4.1 Joint investigation teams

Joint investigation teams (JITs) are an advanced tool for international cooperation supported by Eurojust. In 2024, the Agency supported 25% more JITs than in 2023, reflecting a sharp rise compared to previous years. Eurojust facilitated more than 300 JITs throughout the year, approximately one third of which were newly signed in 2024.

JITs were used throughout the year in several major cross-border cases involving both EU Member States and third countries. The newly signed JITs in 2024 covered 9 out of 14 crime types addressed by the Agency, ranging from money laundering to migrant smuggling. In 2024, the largest number of JITs were established to tackle drug trafficking (39) and swindling and fraud (33).

 

JITs collaboration platform

Throughout 2024, the JITs Network Secretariat, together with the European Commission, the European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice (eu-LISA), and the dedicated advisory group, continued to work on the development of the JITs collaboration platform. The online platform will enable secure communication and collaboration between judicial and police authorities working under the aegis of joint investigation teams.

Under the JITs collaboration platform Regulation, Eurojust has two primary responsibilities: to make the technical arrangements to allow Eurojust access to the platform (as a possible JIT participant), and to make the necessary technical adaptations to its systems to enable the display of JIT funding information in the relevant JIT space on the platform.

The work on the development of the JITs collaboration platform will continue in 2025, with the start of operations planned before the end of the year. Once the platform is launched, the JITs Network Secretariat will be responsible for providing business support, including day-to-day guidance, training, functional support and assistance to practitioners in the use of the platform and its functionalities.

Eurojust JITs Funding Programme

Eurojust funded more than half of the 361 JITs supported by the Agency in 2024. During the year, the JITs Network Secretariat received 351 funding applications and awarded 314 grants under the standard funding scheme and 33 grants under the urgent funding scheme. Through these grants, Eurojust provided financial support 187 JITs. Of these, 94 JITs were established in 2024. The JITs Funding Programme budget for 2024 was EUR 1.942 million.

The programme continued to evolve to adapt to the needs of joint investigation teams. New cost categories were introduced, including indirect costs, domestic travel, car rental and the hire of IT/electronic equipment (including hardware, software and licences).

The Claims Module, an online tool launched in 2023 for submitting JITs funding reimbursement claims, was successfully used for the first time in 2024. By the end of the year, around one third of all JITs funding claims were submitted through the Claims Module.