CHAPTER VI

The organs of Europol shall be: the Management Board; the Director. The Management Board shall be composed of one representative of each Member State and one representative of the Commission. Each member of the Management Board shall have one vote. Each member of the Management Board may be represented by an alternate member; in the absence of the full member, the alternate member may exercise his right to vote. The Chairperson and the Deputy Chairperson of the Management Board shall be selected by and from within the group of three Member States who have jointly prepared the Council’s eighteen-month programme. They shall serve for the eighteen-month period corresponding to that Council programme. During that period the Chairperson shall no longer act as a representative of his or her respective Member State in the Management Board. The Deputy shall ex officio replace the Chairperson in the event of his or her being prevented from attending to his or her duties. The Chairperson shall be responsible for the efficient operation of the Management Board in the performance of its tasks set out in paragraph 9 while ensuring a specific focus on strategic issues and Europol’s principal tasks as set out in Article 5(1). The Chairperson shall be supported by the Secretariat of the Management Board. The Secretariat shall in particular: be closely and continuously involved in organising, coordinating and ensuring the coherence of the Management Board’s work. Under the responsibility and guidance of the Chairperson, it shall assist the latter in seeking solutions; provide the Management Board with the administrative support necessary for it to carry out its duties. The Director shall participate in the meetings of the Management Board, without the right to vote. Members of the Management Board or their alternates and the Director may be accompanied by experts. The Management Board shall meet at least twice a year. The Management Board shall act by a majority of two thirds of its members unless otherwise stipulated in this Decision. The Management Board shall: adopt a strategy for Europol, which shall include benchmarks to measure whether the objectives set have been reached; oversee the Director’s performance including the implementation of Management Board decisions; take any decision or implementing measures in accordance with this Decision; adopt the implementing rules applicable to Europol staff, on a proposal from the Director and after seeking agreement from the Commission; adopt the financial regulation and appoint the accounting officer in conformity with Commission Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2343/2002 of 19 November 2002 on the framework Financial Regulation for the bodies referred to in Article 185 of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities OJ L 357, 31.12.2002, p. 72. , after consulting the Commission; establish the internal audit function and appoint its auditing staff, who shall be members of Europol staff. The Management Board shall adopt further implementing rules concerning the internal audit function. Those implementing rules should, in particular, cover selection, dismissal, tasks, duties, powers and safeguards for the independence of the function. The internal audit function shall be accountable solely to the Management Board and shall have access to all documentation necessary to the performance of its duties; adopt a list of at least three candidates for the post of Director and the Deputy Directors for submission to the Council; be responsible for the performance of any other tasks assigned to it by the Council, in particular in provisions implementing this Decision; establish its rules of procedure, including provisions providing for the independence of the Secretariat. Each year the Management Board shall adopt: the draft estimate of revenue and expenditure, including the draft establishment plan, to be submitted to the Commission; and the final budget; a work programme for Europol’s future activities taking into account Member States’ operational requirements and budgetary and staffing implications for Europol, after the Commission has delivered an opinion; a general report on Europol’s activities during the previous year including the results achieved on the priorities set by the Council. Those documents shall be submitted to the Council for endorsement. The Council shall forward them to the European Parliament for information. Within four years of the date of application of this Decision and every four years thereafter, the Management Board shall commission an independent external evaluation of the implementation of this Decision and of the activities carried out by Europol. The Management Board shall issue specific terms of reference to that effect. The report of the evaluation shall be forwarded to the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission. The Management Board may decide to establish working groups. The rules governing the creation and functioning of such working groups shall be laid down in its rules of procedure. The Management Board shall exercise the powers laid down in Article 39(3) in respect of the Director, without prejudice to Article 38(1) and (7). Europol shall be headed by a Director appointed by the Council, acting by qualified majority, from a list of at least three candidates presented by the Management Board, for a four-year period. The Council, acting on a proposal from the Management Board, which shall have evaluated the Director’s performance, may extend the term of office of the Director once for not more than four years. The Director shall be assisted by three Deputy Directors appointed for a four-year period extendable once in accordance with the procedure laid down in paragraph 1. Their tasks shall be defined in greater detail by the Director. The Management Board shall establish rules concerning the selection of candidates for the position of Director or Deputy Director, including the extension of their terms of office. Such rules shall be approved by the Council, acting by qualified majority, before their entry into force. The Director shall be responsible for: performance of the tasks assigned to Europol; day-to-day administration; exercising, in respect of the staff and Deputy Directors without prejudice to paragraphs 2 and 7 of this Article, the powers laid down in Article 39(3); preparing and implementing the Management Board’s decisions and responding to requests from the Management Board; supporting the Chairperson of the Management Board in the preparation of the Management Board meetings; drawing up the draft estimate of revenue and expenditure, including the draft establishment plan; and the preliminary work programme; elaborating the report referred to in Article 37(10)(c); implementing Europol’s budget; informing the Management Board on a regular basis regarding the implementation of the priorities defined by the Council and Europol’s external relations; establishing and implementing, in cooperation with the Management Board, an effective and efficient monitoring and evaluation procedure relating to Europol’s performance in terms of the achievement of its objectives. The Director shall report regularly to the Management Board on the results of that monitoring; performance of all other tasks assigned to the Director in this Decision. The Director shall be accountable to the Management Board in respect of the performance of his duties. The Director shall be Europol’s legal representative. The Director and the Deputy Directors may be dismissed by decision of the Council, acting by qualified majority after obtaining the opinion of the Management Board. The Management Board shall establish the rules to be applied in such cases. Such rules shall be approved by the Council, acting by qualified majority, before their entry into force. The Staff Regulations of officials of the European Communities and the Conditions of employment of other servants of the European Communities (hereinafter referred to as the Staff Regulations and the Conditions of employment respectively) laid down in Regulation (EEC, Euratom, ECSC) No 259/68 of the Council OJ L 56, 4.3.1968, p. 1. and the rules adopted jointly by the institutions of the European Communities for the purpose of applying the Staff Regulations and the Conditions of employment shall apply to the Director, the Deputy Directors and to the Europol staff engaged after the date of application of this Decision. For the purpose of implementing the Staff Regulations and the Conditions of employment, Europol shall be considered as an agency within the meaning of Article 1a(2) of the Staff Regulations. The powers conferred on the appointing authority by the Staff Regulations and on the authority authorised to conclude contracts by the Conditions of employment shall be exercised by Europol in respect of its staff and of the Director in accordance with Articles 37(13) and 38(4)(c) of this Decision. Europol staff shall consist of temporary staff and/or contract staff. The Management Board shall give its consent on a yearly basis in so far as the Director intends to grant contracts of indefinite duration. The Management Board shall decide which temporary posts provided for in the establishment plan can be filled only by staff engaged from the competent authorities of the Member States. Staff recruited to occupy such posts shall be temporary agents under Article 2(a) of the Conditions of employment and may be awarded only fixed-term contracts renewable once for a fixed period. Member States may second national experts to Europol. The Management Board shall adopt the necessary implementing arrangements for that purpose. Europol shall apply the principles of Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 to the processing of personal data relating to Europol staff.

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-11-01 · Text as adopted (Official Journal); later amendments are not incorporated in this text.