The Council of Europe has produced a thematic study to further clarify the scope of the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings, in part which refers to financial sanctions and the ability of states parties to confiscate the proceeds from human traffickers. The aim is to make the international obligations related to the financial aspects of the fight against human trafficking better understood and put into practice by states parties.

Combating the financial flows associated with trafficking in human beings and confiscating criminal assets are the backbone of the fight against this serious crime. While progress has been made in understanding the scale of the problem, the percentage of criminal assets that are successfully confiscated remains low compared with the estimated volume of proceeds generated by human trafficking.

Article 23(3) of the Convention places a general obligation on states parties to implement financial sanctions enabling them to confiscate the proceeds of human trafficking offences. The financial aspects came under particular focus during the third evaluation round by the Council of Europe Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA), the body tasked with monitoring the Convention.

The study has been prepared by Nathalie Le Rousseau-Martin, legal consultant and former GRETA member. It clarifies the scope of Article 23(3) of the Convention and takes stock of its implementation by the states parties on the basis of the reports published by GRETA. The study also includes recommendations for better application of these provisions in practice.

 Full text of the study: The financial approach to combating trafficking in human beings

 See also: Council of Europe action against human trafficking in Bosnia and Herzegovina