Fiches Belges

Obtaining information on bank accounts and other financial accounts and on banking and other financial operations is a possible measure according to the Bulgarian legislation under international judicial cooperation. Information on bank accounts and other financial accounts can be obtained through the electronic information system - register, established and maintained by the Bulgarian National Bank, containing data on the numbers of the bank accounts and of the payment accounts with international bank account numbers (IBAN), maintained by banks, payment institutions and electronic money companies, on the account holders and the persons authorised to operate with the accounts, on the actual owners of account holders, on the existence of provisional measures on accounts, as well as on persons renting safe deposit boxes in banks and their proxies. Information on banking operations - information covered by banking secrecy, can be obtained on grounds of a court ruling.

Directive 2014/41/EU on EIOs EU MLA Convention 2000 non-EU - CoE European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters (1959) The Bulgarian Criminal Procedure Code EIO Act Credit Institutions Act

The competent authorities to recognize an EIO with the scope to obtain information on bank accounts and other financial accounts and on banking and other financial operations, issued by a competent authority of another Member State, are : 1. in the pre-trial proceedings - a prosecutor from the respective district or military-district prosecutor's office within whose judicial region the relevant investigative measure is requested to be carried out or evidence which is already in possession is requested to be transferred; 2. in the court proceedings or in case the EIO is issued by an administrative authority - the respective district or military court within whose judicial region the judicial investigation measure concerned is requested to be carried out or evidence which is already in possession is requested to be transferred. An EIO may also be issued with regard to information about financial operations conducted by non-banking financial institutions. When the EIO has been sent to a body, which is not competent to recognize it, it shall send it ex officio to the respective competent authority and shall immediately notify the issuing body thereof in a manner allowing written certification of the authenticity of the receipt and of its content. The competent authorities to recognize an MLA request with the scope to obtain information on bank accounts and other financial accounts and on banking and other financial operations – in cases where the EU MLA Convention 2000 applies, are the respective local District/Regional Courts and District/Regional Prosecution offices – with regards of the stage of criminal proceedings. The competent authorities to recognize an MLA request with the scope to obtain information on bank accounts and other financial accounts and on banking and other financial operations – in cases where the CoE European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters applies, are as follows: -in the pre-trial proceedings - the Supreme Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Bulgaria; -in the trial proceedings - the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Bulgaria.

In case of an EIO the legal instrument should be sent to the competent authorities translated into Bulgarian or English. In case of a MLA request on the grounds of the EU MLA Convention 2000 or of the CoE European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters - the legal instrument should be sent to the competent authorities translated into Bulgarian or into one of the official languages of the Council of Europe. With regard to promptness and efficiency, it is recommended the requests to be accompanied by a translation into Bulgarian.

In case of an EIO, no later than 30 days from the receipt of the EIO the competent authority has to take a decision for its recognition and execution. This term may be extended by not more than 30 days after indicating the reasons for the delay and after consultations between the competent authority and the issuing body. The competent authority for the execution of the EIO shall carry out actions for the investigation and other judicial investigation measures no later than 90 days from the date of its recognition. When it is not possible to observe the above terms, the competent authority shall immediately notify the issuing body of the reasons for the delay and after conducting consultations the necessary additional time for execution of an investigation measure and other judicial investigation measures shall be determined. When the issuing body has indicated in the EIO that due to the determined procedural terms, the gravity of the crime, or other especially urgent circumstances a shorter term is necessary or that investigative and judicial investigation measures must be carried out on a specific date, the competent authority for the execution of the EIO shall comply with this requirement as far as possible. When it is not possible to comply with the term or the specific date, the competent authority shall immediately notify the issuing body of the reasons and after conducting consultations the additional time necessary to execute an investigative measure and other judicial investigation measures shall be determined. In case of a MLA request on the grounds of the EU MLA Convention 2000 or of the CoE European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters a specific deadline is not envisaged. The practice shows that the fulfillment of requests usually takes between two and four months.

In case of an EIO, the issuing authority has to indicate the reasons to consider that the requested information is of substantial value for the purpose of the criminal proceeding concerned, the grounds on which the said authority presumes that banks in the Republic of Bulgaria hold such accounts, and which banks may hold the accounts in question. The issuing authority also has to make available any other information which may facilitate the execution of the order. The MLA Convention 2000 and the transposed provisions of the Directive 2014/41/EU on EIOs apply to the EU Member States. For the non-EU States apply the CoE European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters (1959).