Schengen Evaluation Mission at the Personal Data Protection Office

On 15 April 2024, the Schengen evaluation mission started at the Personal Data Protection Office. The Office hosted a team of experts appointed by the Member States and the European Commission.

The visit is taking place in connection with the implementation of the mechanism for evaluating the correct implementation and application of data protection requirements under the Schengen acquis, to which Poland is subject this year.

The mechanism ensures that the Schengen acquis is applied effectively, efficiently and correctly by the Member States contributing to maintaining mutual trust between the Member States. It allows for the rapid identification of deficiencies in the application of the Schengen acquis which could impede the proper functioning of the Schengen area, and enable to ensure their rapid rectification and to provide a basis for dialogue on the functioning of the Schengen area as a whole.

“We are serious about the tasks related to the evaluation of Schengen and the visa system, so the visit of the evaluators to our country and office is very important,” said at the meeting, Mirosław Wróblewski, the President of the Personal Data Protection Office. “We look forward to the report and its conclusions, which will allow us to improve and effectively enforce personal data protection. Each such visit is a new challenge for us”, added the President of the Personal Data Protection Office. Mirosław Wróblewski also assured that the Personal Data Protection Office will do its utmost to provide evaluators with the information that they need to carry out the assessment.

After visiting the Personal Data Protection Office, as well as other bodies of the Polish public administration, the team will draft the assessment report. This document will include recommendations for corrective actions to address any shortcomings and implement the required improvements identified during the assessment. It will also identify priorities for the implementation of these actions. The evaluation report will be adopted as an implementing act of the European Commission. In turn, the Commission will forward the evaluation report to the European Parliament and the Council.

In the next stage, the Polish side will establish an action plan with the Commission in order to implement all recommendations made in the report. In addition, like each Member State under evaluation, the Polish side will report periodically to the Commission and the Council on the implementation of its action plan until the Commission finds that the action plan has been fully implemented.