To submit a complaint to Frontex click on SUBMIT A COMPLAINT
Frontex Complaints Mechanism
Complaints Mechanism
The Frontex Complaints Mechanism was established in 2016 with the purpose of monitoring and ensuring respect for fundamental rights across the Agency's operational activities.
It is an administrative transparency and accountability mechanism, regulated by the European Border and Coast Guard Regulation 2019/1896 and the Agency's rules on the Complaints Mechanism.
The Fundamental Rights Officer – an independent entity within Frontex, is responsible for handling complaints received by the Agency in accordance with the right to good administration.
Submitting a complaint is free of charge and does not affect other procedures.
Submission Guidelines
- You can submit a complaint to Frontex, if you believe that Frontex staff [1] violated your fundamental rights during a Frontex operational activity. This can be due to their actions or failure to act.
- You can find more information about fundamental rights in the Additional Information section, under 'List of Potential Fundamental Rights Violations During Operations'.
- Anyone can submit a complaint. Regardless of:
- Your age
- Your administrative status in Europe (e.g. whether you have a valid permit to stay, are applying for asylum, etc.)
- If you need help, someone else can submit a complaint on your behalf. This could be, for example, a family member, lawyer, organisation, or legal guardian. Just make sure they provide proof that you have authorised them to act for you.
- If many people were affected by the same action(s), you can submit a joint complaint.
[1] Frontex staff is defined as a member of the European Border and Coast Guard Standing Corps deployed through border management teams, migration management support teams and return teams. For example: Frontex border and coast guard officers, debriefing officers, return escorts.
- You must submit your complaint in writing. You can use one of the following methods:
- By using the online form.
- Download and fill out the standard complaint form available here, in several languages.
- Send an email to complaints@frontex.europa.eu
- Write a letter to the Frontex Fundamental Rights Officer at:
Frontex - European Border and Coast Guard Agency
Fundamental Rights Officer
Plac Europejski 6
00-844 Warsaw
Poland
Fundamental Rights Officer
Plac Europejski 6
00-844 Warsaw
Poland
- You can submit your complaint in any language you prefer.
- If you choose not to use our standard complaint form, please include the following information:
- Your contact details
- A detailed description of how your fundamental rights were violated.
- What - Where - When it happened
- Who was involved (e.g. name, clothing description, language spoken, physical appearance, what job or functions she/he had, etc.)
- You can also send additional information or documents to support your complaint at any time. The Fundamental Rights Office may also contact you for further clarification or details.
- Remember, the most important thing is to provide a clear and detailed account of what happened.
1. By submitting your complaint, you consent to the Agency and the Fundamental Rights Office to process your personal data. Frontex and the Fundamental Rights Office will treat all complaints as confidential unless you explicitly waive your right to confidentiality.
2. The Fundamental Rights Office will conduct an admissibility assessment of your complaint according to the following criteria:
- The complaint is submitted by you, as the potential victim, or by your representative.
- You, and your representative, provide contact details allowing for your identification.
- Your complaint concerns the actions or failure to act from a staff involved in a Frontex operational activity.
- The alleged facts you provide concern concrete fundamental rights violations.
- You provide sufficient information to support the complaint.
- Your complaint is submitted in writing.
4. If your complaint meets all the admissibility criteria, the Fundamental Rights Officer will declare it admissible.
6. You need to explicitly consent to forwarding your personal data to National Authorities.
8. The Fundamental Rights Officer will inform you which authority(ies) have received your complaint.
9. Finally, the Fundamental Rights Officer will assess measures taken by the Agency or EU Member States and will inform you about findings and decision.
- You, and your representative, provide contact details allowing for your identification.
- Your complaint concerns the actions or failure to act from a staff involved in a Frontex operational activity.
- The alleged facts you provide concern concrete fundamental rights violations.
- You provide sufficient information to support the complaint.
- Your complaint is submitted in writing.
- You submit the complaint within one year from the moment the facts happened.
- Your complaint does not concern working relations between the Agency and its staff, for example issues falling within the scope of Staff Regulations and Conditions of Employment.
- Your complaint is not repetitive (you should not have submitted the same complaint before).
- Your complaint does not concern working relations between the Agency and its staff, for example issues falling within the scope of Staff Regulations and Conditions of Employment.
- Your complaint is not repetitive (you should not have submitted the same complaint before).
3. If your complaint does not meet the stated criteria, the Fundamental Rights Officer will declare it inadmissible. You will be informed about the reason for inadmissibility and, if possible, about further options for addressing your concerns.
4. If your complaint meets all the admissibility criteria, the Fundamental Rights Officer will declare it admissible.
5. If your complaint concerns an officer from an EU Member State deployed in a Frontex activity, it will be referred to national authorities and to a national fundamental rights institution.
6. You need to explicitly consent to forwarding your personal data to National Authorities.
7. If your complaint concerns a Frontex staff member, it will be referred to the Frontex Executive Director for follow up, based on the assessment of and recommendations by the Fundamental Rights Officer.
8. The Fundamental Rights Officer will inform you which authority(ies) have received your complaint.
9. Finally, the Fundamental Rights Officer will assess measures taken by the Agency or EU Member States and will inform you about findings and decision.
- Complaints that do not concern actions or failure to act of staff involved in Frontex operational activity.
- Complaints concerning European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) Central Unit activities.
- Complaints concerning the outcome of asylum applications.
- Complaints concerning return decisions issued by the EU Member States.
- Complaints concerning entry or exit bans issued by the EU Member States.
- Complaints concerning the management of waiting periods or access to sanitation and resting/seating areas at border crossing points.
- Complaints concerning the opening or closing of border crossing lanes.
- Complaints concerning working relations between the Agency and its staff, for example issues falling within the scope of Staff Regulations and Conditions of Employment.
If your complaint is outside the Frontex Fundamental Rights Officer’s mandate you may consider the following alternative options:
o Resources to help you find out whether the EU Charter can protect you: Does the Charter apply to my case | European e-Justice Portal
o Various methods of redress if your rights under EU law have not been respected: Redress at national level - European Commission
o Resources to help you address a complaint to the relevant office in the EU Member State where the alleged violation of your rights took place: Where can I get help | European e-Justice Portal
o An online tool which provides easy-to-access information about the Charter and its provisions: EU Charter of Fundamental Rights | European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights
o The EU Fundamental Rights Information System (EFRIS) tool that creates visualisations of data on human rights commitments and compliance: Home | FRA EFRIS
o An overview of national courts and other non-judicial national bodies, as well as EU and international complaints bodies. List of relevant courts and bodies | European e-Justice Portal
Information Materials
Information booklets on the Frontex Complaints Mechanism by language:
Frontex Complaints Mechanism materials are available in the following formats and languages:
1. POSTERS on the Complaints Mechanism:
- Poster 1 (covering 7 languages): Arabic, English, French, Spanish, Serbian, Turkish, Russian
- Poster 2 (covering 8 languages): Georgian, English, Arabic, Armenian, Turkish, Azerbaijani, Ukrainian, Russian (also available in laminated version)
- Poster 3 (covering 11 languages): Portuguese, English, French, Dutch, Arabic, Turkish, Russian, Georgian, Spanish, Urdu, Mongolian (also available in laminated version).
Additionally, all posters are available as stickers with the same size and design as the posters but with an adhesive back for convenient application on hard surfaces.
2. BOOKLETS on the Complaints Mechanism:
- Booklet 1: English, French, Tigrinya, Spanish, Russian, Serbian, Albanian, Pashtu, Urdu, Arabic, Farsi, Kurdish
- Booklet 2: English, Armenian, Belarusian, Bengali, Georgian, German, Lingala, Romanian, Somali, Turkish, Ukrainian, Vietnamese, Dari
3. ROLL-UPS on the Complaints Mechanism (limited availability)
- Roll-up 1 (covering 8 languages): Georgian, English, Arabic, Armenian, Turkish, Azerbaijani, Ukrainian, Russian
- Roll-up 2 (covering 11 languages): Portuguese, English, French, Dutch, Arabic, Turkish, Russian, Georgian, Spanish, Urdu, Mongolian
Booklets, posters, and roll-ups for download (see descriptions above):
To submit a complaint to Frontex click on SUBMIT A COMPLAINT