The European Commission has adopted a a proposal extending the rules governing public access to documents issued by EU institutions, bodies, offices and agencies. This proposal aims to extend the scope of current rules about access to information in order to put them into line with the Lisbon Treaty and create a single legal framework for the right of access to documents of all the institutions.

Although in practice almost all EU institutions, bodies, offices and agencies apply rules on access to their documents, the European Commission considers that current rules on right to access need to be amended in order to be fully compliant with the new legal basis as laid down in the Treaty of Lisbon.

The Regulation on right to access of EU institutions documents which currently in force was adopted in May 2001, based on the Treaty establishing the European Community, which granted citizens and residents of the European Union a right of access to European Parliament, Council and Commission documents. Shortly after the entry into force of this Regulation 1049/2001, its applicability was extended to the Community agencies, and furthermore, the European Central Bank, the European Investment Bank, the European Court of Auditors, the European Economic and Social Committee, the Committee of the Regions as well as Europol and Eurojust later adopted, on a voluntary basis, the rules on access to their documents which are identical or similar to the Regulation.

With the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty on 1 December 2009, the public right of access was formally extended to documents of all the Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies, including the Court of Justice, the European Central Bank and the European Investment Bank when they exercise administrative tasks.

This is not the first time Commission aims to amend these rules. On 30 April 2008, well before the entry into force of the new Treaty, a proposal was submitted to the European Parliament and the Council in order to improve and streamline the existing Regulation. However, as the legislative process on this earlier proposal is taking more time than expected, the Commission believes it is necessary to move forward with a limited proposal to amend the Regulation, and make it compliant with the Treaty. This view is shared by the European Ombudsman, who considers it in the interest of legal certainty for citizens.

This limited change to the Regulation will, once adopted, lead to a single legal framework for the right of access to documents of all the institutions, bodies, offices and agencies of the European Union, including the newly created European External Action service. This proposal is without prejudice to the ongoing legislative process on the April 2008 proposal for a recast of the Regulation.