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Document 02009R1007-20151018

Consolidated text: Regulation (EC) No 1007/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 September 2009 on trade in seal products (Text with EEA relevance)

ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2009/1007/2015-10-18

02009R1007 — EN — 18.10.2015 — 001.001


This text is meant purely as a documentation tool and has no legal effect. The Union's institutions do not assume any liability for its contents. The authentic versions of the relevant acts, including their preambles, are those published in the Official Journal of the European Union and available in EUR-Lex. Those official texts are directly accessible through the links embedded in this document

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REGULATION (EC) No 1007/2009 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL

of 16 September 2009

on trade in seal products

(Text with EEA relevance)

(OJ L 286 31.10.2009, p. 36)

Amended by:

 

 

Official Journal

  No

page

date

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REGULATION (EU) 2015/1775 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL  of 6 October 2015

  L 262

1

7.10.2015




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REGULATION (EC) No 1007/2009 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL

of 16 September 2009

on trade in seal products

(Text with EEA relevance)



Article 1

Subject matter

This Regulation establishes harmonised rules concerning the placing on the market of seal products.

Article 2

Definitions

For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions shall apply:

1. 

‘seal’ means specimens of all species of pinnipeds (Phocidae, Otariidae and Odobenidae);

2. 

‘seal product’ means all products, either processed or unprocessed, deriving or obtained from seals, including meat, oil, blubber, organs, raw fur skins and fur skins, tanned or dressed, including fur skins assembled in plates, crosses and similar forms, and articles made from fur skins;

3. 

‘placing on the market’ means introducing onto the Community market, thereby making available to third parties, in exchange for payment;

4. 

‘Inuit’ means indigenous members of the Inuit homeland, namely those arctic and subarctic areas where, presently or traditionally, Inuit have aboriginal rights and interests, recognised by Inuit as being members of their people and includes Inupiat, Yupik (Alaska), Inuit, Inuvialuit (Canada), Kalaallit (Greenland) and Yupik (Russia);

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4a. 

‘other indigenous communities’ means communities in independent countries who are regarded as indigenous on account of their descent from the populations which inhabited the country, or a geographical region to which the country belongs, at the time of conquest or colonisation or the establishment of present State boundaries and who, irrespective of their legal status, retain some or all of their own social, economic, cultural and political institutions;

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5. 

‘import’ means any entry of goods into the customs territory of the Community.

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Article 3

Conditions for placing on the market

1.  

The placing on the market of seal products shall be allowed only where the seal products result from hunts conducted by Inuit or other indigenous communities, provided that all of the following conditions are fulfilled:

(a) 

the hunt has traditionally been conducted by the community;

(b) 

the hunt is conducted for and contributes to the subsistence of the community, including in order to provide food and income to support life and sustainable livelihood, and is not conducted primarily for commercial reasons;

(c) 

the hunt is conducted in a manner which has due regard to animal welfare, taking into consideration the way of life of the community and the subsistence purpose of the hunt.

The conditions set out in the first subparagraph shall apply at the time or point of import for imported seal products.

1a.  
At the time of its being placed on the market, a seal product shall be accompanied by a document attesting compliance with the conditions set out in paragraph 1 (‘attesting document’).

An attesting document shall, upon request, be issued by a body recognised for that purpose by the Commission.

Such recognised bodies shall be independent, competent to carry out their functions and subject to an external audit.

2.  
By way of derogation from paragraph 1, the import of seal products shall also be allowed where it is of an occasional nature and consists exclusively of goods for the personal use of travellers or their families. The nature and quantity of those goods shall not be such as to indicate that they are being imported for commercial reasons.
3.  
The application of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not undermine the achievement of the objective of this Regulation.
4.  
The Commission shall adopt implementing acts to further specify the administrative arrangements for the recognition of bodies that may attest to the compliance with the conditions set out in paragraph 1 of this Article and for the issuance and control of attesting documents, as well as the administrative provisions necessary for ensuring compliance with paragraph 2 of this Article. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 5(2).
5.  
If there is evidence that a seal hunt is conducted primarily for commercial reasons, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 4a in order to prohibit the placing on the market or limit the quantity that may be placed on the market of seal products resulting from the hunt concerned. It is of particular importance that the Commission follow its usual practice and carry out consultations with experts, including Member States' experts, before adopting those delegated acts.
6.  
The Commission shall adopt implementing acts to issue technical guidance notes setting out an indicative list of the codes of the Combined Nomenclature which may cover seal products subject to this Article. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 5(2).

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Article 4

Free movement

Member States shall not impede the placing on the market of seal products which comply with this Regulation.

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Article 4a

Exercise of the delegation

1.  
The power to adopt delegated acts is conferred on the Commission subject to the conditions laid down in this Article.
2.  
The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in Article 3(5) shall be conferred on the Commission for a period of five years from 10 October 2015. The Commission shall draw up a report in respect of the delegation of power not later than nine months before the end of the five-year period. The delegation of power shall be tacitly extended for periods of an identical duration, unless the European Parliament or the Council opposes such extension not later than three months before the end of each period.
3.  
The delegation of power referred to in Article 3(5) may be revoked at any time by the European Parliament or by the Council. A decision to revoke shall put an end to the delegation of the power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the validity of any delegated acts already in force.
4.  
As soon as it adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to the European Parliament and to the Council.
5.  
A delegated act adopted pursuant to Article 3(5) shall enter into force only if no objection has been expressed either by the European Parliament or the Council within a period of two months of notification of that act to the European Parliament and the Council or if, before the expiry of that period, the European Parliament and the Council have both informed the Commission that they will not object. That period shall be extended by two months at the initiative of the European Parliament or of the Council.

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Article 5

Committee procedure

1.  
The Commission shall be assisted by the committee established pursuant to Article 18(1) of Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97 ( 7 ). That committee shall be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 8 ).
2.  
Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.
3.  
As regards implementing acts to be adopted pursuant to Article 3(4), where the committee delivers no opinion, the Commission shall not adopt the draft implementing act and the third subparagraph of Article 5(4) of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.

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Article 5a

Information

The Commission shall inform the public, with a view to raising their awareness, and competent authorities, including customs authorities, of the provisions of this Regulation and of the rules under which seal products resulting from hunts conducted by Inuit or other indigenous communities can be placed on the market.

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Article 6

Penalties and enforcement

Member States shall lay down the rules on penalties applicable to infringements of this Regulation and shall take all measures necessary to ensure that they are implemented. The penalties provided for shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive. Member States shall notify the Commission of those provisions by 20 August 2010, and shall notify it without delay of any subsequent amendment thereto.

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Article 7

Reporting

1.  
By 31 December 2018 and every four years thereafter, Member States shall submit to the Commission a report outlining the actions taken to implement this Regulation.
2.  
The Commission shall submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a report on the implementation of this Regulation within 12 months of the end of each reporting period referred to in paragraph 1. The first report shall be submitted by 31 December 2019.
3.  
In its reports submitted in accordance with paragraph 2, the Commission shall assess the functioning, effectiveness and impact of this Regulation in achieving its objective.

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Article 8

Entry into force and application

This Regulation shall enter into force on the 20th day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Article 3 shall apply from 20 August 2010.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.



( 1 ) Opinion delivered on 26 February 2009 (not yet published in the Official Journal).

( 2 ) Opinion of the European Parliament of 5 May 2009 (not yet published in the Official Journal) and Council Decision of 27 July 2009.

( 3 )  OJ C 306 E, 15.12.2006, p. 194.

( 4 )  OJ C 308 E, 16.12.2006, p. 170.

( 5 )  OJ L 91, 9.4.1983, p. 30.

( 6 )  OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.

( 7 ) Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97 of 9 December 1996 on the protection of species of wild fauna and flora by regulating trade therein (OJ L 61, 3.3.1997, p. 1).

( 8 ) Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 laying down the rules and general principles concerning mechanisms for control by Member States of the Commission's exercise of implementing powers (OJ L 55, 28.2.2011, p. 13).

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