On 4 October 2024, the Commissioner for Migration and Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, and the Canadian Minister of Public Safety, Democratic Institutions and Intergovernmental Affairs, Dominic Leblanc, signed a new agreement for the transfer of passenger name records (PNR) data on flights between the EU and Canada. The agreement follows a 2017 CJEU decision, which initially stopped the conclusion of an EU-Canada PNR agreement due to a perceived lack of safeguards on data protection, non-discrimination, and effective remedy for individuals (→ eucrim 3/2017, 114-115). The new draft aimed to meet the requirements set out in this CJEU decision and was finalised in November 2023.

PNR data is personal information provided by passengers and collected and held by air carriers in the context of their businesses. It includes information such as the name of the passenger, travel dates, itineraries, seats, baggage, contact details, and means of payment. The sharing of PNR data is considered useful for preventing, detecting, and prosecuting terrorist offences and serious crime.

Before the PNR agreement with Canada can be concluded, the European Parliament and the Council must give their consent. Once concluded and entered into force, the agreement will allow Canada and EU Member States to exchange passenger information collected on air carriers operating between them in a uniform way.

On 29 April 2024, the European Data Protection Supervisor published an opinion on the deal. He concluded that the draft agreement contains the necessary safeguards required in order for it to be compatible with the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. He made, however, several specific recommendations with the aim of ensuring that the agreement be interpreted and applied in compliance with CJEU case law.