Legal provisions of COM(2022)732 - Amendment of Directive 2011/36/EU on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings and protecting its victims - Main contents
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| dossier | COM(2022)732 - Amendment of Directive 2011/36/EU on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings and protecting its victims. |
|---|---|
| document | COM(2022)732  |
| date | December 19, 2022 |
Article 1 - Amendments to Directive 2011/36/EU
(1) in Article 2, paragraph 3, “or forced marriage, or illegal adoption” is added at the end of the paragraph.
(2) the following Article 2a is inserted:
“Article 2a
Offences concerning trafficking in human beings
committed or facilitated by means of information or communication technologies
Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that the intentional acts and means referred to in Article 2(1), and exploitation as set out in Article 2(3) shall include acts committed by means of information and communication technologies.”
(3) Article 6 and 7 are replaced by the following:
“Article 6
Sanctions on legal persons
1. Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that a legal person held liable pursuant to Article 5(1) or (2) is subject to criminal or non-criminal fines and, if appropriate, to the following sanctions:
(a)exclusion from entitlement to public benefits, aid or subsidies;
(b)temporary or permanent closure of establishments which have been used for committing the offence.
2. Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that a legal person held liable pursuant to Article 5(1) or (2) for an offence aggravated by any of the circumstances set forth in Article 4(2) is subject, if appropriate, to the following sanctions:
(a)temporary or permanent disqualification from the practice of commercial activities;
(b)placing under judicial supervision;
(c)judicial winding-up.
3. Member States shall ensure that sanctions referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 are effective, proportionate and dissuasive.”
Article 7 - Freezing and confiscation
Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that their competent authorities are entitled to trace, freeze, manage and confiscate, in accordance with Directive EU/XX/YY of the European Parliament and of the Council [Proposed Directive on asset recovery and confiscation] 32 , the proceeds derived from, and instrumentalities used or intended to be used for the commission, or contribution to the commission, of the offences referred to in this Directive.”(4) in Article 11, paragraph 4 is replaced by the following:
“4. Member States shall take the necessary measures to establish by laws, regulations or administrative provisions, national referral mechanisms aimed at the early identification of, assistance to, and support for victims, in cooperation with relevant support organisations, and to appoint a national focal point for the referral of victims.”
(5) Article 18, paragraph 4 is deleted.
(6) the following Article 18a is inserted:
“Article 18a
Offences concerning the use of services which are the object of exploitation
with knowledge that the person is a victim
of an offence concerning trafficking in human beings
1. In order to make the preventing and combating of trafficking in human beings more effective by discouraging demand, Member States shall take the necessary measures to establish as a criminal offence the use of services which are the objects of exploitation as referred to in Article 2, with the knowledge that the person is a victim of an offence referred to in Article 2.
2. Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that an offence as established in accordance with paragraph 1 is punishable by effective, proportionate and dissuasive penalties and sanctions.”
(7) the following Article 19a is inserted:
“Article 19a
Data collection and statistics
1. Member States shall collect statistical data to monitor the effectiveness of their systems to combat offences referred to in this Directive.
2. The statistical data referred to in paragraph 1 shall include, at least, the following:
(a)the number of registered victims of offences referred to in Article 2, disaggregated by registering organisation, sex, age groups (child/adult), citizenship, and form of exploitation;
(b)the number of suspects of offences referred to in Article 2, disaggregated by sex, age groups (child/adult), citizenship, and form of exploitation;
(c)the number of persons prosecuted for offences referred to in Article 2, disaggregated by sex, age groups (child/adult), citizenship, form of exploitation, nature of the final decision to prosecute;
(d)the number of prosecution decisions (charge for offences referred to in Article 2, charge for other criminal offences, decision not to charge, other);
(e)the number of persons convicted for offences referred to in Article 2, disaggregated by sex, age groups (child/adult), citizenship;
(f)the number of court judgments (acquittal, convictions, other) for offences referred to in Article 2, for first instance, second instance and final court (or high court) decisions;
(g)the number of suspects, persons prosecuted and convicted for offences referred to in Article 18a, disaggregated by sex and age groups (child/adult).
3. Member States shall transmit annually to the Commission, by 1 July each year, the statistical data referred to in paragraph 2 for the previous year.
(8) In Article 23, the following paragraph 3 is inserted:
“3. The Commission shall, [by five years after transposition deadline], submit a report to the European Parliament and the Council, assessing the extent to which the Member States have taken the necessary measures in order to comply with Article 18a and the impact of such measures.”
Article 2
When Member States adopt those provisions, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or be accompanied by such a reference on the occasion of their official publication. Member States shall determine how such reference is to be made.
2. Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of the main provisions of national law which they adopt in the field covered by this Directive.
3. Point (7) of Article 1, which inserts Article 19a into Directive 2011/36/EU shall start to apply on the day referred to in Article 3.