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EU Parl Watch

Changes between two versions

What changed between the draft committee report and the plenary report

From · draft committee report· 3 May 2023

LIBE-PR-746946

on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the definition of criminal offences and penalties for the violation of Union restrictive measures

To · plenary report· 7 Jul 2023

A-9-2023-0235

on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the definition of criminal offences and penalties for the violation of Union restrictive measures

+66 added · −17 removed · 14 changed paragraphs, packaging included.

Part 2 of 3: Paragraphs 61–120

Change 7

Removed:Article 5 – paragraph 3: (3) Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that the criminal offences referred to in Article 3 and 4 are punishable by a maximum penalty of at least five year of imprisonment when they involve funds or economic resources of a value of at least EUR 100 000. Member States shall ensure that the threshold of EUR 100 000 or more may also be met through a series of linked offences referred to in Articles 3(2) when committed by the same offender.

Added:Article 3 – paragraph 6 – indent 2: deleted

Removed:Article 5 – paragraph 4: deleted

Added:Article 3 – paragraph 6 – indent 3: – the provision of humanitarian assistance or activities in support of basic human needs and/or human rights, as defined in the relevant EU sanctions regimes;

Removed:Article 5 – paragraph 5: (5) Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that natural persons who have committed the offences referred to in Articles 3 and 4 may be subject to additional penalties. Those additional penalties shall include maximum fines of an amount of at least EUR 10 000 000 where those offences involve funds or economic resources of a value of at least EUR 100 000.

Added:Article 3 – paragraph 6 – indent 3 a (new): - the failure to report the activities referred in this paragraph.

Added:Article 4 – paragraph 2: (2) Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that the attempt to commit any of the offences referred to in Article 3(2), points (a) to (g), points (h)(i), (ii) and (va) and point (i), is punishable as a criminal offence.

Added:Article 5 – paragraph 3: (3) Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that the criminal offences referred to in Article 3(2), points (h)(iii), (iv), (v) and (va), are punishable by a maximum penalty of at least one year of imprisonment when they involve funds or economic resources of a value of at least EUR 50 000. Member States shall ensure that the threshold of EUR 50 000 or more may also be met through a series of linked offences referred to in Article 3(2), points (h)(iii), (iv), (v) and (va), when committed by the same offender.

Added:Article 5 – paragraph 4: (4) Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that the criminal offences referred to in Article 3(2), points (a) to (g), points (h)(i) and (ii), and point (i), are punishable by a maximum penalty of at least five years of imprisonment when they involve funds or economic resources of a value of at least EUR 100 000. Member States shall ensure that the threshold of EUR 100 000 or more may also be met through a series of linked offences referred to in Article 3(2), points (a) to (g), points (h)(i) and (ii), and point (i), by the same offender.

Added:Article 5 – paragraph 5: (5) Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that natural persons who have committed the offences referred to in Articles 3 and 4 may be subject to additional penalties, which shall include fines. Such fines shall be proportionate to the amount of funds or economic resources involved in the offence and the maximum limit of such fines shall be not less than EUR 10 000 000 where those offences involve funds or economic resources of a value of at least EUR 100 000. Those additional penalties shall also include: / (a) withdrawal of permits and authorisations to pursue activities which have resulted in committing the offence; / (b) disqualification from exercising a leading position within a legal person of the type used for committing the offence; / (c) temporary bans on running for elected or public office; / (d) national or Union-wide publication of the judicial decision relating to the conviction or any sanctions or measures applied.

Article 7 – title: Sanctions for legal persons

Article 7 – paragraph 1 – introductory part: (1) Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that a legal person held liable pursuant to Article 6 is subject to effective, proportionate and dissuasive sanctions, which shall include criminal or non-criminal fines, exclusion from entitlement to public benefits or aid, exclusion from access to public funding, including tender procedures, grants and concessions and may include other sanctions, such as:

Change 8

Removed:Article 7 – paragraph 2: (2) Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that for legal persons held liable pursuant to Article 6 the criminal offences referred to in Article 3(2) are punishable by fines, the maximum limit of which should be not less than 15 percent of the total worldwide turnover of the legal person in the business year preceding the fining decision.

Added:Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point a: (a) temporary or permanent disqualification from the practice of business activities;

Removed:Article 7 – paragraph 3: deleted

Added:Article 7 – paragraph 1 – point e a (new): (ea) national or Union-wide publication of the judicial decision relating to the conviction or any sanctions or measures applied, including by referring such judicial decision, sanctions or measures to relevant Union institutions.

Added:Article 7 – paragraph 2: (2) Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that for legal persons held liable pursuant to Article 6 the criminal offences referred to in Article 3(2), points (h) (iii) to (va), are punishable by fines, the maximum limit of which should be not less than five percent of the consolidated worldwide turnover of the legal person in the business year preceding the fining decision.

Added:Article 7 – paragraph 3: (3) Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that for legal persons held liable pursuant to Article 6 the criminal offences referred to in Article 3(2), points (a) to (f), points (h)(i) and (ii), and point (i), are punishable by fines, the maximum limit of which should be not less than 15 percent of the consolidated worldwide turnover of the legal person in the business year preceding the fining decision.

Article 8 – paragraph 1 – introductory part: In so far as the following circumstances do not already form part of the constituent elements of the criminal offences referred to in Articles 3 and 4, Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that the following circumstances may be regarded as aggravating circumstances:

Change 9

Removed:Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point a a (new): (aa) the offence involved the use of false or forged documents;

Added:Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point -a (new): (-a) the offence was committed in violation of a Union restrictive measure imposed in relation to crimes within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court including the crime of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression or of a Union restrictive measure imposed in relation to serious human rights violations and abuses;

Change 10

Changed:Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point b:a (b)a (new): (aa) the offence wasinvolves committedthe byexport aof professionalmilitary servicetechnology provideror inequipment violationas ofdefined thatin provider’sCouncil professionalCommon obligations;Position 2008/944/CFSP;

Change 11

Added:Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point a b (new): (ab) the offence involved serious acts of corruption or the use of false or forged documents;

Added:Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point c: (c) the offence was committed by a public official, whether a member of the civil service or the government including at the highest level, when performing his or her duties;

Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point d a (new): (da) the offence generated or was expected to generate substantial financial benefits, or avoided substantial expenses, directly or indirectly;

Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point d b (new): (db) the offender actively obstructs the inspection, custom controls or investigation activities, destroys evidence, or intimidates or interferes with witnesses or complainants;

Change 12

Changed:Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point d bc (new): (db)(dc) the offender does not provide assistance to inspection and other enforcement authorities when legally required;

Change 13

Changed:Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point d d (new): (dd) in the case of legal entities,persons, the offence was committed by senior management, or the senior management levela shouldperson reasonablyhaving havea beenleading awareposition ofwithin the offencelegal committed.person concerned;

Change 14

Added:Article 8 – paragraph 1 – point d e (new): (de) the natural or legal person has previously committed offences covered by Articles 3 and 4.

Added:Article 9 – paragraph 1 – introductory part: 1. Provided this is not already an obligation under Union restrictive measures, Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that, in relation to the offences referred to in Articles 3 and 4, the following circumstances may be regarded as a mitigating circumstance:

Added:Article 9 – paragraph 1 – point b a (new): (ba) the offender reports the offence to the competent authorities, before the offence is detected by the competent authorities.

Added:Article 9 – paragraph 1 a (new): 1a. Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that, in the assessment of mitigating circumstances, competent authorities take into account the nature, timing, and extent of the information provided by the offender and the level of cooperation provided by the person in question.

Added:Article 10 – paragraph 1: 1. Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that funds or economic resources subject to Union restrictive measures in respect of which the designated person, entity or body commits or participates in an offence referred to in Article 3(2), points (h)(i) or (ii), are considered as ‘proceeds’ of crime for the purposes of Directive (EU) […/…] of the European Parliament and the of the Council [Directive on asset recovery and confiscation].

Added:Article 10 – paragraph 1 a (new): 1a. Member States shall ensure that funds or economic resources subject to Union restrictive measures in respect of which the designated person, entity or body, listed in Council Regulation (EU) No 269/2014 1a and in Council Regulation (EU) No 833/20141b, commits or participates in an offence referred to in Article 3(2) of this Directive shall be frozen and confiscated in accordance with Articles 11 to 18a of Directive [on asset recovery and confiscation]. / 1a Council Regulation (EU) No 269/2014 of 17 March 2014 concerning restrictive measures in respect of actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine (OJ L 78, 17.3.2014, p. 6). / 1b Council Regulation (EU) No 833/2014 of 31 July 2014 concerning restrictive measures in view of Russia's actions destabilising the situation in Ukraine (OJ L 229, 31.7.2014, p. 1).

Added:Article 10 – paragraph 1 b (new): 1b. The Commission shall issue guidelines on the use of the confiscated instrumentalities, proceeds and property for compensation, restitution and reparations towards States, especially in the circumstances of war of aggression insofar as the interests at stake are directly or indirectly affected by the criminal activities covered by this Directive and by the Directive [on asset recovery and confiscation].

Added:Article 11 – paragraph 1 – point a: (a) the criminal offence was committed in whole or in part within its territory, including its airspace and territorial sea;

Added:Article 11 – paragraph 1 – point e: (e) the offence is committed for the benefit of a natural or legal person which is established on its territory;

Added:Article 11 – paragraph 1 – point f: (f) the offence is committed for the benefit of a natural or legal person in respect of any business done in whole or in part on its territory.

Article 12 – paragraph 4 – point b: (b) a penalty of imprisonment in the case of a criminal offence which is punishable by a maximum penalty of at least five years of imprisonment,

Change 15

Changed:Article 13 – paragraph 1: 1. Each Member State shall set up or designate a dedicated unit body for the purpose of coordination and cooperation at strategic and operational levels among all their competent administrative, law enforcement and judicial authorities within a Member State. The dedicated body referred to in the first subparagraph shall have the following tasks:

Change 16

Changed:Article 13 – paragraph 2 – introductory part: 2. The dedicated unitsbody referred to in paragraphthe 1first subparagraph shall have the following tasks:

Article 13 – paragraph 2 – point a: (a) to ensure common priorities and understanding of the relationship between criminal and administrative enforcement;

Change 17

Changed:Article 13 – paragraph 2 – point b: (b) to exchange of information for strategic and operational purposes;

Change 18

Changed:Article 13 – paragraph 2 – point c: (c) to be consultedconsult in individual investigations;

Article 13 – paragraph 2 – point d: (d) to exchange best practices;

Change 19

Changed:Article 13 – paragraph 2 – point e: (e) to assist to networks of practitioners working on matters relevant to investigating and prosecuting offences related to the violation of Union restrictive measures.

Change 20

Changed:Article 13 – paragraph 21 a (new): 2a.1a. Member States shall ensure that the competent national authorities are provided with the human, technical and financial resources, premises and infrastructure necessary for the effective investigation and prosecution of violation of Union restrictive measures.measures, and that specialised training is provided to the competent administrative, law enforcement and judicial authorities involved in such tasks.

Change 21

Removed:Article 16 – paragraph 1: (1) Without prejudice to the rules on cross-border cooperation and mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, the Member States’ national dedicated units set up in [Article 13], Europol, Eurojust, the European Public Prosecutor's Office, and the Commission shall, within their respective competences, meet regularly in a structured format in order to coordinate and cooperate with each other in the fight against the criminal offences referred to in Articles 3 and 4. To that end, the Commission, and where appropriate, Europol and Eurojust, shall provide technical and operational assistance in order to facilitate the coordination of investigations and prosecutions by the competent authorities.

Added:Article 15 – paragraph 1: Member States shall take the necessary and appropriate measures to ensure that effective investigative tools, such as those which are used in investigating organised crime or other serious crime cases, are also available for investigating or prosecuting offences referred to in Articles 3 and 4.

Removed:Article 16 – paragraph 1 a (new): (1a) The institutions, bodies, offices and agencies of the Union and the authorities of the Member States which participate in enhanced cooperation on the establishment of the EPPO shall without undue delay report to the EPPO any criminal conduct in respect of which it could exercise its competence in accordance with Article 22, Article 25(2) and (3) of Regulation (EU) 2017/1939.

Added:Article 16 – title: Cooperation between Member States’ authorities, the Commission, Europol, Eurojust, the European Public Prosecutor's Office and the European Anti-Fraud Office

Removed:Article 18 a (new): Article 18a / Statistics / 1. Member States shall collect and maintain comprehensive statistics at central level on the measures taken under this Directive. / 2. Without prejudice to the reporting obligations laid down in other Union legal acts, the Member States shall, on an annual basis, by September of the following year, submit to the Commission the following statistics on the criminal offences referred to in Articles 3 and 4, specified per type of Union restrictive measure: / (a) the number of criminal proceedings initiated; / (b) the number of criminal proceedings dismissed; / (c) the number of criminal proceedings resulting in an acquittal; / (d) the number of criminal proceedings resulting in a conviction; / (e) the number of ongoing criminal proceedings; / (f) the average length of criminal proceedings; / (g) the value of the funds and economic resources frozen / (h) the value of the funds and economic resources seized. / The statistics to be submitted shall also include the types and levels of penalties and sanctions imposed for violation of Union restrictive measures. / 3. The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with [Article 18b] concerning the establishment of detailed rules on the information to be collected and on the methodology for the collection of the statistics referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article and the arrangements for their transmission to the Commission. / 4. The Commission shall make these statistics publicly available…

Added:Article 16 – paragraph 1: (1) Without prejudice to the rules on cross-border cooperation and mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, Member States’ national dedicated bodies set up or designated in accordance with [Article 13] of this Directive, Europol, Eurojust, the EPPO, the European Anti-Fraud Office and the Commission shall, within their respective competences, meet regularly in a structured format in order to coordinate and cooperate with each other in the fight against the criminal offences referred to in Articles 3 and 4 of this Directive. To that end, the Commission shall establish a permanent network of experts and practitioners to share best practices and provide technical and operational assistance in order to facilitate the coordination of investigations and prosecutions by the competent authorities, Europol and Eurojust, the EPPO, and the European Anti-Fraud Office, in compliance with Union law. That permanent network of experts and practitioners shall also provide a publicly available and regularly updated mapping of the risks of violations or circumvention of Union restrictive measures in specific geographic areas, and with respect to specific sectors and activities.

Removed:Article 18 b (new): Article 18b / Exercise of the delegation / 1. The power to adopt delegated acts is conferred on the Commission subject to the conditions laid down in this Article. / 2. The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in [Article 18a] shall be conferred on the Commission for an indeterminate period of time from [date of entry into force of this Directive]. / 3. The delegation of power referred to in [Article 18a] may be revoked at any time by the European Parliament or by the Council. A decision to revoke shall put an end to the delegation of the power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the validity of any delegated acts already in force. / 4. Before adopting a delegated act, the Commission shall consult experts designated by each Member State in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making. / 5. As soon as it adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to the European Parliament and to the Council. / 6. A delegated act adopted pursuant to [Article 18a] shall enter into force only if no objection has been expressed either by the European Parliament or by the Council within a period of [two months] of notification of that act to the European Parliament and the Council or if, before the expiry of that period, the European…

Added:Article 16 – paragraph 2: (2) Member States’ competent authorities shall also on a frequent and regular basis share information on practical issues, in particular, on patterns of circumvention, for example structures to conceal the beneficial ownership and control of assets, with the Commission and other competent authorities.

Added:Article 16 a (new): Article16a / International Cooperation / Without prejudice to the rules on cross-border cooperation and mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, Member State’s competent authorities, Europol, Eurojust, the EPPO and the Commission shall, within their respective competences and in the limits of their respective remit, cooperate with competent authorities of third countries in the fight against the criminal offences referred to in Articles 3 and 4, in full respect of fundamental rights and international law.

Added:Article 17 – title: Amendments to Directive (EU) 2018/ 1673 on combating money laundering by criminal law

Added:Article 18 a (new): Article18a / Statistics / 1. Member States shall collect and maintain comprehensive statistics at central level on the measures taken under this Directive. / 2. Without prejudice to the reporting obligations laid down in other Union legal acts, Member States shall, three times per year for the first two years after ... [six months after the date of entry into force of this Directive], and on an annual basis thereafter, make publicly available and submit to the Commission the following statistics on the criminal offences referred to in Articles 3 and 4, specified per type of Union restrictive measure: (a) the number of criminal proceedings initiated; / (b) the number of criminal proceedings dismissed; / (c) the number of criminal proceedings resulting in an acquittal; / (d) the number of criminal proceedings resulting in a conviction; / (e) the number of ongoing criminal proceedings; / (f) the number of criminal proceedings referred to the EPPO; / (g) the average length of criminal proceedings; / (h) the number of criminal proceedings that involved cross-border cooperation among Member States competent authorities, relevant Union bodies and agencies, and competent authorities from third countries; / (i) the value of the funds and economic resources frozen; / (j) the value of the funds and economic resources confiscated. / The statistics to be submitted shall also include the types and levels of penalties and sanctions imposed for violation of Union restrictive measures. / 3. T…

Added:Article 18 b (new): Article18b / Exercise of the delegation / 1. The power to adopt delegated acts is conferred on the Commission subject to the conditions laid down in this Article. / 2. The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in [Article 18a] shall be conferred on the Commission for an indeterminate period of time from ... [date of entry into force of this Directive]. / 3. The delegation of power referred to in [Article 18a] may be revoked at any time by the European Parliament or by the Council. A decision to revoke shall put an end to the delegation of the power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the validity of any delegated acts already in force. / 4. Before adopting a delegated act, the Commission shall consult experts designated by each Member State in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making. / 5. As soon as it adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to the European Parliament and to the Council. / 6. A delegated act adopted pursuant to [Article 18a] shall enter into force only if no objection has been expressed either by the European Parliament or by the Council within a period of [two months] of notification of that act to the European Parliament and the Council or if, before the expiry of that period, the Europ…

Article 19 – paragraph 2: deleted / (deleted) / (deleted)