Article 24
1. The decision suspending an official shall state whether the official is to continue to receive his full remuneration during the period of suspension or what part thereof is to be withheld. The amount paid to the official shall not under any circumstances be less than the minimum subsistence figure laid down in Article 6 of Annex VIII to these Staff Regulations, with the addition of any family allowances payable. 2. The situation of a suspended official must be definitively settled within six months of the date on which the suspension takes effect. If no such decision is taken within six months, the official concerned shall be entitled to again receive full remuneration, subject to paragraph 3. 3. Remuneration may continue to be withheld in part after the six-month deadline referred to in paragraph 2 if the official concerned is the subject of criminal proceedings for the same acts and is in custody as a result of those proceedings. In such cases the official shall not receive full remuneration until the competent court has ordered his release. 4. Sums withheld under paragraph 1 shall be repaid to the official if the final decision imposes a disciplinary penalty no more severe than a written warning, reprimand or deferment of advancement to a higher step, or if no disciplinary penalty is imposed; in the latter case, the repayment shall be made with compound interest at the rate defined in Article 12 of Annex XII. Section 7 Parallel criminal prosecution