Changes to the anti-corruption law

On 04.01.2023, the Law of 30.12.2022 "On Amendments to Laws on Combating Corruption" was published. The main amendments and additions were made to the Law of 15.07.2015 "On Combating Corruption", and individual provisions of the Civil Code of the Republic of Belarus, the Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus, and the Law of the Republic of Belarus "On Pension Provision for Military Personnel, Officers and Privates of Internal Affairs Bodies, the Investigative Committee, the State Committee of Forensic Examinations, Bodies and Units for Emergency Situations, and Financial Investigation Bodies" were adjusted.

The provisions of the Law "On Amendments to Laws on Combating Corruption" are aimed at increasing the effectiveness of anti-corruption measures, optimizing the interaction of state bodies and other organizations in the sphere of corruption prevention, and simplifying the procedure for declaring income and property by public officials, taking into account the practice of applying legislation, proposals from state bodies, citizens, and provisions of international legal acts in this area.

The Law "On Combating Corruption" introduces definitions of the terms "organizational and administrative, and administrative and economic duties, as well as persons authorized in the prescribed manner to perform legally significant actions," which are necessary to characterize the subject of a corruption offense and bring a person to justice.

The Law excludes the concept of "souvenir," while defining the concepts of "protocol and other official events," and "gifts received during protocol and other official events," and simultaneously establishing the maximum permissible value of such a gift at an amount not exceeding 20 base units.

The amendments to the law establish restrictions for public officials and persons equated to them regarding the acceptance of property in connection with the performance of official (labor) duties or the receipt of benefits in the form of work, services for themselves or third parties, except in cases provided for by Part 7 of Article 17 of the Law "On Combating Corruption" (sub-para. 5, para. 9, Art. 4).

         In this regard, the acceptance of gifts received during protocol and other official events, the value of each of which does not exceed twenty times the basic amount as of the date of receipt of such gift, and flowers, is not considered a violation; the receipt of property in connection with the performance of labor (official) duties, if the person who received it has notified the state body, other organization where they serve (work) about the receipt of such property in the manner prescribed by law and has gratuitously surrendered it.

         In this regard, the Law defines what is considered a gift, a protocol and other official event:

         - a gift received during a protocol and other official event is property received by a public official or a person equated to them during a protocol and other official event from individuals or legal entities, including through another person;

         - a protocol and other official event is an event whose conduct is provided for by legislation, procedures, rules, regulations, decisions of state bodies and other organizations, participation in which is related to the performance of official (labor) duties by a public official or a person equated to them within the scope of official (labor) activities, or is conditioned in accordance with the legislation by the performance by a public official or a person equated to them of oral or written instructions from the head of a state body, other organization, where the public official or a person equated to them serves.

         The Law provides that the procedure for donating, storing, accounting for, determining the value of, and selling property, including a gift, provided to a public official or a person equated to them, their spouse, close relatives or in-laws, is determined by the Council of Ministers.

         The Law provides for a number of additional duties, restrictions and prohibitions in the fight against corruption. In particular, the following are established:

- anti-corruption restrictions for all close relatives or in-laws of a public official. Previously, the established restrictions applied to close relatives or in-laws of a public official who lived together and shared a household with him;

- additional obligations to comply with anti-corruption restrictions have been supplemented with provisions on the need to comply with the procedure for preventing and resolving conflicts of interest. Amendments to the Law provide for the mandatory requirement, when appointing public officials, not only to obtain from them commitments to comply with anti-corruption restrictions, but also to familiarize them with the established procedure for preventing and resolving conflicts of interest;

- prohibition of spouses, close relatives or in-laws working together in certain positions not only in state bodies and organizations, but also in organizations with a predominant state ownership share, as well as the use by a public official for non-official purposes of any property of a state body or organization, and not only that received by him in the performance of official duties;

- additional prohibitions and liability for the use by a public official for personal purposes of property granted to him. Previously, liability was provided for the illegal use only of property in state ownership. Currently, it is provided that an official is not entitled to use for personal purposes the property of an organization in which 50 percent or more of the shares (stakes) in the charter capital are owned by the state and (or) its administrative-territorial units;

- general grounds for the liability of a legal entity for violation of the requirements of anti-corruption legislation;

- additional duties for heads of state bodies and other organizations to prevent and detect violations of anti-corruption legislation, eliminate the consequences of violations, and the causes and conditions contributing to them;

- changes to the procedure for confiscation of property acquired in violation of anti-corruption legislation. The law establishes the fact of providing funds or other property to a public official or a person equated to him solely as a result of committing a corruption offense and/or his receipt of material benefits as a result of committing such an offense as grounds for confiscation;

- new grounds for restricting the appointment and payment of pensions to persons who have committed unlawful acts;

- improvement of the institute of income and property declaration, aimed at eliminating excessive requirements for this procedure. Persons holding responsible positions or entering public service by election will be able to indicate in their declaration information about the income and property of their minor children without submitting a separate declaration. The law is supplemented by an article that establishes a list of property and income not subject to mandatory declaration. For example, digital signs (tokens), funds received from the distribution of advertising and the conduct of advertising games, promotional campaigns, the amount (value) of which does not exceed forty times the basic amount on the date of receipt of such funds, discounts on the price of goods, works, services, commercial loans, income in the form of gifts, the value of each of which does not exceed two hundred and fifty times the basic amount on the date of receipt of such a gift.