(February 25, 2026)

Commissioners are bound by obligations of integrity and discretion during but also beyond the end of their mandate. Article 245 TFEU requires Commissioners to behave with integrity and discretion as regards the acceptance of certain appointments or benefits after their term of office. Article 17(3) TEU further provides that Members of the Commission shall be completely independent in the performance of their duties and shall neither seek nor take instructions from any government or other institution, body, office or entity.

The Code of Conduct for Members of the European Commission explicitly prohibits the use of confidential information obtained during the mandate for any purpose other than the exercise of official duties. There is no evident limitation period that would preclude an institutional inquiry by the Commission itself into whether these obligations were violated. The Commission has both the competence and, we would argue, the duty to investigate under Articles 17 and 245 TFEU, the Code of Conduct, and the Commission’s own institutional mandate to uphold the rule of law.