Form and handling of requests

(1) Requests to authorities of other Member States of the European Union must be made in German; a translation must be enclosed where necessary. Requests must be reasoned in accordance with the requirements of Community law and stating the relevant legal act.
(2) Requests from authorities of other Member States of the European Union may be dealt with only where their content appears from the files in German. Where necessary, the requesting authority should be asked for a translation in the case of requests in another language.
(3) Requests from authorities of other Member States of the European Union may be refused where they are not properly reasoned, stating the relevant legal act, and the required reasons are not supplied subsequently on demand.
(4) The Commission's facilities and aids for handling requests should be used. Information should be transmitted electronically.