02006F0960 — EN — 30.12.2006 — 000.001
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COUNCIL FRAMEWORK DECISION 2006/960/JHA of 18 December 2006 (OJ L 386 29.12.2006, p. 89) |
Corrected by:
COUNCIL FRAMEWORK DECISION 2006/960/JHA
of 18 December 2006
on simplifying the exchange of information and intelligence between law enforcement authorities of the Member States of the European Union
TITLE I
SCOPE AND DEFINITIONS
Article 1
Objective and scope
Article 2
Definitions
For the purposes of this Framework Decision:
‘competent law enforcement authority’: a national police, customs or other authority that is authorised by national law to detect, prevent and investigate offences or criminal activities and to exercise authority and take coercive measures in the context of such activities. Agencies or units dealing especially with national security issues are not covered by the concept of competent law enforcement authority. Every Member State shall, by 18 December 2007, state in a declaration deposited with the General Secretariat of the Council which authorities are covered by the concept of ‘competent law enforcement authority’. Such a declaration may be modified at any time.
‘criminal investigation’: a procedural stage within which measures are taken by competent law enforcement or judicial authorities, including public prosecutors, with a view to establishing and identifying facts, suspects and circumstances regarding one or several identified concrete criminal acts;
‘criminal intelligence operation’: a procedural stage, not yet having reached the stage of a criminal investigation, within which a competent law enforcement authority is entitled by national law to collect, process and analyse information about crime or criminal activities with a view to establishing whether concrete criminal acts have been committed or may be committed in the future;
‘information and/or intelligence’:
any type of information or data which is held by law enforcement authorities;
and
any type of information or data which is held by public authorities or by private entities and which is available to law enforcement authorities without the taking of coercive measures, in accordance with Article 1(5).
‘offences referred to in Article 2(2) of the Framework Decision 2002/584/JHA on the European arrest warrant ( 5 )’ (hereinafter referred to as ‘offences referred to in Article 2(2) of the Framework Decision 2002/584/JHA’): offences under national law which correspond to or are equivalent to those referred to in that provision.
TITLE II
EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION AND INTELLIGENCE
Article 3
Provision of information and intelligence
Article 4
Time limits for provision of information and intelligence
Article 5
Requests for information and intelligence
Article 6
Communication channels and language
Article 7
Spontaneous exchange of information and intelligence
Article 8
Data protection
Article 9
Confidentiality
The competent law enforcement authorities shall take due account, in each specific case of exchange of information or intelligence, of the requirements of investigation secrecy. To that end the competent law enforcement authorities shall, in accordance with their national law, guarantee the confidentiality of all provided information and intelligence determined as confidential.
Article 10
Reasons to withhold information or intelligence
Without prejudice to Article 3(3), a competent law enforcement authority may refuse to provide information or intelligence only if there are factual reasons to assume that the provision of the information or intelligence would:
harm essential national security interests of the requested Member State;
or
jeopardise the success of a current investigation or a criminal intelligence operation or the safety of individuals;
or
clearly be disproportionate or irrelevant with regard to the purposes for which it has been requested.
TITLE III
FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 11
Implementation
Article 12
Relation to other instruments
Article 13
Entry into force
This Framework Decision shall enter into force on the day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
ANNEX A
INFORMATION EXCHANGE UNDER COUNCIL FRAMEWORK DECISION 2006/960/JHA FORM TO BE USED BY THE REQUESTED MEMBER STATE IN CASE OF TRANSMISSION/DELAY/REFUSAL OF INFORMATION
This form shall be used to transmit the requested information and/or intelligence, to inform the requesting authority of the impossibility of meeting the normal deadline, of the necessity of submitting the request to a judicial authority for an authorisation, or of the refusal to transmit the information.
This form may be used more than once during the procedure (e.g. if the request has first to be submitted to a judicial authority and it later transpires that the execution of the request has to be refused).
ANNEX B
INFORMATION EXCHANGE UNDER COUNCIL FRAMEWORK DECISION 2006/960/JHA REQUEST FORM FOR INFORMATION AND INTELLIGENCE TO BE USED BY THE REQUESTING MEMBER STATE
This form shall be used when requesting information and intelligence under Framework Decision 2006/960/JHA