Swedish directive to provide EU law enforcement with faster information exchange

TALLINN - Estonia is set to adopt the requirements of the European Union's Swedish directive, which will make the current voluntary information exchange between law enforcement agencies mandatory.

The changes will strengthen cooperation between Estonia and other member states in detecting and preventing serious and cross-border crimes.

"Although it is assumed that such a system is already in place, the current voluntary information exchange between member states does not always allow for a sufficiently rapid response to crime," explained Minister of the Interior Igor Taro. "The adoption of the Swedish directive will make the current recommendations binding and ensure that investigative bodies receive necessary information faster and more securely."

The bill will amend the Code of Criminal Procedure, the Code of Criminal Procedure Implementation Act, and the Police and Border Guard Act. As a result of the changes, all European Union investigative bodies will be obliged to exchange information about serious crimes on their own initiative and in a timely manner if it could be beneficial to another member state.

Under the new rules, existing information must generally be forwarded within seven days, and in urgent cases, within eight hours. The information exchange will be based on the principle of controlled and logged queries and responses.

The changes will allow Estonian investigative bodies-the Police and Border Guard Board, the Internal Security Service, the Tax and Customs Board, the Military Police, the Environmental Board, and prisons-to access a significantly broader range of criminal information than before. This, in turn, will improve the efficiency of investigating, preventing, and combating crime.

"Fast and secure information exchange reduces the risk of impunity and increases the sense of security for residents across the European Union," the interior minister emphasized. "Implementing the directive will also help prevent so-called 'crime tourism'-situations where foreign nationals come to Estonia to commit crimes and then return to their home country with impunity because information is not exchanged quickly enough."

The information exchange will take place exclusively through the secure communication channel SIENA, which complies with European Union data protection and security requirements. All actions will be logged, which prevents information leaks and ensures auditability. If information is transmitted by other means in exceptional cases, the relevant details must be entered into the SIENA system as soon as possible.

States will, however, retain the necessary discretion-for example, in cases where transmitting information could jeopardize an ongoing investigation or the safety of individuals. The Swedish directive does not change the principle of Estonian criminal procedure law, which grants the prosecutor's office the authority to decide on the use and disclosure of pre-trial information.

According to a 2021 Europol assessment, over 80 percent of criminal networks are involved in cross-border crime, and nearly 70 percent of them operate in more than three member states. Faster and mandatory information exchange will help to identify such networks early and disrupt their activities.

The aim of the Swedish directive is to ensure adequate and rapid information exchange between European Union law enforcement agencies and Europol, supporting member states' cooperation in the fight against serious and organized crime.

The changes will take effect after the relevant laws are passed by the Riigikogu.