Compulsory Information
The National Anti-Corruption Strategy 2020-2024, approved by Resolution of the Council of Ministers No 37/2021 of 6 April 2021, aimed at preventing, detecting and prosecuting corruption, identifies measures to be implemented in the coming years, focusing on a set of seven priorities, including preventing and detecting corruption risks in public action.
O Decree-Law No 109-E/2021 of 9 December 2021, establishes the National Anti-Corruption Mechanism (MENAC) and establishes the general regime for the prevention of corruption (RGPC), approved as an annex to that law, imposing on private companies, public companies and services forming part of the direct and indirect administration of the State, with 50 or more employees, the obligation to adopt risk prevention plans, codes of conduct, internal reporting channels and training programmes appropriate to the prevention of corruption and related offences.
To ensure the compliance of the implementation of these reporting channels, the Law No 93/2021 of 20 December 2021 (establishes the General Regime for the Protection of Whistleblowers of Infringements - RGPDI - and transposes Directive (EU) 2019/1937 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2019 on the protection of persons who report breaches of Union law) sets out the requirements and procedures to be adopted in the reporting channels, internal and external, of breaches typified in said RGPDI.
All complaints and submissions must be made in writing. For this purpose, two different Complaints Channels are available, to which access is made independently and autonomously, through an electronic platform.
What are the reporting channels for?
Whistleblower Channels work securely and completely confidentially.
Their main objectives are to prevent, detect and sanction the offences provided for in Article 2 of the General Regime for the Protection of Offence Whistleblowers (Law No 93/2021 of 20 December 2021), as well as acts of corruption and related offences.
In compliance with the law and, with regard to reporting channels, the INR, I.P.:
- Guarantees independence, impartiality, confidentiality, data protection, secrecy and the absence of conflicts of interest in the processing and analysis of reports received, and in any case, the reporting person is protected against any form of retaliation, and also has the possibility of submitting an anonymous report; e
- Adopt a position of responsibility, independence and trustworthiness in the reception, investigation and handling of complaints.
Protection of the complainant – Article 6 of Law No 93/2021 of 20 December 2021 – RGPDI
The whistleblower who, in good faith, that is, who has a serious reason to believe that the information is true at the time of reporting or public disclosure, benefits from the protection conferred by the RGPDI (Article 6(1)).
An anonymous whistleblower who is subsequently identified shall benefit from the protection conferred by this law, provided that he or she meets the conditions laid down in the preceding paragraph.
A whistleblower who submits an external report without complying with the rules of precedence provided for in Article 7(2)(a) to (e) shall benefit from the protection conferred by this Law if, at the time of submission, he or she was not at fault in complying with those rules.
The protection conferred by this Law shall extend, mutatis mutandis, to:
a natural person who assists the reporting person in the reporting procedure and whose assistance should be confidential, including trade union representatives or workers' representatives;
a third party who is linked to the reporting person, such as a co-worker or family member, and who may be subject to retaliation in a work-related context; e
legal persons or similar entities owned or controlled by the reporting person, for whom the reporting person works or with whom he or she is otherwise connected in a work-related context.
A reporting person who reports a breach to the competent institutions, bodies, offices or agencies of the European Union shall enjoy the protection provided for in this law under the same conditions as a reporting person who reports an external report.
Procedures for whistleblowing and reporting
All natural persons who wish to submit reports and/or report infringements must do so in writing, firstly, through the Internal Reporting Channels provided by the various entities.
External reports shall be submitted to the competent authorities which, in accordance with their duties and powers, should or may be aware of the subject matter of the report, such as local authorities or general inspections and similar entities.
In cases where there is no competent authority or where a competent authority is targeted, it should be addressed to the National Anti-Corruption Mechanism (MENAC) and, where the authority is targeted, to the Public Prosecutor’s Office.
If the offence concerns a crime or an administrative offence, external reports can always be submitted to the Public Prosecutor’s Office or to the criminal police bodies (crimes) and to the independent administrative authorities or to the police and supervisory authorities (offences).
The External Complaint Channel of the National Institute for Rehabilitation, IP, allows the submission of complaints only in writing, and may be anonymous or with the identification of the whistleblower.
Confidentiality and processing of personal data
The processing of reports and reports is carried out on an electronic platform, which ensures privacy by default, ensuring that all information related to reports and reports circulates encrypted.
Complaints are received and followed up exclusively by the Complaints Manager and the Compliance Officer. Each file is treated as confidential and restricted, and all those involved in its management are obliged to keep confidential all information to which they have had access. In legal terms, the identity of the author may only be disclosed as a result of a legal obligation or a judicial decision.
In the processing of personal data, including the exchange or transmission of personal data, the provisions of the General Data Protection Regulation shall be observed.
Prohibition of retaliation and protection of whistleblowers
Under the General Regulation on the Protection of Whistleblowers, an act of retaliation is an act or omission that, directly or indirectly, committed up to 2 years after the report or public disclosure, in a professional context and motivated by an internal, external or public disclosure, causes or may cause the whistleblower, in an unjustified manner, material or non-material damage.
Threats and attempts of acts and omissions are also considered as acts of retaliation.
The person who commits an act of retaliation compensates the reporting person for the damage caused, and the latter may also request the measures appropriate to the specific case to avoid the occurrence or expansion of the damage.
Whistleblowers are generally entitled to legal protection and may benefit from measures for the protection of witnesses in criminal proceedings.
Responsibility of the reporting person
The reporting or public disclosure of an infringement, made in accordance with the requirements imposed by the RGPDI, does not in itself constitute grounds for disciplinary, civil, administrative or criminal liability of the reporting person.
Without prejudice to the secrecy regimes safeguarded by Article 3(3) of the GDPRI, a reporting person who reports or publicly discloses an infringement in accordance with the requirements imposed by the GDPRI shall not be held liable for the violation of any restrictions on the reporting or disclosure of information contained in the report or in the public disclosure.
A whistleblower who reports or publicly discloses a breach in accordance with the requirements imposed by the RGPDI is not responsible for obtaining or accessing the information that motivates the report or public disclosure, except in cases where obtaining or accessing the information constitutes a crime.
The provisions of the preceding paragraphs are without prejudice to the possible liability of whistleblowers for acts or omissions not related to the reporting or public disclosure, or which are not necessary for the reporting or public disclosure of an infringement under the RGPDI.