Article 12 — Penalties and measures for natural persons

1. Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that the criminal offences referred to in Articles 3 to 11 are punishable by effective, proportionate and dissuasive criminal penalties. 2. Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that: (a) the criminal offence referred to in Article 3, where the act to be performed or the refraining from acting to be performed by the official is in breach of that official’s duties, is punishable by a maximum term of imprisonment of at least five years; (b) the criminal offences referred to in Article 5(1) and Articles 9 and 10 are punishable by a maximum term of imprisonment of at least four years; (c) the criminal offences referred to in Article 3, where the act to be performed or the refraining from acting to be performed by the official is not in breach of that official’s duties, and Articles 4 and 6 are punishable by a maximum term of imprisonment of at least three years. 3. Member States may provide that conduct described in Article 5 does not constitute a criminal offence where the advantage or damage involved is less than EUR 10000. Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that the threshold of EUR 10000 or more may be met through a series of conduct covered by Article 5 that is linked and of the same kind, where that conduct is carried out by the same offender. 4. Without prejudice to paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article, Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that natural persons who have committed offences referred to in Articles 3 to 6 and 8 to 11 may be subject to additional criminal or non-criminal penalties or measures that are proportionate to the gravity of the conduct. Such penalties or measures may include the following: (a) fines; (b) the removal, suspension and reassignment from a public office; (c) the disqualification from: (i) holding a public office, (ii) exercising a public service function, (iii) holding office in a legal person owned in whole or in part by that Member State, (iv) the practice of business activities that resulted in or enabled the relevant offence; (d) temporary bans on running for public office; (e) withdrawal of permits and authorisations to pursue activities that resulted in or enabled the relevant offence; (f) exclusions from access to public funding, including tender procedures, grants, concessions and licences; (g) where there is a public interest, publication of all or part of the judicial decision that relates to the criminal offence committed and the penalties or measures imposed, without prejudice to rules on privacy and the protection of personal data.