Law on State Secrets


The Parliament of the Republic adopts the present law.
The present law stipulates the way of distributing, applying, revealing and protecting the information that represents state secret for the sake of state security.
President of the Republic of Moldova:
Mircea Snegur

CHAPTER I
GENERAL
Article 1
Application of the present law
The present law is applied on the territory of the Republic of Moldova and outside by the governmental authorities, state administration, local administration bodies, judicial authorities, legal entities, institutions, and organisation indifferently of their legal status and type of ownership, by officials and citizens of the Republic of Moldova that have assumed responsibility or are obliged according to their charter to execute the requirements of the legislation regarding the state secret.
Article 2
Notion of state secret
State secret constitutes information protected by the state in the field of its military activity, external policy, counter-information and operative investigation, the distributions, disclosure, loss, defalcation or destruction of which may infringe the security of the Republic of Moldova.
Article 3
Legislation regarding the state secret
Legislation regarding state secret is based on the Constitution of the Republic of Moldova, it includes the present law and provisions of by-laws that stipulate relations regarding to the protection of state secret.
Article 4
Mandate of the government authority and state administration, juridical authorities in relation to attributing and protection of the information on the state secret
(1) Parliament:
a) regulates the legal basis of the relations in the field of state secret protection;
b) approves articles of the republican budget in relation to implementation the governmental programs in the sphere of state secret protection;
c) controls the application of legislation regarding state secret.
(2) The President of the Republic of Moldova
a) approves state programmes in the sphere of state secret protection;
b) approves at the proposal of the Government, the structure and composition of the inter-department commission for state secret protection and its by-laws;
c) approves on the Governmental proposal the personnel, its functions and responsibilities on distributing information that represents state secret and also classification of information that is referred as state secrete.
(3) Government
a) organises the implementation of the Law regarding state secret;
b) presents for Presidential approval the structure and composition of inter-departmental Commission for state secret protection and its by-laws;
c) presents for Presidential approval the list of personnel with their functions and responsibilities and also the authority to refer information as state secret;
d) establishes the procedure of classifying the information that is referred as state secret;
e) organises the elaboration and realisation of state programs in the field of state secret protection;
f) establishes the benefits, their volume and ways of attributing to the citizens who have a permanent access to the state secret, and to the employees of internal subdivisions of state secret protection;
g) establishes the way of determining the volume of damage caused by the unsanctioned distribution of information that represents state secret, and also damages caused to the author of information as a result of its classification of information;
h) signs inter-governmental agreements, undertakes measures for implementation of international agreements signed by Moldova regarding common application and protection of information that constitutes state secret.
(4) State and local administration bodies:
a) provide protection of state secret at subordinate enterprises, institutions and organisations according to the legislation requirements;
b) provide, in the limits of their competence, control measures of the citizens that have access to state secret;
c) implement the measures stipulated in the legislation regarding the limits of citizens' rights and provide benefits for those that have or had access to information that represents state secret;
d) present to supreme bodies of the state authorities and administration proposals regarding improvement of the state secret protection system.
(5) Judicial bodies:
a) examine criminal and civil cases on violation of the legislation regarding state secret;
b) provide judicial protection for citizens, state administrative bodies, enterprises, institutions and organisations in relation with their activity in the sphere of state secret protection;
c) provide while examining the mentioned above cases the state secret protection.
(6) State authority and administrative bodies, judicial bodies within the limits of their competence resolve other problems related to the referring of information as state secret.
CHAPTER II
INFORMATION REFERRED AS STATE SECRET
Article 5
Information that can be referred as state secret
The following information is referred as state secret:
1. from military sphere regarding:
1. strategic and operative plans for providing the security of the Republic of Moldova;
2. departments for development and elaboration of new military equipment and armament, types, reserves and places of storage of these;
3. technical and tactical characteristics and ways of application in war of models of armament and military equipment, properties, receipts or technologies of preparing explosives intended to be used at war;
4. dislocation, destination, level of protection of the objects under the special regime and of a special importance, their design and constructiondislocation, organisational structure, armament supply and ability of the forces.
2. from the field of economy, science and technology regarding:
1. plans for preparation of the Republic of Moldova for possible military actions, mobilisation potential of the industry for production of armament and military equipment, volume of deliveries and strategic supplies received for storage, location and volume of state reserves;
2. volume and plans of production (in value or natural expression) of the armament, military equipment and other protection produce, existing capacities for such production and their increase, co-operation relations of the enterprises, authors or producers of the armament, military equipment and other produce for protectionscientific research, experimental works on construction and designing, technologies of great importance for protection or economy of the country that determine insuring of its security;
3. forces and means of civil protection, dislocation, destination and level of protection of the objects of financial administration, providing the security of the population;
3. from the field of foreign policy and economy:
1. foreign affairs, external economic relations (commercial, monetary, credit relations) of the Republic of Moldova the preliminary distribution of which can put under risk the interests of the country;
4. from the sphere of reconnoitre, counter-information and operative investigation activity on:
1. forces, means, sources, methods, plans and results of reconnoitre activity, counter-information and operative investigation, and also other data about financing of these types of activity;
2. persons that confidentially collaborate or have collaborated with the bodies that were involved in reconnoitre activity, counter-information and operative investigation;
3. governmental communication system and other types of special communication, state ciphers, methods and means of their analyses;
4. means and methods of secret information protection;
5. state programs and activities in the field of state secret protection. 
CHAPTER III
CLASSIFICATION OF INFORMATION
Article 6
Principle of information classification
(1) Information is classified in accordance with the principles of legality, reasoning and suitability.
(2) The legality of classification of information means that information to be classified should be in correspondence with the stipulations of the articles 5 and 8.
(3) The reasoning of classification of information means the establishment of the reasonable character of the classification of any definite information for forestalling the jeopardy of the security of the Republic of Moldova.
(4) The suitability of classification of information means the establishment of restrictions concerning the distribution of this information from the moment of their acceptance (elaboration) or in due time.
Article 7
Grades of information classification and mentioning regarding classification for the bearers of the particular information
(1) The degree of classification of information that constitutes state secret should correspond to the degree of damages that can be caused to the security of the Republic of Moldova in case of distributing such information.
(2) There are established three degrees of classification of information that constitutes state secret and respective references regarding classification for information possessor in cases of "extreme importance", "strict secret", "secret". Application of this references for classification of information that does not constitute state secret is not possible.
Article 8
Way of attributing the information on state secret
(1) The information is referred as state secret by the heads of the state administration bodies according to the list of responsible persons authorised to refer the information to state secret. These people are responsible for their decisions regarding referring information to state secret.
(2) Motivation of the necessity to refer information to state secret in accordance with the classification principles belongs to state administration bodies, enterprises, institution and organisation that have prepared that information.
(3) In order to promote a unique state policy in the field if information classification the Government has established an inter-department Commission for state secret protection that draws up a list of information that is referred as state secret. This list is approved by the President of Moldova, is published and reviewed if necessary. The list mentions the state administration bodies that are authorised to posses that information.
(4) State administration bodies whose heads are empowered to refer information to state secret prepares a detailed departmental list of information that should be classified. These lists include information that is in the disposition of the mentioned above bodies and established the grade of their classification. These lists are approved by the chief of respective state administration bodies and are not given public.
Article 9
Ways of classification the information
(1) Documents, information and works will be classified and a limit of secrecy will be set if these information is in correspondence with:
a) the list of information that is referred to state secret;
b) departmental list, stipulated in the paragraph (4) of the Article 8.
(2) If it is impossible to identify the received (researched) information with the information that is included in the list, the functionaries from state administration bodies, entities should provide the preliminary classification of the received information in correspondence with the assumed level of secrecy and within one month to send it to the official who has adopted the list for its completion (change).
(3) The officials who have approved the current list are obliged within three months to organise an expertise of the received suggestions and take a decision on amendments/changes of the current list or to withdraw the level of secrecy that was conferred to information.
Article 10
Copyrights restriction for the enterprises, institutions, organisations and citizens on the information in relation to its classification
(1) The officials empowered as stipulated in the Article 8 to refer information to state secret, can take decisions about classification of information that is in possession of enterprises, institutions, organisations and citizens, if this information contains data that are referred to state secret. Classification of the mentioned information is done on demand of the owner of information or respective state administration body.
(2) The material detriment caused to the owner of the information I for the reason of its classification is covered by the state in amount defined in the agreement between the information owner and state administration body, in whose possession the information is transferred. The agreement shall stipulate the obligations of the information owner. From the moment of signing the agreement he/she is warned about the responsibility of unsanctioned distribution of information that constitutes state secret in correspondence with the legislation.
(3) The information owner has the right to appeal in court the actions of the official, who in his/her opinion has infringed his/her rights. In the event the court admits that official's actions were illegal, the procedure of compensating the damages caused to the information owner, is identified in accordance with the court decision.
Article 11
Terms for information classification that represents state secret
(1) The information with the label "Special importance" and "Strictly confidential" is classified for a term of up to 25 years, and information with the label "Secret" is classified for 10 years.
(2) In relation to information that refers to a strict state secret on a decision of the governmental commission for state secret protection, the Government can establish longer terms of classification.
(3) State administration bodies, the chiefs of which are authorised to refer information to state secret are obliged regularly to review the contents of the list for classification.
Article 12
Information that should not be classified
(1) It is prohibited to classify the information on:
(a) violation of human rights and freedoms;
(b) emergency, accidents and their consequences that threaten the security and health of people, and also about natural disasters, forecast about these and consequences;
(c) true situation in the sphere of education, health protection, ecology, agriculture, trade, and justice;
(d) cases of law infringement, inactivity and illegal actions of the state authorities and officials, if disclosure of this information will not threaten the security of the Republic of Moldova.
(2) Classification is not allowed if it negatively affects the implementation of the governmental and industrial programmes for social, economic and cultural development, or if it includes competition of entities. 
CHAPTER IV
DECLASSIFICATION OF INFORMATION
Article 13
Reasons and methods of declassification
(1) Declassification of information (i.e. elimination of restrictions for the distribution of information that constitutes state secret, as it is stipulated by the present Law, and restrictions on access to information bearers) and also reduction the level of secrecy can be performed earlier than established terms that are stipulated in the Article 11 according to the procedure stipulated by the present law.
(2) The information can be declassified for the following reasons:
a) the circumstances have changed and there is no grounds to protect information that constituted state secret;
b) state administration bodies have introduced changes into the departmental lists on secret information. The heads of the state administration bodies who have approved the lists with secret information have the right to introduce the changes. They bear full responsibility for the decision on declassification of information. The decisions to change the lists on information that constitutes state secret should be agreed with the inter-departmental commission for state secret protection.
(3) Head of the National Archive of the Republic of Moldova is authorised to declassify the information that constituted state secret and that is stored in the closed funds of the archive, only in cases if such responsibilities were delegated to them by the information owner or its successor. In the event the organisation owner of the information was liquidated or there is no successor, the inter-departmental commission will consider the issue regarding declassification of information.
Article 14
Declassification of information on request of citizens, enterprises, institutions, organisation and state administrative bodies
(1) Citizens, entities, institutions, organisations, state administration bodies can apply to the interdepartmental commission for state secret protection, to the entities, institutions and organisation and state archives with a request for information declassification that constitute state secret or was unreasonably classified.
(2) State administration bodies, entities, institutions and organisations that have received such a request are obliged within three months to review them and to give a motivated response. If it is not in their competence to satisfy the request within a month since the request was submitted they are obliged to delegate it to a state administration body that is authorised to solve the issue, or to delegate it to the governmental commission on state secret protection. The applicant must be informed about this.
(3) For the official who evade their obligations on reviewing the application summary punishments will be applied in accordance with the legislation
(4) Grounds for referring the information to state secret can be appealed in court. In the event the court decides that there were no ground to classify the information it must be declassified according to the established procedure. 

CHAPTER V
PROVISION OF INFORMATION THAT REPRESENTS STATE SECRET
Article 15
Mutual transmission of information that represents state secret by state administrative bodies, enterprises, institutions and organisations
(1) Mutual transmission of information that represents state secret is performed by state administrative bodies, enterprises, institutions and organisations that do not have subordinate relations and do not perform joint works. The state administration body, in who possesses the information must approve this transmission.
(2) State administration bodies, entities, institutions and organisations that inquire about the information, must create conditions in order to ensure the protection of the information. The directors of these organisations bear full responsibility for non-fulfilment of the requirements for information protection and non-disclosure of the received data.
(3) Transmission of information that constitutes state secret to entities, institutions and organisations or citizens in relation with performing joint and other works is performed by the client with the permission of the state administration body, in whose possession is the required information, and only in amount that is necessary for execution of the works. Before transmitting the information that constitute state secret, the transmitting party should check is the institution or organisation have a license allowing to perform works with information of certain level of secrecy, and individuals must have a permission.
(4) Entities, organisations and institutions that perform joint works with using information that constitutes state secret, can sign agreements with the subdivisions of state companies and institutions for providing services on state secret protection. A special notice is introduced in the licenses of the contracted parties for providing services for state secret protection.
(5) The agreement for joint and other works, that is signed in accordance with the procedure stipulated by the legislation, should include the obligations of the parties on providing protection of information that constitutes state secret, in the process of works and also after their finalisation, and also the conditions of financing the services on state secret protection.
(6) The client is responsible for control over the efficiency of state secret protection during the execution of joint works in accordance with the stipulations of the signed agreement.
(7) In the event the obligations on state secret protection are violated, the client has the right to stop the works until the violation is eliminated. In the event of repeated violation the client can ask to cancel the assignment and the license allowing to perform works with using information that constitutes state secret. Guilty persons should be hold liable. The material damage caused to the state by the executor of the works should be recovered in accordance with the legislation.
Article 16
Transmission of information that represents state secret to other states
(1) Information that constitutes state secret can be transmitted to another state only if there is an expert's opinion from the inter-departmental commission for state secret protection that approves the transmission of the information on the basis of corresponding Governmental decision.
(2) The contract signed with the party that receives information should stipulate the obligations of the parties. 
CHAPTER VI
PROTECTION OF STATE SECRET
Article 17
Bodies for state secret protection
(1) State secret protection bodies include:
(a) inter-departmental (governmental) commission for state secret protection;
(b) state administration bodies, judicial authorities, enterprises, institutions, organisation and their departments on state secret protection;
(2) Inter-department commission for state secret protection is a collective body that co-ordinates the activity of the state administration bodies on state secret protection. The functions of inter-departmental commission and its superior power are realised in accordance with the Regulation on inter-departmental commission for state secret protection, adopted by the President of the Republic of Moldova.
(3) State administration bodies, organisations, institutions provide protection of data that constitute state secret in correspondence with the assigned tasks and within limits of their competence. The chief of the state administration bodies, directors of institutions and organisations bear responsibility for organisation of state secret protection. Depending on the volume of works that involve state secret, the chief of state administration bodies, directors of enterprises, institutions and organisations create structural departments for state secret protection. The functions of these departments will de identified by mentioned chiefs in accordance with normative acts approved by the Government and taking into account the specific character of work.
Article 18
Admission to the state secret of an official and a citizen
(1) An official or a citizen is admitted to state secret on voluntary basis and presupposes that the person:
(a) the person commits himself not to divulge information that constitutes state secret;
(b) the person agrees to have temporary restrictions in his rights in accordance with the Article 22;
(c) the person gives a written consent for performance of inspection measures by authorises bodies in his respect;
(d) the person understands the legislation about the state secret that stipulates responsibility for its violation;
(e) the chief of the state administration body, director of the institution or organisation takes decision to give the person access to the data that constitutes state secret.
(2) Inspection measures are performed in accordance with the legislation and depending on the level of information secrecy to which the person is admitted.
(3) The purpose of inspection measures is discovery of reasons stipulated in the Article 19.
(4) Officials and citizens that are admitted to state secret on a permanent basis have rise in wages depending on the level of information secrecy to which they have access.
(5) Employees of the structural departments for state secret protection, additionally to incentives, established for officials and citizens admitted to state secret on the permanent basis, have rise in wages for working experience in the mentioned departments.
(6) The mutual responsibilities between the administration and hired person are reflected in the labour agreement. The person cannot be hired until the authorised bodies finalise inspection measures.
(7) Three types of admission to state secret are established for the officials and citizens. They correspond to three levels of information secrecy that represent state secret: information of special importance, completely secret information and secret information. If the official or citizen is admitted to the information of special importance, it means that he/she can have access to the information of lower level of secrecy.
(8) Terms, conditions and procedure for re-registration of admission for officials and citizens to state secret is established by the normative documents adopted by the Government.
(9) Persons without citizenship, foreign citizens, emigrants and re-emigrants are admitted to state secret according to the procedure adopted by the Government.
Article 19
Reasons for refusal to provide access for an official or a citizen to state secret
(1) The following reasons can serve a basis for a refusal for an official or a citizen to have access to state secret:
(a) the person has a conviction for performing a crime against the State or other grave crimes that are mentioned in the Criminal Code of the Republic of Moldova, or in the Criminal Code of other states; a person is on a trial or is prosecuted for performing the mentioned crimes; the person is declared by court a dangerous recidivist, with limited capability or incapable;
(b) the person has medical contra-indications to work with information that represents state secret, according to the list, approved by the Ministry of Health;
(c) the person is a permanent resident abroad or registers the document to receive a permanent residence in another state;
(d) the person avoids inspections or presents wittingly false application data;
(e) the person commits actions that can cause threat to the security of the Republic of Moldova.
(2) The head of the state administration body, director of an organisation or institution takes the decision to refuse an official or a citizen to have access to state secret in each individual case taking into consideration the results of inspection. The official or a citizen has the right to appeal against this decision in the higher organisation or in the court.
Article 20
Conditions in which an official or a citizen cease to be admitted to state secret
(1) The access to state secret for an official or a citizen can be ceased on the decision of the head of the state administration authorities, organisation, institutions in the cases of:
a) a labour agreement (contract) with him/her was terminated because of organisational measures;
b) the commitments under the labour agreement on state secret protection were violated once;
c) circumstances that in accordance with Article 19 can serve basis for a refusal to have access to state secret.
(2) Cessation of access to state secret for an official or a citizen can serve additional basis to terminate the labour agreement with him, if such conditions are stipulated in the labour agreement. However, the official or a citizen is not released from the commitment not to divulge data that constitutes state secret.
(3) The official or citizen can appeal in court or in superior organisation the decision of administration to cease access to state secret and terminate the labour agreement on that basis.
Article 21
Providing access to the information that represents state secret for an official or a citizen
(1) Procedures to be followed in order to provide access to information that represent state secret for an official or a citizen is stipulated by normative acts, approved by the Government.
(2) The chief of the respective state administration authority, director of an enterprise, organisation or its department on state secret protection must is assigned to provide access for an official or a citizen to information that constitute state secret. The chief of the institution bears full responsibility for creation such conditions in which the official or a citizen can get only the information and in such amount that is necessary to fulfil his/her functional responsibilities.
Article 22
Restriction in rights of an official or a citizen that have or had access to state secret
Enterprises, institutions, organisations can have access to activity involving data referred to state secret, creation of information protection means, and also involved in events and provide services on state secret protection only in accordance with the procedure stipulated by the Government.
Article 23
Access of enterprises, institutions, organisations to the activity involving information referred as state secret
Enterprises, institutions, organisations can have access to activity involving data referred to state secret, creation of information protection means, and also involved in events and provide services on state secret protection only in accordance with the procedure stipulated by the Government.
Article 24
State secret protection within foreign collaboration
Agreements on collaboration with foreign states, and also within international organisations to which Moldova is a part, are applied according to the procedure adopted by the Government.
Article 25
Protection of secret information of foreign states and international organisations
(1) Secret information of foreign states and international organisations that was reported to the Republic of Moldova on the basis of agreements is protected in accordance with the obligations taken by the parties.
(2) State administration bodies that have signed the agreement bear full responsibility for protection of reported secret information and its correct application.
Article 26
Responsibility for disclosure of state secret
The persons who have violated the legislation on state secret bear the responsibility in accordance with the legislation. 
CHAPTER VII
PROVIDING FINANCIAL SUPPORT TO STATE SECRET PROTECTION ACTIVITIES
Article 27
Financing state secret protection activities
(1) Activities of the state administration bodies, budget organisations, institutions and organisations protecting state secret are financed from respective budgets. The activity of other entities, institutions and organisations are financed from means received from their main activity that involves applying of information that represent state secret.
(2) State budget should include a separate paragraph that stipulates allocation of means for financing state programmes in the sphere of state secret protection.
(3) Chiefs of state authorities and administration, heads of entities and organisations, customers and specially authorised representatives of the Ministry of Finance should perform control over the expenses of finances allocated for the state secret protection activities. If the performance of this control is associated with access to the information that represents state secret, than the mentioned persons should have access to the information of the respective level of secrecy. 
CHAPTER VIII
CONTROL AND SUPERVISION OF STATE SECRET
Article 28
Parliamentary control
The parliamentary control over observance of the legislation regarding state secret and related expenditures is performed by permanent parliamentary commissions. State administration bodies, protecting state secret are obliged to provide all necessary information to the mentioned commissions.
Article 29
Inter-departmental and departmental control
(1) The Ministry for National Security is responsible for inter-departmental control for providing protection of state secret in state administration bodies, at factories, institutions and organisations.
(2) Chiefs of state administration bodies are obliged to control the efficiency of state secret protection in all subordinate bodies of state administration, at factories, institutions and organisations involved in common activity.
(3) Control for providing state secret protection in the Parliament, Presidential apparatus, the Government, juridical bodies is managed by the chiefs of these bodies.
Article 30
Prosecutor's supervision
(1) The Prosecutor of the Republic of Moldova and subordinate public prosecutors are responsible for adherence to the legislation when protecting state secret and legitimacy of adopted decisions.
(2) Access of persons performing prosecutor's supervision to the information that represents state secret is stipulated by law.
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