On Friday, 24 July, the European Commission published a proposal for a Council decision to conclude the agreement with the Republic of Korea on the transfer of passenger name record (PNR) data for the purpose of preventing and detecting terrorist offences and serious forms of crime as well as investigating and prosecuting these matters.
Under these PNR agreements, airlines are obligated to transmit the data that was provided when the tickets were purchased to the competent law enforcement authorities at least 48 hours before the flight.
On 15 September 2025, the European Commission had adopted a recommendation proposing that the EU Council authorise opening negotiations in preparation for an agreement between the EU and the Republic of Korea. Negotiations began on 17 December, and the chief negotiators signed the text of the agreement on 4 June.
Pursuant to the agreement, neither party will retain PNR data for more than five years after receiving such data.
“Strengthening international cooperation on law enforcement, including on information sharing, is essential to address the threats posed by terrorism and serious transnational crimes,” the European Commission explains.
Europol’s latest Terrorism Situation and Trend Report (TE-SAT) highlights not only the direct links between transnational travel and the organisation of serious crimes and terrorist activities but also the importance of effectively detecting, investigating, and prosecuting other serious criminal offences so as to prevent and detect terrorist offences.
The EU already has agreements with Australia, Canada, Switzerland, and the United States.
More information: https://aeur.eu/f/n0f and https://aeur.eu/f/n0g (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)