Montenegro is the country with the lowest rate of people under alternative sanctions in Europe, according to the latest report by the Council of Europe and the University of Lausanne.
According to the report “Probation and Prisons in Europe, 2025: Key Findings of the SPACE reports”, there were 97 people under supervision under alternative sanctions in Montenegro as of January 31, 2025. This is 15,6 people per 100.000 inhabitants, the lowest among European jurisdictions that provided data.
On the same day, there were 1.244 people in Montenegrin prisons, or 199,6 prisoners per 100.000 inhabitants. In total, according to the report, 1.341 people in Montenegro were under some form of formal criminal supervision - in prison or through alternative sanctions.
Montenegro also has the lowest ratio of persons under alternative sanctions to prisoners: 7,8 persons under alternative sanctions per 100 prisoners.
In half of European countries, the rate of persons under alternative sanctions is higher than 153,6 per 100.000 inhabitants, while in Montenegro it is 15,6...
The highest rates of persons under alternative sanctions were recorded in Poland (652,4 per 100.000 inhabitants), Turkey (495,3), Georgia (467,5), Armenia (429,5) and Albania (386,9).
The lowest rates, after Montenegro, are in Greece (21,3), North Macedonia (31,1), Switzerland (44,2), Serbia (47,2) and Bulgaria (48,2).
Montenegro is classified in the report as a group of countries with a low rate of persons under alternative sanctions and a relatively high prison population rate.
This group includes, in addition to Montenegro, Greece, North Macedonia, Serbia and Croatia. In all of these countries, the prison rate is higher than the rate of people under alternative sanctions.
In Montenegro, the difference is among the largest: the rate of persons under alternative sanctions is 15,6, and the rate of prisoners is 199,6 per 100.000 inhabitants.
In most European jurisdictions, the relationship is reversed. The report shows that in 28 of the 36 jurisdictions analyzed, the rate of people under alternative sanctions is higher than the rate of prisoners. The exceptions are Montenegro, Greece, North Macedonia, Switzerland, Serbia, Bulgaria, Croatia and Azerbaijan.
The biggest drop compared to the previous year
Montenegro also recorded the largest annual decline in the rate of persons under alternative sanctions among jurisdictions for which comparative data for 2024 and 2025 are available.
According to the report, the rate of people under alternative sanctions in Montenegro has decreased by 33 percent compared to the previous year.
Georgia (22 percent), Albania (21 percent), Scotland (19 percent), Estonia (18 percent), Liechtenstein (16 percent) and Cyprus (15 percent) also recorded declines.
The largest increases were recorded in Armenia (65 percent) and North Macedonia (63 percent). Growth was also recorded in Croatia (14 percent), Serbia (12 percent), Sweden (9 percent), Turkey (8 percent), Azerbaijan (7 percent) and Monaco (7 percent).
Balkans at the bottom, Albania the exception
The report indicates that several countries with the lowest rates of persons under alternative sanctions are located in the Balkans.
Among the countries with the lowest rates are Montenegro (15,6), North Macedonia (31,1), Serbia (47,2) and Bulgaria (48,2). The authors state that the low rates in some Balkan countries can be linked to the fact that alternative sanctions systems in these countries are relatively recent.
Albania deviates significantly from this pattern. It had 9.144 people under alternative sanctions, or a rate of 386,9 per 100.000 population. It had 4.530 people in prison, or 191,7 per 100.000 population.
Serbia had 3.103 persons under alternative sanctions and 11.430 prisoners. The rate of persons under alternative sanctions was 47,2 and the rate of prisoners was 174 per 100.000 population.
Croatia had 3.451 people under alternative sanctions and 4.965 prisoners. The rate of people under alternative sanctions was 89,1 and the rate of prisoners was 128,2.
North Macedonia had 567 persons under alternative sanctions and 2.668 prisoners. The rate of persons under alternative sanctions was 31,1 and the rate of prisoners was 146,4 per 100.000 population.
Women and foreign citizens
Montenegro is one of the few countries in which the proportion of women among persons under alternative sanctions is lower than the proportion of women in prisons.
According to the report, women made up 2,1 percent of persons under alternative sanctions in Montenegro, while they made up 2,8 percent of the prison population. The European median share of women among persons under alternative sanctions was 10,7 percent, and among prisoners was 5,4 percent.
Foreign nationals accounted for 6,2 percent of persons under alternative sanctions in Montenegro and 15,8 percent of the prison population. At the European level, the median share of foreigners among persons under alternative sanctions was 9,9 percent and among prisoners was 17 percent.
Key data for Montenegro
According to the Council of Europe's SPACE II research for 2025, Montenegro had 97 people covered by alternative sanctions and measures implemented in the community, or 15,6 per 100.000 inhabitants.
This is the lowest rate among European jurisdictions that provided data.
During the same period, there were 1.244 people in Montenegrin prisons, or 199,6 prisoners per 100.000 inhabitants.
For every 100 prisoners in Montenegro, there were only 7,8 people under community supervision, which is the lowest ratio in Europe.
The number of people covered by alternative sanctions decreased by 33 percent compared to the previous year.
The data are not fully comparable.
The authors of the report warn that the data should be interpreted with caution, as not all countries use the same counting methodology.
Prison statistics generally count individual prisoners, while in alternative sanctions some jurisdictions count persons and some cases, measures or orders.
The report includes data from the Council of Europe's annual criminal statistics systems SPACE I and SPACE II. The data mainly relate to the situation as of 31 January 2025, while the mortality data relate to 2024.
The text was created with the help of artificial intelligence.
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