To be granted the self-reporting reduction, legal entities must voluntarily, fully and timely report potential criminal offences to the Public Prosecution Service. This includes any relevant information and documents, as well as the assets that may have resulted from the offences. To qualify for the second reduction option, legal entities must fully cooperate in the criminal investigation. This includes providing relevant information, making employees available for questioning, not obstructing procedures, avoiding evidence tampering and influencing of witnesses, and identifying relevant information held by third parties and assets resulting from criminal offences. Client-privileged information does not need to be provided.
If the Public Prosecution Service finds that the conditions have not been sufficiently met, the reduction can be lowered or omitted altogether. The Order also allows legal entities to anonymously check with the Public Prosecution Service whether the Order may apply to the case outlined.
Self-investigations can be conducted before, during or after self-reporting. This can affect the reduction percentage. The Public Prosecution Service will assess whether the self-investigation contributes to fact-finding, safeguards victims’ rights and is sufficiently thorough and reliable. The Public Prosecution Service will also consider whether the self-investigation was conducted with sufficient objectivity and expertise, and whether the investigator observed laws and regulations and any rules of conduct or professional practice.
The Order will take effect on 1 January 2025.
