Ref. Ares(2022)4303462 - 10/06/2022
TRANSPARENCY
Access to documents
European Commission - SG C1
Newsletter n° 36
11 April 2018
Registration of documents relating to
the handling of an application
for access-to-documents
-Business cycle of an application for access-to-documents
-Functional mailbox for handling such an application
When handling an application for access-to-documents based on Regulation 1049/2001, Commission
services follow the procedure provided for in the Detailed Rules for the application of Regulation
1049/20011.
SG.C1 has mapped the corresponding business cycle (annexed), with a view to ensuring
good document management and keeping documentary proof of the successive steps in handling
initial and confirmatory applications.
The business cycle covers the final positions of all Commission services involved in the handling of
initial/confirmatory applications. These should be registered in ARES/GESTDEM, in line with the Note
of the Secretary-General on Document management and access to documents2.
1
Detailed rules for the application of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2201 of the European Parliament and the
Council regarding public access to European Parliament, Council and Commission documents, Official
Journal of 29.12.2001, L 345, p. 94.
2
Ares(2015)182108,
link
:https://myintracomm.ec.europa.eu/sg/docinter/Documents/ATD_Info13_EN-
FR.pdf.
For more information :
send an email to xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xx.xxxxxx.xx
On the other hand, preliminary exchanges between Commission Services in the context of the
preparation of confirmatory decisions, including the Secretariat-General and the Legal Service, are
not part of the business cycle to the extent that they only serve clarification purposes and do not set
out the final positions of the services involved. These are short-lived exchanges and should not be
registered in ARES/GESTDEM. Examples are preliminary clarification questions and answers on the
factual or legal framework relating to the subject matter of the application; or preliminary questions
and answers relating to the assessment of the requested documents, in particular in case of partial
access.
To facilitate the handling of confirmatory applications, a dedicated functional mailbox has been
created:
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xx.xxxxxx.xx. This functional mailbox should be used
for all preliminary and final exchanges related to the handling of confirmatory applications for
access-to-documents, without copying in the general functional mailbox
SG-DOSSIERS-
xxxxx@xx.xxxxxx.xx.
The new functional mailbox is configured to automatically sort the incoming e-mails per case-
handler. For this to happen, please always use the initials of the responsible case-handler in brackets
in the header of your e-mail (ex: GESTDEM 2018/222 (EK)), even if the responsible case-handler is
not in the office and/or has a back-up taking care of his/her correspondence.
Directorates-General are invited to register in ARES/GESTDEM, the documents, which are included in
the attached mapping table under the heading ’initial’ when handling initial applications.
SG.C1 will register in ARES the documents under the heading ‘confirmatory’ and ‘review’,
when handling confirmatory applications or a review procedure.
As an exception to the above:
-
the line DGs’
initial contribution for the treatment of a confirmatory application,
requested within 24h, should continue to be sent only to
SG-DOSSIERS-
xxxxx@xx.xxxxxx.xx. This contribution should be sent via a single AresLook email and
include the original pdf versions of all identified documents, as registered in ARES.
Services should in all cases avoid sending these documents one-by-one via ARES;
-
the line DG shall continue to register in ARES/GESTDEM the note of its Director-General
confirming that there are no documents falling within the scope of the application.
Annex:
Mapping of the business cycle of an application for access-to-documents