enfsi.eu

ENFSI (the European Network of Forensic Science Institutes) is a Europe-wide network of forensic science institutes, founded in 1995 to improve the exchange of information in forensic science and to raise the quality of forensic science delivery in Europe. Its role combines quality and competence management, research and development, education and training, and specialist work carried out through 17 Expert Working Groups. The European Commission has recognized ENFSI as the monopoly organization in the field of forensic science.

What ENFSI does

ENFSI's stated purpose has two connected parts: improving mutual exchange of information among forensic science institutes, and improving the quality of forensic science delivery in Europe. Both are described as the network's main issues.

Its work is organized around four broad areas:

• Quality and competence management — general work in this field is named alongside the network's other core activities.
• Research and development — also part of the general work of the network.
• Education and training — the third general area of activity.
• Forensic expertise — handled through 17 different Expert Working Groups, each dealing with a distinct forensic specialty.

Recognition and cooperation

The European Commission has recognized ENFSI as the monopoly organization in the field of forensic science. This recognition is the clearest signal of ENFSI's standing as the representative body for the field at European level.

ENFSI also cooperates with other institutions. Its news section reports the launch of ENFSI–EUDA cooperation (published 3 September 2026), showing that the network engages with partner organizations beyond its own membership.

How the network is organized

ENFSI's structure is set out on its own site under the following headings:

The 17 Expert Working Groups are where specialist forensic disciplines are dealt with, and they are also the source of many of the network's meetings and events.

Where to follow ENFSI's activity

The ENFSI website publishes news and events, and provides a contact form for getting in touch. Recent news items include working group meetings such as the 23rd FINWG Annual Meeting in Luxembourg (7–9 October 2026), the ENFHEX and EDEWG Joint Meeting in Lisbon (29 September–1 October 2026), and the 27th Fire and Explosion Investigation Expert Working Group Annual Meeting in Malta. Upcoming events listed on the site include the APST meeting 2027 in Wiesbaden (20–23 April 2027), the ENFSI Annual Meeting 2027 in Zagreb (18–21 May 2027), and the Fire and Explosion Investigation Working Group Annual Meeting 2027 in Prague (6–9 September 2027).

For anyone assessing ENFSI's position in European forensic science, the key points are its founding purpose of information exchange and quality improvement, its 17 specialist working groups, and its recognition by the European Commission as the monopoly organization in the field.

ENFSI stands for the European Network of Forensic Science Institutes, a network founded in 1995 to improve the mutual exchange of information in forensic science and to raise the quality of forensic science delivery in Europe. It is relevant to forensic institutes, laboratories, and practitioners who want a European-level body coordinating quality, research, training, and specialist expertise. The network describes itself as having been recognized by the European Commission as the monopoly organization in the field of forensic science.

Core purpose and scope

ENFSI's stated main issues are twofold:

• Improving mutual exchange of information among forensic science institutes in Europe.
• Improving the quality of forensic science delivery in Europe.

Beyond that general work, the network organizes its professional activity around three broad areas plus specialist expertise:

How the organization is structured

The site's navigation points to the bodies that make up the network: the Board, the Secretariat, Standing Committees, and Working Groups, alongside a Vision page. The 17 Expert Working Groups are where individual forensic disciplines are dealt with, and their activity is visible in the network's news and events — for example, meetings of the Fingerprint Working Group (FINWG), the Fire and Explosion Investigation Working Group, and joint meetings such as ENFHEX and EDEWG.

What the site is useful for

If you are checking whether ENFSI is the right body to follow or contact, the site serves as an entry point for:

• News — recent working-group meetings and cooperation announcements, such as the launch of ENFSI–EUDA cooperation.
• Events — upcoming meetings with dates and locations, including the APST meeting 2027 in Wiesbaden, Germany (20–23 April 2027), the ENFSI Annual Meeting 2027 in Zagreb, Croatia (18–21 May 2027), and the Fire and Explosion Investigation Working Group Annual Meeting in Prague, Czech Republic (6–9 September 2027).
• Contact — a contact form for reaching the network.

Note that the homepage embeds a Google Maps placeholder; the actual map content only loads if you choose to unblock it and accept sharing data with third-party providers.

Who this matters to

ENFSI is aimed at the forensic science community — institutes and their representatives, working-group members, and those interested in European coordination on forensic quality, methods, and training. If your question is about a specific forensic discipline, the relevant Expert Working Group is the place to look; if it is about the network overall, the Board, Secretariat, and Standing Committees pages are the starting points.

ENFSI's official website (enfsi.eu) is the primary place to find its news, events, and contact channels. The homepage has a News section for recent activities and working-group meetings, an Events section listing upcoming conferences with dates and host cities, and a Contact Us area with a contact form. The page also embeds a Google Maps placeholder that only loads after you choose to unblock third-party content.

News: recent activities and meeting reports

The News section on the homepage publishes short items on ENFSI activities, typically with a date and a "read more" link. Examples visible on the page include:

• 23rd FINWG Annual Meeting (Fingerprint Working Group), 7–9 October 2026, Luxembourg
• ENFHEX and EDEWG Joint Meeting, 29 September – 1 October 2026, Lisbon
• 27th Fire and Explosion Investigation Expert Working Group Annual Meeting, Malta
• ENFSI – EUDA cooperation launched (3 September 2026)

A "read all news" link at the end of the section leads to the full news listing. Use this section if you want to track what the network and its working groups have recently done; use the Events section for what is coming up.

Events: upcoming meetings and dates

The Events section lists future meetings with dates and locations, each with a short description and a "read more" link. Entries shown on the page include:

Some entries are explicitly framed as "save the date" notices aimed at member representatives and working-group communities, so details may be updated closer to the event. Check the individual event page before making travel arrangements.

Contact: Contact Us and the contact form

The site provides a Contact Us section with a Contact Form. This is the general route for enquiries to the network. The homepage itself does not publish a direct email address or phone number in the visible content, so the form is the practical first step; if your enquiry concerns a specific working group, naming it in your message helps route it appropriately.

A note on the embedded map

The homepage includes a Google Maps embed that is blocked by default. The page states that you are viewing a placeholder and that loading the actual content will share data with third-party providers. To view it, use the on-page option to accept the required service and unblock the content. If you prefer not to share data with third parties, skip the map — the postal and organizational details you need are generally reachable through the Contact Us section instead.

Quick routing guide

• Looking for recent meeting reports or cooperation news → News section, then "read all news"
• Planning around a future conference → Events section, then the individual event page
• Sending a question or request → Contact Us / Contact Form
• Want the organizational picture (Board, Secretariat, Standing Committees, Working Groups) → the "go to ..." navigation links on the homepage

ENFSI organizes three main types of events: annual meetings of its Expert Working Groups (EWGs), joint meetings between related working groups, and the ENFSI Annual Meeting for member representatives. Events are announced through the News section and the Events calendar on enfsi.eu, each listing dates and locations. Whether a given event matters to you depends on which forensic discipline you work in — the working-group meetings are discipline-specific, while the Annual Meeting is the network's member-facing governance event.

Working Group Annual Meetings

Each of ENFSI's 17 Expert Working Groups handles its own forensic specialty and convenes its own annual meeting. These are the events most directly relevant to practitioners in a specific field.

Examples listed on the site:

The pattern is consistent: a numbered annual meeting, a host city, and a multi-day programme. If your discipline has a working group, its annual meeting is the recurring event to watch.

Joint Meetings Between Working Groups

ENFSI also runs combined meetings where two or more working groups share a programme. The site reports an ENFHEX and EDEWG Joint Meeting in Lisbon, 29 September – 1 October 2026, described as "a memorable milestone." Joint formats suit topics that span disciplines — for example, where questioned-document examination and handwriting expertise overlap — and give attendees exposure beyond a single working group.

The ENFSI Annual Meeting

The ENFSI Annual Meeting is aimed at member representatives rather than the general forensic community. The 2027 edition is scheduled for 18–21 May 2027 in Zagreb, Croatia, with a save-the-date notice addressed to "ENFSI colleagues." If you are not affiliated with a member institute, this is likely not the entry point for you; the working-group meetings are.

How to Track Events

Two channels on enfsi.eu carry event information:

• News — post-meeting reports and announcements, such as the FINWG, ENFHEX/EDEWG, and Fire and Explosion meeting items, plus organizational news like the ENFSI–EUDA cooperation launch.
• Events — a calendar of upcoming meetings with dates and locations, including save-the-date flyers for future editions.

Both are reachable from the site's main navigation, alongside Board, Secretariat, Standing Committees, Working Groups, and Vision. Checking the Events calendar is the practical way to confirm dates before planning attendance; the News section tells you what has already happened and how a meeting went.

Choosing Which Event Fits

Use the working-group annual meeting if you need depth in one discipline. Use a joint meeting if your work crosses two specialties. Treat the Annual Meeting as a member-institute governance event unless you are a designated representative. For anything not yet posted — registration details, programmes, eligibility — the site's Contact Us page and contact form are the route to ask the Secretariat directly.

ENFSI is organized around a Board, a Secretariat, Standing Committees and Working Groups, with 17 Expert Working Groups covering distinct forensic disciplines. If you are trying to find where your specialty fits, the Working Groups are the part to check first: each one handles a specific forensic expertise area and runs its own annual meetings. The site's "go to …" menu lists Board, Secretariat, Standing Committees and Working Groups as separate sections, so you can go straight to the one that matches your role.

The main parts of the organization

The ENFSI site presents its structure as four connected layers:

The network was founded in 1995 to improve mutual exchange of information in forensic science and to raise the quality of forensic science delivery in Europe. Quality and competence management, research and development, and education and training are described as general areas of work, while the specialist subjects are handled by the 17 Expert Working Groups.

What the Expert Working Groups do

Each Working Group concentrates on one forensic expertise. The site's news and events show this in practice:

• FINWG (Fingerprint Working Group) held its 23rd Annual Meeting on 7–9 October 2026 in Luxembourg.
• ENFHEX and EDEWG held a joint meeting in Lisbon from 29 September to 1 October 2026.
• The Fire and Explosion Investigation Expert Working Group held its 27th Annual Meeting in Malta.

So a Working Group is both a professional community for a discipline and a organizer of recurring meetings where that community exchanges results and practice. Upcoming events follow the same pattern, for example the APST (Animal, Plant and Soil Working Groups) meeting in Wiesbaden on 20–23 April 2027 and the Fire and Explosion Investigation Working Group Annual Meeting in Prague on 6–9 September 2027.

How to locate the group that fits your work

1. Identify your forensic discipline (for example fingerprints, handwriting and documents, fire and explosion, or animal, plant and soil evidence).
2. Open the Working Groups section from the "go to …" menu on the ENFSI site and compare the group names and scopes.
3. Check the News and Events sections for that group's next annual meeting; the event listing usually names the group and the host city.
4. If your question is about quality, training or research rather than a discipline, look at the Standing Committees instead.
5. For general or membership-related enquiries, use the Contact Us page and its contact form.

A practical example: a fingerprint examiner would look at FINWG and its annual meeting announcements, while a laboratory manager concerned with competence management would start with the Standing Committees.

What this structure means for you

The split matters because it tells you where decisions and information sit. Discipline-specific methods, terminology and meeting contacts come from a Working Group; network-level positions on quality, training and research come through the Standing Committees and the Board. The site notes that ENFSI has been recognized by the European Commission as the monopoly organization in the field of forensic science, which is why its working-group output is often treated as a reference point in European forensic practice.

One caution: the site describes the structure and activities but does not publish membership criteria or fees on the pages summarized here, so confirm eligibility and participation conditions with the Secretariat or the relevant Working Group before planning to join a meeting.