Union Anti-fraud Programme

The Union Anti-fraud Programme (UAFP) sets three specific objectives. First, it aims to prevent and combat fraud, corruption and any other illegal activities affecting the Union’s financial interests. Second, it aims to provide tools for information exchange and support for operational activities in the field of mutual administrative assistance in customs and agricultural matters. Third, it aims to support the reporting of irregularities, including fraud, found with the shared management funds and pre-accession assistance funds of the Union budget.

Regarding the Programme’s anti-fraud component, financing is provided for the reinforcement of investigative capability and capacity of national authorities, including their digitalisation, in view of stepping up the fight against fraud, corruption and any other illegal activity affecting the EU financial interests, on both the revenue and expenditure sides.

The Programme publishes annual Calls for proposals for technical assistance projects, including the purchase of specialised investigative and operational equipment, IT and analysis tools and relevant training. 

The Call is open for national and regional authorities of MS involved in the protection of Union’s financial interests and the main topics supported are:

•  Investigation and surveillance equipment and methods
• Digital forensic hardware
• Data analytics technologies and data purchases
• Detection of illicit trade

A second Call is published for anti-fraud training activities, such as specialised conferences, courses, seminars and staff exchanges among MS authorities.

The Programme offers a co-financing rate of 80% of the eligible costs, which can be increased to a maximum 90% in exceptional and duly justified cases (the conditions for 90% rate are detailed in the Call text).

For the Technical Assistance Call for proposals, the beneficiaries are national and regional authorities of Member States involved in the protection of Union’s financial interests.

The Programme supports the purchase of investigation and surveillance equipment to be used in the fight against irregularities, fraud and corruption detrimental to the EU financial interests. It finances also the acquisition of digital forensic equipment, the purchase and maintenance of commercial databases and data analysis tools, as well as the acquisition of equipment used for the detection of illicit trade.

In previous years, this was done in the framework of the Hercule programmes. The Union Anti-fraud Programme (2021-2027) continues the technical support to MS offered under Hercule.

The beneficiaries of the support provided are national and regional authorities of MS involved in the protection of Union’s financial interests.

• Examples of past projects are found in the latest Commission adopted report on the implementation of Hercule III in 2020: Hercule III programme 2020 implementation