Party undertakes to ensure that, 
at  the  request  of  the  authority  of  the  requesting  Contracting  Party,  controlled 
deliveries  may  be  permitted  in  its  territory  within  the  framework  of  criminal 
investigations into extraditable offences. 

The decision to carry out controlled deliveries shall be taken in each individual case 
by the competent authorities of the requested Contracting Party, with due regard for 
its national law. 

Controlled deliveries shall take place in accordance with the procedures provided for 
in  the  law  of  the  requested  Contracting  Party.  The  right  to  act  and  to  direct  and 
control operations shall lie with the competent authorities of that Contracting Party. 

Article 34 

Handing-over for confiscation or return 

1. 

2. 

3. 

At the request of the requesting Contracting Party, all objects, documents, funds or 
other items of value that have been seized on a precautionary basis may be handed 
over for confiscation or for return to the rightful owner. 

The  requested Contracting  Party may  not  refuse  to  return funds  on  the sole  ground 
that they correspond to a tax or customs debt. 

Rights asserted by a third party in good faith shall remain reserved. 

Article 35 

Speeding up assistance 

1. 

2. 

The authority of the requested Contracting Party shall execute the request for judicial 
assistance  as  soon  as  possible,  taking  as  full  account  as  possible  of  the  procedural 
deadlines and other deadlines indicated by the authority of the requesting Contracting 
Party. That Contracting Party shall explain the reasons for the deadline. 

If  the  request  cannot,  or  cannot  fully,  be  executed  in  accordance  with  the 
requirements set by the authority of the requesting Contracting Party, the authority of 
the requested Contracting Party shall promptly inform the authority of the requesting 
Contracting  Party  and  indicate  the  conditions  under  which  it  might  be  possible  to 
execute the request. The authorities of the requesting and the requested Contracting 
Parties may subsequently agree on further action to be taken concerning the request, 
where necessary by making such action subject to the fulfilment of those conditions. 

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27 

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If it is foreseeable that the deadline set by the authority of the requesting Contracting 
Party  for  executing  its  request  cannot  be  met  and  if  the  reasons  referred  to  in  the 
second  sentence  of  paragraph 1  indicate  explicitly  that  any  delay  will  lead  to 
substantial  impairment  of  the  proceedings  being  conducted  by  that  authority,  the 
authority  of  the  requested  Contracting  Party  shall  promptly  indicate  the  estimated 
time needed for execution of the request. The authority of the requesting Contracting 
Party  shall  promptly  indicate  whether  the  request  is  to  be  upheld  nonetheless.  The 
authorities  of  the  requesting  and  requested  Contracting  Parties  may  subsequently 
agree on further action to be taken concerning the request.  

Article 36 

Use of evidence 

Information and evidence transmitted in the course of the assistance procedure may be used 
for the following purposes in addition to the purposes of the assistance procedure for which it 
was supplied: 

(a) 

in  criminal  proceedings  in  the  requesting  Contracting  Party  against  other 
persons who participated in the commission of the offence for which assistance 
was given; 

(b)  where  the  facts  on  which  the  request  is  based  constitute  another  offence  for 

which assistance ought also to be given; 

(c) 

in  proceedings  for  the  confiscation  of  the  instrumentalities  and  proceeds  of 
offences  for  which  assistance  ought  to  be  given  and  in  proceedings  for 
damages in respect of facts for which assistance had been given. 

Article 37 

Spontaneous transmission 

1. 

2. 

Within the limits of their domestic law and their powers, the judicial authorities of a 
Contracting Party may spontaneously transmit information or evidence to the judicial 
authorities of another Contracting Party, when they consider that such information or 
evidence  might  assist  the  recipient  Contracting  Party's  authority  in  initiating  or 
carrying  out  investigations  or  proceedings,  or  might  lead  to  a  request  for  judicial 
assistance by that authority. 

The  authority  of  the  Contracting  Party  transmitting  the  information  may,  in 
accordance with its domestic law, attach conditions to the use of the information by 
the authority of the recipient Contracting Party. 

3. 

All the authorities of the Contracting Parties shall be bound by such conditions. 

Article 38 

Procedures in the requested Contracting Party 

The  request  for  assistance  shall  be  without  prejudice  to  such  rights  as  the  requesting 
Contracting  Party  may  enjoy  as  a  result  of  its  status  as  partie  civile  in  domestic  judicial 
criminal proceedings commenced before the authorities of the requested Party. 

TITLE IV FINAL PROVISIONS 

Article 39 

Joint Committee 

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1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

A  Joint  Committee  shall  be  established,  consisting  of  representatives  of  the 
Contracting  Parties,  and  shall  be  responsible  for  the  sound  application  of  this 
Agreement.  To  that  end,  it  shall  make  recommendations  and  take  decisions  in  the 
cases provided for by the Agreement. It shall act by mutual Agreement. 

The  Joint  Committee  shall  adopt  its  Rules  of  Procedure,  which  shall  include 
provisions governing the convening of meetings, the designation of the Chair and the 
determination of his or her functions. 

The  Joint  Committee  shall  meet  as  required  but  no  less  than  once  every  year.  Any 
Contracting Party may request that a meeting be convened. 

The  Joint  Committee  may  decide  to  establish  working  parties  or  expert  groups  to 
assist it in the performance of its tasks. 

Article 40 

Dispute settlement 

1. 

2. 

Each Contracting Party may submit to the Joint Committee a dispute relating to the 
interpretation  or  application  of  this  Agreement,  in  particular  if  it  considers  that 
another  Contracting  Party  is  failing  repeatedly  to  take  action  on  requests  for 
cooperation made to it. 

The Joint Committee shall endeavour to settle the dispute as quickly as possible. The 
Joint Committee shall be supplied with all relevant items of information to assist its 
detailed  examination  of  the  situation  with  a  view  to  identifying  a  satisfactory 
solution.  To  that  end,  the  Joint  Committee  shall  examine  all  possibilities  of 
preserving the sound operation of this Agreement. 

Article 41 Reciprocity 

1. 

2. 

The  authority  of  the  requested  Contracting  Party  may  refuse  a  request  for 
cooperation where the requesting Contracting Party fails repeatedly to take action on 
a request for cooperation in similar cases. 

Before  a  request  for  cooperation  is  refused  on  the  grounds  of  reciprocity,  the  Joint 
Committee  shall  be  informed  to  give  it  the  opportunity  to  state  its  opinion  on  the 
matter. 

Article 42 

Revision 

If a Contracting Party wishes this Agreement to be revised, it shall lay a proposal before the 
Joint  Committee,  which  shall  make  recommendations,  notably  for  the  commencement  of 
negotiations. 

Article 43 

Territorial scope 

This  Agreement  shall  apply  in  the  Swiss  Confederation  and  in  the  territories  to  which  the 
Treaty establishing the European Community is applicable in accordance with the conditions 
provided for by that Treaty. 

Article 44 

Entry into force 

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29 

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1. 

2. 

3. 

This Agreement is concluded for an indefinite period. 

It  shall  be  ratified  or  approved  by  the  Contracting  Parties  in  accordance  with  their 
respective procedures. It shall enter into force on the first day of the second month 
after the last notification of instruments of ratification or approval. 

Until the entry into force of this Agreement, each Contracting Party may, at the time 
of the notification referred to in paragraph 2 or at any other subsequent time, declare 
that  it  shall  consider  itself  bound  by  the  Agreement  in  its  relations  with  any  other 
Contracting  Party  having  made  the  same  declaration.  These  declarations  shall  take 
effect ninety days after the date of receipt of the notification.  

Article 45  Withdrawal 

The  European  Community  or  the  Swiss  Confederation  may  denounce  this  Agreement  by 
notifying  the  other  Contracting  Party  of  its  decision.  The  denunciation  shall  take  effect  six 
months after the date of receipt of the notification of the denunciation. 

Article 46 

Application over time 

The provisions of this Agreement shall be applicable to requests concerning illegal activities 
committed at least six months after it was signed. 

Article 47 

Extension of the Agreement to the new Member States of the EU 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

Any  State  which  becomes  a  Member State  of  the  European  Union  may,  by  written 
notification  to  the  Contracting  Parties,  become  a  Contracting  Party  to  this 
Agreement. 

The  text  of  the  Agreement  in  the  language  of  the  new  acceding  Member State  as 
established  by  the  Council  of  the  European  Union  shall  be  authenticated  by  an 
exchange of letters between the European Community and the Swiss Confederation. 
It shall be considered to be authentic within the meaning of Article 48.  

This  Agreement  shall  enter  into  force  in  relation  to  any  new  Member State  of  the 
European Union which accedes to it ninety days after the receipt of its instrument of 
accession,  or  on  the  date  of  entry  into  force  of  this  Agreement  if  it  was  not  yet  in 
force when that ninety-day period expired. 

If  this  Agreement  is  not  yet  in  force  when  the  newly  acceding  State  notifies  its 
instrument of accession, Article 44(3) shall apply. 

Article 48 

Authentic texts 

This  Agreement  is  drawn  up  in  duplicate  in  the  Czech,  Danish,  Dutch,  English,  Estonian, 
Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, Portuguese, 
Slovene, Slovak, Spanish and Swedish languages, each of these texts being equally authentic. 

Signatures 

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30 

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Final Act of the Cooperation Agreement between the European Community and its 
Member States, of the one part, and the Swiss Confederation, of the other part, to 
combat fraud and any other illegal activity to the detriment of their financial interests 

___________________________________________________________________________ 

The plenipotentiaries of 

THE KINGDOM OF BELGIUM, 

THE CZECH REPUBLIC, 

THE KINGDOM OF DENMARK, 

THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY, 

THE REPUBLIC OF ESTONIA, 

THE HELLENIC REPUBLIC, 

THE KINGDOM OF SPAIN, 

THE FRENCH REPUBLIC, 

IRELAND, 

THE ITALIAN REPUBLIC, 

THE REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS, 

THE REPUBLIC OF LATVIA, 

THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA, 

THE GRAND DUCHY OF LUXEMBOURG, 

THE REPUBLIC OF HUNGARY, 

THE REPUBLIC OF MALTA, 

THE KINGDOM OF THE NETHERLANDS, 

THE REPUBLIC OF AUSTRIA, 

THE REPUBLIC OF POLAND, 

THE PORTUGUESE REPUBLIC, 

THE REPUBLIC OF SLOVENIA, 

THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC, 

THE REPUBLIC OF FINLAND, 

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THE KINGDOM OF SWEDEN, 

THE UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND, 

THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY, of the one part, 

and of 

THE SWISS CONFEDERATION, of the other part, 

meeting  on  …………………………………….  for  the  signature  of  the  Cooperation 
Agreement between the European Community and its Member States, of the one part, and the 
Swiss  Confederation,  of  the  other  part,  to  combat  fraud  and  any  other  illegal  activity  to  the 
detriment  of  their  financial  interests,  have  adopted  the  joint  declarations  listed  below  and 
attached to this Final Act: 

Joint declaration on money laundering, 

Joint  declaration  on  cooperation  by  the  Swiss  Confederation  with  Eurojust  and,  if  possible, 
with the European Judicial Network. 

The  plenipotentiaries  of  the  European  Union  and  of  its  Member  States  and  the 
plenipotentiaries of the Swiss Confederation have furthermore adopted the Agreed Minute of 
the negotiations attached to this Final Act. The Agreed Minute is binding. 

Done at ………………..., ………………..... 

Signatures 

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Joint declaration on money laundering 

The  Contracting  Parties  hereby  agree  that  Article 2(3)  of  the  Agreement  on  cooperation  in 
combating  money  laundering  shall  include  as  precursor  offences  those  which  constitute  tax 
fraud  or  professional  smuggling  under  Swiss  law.  Information  received  in  response  to  a 
request concerning laundering may be used in proceedings for laundering, save in proceedings 
against Swiss nationals if all the acts relevant to the offence were committed in Switzerland 
only. 

Joint declaration on cooperation by the Swiss Confederation with Eurojust and, if possible, 
with the European Judicial Network 

The Contracting Parties take note of the Swiss Confederation's wish to study the possibility of 
cooperating in the work of Eurojust and, if possible, the European Judicial Network.  

EN 

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Agreed Minute 

of the negotiations on the Cooperation Agreement between the European Community 
and its Member States, of the one part, and the Swiss Confederation, of the other part, 
to combat fraud and any other illegal activity to the detriment of their financial interests 

__________________________________________________________________________ 

The Contracting Parties have agreed as follows: 

Ad Article 2(1)(a) 

The  expression  "fraud  and  any  other  illegal  activity"  extends  to  smuggling,  corruption  and 
laundering of the proceeds of the activities covered by this Agreement, subject to Article 2(3). 

The  expression  "trade  in  goods  contrary  to  customs  and  agricultural  legislation"  is  to  be 
understood independently of the passage (departure, destination or transit) or otherwise of the 
goods through the territory of the other Contracting Party. 

The expression "trade contrary to tax legislation applicable to value added tax, special taxes 
on  consumption  and  excise  duties"  is  to  be  understood  independently  of  the  passage 
(departure, destination or transit) or otherwise of the goods or services through the territory of 
the other Contracting Party. 

Ad Article 15(2) 

The  term  "investigation  facilities"  includes  the  questioning  of  persons,  the  searching  of 
premises and means of transport, the copying of documents, the requesting of information and 
the seizing of objects, documents and items of value. 

Ad second subparagraph of Article 16(2) 

This  subparagraph  also  means  that  those  present  may  in  particular  be  authorised  to  put 
questions and propose measures of investigation. 

Ad Article 25(2) 

The  concept  of  multilateral  Agreements  between  the  Contracting  Parties  includes  in 
particular,  as  of  its  entry  into  force,  the  Agreement  between  the  European  Union,  the 
European  Community  and  the  Swiss  Confederation  concerning  the  latter’s  association  with 
the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis. 

Ad Article 35(1) 

"Request for judicial assistance" also means the transmission of information and evidence to 
the authority of the requesting Contracting Party. 

Ad Article 43 

The  European  Commission  will,  at  the  latest  when  the  Agreement  is  signed,  send  an 
indicative list of the territories to which this Agreement applies. 

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LEGISLATIVE FINANCIAL STATEMENT 

Policy area(s): Anti-fraud cooperation with Switzerland 

Activit(y/ies): 

TITLE  OF  ACTION:  PROPOSAL  FOR  A  COUNCIL  DECISION  CONCERNING  THE  SIGNATURE  OF 
THE  AGREEMENT  BETWEEN  THE  EC,  ITS  MEMBERS  STATES  AND  SWITZERLAND  TO 
COUNTER FRAUD. 

1. 

BUDGET LINE(S) + HEADING(S)µ 

24.01.2006 – fight against fraud 

2. 

OVERALL FIGURES  

2.1. 

Total allocation for action (Part B): € million for commitment 

2.2. 

Period of application: 

(start and expiry years) 

From its ratification by EC and all Member States  

2.3. 

Overall multiannual estimate of expenditure: 

(a) 

Schedule  of  commitment  appropriations/payment  appropriations 
intervention) (see point 6.1.1) 

(financial 

€ million (to three decimal places) 

[n+1]

[n+2] 

[n+3] 

[n+4] 

Year 
[n] 

Total 

[n+5 
and 
subs. 
Years
] 

Commitments 

Payments 

(b) 

Technical and administrative assistance and support expenditure(see point 6.1.2) 

Commitments 

Payments 

Subtotal a+b 

Commitments 

Payments 

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(c) 

Overall  financial  impact  of  human  resources  and  other  administrative  expenditure 
(see points 7.2 and 7.3) 

Commitments/ 
payments 

TOTAL a+b+c 

Commitments 

Payments 

2.4. 

Compatibility with financial programming and financial perspective 

Proposal is compatible with existing financial programming. 

Proposal  will  entail  reprogramming  of  the  relevant  heading  in  the  financial 
perspective. 

Proposal  may  require  application  of  the  provisions  of  the  Interinstitutional 
Agreement. 

2.5. 

Financial impact on revenue: 

Proposal  has  no  financial  implications  (involves  technical  aspects  regarding 
implementation of a measure) 

OR 

Proposal has financial impact – the effect on revenue is as follows: 

(NB All details and observations relating to the method of calculating the effect on 
revenue should be shown in a separate annex.) 

Budget line 

Revenue 

(€ million to one decimal place) 

Prior to
action 
[Year 
n-1] 

[Yea
r n] 

Situation following action 

[n+1] [n+2] [n+3

[n+4]  [n+5] 

] 

a) Revenue in absolute terms 

b) Change in revenue 

 ∆ 

(Please specify each budget line involved, adding the appropriate number of rows 
to the table if there is an effect on more than one budget line.) 

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3. 

BUDGET CHARACTERISTICS 

Type of expenditure 

New 

EFTA 
contribution 

Contributions 
form applicant 
countries 

Heading in 
financial 
perspective 

Non-comp 

Non-diff 

NO 

NO 

NO 

No  

4. 

LEGAL BASIS  

280 (4); 300 (1) EC Treaty 

5. 

DESCRIPTION AND GROUNDS 

5.1. 

Need for Community intervention 5 

Provide a more effective legal basis for administrative and judicial cooperation with 
Switzerland  against  EC-fraud,  including  VAT  and  excise  fraud  and  money 
laundering of relevant proceeds. 

5.1.1.  Objectives pursued 

(Describe  the  problem(s)/need(s)  (in  measurable  terms)  that  the  intervention  is  designed  to 
solve/satisfy (the baseline situation against which later progress can be measured). Describe 
the objectives in terms of expected outcomes (for example as a change in the above baseline 
situation).) 

5.1.2.  Measures taken in connection with ex ante evaluation  

(This involves: 

(a) 

explaining how and when the ex ante evaluation was conducted (author, timing and 
where  the  report(s)  is/are  available)  or  how  the  corresponding  information  was 
gathered;6  

(b) 

describing briefly the findings and lessons learnt from the ex ante evaluation.) 

5.1.3.  Measures taken following ex post evaluation 

(Where a programme is being renewed the lessons to be learned from an interim or ex post 
evaluation should also be described briefly.) 

5.2. 

Action envisaged and budget intervention arrangements 

(This point should describe the logic behind the proposal. It should specify the main actions 
to  achieve  the  general  objective.  Each  action  should  have  one  or  more  specific  objectives. 
These should indicate the progress expected over the proposed period. They should also look 

5 
6 

For further information, see separate explanatory note. 
For minimum information requirements relating to new initiatives, see SEC 2000 (1051) 

EN 

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beyond immediate outputs but be sufficiently precise to allow concrete results to be identified. 
Specify for each main action: 

– 

– 

– 

– 

– 

the target population(s) (specify number of beneficiaries if possible);  

the specific objectives set for the programming period (in measurable terms); 

the concrete measures to be taken to implement the action ; 

the immediate outputs of each action; and 

the  contribution  of  these  outputs  to  the  expected  outcomes  in  terms  of  satisfying 
needs or solving problems  

Information should also be given on the budget intervention arrangements (rate and form of 
the required financial assistance).) 

5.3.  Methods of implementation 

(Specify the methods to be used to implement the planned actions: direct management by the 
Commission using either regular or outside staff or by externalisation. In the latter case, give 
details  of  the  arrangements  envisaged  for  this  externalisation  (TAO,  Agencies,  Offices, 
decentralised  executive  units,  management  shared  with  Member  States  -  national,  regional 
and local authorities.) 

Indicate  the  effect  of  the  externalisation  model  chosen  on  the  financial  intervention, 
management and support resources and on human resources (seconded officials, etc.).) 

6. 

FINANCIAL IMPACT 

6.1. 

Total financial impact on Part B - (over the entire programming period) 

(The method of calculating the total amounts set out in the table below must be explained by 
the breakdown in Table 6.2. ) 

6.1.1.  Financial intervention 

Commitments (in € million to three decimal places) 

Breakdown 

[Year 
n] 

[n+1] 

[n+2] 

[n+3] 

[n+4] 

Total 

[n+5 
and 
subs. 
Years] 

Action 1 

Action 2 

etc. 

TOTAL 

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6.1.2.  Technical  and  administrative  assistance,  support  expenditure  and  IT  expenditure 

(commitment appropriations) 

[Year 
n] 

[n+1] 

[n+2] 

[n+3] 

[n+4] 

Total 

[n+5 
and 
subs. 
years] 

1) 
administrative assistance 

Technical 

and 

Technical 

a) 
offices

assistance 

b)  Other 
administrative assistance: 

technical 

and 

- intra muros: 

- extra muros: 

of  which  for  construction 
and 
of 
maintenance 
computerised  management 
systems 

Subtotal 1 

2) Support expenditure 

a) Studies 

b) Meetings of experts 

c) Information and 
publications 

Subtotal 2 

TOTAL 

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6.2. 

Calculation  of  costs  by  measure  envisaged  in  Part  B  (over  the  entire 
programming period)7 

(Where  there  is  more  than  one  action,  give  sufficient  detail  of  the  specific  measures  to  be 
taken for each one to allow the volume and costs of the outputs to be estimated.) 

Breakdown  

Commitments (in € million to three decimal places) 

Type  
of outputs 
(projects, files ) 

Number of 
outputs 

Average unit 
cost 

(total for years 
1…n)  

Total cost 

(total for years 
1…n)  

1 

2 

3 

4=(2X3) 

Action 1 

- Measure 1 

- Measure 2  

Action 2 

- Measure 1 

- Measure 2 

- Measure 3 

etc. 

TOTAL COST 

If necessary explain the method of calculation 

7. 

IMPACT ON STAFF AND ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENDITURE  

7.1. 

Impact on human resources 

Types of post 

Staff to be assigned to management of the 
action using existing and/or additional 
resources 

Number of 
permanent posts 

Number of 
temporary posts 

Total 

Description of tasks deriving from the 
action 

Officials 
temporary staff 

or 

A 

B 

C 

Other human resources 

Total 

If necessary, a fuller description of the 
tasks may be annexed. 

7 

For further information, see separate explanatory note. 

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7.2. 

Overall financial impact of human resources 

Type of human resources 

Amount (€) 

Method of calculation *  

Officials 

Temporary staff 

Other human resources 

(specify budget line) 

Total 

The amounts are total expenditure for twelve months. 

7.3. 

Other administrative expenditure deriving from the action 

Budget line 

(number and heading) 

Overall allocation (Title A7) 

010211 – Other Management Expenditure 

Amount € 

Method of calculation 

100.000 

One  meeting  per  year  of  the  mixed 
Committee  provided  for  under  art.  39 
and as needed 

Information systems (A-5001/A-4300) 

Other expenditure - Part A (specify) 

Total 

The amounts are total expenditure for twelve months. 

1 Specify the type of committee and the group to which it belongs. 

I. 

II. 

Annual total (7.2 + 7.3) 

Duration of action 

III. 

Total cost of action (I x II) 

€ 

years 

€ 

(In the estimate of human and administrative resources required for the action, DGs/Services 
must take into account the decisions taken by the Commission in its orientation/APS debate 
and when adopting the preliminary draft budget (PDB). This means that DGs must show that 
human  resources  can  be  covered  by  the  indicative  pre-allocation  made  when  the  PDB  was 
adopted.  

Exceptional cases (i.e. those where the action concerned could not be foreseen when the PDB 
was  being  prepared)  will  have  to  be  referred  to  the  Commission  for  a  decision  on  whether 
and how (by means of an amendment of the indicative pre-allocation, an ad hoc redeployment 
exercise,  a  supplementary/amending  budget  or  a  letter  of  amendment  to  the  draft  budget) 
implementation of the proposed action can be accommodated.) 

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8. 

FOLLOW-UP AND EVALUATION 

8.1. 

Follow-up arrangements 

(Adequate  follow-up  information  must  be  collected,  from  the  start  of  each  action,  on  the 
inputs,  outputs  and  results  of  the  intervention.  In  practice  this  means  (i)  identifying  the 
indicators for inputs, outputs and results and (ii) putting in place methods for the collection of 
data). 

8.2. 

Arrangements and schedule for the planned evaluation 

(Describe the planned schedule and arrangements for interim and ex post evaluations to be 
carried out in order to assess whether the intervention has achieved the objectives set. In the 
case  of  multiannual  programmes,  at  least  one  thorough  evaluation  in  the  life  cycle  of  the 
programme is needed. For other activities ex post or mid-term evaluations should be carried 
out at intervals not exceeding six years.) 

9. 

ANTI-FRAUD MEASURES 

(Article  3(4)  of  the  Financial  Regulation:  "In  order  to  prevent  risk  of  fraud  or  irregularity, 
the  Commission  shall  record  in  the  financial  statement  any  information  regarding  existing 
and planned fraud prevention and protection measures.") 

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