Können die Regelungen über die Zusammenarbeit der EU-Mitgliedstaaten bei der Strafverfolgung kurzerhand aufgehoben werden?

Abstract

The European Union performs numerous tasks. In order to carry out these tasks, the Union relies on money that is provided for by the Member States, including customs duties. This article initially describes the principles of the legal framework within which Member States levy customs duties, investigate criminal offences committed in this context, and cooperate with one another. In particular, the article stresses that the levying of customs duties, on the one hand, and criminal prosecution, on the other, serve different purposes, for which the European Union and the national legislators have established separate legal rules. As a consequence, different regulations for administrative procedure, on the one hand, and criminal procedure, on the other, must be simultaneously observed. The article subsequently deals with Art. 12 of Regulation (EC) No. 515/97 as amended by Regulation (EU) 2015/1525 of 9 September 2015. This new provision seeks to establish that information collected as part of administrative procedure is admissible as evidence in criminal proceedings. The new provision does away with the previously described principle that administrative and criminal proceedings are strictly separate. The author views the amendment critically and explains his reasoning in this regard