Phone
Verified 02 April 2021 - Legal and Administrative Information Directorate (Prime Minister)
The law guarantees the secrecy of telephone calls. However, the examining magistrate may order a wiretap in respect of crime or offence, if the penalty is 3 years or more in prison. The Prime Minister may also authorise a wiretap for national security reasons.
Offence (3 years or more)
The examining magistrate may order a wiretap in respect of offence if the penalty is 3 years of imprisonment or more and as the case requires.
If you are the victim of an offence committed on your telephone line, you can ask the judge to wiretap it.
The judge's decision is in writing.
It is taken for a maximum period of 4 months renewable, not to exceed 1 year or 2 years depending on the offence.
FYI
in the area of organised crime, public prosecutor may apply to the liberty and detention judge for a wiretap order. The duration of the listening is 1 month maximum, renewable 1 time.
The investigating judge, or the Judicial Police Officer (OPJ) that it designates, controls the implementation of the telephone call.
The judge or OPJ writes a record for each recording.
The minutes shall indicate the date and times of the beginning and end of the registration.
Records are placed under sealed closed.
The judge or the OPJ transcribe these records and write a record.
An interpreter transcribes the recordings in a foreign language into French.
FYI
the investigating judge must inform the stick if he decides to tap a lawyer.
Records are destroyed at the end of the period during which the offence may be continued: 6 years for a crime.
You cannot challenge the judge's decision to conduct a judicial review.
Crime
The examining magistrate may order a wiretap in respect of crime if the penalty is 3 years of imprisonment or more and as the case requires.
The judge's decision is in writing.
It is taken for a maximum period of 4 months renewable, not to exceed 1 year or 2 years depending on the offence.
FYI
organised crime, public prosecutor may apply to the liberty and detention judge for a wiretap order. The duration of the listening is 1 month maximum, renewable 1 time.
The investigating judge, or the Judicial Police Officer (OPJ) that it designates, controls the implementation of the telephone call.
The judge or OPJ writes a record for each recording.
The minutes shall indicate the date and times of the beginning and end of the registration.
Records are placed under sealed closed.
The judge or the OPJ transcribe these records and write a record.
An interpreter transcribes the recordings in a foreign language into French.
FYI
the investigating judge must inform the stick if he decides to tap a lawyer.
Records are destroyed at the end of the period during which the offence may be continued: 20 for a crime.
You cannot challenge the judge's decision to conduct a judicial review.
National Security Case
The administration can listen to your phone conversations for one of the following reasons:
- Defence of national independence, territorial integrity and national defence
- Defence of the major interests of foreign policy, the implementation of France's European and international commitments, and the prevention of foreign interference
- Defence of France's major economic, industrial and scientific interests
- Prevention of terrorism
- Prevention of institutional republican bias
- Prevention of the re-establishment or maintenance of disbanded private fighting groups and militias
- Prevention of collective violence seriously undermining public peace
- Crime and organised crime prevention
- Prevention of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction
FYI
the penitentiary service may be permitted to listen to the telephone conversations of an inmate to prevent escape and to ensure security in prison.
The Minister responsible for Defence, Interior, Justice, Economy, Budget or Customs shall send a proposal for wiretapping to the Prime Minister.
The proposal must be written and justified.
The Prime Minister shall authorise the wiretapping after notice of the NCTR: titleContent.
Authorisation is valid to the maximum 4 months.
The authorisation shall be renewable in accordance with the same procedure.
The recording of a telephone conversation shall be destroyed 30 days from the collection of information, except for exceptions.
Only national security information is transcribed.
The transcription must be destroyed as soon as its preservation is no longer necessary.
You can ask NCTR: titleContent to check if you are or have been illegally wiretapped.
You must send your complaint by mail.
Who shall I contact
Once the checks have been completed, the CNCTR will inform you.
However, it cannot tell you whether you are or have been tapped.
After you have made a claim with the NCRB, you can ask Council of State to check if you are or have been illegally wiretapped.
Who shall I contact
- Code of Criminal Procedure: Articles 100 to 100-8Judicial listening
- Code of Criminal Procedure: sections 706-73 to 706-74Judicial hearing in organised crime
- Code of Criminal Procedure: sections 706-95 to 706-95-3Judicial hearing on organised crime
- Internal Security Code: Articles L811-1 to L811-4Administrative Listeners: situations concerned (Article L811-3)
- Internal Security Code: Articles L822-1 to L822-4Administrative Listeners: Retention time and transcripts (Articles L822-2 and L822-3)
- Internal Security Code: Articles L831-1 to L831-2Administrative Listeners: composition and functioning of the NCRR
- Internal Security Code: Articles L833-1 to L833-11Administrative Listeners: claim with the CNCTR (Article L833-4)
- Code of Administrative Justice: items L773-1 to L773-8Administrative Listeners: complaint to the Council of State