What happens after submitting the communication?

After the communication has been received and provided that the victim/victims of the violation consent to the disclosure of their identity to the State concerned the Committee will bring it confidentially to the attention of the State concerned and will request a written reply to the communication. This explanation or statement should be delivered to the Committee within six months and should relate to the admissibility of the communication and its merits, as well as to any remedy that may have been provided in the matter.

The Committee may also request the author/authors of the communication to submit additional explanation concerning the admissibility or the merits of the case.

The Committee will transmit to each party (the State and the author/authors) the explanations/statements of the other party and provide them with the opportunity to comment within the fixed time limits.

Before making the decision on the merits of the complaint, the Committee will decide on its admissibility. This decision can be made before the State submits its written comments.

To determine whether the communication is admissible or the Committee will check if it meets the requirements set up in the articles 2,3 and 4 of the Optional Protocol.

For more information see:

When will the CEDAW Committee refuse to accept the communication?

What are the inadmissibility criteria under art. 4.2 of the OP CEDAW?

At any stage of the process between the receipt of the communication and the decision on the merits the CEDAW Committee may decide - on the basis of the information presented by the complainant - to address the relevant State with the request to take the interim measures aimed at protecting the victim/victims of the alleged women’s rights violation from the potential ‘irreparable’ harm that she or they are exposed to.

What happens if the communication is inadmissible?

If the CEDAW Committee decides that the communication is inadmissible, it will communicate its decision and the reasons for it as soon as possible to the author of the communication and the State concerned.

The decision of the Committee is irrevocable, however, it can be reviewed by the Committee if it receives a written request submitted by or on behalf of the author/authors of the communication containing the information indicating that the reasons for inadmissibility no longer apply.  

What happens if the communication is admissible?

After the decision on the admissibility of the communication is taken, the Committee will focus on the merits of the complaint. The Committee will submit confidentially the communication to the relevant State and will ask it to send its written explanation or statement concerning the complaint, as well as information about any remedies granted in relation to it. The identity of the complainant will be disclosed to the State provided that she has given her consent for that. However if she does not give her consent then the communication will not be sent to the state party and can not be pursued by the Committee.

The State Party will have six months to send the response to the Committee. This response will be transmitted to the author/authors of the communication who will have the opportunity to submit comments to it within the fixed time limits. 

The Committee will consider its position on the communication in light of “all information made available to it by or on behalf of individuals or groups of individuals and by the State Party concerned”. The Optional Protocol obliges the Committee to transmit the information received to the parties concerned: the author/authors of the complaint and the relevant State Party.

The communication is examined by the Committee in closed meetings and no information related to the communication will be made public prior to the date on which its views are issued. The Committee may request the author/authors of the communication and the related State to keep confidential the whole or part of the submission or information relating to the proceedings.

If the Committee finds the State Party responsible for the violation alleged in the communication, it will formulate the recommendations to the State defining the steps that should be taken in order to remedy the violation.

Possible recommendations include:

o   Measures aimed at terminating the ongoing violation of victim’s rights and at preventing the repetition of the violations;

o   Remedies for the victims such as compensation, restitution, rehabilitation;

o   Eliminating laws, policies and programs that are incompatible with the CEDAW Convention.     

The Committee will transmit its ‘views and the recommendations’ to the State Party and to the author/authors of the communication. The decision of the Committee will be made public. Within six months the State Party shall respond in writing to the Committee’s views and shall inform the Committee about any actions taken to implement the recommendations.

Although the Committee’s decision is not legally binding, the Committee will use its procedures to influence the State and convince it to implement the recommendations. Supportive actions taken by women’s NGOs can also significantly contribute to holding the State accountable for observing the Committee’s recommendations.