Article 76 Provision of information and confidentiality

1.   Member States and regulatory authorities shall, upon request, provide the Commission with the information necessary for the purposes of enforcing this Regulation, including the guidelines and the network codes adopted pursuant to this Regulation.

2.   The Commission shall set a reasonable time limit within which the information is to be provided, taking into account the complexity and urgency of the information required.

3.   If the Member State or the regulatory authority concerned does not provide the information within the time limit set by the Commission, the Commission may request all the information necessary for the purpose of enforcing this Regulation directly from the undertakings concerned.

When sending a request for information to an undertaking, the Commission shall, at the same time, forward a copy of the request to the Member State or the regulatory authority concerned of the Member State in whose territory the seat of the undertaking is situated.

4.   In its request for information, the Commission shall state the legal basis of the request, the time limit within which the information is to be provided, the purpose of the request, and the penalties provided for in Article 77(2) for supplying incorrect, incomplete or misleading information.

5.   The owners of the undertakings or their representatives and, in the case of legal persons, the natural persons authorised to represent the undertaking by law or by their instrument of incorporation, shall supply the information requested. Where lawyers are authorised to supply the information on behalf of their client, the client shall remain fully responsible in the event that the information supplied is incomplete, incorrect or misleading.

6.   Where an undertaking does not provide the information requested within the time limit set by the Commission or supplies incomplete information, the Commission may by decision require the information to be provided. That decision shall specify what information is required and set a reasonable time limit within which it is to be supplied. It shall indicate the penalties provided for in Article 77(2). It shall also indicate the right to have the decision reviewed by the Court of Justice of the European Union.

The Commission shall, at the same time, send a copy of its decision to the Member State where the person is resident or the seat of the undertaking is situated or the regulatory authority of that Member State.

7.   The information referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be used only for the purposes of enforcing this Regulation.

The Commission shall not disclose information acquired pursuant to this Regulation where that information is covered by the obligation of professional secrecy.