Fiches Belges

The legal basis under Belgian Law is the Law of 19 December 2003 related to the European Arrest Warrant as amended by the law of 25 April 2014 and the law of 5 February 2016.

Council Framework Decision 2002/584/JHA of 13 June 2002 on the European arrest warrant and the surrender procedures between Member States.

* receive the request/decision for judicial cooperation The public prosecutor who is territorially competent; If not known: the federal public prosecutor or the central authority of the Belgian Ministry of Justice. * execute/recognise the measure (if other than the receiving authority) If the person consents: the public prosecutor If the person does not consent: 'Chambre du Conseil' (subsidiary competence).

The EAW should be drawn up in or translated into Dutch, French, German and English. Important remarks: Before the execution, the letter of request will be translated by the Belgian prosecutor if the language is not the language of the judicial area where the letter of request must be executed. It is recommended, when possible, to obtain, prior to sending the request, information about the use of the correct language.

The decision on the execution is usually taken within sixty days maximum (including legal remedies); The surrender will, in principle, take place within ten days after the decision.

Time limits to receive the EAW after the provisional arrest of the person sought: Belgian law does not lay down a time limit for receiving the original or a copy of the European arrest warrant. However, the European arrest warrant must be available at the time when the person is entitled to have access to his file before being heard by the Chambre du Conseil. Consequently, European arrest warrants should be sent to the Belgian authorities within 10 days of the person's arrest. Either the original or a certified true copy of the European arrest warrant should be sent. Dual criminality: the execution of a European arrest warrant may be refused if the offence for which the European arrest warrant was issued does not constitute an offence under Belgian law unless the issuing judicial authority has indicated that the offence falls within one of the 32 categories of offence for which the double criminality requirement has been withdrawn . Euthanasia and abortion permitted under Belgian law will not be considered to be covered by the category of offence "murder".