The Expert Council carries out thematic and country studies on specific aspects of NGO legislation and its implementation that seem to pose problems of conformity with international standards, notably the European Convention on Human Rights and the Recommendation (2007)14 on the legal status of NGOs in Europe. Its work covers the 46 member countries of the Council of Europe and Belarus.
It was created in January 2008 by the Conference of INGOs of the Council of Europe with the aim of creating an enabling environment for NGOs through examining national NGO legislation and its implementation and providing advice on how to bring national law and practice into line with Council of Europe standards and European good practice.
The Expert Council provides follow-up to a Recommendation adopted in 2007 by the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers which sets a framework for the legal status of NGOs in Europe (CM/Rec(2007)14) and to the Council of Europe's commitment to the role of civil society in the promotion of democracy, human rights and the rule of law. It co-operates closely with other Council of Europe bodies, in particular the Venice Commission and the Commissioner for Human Rights
Croatia - Opinion on the Compatibility of Amendments to the Croatia Law on Associations and the Law on Foundations with European Standards (2023) - In English / In Croatian
Italy - Opinion on the compatibility with European standards of Italian Decree Law No. 1 of 2 January 2023 on the management of migratory flows (2023) - In English / In Italian
Belarus - Opinion on the compatibility with international and regional standards of recent amendments to the Belarusian legislation affecting NGOs (2022) - In English / In Belarusian
France - Opinion on the compatibility with the European standards of the French Bill to ensure respect for the principles of the republic by all (Mar 2021) - In English / In French
Russia - Opinion on the compatibility with European standards of recent and planned amendments to the Russian legislation affecting NGOs (Feb 2021) - In English / In Russian
Greece - Addendum to thr Opinion on the compatability with European standards of recent and planned amendments to the Greek legislation on NGO registration (Nov 2020) - In English / In Greek
Greece - Opinion on the compatability with European standards of recent and planned amendments to the Greek legislation on NGO registration (July 2020) - In English / In Greek
Turkey - Opinion on the compatibility of amendments to the Turkish law on associations with European standards (2020) - In English / In Turkish
Serbia - Opinion on the Draft Amendments to the Serbian Law on Access to Information of Public Utility (2018) - In English / In Serbian
Turkey - Opinion on the impact of the state of emergency on Freedom of Association in Turkey (2017) - In English / In Turkish
Hungary - Opinion on the Hungarian Draft Act on the Transparency of Organisations supported from abroad (2017) - In English
Romania - Opinion on the Romanian Draft Law 140/2017 on Associations and Foundations (2017) - In English
Cyprus - Civil Society in Cyprus: Building for the Future (2015) - In English
Russian Federation - Country study on NGO legislation in the Russian Federation (2015/2014/2013) - In English
Azerbaijan- Country study on NGO legislation in Azerbaijan (2014/2011/2009) - In English
News of the Expert Council
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Review on international standards relating to reporting and disclosure requirements for NGOs
Expert Council on NGO Law
The Expert Council on NGO Law of the Conference of INGOs has just published a review on international standards relating to reporting and disclosure requirements for NGOs. The review is prepared against the background of the perceived trend of Member States imposing onerous reporting and disclosure requirements on NGOs. It is hoped that this publication will provide a useful guideline to Member States, NGOs and other interested parties as to the permissible scope of a State's interference in this respect.
As the review suggests, while the applicable international instruments and case law do not specifically address all the issues surrounding the legitimate scope of NGOs reporting and disclosure obligations, nevertheless, they do set out the principles underpinning those measures and the legitimate scope of interference. Thus, while individual reporting and disclosure obligations might seem unproblematic on face value, difficulties might arise either from the level of detail required, the burden resulting from the accumulation of requirements and the way in which NGOs reporting and disclosure obligations are portrayed by public authorities.