Legal provisions of COM(2021)732 - Arrangements for the exercise of the right to vote and stand as a candidate in European elections for citizens residing in a country of which they are not nationals (recast) - Main contents
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This page contains a limited version of this dossier in the EU Monitor.
| dossier | COM(2021)732 - Arrangements for the exercise of the right to vote and stand as a candidate in European elections for citizens residing in a ... |
|---|---|
| document | COM(2021)732  |
| date | November 25, 2021 |
CHAPTER I
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Contents
- Article 1 - Subject matter and scope
- Article 2 - Definitions
- Article 3 - Conditions governing the right to vote and stand as a candidate
- Article 4 - Prohibition from voting more than once or standing as a candidate in more than one Member State
- Article 5 - Residence requirements
- Article 6 - Ineligibility
- Article 7 - Disqualification from voting
- Article 8 - Freedom to choose to vote in the Member state of residence
- Article 9 - Entry and removal from the electoral roll
- Article 10 - Registration as a candidate
- Article 11 - Decision on registration and legal remedies
- Article 12 - Provision of information
- Article 13 - Information exchange mechanism
- Article 14 - Specific means of voting
- Article 15 - Monitoring
Article 1 - Subject matter and scope
2. Nothing in this Directive shall affect each Member State's provisions concerning the right to vote or to stand as a candidate of its nationals who reside outside its electoral territory.
Article 2 - Definitions
(1) ‘elections to the European Parliament’ means elections by direct universal suffrage to the European Parliament of representatives in accordance with the Act concerning the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage of 20 September 1976 29 ;
(2) ‘electoral territory’ means the territory of a Member State in which, in accordance with the above Act and, within that framework, in accordance with the electoral law of that Member State, members of the European Parliament are elected by the people of that Member State;
(3) ‘Member State of residence’ means a Member State in which a Union citizen of the Union resides but of which he the Union citizen is not a national;
(4) ‘home Member State’ means the Member State of which a Union citizen of the Union is a national;
(5) ‘Community Union voter’ means any Union citizen of the Union who is entitled to vote in elections to the European Parliament in his the Member State of residence in accordance with this Directive;
(6) ‘Community national Union citizen entitled to stand as a candidate’ means any Union citizen of the Union who has the right to stand as a candidate in elections to the European Parliament in his the Member State of residence in accordance with this Directive;
(7) ‘electoral roll’ means the official register of all voters entitled to vote in a given constituency or locality, drawn up and kept up to date by the competent authority under the electoral law of the Member State of residence, or the population register if it indicates eligibility to vote;
(8) ‘reference date’ means the day or the days on which Union citizens of the Union must have to satisfy, under the law of the Member State of residence, the requirements for voting or for standing as a candidate in that State;
(9) ‘formal declaration’ means a declaration by the person concerned, inaccuracy in which makes that person liable to penalties, in accordance with the national law applicable.
Article 3 - Conditions governing the right to vote and stand as a candidate
(a) the person who, on the reference date is a Union citizen of the Union within the meaning of the second subparagraph of Article 8 20 (1) of the Treaty TFEU ;
(b) the person who, on the reference date is not a national of the Member State of residence, but satisfies the same conditions in respect of the right to vote and to stand as a candidate as that State imposes by law on its own nationals,
shall have the right to vote and to stand as a candidate in elections to the European Parliament in the Member State of residence unless deprived of those rights pursuant to Articles 6 and 7.
Where, in order to stand as a candidate, nationals of the Member State of residence must have been nationals for a certain minimum period, Union citizens of the Union shall be deemed to have met this condition when they have been nationals of a Member State for the same period.
Article 4 - Prohibition from voting more than once or standing as a candidate in more than one Member State
2. No person may stand as a candidate in more than one Member State at the same election.
Article 5 - Residence requirements
Article 6 - Ineligibility
1. Any Union citizens citizen of the Union who resides reside in a Member State of which he they are is not a national nationals and who, through an individual judicial decision or an administrative decision provided that the latter can be subject to judicial remedies, has have been deprived of his their right to stand as a candidate under either the law of the Member State of residence or the law of his the home Member State, shall be precluded from exercising that right in the Member State of residence in elections to the European Parliament.
2013/1/EU Art. 1.1(b) (adapted)
2. The Member State of residence shall check whether the Union citizens of the Union who have expressed a desire to exercise their right to stand as a candidate there have not been deprived of that right in the home Member State through an individual judicial decision or an administrative decision provided that the latter can be subject to judicial remedies.
2013/1/EU Art. 1.1(c)
3. For the purposes of paragraph 2 of this Article, the Member State of residence shall notify the home Member State of the declaration referred to in Article 10(1). To that end, the relevant information that is available from the home Member State shall be provided in any appropriate manner within five working days from the reception of the notification or, where possible, within a shorter time-limit, if so requested by the Member State of residence. Such information may include only details which are strictly necessary for the implementation of this Article and may be used only for that purpose.
If the information is not received by the Member State of residence within the time-limit, the candidate shall none the less be admitted.
4. If the information provided invalidates the content of the declaration, the Member State of residence, irrespective of whether it receives the information within the time-limit or at a later stage, shall take the appropriate steps in accordance with its national law to prevent the person concerned from standing as a candidate or, where this is not possible, to prevent this person either from being elected or from exercising the mandate.
5. Member States shall designate a contact point to receive and transmit the information necessary for the application of paragraph 3. They shall communicate to the Commission the name and contact details of the contact point and any updated information or changes concerning it. The Commission shall keep a list of contact points and make it available to the Member States.
93/109/EC (adapted)
new
Article 7 - Disqualification from voting
2. For the purposes of paragraph 1 of this Article, the Member State of residence may notify the home Member State of the declaration referred to in Article 9 (2). To that end, the relevant and normally available information from the home Member State shall be provided in good time and in an appropriate manner; such information may only include details which are strictly necessary for the implementation of this Article and may only be used for that purpose. If the information provided invalidates the content of the declaration, the Member State of residence shall take the appropriate steps to prevent the person concerned from voting.
3. The home Member State may, in good time and in an appropriate manner, submit to the Member State of residence any information necessary for the implementation of this Article.
Article 8 - Freedom to choose to vote in the Member state of residence
2. If voting is compulsory in the Member State of residence, Community Union voters who have expressed the wish to vote in that Member State do so shall be obliged to vote.
CHAPTER II
EXERCISE OF THE RIGHT TO VOTE AND THE RIGHT TO STAND AS A CANDIDATE
Article 9 - Entry and removal from the electoral roll
2. In order to have his their name entered on the electoral roll, a Community voter Union voters shall produce the same documents as a voter voters who are nationals is a national. He They shall also produce a formal declaration in accordance with the template set out in Annex I. stating:
(a)his nationality and his address in the electoral territory of the Member State of residence;
(b)where applicable, the locality or constituency in his home Member State on the electoral roll of which his name was last entered, and
(c)that he will exercise his right to vote in the Member State of residence only.
3. The Member State of residence may also require Union voters a Community voter to:
(a)state in his their declaration under paragraph 2 that he has they have not been deprived of the right to vote in his their home Member State;
(b)produce a valid identity document;, and
(c) indicate the date from which he has they have been resident in that State or in another Member State.
4. Community Union voters who have been entered on the electoral roll shall remain thereon, under the same conditions as voters who are nationals, until such time as they request to be removed or until such time as they are removed automatically because they no longer satisfy the requirements for exercising the right to vote. Where provisions are in place to notify nationals of such a removal from the electoral roll, these provisions shall apply to Union voters in the same way.
new
5. The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 20 concerning the amendment of the form and content of the template for the formal declaration referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article.
93/109/EC (adapted)
new
Article 10 - Registration as a candidate
2013/1/EU Art. 1.2(a)
(a)his nationality, date and place of birth, last address in the home Member State and his address in the electoral territory of the Member State of residence;
93/109/EC
(b)that he is not standing as a candidate for election to the European Parliament in any other Member State;
(c)where applicable, the locality or constituency in his home Member State on the electoral roll of which his name was last entered, and
2013/1/EU Art. 1.2(b)
(d)that he has not been deprived of the right to stand as a candidate in the home Member State through an individual judicial decision or an administrative decision provided that the latter can be subject to judicial remedies.
93/109/EC (adapted)
23. The Member State of residence may also require a Community national Union citizens entitled to stand as a candidate candidates to produce a valid identity document. It may also require him them to indicate the date from which he they have has been a national nationals of a Member State.
new
3. The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 20 concerning the amendment of the form and content of the template for the formal declaration referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article.
93/109/EC (adapted)
new
Article 11 - Decision on registration and legal remedies
2. Should a person Union citizens be refused entry on the electoral roll or his their application to stand as a candidate be rejected, the person persons concerned shall be entitled to legal remedies on the same terms as the legislation of the Member State of residence prescribes for voters and persons entitled to stand as candidates who are its nationals.
new
3. In case of errors in the electoral rolls or in the lists of candidates to the European Parliament, the person concerned shall be entitled to legal remedies on similar terms as the laws of the Member State of residence prescribe for voters and persons entitled to stand as candidates who are its nationals.
4. Member States shall inform clearly and in a timely manner, the person concerned of the decision referred to in paragraph 1 and of the legal remedies referred to in paragraphs 2 and 3.
93/109/EC (adapted)
Article 12 - Provision of information
new
1. Member States shall designate a national authority with responsibility for taking the necessary measures to ensure that non-national Union citizens are informed in a timely manner of the conditions and detailed rules for registration as a voter or candidate in elections to the European Parliament.
2. The Member States shall ensure that the authorities designated pursuant to paragraph 1, shall directly and individually communicate to Union voters and Union nationals entitled to stand as candidates, the following information:
(a) the status of their registration;
(b) the date of the election and how and where to vote;
(c) the relevant rules on voter and candidate rights and obligations including interdictions and incompatibilities and sanctions for violating electoral rules, particularly those pertaining to multiple voting;
(d) means of obtaining further information relating to the organisation of the election including the list of candidates.
3. The information on conditions and detailed rules for registration as a voter or candidate in elections to the European Parliament and the information referred to in paragraph 2 shall be provided in clear and plain language.
The information referred to in the first subparagraph shall, in addition to being communicated in one or more of the official languages of the host Member State, also be accompanied by a translation in at least one other official language of the Union that is broadly understood by the largest possible number of Union citizens residing on its territory, in accordance with the quality requirements of Article 9 of Regulation (EU) 2018/1724 of the European Parliament and of the Council 30 .
4. Member States shall ensure that information on conditions and detailed rules for registration as a voter or candidate in elections to the European Parliament and information referred to in paragraph 2 is made accessible to persons with disabilities and older persons by using appropriate means, modes and formats of communication.
93/109/EC (adapted)
new
Article 13 - Information exchange mechanism
new
2. The home Member State shall ensure that measures referred to in paragraph 1 do not prevent its nationals from voting or standing as candidates in other types of elections.
3. The Commission shall provide a secure tool supporting the exchange by Member States of the set of information referred to in Annex III for the purposes of paragraph 1 of this Article. The tool shall allow Member States of residence to provide that information in an encrypted form to each home Member State whose citizens have provided formal declarations referred to in Articles 9 and 10.
4. The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 20 concerning the amendment of the set of information referred to in Annex III.
5. The Commission is empowered to adopt implementing acts for the purpose of defining the responsibilities and obligations for the operation of the secure tool set out in paragraph 3, in accordance with the requirements of Chapter IV of Regulation (EU) 2016/679. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 19.
Article 14 - Specific means of voting
Article 15 - Monitoring
93/109/EC (adapted)
CHAPTER III
DEROGATIONS AND TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS
Article 1614 - Derogations
1. If on 1 January 1993, in a given Member State, the proportion of Union citizens of the Union of voting age who reside in it but are not nationals of it exceeds 20 % of the total number of national and non-national Union citizens of the Union residing there who are of voting age, that Member State may, by way of derogation from Articles 3, 9 and 10:(a)restrict the right to vote to Community Union voters who have resided in that Member State for a minimum period, which may not exceed five years;
(b)restrict the right to stand as a candidate to Community nationals Union citizens entitled to stand as candidates who have resided in that Member State for a minimum period, which may not exceed 10 years.
These provisions are without prejudice to appropriate measures which this that Member State may take with regard to the composition of lists of candidates and which are intended in particular to encourage the integration of non-national Union citizens of the Union.
However, Community Union voters and Community nationals Union citizens entitled to stand as candidates who, owing to the fact that they have taken up residence outside their home Member State or by reason of the duration of such residence, do not have the right to vote or to stand as candidates in that home State shall not be subject to the conditions as to length of residence set out above.
2. Where, on 1 February 1994, the laws of a Member State prescribe that the nationals of another Member State who reside there have the right to vote for the national parliament of that State and, for that purpose, may be entered on the electoral roll of that State under exactly the same conditions as national voters, the first Member State may, by way of derogation from this Directive, refrain from applying Articles 6 to 13 in respect of such nationals.
3. By 31 December 1997 and thereafter 18 months prior to each election to the European Parliament, the Commission shall submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a report in which it shall check whether the grant to the Member States concerned of a derogation pursuant to Article 8b 22 (2) of the EC Treaty TFEU is still warranted and shall propose that any necessary adjustments be made.
Member States which invoke derogations under paragraph 1 shall furnish the Commission with all the necessary background information.
Article 15
For the fourth direct elections to the European Parliament, the following special provisions shall apply:(a)citizens of the Union who, on 15 February 1994, already have the right to vote in the Member State of residence and whose names appear on the electoral roll in the Member State of residence shall not be subject to the formalities laid down in Article 9;
(b)Member States in which the electoral rolls have been finalized before 15 February 1994 shall take the steps necessary to enable Community voters who wish to exercise their right to vote there to enter names on the electoral roll sufficiently in advance of polling day;
(c)Member States which do not draw up specific electoral rolls but indicate eligibility to vote in the population register and where voting is not compulsory may also apply this system to Community voters who appear on that register and who, having been informed individually of their rights, have not expressed a wish to exercise their right to vote in their home Member State. They shall forward to the home Member State the document showing the intention expressed by those voters to vote in the Member State of residence;
(d)Member States in which the internal procedure for the nomination of candidates for political parties and groups is governed by law may provide that any such procedures which, in accordance with that law, were opened before 1 February 1994 and the decisions taken within that framework shall remain valid.
CHAPTER IV
FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 1716 - Reporting new
1. Within six months after each election to the European Parliament Member States shall send information to the Commission on the application of this Directive in their territory. In addition to general observations, the report shall contain statistical data on the participation in elections to the European Parliament of Union voters and Union citizens entitled to stand as candidates and a summary of the measures taken to support it.93/109/EC (adapted)
new
2. Within one year after each election to the European Parliament, tThe Commission shall submit a report to the European Parliament and the Council by 31 December 1995 on the application of this Directive to the June 1994 elections to the European Parliament. On the basis of the said report the Council, acting unanimously on a proposal from the Commission and after consulting the European Parliament, may adopt provisions amending this Directive.
new
Article 18 - Evaluation
Within two years after the 2029 elections to the European Parliament, the Commission shall assess its application and produce an evaluation report on the progress towards achievement of the objectives contained herein. The evaluation shall also include a review on the functioning of Article 13.Article 19 - Committee procedure
1. The Commission shall be assisted by a committee. That committee shall be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011.2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.
3. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 8 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011, in conjunction with Article 5 thereof, shall apply.
Article 20 - Exercise of the delegation
1. The power to adopt delegated acts is conferred on the Commission subject to the conditions laid down in this Article.2. The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in Articles 9, 10 and 13 shall be conferred on the Commission for an indeterminate period of time from the entry into force of this Directive.
3. The delegation of power referred to in Articles 9, 10 and 13 may be revoked at any time by the Council. A decision to revoke shall put an end to the delegation of the power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the validity of any delegated acts already in force.
4. Before adopting a delegated act, the Commission shall consult experts designated by each Member State in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement on Better Law-Making of 13 April 2016.
5. As soon as it adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to the European Parliament and to the Council.
6. A delegated act adopted pursuant to Articles 9, 10 and 13 shall enter into force only if no objection has been expressed by the Council within a period of two months of notification of that act to the European Parliament and the Council or if, before the expiry of that period, the Council has informed the Commission that it will not object. That period shall be extended by two months at the initiative of the Council.
93/109/EC (adapted)
new
Article 2117 - Transposition
Member States shall adopt and publish, by 31 May 2023, the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with Articles 9(2) and (4), 10(1), 11(1), (3) and (4), 12, 13(1), (2) and (3), 14, 15, 17 and Annexes I, II and III this Directive no later than 1 February 1994. They shall forthwith inform immediately communicate the text of those measures to the Commission thereof.new
They shall apply those measures from 31 May 2023.
93/109/EC (adapted)
When Member States adopt these measures, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or shall be accompanied by such reference on the occasion of their official publication. They shall also include a statement that references in existing laws, regulations and administrative provisions to the Directive repealed by this Directive shall be construed as references to this Directive. The methods of making such reference shall be laid down by Member States shall determine how such reference is to be made and how that statement is to be formulated .
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.
Article 22
Repeal
Directive 93/109/EC, as amended by the Directive listed in Annex IV, Part A, is repealed with effect from 31 May 2023, without prejudice to the obligations of the Member States relating to the time‑limits for the transposition into national law of the Directives set out in Annex IV, Part B.
References to the repealed Directives shall be construed as references to this Directive and shall be read in accordance with the correlation table in Annex V.
Article 2318 - Entry into force and application
This Directive shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union Communities.Articles 1 to 8, 9(1) and (3), 10(2) and 11(2) shall apply from 31 May 2023.
Article 2419
This Directive is addressed to the Member States.