The Council of the European Union has initiated a written procedure to adopt a reply to confirmatory application No 39/c/01/26 on public access to documents, with Member States asked to vote by Friday 7 August 2026, noon. The procedure, launched on 3 August 2026, asks national delegations to decide on three questions: whether to use the written procedure, whether to adopt the reply as set out in document 11403/26 REV 1, and whether to publish the outcome, including the names of Member States voting NO or abstaining, plus any unilateral statements. Votes are to be submitted by e-mail to the Council's transparency unit by the deadline. The legal basis is Article 12 of the Council's Rules of Procedure, which allows decisions to be taken by written procedure outside formal meetings.
The confirmatory application is part of the Council's ongoing handling of requests for public access to documents under Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001. The reply, once adopted, will be sent to the applicant and may be published in the Council's register. The written procedure is a standard mechanism used by the Council to expedite decisions when a formal meeting is not scheduled, and it requires unanimous or qualified majority approval depending on the matter. In this case, Member States can vote YES or NO on all three questions, with abstention allowed only on questions 2 and 3. Unilateral statements, if any, must be submitted separately and will be attached to the outcome if published.
The decision to publish the outcome, including the voting record, reflects the Council's transparency commitments, but it also exposes divisions among Member States on access to documents. Publishing the names of those voting NO or abstaining could increase accountability but may also discourage frank voting. The reply itself, as set out in document 11403/26 REV 1, is not publicly available at this stage, but it will likely address the applicant's request for access to specific Council documents, possibly citing exceptions under the regulation, such as protection of the public interest or privacy.
Stakeholders affected include the applicant, who will receive the reply and may challenge it before the European Ombudsman or the Court of Justice if access is denied; EU citizens and civil society, who rely on transparent access to Council documents to hold institutions accountable; and Member States, whose voting positions may become public, potentially affecting their diplomatic relations. The Council's own transparency unit, which processes the procedure, also has a direct interest in the outcome, as it sets a precedent for handling similar requests.
The outcome of the written procedure will be known after the 7 August deadline, and the Council is expected to publish the result, including the voting record, in line with its transparency policy. No further institutional follow-up is required unless the applicant challenges the reply, which could lead to a review by the Ombudsman or litigation before the EU courts.