1.   The Commission shall draw up a list of control bodies and control authorities, recognised for the purpose of compliance in accordance with Article 32(2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007. The list shall be published in Annex I to this Regulation. The procedures for drawing up and amending the list are defined in Articles 4, 16 and 17 of this Regulation. The list shall be made available to the public on the Internet in accordance with Articles 16(4) and 17 of this Regulation.

2.   The list shall contain all the information necessary in respect of each control body or control authority to allow verifying whether products placed on the Community market have been controlled by a control body or authority recognised in accordance with Article 32(2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 and in particular:

1.   The Commission shall consider whether to recognise and include a control body or control authority in the list provided for in Article 3 upon receipt of a request for inclusion in this list from the representative of the control body or control authority concerned. Only complete requests that have been received before 31 October 2011 shall be considered, on the basis of the model of application made available by the Commission in accordance with Article 17(2), for the drawing up of the first list. For the following calendar years, only complete requests that have been received before 31 October of each year shall be considered.

2.   The request can be introduced by control bodies and control authorities established in the Community or in a third country.

3.   The request shall consist of a technical dossier, which shall comprise all the information needed for the Commission to ensure that the conditions set out in Article 32(1) and (2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 are met for all organic products intended for export to the Community, namely:

4.   When examining a request for inclusion in the list of control body or control authority, and also any time after its inclusion, the Commission may request any further information, including the presentation of one or more on-the-spot examination reports established by independent experts. Furthermore, the Commission may, based on risk-assessment and in case of suspected irregularities, organise an on-the-spot examination by experts it designates.

5.   The Commission shall assess whether the technical dossier referred to in paragraph 3 and the information referred to in paragraph 4 are satisfactory and may subsequently decide to recognise and include a control body or control authority in the list. The decision shall be taken in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 37(2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007.

1.   A control body or control authority may only be included in the list referred to in Article 3 when it fulfils the following obligations:

2.   If a control body or a control authority does not send the annual report, referred to in paragraph 1(c), does not keep available or does not communicate all information related to its technical dossier, control system or updated list of operators and products certified as organic, or does not agree to an on-the-spot examination, after request by the Commission within a period which the Commission shall determine according to the severity of the problem and which generally may not be less than 30 days, that control body or control authority may be withdrawn from the list of control bodies and control authorities, in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 37(2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007.

If a control body or a control authority fails to take appropriate and timely remedial action, the Commission shall withdraw it from the list without delay.

1.   The documentary evidence required for import of compliant products referred to in Article 32(1)(c) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007, shall, in accordance with Article 17(2) of this Regulation, be established on the basis of the model set out in Annex II to this Regulation and contain at least all the elements that are part of that model.

2.   The original documentary evidence shall be established by a control authority or the control body which has been recognised for issuing that documentary by a decision as referred to in Article 4.

3.   The authority or body issuing the documentary evidence shall follow the rules established in accordance with Article 17(2) and in the model, notes and guidelines made available by the Commission via the computer system enabling electronic exchange of documents referred to in Article 17(1).

1.   The Commission shall establish a list of recognised third countries in accordance with Article 33(2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007. The list of recognised countries is set out in Annex III to this Regulation. The procedures for drawing up and amending the list are defined in Articles 8 and 16 of this Regulation. Amendments to the list shall be made available to the public on the Internet in accordance with Articles 16(4) and 17 of this Regulation.

2.   The list shall contain all the information necessary in respect of each third country to allow verifying whether products placed on the Community market have been subject to the control system of the third country recognised in accordance with Article 33(2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 and in particular:

1.   The Commission shall consider whether to include a third country in the list provided for in Article 7 upon receipt of a request for inclusion, from the representative of the third country concerned.

2.   The Commission shall only be required to consider a request for inclusion which meets the following preconditions.

The request for inclusion shall be completed by a technical dossier, which shall comprise all the information needed for the Commission to ensure that the conditions set out in Article 33(1) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 are met for products intended for export to the Community, namely:

3.   When examining a request for inclusion in the list of recognised third countries, and also any time after its inclusion, the Commission may request any further information, including the presentation of one or more on-the-spot examination reports established by independent experts. Furthermore, the Commission may, based on risk-assessment and in case of suspected irregularities organise an on-the-spot examination by experts it designates.

4.   The Commission shall assess whether the technical dossier referred to in paragraph 2 and the information referred to in paragraph 3 are satisfactory and may subsequently decide to recognise and include a third country in the list. The decision shall be taken in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 37(2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007.

1.   The Commission shall only be required to consider a request for inclusion when the third country undertakes to accept the following conditions:

2.   If a third country does not send the annual report, referred to Article 33(2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007, does not keep available or does not communicate all information related to its technical dossier or control system or does not agree to an on-the-spot examination, after request by the Commission within a period which the Commission shall determine according to the severity of the problem and which generally may not be less than 30 days, that third country may be withdrawn from the list, in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 37(2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007.

1.   The Commission shall draw up a list of control bodies and control authorities, recognised for the purpose of equivalence in accordance with Article 33(3) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007. The list shall be published in Annex IV to this Regulation. The procedures for drawing up and amending the list are defined in Articles 11, 16 and 17 of this Regulation. The list shall be made available to the public on the Internet in accordance with Articles 16(4) and 17 of this Regulation.

2.   The list shall contain all the information necessary in respect of each control body or authority to allow verifying whether products placed on the Community market have been controlled by a control body or authority recognised in accordance with Article 33(3) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 and in particular:

3.   By way of derogation from paragraph 2(b), those products originating from third countries listed in the list of recognised third countries as referred to in Article 7 which belong to a category which is not referred to in that list may be listed in the list provided for in this Article.

1.   The Commission shall consider whether to include a control body or control authority in the list provided for in Article 10 upon receipt of a request for inclusion from the representative of the control body or control authority concerned on the basis of the model of application made available by the Commission in accordance with Article 17(2). Only complete requests that have been received by 31 October 2009 shall be considered for the drawing up of the first list. For the following calendar years, the Commission shall undertake regular updates of the list as appropriate on the basis of complete requests that have been received before 31 October of each year.

2.   The request can be introduced by control bodies and control authorities established in the Community or in a third country.

3.   The request for inclusion shall consist of a technical dossier, which shall comprise all the information needed for the Commission to ensure that the conditions set out in Article 33(3) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 are met for products intended for export to the Community, namely:

4.   When examining a request for inclusion in the list of control body or control authority, and also any time after its inclusion, the Commission may request any further information, including the presentation of one or more on-the-spot examination reports established by independent expert. Furthermore, the Commission may organise an on-the-spot examination by experts it designates on a risk-based approach and in case of suspected irregularities.

5.   The Commission shall assess whether the technical dossier referred to in paragraph 2 and the information referred to in paragraph 3 are satisfactory and may subsequently decide to recognise and include a control body or control authority in the list. The decision shall be taken in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 37(2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007.

1.   A control body or control authority may only be included in the list referred to in Article 10 when it fulfils the following obligations:

2.   If a control body or a control authority does not send the annual report, referred to in paragraph 1(b), does not keep available or does not communicate all information related to its technical dossier, control system or updated list of operators and products certified as organic, or does not agree to an on-the-spot examination, after request by the Commission within a period which the Commission shall determine according to the severity of the problem and which generally may not be less than 30 days, that control body or control authority may be withdrawn from the list of control bodies and control authorities, in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 37(2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007.

If a control body or a control authority fails to take appropriate and timely remedial action, the Commission shall withdraw it from the list without delay.

1.   The release for free circulation in the Community of a consignment of products referred to in Article 1(2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 and imported in accordance with Article 33 of that Regulation shall be conditional on:

2.   The original certificate of inspection shall be established in accordance with Article 17(2) and paragraphs 3 to 7 of this Article, on the basis of the model and the notes set out in Annex V. The model notes, together with guidelines referred to in Article 17(2), shall be made available by the Commission via the computer system enabling electronic exchange of documents referred to in Article 17.

3.   To be accepted, the certificate of inspection must have been issued by:

4.   The authority or body issuing the certificate of inspection shall only issue the certificate of inspection and endorse the declaration in box 15 of the certificate, after:

It shall furthermore give a serial number to each issued certificate and keep a register of the delivered certificates in chronological order.

5.   The certificate of inspection shall be drawn up in one of the official languages of the Community and filled in, except for the stamps and signatures, either entirely in capital letters or entirely in typescript.

The certificate of inspection shall be in one of the official languages of the Member State of destination. Where necessary, the relevant Member State’s authorities may request a translation of the certificate of inspection in one of its official languages.

Uncertified alterations or erasures shall invalidate the certificate.

6.   The certificate of inspection shall be made in one single original.

The first consignee or, where relevant, the importer may make a copy for the purpose of informing the control authorities and control bodies in accordance with Article 83 of Regulation (EC) No 889/2008. Any such copy shall carry the indication ‘COPY’ or ‘DUPLICATE’ printed or stamped thereon.

7.   For products imported under the transitional rules stipulated in Article 19 of this Regulation, the following shall apply:

8.   At the verification of a consignment, the original certificate of inspection shall be endorsed by the relevant Member State’s authorities in box 17 and returned to the person who submitted the certificate.

9.   The first consignee shall, at the reception of the consignment, complete box 18 of the original of the certificate of inspection, to certify that the reception of the consignment has been carried out in accordance with Article 34 of Regulation (EC) No 889/2008.

The first consignee shall then send the original of the certificate to the importer mentioned in box 11 of the certificate, for the purpose of the requirement laid down in the second subparagraph of Article 33(1) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007, unless the certificate has to further accompany the consignment referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article.

10.   The certificate of inspection may be established by electronic means, using the method made available to the control authorities or control bodies by the Member State concerned. The competent authorities of the Member States may require that the electronic certificate of inspection be accompanied by an advance electronic signature within the meaning of Article 2(2) of Directive 1999/93/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (7). In all other cases, the competent authorities shall require an electronic signature offering equivalent assurances with regard to the functionalities attributed to a signature by applying the same rules and conditions as these defined in the Commission’s provisions on electronic and digitised documents, set out by Commission Decision 2004/563/EC, Euratom (8).

1.   Where a consignment coming from a third country is assigned to customs warehousing or inward processing in the form of a system of suspension as provided for in Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 (9), and subject to one or more preparations as defined in Article 2(i) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007, the consignment shall be subject, before the first preparation is carried out, to the measures referred to in Article 13(1) of this Regulation.

The preparation may include operations such as:

After this preparation, the endorsed original of the certificate of inspection shall accompany the consignment, and shall be presented to the relevant Member State’s authority, which shall verify the consignment for the purpose of its release for free circulation.

After this procedure, the original of the certificate of inspection shall, where relevant, be returned to the importer of the consignment, referred to in box 11 of the certificate to fulfil the requirement laid down in the second subparagraph of Article 33(1) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007.

2.   Where, under a suspensive customs procedure pursuant to Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92, a consignment coming from a third country is intended to be submitted in a Member State, before its release for free circulation in the Community, to a splitting into different batches, the consignment shall be subject, before this splitting is carried out, to the measures referred to in Article 13(1) of this Regulation.

For each of the batches which results from the splitting, an extract of the certificate of inspection shall be submitted to the relevant Member State’s authority, in accordance with the model and the notes set out in Annex VI. The extract from the certificate of inspection shall be endorsed by the relevant Member State’s authorities in box 14.

A copy of each endorsed extract from the certificate of inspection shall be kept together with the original certificate of inspection by the person identified as the original importer of the consignment and mentioned in box 11 of the certificate of inspection. This copy shall carry the indication ‘COPY’ or ‘DUPLICATE’ printed or stamped thereon.

After the splitting, the endorsed original of each extract of the certificate of inspection shall accompany the batch concerned, and shall be presented to the relevant Member State’s authority, which shall verify the batch concerned for the purpose of its release for free circulation.

The consignee of a batch shall, at the reception thereof complete the original of the extract of the certificate of inspection in box 15, in order to certify that the reception of the batch has been carried out in accordance with Article 34 of Regulation (EC) No 889/2008.

The consignee of a batch shall keep the extract of the certificate of inspection at the disposal of the control authorities and/or control bodies for not less than two years.

3.   The preparation and splitting operations referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be carried out in accordance with the relevant provisions set out in Title V of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 and in Title IV of Regulation (EC) No 889/2008.