Public access to documents
Article 15 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union states that citizens and residents of the European Union have a right of access to the documents of Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies, whatever their medium.
Public access to documents: a key element in transparency
The right of access to documents is an essential component of the transparency policy being implemented by the European institutions.
The European Parliament, strives to ensure a high level of visibility for its work. That endeavour is all the more important as the institution represents the citizens of the EU, who directly elect it.
The rules about public access to documents are set in Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001.
The register of documents
The European Parliament established an electronic register of documents in order to facilitate your access to documents.
Intended as a search aid, it contains the references of documents drawn up or received by the European Parliament since 2001.
The register provides you with direct access to a great number of European Parliament documents in an electronic format.
Documents accessible on request
Documents which cannot be consulted directly on the register may be supplied on request.
This is the case for documents dating from before 2001 and documents to which an exception to the right of access, as provided by Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, may potentially apply.
Access to them is free of charge. The request, filed via an electronic form, does not require any special justification.
After considering your request, the European Parliament will send a reasoned reply within 15 working days. Where disclosure is granted the document is published on the register.