Source: European Anti-Fraud Offfice
Press release no 17/2026
PDF version
- New report highlights stronger prevention and improved cooperation as the EU works to modernise anti-fraud architecture
- Recovery rates of over 96% recorded over past decade where follow-up completed, thanks to OLAF’s financial recommendations
The European Commission today published its 2025 Annual Report on the Protection of the European Union’s Financial Interests (PIF Report), introducing for the first time a comprehensive assessment of the entire anti-fraud cycle and setting out the next steps to strengthen the protection of the EU budget against fraud and corruption.
The report marks a significant evolution in how the European Union measures its efforts to safeguard public funds. Rather than focusing primarily on fraud detection, it assesses every stage of the anti-fraud cycle, from prevention and early detection to investigation, prosecution, recovery and reporting. By bringing together information from the European Commission, Member States, OLAF and the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), the report provides the most comprehensive overview to date of how the EU protects taxpayers’ money.
The report also outlines the Commission’s plans to modernise the EU’s anti-fraud architecture ahead of the next Multiannual Financial Framework. Proposed reforms include mandatory national anti-fraud strategies, stronger reporting obligations for Member States and a review of the legislative framework governing the EU’s anti-fraud bodies to ensure they remain fit for increasingly sophisticated fraud threats.
“Every euro lost to fraud is a euro stolen from European taxpayers. This report shows how the Union is strengthening every stage of the fight against fraud, from prevention to recovery, while preparing its anti-fraud system for future challenges. We are committed to transparency to better protect EU funds. The 2025 report is a step in the right direction.” – Piotr Serafin, Commissioner for Budget, Anti-Fraud and Public Administration.
The report highlights significant progress in prevention, where investment in early detection, information sharing, exclusion mechanisms and capacity building has enabled authorities to identify suspicious activity before EU funds are lost. This preventive approach reduces financial losses and limits the need for lengthy recovery procedures.
In 2025, a total of 13,010 irregularities were recorded, amounting to €2.1 billion. Of these, 986 were classified as fraudulent irregularities, involving €274.3 million. Compared with 2024, the total number of reported irregularities decreased by 7.6%, while the amounts involved increased by 12.8%. Although the number of reported fraud cases declined compared with the previous year, the report notes that fraud affecting the EU budget continues to evolve, requiring increasingly sophisticated tools and close cooperation between national and European authorities.
To strengthen detection further, the Commission recommends greater use of risk analysis and IT tools such as Arachne+. The report also underlines the importance of systematically referring suspected fraud cases to prosecution services and reporting them to the Commission in a timely manner.
In addition to the good news on recoveries, the report finds that progress is being made on prevention supported by a continuous stream of measures through the years at EU and national level, from stronger early-detection and exclusion mechanisms to capacity-building and improved information-sharing among authorities. Over the last ten years, OLAF and the Commission’s combined efforts have prevented more than €658 million from being unduly spent.
The report also identifies areas where further progress is needed. Investigations remain lengthy and complex, while stronger coordination between administrative, investigative and judicial authorities is essential to improve the recovery of fraudulently obtained EU funds. Better information sharing, particularly after cases enter judicial proceedings, is identified as a key priority for the coming years.
Looking ahead, the report will help shape the ongoing review of the EU’s anti-fraud architecture, with a Commission Communication expected in 2026 that could lead to legislative proposals strengthening cooperation between OLAF, the EPPO and other key actors involved in protecting the Union’s financial interests.
The 37th Annual Report on the protection of the EU’s financial interests published today is available on OLAF’s website.
Below is a table outlining the amounts recovered over the past decade with follow-up completed, thanks to OLAF’s financial recommendations, showing recovery rates of over 96%.
| Budgetary area |
Number of recommendations N |
Amount recommended for recovery EUR million |
Amount established to be recovered (FAER) EUR million |
Establishment rate for recovery % |
Amount recovered EUR million |
Recovery rate % |
| Revenue | 600 | 4 178.5 | 4 704.1 | 113% | 4 534.5 | 96% |
| Expenditure | 569 | 1 129.7 | 854.9 | 76% | 824.9 | 96% |
| Shared management | 242 | 941.1 | 743.8 | 79% | 737 | 99% |
| Indirect management | 121 | 110.6 | 46.8 | 42% | 41.1 | 88% |
| Direct management | 206 | 78.0 | 64.3 | 82% | 46.7 | 73% |
Background
- The 2025 PIF Report is the first to present the protection of the EU budget through the full anti-fraud cycle: prevention, detection, investigation, recovery and reporting.
- It introduces new performance indicators covering all stages of the fight against fraud.
- The report consolidates information from Member States, the European Commission, OLAF and the EPPO into a single reporting framework, which will benchmark progress and gaps in progress over time.
- The most recurrent examples of fraud in relation to EU funds is linked to the falsification of supporting documents, being them invoices, the fulfilment of entitlement criteria, incorrect declaration of value. Among the non-fraudulent irregularities, the most recurrent were misdeclaration of goods in customs, infringement of public procurement rules in cohesion policy.
OLAF mission, mandate and competences:
OLAF’s mission is to detect, investigate and stop wrongdoings related to EU funds.
OLAF fulfils its mission by:
- carrying out independent investigations into fraud and corruption involving EU funds, so as to ensure that all EU taxpayers’ money reaches projects that can create jobs and growth in Europe;
- contributing to strengthening citizens’ trust in the EU Institutions by investigating serious misconduct by EU staff and members of the EU Institutions;
- developing a sound EU anti-fraud policy.
In its independent investigative function, OLAF can investigate matters relating to fraud, corruption and other offences affecting the EU financial interests concerning:
- all EU expenditure: the main spending categories are Structural Funds, agricultural policy and rural development funds, direct expenditure and external aid;
- some areas of EU revenue, mainly customs duties;
- suspicions of serious misconduct by EU staff and members of the EU institutions.
Once OLAF has completed its investigation, it is for the competent EU and national authorities to examine and decide on the follow-up of OLAF’s recommendations. All persons concerned are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in a competent national or EU court of law.
For further details:
Pierluigi CATERINO
Spokesperson
European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)
Phone: +32(0)2 29-52335
Email: olaf-media ec [dot] europa [dot] eu (olaf-media[at]ec[dot]europa[dot]eu)
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