On 2 December 2025, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU reached a major political agreement on a future anti-corruption directive, establishing the first harmonised criminal law framework to fight corruption across the EU.
The EU directive will introduce:
- Uniform definitions of corruption offences across Member States;
- Common minimum criminal penalties, including prison sentences and complementary sanctions;
- Criminal liability for companies, with fines of up to 3–5% of global turnover;
- Stronger EU judicial cooperation through reinforced roles for Europol, Eurojust, OLAF and the EPPO;
- Enhanced protection for whistleblowers and witnesses.
The agreement must now be formally approved by Parliament and the Council before entering into force.
For further information :