OLAF is the European Anti-Fraud Office, which investigates suspected fraud, corruption, and other illegal activity harming the financial interests of the European Union. In the field of EU funds, it deals mainly with cases of fictitious supplies, manipulated public procurement, inflated prices, falsified documents, and double financing. A referral can come from the managing authority, the Audit Authority, an anonymous report, or the media. OLAF conducts an administrative investigation – it can carry out a check directly at the recipient or supplier, request documentation, and question the parties involved – but it does not itself decide on a penalty. The result is a report with recommendations: financial ones, which lead to the recovery of funds, and disciplinary or judicial ones, which are forwarded to national authorities or, where applicable, to the European Public Prosecutor's Office. For the recipient, complete and traceable documentation of every expenditure and procurement is therefore essential.
See also: Irregularity, Return of funds, Audit Authority.
