EU-LISA
VACANCY NOTICE – Joint selection procedure for the post of Legal Officer (FGIV)
Ref. eu-LISA/26/CA/FGIV/3.1
Function Group/Grade
FGIV (Contract Staff)
Working model
Hybrid working arrangements – Permanent relocation required
Deadline for Application
01 June 2026¹ 12:59 pm Tallinn time / 11:59 am Strasbourg time
Validity of the Reserve List
31 December 2028
About eu-LISA and other participating EU Agencies (HOME Agencies)
This selection procedure is published as a joint selection procedure conducted by eu-LISA on behalf of participating EU agencies in the field of Migration and Home Affairs (HOME agencies). The objective is to establish a common reserve list of successful candidates that can be used by the following participating agencies: 1) CEPOL 2) EUAA 3) EUDA 4) eu-LISA 5) Europol and 6) Frontex.
We are eu-LISA, the European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice. We help implement the European Union's policies by designing, developing, and operating large-scale information systems in internal security, border management, and judicial cooperation.
Our teams develop and manage the technological architecture of the Schengen area and the EU justice domain. By equipping law enforcement and border management operators and juridical practitioners with cutting-edge technological infrastructure, we help ensure security and justice for citizens.
With a workforce of more than 24 nationalities, eu-LISA embraces an international work environment and values collaboration among colleagues from diverse backgrounds. As an equal opportunity employer, we are committed to providing a positive and enjoyable work environment. We welcome applications from all suitable candidates, irrespective of age, gender, ethnicity or social origin, disability, religion or belief, and sexual orientation.
Join us to become part of our organisational culture that fosters inclusivity and diversity. Our belief is 'Together as one, we are making it happen'. We want our people to feel respected, valued and empowered.
Please visit our website and discover more about eu-LISA's core activities.
¹ Date of publication: 29 April 2026
European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice
Vesilennuki 5, 10415 Tallinn, Estonia
eU-LISA
About the job
eu-LISA, as leading agency for this selection procedure, aims to establish a reserve list from which the aforementioned HOME Affairs agencies can source top talent. It is envisaged that the reserve list will start to be used as from Q3-Q4 2026. The selected candidate will report to a Specialist, Senior Specialist, Senior Legal Officer, Head of Sector or Head of Unit, depending on the organisational structure of the Agency.
The post of Legal Officer will be situated in one of the participating HOME agencies, i.e. CEPOL (Budapest, Hungary), EUAA (Malta or other additional offices in Belgium, Italy, Greece, Spain, and Cyprus), EUDA (Lisbon, Portugal), eu-LISA (Tallinn, Estonia or Strasbourg, France), Europol (The Hague, The Netherlands) or Frontex (Warsaw, Poland).
Please note that employment conditions - including salary, title, contractual arrangements and any required security clearance, will vary depending on the recruiting agency and the place of employment.
Your tasks may include a wide range of responsibilities that may extend beyond the following list:
- Drafting and reviewing documents such as internal Executive Director decisions, Management Board decisions, (Corporate Governance) and agreements with other International Organisations or National Authorities, and other legal notes and memoranda;
- Advising internal entities of the agency on legal aspects concerning their activities;
- Contributing to the drafting of defences related to agency's mission and activities, handling court cases;
- Providing legal advice on contractual and procurement-related matters, including Staff Regulations and CEOS with a particular focus on reviewing draft award decisions;
- Preparing responses to requests for access to documents and confirmatory applications, organising internal workshops on of public access to documents;
- Ensuring proper organisation and structured archiving of legal documents in compliance with internal guidelines, facilitating easy retrieval and reference;
- Keeping abreast of recent legal developments, including case law from the General Court and the European Court of Justice impacting the agency's activities, and consulting with external stakeholders such as lawyers and counterparts from EU Institutions, Agencies, and Member States;
- Interpretating, and implementing, if necessary, Data Protection related legislation.
Eligibility criteria
To be eligible for recruitment and selection, you need to meet the following formal criteria, which need to be fulfilled by the deadline for application:
General conditions
- You are national of one of the EU Member States or Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, or Switzerland and you enjoy full rights as a citizen²;
European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice
Vesilennuki 5, 10415 Tallinn, Estonia
www.eulisa.europa.eu
EU-LISA
- You produce the appropriate character requirements for the duties involved;
- You are physically fit to perform your duties³;
- You have fulfilled any obligations imposed on you by the laws concerning military service.
Education
- You have a level of education which corresponds to completed university studies of at least three years attested by a diploma.
Only qualifications awarded in an EU Member State or that are subject to an equivalence certificate issued by an authority in a said EU Member State shall be taken into consideration.
Language
- You have a thorough knowledge (minimum level C1) of one of the 24 EU official languages and a satisfactory knowledge (minimum level B2) of another official EU language to the extent necessary for performing the duties.
Selection Criteria
The suitability of candidates will be assessed against the following criteria during different stages of the selection procedure:
Professional experience
- Experience in drafting and reviewing legal documents such as internal decisions, agreements, and governance documents;
- Experience in preparing legal advice, notes and opinions;
- Experience in supporting the preparation of legal defences and handling of court cases related to institutional or administrative matters;
Education
- University degree in the field of law of at least five (5) years.
Personal competencies
- Ability to work effectively and independently in a fast-paced environment and manage multiple priorities;
- Ability to work within a multicultural, team-focused environment with a supportive, helpful and cooperative attitude.
- Ability to analyse and break down a problem into logical components and to identify potential mitigating actions;
- Ability to plan and organise work in a structured manner maintaining a clear overview of task completion as well as to set priorities with respect to own work and planning actions accordingly to ensure that deadlines are achieved.
³ Prior to an appointment, the successful candidate shall be medically examined by a selected medical service in order that the Agency may be satisfied that they fulfil the requirement of Article 82 (3)d of the Conditions of employment of other servants of the European Communities.
European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice
Vesilennuki 5, 10415 Tallinn, Estonia
www.eulisa.europa.eu
EU-LISA
Language
- Strong communication skills in English, both orally and in writing, at least at the C1⁴ level.
Advantageous
- Knowledge of the EU institutional framework, such as EU institutional law, EU public procurement law and/or the Staff Regulations and CEOs;
- Knowledge and understanding of the EU legal framework, including the ability to monitor, interpret, and apply relevant case law from the General Court and the Court of Justice of the European Union.
- Experience in interpreting and applying rules on access to documents, as well as data protection principles, including managing related requests and ensuring compliance with applicable legal and organisational requirements.
⁴ Cf. Language levels of the Common European Framework of reference: http://europass.cedefop.europa.eu/en/resources/european-language-levels-cefr
European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice
Vesilennuki 5, 10415 Tallinn, Estonia
eU-LISA
What we offer
Competitive salary package composed of a basic salary and various allowances:
- eu-LISA offers a competitive salary package. To begin with, the salary is determined by the grade for which you have applied. In addition, your future salary is based on the total number of years of professional experience and adjusted to the cost of living in your place of employment.
- Depending on your individual and family situation, you may be eligible for various allowances such as expatriation, installation and household allowance, dependent child, or education allowance, ensuring your financial comfort. It is important to note that salaries are exempt from national taxation, as they are subject to a tax raised by the EU.
Additional benefits:
Your health and safety are our priority. We offer a wide range of additional benefits such as health insurance, including sickness and accident insurance, hospitalisation, dental care, and preventive medicine coverage. If you desire, your family members can be covered as well. In addition, we provide a generous EU pension scheme (defined benefit plan) that becomes available after completing 10 years of service within EU Institutions/Agencies or upon reaching the pensionable age from the EU pension scheme, to which both the Agency and you make monthly contributions.
Mental Health and Well-being Programme:
Our comprehensive programme prioritises a healthy work-life balance, including amongst other reimbursements for health and fitness activities.
Training and Development Opportunities:
We invest in your professional development and personal growth. You will have access to a wide range of training programmes and learning resources.
Flexible Work Arrangements:
While you will be required to relocate permanently to the place of employment or its surrounding areas, you can enjoy a healthy balance between teleworking from this place and office presence within our hybrid working arrangements. Additionally, you can telework from outside of your place of employment for up to 10 days per year.
Generous Holiday Package:
You will receive at least 24 days of annual leave per calendar year, additional leave days may be granted for age and grade, and home leave to travel to your home country, if applicable. Some special leave can be granted for certain circumstances such as marriage, childbirth, and more. On top, you will benefit from an average of 18 eu-LISA holidays, including the Agency's end of the year closure.
Education for children:
We offer access to an accredited European School in all our three sites, ensuring educational opportunities for your children.
European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice
Vesilennuki 5, 10415 Tallinn, Estonia
www.eulisa.europa.eu
eU-LISA
Application process and next steps
Ready to join us in building a safer Europe? Apply now!
Before submitting your application, you should carefully check whether you meet all eligibility requirements.
Please complete your application form via the e-recruitment platform here. eu-LISA does not accept applications submitted by any other means (e.g., e-mail or post), or any spontaneous applications. Your application should contain personal details, educational background, professional experience, language proficiency, motivation letter and responses to pre-screening questions, if applicable. Candidates are requested to support their application with adequate, concise examples of their work experience and qualification, especially if not directly addressed in the duties listed in the application under professional experience.
Please note that if at any stage of the selection procedure it is established that any of the requested information provided by a candidate is false, they will be disqualified.
If a candidate reaches the reserve list stage, they will be requested to supply documentary evidence in support of the statements that they made for this application.
If you encounter any difficulties during the application process or have any further questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to the Talent Acquisition Service. Feel free to send an email to eulisa-RECRUITMENT@eulisa.europa.eu.
Join our diverse team, where you will have the opportunity to grow both professionally and personally while enjoying the journey.
European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice
Vesilennuki 5, 10415 Tallinn, Estonia
eU-LISA
Selection procedure
The selection procedure includes the following steps:
- A Selection Committee, designated by the Appointing Authority, is established for the selection procedure;
- Each application is checked to verify whether the candidate meets the eligibility criteria;
- All eligible applications are evaluated by the Selection Committee based on a combination of certain selection criteria defined in the Vacancy Notice;
- The quality of the information provided by the candidate in their application is of utmost importance. Candidates are requested to support their application with adequate, concise examples of their work experience (including traineeships, voluntary work etc), and qualification, especially if not directly addressed in the duties listed in the application under professional experience. Certain selection criteria may be assessed jointly and some criteria may be assessed in two or more stages of the selection procedure;
- Once the list of the most qualified candidates is determined, a preliminary assessment may take place (e.g., a pre-recorded video interview and/or a remote written test) prior to the shortlist phase;
- In the shortlist phase consisting of a shortlist interview which may be complemented by a written test, the Selection Committee scores the candidates in accordance with the selection criteria. Candidates may also be required to prepare a presentation on a topic to be presented during the shortlist phase, which would be evaluated as part of the shortlist interview;
- In order to be included in the reserve list, candidates must receive at least 60% of the maximum scores in the shortlist phase;
- Interviews and written tests are predominantly conducted in English;
- After the shortlist phase, the Selection Committee establishes a non-ranked list of the most qualified candidates to be included in a reserve list and proposes it to the Appointing Authority;
- The Appointing Authority may choose from the reserve list a candidate for the post;
- Candidates included in the reserve list may be engaged for the same or similar post depending on needs and the budgetary situation of the participating agencies;
- All shortlisted candidates will be informed whether or not they have been included in the reserve list. Candidates should note that inclusion in a reserve list does not guarantee engagement.
Please note that the Selection Committee's work and deliberations are strictly confidential. Any contact with its members is strictly prohibited.
European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice
Vesilennuki 5, 10415 Tallinn, Estonia
www.eulisa.europa.eu
EU-LISA
English is eu-LISA's working language. Any communication related to the selection procedure will be conducted in English.
Engagement and conditions of employment
eu-LISA will be the leading Agency and will carry out the selection procedure. The Authority Authorised to Conclude Contracts of Employment (AACC) of eu-LISA will sign all decisions and relevant documents regarding the joint selection procedure on behalf of the participating agencies. The administrative management of the joint reserve list lies with eu-LISA. Each participating agency may organise follow-up interviews with one or more candidates placed on the reserve list.
Once the candidate receives an engagement offer, they may be required to accept the offer within a short timeframe and be available to start the contract at short notice.
The successful candidate will be engaged as Contract Staff, pursuant to Article 3a(b) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Communities (CEOS). The Contract Staff post will be placed in Function Group IV, grades 13, 14 or 16, depending on the length of professional experience.
Please note that employment conditions - including salary, contractual arrangements and any required security clearance, will vary depending on the recruiting agency and the place of employment.
The remuneration of a staff member consists of a basic salary (currently EUR 4.449,31 for grade 13, EUR 4.887,55 for grade 14 and EUR 6256.88 for grade 16⁸) weighed by the correction coefficient⁹ (based on the location of the respective agency)¹⁰.
For the participating EU agencies (HOME agencies), the place of employment will be the seat of the agency the candidate is being recruited to., i.e. CEPOL (Budapest, Hungary with 76.6% correction coefficient), EUDA (Lisbon, Portugal with 92.4% correction coefficient), eu-LISA (Tallinn, Estonia with 95% correction coefficient or Strasbourg, France with 113.6% correction coefficient), Europol (The Hague, The Netherlands with 113.2% correction coefficient) or Frontex (Warsaw, Poland with 82.3% correction coefficient).
The initial duration of the eu-LISA contract is five (5) years, including a probationary period of nine (9) months, with the possibility of contract renewal for another period not exceeding five (5) years. Following a successful renewal, the second renewal will be indefinite.
The reserve list shall be used for the recruitment and selection for the post in question and/or similar posts depending on the needs of the participating agency. The candidates included in this reserve list may be offered an employment contract of a shorter than the one stated in the vacancy notice in accordance with the business needs and subject to agreement with the candidate. In this case, the Agency will contact the candidate in the reserve list and ask their interest.
European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice
Vesilennuki 5, 10415 Tallinn, Estonia
EU-LISA
All selected eu-LISA candidates may be required to have, or be in a position to obtain, a valid Personnel Security Clearance Certificate, SECRET UE/EU SECRET, depending on the specific job profile and the need-to-know requirements.
A Personnel Security Clearance Certificate (PSCC) is defined as a certificate issued by a competent authority establishing that an individual is security cleared and holds a valid national or EU PSCC, which shows the level of EU Classified Information (EUCI) to which that individual may be granted access, the date of validity of the relevant PSC and the date of expiry of the certificate itself.
Candidates who hold a valid security clearance and for whom it is required must provide a copy of their security clearance and specify the issuing authority, level and date of expiry. In case the validity of their security clearance expires within six months, the renewal procedure will be initiated expeditiously.
Kindly note that the necessary procedure for obtaining a PSCC can be initiated by request of the employer only, and not by the individual candidate.
Failure to obtain the required security clearance certificate from the candidate's National Security Authority, either during or after the expiration of the probationary period, will give eu-LISA the right to terminate any applicable employment contract where the security clearance is a requirement.
Independence and declaration of interest
The selected candidate for the post will be required to sign a declaration of commitment to act in eu-LISA's best interest and in relation to interests that might be considered prejudicial to their independence.
Protection of personal data
This selection procedure involves a joint processing of personal data. All participating agencies undertake to process candidates' personal data in compliance with a/m Regulation (EU) 2018/1725¹¹ as joint controllers, based on the roles and responsibilities set out in this VN and according to the applicable privacy notice.
Queries concerning the processing of personal data in relation to this selection procedure and the establishment and sharing of the joint reserve list are to be addressed to eu-LISA's Data Controller. The Data Controller is responsible for replying to data subjects' requests up to the establishment of the joint reserve list. Any requests related to the subsequent recruitment process will be addressed by the respective recruiting agency directly.
Appeal procedure
¹¹ Regulation (EU) No 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018, OJ L 295, 21.11.2018, p. 39.
European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice
Vesilennuki 5, 10415 Tallinn, Estonia
eU-LISA
If a candidate considers that they have been adversely affected by a particular decision, they can lodge a complaint under Article 90(2) of the Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Union and Conditions of employment of other servants of the European Union, to the following address:
eu-LISA
(European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice)
Vesilennuki 5
10415 Tallinn, Estonia
The complaint must be lodged within three (3) months. The time limit for initiating this type of procedure starts from the time the candidate is notified of the act adversely affecting them.
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European Union Agency for the Operational Management of Large-Scale IT Systems in the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice
Vesilennuki 5, 10415 Tallinn, Estonia
www.eulisa.europa.eu