Article 2Scope

1. This Regulation applies to service providers which offer services in the Union.

2. European Production Orders and European Preservation Orders may be issued only in the framework and for the purposes of criminal proceedings, and for the execution of a custodial sentence or a detention order of at least four months, following criminal proceedings, imposed by a decision that was not rendered in absentia, in cases where the person convicted absconded from justice. Such orders may also be issued in proceedings relating to a criminal offence for which a legal person could be held liable or punished in the issuing State.

3. European Production Orders and European Preservation Orders may be issued only for data pertaining to the services referred to in Article 3, point (3), offered in the Union.

4. This Regulation does not apply to proceedings initiated for the purpose of providing mutual legal assistance to another Member State or a third country.