Violation of EU restrictive measures: new offences and amendments to Legislative Decree 231/2001

Legislative Decree No. 211/2024 has been published in the Official Gazette and will come into force on 26 January, implementing Directive 2024/1226/EU on the definition of offences and penalties for violations of Union restrictive measures.

Among the most significant changes are the amendments to Book II of the Criminal Code, through the introduction of Chapter I-BIS entitled “Offences against the foreign policy and common security of the European Union”.

Chapter I-BIS regulates the new offences of Violation of European Union restrictive measures (Article 275-bis of the Criminal Code), Violation of information obligations imposed by a European Union restrictive measure (Article 275-ter of the Criminal Code), Violation of the conditions of authorisation to carry out activities (Article 275-quater of the Criminal Code), and Negligent violation of European Union restrictive measures (Article 275-quinquies of the Criminal Code).

The newly introduced offences have also been included in the list of offences giving rise to administrative liability of entities, through the addition of Article 25-octies.2 to Legislative Decree 231/2001.

The legislator has also intervened on the mechanism for determining the financial penalty to be imposed in the event of the conviction of the entity, adding paragraph 3-bis to Article 10 of Legislative Decree 231/2001, according to which "In the cases provided for by law, the financial penalty is determined in relation to the specific percentage, indicated for each offence, of the total turnover of the entity for the financial year preceding that in which the offence was committed or, if lower, for the financial year preceding the application of the financial penalty. When it is not possible to ascertain the total global turnover of the entity, the financial penalty shall be applied in the amount determined in relation to each offence".

Finally, the reference to the new offences contained in Chapter I-BIS of the Criminal Code has also been included in Legislative Decree No. 24/2023, ensuring that the protective measures provided for in the whistleblowing legislation also apply to persons who report violations of these rules.