Belgium is preparing to transpose the new European ‘e-evidence’ framework into national law, which is intended to facilitate cross-border access to electronic evidence in criminal matters. The IBPT is launching a public consultation open until 17 September 2025, inviting citizens, businesses and judicial actors to express their views on the draft law and royal decree.
A response to a new European legal framework
On 12 July 2023, the European Union adopted a legislative package called ‘e-evidence’ comprising Directive (EU) 2023/1544 and Regulation (EU) 2023/1543. These two texts aim to facilitate cross-border access to electronic evidence in criminal matters: the regulation allows a national authority to request directly from a service provider in other Member States to freeze or provide electronic data; the directive requires providers to establish at least one point of contact to handle such requests.
The regulation is scheduled to come into force on 18 August 2026, while the directive must be transposed by Member States by 18 February 2026. Faced with these tight deadlines, the IBPT (Belgian Institute for Postal Services and Telecommunications) has launched a public consultation. This consultation concerns the transposition of the directive and the implementation of the regulation through a draft law and a draft royal decree.
Why is this consultation crucial?
Imagine a Belgian criminal investigation seeking to obtain digital evidence held by a service in France or Germany: thanks to this framework, the authority can send a request directly to a ‘contact point’ of the local provider, without going through lengthy and rigid procedures such as traditional mutual legal assistance. This modernisation paves the way for more efficient investigations, but also potentially sensitive ones in terms of the protection of fundamental rights.
The Gaming Commission shared this information on its website at the request of the IBPT because some online casinos could be affected by this new law.
What this means for the parties concerned
This initiative represents a major decision for several categories: Internet service providers, telecom operators and online platforms will have to identify or designate a point of contact and respond to requests from the authorities within a specific legal framework. Police and judicial authorities will see their methods of obtaining evidence modernised. Finally, citizens will see the introduction of a faster system for accessing justice… provided that the necessary legal safeguards are in place.