Financial Regulation applicable to Europol

Validation of any expenditure shall be based on supporting documents attesting the creditor’s entitlement, on the basis of a statement of services actually rendered, supplies actually delivered or work actually carried out, or on the basis of other documents justifying payment.

The validation decision shall be expressed by the signing of a ‘passed for payment’ voucher by the authorising officer responsible.

In a non-computerised system, ‘passed for payment’ shall take the form of a stamp incorporating the signature of the authorising officer responsible. In a computerised system, ‘passed for payment’ shall take the form of validation using the personal password of the authorising officer responsible.

Authorisation of expenditure is the act whereby the authorising officer responsible, by issuing a payment order, instructs the accounting officer to pay an item of expenditure which he/she validated.

The payment order shall be dated and signed by the authorising officer responsible, then sent to the accounting officer. The supporting documents shall be kept by the authorising officer responsible in accordance with Article 38(6).

Where appropriate, the payment order sent to the accounting officer shall be accompanied by a document certifying that the goods have been entered in the inventories referred to in Article 90(1).

Payment shall be made on production of proof that the relevant action has been carried out in accordance with the provisions of the Europol Decision within the meaning of Article 49 of the general Financial Regulation or the contract or grant agreement, and shall cover one of the following operations:

A distinction shall be made in the accounts between the different types of payment referred to in paragraph 1 at the time they are made.

Europol shall have an internal audit function which must be performed in compliance with the relevant international standards.

The establishment by the Management Board of an internal audit function at Europol does not affect the rights of the Commission's internal auditor who shall exercise the same powers with respect to Europol as with respect to Commission departments with the exception that the Management Board may revise, on the basis of Article 5 of the Europol Decision, the audit plan as submitted by the Commission's internal auditor. The Director, in respect of the implementation of the audit plan, may limit the scope of an audit by denying access to strategic, operational and classified information as defined in Article 2(14) of the Financial Regulation. Should the Director elect to limit the scope of an audit on such grounds, the Commission's internal auditor shall be provided with a written justification.

The Europol internal audit function and the Commission’s internal auditor shall perform their functions without prejudice to Article 38(4).

The Europol internal audit function and the Commission’s internal auditor shall advise Europol on dealing with risks, by issuing opinions on the quality of management and control systems and by issuing recommendations for improving the conditions of implementation of operations and promoting sound financial management.

The Europol internal audit function and the Commission’s internal auditor shall perform its duties on all Europol’s activities and departments. The Europol internal audit function shall enjoy full and unlimited access to all information required in the performance of these duties. Without prejudice to Article 71(2), the Commission’s internal auditor shall enjoy the same full and unlimited access to all information required in the performance of these duties.

The head of the Europol internal audit function and the Commission’s internal auditor shall report to the Management Board and the Director on his/her findings and recommendations. They shall ensure that action is taken on recommendations resulting from audits.

The head of the Europol internal audit function and the Commission’s internal auditor shall submit to the Management Board and the Director an annual internal audit report setting out, inter alia, the number and type of internal audits conducted and the recommendations made. This annual report shall also mention any systemic problems detected by the specialised panel set up under Article 66(4) of the general Financial Regulation.

Each year the Management Board shall send to the authority responsible for discharge and to the Commission the report drawn up by the Europol internal audit function and the Commission’s internal auditor, including the comments of the Director referred to in paragraph 4a.

The responsibility of the internal audit function for action taken in the performance of the internal audit function shall be mutatis mutandis as laid down in special rules applicable to the Commission’s internal auditor. The special rules shall guarantee that the internal audit function is totally independent in the performance of his/her duties and shall establish responsibility. In addition the provisions in the rules to be established by the Management Board shall be observed in accordance with Article 37(9)(f) of the Europol Decision.

The responsibility of the Commission’s internal auditor shall be determined in accordance with Article 87 of the general Financial Regulation.

As regards procurement, the relevant provisions of the general Financial Regulation and Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2342/2002 shall apply subject to paragraphs 4 to 7 of this Article.

Europol may request to be associated, as contracting authority, in the award of Commission or interinstitutional contracts and in the award of contracts of other Community bodies.

Europol shall participate in the common central database set up and operated by the Commission pursuant to Article 95 of the general Financial Regulation.

Europol may conclude a contract, without having recourse to a public procurement procedure, with the Commission, the interinstitutional offices and the Translation Centre for bodies of the European Union established by Council Regulation (EC) No 2965/94 [^ntr7-C_2010281EN.01000101-E0007] for the supply of goods, provision of services or performance of work that the latter provide.

Europol may use joint procurement procedures with contracting authorities of the host Member State to cover its administrative needs. In such cases Article 125c of Commission Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2342/2002 shall apply mutatis mutandis.

For the application of Article 101 of the general Financial Regulation, the call for tender shall provide that Europol may, before the contract is signed, either abandon the procurement or cancel the award procedure without the candidates or tenderers being entitled to claim any compensation.

For the application of Article 103 of the general Financial Regulation, calls for tender launched by Europol shall provide that it may suspend the procedure and may take whatever measures are necessary, including the cancellation of the procedure under the conditions laid down in that Article.

Where Europol may award grants in accordance with the Europol Decision or by delegation of the Commission pursuant to Article 54(2)(b) of the general Financial Regulation, the relevant provisions of the general Financial Regulation and Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2342/2002 shall apply subject to paragraphs 2 and 3 of this Article.

Grants shall be covered by written agreements between Europol and the beneficiary.

For the application of Article 119(2) of the general Financial Regulation, grant agreements concluded by Europol shall stipulate that it may suspend, reduce or terminate the grant in the cases provided for by Article 183 of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2342/2002 after the beneficiary has been given the opportunity to make his observations.

In accordance with the principle of accrual-based accounting, the financial statements shall show the charges and income for the financial year, regardless of the date of payment or collection.

The value of assets and liabilities shall be determined in accordance with the valuation rules laid down by the accounting methods provided for in Article 132 of the general Financial Regulation.

The financial statements shall be presented in euro and shall comprise:

The annex to the financial statements shall supplement and comment on the information presented in the statements referred to in paragraph 1 and shall supply all the additional information prescribed by internationally accepted accounting practice where such information is relevant to Europol’s activities.

In accordance with Article 129(1) of the general Financial Regulation, the Court of Auditors shall, by 15 June of the following year at the latest, make its observations on the provisional accounts of Europol.

On receiving the Court of Auditors’ observations on the provisional accounts of Europol, the Director shall draw up the final accounts of Europol in accordance with Article 43, under his own responsibility, and send them to the Management Board, which shall give an opinion on these accounts.

The Director shall send the final accounts, together with the opinion of the Management Board, to the Commission's accounting officer, the Court of Auditors, the European Parliament and the Council, by 1 July of the following year at the latest.

The final accounts of Europol, consolidated with those of the Commission, shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union by 15 November of the following year.

The Director shall send the Court of Auditors a reply to the observations made in its annual report by 30 September of the following year at the latest. The replies of Europol shall be sent to the Commission at the same time.

Europol’s accounting system is the system serving to organise the budgetary and financial information in such a way that figures can be input, filed and registered.

The accounts shall consist of general accounts and budgetary accounts. These accounts shall be kept in euro on the basis of the calendar year.

The figures in the general accounts and the budgetary accounts shall be adopted at the close of the budget year so that the accounts referred to in Chapter 1 can be drawn up.

Notwithstanding paragraphs 2 and 3, the authorising officer may keep analytical accounts.

Movements on the accounts and the balances shall be entered in the accounting ledgers.

All accounting entries, including adjustments to the accounts, shall be based on supporting documents, to which they shall refer.

The accounting system must be such as to leave a trail for all accounting entries.

The budget accounts shall provide a detailed record of budgetary implementation.

For the purposes of paragraph 1, the budgetary accounts shall record all budgetary revenue and expenditure operations provided for in Title IV of this Regulation.

Europol shall keep inventories showing the quantity and value of all the tangible, intangible and financial assets constituting Europol’s property in accordance with a model drawn up by the Commission’s accounting officer. Europol shall check that entries in the inventory correspond to the actual situation.

The sale of movable property shall be advertised in an appropriate manner.

Europol shall send the Court of Auditors the budget, as finally adopted. It shall inform the Court of Auditors, as soon as possible, of all decisions and acts adopted pursuant to Articles 10, 14, 19 and 23.

Europol shall send the Court of Auditors the internal financial rules it has adopted.

The Court of Auditors shall be informed of the appointment of authorising officers, accounting officers and imprest administrators and of delegation decisions under Article 34, Article 43(1) and (4) and Article 44.

The European Parliament, upon a recommendation from the Council, shall, before 30 April of year n+2, give a discharge to the Director in respect of the implementation of the budget for year n. The Director shall inform the Management Board of the observations of the European Parliament contained in the resolution accompanying the discharge decision.

If the date provided for in paragraph 1 cannot be met, the European Parliament or the Council shall inform the Director of the reasons for the postponement.

If the European Parliament postpones the decision giving a discharge, the Director, in cooperation with the Management Board, shall make every effort to take measures, as soon as possible, to remove or facilitate removal of the obstacles to that decision.

The discharge decision shall cover the accounts of all the revenue and expenditure of Europol, the resulting balance and the assets and liabilities of Europol shown in the financial statement.

With a view to granting the discharge, the European Parliament shall, after the Council has done so, examine the accounts and financial statements of Europol. It shall also examine the annual report made by the Court of Auditors, together with the replies of the Director, any relevant special reports by the Court of Auditors in respect of the financial year in question and the Court of Auditors’ statement of assurance as to the reliability of the accounts and the legality and regularity of the underlying transactions.

The Director shall submit to the European Parliament, at the latter’s request, in the same manner as provided for in Article 146(3) of the general Financial Regulation, any information required for the smooth application of the discharge procedure for the year in question.

The Director shall take all appropriate steps to act on the observations accompanying the European Parliament’s discharge decision and on the comments accompanying the recommendation for discharge adopted by the Council.

At the request of the European Parliament or the Council, the Director shall report on the measures taken in the light of these observations and comments. He/she shall send a copy thereof to the Commission and the Court of Auditors.