Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION authorising Member States to sign, in the interest of the European Union, the Protocol amending the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data (ETS No. 108)
Date: 2018-06-05
Institutions: Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers, European Commission
Subjects: European convention, data protection, personal data, protection of privacy, protocol to an agreement, revision of an agreement, signature of an agreement

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 5.6.2018 COM(2018) 449 final 2018/0237 (NLE)  Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION authorising Member States to sign, in the interest of the European Union, the Protocol amending the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data (ETS No. 108)   
 
 
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

SUBJECT-MATTER OF THE PROPOSAL 

The present proposal concerns the decision authorising Member States to sign, in the interest 
of  the  European  Union,  the  Protocol  amending  the  Council  of  Europe  Convention  for  the 
Protection  of  Individuals  with  regard  to  Automatic  Processing  of  Personal  Data  (ETS  No. 
108)  (‘the  amending  Protocol').  The  Commission  simultaneously  submitted  a  proposal  for  a 
Council decision authorising Member States to ratify, in the interest of the European Union, 
the amending Protocol. 

2. 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

2.1. 

Background 

The  Council  of  Europe  Convention  for  the  Protection  of  Individuals  with  Regard  to 
Automatic  Processing  of  Personal  Data  ("Convention  108")  is  the  only  legally  binding 
multilateral  agreement  in  the  field  of  personal  data  protection.  The  objective  of  the 
Convention  is  to  protect  the  right  to  privacy,  recognised  in  Article  8  of  the  European 
Convention  for  the  Protection  of  Human  Rights  and  Fundamental  Freedoms.  The  rights  to 
privacy  and  to  data  protection  are  also  eshrined  in  Article  7  and  8  of  the  EU  Charter  of 
Fundamental Rights and Article 16 TFEU.  

Convention  108  requires  the  Parties  to  incorporate  into  their  respective  national  laws  the 
necessary measures to ensure respect for the human right of all individuals with regard to the 
processing of personal data. It was one of the main sources of inspiration for the development 
of  the  EU  acquis  in  the  area  of  data  protection.  According  to  its  recital  11,  one  of  the 
objectives  of  Directive  (EC)  95/46/EC  of  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  of  24 
October 1995 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data 
and on the free movement of such data was precisely to "give substance to and amplify [the 
principles and the rights] contained in [Convention 108]". 

At present, 51 States have ratified Convention 108, including all 28 EU Member States, the 
four EFTA States, all countries of the Western Balkans, several neighborhood countries (e.g. 
Armenia,  Georgia),  the  Russian  Federation,  Turkey  and  several  non-European  countries  in 
both  Africa  (e.g.  Senegal,  Tunisia)  and  Latin  America  (Uruguay).  Several  applications  (e.g. 
Argentina,  Mexico,  Morocco)  are  pending  and  a  number  of  countries  have  observer  status 
(e.g. Japan, South Korea).  

Convention  108  was  opened  for  signature  in  1981,  long  before  the  era  of  the  internet  and 
electronic communications. The development of technology and globalisation of information 
poses  new  challenges  in  the  field  of  protection  of  personal  information.  The  purpose  of  the 
amending Protocol is the modernisation of  Convention 108, in order to provide solutions to 
these challenges. 

2.2. 

The amending Protocol 

The  modernised  Convention  (i.e.  Convention  108  modified  by  the  amending  Protocol)  will 
have a uniform scope of application for all Parties to the Convention, without the possibility 
to fully exclude sectors or activities (e.g. in the area of national security) from its application, 
as is the case with the text of the current Convention 108. It would thus cover all types of data 
processing under the jurisdiction of the Parties, in both the public and private sectors. 

EN 

1 

  EN 

 
The  amending  Protocol  significantly  increases  the  level  of  data  protection  afforded  under 
Convention  108.  Notably,  the  modernised  Convention  will  further  specify  the  principle  of 
lawful  processing  (in  particular  with  respect  to  the  requirements  for  consent)  and  further 
strengthen the protection of special categories of data (while also expanding the categories to 
those  recognised  as  special  categories  of  personal  data  in  Union  law).  Furthermore,  the 
modernised  Convention  will  provide  for  additional  safeguards  for  individuals  when  their 
personal  data  are  processed  (in  particular,  obligations  to  examine  the  likely  impact  of  an 
intended  data  processing  operation  and  to  implement  relevant  technical  and  organisational 
measures;  obligation  to  report  serious  data  breaches)  and  will  also  strengthen  their  rights 
(especially with regard to transparency and access to data). New rights of data subjects have 
also been introduced, such as the right not to be subject to a decision significantly affecting 
the  data  subject  based  solely  on  automated  processing,  the  right  to  object  to  the  processing 
and the right to have a remedy in case of violation of an individual's rights. 

The  modernised  Convention  will  include  revised  provisions  (currently  included  in  an 
Additional  Protocol  signed  only  by  some  Parties)  requiring  the  Parties  to  establish  one  or 
more  independent  authorities  responsible  for  ensuring  compliance  with  the  provisions  of 
Convention  108.  The  position  of  these  authorities  would  be  strengthened  by  requiring  the 
Parties  to  grant  them  additional  powers,  e.g.  the  power  to  issue  decisions  with  respect  to 
violations of Convention 108 and to impose administrative sanctions. 

The system of derogations to the abovementioned rights and obligations as formulated in the 
amending Protocol meets three essential conditions: preservation of the comprehensive scope 
of  Convention  108  (no  general  carve-outs),  flexibility  (permitting  to  reconcile  high  data 
protection  standards  with  other  important  public  interests,  for  example  national  security 
considerations)  and  overall  coherence  with  the  case  law  of  the  European  Court  of  Human 
Rights  (in  particular  no  restriction  affecting  the  essence  of  the  fundamental  right  to  data 
protection).  

Overall, the modernised Convention would ensure a high level of protection, while leaving a 
margin of lexibility to the Parties as regards the implementation of its provisions in domestic 
law. As such, it would make accession to the modernised Convention 108 attractive to those 
countries,  also  outside  Europe,  which  are  contemplating  establishing  or  strengthening  their 
data  protection  systems.  Its  practical  impact  can  be  expected  to  be  much  greater  than  the 
impact  of  the  currently  Convention  108,  both  in  terms  of  its  scope  and  the  obligations 
stipulated therein.  

The amending Protocol, once it enters into force, introduces the possibility for the Union to 
become  a  Party  to  the  (modernised)  Convention.  As  concerns  the  voting  rights  in  the 
Convention Committee, the  agreed  text  secures the  principle  that  the  Union  may  vote  in  its 
area  of  competence  casting  a  number  of  votes  for  the  Union  equal  to  the  number  of  its 
Member  States  which  are  Parties  to  the  Convention.  In  order  to  address  concerns regarding 
the weight of the Union vote, a compromise solution was agreed whereby decisions may only 
be taken with a "hyper-majority" (four-fifths) of Parties and, for the most important decisions 
concerning  compliance  with  the  Convention  by  a  Party,  the  requirement  for  a  "double 
majority" (qualified majority together with simple majority of non-EU Parties).  

The  modernised  Convention  would  also  strengthen  the  effectiveness  of  data  protection  by 
providing  that  the  Convention  Committee  can  assess  the  efficacy  of  the  measures  taken  in 
national legislation to give effect to the provisions of the Convention. 

EN 

2 

  EN 

 
The text of the amending Protocol was coordinated with the Member States representatives in 
the  competent  Council  Working  Group  and  implements  the  Negotiating  Directives  of  the 
Council.  It  is  also  fully  in  line  with  both  Regulation  (EU)  2016/679  of  the  European 
Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  27  April  2016  on  the  protection  of  natural  persons  with 
regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data (the General 
Data  Protection  Regulation,  "GDPR")  and  Directive  (EU)  2016/680  of  the  European 
Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  27  April  2016  on  the  protection  of  natural  persons  with 
regard  to  the  processing  of  personal  data  by  competent  authorities  for  the  purposes  of  the 
prevention,  investigation,  detection  or  prosecution  of  criminal  offences  or  the  execution  of 
criminal  penalties,  and  on  the  free  movement  of  such  data  (the  data  protection  "Police 
Directive"),  thereby  excluding  that  the  Member  States  are  subject  to  different,  or  even 
conflicting,  obligations  under  Union  and  Council  of  Europe  law.  The  adoption  of  a  robust 
Convention,  based  on  the  same  approach  and  principles  as  the  (new)  Union  acquis,  is  of 
particular  importance  for  the  Union's  international  strategy  in  the  area  of  data  protection. 
Convention 108, which is also open to non-European States, has gained a lot of traction from 
countries around the world that are preparing or planning to adopt data protection legislation. 
In its Communication from January 2017 on "Exchanging and Protecting Personal Data in a 
Globalised  World"  (COM/2017/07  final),  the  Commission  referred  to  Convention  108, 
recognising that the modernised Convention would be based on the same principles as the EU 
data  protection  legislation  and  thus  would  "contribute  to  the  convergence  towards  a  set  of 
high  data  protection  standards"  at  global  level.  It  therefore  expressed  a  commitment  to 
"promote the swift adoption" of the amending Protocol. 

2.3. 

Existing Union law and policy in the area 

The field  governed  by the  amended Convention is  now largely covered by the Union's data 
protection legislative framework. The GDPR, applicable since 25 May 2018, and the Police 
Directive,  for  which  the  transposition  period  ended  on  6  May  2018,  provide  for  a 
comprehensive system of rules in the field of data protection and ensure at least equivalent, 
and  –  in  many  cases  –  higher  standard  of  protection.  According  to  Article  13  of  the 
modernised Convention, Parties may grant data subjects a "wider measure of protection than 
that stipulated in this Convention", thus leaving them free to adopt stronger protections.  

2.4. 

Reasons for the proposal 

The amending Protocol will enter into force once all Parties have deposited their instruments 
of ratification, acceptance or approval with the Secretary General of the Council of Europe. 
Moreover, given the large number of Parties that need to ratify, the amending Protocol allows 
for "partial entry" among a smaller group of Parties after five years once at least thirty-eight 
Parties  have  expressed  their  consent  to  be  bound.  The  signing  ceremony  of  the  amending 
Protocol is envisaged to take place on 25 June 2018 in Strasbourg. 

The EU Member States (currently alone Parties to Convention 108) should take the necessary 
steps to ensure swift entry into force of the amending Protocol:  

Firstly, given that the modernised Convention would contain largely similar safeguards as the 
GDPR and the Police Directive, (partial) entry into force will contribute to the promotion of 
Union  data  protection  standards  around  the  world.  Indeed,  Convention  108  has  played  a 
crucial role in spreading the "European data protection model" globally as it is often used as a 
source  of  inspiration  by  countries  which  are  considering  adopting  or  modernising  their 
privacy  laws.  This  is  even  more  important  today  given  the  growing  number  of  countries 
enacting such legislation in many regions of the globe. Increasing the protection standards by 

EN 

3 

  EN 

 
the Parties to the Convention would also facilitate data flows between the EU and the non-EU 
Parties to the Convention. For a number of countries, accession to Convention 108 has also 
proven  to  be  a  useful  preparation  for  an  eventual  adequacy  finding  of  the  European 
Commission.  The  GDPR  strengthens  this  aspect  by  expressly  providing  that  accession  to 
Convention 108 is an important factor to be taken into account by the European Commission 
in its adequacy assessment. Even without adequacy, a higher level of protection (especially as 
concerns availability of both judicial and non-judicial remedies, as well as effective oversight 
by  supervisory  authorities)  would  facilitate  the  exchange  of  data  based  on  appropriate 
safeguards  (notably  because  such  safeguards  might  become  easier  to  enforce  in  the  legal 
systems of Parties). 

Secondly,  it  is  important  to  keep  the  modernised  Convention  in  full  compliance  with  the 
provisions of the GDPR  and Police Directive, so as  to enable EU Member States to remain 
Parties to the Convention and observe its provisions without breaching Union legislation. This 
concerns in particular the provisions on the free flow of data between the Parties, given that 
the modernised Convention (unlike the current text) contains an exemption from this rule for 
Parties  "bound  by  harmonised  rules  of  protection  shared  by  States  belonging  to  a  regional 
international  organisation".  This  will  ensure  compliance  by  EU  Member  States  despite  the 
conditions  regarding  international  transfers  stipulated  under  the  Union  data  protection 
legislation. 

Thirdly,  the  current  Convention  108  does  not  provide  for  the  possibility  of  accession  by 
international organisations. The amending Protocol changes this and hence its entry into force 
is a condition for the future accession to the Convention by the EU. 

3. 

LEGAL BASIS 

The proposed Council Decision is based on Article 218(5) TFEU, in conjunction with Article 
16 TFEU. 

EN 

4 

  EN 

 
2018/0237 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

authorising Member States to sign, in the interest of the European Union, the Protocol 
amending the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of Individuals with 
regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data (ETS No. 108) 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 218(5), in conjunction with Article 16 thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

On 31 May 2013, the Council authorised the Commission to participate on behalf of 
the  Union  in  the  negotiations  on  the  modernisation  of  the  Council  of  Europe 
Convention  for  the  protection  of  individuals  with  regard  to  automatic  processing  of 
personal  data  (EST  108)  ("Convention  108")  and  the  conditions  and  modalities  of 
accession of the Union to the modernised Convention.  

The Protocol amending Convention 108 ("the amending Protocol") was adopted by the 
Council  of  Europe  Committee  of  Ministers  on  18  May  2018  and  will  be  open  for 
signature as of 25 June 2018.  

The  amending  Protocol  aims  to  widen  the  scope,  increase  the  level  and  improve  the 
effectiveness of data protection afforded under Convention 108. 

The provisions of the amended Convention 108, to the extent they apply to processing 
of personal data in the context of activities falling within the scope of Union law, may 
affect common rules or alter their scope within the meaning of Article 3(2) TFEU, as 
these provisions coincide with the obligations contained in Regulation (EU) 2016/679 
of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council1  and  Directive  (EU)  2016/680  of  the 
European Parliament and of the Council2. 

(5) 

Given  that  the  modernised  Convention  108  would  contain  largely  similar  safeguards 
as  Regulation  (EU)  2016/679  and  Directive  (EU)  2016/680,  entry  into  force  will 
contribute to the promotion of EU data protection standards at global level, facilitate 

1 

2 

Regulation  (EU)  2016/679  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  27  April  2016  on  the 
protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of 
such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation) (OJ L 119, 4.5.2016, 
p. 1). 

Directive  (EU)  2016/680  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  27  April  2016  on  the 
protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by competent authorities for 
the  purposes  of  the  prevention,  investigation,  detection  or  prosecution  of  criminal  offences  or  the 
execution  of  criminal  penalties,  and  on  the  free  movement  of  such  data,  and  repealing  Council 
Framework Decision 2008/799/JHA, (OJ L 119, 4.5.2016, p. 89). 

EN 

5 

  EN 

 
 
                                                 
data  flows  between  the  EU  and  the  non-EU  Parties  to  the  Convention,  ensure 
compliance  of  EU  Member  States  with  their  international  obligations  under  the 
Convention and enable future accession of the EU to the Convention. 

(6) 

The  Union  cannot  sign  or  ratify  the  amending  Protocol,  as  under  the  current 
Convention 108 only States are Parties. 

(7)  Member  States  should  therefore  be  authorised  to  sign  the  amending  Protocol,  acting 

jointly in the interests of the Union. 

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:  

Article 1 

Member  States  are  hereby  authorised  to  sign,  in  the  interest  of  the  European  Union,  the 
Protocol amending the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of Individuals with 
regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data (ETS No. 108) insofar as its provisions fall 
within Union competence. 

Member  States  are  encouraged  to  sign  the  Protocol  in  Strasbourg,  during  the  signing 
ceremony on 25 June 2018, or at the earliest possible date thereafter. 

Article 2 

This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its adoption.  

Article 3 

This Decision is addressed to the Member States. 

Done at Brussels, 

Article 4 

For the Council 
The President 

EN 

6 

  EN