EUROPEAN CITIZENSHIP

Any citizen or resident of EU countries or EU-based associations or businesses may lodge complaints about poor administration by EU institutions or other EU bodies to the European Ombudsman, with the exception of the High Court of Justice.

The Ombudsman investigates different types of poor administration, such as unfair conduct, discrimination, abuse of power, lack of information or refusal to provide it, unnecessary delays or incorrect procedures.

The European Parliament elects the Ombudsman for a renewable 5-year term. The current Ombudsman is Emily O’Reilly.

 

How to lodge a complaint

Before making a complaint to the Ombudsman you must have previously contacted the EU institution involved in order to solve the problem.

You must make your complaint within 2 years of the date on which you became aware of the problem.

The complaint must be lodged in writing, following the form available at the European Ombudsman’s website. The form can be lodged online or by ordinary mail and in any of the 23 official languages of the European Union.