Charter of Fundamental Rights

The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union defines the rights and freedoms of people living in the European Union.

The organs and institutions of the Union, as well as the Member States, must respect and guarantee these rights.

Contents of the Charter

The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union summarises all the civil, political, economic and social rights of European citizens and all persons living within the territory of the Union.

These rights are divided into six main chapters:

  • Human dignity
  • Freedoms
  • Equality
  • Solidarity
  • Civil rights
  • Judicial rights.

They are based in particular on the rights and fundamental freedoms recognized in the European Convention on Human Rights, the constitutional traditions of the Member States of the European Union, the European Social Charter of the Council of Europe and the Community Charter of Fundamental Social Rights of Workers, as well as other international agreements to which the European Union or its Member States are parties.

Consideration of the Charter in ERDF projects

Information on how the Charter can be taken into account in connection with ERDF projects can be found in the European Commission guidelines on ensuring compliance with the Charter of Fundamental Rights when implementing the European Structural and Investment Funds ("ESI Funds").

When planning and implementing ERDF projects, compliance with the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union in accordance with Article 15 in conjunction with Annex III of Regulation (EU) 2021/1060 is a prerequisite for the provision of ERDF funding. All projects financed by the ERDF must be selected and implemented in accordance with Article 8(1) of Regulation (EU) 2021/1057, in compliance with the Charter of Fundamental Rights. A violation of the Charter of Fundamental Rights may, under certain circumstances, lead to the suspension of payments by the European Union.

The ERDF Managing Authority obliges all bodies involved in and beneficiaries of ERDF funding from the Free State of Thuringia to comply with the Charter in their respective areas of responsibility. This obligation includes, in particular, upholding equality before the law (Art. 20 CFR), equality between women and men (Art. 23 CFR), non-discrimination (Art. 21 CFR), the integration of people with disabilities (Art. 26 CFR), environmental protection (Art. 37 CFR), and respect for the protection of personal data (Art. 8 CFR) in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) as fundamental principles and rights under the Charter in all phases and areas of program implementation.

Complaints regarding non-compliance with the charter

If you consider that your fundamental rights under the Charter have been violated in connection with the implementation of an ERDF-funded project, you have the right to lodge a complaint.

Please only report cases of violations of fundamental rights that are related to funding from the ERDF program for Thuringia for the 2021 to 2027 funding period. All information will be treated confidentially.

Please describe the case as specifically and comprehensively as possible and state the name of the ERDF project in which you participated.

To ensure that your complaint can be fully investigated, please observe the following principles when formulating your message:

  • Please describe specifically and in detail who did what and when.
  • Please describe your observations and findings regarding the actions as specifically, in as much detail, and as comprehensively as possible.
  • Please describe facts and data and avoid speculation.

The more specific your complaint is, the greater the likelihood that violations relating to the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU will be uncovered within the framework of the ERDF Thuringia for the 2021 to 2027 funding period.

Please send your complaint in writing to:

Department of Economic Affairs, Science, and Digital Society
Department 34 – ERDF Administrative Authority
Max-Reger-Str. 4-8
99096 Erfurt

or by email to infoefre@tmwllr.thueringen.de

Important note: The protection of individual human rights in Germany is fundamentally the responsibility of the courts. In the German legal system, everyone must and can assert violations of their rights in court. Article 19(4) of the Basic Law guarantees legal recourse for this purpose.

The complaint procedure in connection with a possible violation of the Charter of Fundamental Rights at the ERDF administrative authority exists independently of any possible legal action taken by the complainant. As a rule, only the complainant whose subjective rights have been violated can initiate legal proceedings.

Furthermore, depending on the nature of the violation, you can obtain relevant information and expert knowledge from the following sources, among others:

General information on fundamental rights:

You can find further national positions at Information page of the Federal ESF.

Representatives of the Thuringian state government:

Information sheet on compliance with the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union in the context of the implementation of ERDF-funded projects