Algeria-EU Strengthen Framework for Criminal Justice Cooperation
Judicial cooperation between Algeria and the European Union is entering a new phase with a forthcoming cooperation agreement between Algeria and the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation, known as Eurojust.
The agreement aims to strengthen information sharing and judicial coordination in countering terrorism and cross-border organized crime, including human trafficking, drug trafficking, money laundering and cybercrime.
The Council of the European Union authorized the signing of the judicial cooperation agreement on September 22, while the decision was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on September 24. This paves the way for the agreement to be submitted to the European Parliament for approval before the remaining procedures are completed ahead of its entry into force.
The agreement, identified as 2026/0155(NLE), would establish a more structured legal framework for cooperation between Algerian authorities and their European counterparts. It would include the possibility of deploying joint investigation teams and exchanging data and evidence in international criminal cases of mutual concern.
The agreement would also provide Algeria with a permanent legal framework for exchanging information and personal data with Eurojust, particularly in the fight against serious cross-border crime. It covers judicial information sharing, cooperation in criminal investigations and prosecutions, cross-border data transfers and the protection of personal data—an arrangement that received the European Data Protection Supervisor’s approval on August 10.
For Algeria, the significance of the agreement lies in its potential to bring criminal judicial cooperation to a more institutionalized level. Rather than dealing with an individual European country, Algeria would cooperate with a central European agency representing the bloc’s 27 member states. The agreement, however, would not supersede existing bilateral agreements between Algeria and individual EU member states.
One issue of particular importance to Algeria is the possibility of recovering the embezzled funds transferred to EU member states. The agreement places money laundering, corruption, cybercrime and other serious related offenses among the areas in which the parties are expected to cooperate.
For Algeria, which has made the recovery of funds illicitly transferred abroad a priority, the agreement could allow it to channel its efforts through a single institutional framework with the European Union rather than pursuing separate bilateral channels with 27 countries. This could also facilitate cooperation concerning individuals accused in Algeria of cybercrime, terrorism and offenses against the country’s territorial integrity, many of whom are the subject of legal proceedings in several European countries, including France, Spain, Luxembourg and Switzerland.
The draft agreement would also enable Algeria to benefit from Eurojust’s assistance in establishing and operating joint investigation teams with European countries, including technical and financial support. It would further facilitate cooperation in the recovery of evidence and cross-border prosecutions, helping coordinate investigations when a case spans Algeria and several European countries rather than requiring each part of the case to be handled separately.
The offenses covered by the draft agreement, as listed in Annex I, include drug trafficking, migrant smuggling, human trafficking, crimes involving nuclear and radioactive materials, motor vehicle crime, murder and grievous bodily harm, illicit trafficking in human organs and tissues, kidnapping and hostage-taking, racism and xenophobia.
The draft also imposes restrictions on the onward transfer of information to third parties. Eurojust would not be permitted to transfer data received from Algeria to other EU institutions or the authorities of member states without Algeria’s prior consent, except in cases specifically provided for under the agreement.
The agreement also contains explicit safeguards for privacy and personal-data protection, as well as enhanced protection for sensitive data. It places restrictions on decisions based solely on automated processing of data, including profiling, where such decisions could have adverse legal effects on an individual.
Under the proposed agreement, Algeria and the European Union would review its implementation one year after it enters into force and periodically thereafter. A comprehensive assessment would be conducted after four years.
The agreement would enter into force on the first day of the second month following the month in which Algeria and the European Union notify each other that they have completed the required internal legal procedures.
