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ARTICLE · 17 JANUARY 2023

Bundestag Passes Whistleblower Protection Act

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On 16 December 2022 - and thus exactly three years after the EU Whistleblower Directive came into force - the Bundestag passed the new, long overdue German Whistleblower Protection Act...

GermanyEmployment and HR
Isabel Hexel
Isabel Hexel
Johannes Kaesbach
Johannes Kaesbach
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On 16 December 2022 - and thus exactly three years after the EU Whistleblower Directive came into force - the Bundestag passed the new, long overdue German Whistleblower Protection Act [Hinweisgeberschutzgesetz, HinSchG]. Previously, the Legal Affairs Committee had made significant last-minute changes to the bill.

Compared to the original draft bill (see our post of 14 April 2022), the HinSchG includes the following changes in the short term:

  • To date, the receipt of anonymous reports has not been obligatory. The Bundestag has now decided that both internal and external reporting offices/channels must record anonymous reports. In addition, the communication with the reporting person must ensure their anonymity. The HinSchG provides an additional implementation period until 01 January 2025 to implement anonymity in the reporting channel.

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