At the end of August 2025, GRECO published an ad hoc report on recent changes to criminal law and institutional reforms in the Slovak Republic launched in 2024. The report - based on Rule 34 of GRECO's Rules of Procedure (→eucrim 1/2020, 32)- assessed the extent to which the reforms comply with European standards. GRECO expressed concerns over the measures taken, including the application of the fast-track legislative procedure, the shortening of limitation periods, reduced criminal penalties for corruption offences and interventions in police and prosecutorial organisation. The report addresses several recommendations to the Slovak government, including:

• Conducting a comprehensive review of the rules governing the use of the fast-track legislative procedure and considering revision of this procedure in order to restrict its application to strictly exceptional cases, which are clearly defined and duly justified;
• Enabling public consultation to draft legislation and ensuring a meaningful opportunity for stakeholder participation to provide input prior to the adoption of legislation;
• Revising legislation to provide for a sufficiently long limitation period and sentencing framework for all corruption offences;
• Conducting a comprehensive review of the current framework for prosecutorial specialisation in corruption cases;
• Developing a formal plan for specialisation and continued professional development of prosecutors, in order to ensure compliance with anti-corruption standards;
• Developing, publishing and implementing a plan for the specialisation of investigating police officers, involving specific job descriptions and specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-specific targets;
• Repealing Article 326a of the Slovak Criminal Code which provides for the offence of "bending the law", as its vague wording impacts the judges' ability to take decisions freely and independently, based exclusively on the relevant laws; this provision ultimately leads to self-censorship and undermines judicial independence.

GRECO invites the Slovak authorities to report back on measures taken against the concerning issues by 31 December 2026.