Denne uafhængighed sikres blandt andet ved, at Europa-Parlamentet udnævner ombudsmanden for en hel valgperiode, samt at ombudsmandsembedets budget er et bilag til Parlamentets budget og undergivet samme regler.
Important guarantees of independence are that the European Parliament appoints the Ombudsman for the duration of its term of office and that the budget of his office is annexed to that of the Parliament and should be treated in the same way.