BRUSSELS, July 13 (Xinhua) -- The European Commission on Thursday decided to send a letter of formal notice to Hungary for its new law on foreign-funded NGOs adopted on June 13.
The Commission said in a statement that the Hungarian authorities now have one month to respond to the arguments.
The Hungarian law introduces new obligations for certain categories of NGOs receiving annual foreign funding approximately 24,000 euros (27,396 U.S. dollars) to register and label themselves in all their publications, websites and press material as "organisations supported from abroad".
They are also asked to report specific information about the funding they receive from abroad to the Hungarian authorities. These organisations face sanctions if they fail to comply with the new reporting and transparency obligations.
The Commission concluded that this law does not comply with European Union (EU) law for three reasons. First, the law interferes unduly with fundamental rights as enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU, in particular the right to freedom of association.
Second, the law also introduces unjustified and disproportionate restrictions to the free movement of capital, as outlined in the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU. And the law raises concerns as regards the respect of the right to protection of private life and of personal data.
According to the Commission, if no reply to the letter of formal notice is received, or if the observations presented by the Hungarian authorities in reply to that notice cannot be considered satisfactory, it may decide to move to the next stage of the infringement procedure, and send a "reasoned opinion" to Hungary.
If necessary, the Commission may then refer the case to the Court of Justice of the EU, said the statement.
