Article 16 Prevention of fraudF1

In order to combat fraud, corruption and any other illegal activities, Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council ^f1 shall apply to the Agency without restriction. To that end, the Agency shall accede to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 25 May 1999 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission of the European Communities concerning internal investigations by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) ^f2 and shall issue the appropriate provisions to the staff of the Agency and to seconded national experts using the model decision in the Annex to that Agreement.

The Court of Auditors shall have the authority to supervise beneficiaries of the Agency’s funding as well as contractors and sub-contractors who have received Union funds through the Agency, on the basis of documents provided to it or using on-the-spot checks.

With regard to grants financed or contracts awarded by the Agency, OLAF may carry out investigations, including on-the-spot checks and inspections in accordance with Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 and Council Regulation (Euratom, EC) No 2185/96 ^f3 , in order to combat fraud, corruption and any other illegal activity detrimental to the Union’s financial interests.

Without prejudice to paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of this Article, the cooperation agreements concluded by the Agency with third countries or international organisations, contracts and grant agreements concluded by the Agency with third parties, and any financing decision taken by the Agency shall provide expressly that the Court of Auditors and OLAF may carry out checks and investigations in accordance with their respective powers.