At the end of October 2020, the General Secretariat of the Council published an executive summary, compiling the information received from Eurojust and the European Judicial Network (EJN) on judicial cooperation in criminal matters as regards the impact of measures taken by governments of the EU Member States (and Iceland and Norway) to combat the spread of COVID-19.

The executive summary outlines the impact of these measures on the issuing and execution of European Arrest Warrants (EAWs), European Investigation Orders (EIOs), mutual legal assistance (MLA) requests, and freezing and confiscation orders. Furthermore, it summarizes the impact of these measures on extradition, the transfer of sentenced persons, and the use of Joint Investigation Teams.

While the situation with regard to the warrants and orders has been brought back to normal, with most judicial authorities having resumed to their activities, the reports finds that the COVID-19 crisis continues to impact the actual surrender of requested persons and the transfer of sentenced persons, often resulting in postponement or suspension.

The Council, Eurojust, the EJN, and the Commission regularly collect information on the responses of EU Member States to the consequences of the corona pandemic on judicial cooperation in criminal matters (--> eucrim 2/20, 108-109).