PNR Regulation In Poland / Update For 2024

• Published date: 19 October 2023
• Subject Matter: Government, Public Sector, Transport, Aviation, Constitutional & Administrative Law
• Law Firm: Dudkowiak Kopec & Putyra
• Author: Mr Dudkowiak Kopeć PutyraLawFirm

CONTENTS

PNR penalties for airlines

The end of the 2-year suspension of sanctions for non-transmission of PNR data is approaching but the issue of imposing administrative penalties on carriers for failing to transmit PNR data remains unresolved. It is unclear what will happen to the proceedings suspended so far and whether there is any chance of abolition of administrative penalties once these proceedings are resumed.

Suspension of PNR proceedings in Poland

As a reminder, in February 2022, the initiation and conduct of administrative proceedings for past non-transmission of PNR data, the enforcement and execution of these penalties, as well as the punishment period for violations of the PNR Law in Poland were suspended for a period of 2 years.

However, the suspension did not extend to flights operated after the entry into force of the amendments to the PNR Act. As a result, air carriers continue to face high administrative fees for not providing PNR data in relation to the flights carried out after February 2022.

Resume of PNR proceedings after 5 Feb 2024

Moreover, when proceedings are resumed after 5 February 2024, airlines may be threatened with a cumulative number of administrative penalties from pending and resumed proceedings, which for a single flight may reach PLN 40,000.00.

EU Court ruling on PNR

The airlines' chance is the ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union on 21 June 2022 (C-817/19), which, among other things, declared national regulations that automatically extend the obligation to transfer PNR data to all intra-EU flights to be contrary to EU law. The intra-EU transfer of PNR data should, according to the Court, be limited to specific travel itineraries or airports selected on the basis of a real terrorist and criminal threat.

The aforementioned judgment is cited by airlines in their complaints to the administrative courts against the penalties imposed on them for not transmitting PNR data on intra-EU flights. We are still waiting for the first judgments of the administrative courts relating to the Court's position.

Chance for PNR threatened airlines?

In some proceedings, the Commander-in-Chief of the Border Guard has decided to suspend proceedings pending against carriers until the administrative courts have considered appeals regarding the lack of grounds for imposing administrative penalties for failure to transfer PNR data on intra-EU flights.

This allows air carriers to avoid, or at least postpone, having to pay...