A government agency drops by unexpectedly to investigate. This is called a dawn raid. The government agency will collect a variety of information: paper documents, digital data, telephones, interviews, etc. The investigation can have a huge impact. It can result in sanctions for the company and/or individuals and have major reputational consequences. Knowing how to proceed is therefore crucial.
The following government agencies can launch a dawn raid:
- Criminal investigation services, such as the police, the Fiscal Intelligence and Investigation Service (FIOD) and the Public Prosecution Service.
- Administrative authorities and inspectorates, such as the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) , the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM), the Dutch Central Bank (DNB), the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA), the Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT) and the Netherlands Labour Authority (NLA). Some of these bodies can also initiate criminal prosecution.
