Brussels, March 11, 2026 (Lusa) - The European Commission on Wednesday gave Portugal two months to fully transpose a directive on the exchange of information between member states' law enforcement authorities, described as "essential for combating cross-border crime".
As part of the March infringement package announced today, the European Commission indicates that it has issued a reasoned opinion to Portugal, France and Bulgaria for failing to notify the European Union of the transposition of a directive on the exchange of information between national authorities.
According to the European Commission, the directive in question aims to "strengthen the prevention, detection and investigation of criminal offences in the European Union (EU) by ensuring that police officers in one member state have access to the same information as officers in other member states".
"The directive establishes organisational and procedural rules for the sharing of information between law enforcement authorities in EU member states, including through the creation of a single point of contact," the Commission states.
The European Commission argues that the transposition of the directive "facilitates rapid and effective collaboration between law enforcement agencies, which is essential to combat cross-border crimes driven by digitalisation, thereby strengthening the security of EU citizens".
The EU Commission points out that Portugal, France and Bulgaria have only reported partial transposition of the directive's measures and now have two months to complete this transposition.
"Otherwise, the European Commission may decide to refer the cases to the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU), with requests for financial penalties," the Commission states.
The issuance of a reasoned opinion is the second stage of an infringement procedure, following the sending of a letter of formal notice.
If member states do not provide a response that is considered satisfactory by the European Commission, the case may be referred to the CJEU.
In this package of infringements, the European Commission also announced that it had opened another case against Portugal for failing, along with 18 other member states, to submit its draft National Building Renovation Plan (PNRE) by 31 December.
The EU Commission stresses that PNREs are a "strategic and essential tool for member states to transform their building stock into a high-performance, energy-efficient and decarbonised asset".
"These plans are essential to improve the energy performance of buildings and thus contribute to reducing energy bills," it says.
The Commission stresses that "the timely submission" of these projects "enables the Commission to effectively assess each member state's strategy, ensuring that the finalised plans are comprehensive, feasible and aligned with national and EU climate and energy targets".
The Commission calls on member states to submit their projects "without further delay," with countries now having two months to respond to the letter sent today.
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