The prevention of tractor theft will be facilitated with the support of the Schengen Information System

On July 17, the Cabinet of Ministers supported our proposal and the draft law “Amendments to the Schengen Information System Operation Law” developed by the Ministry of the Interior, the aim of which is to ensure the use of the Schengen Information System to strengthen public order and security in the Member States.

To help address the current issue of preventing the theft of tractor equipment and recovering stolen equipment in Latvia, information about tractor equipment that is on international wanted list can now be checked in the Schengen Information System (SIS) by registering tractor equipment imported from abroad in Latvia.

The State Technical Supervision Agency will now have grounds to receive access to the SIS for stolen tractors in the EU in order to make a decision regarding the registration of tractors and their trailers and the issuance of a registration certificate.

Currently, the Road Traffic Safety Directorate has access to the SIS. In turn, the State Technical Supervision Agency, when registering tractor equipment and its trailers imported from abroad, does not currently check whether the report on them has not been registered in the system in which EU member states announce wanted vehicles. Without such checks, organized crime is given the opportunity to sell tractor equipment stolen in another member state on the Latvian market.