Vastus pöördumisele

Suur-Ameerika 1 / 10122 Tallinn / Estonia / +372 611 3558 / [email protected]

www.rahandusministeerium.ee / Reg. code: 70000272

Bogdan-Ionut Dintoi

DLAF (Fight against Fraud Department

[email protected]

Reporting of suspected fraud in the

IMS system

Dear AFCOS Romania colleagues,

Thank you for your letter and for your initiative to enhance cooperation and share best

practices among AFCOS services. We appreciate the opportunity to contribute to the joint

effort of safeguarding the financial interests of the European Union.

Please note that the following responses reflect the practices applied in both

the agriculture (AGRI) and Cohesion Policy (CP) sectors in our country:

1. Definition of PACA in National Legislation

While our national legislation does not explicitly define PACA, its application is guided by

Government Regulation No. 55 of 12 May 2022. This regulation requires the implementing

body to notify the managing authority within 10 working days of circumstances that may lead

to a financial correction or indicate suspected fraud. The managing authority then reports these

cases to OLAF via the IMS system.

We follow the definition provided in OLAF’s handbook “Reporting of irregularities in shared

management” and the national guidance document “Guidance on reporting

irregularities”. PACA refers to a first written assessment by a competent authority—

administrative or judicial—based on specific facts, concluding that an irregularity has

occurred. This may later be revised depending on the outcome of further procedures.

In IMS, PACA corresponds to field 7.1 “Date of discovery,” typically the date of an

administrative decision (e.g., to reject or recover funds). Cases are reported within two months

after the end of the quarter in which the decision was made.

2. Timing of Reporting Suspicion of Fraud (IRQ3) in IMS

Suspicions of fraud are reported in line with OLAF’s handbook, which requires Member

States to submit the first report no later than two months after the end of the quarter in which

the PACA was made.

A case is classified as IRQ3 (or IRQ4 under the updated terminology) when it has

been determined through administrative procedures that the irregularity was committed

Your ref. 24.10.2025 No 3368/2025

Our ref. 14.11.2025 No 11-4.1/4769-2

2

intentionally. If the case involves other Member States, it is reported to the

Commission immediately, with relevant details.

3. Documents or Actions Triggering IRQ3 Registration

IRQ3 classification may be triggered by various circumstances, such as the initiation of

criminal proceedings, reports to law enforcement, falsified documents, tip-offs, complaints,

or findings from on-the-spot checks.

Registration in IMS follows an administrative decision confirming intentional misconduct,

typically supported by documentation gathered during the procedure. In many cases, this also

results in the exclusion of the beneficiary from future Union funding.

We remain at your disposal for any further clarifications and look forward to continued

cooperation.

Yours sincerely,

(signed digitally)

Anu Alber

Head of Financial Control Department

(acting as AFCOS Estonia and as the Auditing Authority for Cohesion Policy etc.)

Ministry of Finance

Copy to:

DLAF Camelia Iorgoiu

DLAF Mircea Papuc

Virve Teppart +372 5885 1494

[email protected]