Status of the Anti-SLAPP Directive Transpositions at the 7 May 2026 Deadline

This post was written by Birgit van Houtert (Assistant Professor, Maastricht University) and Marco Pasqua (Examiner, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart of Milan), co-Chairs of the EAPIL Working Group on Anti-SLAPP Directive Transpositions, on behalf of Working Group members.

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Article 22 of Directive (EU) 2024/1069 (‘Anti-SLAPP Directive’) requires Member States to bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with the Anti-SLAPP Directive by 7 May 2026. Against this background, the members of the EAPIL Working Group on Anti-SLAPP Directive Transpositions – covering 26 EU Member States (all except Denmark, which has an opt-out from EU measures in the area of freedom, security and justice) – provide in this post an overview of the transpositions across the Member States at the expiry of the transposition deadline.

 

 

Austria

Member: Emeric Prévost

The Austrian transposition process has been initiated. The Government of Austria has established a working group for the transposition, and the transposition act is not yet available. There seems to be a disagreement within the coalition about the scope and extent of the transposition legislation (see here).

Belgium

Members: Cedric Vanleenhove, Jachin Van Doninck

The Belgian  transposition process is ongoing. On 9 April 2026, the Belgian government submitted the draft act of the transposition to the Parliament. This Act contains amendments to the Code of Civil Procedure and the Code of Private International Law.

Bulgaria

Members: Ilia Lassin, Dafina Sarbinova

The Bulgarian transposition process is ongoing. The Ministry of Justice has proposed a draft law amending and supplementing the Civil Procedure Code, which has been published on the Public Consultations Portal. The draft is open for public consultation from 16 April 2026 to 18 May 2026.

Croatia

Members: Jura Golub, Ines Medić

The Croatian transposition process has started. The Government has submitted to Parliament a draft of the transposition act. The first reading of the draft transposition act was concluded in Parliament on 16 April 2026, and the submission of the final draft to Parliament is expected shortly.

Cyprus

Member: Nikitas E. Hatzimihail

The Cypriot transposition act is final, titled the Protection of Persons Engaging in Public Participation from Manifestly Unfounded Lawsuits or Abusive Court Proceedings Law of 2026.

Czech Republic

Members: Elisa Arietti, Eva Šišková

The Czech transposition process has been initiated. The Government has submitted to Parliament amendments to the Civil Procedure Code; however, these concern only a limited number of provisions, and at this stage no amendments to other codes are expected for the transposition.

Estonia

Member: Anna-Riin Brett

The Estonian transposition process is ongoing. The Government has approved the draft transposition act and submitted it to the Riigikogu (the Estonian Parliament).

Finland

Member: Onerva-Aulikki Suhonen

The Finnish transposition process is ongoing. The Government has submitted a draft transposition act to the Parliament. The Finnish Parliament approved the governmental proposal on 7 April 2026, and the new Act is now awaiting presidential ratification before entering into force, reportedly expected in May 2026.

France

Member: Marco Buzzoni

The French transposition act is final. Décret n° 2026-337 of 30 April 2026 transposed the Anti-SLAPP Directive and entered into force on 7 May 2026.

Germany

Members: Susanne Lilian Gössl, Madeleine Petersen Weiner, Moses Wiepen

The German transposition process is ongoing. The draft transposition act is currently in an advanced legislative stage and close to completion. For further details, see on this blog (here and here). As of 23 April 2026, the German Parliament (Deutscher Bundestag) is discussing the most recent governmental proposal of 10 December 2025, which mainly introduces amendments to the German Code of Civil Procedure (ZPO). The legislative process has included hearings with NGOs, judges and practitioners concerning, in particular, the controversial issue of the possible extension of the Anti-SLAPP regime to domestic cases.

Greece

Member: Chrisoula Michailidou

The Greek transposition process has been initiated. The Legislative Committee at the Ministry of Justice, which is responsible for drafting this transposition act, is still in the pre-legislative stage. Although the draft transposition act is not yet publicly available, the key points were presented at the Cabinet meeting on 29 April 2026.

Hungary

Member: Tamás Szabados

The Hungarian transposition process has not yet started. It appears that no actions have yet been taken by the authorities.

Ireland

Members: Norma Judge, Máire Ní Shúilleabháin

The Irish transposition process is ongoing. On 11 February 2026, the draft transposition act was published as the General Scheme of the Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP) Bill, following the announcement by the Minister Jim O’Callaghan that the Defamation Bill had completed its passage through Oireachtas (Parliament). The SLAPP Bill aims to complete the transposition, which had already been partially implemented in relation to defamation actions through the Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026. More specifically, Section 19 of the Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026 inserts a new Part 4A into the Defamation Act 2009, giving partial effect to the Anti-SLAPP, particularly as regards Article 11 in defamation proceedings, although these provisions are not yet in force pending ministerial commencement. The General Scheme further aims to extend the transposition to other relevant proceedings, including privacy and data protection claims, and to implement Articles 12, 16 and 17 of the Anti-SLAPP Directive.

Italy

Members: Ilaria Aquironi, Francesca Maoli, Marco Pasqua

The Italian transposition process has only just begun. The transposition act is not yet available. The Italian Parliament has delegated the Government to adopt the measures necessary for the transposition.

Latvia

Member: Aleksandrs Fillers

The Latvian transposition act is final, titled the Law on the Protection of Persons Involved in the Public Interest, and is available here. It entered into force on 7 May 2026.

Lithuania

Members: Artur Doržinkevič, Ana Kiknadze

The Lithuanian transposition act is final. The Lithuanian legislator adopted amendments to the Code of Civil Procedure and other domestic laws. The amendments entered into force on 7 May 2026. For further details, see on this blog.

Luxembourg

Member: Carlos Santaló Goris

The Luxembourg transposition process is ongoing. The draft transposition act (draft law No. 8696) is currently under consideration in the Chamber of Deputies.

Malta

Members: Justin Borg-Barthet, Ioannis Revolidis

The Maltese transposition act is final. The Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation Order, 2024 (L.N. 177 of 2024) was published in the Government Gazette of Malta No. 21,292 on 31 July 2024. For further details, see on this blog (here and here).

The Netherlands

Member: Birgit van Houtert

The Dutch transposition process is ongoing. On 15 April 2025, the Government submitted  the draft act for the transposition, including the Explanatory Memorandum, at the House of Representatives, where it is currently under consideration. The draft act provides only one amendment to the Dutch Code of Civil Procedure, implementing the provision on security of costs as provided under Article 10 of the Anti-SLAPP Directive. For further details, see on this blog here.

Poland

Members: Maciej De Abgaro Zachariasiewicz, Edyta Figura-Góralczyk, Zuzanna Nowicka

The Polish transposition process is ongoing. The draft law has been published on the website of the Government Legislation Centre. The next step will be its submission to the Sejm (the lower house of the Polish Parliament). For further details, see on this blog (here and here).

Portugal

Members: Anabela Gonçalves, Afonso Patrão

The Portuguese transposition process had been initiated but was subsequently interrupted due to changes at the institutional level. At present, no further information is available on the transposition act. It nevertheless appears that work on the transposition of the Anti-SLAPP Directive is currently ongoing within the Ministry of Justice, although no public draft act or official materials have yet been released, with a draft transposition act expected very soon.

Romania

Members: Elena Alina Oprea, Liviu Zidaru

The Romanian transposition process is ongoing. The draft transposition act has already been approved by the Chamber of Deputies and transferred to the Senate, which acts as the decisional chamber; while the report of the Legal Commission is expected on 12 May 2026, the date for the final discussion before the Senate has not yet been published. Transposition is currently partial, as certain provisions of the Law 134/2010 on Civil Procedure Code have been communicated as relevant for this purpose. The Government has also approved a draft transposition act.

Slovakia

Member: Lilla Garayova

The Slovak transposition process is ongoing. Draft legislation has been approved and was recently submitted to the National Council for consideration.

Slovenia

Member: Jerca Kramberger Škerl

The Slovenian transposition act is final. The Slovenian Parliament adopted the Act on Protective Measures concerning Strategic Lawsuits against Public Participation. The Act was published in the Official Journal of 10 February 2026. The Act entered into on 25 February 2026. For further details, see on this blog.

Spain

Members: Maria Font Mas, Teresa Maria Martín

The Spanish transposition process is ongoing. In April 2026, the Council of Ministers has approved, at first reading, the draft transposition act, consisting of a Proyecto de Ley (APL) and a Proyecto de Ley Orgánica (APLO). The first draft amends the Law of Civil Procedure and the Law on International Legal Cooperation in Civil Matters, while the second introduces amendments to the Organic Law on the Judiciary. Both drafts were approved by the Council of Ministers on 14 April 2026 and are currently pending parliamentary deliberation.

Sweden

Member: Marie Linton

The Swedish transposition act is final. The Act on Protection of Participation in Public Debate was issued on 12 March 2026. The Act entered into force on 1 May 2026. For further details, see on this blog (here and here).