INTERPOL Red Notice Removal Lawyers in Germany

Germany’s National Central Bureau is based in Wiesbaden.

The Bundeskriminalamt (BKA), Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office, serves as the country’s INTERPOL NCB. INTERPOL states that the BKA provides German law-enforcement authorities with access to its international police-cooperation network and acts as the focal point for German investigations requiring international cooperation.

Germany also has a federal policing structure. The BKA works alongside the Bundespolizei and the police forces of the individual German Länder.

The BKA’s operational role should not be confused with the role of the CCF. German authorities may use INTERPOL information in accordance with German law, but the CCF decides individual requests concerning access to, correction of or deletion of data from the INTERPOL Information System.

Yes.

A person does not need to leave Germany or travel to INTERPOL headquarters to submit a request concerning their personal data.

Since 26 March 2026, requests for access, correction and deletion must be submitted through the CCF’s secure online portal, except in exceptional circumstances recognised by the Commission. The procedure is based primarily on written submissions and supporting documents.

Where the applicant is uncertain about what INTERPOL data exists, a CCF access request may be appropriate before preparing a deletion application.

A deletion request must explain why continued processing of the data does not comply with INTERPOL’s legal framework.

Depending on the facts, relevant issues can include:

• political, military, religious or racial elements prohibited by Article 3 of INTERPOL’s Constitution;
• human-rights considerations under Article 2;
• inaccurate or outdated information;
• information that is irrelevant or excessive for the stated purpose;
• insufficient description of the person’s individual role in the alleged offence;
• changes in the underlying criminal proceedings; or
• questions about whether continued international police cooperation remains justified.

INTERPOL’s Rules on the Processing of Data require information to be accurate, relevant, not excessive in relation to its purpose and up to date.

The CCF does not determine whether the person is guilty or innocent. Its task is to examine compliance of the INTERPOL data.

The strongest evidence depends on the reason for the challenge.

Relevant documents may include:

• the underlying arrest warrant or court decision;
• indictments or charging documents;
• decisions terminating or modifying criminal proceedings;
• judgments concerning the same alleged conduct;
• evidence correcting inaccurate identity or factual information;
• documents showing the person’s actual role in the events;
• asylum or protection decisions where directly relevant to the INTERPOL issues; and
• evidence of later developments affecting the continued purpose of the Notice.

A deletion request should connect each document to a specific compliance argument rather than simply presenting a large case file.

The CCF states that requests for correction or deletion should be decided within nine months after the request becomes admissible.

That period may be extended where the circumstances of the case require additional time. Access requests follow a different timetable and should generally be decided within four months after admissibility.

This is why an access request and a deletion request should not be treated as the same procedural stage.

No.

An INTERPOL Red Notice and a European Arrest Warrant are different legal instruments.

Under Germany’s Act on International Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters, an EAW or a qualifying SIS alert may form the basis for surrender proceedings between EU Member States. Section 83a IRG specifically provides that a SIS alert containing the required information can be treated as a European Arrest Warrant for German surrender proceedings.

Removing INTERPOL data therefore does not automatically cancel:

• a European Arrest Warrant;
• a SIS alert based on a separate EU judicial measure;
• the foreign national arrest warrant;
• an extradition request already submitted to Germany.

Where the underlying warrant itself needs separate assessment, our international arrest warrant lawyers can review that issue independently from the CCF application.

Does German Citizenship Change the Red Notice Removal Process?

German citizenship does not create a different CCF procedure.

However, it may substantially affect the separate extradition analysis.

Article 16(2) of Germany’s Basic Law provides that no German may be extradited to a foreign country, while allowing legislation to create exceptions for extradition to another EU Member State or an international court where rule-of-law principles are respected.

This constitutional protection concerns extradition. It does not automatically require INTERPOL to delete a Red Notice.

A German citizen may therefore still need to address INTERPOL data even where German constitutional law creates separate protection against extradition to a particular requesting state.

What Happens After a Red Notice Is Deleted?

Where INTERPOL deletes a Red Notice, the information can no longer be used through INTERPOL channels in relation to that deleted Notice.

In published deletion cases, INTERPOL has informed member countries and requested that they update relevant internal and public databases to remove references to the cancelled Red Notice.

The underlying national criminal case may nevertheless continue.

A foreign arrest warrant, EAW, SIS alert or other national measure must therefore be checked independently rather than assuming that Red Notice deletion eliminates every related legal risk.

Legal Help With INTERPOL Red Notice Removal in Germany

A Germany-based case may involve several legally separate systems: INTERPOL data, the BKA and German police cooperation, a foreign arrest warrant, an EAW or extradition proceedings.

Our role is to identify which issue should be addressed through the CCF and which belongs to a national or European procedure.

We assess the available INTERPOL information, review the underlying case, identify potential compliance problems and prepare the evidence required for a correction or deletion request.

If you are in Germany and need to challenge or remove an INTERPOL Red Notice, contact our team for a confidential assessment of the available legal options.