On 13 June 2023, the Commissariat aux Assurances (the "CAA") published Circular Letter 23/10 on the teleworking of executives, key functions and other control functions and the use of electronic signature (the “Circular Letter”).
The Circular Letter pertains to (i) the authorised executive of an insurance or reinsurance undertaking established in the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg (the "Undertaking"), and (ii) the delegated reinsurance undertaking executive or any person effectively managing a group supervised by the CAA. It also applies to the key function holders (i.e. the risk management function, the compliance function, the internal audit function, the actuarial function) and persons assimilated thereto (i.e. the head of distribution, the head of compliance and the compliance officer), (together the “Key Function Holders”).
According to the Circular-Letter, teleworking means carrying out (i) work that could have been done at the Undertaking’s premises, (ii) remotely (i.e. away from the Undertaking's premises), (iii) on a regular and voluntary basis, (iv) using information and communication technologies.
However, Undertakings must have a strong central administration in the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg, including their decision-making and administrative centre. They must be able to justify it at any time. Accordingly, the authorised executive of the Undertaking and the Key Function Holders must carry out a major part of their professional activities at the Undertaking’s registered office in the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg. It should be noted that (i) the premises of branches are treated in the same way as Undertaking’s premises and (ii) visits to branches abroad are not considered as teleworking. To this end, and during on-site or documentary inspections, the CAA may verify the arrangements put in place by Undertakings regarding teleworking for authorised executive and Key Function Holders, such as teleworking agreements, records of attendance at head office and business trips abroad.
Finally, the organisation of teleworking must comply with the applicable legal and regulatory framework in terms of professional secrecy and data protection, as well as the Luxembourg Labour Code or that of the country in which the employees of the Undertaking branches are registered.
In addition, the CAA specifies its expectations regarding electronic signatures. On the one hand, it requires notification signed by the authorised executive for the requests set forth in Annex 1 to the Circular Letter. On the other hand, the use of electronic signatures in place of handwritten signatures makes it necessary to set up an internal organisation specifying the identity and functions of the persons authorised to use this type of signature, as well as compliance with specific technical characteristics, in order to ensure reliability. The handwritten signature may be replaced by the qualified electronic signature. Undertakings are required to keep available to the CAA all existing procedures as well as the updated documents listed in the questionnaire provided for in Annex 2 to the Circular Letter (the "Questionnaire"). The Questionnaire must be completed and signed by Undertakings using electronic signatures for their mailings and notifications to the CAA, 30 days after the Circular Letter comes into force.
The Circular Letter comes into force on 1 September 2023.
Should you have any questions on the above, please do not hesitate to contact one of our experts of the insurance teams.
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