Agenda of the Justice and Home Affairs Council, 8-9 December 2022

Schengen area

Ministers will discuss the full application of the Schengen acquis in Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania and will aim to adopt decisions on this matter.
Ministers will also assess the overall state of the Schengen area, as part of the annual Schengen Council cycle. They will focus in particular on countering migrant smuggling and on interoperability of IT systems.

Asylum and migration

Infographic – Irregular arrivals to the EU (2008-2022)

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Ministers will exchange views on the external dimension of migration and the situation along the main migratory routes. They will also be updated on the progress on ongoing work regarding the EU’s asylum and migration policy. This discussion follows the extraordinary Justice and Home Affairs Council which took place on 25 November.

Extraordinary Justice and Home Affairs Council (Home Affairs), 25 November 2022

EU migration policy (background information)

EU asylum reform (background information)

Russia’s aggression against Ukraine

Ministers will exchange views on the situation of Ukrainian refugees in the EU and on contingency planning during winter. Ministers will also take stock of the internal security dialogue with Ukraine to address the implications of Russia’s war of aggression, including the increased risks of human trafficking, illicit firearms trafficking and other serious crime.

Reception of refugees (background information)

EU fight against organised crime (background information)

Child sexual abuse

Ministers will assess progress on the draft regulation to prevent and combat child sexual abuse online. This text was proposed by the European Commission in May 2022 with the aim of setting out rules to effectively address the misuse of online services for the purposes of child sexual abuse, notably by obliging providers to detect, report and remove child sexual abuse material. Negotiations are currently ongoing at technical level within the Council.

Fighting child sexual abuse: Commission proposes new rules to protect children (European Commission press release)

Resilience of critical infrastructure

The Czech presidency will report on the state of play of the proposed Council recommendation on the resilience of critical infrastructure. Ministers are also expected to adopt, as a point without discussion, the directive on the resilience of critical entities.

EU resilience: Council presidency and European Parliament reach political agreement to strengthen the resilience of critical entities (press release, 28 June 2022)

Justice (Friday 9 December)

Fight against impunity in Ukraine

The Council is expected to adopt conclusions on the fight against impunity regarding crimes committed in connection with Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. The European Council has repeatedly called on Russia to stop its indiscriminate attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure. Those responsible for these war crimes, and their accomplices, will be held to account in accordance with international law.

Support in the investigation and prosecution of war crimes (background information)

Asset recovery and confiscation

Ministers will hold a debate on a draft directive on asset recovery and confiscation. In May 2022, the Commission presented a proposal to modernise EU asset recovery rules and ensure criminals are deprived of their illegal gains. This proposal will also expand the possibilities to confiscate assets to a wider set of crimes, including the violation of EU restrictive measures.

Ukraine: The Commission proposes rules on freezing and confiscating assets of oligarchs violating restrictive measures and of criminals (European Commission press release)

Infographic – How the EU fights environmental crime

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Environmental crime

The Council will aim to adopt a general approach on the draft environmental crime directive. Once formally adopted, the new text will replace the existing directive on this topic, adopted in 2008. It will update and enlarge the list of offences covered and will harmonise, for the first time, the level of penalties.

Digitalisation of justice

The Council will aim to adopt general approaches on the directive and regulation on the digitalisation of judicial cooperation and access to justice. These proposals, presented by the Commission in December 2021, aim to shift paper-based communications to electronic channels. They will allow parties to communicate with competent authorities electronically, allow the use of videoconferencing in oral hearings and ensure the possibility of digital transfer of requests and documents between courts and national authorities.

Modernising judicial cooperation: Commission paves the way for further digitalisation of EU justice systems (European Commission press release)

A digital future for Europe (background information)

Strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPP)

Ministers will discuss the draft directive against strategic lawsuits against public participation (anti-SLAPP directive). SLAPP refers to lawsuits filed by powerful subjects against individuals or organisations who have expressed a critical position on a substantive issue of public interest. The purpose is to silence defendants by draining their resources and morale with exorbitant claims for damages, long legal proceedings or a combination of different strategies. In April 2022, the Commission presented a proposal to protect journalists and rights defenders against this type of abusive litigation.

Commission tackles abusive lawsuits against journalists and human rights defenders ‘SLAPPs’ (European Commission press release)

Fight against antisemitism

Over lunch, ministers will exchange views on the fight against antisemitism.

Meeting information

• Brussels
• 8-9 December 2022

Preparatory documents

• Provisional list of A items
• Provisional agenda