EU finance ministers have provisionally agreed new rules giving the European Public Prosecutor’s Office and OLAF more direct access to VAT information, in a move intended to strengthen investigations into cross-border fraud.
EU finance ministers have provisionally agreed new rules to strengthen the fight against value added tax fraud by giving EU investigative bodies more direct access to information on cross-border business transactions.
The agreement, reached at the Economic and Financial Affairs Council on 5 May, is intended to improve cooperation between member states, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office and the European Anti-Fraud Office. The Council said the new framework would give both bodies access to key VAT data, including information held by Eurofisc, the EU network used by national authorities to exchange information on VAT fraud.
The Council’s provisional agreement is aimed in particular at cross-border VAT fraud, including missing trader intra-community fraud, often known as carousel fraud. In such schemes, organised networks exploit VAT rules on cross-border trade by moving goods or services through chains of companies, with one trader disappearing before paying VAT owed to the tax authorities.
The financial scale is significant. The Council cited European Commission estimates that this type of criminal activity costs member state treasuries and the EU budget between €12.5 billion and €32.8 billion each year. The losses affect national revenues and the EU budget, while also creating unfair conditions for legitimate businesses competing with fraudulent operators.
Under the new framework, EPPO and OLAF would be able to obtain first-hand information needed to launch and support investigations falling within their respective mandates. The intention is to speed up the identification of suspicious cross-border transactions, improve coordination between EU and national authorities, and reduce delays that can allow fraud networks to move money or restructure operations before investigators act.
EPPO is responsible for investigating and prosecuting offences affecting the EU’s financial interests in participating member states. OLAF conducts administrative investigations into fraud, corruption and other illegal activities affecting the EU budget. Both bodies already play a role in protecting EU finances, but access to VAT data has remained dependent on cooperation structures that can slow down investigations.
The new regulation would amend Council Regulation 904/2010, which governs administrative cooperation and the exchange of information between national tax authorities in the field of VAT fraud. By integrating EU-level investigative bodies more directly into the information flow, the Council is seeking to close gaps between tax administration, criminal investigation and EU budget protection.
The measure follows a wider move towards the digitalisation of VAT reporting. In March 2025, EU member states agreed reforms intended to make VAT reporting obligations fully digital by 2030 for companies selling goods and services to businesses in another member state. That system is expected to improve the quality and speed of information available to authorities, making it easier to identify suspicious transaction patterns.
The latest agreement is therefore part of a broader shift in EU tax enforcement. Rather than relying only on national reporting and delayed information requests, the EU is moving towards faster data access, more structured cooperation and stronger links between administrative and criminal enforcement. This is especially relevant for cross-border fraud, where the damage is often spread across several jurisdictions and where national authorities may see only part of a wider scheme.
For businesses, the measure is not expected to create a new reporting obligation by itself. Its immediate effect is institutional: it gives investigative bodies better access to information already available within EU anti-fraud cooperation systems. However, companies operating across borders are likely to face a more data-driven enforcement environment as digital VAT reporting develops.
For member states, the political argument is straightforward. VAT remains one of the main sources of public revenue, and large-scale fraud reduces funds available for national budgets and the EU’s own financial interests. Better cooperation between Eurofisc, EPPO and OLAF is designed to make fraud detection quicker and to reduce the scope for organised criminal groups to exploit administrative boundaries.
The Council agreement is provisional. The European Parliament still has to adopt its opinion on the file, which is currently expected in July 2026. After that, the Council will proceed to formal adoption. The regulation will enter into force 20 days after publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
The 5 May agreement does not by itself eliminate the structural incentives behind carousel fraud. It does, however, give EU investigative bodies a stronger position inside the information architecture used to detect and pursue suspected fraud. For Brussels, the measure is a practical example of how tax enforcement, criminal investigation and protection of the EU budget are increasingly being treated as a single governance issue.
