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Document 32015R2447

Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/2447 of 24 November 2015 laying down detailed rules for implementing certain provisions of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down the Union Customs Code

OJ L 343, 29.12.2015, p. 558–893 (BG, ES, CS, DA, DE, ET, EL, EN, FR, HR, IT, LV, LT, HU, MT, NL, PL, PT, RO, SK, SL, FI, SV)

Legal status of the document In force: This act has been changed. Current consolidated version: 11/03/2024

ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2015/2447/oj

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Official Journal

29.12.2015

Official Journal of the European Union

L 343/558

COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING REGULATION (EU) 2015/2447

of 24 November 2015

laying down detailed rules for implementing certain provisions of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down the Union Customs Code

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, in particular Article 291 thereof,

Having regard to Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and the Council of 9 October 2013 laying down the Union Customs Code (1) , and in particular Articles 8, 11, 17, 25, 32, 37, 41, 50, 54, 58, 63, 66, 76, 100, 107, 123, 132, 138, 143, 152, 157, 161, 165, 169, 176, 178, 181, 184, 187, 193, 200, 207, 209, 213, 217, 222, 225, 232, 236, 266, 268, 273 and 276 thereof,

Whereas:

(1)	Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 (Code), in its consistency with the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), confers on the Commission implementing powers to specify the procedural rules for some of its elements, in the interest of clarity, precision and foreseeability.

(2)

The use of information and communication technologies, as laid down in Decision No 70/2008/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (2), is a key element in ensuring trade facilitation and, at the same time, the effectiveness of customs controls, which thus significantly contributes to the reduction of costs for business and of risks for society. Therefore, exchanges of information between customs authorities on the one hand, and between economic operators and customs authorities on the other hand, as well as the storage of such information using electronic data-processing techniques require specific rules on the information systems used. Storage and processing of customs information and a harmonised interface with economic operators should be established as a component of systems offering a direct and EU harmonised access to trade, where appropriate. Any storage and processing of personal data under this Regulation is in full compliance with the Union and national data protection provisions in force.

(3)	Any processing of personal data under this Regulation is in full compliance with the Union and national data protection provisions in force.

(4)	In those cases where authorities or persons from third countries will use electronic systems, their access will be restricted to the required functionality and in line with the Union legal provisions.

(5)	In order to ensure that there is only one economic operators registration and identification number (EORI number) for each economic operator, it is necessary to have clear and transparent rules that define the customs authority competent for assigning it.

(6)	In order to facilitate the proper development and maintenance of the electronic system relating to binding tariff information and the efficient use of the information uploaded therein, rules for the setting up of that system and its operation should be determined.

(7)	An electronic information and communication system for the exchange and storage of information on the proofs of the customs status of Union goods should be introduced to achieve facilitation and ensure effective monitoring.

(8)	The requirement to submit in advance the data that is required for the lodgement of CN 23 declaration in an electronic form entails adjustments in the processing of customs declarations pertaining to postal consignment, in particular those consignments that benefit from relief from customs duty.

(9)	Transit simplifications should be aligned with the electronic environment envisaged by the Code and which suits better the needs of economic operators, while ensuring facilitation of legitimate trade and the effectiveness of customs controls.

(10)

In the interests of ensuring a more efficient functioning and better monitoring of the procedures regarding goods in transit that are currently carried out on paper or are partially computerised, it is desirable that transit procedures be fully computerised for all modes of transport while having defined exceptions for travellers and business continuity cases.

(11)

In order to give effect to the right of every person to be heard before customs authorities take a decision that would adversely affect that person, it is necessary to specify the procedural rules for the exercise of that right, taking also into consideration the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union as well as the fundamental rights which are an integral part of the Union legal order and in particular the right to good administration.

(12)

In order to make the system of applications for decisions relating to customs legislation operative and to ensure a smooth and effective decision-taking process by the customs authorities, it is of utmost importance that Member States communicate to the Commission a list of their competent customs authorities to which applications for decisions have to be submitted.

(13)	Common rules are needed for the submission and acceptance of a decision relating to binding information, as well as for taking such decisions, in order to ensure equal conditions for all economic operators.

(14)	Since the electronic system relating to binding tariff information is yet to be upgraded, paper forms for BTI applications and decisions need to be used until the system is upgraded.

(15)

In order to comply with the obligation that decisions relating to binding information are to be binding, a reference to the relevant decision should be included in the customs declaration. Furthermore, in order to support an effective monitoring by the customs authorities of the compliance with the obligations resulting from a binding tariff information decision, it is also necessary to specify the procedural rules for the collection and use of surveillance data that are relevant for monitoring the usage of that decision. It is also necessary to specify how that monitoring shall be carried out as long as the electronic systems are not upgraded.

(16)

In order to ensure uniformity, transparency and legal certainty, procedural rules are needed for the extended use of decisions relating to binding information and for notifying the customs authorities that the taking of decisions relating to binding information is suspended for goods whose correct and uniform tariff classification or determination of origin cannot be ensured.

(17)

The criteria for granting the status of an authorised economic operator (AEO) for customs simplifications and for security and safety, which can also be combined, and the procedure for applying for that status should be laid down in a more detailed manner to ensure uniform implementation as regards the different types of the status of AEO authorisations.

(18)

Since the electronic system which is necessary for the application of the provisions of the Code governing both the application for and the authorisation granting the status of an Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) is yet to be upgraded, the currently-used means, in paper form and electronic need to continue to be used until the system is upgraded.

(19)

Uniform and effective application of customs controls requires harmonised exchange of risk information and risk analysis results. Therefore, an electronic communication and information system should be used for risk-related communications between customs authorities and between those authorities and the Commission as well as for the storage of that information.

(20)

To ensure a correct and uniform application of tariff quotas, rules on their management and responsibilities of the customs authorities for this task should be laid down. It is also required to establish procedural rules for the proper functioning of the electronic system relating to the management of tariff quotas.

(21)

Procedural rules are needed to ensure the collection of surveillance data on declarations for release for free circulation or on export declarations representative for the Union. Furthermore, it is also necessary to establish procedural rules for the proper functioning of the electronic system relating to that surveillance. It is also necessary to specify procedural rules for the collection of surveillance data as long as the electronic system relating to that surveillance and the national import and export systems are not upgraded.

(22)	In the context of non-preferential rules of origin, procedural rules are necessary for the provision and verification of the proof of origin where agricultural or other Union legislation provides for this proof of origin in order to benefit from special import arrangements.

(23)

Within the framework of the Union’s Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) and of the preferential tariff measures adopted unilaterally by the Union for certain countries or territories, procedures and forms should be established to ensure a common application of the rules of origin. Provisions should also be established aiming to ensure compliance with the relevant rules by GSP beneficiary countries and those countries or territories and set out procedures for an effective administrative cooperation with the Union in order to facilitate verifications and prevent, or combat fraud.

(24)

In the context of preferential rules of origin, procedures are needed to facilitate the process of issuing of proofs of origin in the Union, including provisions concerning the exchange of information between economic operators by means of supplier’s declarations and the functioning of administrative cooperation between Member States, notably through the issuing of Information Certificates INF 4. Such procedures should take into account and narrow the gap resulting from the fact that the Union has concluded free-trade agreements that do not always include rules for the replacement of proofs of origin for the purpose of sending products not yet released for free circulation elsewhere within the parties of such agreements. Such procedures should also take into account that the Union may not include in future free-trade agreements comprehensive rules or not include any rule at all for the certification of origin and rely solely on the internal legislation of the parties. It is therefore necessary to establish general procedures for the granting of approved exporter’s authorisations for the purpose of such agreements. Following the same reasoning, procedures for the registration of exporters outside of the GSP framework should also be provided for.

(25)

Within the GSP framework, procedures are needed in order to facilitate the replacement of proofs of origin, whether they are certificates of origin Form A, invoice declarations or statements on origin. Such rules should facilitate the movement of products not yet released for free circulation elsewhere within the customs territory of the Union or, where applicable, to Norway, Switzerland or Turkey, once that country fulfils certain conditions. Forms to be used for issuing certificates of origin Form A, movement certificate EUR.1 and forms used by the exporters to apply for the status of registered exporters should also be provided for.

(26)

In order to ensure uniform and harmonised application of the provisions on customs valuation, in compliance with international rules, procedural rules should be adopted specifying how the transaction value is determined. For the same reasons, procedural rules need to be adopted specifying how the secondary methods of customs valuation are to be applied and how the customs value is determined in specific cases and under specific circumstances.

(27)

Considering the need to ensure a proper protection of the financial interests of the Union and of the Member States and a level playing field between economic operators, it is necessary to lay down procedural rules regarding the provision of a guarantee, the determination of its amount and, taking into account the risk associated with the different customs procedures, the monitoring of the guarantee by the economic operator concerned and by the customs authorities.

(28)	In order to safeguard the recovery of the customs debt, mutual assistance between customs authorities should be ensured in the cases where a customs debt is incurred in a Member State other than the Member State which accepted the guarantee.

(29)

With a view to facilitate the uniform interpretation throughout the Union of the rules of repayment or remission of duties, procedures and requirements need to be laid down. Repayment or remission is subject to the fulfilment of requirements, as well as to completion of formalities, which have to be clarified at Union level in order to facilitate the Code’s application in the Member States and to prevent differences of treatment. The conditions under which mutual assistance between the customs authorities can take place have to be specified, for the purposes of repayment or remission, in cases where supplementary information must be obtained. Uniform application has also to be provided in repayment or remission cases where export or destruction has taken place without customs supervision. Conditions have to be laid down together with the evidence required to demonstrate that the goods in respect of which repayment or remission is requested have been exported or destroyed.

(30)

In certain cases of repayment or remission where the amount involved is of lesser importance, the Member States should keep at the disposal of the Commission the list of such cases in order to allow the Commission to carry out checks under the framework of own resources controls and to protect the financial interests of the Union.

(31)

To take into account the cases where certain particulars of the entry summary declaration are to be submitted at an early stage in the transport of goods to allow for better protection against serious threats and also the cases where, in addition to the carrier, other persons submit particulars of the entry summary declaration to improve the effectiveness of risk analysis for security and safety purposes, it should be possible to submit the entry summary declaration by more than one data set. Clear rules on the corresponding registration of the submissions and the amendments should be laid down.

(32)

In order to avoid disruption of legitimate trade risk analysis for security and safety purposes should be carried out as a rule within the time limits prescribed for the lodgement of the entry summary declaration with the exception of cases where a risk is identified or additional risk analysis needs to be carried out.

(33)

Since the Import Control System, which is necessary for the application of the provisions of the Code governing the entry summary declaration, is not yet fully upgraded, the currently-used means for the exchange and storage of information other than the electronic data-processing techniques referred to in Article 6(1) of the Code, the Import Control System as it stands currently, has to continue to be used.

(34)	In the same respect, because the current ICS is capable of only receiving an entry summary declaration by submission of one dataset, provisions related to the provision of data in more than one dataset should, until the upgrade of the ICS, be temporarily suspended.

(35)	It is appropriate to lay down the procedural rules that should apply when a sea-going vessel or an aircraft entering the customs territory of the Union arrives first at a customs office in a Member State that was not declared as a country of routing in the entry summary declaration.

(36)	Where the movement of goods in temporary storage involves storage facilities located in more than one Member State, the competent customs authority should consult the customs authorities concerned in order to ensure the fulfilment of the conditions before authorising such movement.

(37)

In order to improve the effective operation of temporary storage, it is appropriate to lay down provisions in the Union customs legislation regulating the movement of goods from one temporary storage facility into another where each of them is covered by one and the same or by different authorisations, as well as the cases where the holders of those authorisations may be one and the same or different persons. In order to ensure effective customs supervision, clear rules establishing the responsibilities of the customs authorities competent for the place of the arrival of the goods should be laid down.

(38)

In order to ensure uniform application of the rules on the customs status of Union goods, which will lead to efficiency gains for the customs administrations as well as for economic operators, procedural rules for the provision and verification of the proof of the customs status of Union goods should be specified, in particular rules relating to the various means by which those proofs can be provided, and simplifications related to such provision of proof.

(39)

For the sake of clarity for economic operators, it is appropriate to specify which customs office is competent for receiving and processing a customs declaration based on the type of the customs declaration and the customs procedure requested by the economic operator. It is also appropriate to specify the conditions for the acceptance of a customs declaration and the situations in which a customs declaration can be amended after the release of the goods.

(40)	The lodgement of a standard customs declaration requires procedural rules specifying that when a customs declaration is lodged with different items of goods, each item is considered as a separate customs declaration.

(41)	The cases of authorisations granted for a regular use of simplified declarations require a harmonisation of practises in terms of deadlines for lodging the supplementary declarations and the supporting documents when missing at the time when the simplified declaration is lodged.

(42)	In order to allow an easy identification of a customs declaration for the purposes of formalities and controls after the acceptance of a customs declaration, procedural rules specifying the use of a Master Reference Number (MRN) should be laid down.

(43)

Uniform measures should be laid down to determine the tariff subheading that could apply upon application by the declarant, to a consignment that is made up of goods falling within different tariff subheadings and in case dealing with each of those goods in accordance with its tariff subheading would entail a burden of work and expense disproportionate to the import or export duty chargeable.

(44)

In order to ensure a proper administration of the granting of authorisation for centralised clearance in cases where more than one customs authorities are involved, the consultation procedure should be standardised. Likewise, an adequate framework for timely communication between the supervising customs office and the customs office of presentation should be set up in order to allow Member States to release the goods in a timely manner and comply also with value added tax legislation, excise legislation, national prohibitions and restrictions and statistics requirements.

(45)

Self-assessment has been introduced as a new simplification offered by the Code. Therefore, it is highly important to define precisely the simplification related to the customs formalities and controls to be carried out by the holder of the authorisation. The relevant rules should ensure a clear application of self-assessment in the Member State through appropriate and proportionate controls.

(46)

The destruction, sale and abandonment of goods to the State requires procedural rules specifying the role of the customs authorities in relation to the type and quantity of any waste or scrap resulting from the destruction of the goods and the procedures to be followed concerning the abandonment and sale of goods.

(47)

The relief from import duty in relation to returned goods should be supported by information establishing that the conditions for such relief are fulfilled. Procedural rules on this subject related with the information required and the exchange of this information between economic operators and customs authorities and between customs authorities should apply.

(48)	The relief from import duty in relation to sea-fishing and products taken from the sea should be supported by the provision of evidence that the conditions to benefit from this relief are fulfilled. Procedural rules on this subject related with the information required should apply.

(49)

Given that in case of an application for an authorisation for special procedures an examination of the economic conditions is required, where evidence exists that the essential interests of Union producers are likely to be adversely affected, clear and simple rules for a proper examination at Union level should be established.

(50)	It is necessary to lay down procedural rules on the discharge of a special procedure where goods have been placed under such a procedure using two or more customs declarations so that it is clear in which sequence such discharge takes place.

(51)	The competent customs authorities should take a decision on a request to transfer rights and obligations from the holder of the procedure to another person.

(52)	Movement of goods under a special procedure to the customs office of exit should be allowed if the formalities pertaining to the export procedure are carried out.

(53)	Accounting segregation should be allowed where equivalent goods are used. The procedural rules about the change of customs status of non-Unions goods and equivalent goods must ensure that an economic operator cannot get an unjustified import duty advantage.

(54)

With a view of facilitating legitimate trade and ensuring the effectiveness of customs controls, while avoiding any discrepancies in the treatment by the customs administrations of the individual Member States, procedural rules should be determined governing the Union transit procedure, the transit procedure in accordance with the Customs Convention on the International Transport of Goods under cover of TIR carnets (3), including any subsequent amendments thereof (TIR Convention), Customs Convention on the ATA Carnet for the Temporary Admission of Goods done at Brussels on 6 December 1961, including any subsequent amendments thereof (ATA Convention) and the Convention on Temporary Admission (4), including any subsequent amendments thereof (Istanbul Convention) and the transit procedures under cover of the form 302 and under the postal system. Those procedural rules determine the main elements of the processes and include simplifications and thereby allow both the customs administrations and the economic operators to fully benefit from harmonised efficient procedures as a concrete example of trade facilitation.

(55)

In view of the specificities of air and maritime transport, it is appropriate to provide additional simplifications for those modes of transport allowing the use of the data available in the records of the air and maritime carriers to be used as transit declarations. Furthermore, additional simplifications should be introduced for the electronic data-processing techniques for goods carried by rail in order to reconcile the relevant provisions with the changes caused by the market liberalisation and the changes in rail procedural rules.

(56)

In order to strike the balance between the effectiveness of the customs authorities’ tasks and the expectations of the economic operators, risk analysis for security and safety purposes of a pre-departure declaration should be carried out prior to the release of goods within a time-limit that takes into account the legitimate interest of unhindered trade in transport of goods.

(57)	Detailed rules for the presentation of goods, formalities at the office of export and the at the office of exit, in particular those ensuring the effective and efficient confirmation of the exit as well as the information exchange between the office of export and office of exit should be laid down.

(58)	Given the existence of similarities between export and re-export, it is appropriate to extend the application of certain rules on export of goods to goods that are re-exported.

(59)

For the sake of safeguarding the legitimate interests of economic operators and ensure the smooth transition to the new legal rules, it is necessary to establish transitional provisions to set out the rules to be applied to goods placed under certain customs procedures before 1 May 2016 and to be released or discharged after this date. Likewise, economic operators should be allowed to submit applications for authorisations under the Code before its date of application, in order to be able to use the granted authorisations as of 1 May 2016.

(60)

The general rules for the implementation of the Code are closely interlinked, they cannot be separated due to the interrelatedness of their subject matter while they contain horizontal rules that apply across several customs procedures. Therefore, it is appropriate to group them together in a single Regulation in order to ensure legal coherence.

(61)	The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Customs Code Committee.

(62)	The provisions of this Regulation should apply as from 1 May 2016 in order to enable the full application of the Code,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

TITLE I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

CHAPTER 1

Scope of the customs legislation, mission of customs and definitions

Article 1

Definitions

(1) For the purposes of this Regulation, Article 1 of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 (5) shall apply.

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

(1)	‘cabin baggage’ means, in the case of air travel, the baggage that the natural person takes with him into and out of the aircraft cabin;

(2)	‘customs office of presentation’ means the customs office competent for the place where the goods are presented;

(3)	‘hold baggage’, in the case of air travel, means the baggage that has been checked in at the airport of departure and is not accessible to the natural person during the flight nor, where relevant, during any stopovers;

(4)

‘identical goods’ means, in the context of customs valuation, goods produced in the same country which are the same in all respects, including physical characteristics, quality and reputation. Minor differences in appearance shall not preclude goods otherwise conforming to the definition from being regarded as identical;

(5)	‘international Union airport’ means any Union airport which, having been so authorised by the customs authority, is approved for air traffic with territories outside of the customs territory of the Union;

(6)	‘intra-Union flight’ means the movement of an aircraft between two Union airports, without any stopover, which does not start from or end at a non-Union airport;

(7)	‘main processed products’ means the processed products for which the authorisation for inward processing has been granted;

(8)	‘marketing activities’ means, in the context of customs valuation, all activities relating to advertising or marketing and promoting the sale of the goods in question and all activities relating to warranties or guarantees in respect of them;

(9)	‘secondary processed products’ means processed products which are a necessary by-product of the processing operation other than the main processed products;

(10)	‘business or tourist aircraft’ means private aircraft intended for journeys whose itinerary depends on the wishes of the user;

(11)	‘public customs warehouse type III’ means a customs warehouse which is operated by the customs authorities;

(12)	‘fixed transport installation’ means technical means used for continuous transport of goods such as electricity, gas and oil;

(13)

‘customs office of transit’ means either of the following:

(a)	the customs office competent for the point of exit from the customs territory of the Union when the goods are leaving that territory in the course of a transit operation via a frontier with a territory outside the customs territory of the Union other than a common transit country;

(b)	the customs office competent for the point of entry into the customs territory of the Union when the goods have crossed a territory outside the customs territory of the Union in the course of a transit operation;

(14)

‘similar goods’, in the context of customs valuation, means goods produced in the same country, which, although not alike in all respects, have like characteristics and like component materials which enable them to perform the same functions and to be commercially interchangeable; the quality of the goods, their reputation and the existence of a trademark are among the factors to be considered in determining whether goods are similar.

CHAPTER 2

Rights and obligations of persons with regard to the customs legislation

Section 1

Provision of information

Subsection 1

Formats and codes of common data requirements, data-exchange and storage

Article 2

Formats and codes for common data requirements

(Article 6(2) of the Code)

1. The formats and codes for the common data requirements referred to in Article 6(2) of the Code and in Article 2 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 for the exchange and storage of information required for applications and decisions are set out in Annex A.

2. The formats and codes for the common data requirements referred to in Article 6(2) of the Code and in Article 2 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 for the exchange and storage of information required for declarations, notifications and proof of customs status are set out in Annex B.

3. By way of derogation from paragraph 1 of this Article, until the date of deployment of the first phase of the upgrading of the BTI system and the Surveillance 2 system, the codes and formats of Annex A shall not apply and the respective codes and formats shall be those set out in Annexes 2-5 to Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) …/…, establishing transitional rules for certain provisions of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council, laying down the Union Customs Code where the relevant electronic systems are not yet operational (6).

By way of derogation from paragraph 1 of this Article, until the date of the upgrading of the AEO system, the codes and formats of Annex A shall not apply and the respective codes and formats shall be those set out in Annexes 6-7 to Delegated Regulation (EU) …/…, establishing transitional rules for certain provisions of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council, laying down the Union Customs Code where the relevant electronic systems are not yet operational.

By way of derogation from paragraph 2 of this Article, until the dates of deployment or upgrading of the relevant IT systems as set out in Annex 1 to Delegated Regulation (EU) …/…, establishing transitional rules for certain provisions of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council, laying down the Union Customs Code where the relevant electronic systems are not yet operational the formats and codes set out in Annex B shall be optional for Member States.

Until the dates of deployment or upgrading of the relevant IT systems as set out in Annex 1 to Delegated Regulation (EU) …/…, establishing transitional rules for certain provisions of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council, laying down the Union Customs Code where the relevant electronic systems are not yet operational the formats and codes required for declarations, notifications and proof of customs status shall be subject to the data requirements set out in Annex 9 to Delegated Regulation (EU) …/…, establishing transitional rules for certain provisions of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council, laying down the Union Customs Code where the relevant electronic systems are not yet operational.

Until the respective dates of the deployment of the UCC Automated Export System and the upgrading of the National Import Systems, as referred to in the Annex to Commission Implementing Decision 2014/255/EU (7), Member States shall ensure that the codes and formats for the notification of presentation allow the presentation of goods in accordance with Article 139 of the Code.

4. Until the date of deployment of the UCC Customs Decisions system, the formats and codes laid down for the following applications and authorisations in Annex A are optional to Member States:

(a)	Applications and authorisations relating to the simplification for the determination of amounts being part of the customs value of the goods;

(b)	Applications and authorisations relating to comprehensive guarantees;

(c)	Applications and authorisations for deferred payment;

(d)	Applications and authorisations for the operation of temporary storage facilities, as referred to in Article 148 of the Code;

(e)	Applications and authorisations for regular shipping services;

(f)	Applications and authorisations for authorised issuer;

(g)	Applications and authorisations for the use of simplified declaration;

(h)	Applications and authorisations for centralised clearance;

(i)	Applications and authorisations for entry of data in the declarant’s records;

(j)	Applications and authorisations for self-assessment;

(k)	Application and authorisation for the status of authorised weigher of bananas;

(l)	Applications and authorisations for the use of inward processing;

(m)	Applications and authorisations for the use of outward processing;

(n)	Applications and authorisations for the use of end use;

(o)	Applications and authorisations for the use of temporary admission;

(p)	Applications and authorisations for the operation of storage facilities for customs warehousing;

(q)	Applications and authorisations for the status of authorised consignee for TIR operations;

(r)	Applications and authorisations for the status of authorised consignor for Union transit;

(s)	Applications and authorisations for the status of authorised consignee for Union transit;

(t)	Applications and authorisations for the use of seals of a special type;

(u)	Applications and authorisations for the use of a transit declaration with reduced dataset;

(v)	Applications and authorisations for the use of an electronic transport document as customs declaration.

Where Member States waive certain codes and formats during the transitional period, they shall ensure that they have implemented effective procedures that allow them to verify that the conditions for granting the authorisation concerned are fulfilled.

Article 3

Security of electronic systems

(Article 16(1) of the Code)

1. When developing, maintaining and employing electronic systems referred to in Article 16(1) of the Code the Member States shall establish and maintain adequate security arrangements for the effective, reliable and secure operation of the various systems. They shall also ensure that measures are in place for checking the source of data and for protecting data against the risk of unauthorised access, loss, alteration or destruction.

2. Each input, modification and deletion of data shall be recorded together with information giving the reason for, and exact time of, such processing and identifying the person who carried it out.

3. The Member States shall inform each other, the Commission and, where appropriate, the economic operator concerned of all actual or suspected breaches of security of the electronic systems.

Article 4

Storage of data

(Article 16(1) of the Code)

All data validated by the relevant electronic system shall be kept for at least 3 years from the end of the year in which such data was validated, unless otherwise specified.

Article 5

Availability of electronic systems

(Article 16(1) of the Code)

1. The Commission and the Member States shall conclude operational agreements laying down the practical requirements for the availability and performance of the electronic systems as well as for business continuity.

2. Operational agreements referred to in paragraph 1 shall in particular lay down appropriate response time for the exchange and processing of information in the relevant electronic systems.

3. The electronic systems shall be kept permanently available. However, that obligation shall not apply:

(a)	in specific cases related to the use of the electronic systems laid down in the agreements referred to in paragraph 1 or, at national level, in the absence of those agreements;

(b)	in the case of force majeure.

Subsection 2

Registration of persons

Article 6

Competent customs authority

(Article 9 of the Code)

The customs authorities responsible for registration shall be those designated by the Member States. The Member States shall communicate the name and address of those authorities to the Commission. The Commission shall publish that information on the Internet.

Article 7

Electronic system relating to EORI number

(Article 16 of the Code)

1. For the exchange and storage of information pertaining to EORI, an electronic system set up for those purposes pursuant to Article 16(1) of the Code (‘EORI system’) shall be used.

Information shall be made available through that system by the competent customs authority whenever new EORI numbers are assigned or there are changes to data stored in respect of registrations already issued.

2. Only one EORI number shall be assigned in respect of each person.

3. The format and codes of the data stored in the EORI system are laid down in Annex 12-01.

4. By way of derogation from paragraph 1 of this Article, until the date of the upgrading of the central EORI system, the formats and codes set out in Annex 12-01 shall not apply.

Until the date of the upgrading of the central EORI system, the codes of the common data requirements for the registration of economic operators and other persons are set out in Annex 9 to Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, establishing transitional rules for certain provisions of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council, laying down the Union Customs Code where the relevant electronic systems are not yet operational.

5. Where Member States collect data listed in point 4 of Annex 12-01 they shall ensure that the formats and codes as set out in Annex 12-01 are used.

Section 2

Decisions relating to the application of customs legislation

Subsection 1

Decisions taken by the customs authorities

Article 8

General procedure for the right to be heard

(Article 22(6) of the Code)

1. The communication referred to in the first subparagraph of Article 22(6) of the Code shall:

(a)	include a reference to the documents and information on which the customs authorities intend to base their decision;

(b)	indicate the period within which the person concerned shall express his point of view from the date on which he receives that communication or is deemed to have received it;

(c)	include a reference to the right of the person concerned to have access to the documents and information referred to in point (a) in accordance with the applicable provisions.

2. Where the person concerned gives his point of view before the expiry of the period referred to in paragraph 1(b) the customs authorities may proceed with taking the decision unless the person concerned simultaneously expresses his intention to further express his point of view within the period prescribed.

Article 9

Specific procedure for the right to be heard

(Article 22(6) of the Code)

1. The customs authorities may make the communication referred to in the first subparagraph of Article 22(6) of the Code as part of the process of verification or control where they intend to take a decision on the basis of any of the following:

(a)	the results of a verification following presentation of the goods;

(b)	the results of a verification of the customs declaration as referred to in Article 191 of the Code;

(c)	the results of post-release control as referred to in Article 48 of the Code, where the goods are still under customs supervision;

(d)	the results of a verification of proof of the customs status of Union goods or, where applicable, the results of verification of the application for the registration of such proof or for the endorsement of such proof;

(e)	the issuing of a proof of origin by the customs authorities;

(f)	the results of control of goods for which no summary declaration, temporary storage declaration, re-export declaration or customs declaration was lodged.

2. Where a communication is made in accordance with paragraph 1 the person concerned may:

(a)	immediately express his point of view by the same means as those used for the communication in accordance with Article 9 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446; or

(b)	demand a communication in accordance with Article 8 except in the cases referred to in paragraph 1(f).

The person concerned shall be informed by the customs authorities of those two options.

3. Where the customs authorities take a decision adversely affecting the person concerned, they shall record whether that person has expressed his point of view in accordance with paragraph 2(a).

Subsection 2

Decisions taken upon application

Article 10

Electronic systems relating to decisions

(Article 16(1) of the Code)

1. For the exchange and storage of information pertaining to applications and decisions which may have an impact in more than one Member State and to any subsequent event which may affect the original application or decision, an electronic system set up for those purposes pursuant to Article 16(1) of the Code shall be used.

Information shall be made available through that system by the competent customs authority without delay and at the latest within 7 days of the authority gaining knowledge of the information.

2. An EU harmonised trader interface designed by the Commission and the Member States in agreement with each other shall be used for the exchange of information pertaining to applications and decisions which may have an impact in more than one Member State.

3. Paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article shall be applicable from the date of deployment of the UCC Customs Decisions system as referred to in the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/255/EU.

Article 11

Customs authority designated to receive applications

(Third subparagraph of Article 22(1) of the Code)

Member States shall communicate to the Commission a list of the customs authorities referred to in the third subparagraph of Article 22(1) of the Code designated to receive applications. Member States shall also communicate to the Commission any subsequent changes to that list.

Article 12

Acceptance of the application

(Article 22(2) of the Code)

1. Where the customs authority accepts an application pursuant to Article 11(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, the date of acceptance of that application shall be the date on which all the information required in accordance with the second subparagraph of Article 22 of the Code was received by the customs authority.

2. Where the customs authority establishes that the application does not contain all the information required, it shall ask the applicant to provide the relevant information within a reasonable time limit which shall not exceed 30 days.

Where the applicant does not provide the information requested by the customs authorities within the period set by them for that purpose, the application shall not be accepted and the applicant shall be notified accordingly.

3. In the absence of any communication to the applicant in relation to whether the application has been accepted or not, that application shall be deemed to be accepted. The date of the acceptance shall be the date of submission of the application or, in those cases where additional information has been provided by the applicant following a request of the customs authority as referred to in paragraph 2, the date when the last piece of information has been provided.

Article 13

Storage of information relating to decisions

(Article 23(5) of the Code)

The customs authority competent to take a decision shall retain all data and supporting information which was relied upon when taking the decision for at least 3 years after the end date of its validity.

Article 14

Consultation between the customs authorities

(Article 22 of the Code)

1. Where a customs authority competent to take a decision needs to consult a customs authority of another Member State concerned about the fulfilment of the necessary conditions and criteria for taking a favourable decision, that consultation shall take place within the period prescribed for the decision concerned. The customs authority competent to take a decision shall establish a time-limit for the consultation that starts from the date of communication by that customs authority of the conditions and criteria which need to be examined by the consulted customs authority.

Where, following the examination referred to in the first subparagraph, the consulted customs authority establishes that the applicant does not fulfil one or more of the conditions and criteria for taking a favourable decision, the results, duly documented and justified, shall be transmitted to the customs authority competent to take the decision.

2. The time-limit established for the consultation in accordance with paragraph 1 may be extended by the customs authority competent to take the decision in any of the following cases:

(a)	where due to the nature of the examinations to be performed the consulted authority requests more time;

(b)	where the applicant carries out adjustments in order to ensure the fulfilment of the conditions and criteria referred to in paragraph 1 and communicates them to the customs authority competent to take the decision, which shall inform the consulted customs authority accordingly.

3. Where the consulted customs authority does not respond within the time-limit established for the consultation in accordance with paragraphs 1 and 2, the conditions and criteria for which the consultation took place are deemed to be fulfilled.

4. The consultation procedure laid down in paragraphs 1 and 2 may also be applied for the purposes of re-assessment and monitoring of a decision.

Article 15

Revocation of a favourable decision

(Article 28 of the Code)

A decision suspended in accordance with Article 16(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 shall be revoked by the customs authority competent to take a decision in cases referred to in Article 16(1)(b) and (c) of that Regulation, where the holder of the decision fails to take, within the prescribed period of time, the necessary measures to fulfil the conditions laid down for the decision or to comply with the obligations imposed under that decision.

Subsection 3

Decisions relating to binding information

Article 16

Application for a decision relating to binding information

(Article 22(1) of the Code)

1. Where an application for a decision relating to binding information is submitted pursuant to Article 19(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 in another Member State than the one in which the applicant is established the customs authority to which the application was submitted shall notify the customs authority of the Member State where the applicant is established within 7 days from the acceptance of the application.

Where the customs authority that receives the notification holds any information that it considers relevant for the processing of the application, it shall transmit such information to the customs authority to which the application was submitted as soon as possible and at the latest within 30 days from the date of the notification.

2. An application for a binding tariff information (BTI) decision shall relate only to goods which have similar characteristics and between which the differences are irrelevant for the purposes of their tariff classification.

3. An application for a binding origin information (BOI) decision shall relate to only one type of goods and one set of circumstances for the determination of origin.

4. For the purposes of ensuring compliance with the requirement set out in point (a) of the second subparagraph of Article 33(1) of the Code in relation to an application for a BTI decision, the customs authority referred to in Article 19(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 shall consult the electronic system referred to in Article 21 of this Regulation and keep a record of such consultations.

Article 17

Consistency with existing BTI decisions

(Article 22(3) of the Code)

The customs authority competent to take a decision shall, for the purposes of ensuring that a BTI decision which it intends to issue is consistent with BTI decisions that have already been issued, consult the electronic system referred to in Article 21 and keep a record of such consultations.

Article 18

Notification of BOI decisions

(Article 6(3) of the Code)

1. Where, the customs authority competent to take the decision notifies the applicant of the BOI decision using means other than electronic data-processing techniques, it shall do so using the form set out in Annex 12-02.

2. Where the customs authority competent to take the decision notifies the applicant of the BOI decision using electronic data-processing techniques, that decision shall be printable in accordance with the format set out in Annex 12-02.

Article 19

Exchange of data relating to BOI decisions

(Article 23(5) of the Code)

1. The customs authorities shall transmit to the Commission the relevant details of the BOI decisions on a quarterly basis.

2. The Commission shall make the details obtained in accordance with paragraph 1 available to the customs authorities of all Member States.

Article 20

Monitoring of BTI decisions

(Article 23(5) of the Code)

When customs formalities are being fulfilled by or on behalf of the holder of a BTI decision in respect of goods covered by the BTI decision, this shall be indicated in the customs declaration by stating the BTI decision reference number.

Article 21

Electronic system relating to BTI

(Articles 16(1) and 23(5) of the Code)

1. For the exchange and storage of information pertaining to applications and decisions related to BTI or to any subsequent event which may affect the original application or decision, an electronic system set up for those purposes pursuant to Article 16(1) of the Code shall be used.

Information shall be made available through that system by the competent customs authority without delay and at the latest within 7 days of the authority gaining knowledge of the information.

2. In addition to the information referred to in paragraph 1:

(a)	the surveillance referred to in Article 55 of this Regulation shall include data that are relevant for monitoring the usage of BTI decisions;

(b)

the customs authority that has received the application and has taken the BTI decision shall notify through the system referred to in paragraph 1 if a period of extended use of the BTI decision is granted, indicating the end date of the period of extended use and the quantities of the goods covered by this period.

3. The Commission shall communicate the results of the monitoring referred to in point (a) of paragraph 2 to the Member States on a regular basis in order to support the monitoring by the customs authorities of the compliance with the obligations resulting from the BTI.

4. An EU harmonised trader interface designed by the Commission and the Member States in agreement with each other shall be used for the exchange of information pertaining to applications and decisions related to BTI.

5. When processing an application for a BTI decision, the customs authorities shall indicate the status of the application in the system referred to in paragraph 1.

6. By derogation from paragraph 1 of this Article, until the date of the upgrading of the system referred to therein in accordance with the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/255/EU, Member States shall use the central database of the Commission set up by Article 8(3) of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 (8).

7. Until the date of deployment of the first phase of the upgrading of the system referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article and the system referred to in Article 56 of this Regulation, the customs authorities shall carry out the monitoring of the usage of BTI decisions when conducting customs controls or post-release controls in accordance with Articles 46 and 48 of the Code. By derogation from paragraph 3 of this Article, until that date of deployment, the Commission shall not be obliged to communicate results of the monitoring referred to in point (a) of paragraph 2 of this Article to the Member States.

Article 22

Extended use of decisions relating to binding information

(Article 34(9) of the Code)

1. Where the customs authorities decide to grant a period of extended use in accordance with the third subparagraph of Article 34(9) of the Code, they shall specify the date on which the period of extended use of the decision concerned expires.

2. Where the customs authorities decide to grant a period of extended use of a BTI decision in accordance with the third subparagraph of Article 34(9) of the Code, they shall specify, in addition to the date referred to in paragraph 1, the quantities of the goods that may be cleared during the period of extended use.

The use of a decision for which a period of extended use has been granted shall cease as soon as those quantities are reached.

On the basis of the surveillance referred to in Article 55, the Commission shall inform the Member States as soon as those quantities have been reached.

Article 23

Actions to ensure the correct and uniform tariff classification or determination of origin

(Article 34(10) of the Code)

1. The Commission shall, without delay, notify the customs authorities of the suspension of the taking of BTI and BOI decisions in accordance with Article 34(10)(a) of the Code where:

(a)	the Commission has identified incorrect or non-uniform decisions;

(b)	the customs authorities have submitted to the Commission cases where they failed to resolve, within a maximum period of 90 days, their differences of opinion with regard to the correct and uniform classification or determination of origin.

No decision related to binding information shall be issued for goods subject to point (a) or (b) from the date when the Commission has notified the customs authorities of the suspension until the correct and uniform classification or determination of origin is ensured.

2. The correct and uniform classification or determination of origin shall be subject to consultation at Union level at the earliest opportunity and at the latest within 120 days of the Commission notification referred to in paragraph 1.

3. The Commission shall notify the customs authorities immediately once the suspension is withdrawn.

4. For the purposes of applying paragraphs 1 to 3, BOI decisions shall be deemed to be non-uniform where they confer different origin on goods which:

(a)	fall under the same tariff heading and whose origin was determined in accordance with the same origin rules; and

(b)	have been obtained under identical conditions using the same manufacturing process and equivalent materials as regards notably their originating or non-originating status.

Section 3

Authorised economic operator

Article 24

Compliance

(Article 39(a) of the Code)

1. Where the applicant is a natural person, the criterion laid down in Article 39(a) of the Code shall be considered to be fulfilled if, over the last 3 years, the applicant and where applicable the employee in charge of the applicant’s customs matters have not committed any serious infringement or repeated infringements of customs legislation and taxation rules and have had no record of serious criminal offences relating to their economic activity.

Where the applicant is not a natural person, the criterion laid down in Article 39(a) of the Code shall be considered to be fulfilled where, over the last 3 years, none of the following persons has committed a serious infringement or repeated infringements of customs legislation and taxation rules or has had a record of serious criminal offences relating to his economic activity:

(a)	the applicant;

(b)	the person in charge of the applicant or exercising control over its management;

(c)	the employee in charge of the applicant’s customs matters.

2. However, the criterion referred to in Article 39(a) of the Code may be considered to be fulfilled where the customs authority competent to take the decision considers an infringement to be of minor importance, in relation to the number or size of the related operations, and the customs authority has no doubt as to the good faith of the applicant.

3. Where the person referred to in paragraph 1(b) is established or has his residence in a third country, the customs authority competent to take the decision shall assess the fulfilment of the criterion referred to in Article 39(a) of the Code on the basis of records and information that are available to it.

4. Where the applicant has been established for less than 3 years, the customs authority competent to take the decision shall assess the fulfilment of the criterion referred to in Article 39(a) of the Code on the basis of the records and information that are available to it.

Article 25

Satisfactory system of managing commercial and transport records

(Article 39(b) of the Code)

1. The criterion laid down in Article 39(b) of the Code shall be considered to be fulfilled if the following conditions are met:

(a)

the applicant maintains an accounting system which is consistent with the generally accepted accounting principles applied in the Member State where the accounts are held, allows audit-based customs control and maintains a historical record of data that provides an audit trail from the moment the data enters the file;

(b)	records kept by the applicant for customs purposes are integrated in the accounting system of the applicant or allow cross checks of information with the accounting system to be made;

(c)	the applicant allows the customs authority physical access to its accounting systems and, where applicable, to its commercial and transport records;

(d)	the applicant allows the customs authority electronic access to its accounting systems and, where applicable, to its commercial and transport records where those systems or records are kept electronically;

(e)	the applicant has a logistical system which identifies goods as Union or non-Union goods and indicates, where appropriate, their location;

(f)

the applicant has an administrative organisation which corresponds to the type and size of business and which is suitable for the management of the flow of goods, and has internal controls capable of preventing, detecting and correcting errors and of preventing and detecting illegal or irregular transactions;

(g)	where applicable, the applicant has satisfactory procedures in place for the handling of licences and authorisations granted in accordance with commercial policy measures or relating to trade in agricultural products;

(h)	the applicant has satisfactory procedures in place for the archiving of its records and information and for protection against the loss of information;

(i)	the applicant ensures that relevant employees are instructed to inform the customs authorities whenever compliance difficulties are discovered and establishes procedures for informing the customs authorities of such difficulties;

(j)	the applicant has appropriate security measures in place to protect the applicant’s computer system from unauthorised intrusion and to secure the applicant’s documentation;

(k)

where applicable, the applicant has satisfactory procedures in place for the handling of import and export licences connected to prohibitions and restrictions, including measures to distinguish goods subject to the prohibitions or restrictions from other goods and measures to ensure compliance with those prohibitions and restrictions.

2. Where the applicant applies only for an authorisation as an economic operator authorised for security and safety as referred to in Article 38(2)(b) of the Code (AEOS), the requirement laid down in paragraph 1(e) shall not apply.

Article 26

Financial solvency

(Article 39(c) of the Code)

1. The criterion laid down in Article 39(c) of the Code shall be considered to be fulfilled where the applicant complies with the following:

(a)	the applicant is not subject to bankruptcy proceedings;

(b)	during the last 3 years preceding the submission of the application, the applicant has fulfilled his financial obligations regarding payments of customs duties and all other duties, taxes or charges which are collected on or in connection with the import or export of goods;

(c)

the applicant demonstrates on the basis of the records and information available for the last 3 years preceding the submission of the application that he has sufficient financial standing to meet his obligations and fulfil his commitments having regard to the type and volume of the business activity, including having no negative net assets, unless where they can be covered.

2. If the applicant has been established for less than 3 years, his financial solvency as referred to in Article 39(c) of the Code shall be checked on the basis of records and information that are available.

Article 27

Practical standards of competence or professional qualifications

(Article 39(d) of the Code)

1. The criterion laid down in Article 39(d) of the Code shall be considered to be fulfilled if any of the following conditions are met:

(a)

the applicant or the person in charge of the applicant’s customs matters complies with one of the following practical standards of competence:

(i)	a proven practical experience of a minimum of 3 years in customs matters;

(ii)	a quality standard concerning customs matters adopted by a European Standardisation body;

(b)

the applicant or the person in charge of the applicant’s customs matters has successfully completed training covering customs legislation consistent with and relevant to the extent of his involvement in customs related activities, provided by any of the following:

(i)	a customs authority of a Member State;

(ii)	an educational establishment recognised, for the purposes of providing such qualification, by the customs authorities or a body of a Member State responsible for professional training;

(iii)

a professional or trade association recognised by the customs authorities of a Member State or accredited in the Union, for the purposes of providing such qualification.

2. Where the person in charge of the applicant’s customs matters is a contracted person, the criterion laid down in Article 39(d) of the Code shall be considered to be fulfilled if the contracted person is an economic operator authorised for customs simplifications as referred to in Article 38(2)(a) of the Code (AEOC).

Article 28

Security and safety standards

(Article 39(e) of the Code)

1. The criterion laid down in Article 39(e) of the Code shall be considered to be fulfilled if the following conditions are met:

(a)	buildings to be used in connection with the operations relating to the AEOS authorisation provide protection against unlawful intrusion and are constructed of materials which resist unlawful entry;

(b)	appropriate measures are in place to prevent unauthorised access to offices, shipping areas, loading docks, cargo areas and other relevant places;

(c)	measures for the handling of goods have been taken which include protection against the unauthorised introduction or exchange, the mishandling of goods and against tampering with cargo units;

(d)

the applicant has taken measures allowing to clearly identify his business partners and to ensure, through implementation of appropriate contractual arrangements or other appropriate measures in accordance with the applicant’s business model, that those business partners ensure the security of their part of the international supply chain;

(e)	the applicant conducts in so far as national law permits, security screening on prospective employees working in security sensitive positions and carries out background checks of current employees in such positions periodically and where warranted by circumstances;

(f)	the applicant has appropriate security procedures in place for any external service providers contracted;

(g)	the applicant ensures that its staff having responsibilities relevant for security issues regularly participate in programmes to raise their awareness of those security issues;

(h)	the applicant has appointed a contact person competent for safety and security related questions.

2. Where the applicant is a holder of a security and safety certificate issued on the basis of an international convention or of an International Standard of the International Organisation for Standardisation, or of a European Standard of a European standardisation body, these certificates shall be taken into account when checking compliance with the criteria laid down in Article 39(e) of the Code.

The criteria shall be deemed to be met to the extent that it is established that the criteria for issuing that certificate are identical or equivalent to those laid down in Article 39(e) of the Code.

The criteria shall be deemed to be met where the applicant is the holder of a security and safety certificate issued by a third country with which the Union has concluded an agreement which provides for the recognition of that certificate.

3. Where the applicant is a regulated agent or a known consignor as defined in Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 300/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council (9) and fulfils the requirements laid down in Commission Regulation (EU) No 185/2010 (10), the criteria laid down in paragraph 1 shall be deemed to be met in relation to the sites and the operations for which the applicant obtained the status of regulated agent or known consignor to the extent that the criteria for issuing the regulated agent or known consignor status are identical or equivalent to those laid down in Article 39(e) of the Code.

Article 29

Examination of the criteria

(Article 22 of the Code)

1. For the purposes of examining the criteria laid down in Article 39(b) and (e) of the Code, the customs authority competent to take the decision shall ensure that on-the-spot verifications are carried out at all the premises that are relevant to the customs related activities of the applicant.

Where the applicant has a large number of premises, and the applicable time-limit for taking the decision does not allow for examination of all those premises the customs authority may decide to examine only a representative proportion of those premises if it is satisfied that the applicant applies the same security and safety standards at all of its premises and apply the same common standards and procedures for maintaining its records at all of its premises.

2. The customs authorities competent to take a decision may take into consideration the results of assessments or audits carried out in accordance with Union legislation to the extent they are relevant for the examination of the criteria referred to in Article 39 of the Code.

3. For the purposes of examining whether the criteria laid down in Article 39(b), (c) and (e) of the Code are fulfilled, the customs authorities may take into account expert conclusions provided by the applicant, where the expert having drawn up the conclusions is not related to the applicant within the meaning of Article 127 of this Regulation.

4. The customs authorities shall take due account of the specific characteristics of economic operators, in particular of small and medium-sized enterprises, when examining the fulfilment of criteria laid down in Article 39 of the Code.

5. The examination of the criteria laid down in Article 39 of the Code as well as its results shall be documented by the customs authority competent to take the decision.

Article 30

Electronic system relating to the AEO status

(Article 16(1) of the Code)

1. For the exchange and storage of information pertaining to applications for an authorisation as an authorised economic operator (AEO) and AEO authorisations granted and any further event or act which may subsequently affect the original decision, including annulment, suspension, revocation or amendment or the results of any monitoring or re-assessment, an electronic system set up for those purposes pursuant to Article 16(1) of the Code shall be used. The competent customs authority shall make information available through this system without delay and at the latest within 7 days.

An EU harmonised trader interface designed by the Commission and the Member States in agreement with each other shall be used for the exchange of information pertaining to applications and decisions related to AEO authorisations.

2. Where applicable, in particular when AEO status is a basis for the grant of approval, authorisations or facilitations under other Union legislation, the competent customs authority may grant access to the electronic system referred to in paragraph 1 to the appropriate national authority responsible for civil aviation security. The access shall be related to the following information:

(a)	the AEOS authorisations, including the name of the holder of the authorisation and, where applicable, their amendment or revocation or the suspension of the status of authorised economic operator and the reasons therefor;

(b)	any re-assessments of AEOS authorisations and the results thereof.

The national authorities responsible for civil aviation security handling the information concerned shall use it only for the purposes of the relevant programmes for regulated agent or known consignor and shall implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to ensure the security of this information.

3. By derogation from paragraph 1 of this Article, until the date of the upgrading of the AEO System referred to in the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/255/EU, Member States shall use that system set up by Article 14x of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93.

Article 31

Consultation procedure and exchange of information between customs authorities

(Article 22 of the Code)

1. The customs authority competent to take the decision may consult customs authorities of other Member States which are competent for the place where necessary information is held or where checks have to be carried out for the purpose of examining one or more criteria laid down in Article 39 of the Code.

2. The consultation referred to in paragraph 1 shall be mandatory, where:

(a)	the application for the status of AEO is submitted in accordance with Article 12(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, to the customs authority - of the place where the applicant’s main accounts for customs purposes are held or are accessible;

(b)

the application for the status of AEO is submitted in accordance with Article 27 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, to the customs authorities of the Member State where the applicant has a permanent business establishment and where the information about its general logistical management activities in the Union is kept or is accessible;

(c)	a part of the records and documentation of relevance for the application for the status of AEO is kept in a Member State other than the one of the customs authority competent to take a decision;

(d)	the applicant for the status of AEO maintains a storage facility or has other customs-related activities in a Member State other than the one of the competent customs authority.

3. By way of derogation from the time-limit laid down in the second sentence of the first subparagraph of Article 14(1) of this Regulation, the customs authorities shall complete the consultation process within 80 days from the date on which the customs authority competent to take the decision communicates the necessary conditions and criteria which have to be examined by the consulted customs authority.

4. Where the customs authority of another Member State has information of relevance for the granting of AEO status, it shall communicate that information to the customs authority competent to take a decision within 30 days starting from the date of the communication of the application through the electronic system referred to in Article 30 of this Regulation.

Article 32

Rejection of an application

(Article 22 of the Code)

The rejection of an AEO application shall not affect existing favourable decisions taken with regard to the applicant in accordance with the customs legislation, unless the granting of those favourable decisions is based on the fulfilment of any of the AEO criteria that have been proven not to be met during the examination of the AEO application.

Article 33

Combination of both types of authorisations

(Article 38(3) of the Code)

Where an applicant is entitled to be granted both an AEOC and an AEOS authorisation, the customs authority competent to take the decision shall issue one combined authorisation.

Article 34

Revocation of an authorisation

(Article 28 of the Code)

1. The revocation of an AEO authorisation shall not affect any favourable decision which has been taken with regard to the same person unless AEO status was a condition for that favourable decision, or that decision was based on a criterion listed in Article 39 of the Code which is no longer met.

2. The revocation or amendment of a favourable decision which has been taken with regard to the holder of the authorisation shall not automatically affect the AEO authorisation of that person.

3. Where the same person is both an AEOC and an AEOS, and Article 28 of the Code or Article 15 of this Regulation is applicable owing to the non-fulfilment of the conditions laid down in Article 39(d) of the Code, the AEOC authorisation shall be revoked and AEOS authorisation shall remain valid.

Where the same person is both an AEOS and an AEOC, and Article 28 of the Code or Article 15 of this Regulation is applicable owing to the non-fulfilment of the conditions laid down in Article 39(e) of the Code, the AEOS authorisation shall be revoked and AEOC authorisation shall remain valid.

Article 35

Monitoring

(Article 23(5) of the Code)

1. The customs authorities of the Member States shall inform the competent customs authority without delay of any factors arising after the grant of the status of AEO which may influence its continuation or content.

2. The competent customs authority shall make available all relevant information at its disposal to the customs authorities of the other Member States where the AEO carries out customs-related activities.

3. Where a customs authority revokes a favourable decision which has been taken on the basis of the status of AEO, it shall notify the customs authority which granted the status.

4. Where the AEOS is a regulated agent or a known consignor as defined in Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 300/2008 and fulfils the requirements laid down in Regulation (EU) No 185/2010, the competent customs authority shall immediately make available to the appropriate national authority responsible for civil aviation security the following minimum information related to the AEO status which it has at its disposal:

(a)	the AEOS authorisation, including the name of the holder of the authorisation and, where applicable, its amendment or revocation or the suspension of the status of authorised economic operator and the reasons therefor;

(b)	information about whether the specific site concerned has been visited by customs authorities, the date of the last visit, and whether the visit took place with a view to the authorisation process, re-assessment or monitoring;

(c)	any re-assessments of the AEOS authorisation and the results thereof.

The national customs authorities shall, in agreement with the appropriate national authority responsible for civil aviation security, establish detailed modalities for the exchange of any information which is not covered by the electronic system referred to in Article 30 of this Regulation.

Section 4

Control of goods

Subsection 1

Customs controls and risk management

Article 36

Electronic system relating to risk management and customs controls

(Article 16(1) of the Code)

1. For the exchange and storage of information pertaining to the communication among the customs authorities of the Member States and the Commission of any risk-related information, an electronic system set up for those purposes pursuant to Article 16(1) of the Code (‘customs risk management system’) shall be used.

2. The system mentioned in paragraph 1 shall also be used for communication between customs authorities and between customs authorities and the Commission in the implementation of common risk criteria and standards, common priority control areas, customs crisis management, the exchange of risk-related information and risk analysis results as referred to in Article 46(5) of the Code as well as the results of customs controls.

Subsection 2

Cabin and hold baggage transported by air

Article 37

Transit flights

(Article 49 of the Code)

1. Customs controls and formalities applicable to the cabin and hold baggage of persons taking a flight from a non-Union airport in an aircraft which, after a stopover at a Union airport, continues to another Union airport shall be carried out at the last international Union airport.

The cabin and hold baggage shall be subject to the rules applicable to the baggage of persons coming from a third country unless the person carrying such baggage proves the status of the goods contained therein as Union goods.

2. Customs controls and formalities applicable to the cabin and hold baggage of persons taking a flight from a Union airport in an aircraft which stops over at another Union airport before continuing to a non-Union airport, shall be carried out at the first international Union airport.

The cabin baggage may be subject to control at the last international Union airport where the aircraft stops over in order to ascertain their customs status of Union goods.

Article 38

Transit flights in business and tourist aircraft

(Article 49 of the Code)

Customs controls and formalities applicable to the baggage of persons on board business or tourist aircraft shall be carried out at the following airports:

(a)	for flights coming from a non-Union airport and where the aircraft, after a stopover at a Union airport, continues to another Union airport, at the first international Union airport;

(b)	for flights coming from a Union airport and where the aircraft, after a stopover at a Union airport, continues to a non-Union airport, at the last international Union airport.

Article 39

Inbound transfer flights

(Article 49 of the Code)

1. Where baggage arriving at a Union airport on board an aircraft coming from a non-Union airport is transferred, at that Union airport, to another aircraft proceeding on an intra-Union flight, paragraphs 2 and 3 shall apply.

2. Customs controls and formalities applicable to hold baggage shall be carried out at the last international Union airport of arrival of the intra-Union flight. However, customs controls and formalities applicable to hold baggage coming from a non-Union airport and transferred at an international Union airport to an aircraft bound for another international Union airport in the territory of the same Member State may be carried out at the international Union airport where the transfer of hold baggage takes place.

Customs controls and formalities applicable to hold baggage may, in exceptional cases and in addition to the controls and formalities referred to in the first subparagraph, be carried out at the first international Union airport where they prove necessary following controls on cabin baggage.

3. Customs controls and formalities applicable to cabin baggage shall be carried out at the first international Union airport.

Additional customs controls and formalities applicable to cabin baggage may be carried out at the airport of arrival of an intra-Union flight only in exceptional cases where they prove necessary following controls on hold baggage.

Article 40

Outbound transfer flights

(Article 49 of the Code)

1. Where baggage is loaded at a Union airport onto an aircraft proceeding on an intra-Union flight and subsequently transferred, at another Union airport, onto another aircraft whose destination is a non-Union airport, paragraphs 2 and 3 shall apply.

2. Customs controls and formalities applicable to hold baggage shall be carried out at the first international Union airport of departure. However, customs controls and formalities applicable to hold baggage having been loaded on an aircraft at an international Union airport and transferred at another international Union airport in the territory of the same Member State to an aircraft bound for a non-Union airport may be carried out at the international Union airport where the transfer of hold baggage takes place.

Customs controls and formalities applicable to hold baggage may, in exceptional cases and in addition to the controls and formalities referred to in the first subparagraph, be carried out at the last international Union airport where they prove necessary following controls on cabin baggage.

3. Customs controls and formalities applicable to cabin baggage shall be carried out at the last international Union airport.

Additional customs controls and formalities applicable to cabin baggage may be carried out at the airport of departure of an intra-Union flight only in exceptional cases where they prove necessary following controls on hold baggage.

Article 41

Transfer to a tourist or business aircraft

(Article 49 of the Code)

1. Customs controls and formalities applicable to baggage arriving at a Union airport on board a scheduled or charter flight from a non-Union airport and transferred, at that Union airport, to a tourist or business aircraft proceeding on an intra-Union flight shall be carried out at the airport of arrival of the scheduled or charter flight.

2. Customs controls and formalities applicable to baggage loaded at a Union airport onto a tourist or business aircraft proceeding on an intra-Union flight for transfer, at another Union airport, to a scheduled or charter flight whose destination is a non-Union airport, shall be carried out at the airport of departure of the scheduled or charter flight.

Article 42

Transfers between airports on the territory of the same Member State

(Article 49 of the Code)

The customs authorities may carry out controls, at the international Union airport where the transfer of hold baggage takes place, on the following:

(a)	baggage coming from a non-Union airport and transferred in an international Union airport to an aircraft bound for an international Union airport in the same national territory;

(b)	baggage having been loaded on an aircraft in an international Union airport for transfer in another international Union airport in the same national territory to an aircraft bound for a non-Union airport.

Article 43

Measures to prevent illegal transfer

(Article 49 of the Code)

The Member States shall ensure that:

(a)	on arrival at an international Union airport where customs controls are to be carried out, any transfer of goods contained in cabin baggage before those controls have been carried out on that baggage is monitored;

(b)	on departure from an international Union airport where customs controls are to be carried out, any transfer of goods contained in cabin baggage after those controls have been carried out on that baggage is monitored;

(c)	on arrival at an international Union airport where customs controls are to be carried out, the appropriate arrangements have been made to prevent any transfer of goods contained in hold baggage before those controls have been carried out on that baggage;

(d)	on departure from an international Union airport where customs controls are to be carried out, the appropriate arrangements have been made to prevent any transfer of goods contained in hold baggage after those controls have been carried out on the hold baggage.

Article 44

Baggage tag

(Article 49 of the Code)

Hold baggage registered at a Union airport shall be identified by a tag affixed on the baggage. A specimen and the technical characteristics of the tag are set out in Annex 12-03.

Article 45

List of international Union airports

(Article 49 of the Code)

Each Member State shall provide the Commission with a list of its international Union airports and shall inform the Commission of any changes to that list.

Subsection 3

Baggage transported by sea

Article 46

Pleasure crafts

(Article 49 of the Code)

Customs controls and formalities applicable to the baggage of persons on board pleasure craft shall be carried out at all ports of call in the Union, whatever the origin or destination of the craft. Pleasure craft is a recreational craft as defined in Directive 94/25/CE of the European Parliament and of the Council (11).

Article 47

Transfer crossings

(Article 49 of the Code)

Customs controls and formalities applicable to the baggage of persons using a maritime service provided by the same vessel and comprising successive legs departing from, calling at or terminating in a non-Union port shall be carried out at any Union port at which the baggage is loaded or unloaded.

CHAPTER 3

Currency conversion

Article 48

Provisions on tariff exchange rate

(Article 53 of the Code)

1. The value of the euro, where required in accordance with Article 53(1)(b) of the Code, shall be fixed once a month.

The exchange rate to be used shall be the most recent rate set by the European Central Bank prior to the penultimate day of the month and shall apply throughout the following month.

However, where the rate applicable at the start of the month differs by more than 5 % from the rate set by the European Central Bank prior to the 15th of that same month, the latter rate shall apply from the 15th until the end of the month in question.

2. Where the conversion of currency is necessary for any of the reasons referred to in Article 53(2) of the Code, the value of the euro in national currencies to be applied shall be the rate set by the European Central Bank on the first working day of October; this rate shall apply with effect from 1 January of the following year.

3. Member States may maintain unchanged the value in national currency of the amount determined in euro if, at the time of the annual adjustment, the conversion of that amount, leads to an alteration of less than 5 % in the value expressed in national currency.

Member States may round upwards or downwards to the nearest decimal point the sum arrived at after conversion.

TITLE II

FACTORS ON THE BASIS OF WHICH IMPORT OR EXPORT DUTY AND OTHER MEASURES IN RESPECT OF TRADE IN GOODS ARE APPLIED

CHAPTER 1

Common Customs Tariff and tariff classification of goods

Section 1

Management of tariff quotas

Article 49

General rules on the uniform management of tariff quotas

(Article 56(4) of the Code)

1. Tariff quotas opened in accordance with Union legislation referring to the method of administration in this article and in Articles 50 to 54 of this Regulation shall be managed in accordance with the chronological order of dates of acceptance of customs declarations for release for free circulation.

2. Each tariff quota is identified in the Union legislation by an order number that facilitates its management.

3. For the purposes of this Section, declarations for release for free circulation accepted by the customs authorities on 1, 2 or 3 January shall be regarded as being accepted on 3 January of the same year. However, where one of those days falls on a Saturday or a Sunday, such acceptance shall be regarded as having taken place on 4 January of that year.

4. For the purposes of this Section, working days shall mean days which are not public holidays for the Union institutions in Brussels.

Article 50

Responsibilities of the customs authorities of the Member States for the uniform management of tariff quotas

(Article 56(4) of the Code)

1. The customs authorities shall examine whether a request to benefit from a tariff quota made by the declarant in a customs declaration for release for free circulation is valid in accordance with the Union legislation opening the tariff quota.

2. Where a customs declaration for release for free circulation containing a valid request by the declarant to benefit from a tariff quota is accepted and all the supporting documents required for the granting of the tariff quota have been provided to the customs authorities, the customs authorities shall transmit that request to the Commission without delay specifying the date of acceptance of the customs declaration and the exact amount for which the request is made.

Article 51

Allocation of quantities under tariff quotas

(Article 56(4) of the Code)

1. The Commission shall make allocations on working days. However, the Commission may decide not to allocate quantities on a given working day provided that the competent authorities of the Member States have been informed in advance.

2. Quantities under tariff quotas may not be allocated earlier than on the second working day after the date of acceptance of the customs declaration in which the declarant made the request to benefit from the tariff quota.

Any allocation by the Commission shall take into account all unanswered requests to benefit from tariff quotas based on customs declarations accepted up to and including the second previous working day to the day of the allocation, and which the customs authorities have transmitted to the system referred to in Article 54 of this Regulation.

3. For each tariff quota, the Commission shall allocate quantities on the basis of requests to benefit from that tariff quota received by it following the chronological order of the dates of acceptance of the relevant customs declarations, and to the extent that the remaining balance of the tariff quota so permits.

4. Where on an allocation day, the sum of quantities of all requests to benefit from a tariff quota which relate to declarations accepted on the same date are greater than the remaining balance of the tariff quota, the Commission shall allocate quantities in respect of those requests on a pro rata basis with respect to the requested quantities.

5. Where a new tariff quota is opened, the Commission shall not allocate quantities under that tariff quota before the 11th working day following the date of publication of the Union act opening that tariff quota.

Article 52

Cancellation of requests and returns of unused allocated quantities under tariff quotas

(Article 56(4) of the Code)

1. Customs authorities shall immediately return to the electronic system referred to in Article 54 of this Regulation any quantity that has been erroneously allocated. However the obligation to return shall not apply where an erroneous allocation representing a customs debt of less than EUR 10 is discovered after the first month following the end of the period of validity of the tariff quota concerned.

2. Where the customs authorities invalidate a customs declaration in respect of goods which are the subject of a request to benefit from a tariff quota before the Commission has allocated the requested quantity, the customs authorities shall cancel the entire request to benefit from the tariff quota.

Where the Commission has already allocated the requested quantity on the basis of an invalidated customs declaration, the customs authority shall immediately return the allocated quantity to the electronic system referred to in Article 54 of this Regulation.

Article 53

Critical status of tariff quotas

(Article 56(4) of the Code)

1. For the purposes of Article 153 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, a tariff quota shall be considered critical as soon as 90 % of the complete volume of the tariff quota has been used.

2. By way of derogation from paragraph 1, a tariff quota shall be considered critical from the date of its opening in any of the following cases:

(a)	the tariff quota is opened for less than 3 months;

(b)	tariff quotas having the same product coverage and origin and an equivalent quota period as the tariff quota in question (‘equivalent tariff quotas’) have not been opened in the previous 2 years;

(c)	an equivalent tariff quota opened in the previous 2 years had been exhausted on or before the last day of the third month of its quota period or had a higher initial volume than the tariff quota in question.

3. A tariff quota whose sole purpose is the application of either a safeguard measure or a measure resulting from a suspension of concessions as provided for in Regulation (EU) No 654/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council (12) shall be considered as critical as soon as 90 % of the complete volume has been used irrespective of whether or not equivalent tariff quotas were opened in the previous 2 years.

Article 54

Electronic system relating to the management of tariff quotas

(Articles 16(1) and 56(4) of the Code)

1. For the management of tariff quotas, an electronic system set up for those purposes pursuant to Article 16(1) of the Code shall be used for:

(a)	the exchange of information between the customs authorities and the Commission pertaining to requests to benefit from and returns on tariff quotas and to the status of tariff quotas and the storage of that information;

(b)	the management by the Commission of the requests to benefit from and returns on tariff quotas;

(c)	the exchange of information between the customs authorities and the Commission relating to the allocation of quantities under tariff quotas and the storage of that information;

(d)	the recording of any further event or act which may affect the original drawings or returns on tariff quotas or their allocation.

2. The Commission shall make available the information related to the allocation results through that system.

Section 2

Surveillance of the release for free circulation or the export of goods

Article 55

General rules on surveillance of the release for free circulation or the export of goods

(Article 56(5) of the Code)

1. Where the Commission lays down a requirement that certain goods shall be subject to surveillance at release for free circulation or at export, it shall inform the customs authorities of the CN codes of those goods and of the data necessary for the purposes of the surveillance, in due time before the surveillance requirement becomes applicable.

The list of data which may be required by the Commission for the purposes of surveillance is laid down in Annex 21-01.

2. Where goods have been made subject to surveillance at release for free circulation or at export, the customs authorities shall provide the Commission with data on customs declarations for the relevant procedure at least once a week.

Where the goods are released in accordance with Article 194(1) of the Code, the customs authorities shall provide the Commission with the data without delay.

3. The Commission shall only disclose the data referred in paragraph 1 provided by the customs authorities in aggregated form and only to users authorised in accordance with Article 56(2) of this Regulation.

4. Where goods are placed under a customs procedure on the basis of a simplified declaration as referred to in Article 166 of the Code or by entry in the declarant’s records as referred to in Article 182 of the Code, and the data required by the Commission were not available at the time when the goods were released in accordance with Article 194(1) of the Code, the customs authorities shall provide the Commission with that information without delay after receiving the supplementary declaration lodged in accordance with Article 167 of the Code.

5. Where the obligation to lodge a supplementary declaration is waived in accordance with Article 167(3) of the Code or the supplementary declaration is lodged or made available in accordance with Article 225 of this Regulation, the authorisation holder shall send to the customs authorities at least once a month the data required by the Commission or the customs authorities shall collect that data from the system of the declarant.

The customs authorities shall enter the data in the electronic system referred to in Article 56 of this Regulation without delay.

6. By derogation from paragraph 1 of this Article, until the date of deployment of the first phase of the upgrading of the system referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 56 and of the national import and export systems referred to in the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/255/EU, the list of data which may be required by the Commission for the purposes of surveillance is laid down in Annex 21-02.

Article 56

Electronic system relating to surveillance of the release for free circulation or the export of goods

(Articles 16(1) and 56(5) of the Code)

1. For the surveillance of the release for free circulation or the export of goods, an electronic system set up pursuant to Article 16(1) of the Code shall be used for the transmission and storage of the following information:

(a)	surveillance data on the release for free circulation or the export of goods;

(b)	information which may update the surveillance data introduced and stored in the electronic system on the release for free circulation or the export of goods.

2. The Commission may authorise users to access the electronic system referred to in paragraph 1 based on requests of the Member States.

3. By derogation from paragraph 1 of this Article, until the date of the deployment of the first phase of the upgrading of the system referred to in the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/255/EU, the Commission’s Surveillance 2 system shall be used for the transmission and storage of the data referred to in points (a) and (b) of that paragraph.

CHAPTER 2

Origin of goods

Section 1

Proof of non-preferential origin

Article 57

Certificate of origin for products subject to special non-preferential import arrangements

(Article 61(1) and (2) of the Code)

1. A certificate of origin relating to products having their origin in a third country for which special non-preferential import arrangements are established shall, where those arrangements refer to this Article, be issued using the form set out in Annex 22-14 in compliance with the technical specifications laid down therein.

2. Certificates of origin shall be issued by the competent authorities of the third country where the products to which the special non-preferential import arrangements apply originate, or by a reliable agency duly authorised by those authorities for that purpose (issuing authorities), provided that the origin of the products has been determined in accordance with Article 60 of the Code.

The issuing authorities shall keep a copy of each certificate of origin issued.

3. Certificates of origin shall be issued before the products to which they relate are declared for export in the third country of origin.

4. By way of derogation from paragraph 3, certificates of origin may exceptionally be issued after the export of the products to which they relate where the failure to issue them at the time of export was the result of an error, an involuntary omission or special circumstances.

The issuing authorities may not issue retrospectively a certificate of origin provided for in paragraph 1 unless they are satisfied that the particulars in the exporter’s application correspond to those in the relevant export file.

Article 58

Provision of information concerning administrative cooperation relating to special non-preferential import arrangements

(Article 61 of the Code)

1. Where the special non-preferential import arrangements for certain products provide for the use of the certificate of origin laid down in Article 57 of this Regulation, the use of such arrangements shall be subject to the condition that an administrative cooperation procedure has been set up unless otherwise specified in the arrangements concerned.

For the purpose of setting up that administrative cooperation procedure, the third countries concerned shall send to the Commission:

(a)	the names and addresses of the issuing authorities together with specimens of the stamps used by those authorities;

(b)	the names and addresses of the governmental authorities to which requests for the subsequent verification of certificates of origin provided for in Article 59 of this Regulation are to be sent.

The Commission shall transmit the above information to the competent authorities of the Member States.

2. Where a third country fails to send the information specified in paragraph 1 to the Commission, the competent authorities in the Union shall refuse use of the special non-preferential import arrangement.

Article 59

Subsequent verification of the certificates of origin for products subject to special non-preferential import arrangements

(Article 61 of the Code)

1. Verification of the certificates of origin referred to in Article 57 of this Regulation shall be carried out in accordance with this Article after the acceptance of the customs declaration (subsequent verification).

2. Where the customs authorities have reasonable doubts as to the authenticity of a certificate of origin or the accuracy of the information it contains and where they carry out random subsequent verifications, they shall request the authority referred to in Article 58(1)(b) of this Regulation to verify whether that certificate of origin is authentic or the declared origin was established correctly and in accordance with Article 60 of the Code or both.

For those purposes, the customs authorities shall return the certificate of origin or a copy thereof to the authority referred to in Article 58(1)(b) of this Regulation. If an invoice has accompanied the declaration, the original invoice or a copy thereof shall be attached to the returned certificate of origin.

The customs authorities shall give, where appropriate, the reasons for the subsequent verification and provide any information in their possession suggesting that the particulars given on the certificate of origin are inaccurate or that the certificate of origin is not authentic.

3. The authority referred to in Article 58(1)(b) of this Regulation shall communicate the results of the verifications to the customs authorities as soon as possible.

Where there is no reply within 6 months after sending a request in accordance with paragraph 2, the customs authorities shall refuse use of the special non-preferential import arrangement for the products in question.

Section 2

Preferential origin

Article 60

For the purposes of this Section, the definitions laid down in Article 37 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 shall apply.

Subsection 1

Procedures to facilitate the issue or making out of proofs of origin

Article 61

Supplier’s declarations and their use

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Where a supplier provides the exporter or the trader with the information necessary to determine the originating status of goods for the purposes of the provisions governing preferential trade between the Union and certain countries or territories (preferential originating status), the supplier shall do so by means of a supplier’s declaration.

A separate supplier’s declaration shall be established for each consignment of goods, except in the cases provided for in Article 62 of this Regulation.

2. The supplier shall include the declaration on the commercial invoice relating to that consignment, on a delivery note or on any other commercial document which describes the goods concerned in sufficient detail to enable them to be identified.

3. The supplier may provide the declaration at any time, even after the goods have been delivered.

Article 62

Long-term supplier’s declaration

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Where a supplier regularly supplies an exporter or trader with consignments of goods, and the originating status of the goods of all those consignments is expected to be the same, the supplier may provide a single declaration covering subsequent consignments of those goods (long-term supplier’s declaration). A long-term supplier’s declaration may be made out for a validity period of up to 2 years from the date on which it is made out.

2. A long-term supplier’s declaration may be made out with retroactive effect for goods delivered before the making out of the declaration. Such a long-term supplier’s declaration may be made out for a validity period of up to 1 year prior to the date on which the declaration was made out. The validity period shall end on the date on which the long term supplier’s declaration was made out.

3. The supplier shall inform the exporter or trader concerned immediately where the long-term supplier’s declaration is not valid in relation to some or all consignments of goods supplied and to be supplied.

Article 63

Making-out of supplier’s declarations

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. For products having obtained preferential originating status, the supplier’s declarations shall be made out as laid down in Annex 22-15. However, long-term suppliers’ declarations for those products shall be made out as laid down in Annex 22-16.

2. For products which have undergone working or processing in the Union without having obtained preferential originating status, the supplier’s declarations shall be made out as laid down in Annex 22-17. However, for long-term supplier’s declarations, the supplier’s declarations shall be made out as laid down in Annex 22-18.

3. The supplier’s declaration shall bear a handwritten signature of the supplier. However, where both the supplier’s declaration and the invoice are drawn up by electronic means, these can be electronically authenticated or the supplier can give the exporter or trader a written undertaking accepting complete responsibility for every supplier’s declaration which identifies him as if it had been signed with his handwritten signature.

Article 64

Issuing of Information Certificates INF 4

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The customs authorities may request the exporter or trader to obtain from the supplier an Information Certificate INF 4 certifying the accuracy and authenticity of the supplier’s declaration.

2. On application from the supplier, the Information Certificate INF 4 shall be issued by the customs authorities of the Member State in which the supplier’s declaration has been made out using the form set out in Annex 22-02 in compliance with the technical specifications laid down therein. The authorities may require any evidence and may carry out inspections of the supplier’s accounts or other checks that they consider appropriate.

3. The customs authorities shall issue the Information Certificate INF 4 to the supplier within 90 days of receipt of his application, indicating whether the supplier’s declaration is accurate and authentic.

4. A customs authority to which an application for the issue of an information certificate INF 4 has been made shall keep the application form for at least 3 years or for a longer period of time if necessary in order to ensure compliance with the provisions governing preferential trade between the Union and certain countries or territories.

Article 65

Administrative cooperation between the Member States

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

The customs authorities shall assist each other in checking the accuracy of the information given in suppliers’ declarations.

Article 66

Checking suppliers’ declarations

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Where an exporter is unable to present an Information Certificate INF 4 within 120 days of the request of the customs authorities, the customs authorities of the Member State of export may ask the customs authorities of the Member State in which the supplier’s declaration has been made out to confirm the origin of the products concerned for the purposes of the provisions governing preferential trade between the Union and certain countries.

2. For the purposes of paragraph 1, the customs authorities of the Member State of export shall send the customs authorities of the Member State in which the supplier’s declaration has been made out all available information and documents and give the reasons for their enquiry.

3. For the purposes of paragraph 1 the customs authorities of the Member State in which the supplier’s declaration has been made out may request evidence from the supplier or carry out appropriate verifications of that declaration.

4. The customs authorities requesting the verification shall be informed of the results as soon as possible by means of an Information Certificate INF 4.

5. Where there is no reply within 150 days of the date of the verification request or where the reply does not contain sufficient information to determine the origin of the products concerned, the customs authorities of the country of export shall declare invalid the proof of origin established on the basis of the supplier’s declaration.

Article 67

Approved exporter authorisation

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Where the Union has a preferential arrangement with a third country which provides that a proof of origin is to take the form of an invoice declaration or an origin declaration made out by an approved exporter, exporters established in the customs territory of the Union may apply for an authorisation as an approved exporter for the purposes of making out and replacing those declarations.

2. Articles 11(1)(d), 16, 17 and 18 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 concerning the conditions for accepting applications and the suspension of decisions and Articles 10 and 15 of this Regulation concerning the use of electronic means for exchanging and storing information and the revocation of favourable decisions pertaining to applications and decisions shall not apply to decisions relating to approved exporter authorisations.

3. Approved exporter authorisations shall be granted solely to persons who fulfil the conditions set out in the origin provisions either of agreements which the Union has concluded with certain countries or territories outside the customs territory of the Union or of measures adopted unilaterally by the Union in respect of such countries or territories.

4. The customs authorities shall grant to the approved exporter a customs authorisation number which shall appear on the proofs of preferential origin. The customs authorisation number shall be preceded by ISO 3166-1-alpha- 2 country code of the Member State issuing the authorisation.

5. The Commission shall provide the third countries concerned with the addresses of the customs authorities responsible for the control of the proofs of preferential origin made out by approved exporters.

6. Where the applicable preferential arrangement does not specify the form that invoice declarations or origin declarations shall take, those declarations shall be drawn up in accordance with the form set out in Annex 22-09.

7. Where the applicable preferential arrangement does not specify the value threshold up to which an exporter who is not an approved exporter may make out an invoice declaration or an origin declaration, the value threshold shall be EUR 6 000 for each consignment.

Article 68

Registration of exporters outside the framework of the GSP scheme of the Union

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Where the Union has a preferential arrangement with a third country which provides that a document on origin may be completed by an exporter in accordance with the relevant Union legislation, an exporter being established in the customs territory of the Union may request to be registered for that purpose. Subsection 2 to Subsection 9 of this Section shall apply mutatis mutandis.

2. For the purposes of this Article, Articles 11(1)(d), 16, 17 and 18 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 concerning the conditions for accepting applications and the suspension of decisions and Articles 10 and 15 of this Regulation shall not apply. Applications and decisions related to this Article shall not be exchanged and stored in an electronic information and communication system as laid down in Article 10 of this Regulation.

3. The Commission shall provide the third country with which the Union has a preferential arrangement with the addresses of the customs authorities responsible for the verification of a document on origin completed by a registered exporter in the Union in accordance with this Article.

4. Where the applicable preferential arrangement does not specify the value threshold up to which an exporter who is not a registered exporter may complete a document on origin, the value threshold shall be EUR 6 000 for each consignment.

5. Until the dates of deployment of the Registered Exporter System (REX) referred to in the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/255/EU, the following provisions shall apply:

(a)	an exporter being established in the customs territory of the Union may request to be approved in accordance with Article 67 of this Regulation for the purpose of acting as a registered exporter in accordance with paragraph 1;

(b)	an exporter being already the holder of an approved exporter authorisation in the Union may request it to be extended for the purpose of acting as a registered exporter in accordance with paragraph 1;

and their approved exporter authorisation number shall be used as a registered exporter number.

As from the dates of deployment of the Registered Exporter System (REX), an exporter referred to in either point (a) or point (b) of the first subparagraph, who wants to continue acting as a registered exporter in accordance with paragraph 1, shall be registered in that system.

Article 69

Replacement of proofs of preferential origin issued or made out outside the framework of the GSP scheme of the Union

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Where originating products covered by a proof of preferential origin issued or made out previously for the purposes of a preferential tariff measure as referred to in Article 56(2)(d) or (e) of the Code other than the GSP of the Union have not yet been released for free circulation and are placed under the control of a customs office in the Union, the initial proof of origin may be replaced by one or more replacement proofs for the purposes of sending all or some of those products elsewhere within the Union.

2. Where the proof of origin required for the purposes of the preferential tariff measure as referred to in paragraph 1 is a movement certificate EUR.1, another governmental certificate of origin, an origin declaration or an invoice declaration, the replacement proof of origin shall be issued or made out in the form of one of the following documents:

(a)	a replacement origin declaration or a replacement invoice declaration made out by an approved exporter re-consigning the goods;

(b)	a replacement origin declaration or a replacement invoice declaration made out by any re-consignor of the goods where the total value of originating products in the initial consignment to be split does not exceed the applicable value threshold;

(c)

a replacement origin declaration or invoice declaration made out by any re-consignor of the goods where the total value of originating products in the initial consignment to be split exceeds the applicable value threshold, and the re-consignor attaches a copy of the initial proof of origin to the replacement origin declaration or invoice declaration;

(d)

a movement certificate EUR.1 issued by the customs office under whose control the goods are placed where the following conditions are fulfilled:

(i)	the re-consignor is not an approved exporter and does not consent to a copy of the initial proof of origin being attached to the replacement proof;

(ii)	the total value of the originating products in the initial consignment exceeds the applicable value threshold above which the exporter must be an approved exporter in order to make out a replacement proof.

3. Where the replacement proof of origin is issued in accordance with paragraph 2(d), the endorsement made by the customs office issuing the replacement movement certificate EUR.1 shall be placed in box 11 of the certificate. The particulars in box 4 of the certificate concerning the country of origin shall be identical to those particulars in the initial proof of origin. Box 12 shall be signed by the re-consignor. A re-consignor who signs box 12 in good faith shall not be responsible for the accuracy of the particulars entered on the original proof of origin.

The customs office which is requested to issue the replacement certificate shall note on the initial proof of origin or on an attachment to it the weights, numbers, nature of the products forwarded and their country of destination and indicate thereon the serial numbers of the corresponding replacement certificate or certificates. It shall keep the initial proof of origin for at least 3 years.

4. Where the proof of origin required for the purposes of the preferential tariff measure as referred to in paragraph 1 is a statement on origin, the replacement proof of origin shall be made out by the re-consignor in the form of a replacement statement.

Where the total value of the products of the consignment for which a proof of origin has been made out, does not exceed the applicable value threshold, the re-consignor of parts of the consignment need not be a registered exporter itself in order to make out replacement statements on origin.

Where the total value of the products of the consignment for which a proof of origin has been made out exceeds the applicable value threshold, in order to make out replacement statements on origin, the re-consignor shall fulfil either of the following conditions:

(a)	be a registered exporter in the Union;

(b)	attach a copy of the initial statement on origin to the replacement statement on origin.

Subsection 2

Obligations of Beneficiary Countries within the framework of the GSP scheme of the Union

Article 70

Obligation to provide administrative cooperation within the framework of the REX system

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. In order to ensure the proper application of the GSP scheme beneficiary countries shall undertake:

(a)

to put in place and to maintain the necessary administrative structures and systems required for the implementation and management in that country of the rules and procedures laid down in this Subsection and Subsections 3 to 9 of this Section and Subsections 2 and 3 of Title II Chapter 1 Section 2 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, including where appropriate the arrangements necessary for the application of cumulation;

(b)	that their competent authorities will cooperate with the Commission and the customs authorities of the Member States.

2. The cooperation referred to in point (b) of paragraph 1 shall consist of:

(c)	providing all necessary support in the event of a request by the Commission for the monitoring by it of the proper management of the GSP scheme in the country concerned, including verification visits on the spot by the Commission or the customs authorities of the Member States;

(d)

without prejudice to Articles 108 and 109 of this Regulation, verifying the originating status of products and the compliance with the other conditions laid down in this Subsection, Subsections 3 to 9 of this Section and Subsections 2 and 3 of Title II Chapter 1 Section 2 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, including visits on the spot, where requested by the Commission or the customs authorities of the Member States in the context of origin investigations.

3. To be entitled to apply the registered exporters system, the beneficiary countries shall submit the undertaking referred to in paragraph 1 to the Commission at least 3 months before the date on which they intend to start the registration of exporters.

4. Where a country or territory has been removed from Annex II to Regulation (EU) No 978/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council (13), the obligation to provide administrative cooperation laid down in Articles 55(8) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 and Articles 72, 80 and 108 of this Regulation shall continue to apply to that country or territory for a period of 3 years from the date of its removal from that annex.

Article 71

Procedures and methods of administrative cooperation applicable with regard to exports using certificates of origin Form A and invoice declarations

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Every beneficiary country shall comply or ensure compliance with:

(a)	the rules on the origin of the products being exported, laid down in Subsection 2 of Title II Chapter 1 Section 2 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446;

(b)	the rules for completion and issue of certificates of origin Form A;

(c)	the provisions for the use of invoice declarations, to be drawn up in accordance with the requirements set out in Annex 22-09;

(d)	the provisions concerning the obligations of notifications referred to in Article 73 of this Regulation;

(e)	the provisions concerning granting of derogations referred to in Article 64(6) of the Code.

2. The competent authorities of the beneficiary countries shall cooperate with the Commission or the Member States by, in particular:

(a)	providing all necessary support in the event of a request by the Commission for the monitoring by it of the proper management of the GSP scheme in the country concerned, including verification visits on the spot by the Commission or the customs authorities of the Member States;

(b)

without prejudice to Articles 73 and 110 of this Regulation, verifying the originating status of products and the compliance with the other conditions laid down in this Subsection, Subsections 3 to 9 of this Section and Subsections 2 and 3 of Title II Chapter 1 Section 2 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, including visits on the spot, where requested by the Commission or the customs authorities of the Member States in the context of origin investigations.

3. Where, in a beneficiary country, a competent authority for issuing certificates of origin Form A is designated, documentary proofs of origin are verified, and certificates of origin Form A for exports to the Union are issued, that beneficiary country shall be considered to have accepted the conditions laid down in paragraph 1.

4. When a country is admitted or readmitted as a beneficiary country in respect of products referred to in Regulation (EU) No 978/2012, goods originating in that country shall benefit from the generalised system of preferences on condition that they were exported from the beneficiary country on or after the date referred to in Article 73(2) of this Regulation.

5. Where a country or territory has been removed from Annex II to Regulation (EU) No 978/2012, the obligation to provide administrative cooperation laid down in Article 55 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 and Articles 110 and 111 of this Regulation shall continue to apply to that country or territory for a period of 3 years from the date of its removal from that annex.

6. The obligations referred to in paragraph 5 shall apply to Singapore for a period of 3 years starting from 1 January 2014.

Article 72

Notification obligations applicable after the date of application of the registered exporter (REX) system

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Beneficiary countries shall notify the Commission of the names and addresses and contact details of the authorities situated in their territory which are:

(a)	part of the governmental authorities of the country concerned, or act under the authority of the government thereof, and competent to register exporters in the REX system, modify and update registration data and revoke registrations;

(b)

part of the governmental authorities of the country concerned and responsible for ensuring the administrative cooperation with the Commission and the customs authorities of the Member States as provided for in this Subsection, Subsections 3 to 9 of this Section and Subsections 2 and 3 of Title II Chapter 1 Section 2 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446.

2. The notification shall be sent to the Commission at the latest 3 months before the date on which the beneficiary countries intend to start the registration of exporters.

3. Beneficiary countries shall inform the Commission immediately of any changes to the information notified under the first paragraph.

Article 73

Notification obligations applicable until the date of application of the registered exporter (REX) system

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The beneficiary countries shall inform the Commission of the names and addresses of the governmental authorities situated in their territory which are empowered to issue certificates of origin Form A, together with specimen impressions of the stamps used by those authorities, and the names and addresses of the relevant governmental authorities responsible for the control of the certificates of origin Form A and the invoice declarations.

The Commission will forward this information to the customs authorities of the Member States. When this information is communicated within the framework of an amendment of previous communications, the Commission will indicate the date of entry into use of those new stamps according to the instructions given by the competent governmental authorities of the beneficiary countries. This information is for official use; however, when goods are to be released for free circulation, the customs authorities in question may allow the importer to consult the specimen impressions of the stamps.

Beneficiary countries which have already provided the information required under the first sub-paragraph shall not be obliged to provide it again, unless there has been a change.

2. For the purpose of Article 71(4) of this Regulation, the Commission will publish, on its website, the date on which a country admitted or readmitted as a beneficiary country in respect of products referred to in Regulation (EU) No 978/2012 met the obligations set out in paragraph 1 of this Article.

Subsection 3

Procedures at export in beneficiary countries and in the Union applicable within the framework of the GSP scheme of the Union until the application of the registered exporter system

Article 74

Procedure for the issue of a certificate of origin Form A

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Certificates of origin Form A shall be issued on written application from the exporter or its representative, together with any other appropriate supporting documents proving that the products to be exported qualify for the issue of a certificate of origin Form A. Certificates of origin Form A shall be issued using the form set out in Annex 22-08.

2. The competent authorities of beneficiary countries shall make available the certificate of origin Form A to the exporter as soon as the exportation has taken place or is ensured. However, the competent authorities of beneficiary countries may also issue a certificate of origin Form A after exportation of the products to which it relates, if:

(a)	it was not issued at the time of exportation because of errors or involuntary omissions or special circumstances; or

(b)	it is demonstrated to the satisfaction of the competent authorities that a certificate of origin Form A was issued but was not accepted at importation for technical reasons; or

(c)	the final destination of the products concerned was determined during their transportation or storage and after possible splitting of a consignment, in accordance with Article 43 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446.

3. The competent authorities of beneficiary countries may issue a certificate retrospectively only after verifying that the information supplied in the exporter’s application for a certificate of origin Form A issued retrospectively is in accordance with that in the corresponding export file and that a certificate of origin Form A was not issued when the products in question were exported, except when the certificate of origin Form A was not accepted for technical reasons. The words ‘Issued retrospectively’, ‘Délivré a posteriori’ or ‘emitido a posteriori’ shall be indicated in box 4 of the certificate of origin Form A issued retrospectively.

4. In the event of theft, loss or destruction of a certificate of origin Form A, the exporter may apply to the competent authorities which issued it for a duplicate to be made out on the basis of the export documents in their possession. The words ‘Duplicate’, ‘Duplicata’ or ‘Duplicado’, the date of issue and the serial number of the original certificate shall be indicated in box 4 of the duplicate certificate of origin Form A. The duplicate takes effect from the date of the original.

5. For the purposes of verifying whether the product for which a certificate of origin Form A is requested complies with the relevant rules of origin, the competent governmental authorities shall be entitled to call for any documentary evidence or to carry out any check which they consider appropriate.

6. Completion of boxes 2 and 10 of the certificate of origin Form A shall be optional. Box 12 shall bear the mention ‘Union’ or the name of one of the Member States. The date of issue of the certificate of origin Form A shall be indicated in box 11. The signature to be entered in that box, which is reserved for the competent governmental authorities issuing the certificate, as well as the signature of the exporter’s authorised signatory to be entered in box 12, shall be handwritten.

Article 75

Conditions for making out an invoice declaration

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The invoice declaration may be made out by any exporter operating in a beneficiary country for any consignment consisting of one or more packages containing originating products whose total value does not exceed EUR 6 000, and provided that the administrative cooperation referred to in Article 67(2) of this Regulation applies to this procedure.

2. The exporter making out an invoice declaration shall be prepared to submit at any time, at the request of the customs or other competent governmental authorities of the exporting country, all appropriate documents proving the originating status of the products concerned.

3. An invoice declaration shall be made out by the exporter in either French, English or Spanish by typing, stamping or printing on the invoice, the delivery note or any other commercial document, the declaration, the text of which appears in Annex 22-09. If the declaration is handwritten, it shall be written in ink in printed characters. Invoice declarations shall bear the original handwritten signature of the exporter.

4. The use of an invoice declaration shall be subject to the following conditions:

(a)	one invoice declaration shall be made out for each consignment;

(b)	if the goods contained in the consignment have already been subject to verification in the exporting country by reference to the definition of ‘originating products’, the exporter may refer to that verification in the invoice declaration.

Article 76

Conditions for issuing a certificate of origin Form A in case of cumulation

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

When cumulation under Articles 53, 54, 55 or 56 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 applies, the competent governmental authorities of the beneficiary country called on to issue a certificate of origin Form A for products in the manufacture of which materials originating in a party with which cumulation is permitted are used shall rely on the following:

(a)	in the case of bilateral cumulation, on the proof of origin provided by the exporter’s supplier and issued in accordance with the provisions of Article 77 of this Regulation;

(b)	in the case of cumulation with Norway, Switzerland or Turkey, on the proof of origin provided by the exporter’s supplier and issued in accordance with the relevant rules of origin of Norway, Switzerland or Turkey, as the case may be;

(c)	in the case of regional cumulation, on the proof of origin provided by the exporter’s supplier, namely a certificate of origin Form A, issued using the form set out in Annex 22-08 or, as the case may be, an invoice declaration, the text of which appears in Annex 22-09;

(d)	in the case of extended cumulation, on the proof of origin provided by the exporter’s supplier and issued in accordance with the provisions of the relevant free-trade agreement between the Union and the country concerned.

In the cases referred to in points (a), (b), (c) and (d) of the first sub-paragraph, Box 4 of certificate of origin Form A shall, as the case may be, contain the indication:

—	‘EU cumulation’, ‘Norway cumulation’, ‘Switzerland cumulation’, ‘Turkey cumulation’, ‘regional cumulation’, ‘extended cumulation with country x’, or

—	‘Cumul UE’, ‘Cumul Norvège’, ‘Cumul Suisse’, ‘Cumul Turquie’, ‘cumul régional’, ‘cumul étendu avec le pays x’, or

—	‘Acumulación UE’, ‘Acumulación Noruega’, ‘Acumulación Suiza’, ‘Acumulación Turquía’, ‘Acumulación regional’, ‘Acumulación ampliada con el país x’.

Article 77

Proof of Union’s originating status for the purpose of bilateral cumulation and approved exporter

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Evidence of the originating status of Union products shall be furnished by either of the following:

(a)	the production of a movement certificate EUR.1, issued using the form set out in Annex 22-10; or

(b)

the production of an invoice declaration, the text of which is set out in Annex 22-09 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446. An invoice declaration may be made out by any exporter for consignments containing originating products whose total value does not exceed EUR 6 000 or by an approved Union exporter.

2. The exporter or its representative shall enter ‘GSP beneficiary countries’ and ‘EU’, or ‘Pays bénéficiaires du SPG’ and ‘UE’, in box 2 of the movement certificate EUR.1.

3. The provisions of this Subsection, Subsections 3 to 9 of this Section and Subsections 2 and 3 of Title II Chapter 1 Section 2 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 concerning the issue, use and subsequent verification of certificates of origin Form A shall apply mutatis mutandis to EUR.1 movement certificates and, with the exception of the provisions concerning their issue, to invoice declarations.

4. The customs authorities of the Member States may authorise any exporter established in the customs territory of the Union, hereinafter referred to as an ‘approved exporter’, who makes frequent shipments of products originating in the Union within the framework of bilateral cumulation to make out invoice declarations, irrespective of the value of the products concerned, where that exporter offers, to the satisfaction of the customs authorities, all guarantees necessary to verify the following:

(a)	the originating status of the products;

(b)	the fulfilment of other requirements applicable in that Member State.

5. The customs authorities may grant the status of approved exporter subject to any conditions which they consider appropriate. The customs authorities shall grant to the approved exporter a customs authorisation number which shall appear on the invoice declaration.

6. The customs authorities shall monitor the use of the authorisation by the approved exporter. The customs authorities may withdraw the authorisation at any time.

They shall withdraw the authorisation in each of the following cases:

(a)	the approved exporter no longer offers the guarantees referred to in paragraph 4;

(b)	the approved exporter does not fulfil the conditions referred to in paragraph 5;

(c)	the approved exporter otherwise makes improper use of the authorisation.

7. An approved exporter shall not be required to sign invoice declarations provided that the approved exporter gives the customs authorities a written undertaking accepting full responsibility for any invoice declaration which identifies the approved exporter as if the approved exporter had signed it with his handwritten signature.

Subsection 4

Procedures at export in beneficiary countries and in the Union applicable within the framework of the GSP scheme of the Union from the date of the application of the registered exporter system

Article 78

Obligation for exporters to be registered and waiver thereof

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The GSP scheme shall apply in the following cases:

(a)	in cases of goods satisfying the requirements of this Subsection, Subsections 3 to 9 of this Section and Subsections 2 and 3 of Title II Chapter 1 Section 2 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 exported by a registered exporter;

(b)	in cases of any consignment of one or more packages containing originating products exported by any exporter, where the total value of the originating products consigned does not exceed EUR 6 000.

2. The value of originating products in a consignment is the value of all originating products within one consignment covered by a statement on origin made out in the country of exportation.

Article 79

Registration procedure in the beneficiary countries and procedures at export applicable during the transition period to the application of the registered exporter system

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Beneficiary countries shall start the registration of exporters on 1 January 2017.

However, where the beneficiary country is not in a position to start registration on that date, it shall notify the Commission in writing by 1 July 2016 that it postpones the registration of exporters until 1 January 2018 or 1 January 2019.

2. During a period of 12 months following the date on which the beneficiary country starts the registration of exporters, the competent authorities of that beneficiary country shall continue to issue certificates of origin Form A at the request of exporters who are not yet registered at the time of requesting the certificate.

Without prejudice to Article 94(2) of this Regulation, certificates of origin Form A issued in accordance with the first sub-paragraph of this paragraph shall be admissible in the Union as proof of origin if they are issued before the date of registration of the exporter concerned.

The competent authorities of a beneficiary country experiencing difficulties in completing the registration process within the above 12-month period may request its extension to the Commission. Such extensions shall not exceed 6 months.

3. Exporters in a beneficiary country, registered or not, shall make out statements on origin for originating products consigned, where the total value thereof does not exceed EUR 6 000, as of the date from which the beneficiary country intends to start the registration of exporters.

Exporters, once registered, shall make out statements on origin for originating products consigned, where the total value thereof exceeds EUR 6 000, as of the date from which their registration is valid in accordance with Article 86(4) of this Regulation.

4. All beneficiary countries shall apply the registered exporter system as of 30 June 2020 at the latest.

Subsection 5

Article 80

Registered exporter database: obligations of the authorities

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The Commission shall set up a system for registering exporters authorised to certify the origin of goods (the REX system) and make it available by 1 January 2017.

2. The competent authorities of beneficiary countries and the customs authorities of Member States shall upon receipt of the complete application form referred to in Annex 22-06 assign without delay the number of registered exporter to the exporter or, where appropriate, the re-consignor of goods and enter into the REX system the number of registered exporter, the registration data and the date from which the registration is valid in accordance with Article 86(4) of this Regulation.

The competent authorities of a beneficiary country or the customs authorities of a Member State shall inform the exporter or, where appropriate, the re-consignor of goods of the number of registered exporter assigned to that exporter or re-consignor of goods and of the date from which the registration is valid.

3. Where the competent authorities consider that the information provided in the application is incomplete, they shall inform the exporter thereof without delay.

4. The competent authorities of beneficiary countries and the customs authorities of Member States shall keep the data registered by them up-to-date. They shall modify those data immediately after having been informed by the registered exporter in accordance with Article 89 of this Regulation.

Article 81

Date of application of certain provisions

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Articles 70, 72, 78 to 80, 82 to 93, 99 to 107, 108, 109 and 112 of this Regulation shall apply in respect of export of goods by exporters registered under the REX system in a beneficiary country from the date on which that beneficiary country starts registering exporters under that system. In so far as exporters in the Union are concerned, these Articles shall apply from 1 January 2017.

2. Articles 71, 73, 74 to 77, 94 to 98 and 110 to 112 of this Regulation shall apply in respect of export of goods by exporters who are not registered under the REX system in a beneficiary country. In so far as exporters in the Union are concerned, these Articles shall apply until 31 December 2017.

Article 82

Registered exporter database: access rights to the database

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The Commission shall ensure that access to the REX system is given in accordance with this Article.

2. The Commission shall have access to consult all the data.

3. The competent authorities of a beneficiary country shall have access to consult the data concerning exporters registered by them.

4. The customs authorities of the Member States shall have access to consult the data registered by them, by the customs authorities of other Member States and by the competent authorities of beneficiary countries as well as by Norway, Switzerland or Turkey. This access to the data shall take place for the purpose of carrying out verifications of customs declarations under Article 188 of the Code or post-release control under Article 48 of the Code.

5. The Commission shall provide secure access to the REX system to the competent authorities of beneficiary countries.

6. Where a country or territory has been removed from Annex II to Regulation (EU) No 978/2012, its competent authorities shall keep the access to the REX system as long as required in order to enable them to comply with their obligations under Article 70 of this Regulation.

7. The Commission shall make the following data available to the public with the consent given by the exporter by signing box 6 of the form set out in Annex 22-06:

(a)	name of the registered exporter;

(b)	address of the place where the registered exporter is established;

(c)	contact details as specified in box 2 of the form set out in Annex 22-06;

(d)	indicative description of the goods which qualify for preferential treatment, including indicative list of Harmonised System headings or chapters, as specified in box 4 of the form set out in Annex 22-06;

(e)	EORI number or the trader identification number (TIN) of the registered exporter.

The refusal to sign box 6 shall not constitute a ground for refusing to register the exporter.

8. The Commission shall always make the following data available to the public

(a)	the number of registered exporter;

(b)	the date from which the registration is valid;

(c)	the date of the revocation of the registration where applicable;

(d)	information whether the registration applies also to exports to Norway, Switzerland or Turkey;

(e)	the date of the last synchronisation between the REX system and the public website.

Article 83

Registered exporter database: data protection

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The data registered in the REX system shall be processed solely for the purpose of the application of the GSP scheme as set out in this Subsection.

2. Registered exporters shall be provided with the information laid down in Article 11(1)(a) to (e) of Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council (14) or Article 10 of Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (15). In addition, they shall also be provided with the following information:

(a)	information concerning the legal basis of the processing operations for which the data is intended;

(b)	the data retention period.

Registered exporters shall be provided with that information via a notice attached to the application to become a registered exporter as set out in Annex 22-06.

3. Each competent authority in a beneficiary country and each customs authority in a Member State that has introduced data into the REX system shall be considered the controller with respect to the processing of those data.

The Commission shall be considered as a joint controller with respect to the processing of all data to guarantee that the registered exporter will obtain his rights.

4. The rights of registered exporters with regard to the processing of data which is stored in the REX system listed in Annex 22-06 and processed in national systems shall be exercised in accordance with the data protection legislation implementing Directive 95/46/EC of the Member State which is storing their data.

5. Member States who replicate in their national systems the data of the REX system they have access to shall keep the replicated data-up-to date.

6. The rights of registered exporters with regard to the processing of their registration data by the Commission shall be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 45/2001.

7. Any request by a registered exporter to exercise the right of access, rectification, erasure or blocking of data in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 shall be submitted to and processed by the controller of data.

Where a registered exporter has submitted such a request to the Commission without having tried to obtain his rights from the controller of data, the Commission shall forward that request to the controller of data of the registered exporter.

If the registered exporter fails to obtain his rights from the controller of data, the registered exporter shall submit such request to the Commission acting as controller. The Commission shall have the right to rectify, erase or block the data.

8. The national supervisory data protection authorities and the European Data Protection Supervisor, each acting within the scope of their respective competence, shall cooperate and ensure coordinated supervision of the registration data.

They shall, each acting within the scope of their respective competences, exchange relevant information, assist each other in carrying out audits and inspections, examine difficulties of interpretation or application of this Regulation, study problems with the exercise of independent supervision or in the exercise of the rights of data subjects, draw up harmonised proposals for joint solutions to any problems and promote awareness of data protection rights, as necessary.

Article 84

Notification obligations applicable to Member States for the implementation of the registered exporter (REX) system

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

Member States shall notify the Commission of the names, addresses and contact details of their customs authorities which are:

(a)	competent to register exporters and re-consignors of goods in the REX system, modify and update registration data and revoke registration;

(b)	responsible for ensuring the administrative cooperation with the competent authorities of the beneficiary countries as provided for in this Subsection, Subsections 3 to 9 of this Section and Subsections 2 and 3 of Title II Chapter 1 Section 2 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446.

The notification shall be sent to the Commission by 30 September 2016.

Member States shall inform the Commission immediately of any changes to the information notified under the first sub-paragraph.

Article 85

Registration procedure in the Member States and procedures at export applicable during the transition period to the application of the registered exporter system

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. On 1 January 2017, the customs authorities of Member States shall start the registration of exporters established in their territories.

2. As of 1 January 2018, the customs authorities in all Member States shall cease to issue movement certificates EUR.1 for the purpose of cumulation under Article 53 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446.

3. Until 31 December 2017, the customs authorities of Member States shall issue movement certificates EUR.1 or replacement certificates of origin Form A at the request of exporters or re-consignors of goods who are not yet registered. This shall also apply if the originating products sent to the Union are accompanied by statements on origin made out by a registered exporter in a beneficiary country.

4. Exporters in the Union, registered or not, shall make out statements on origin for originating products consigned, where the total value thereof does not exceed EUR 6 000, as from 1 January 2017.

Exporters, once registered, shall make out statements on origin for originating products consigned, where the total value thereof exceeds EUR 6 000, as of the date on which their registration is valid in accordance with Article 86(4) of this Regulation.

5. Re-consignors of goods who are registered may make out replacement statements on origin from the date from which their registration is valid in accordance with Article 86(4) of this Regulation. This shall apply regardless of whether the goods are accompanied by a certificate of origin Form A issued in the beneficiary country or an invoice declaration or a statement on origin made out by the exporter.

Article 86

Application to become a registered exporter

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. To become a registered exporter, an exporter shall lodge an application with the competent authorities of the beneficiary country where he has his headquarters or where he is permanently established.

The application shall be made using the form set out in Annex 22-06.

2. To become a registered exporter, an exporter or a re-consignor of goods established in the customs territory of the Union shall lodge an application with the customs authorities of that Member States. The application shall be made using the form set out in Annex 22-06.

3. For the purposes of exports under the GSP and under the generalised schemes of preferences of Norway, Switzerland or Turkey exporters shall only be required to be registered once.

A registered exporter number shall be assigned to the exporter by the competent authorities of the beneficiary country with a view to exporting under the GSP schemes of the Union, Norway and Switzerland as well as Turkey, to the extent that those countries have recognised the country where the registration has taken place as a beneficiary country.

4. The registration shall be valid as of the date on which the competent authorities of a beneficiary country or the customs authorities of a Member State receive a complete application for registration, in accordance with paragraphs 1 and 2.

5. Where the exporter is represented for the purpose of carrying out export formalities and the representative of the exporter is also a registered exporter, this representative shall not use his own registered exporter number.

Article 87

Registered exporter database: Publicity measures

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

For the purpose of Article 70(4) of this Regulation, the Commission will publish on its website the date on which beneficiary countries start applying the registered exporter system. The Commission will keep the information up-to-date.

Article 88

Automatic registration of exporters for a country becoming a beneficiary country of the GSP scheme of the Union

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

Where a country is added to the list of beneficiary countries in Annex II to Regulation (EU) No 978/2012, the Commission shall automatically activate for its GSP scheme the registrations of all exporters registered in that country provided that the registration data of the exporters are available in the REX system and are valid for at least the GSP scheme of Norway, Switzerland or Turkey.

In this case, an exporter who is already registered for at least the GSP scheme of either, Norway, Switzerland or Turkey, need not lodge an application with his competent authorities to be registered for the GSP scheme of the Union.

Article 89

Withdrawal from the record of registered exporters

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Registered exporters shall immediately inform the competent authorities of the beneficiary country or the customs authorities of the Member State of changes to the information which they have provided for the purposes of their registration.

2. Registered exporters who no longer meet the conditions for exporting goods under the GSP scheme, or no longer intend to export goods under the GSP scheme shall inform the competent authorities in the beneficiary country or the customs authorities in the Member State accordingly.

3. The competent authorities in a beneficiary country or the customs authorities in a Member State shall revoke the registration if the registered exporter:

(a)	no longer exists;

(b)	no longer meets the conditions for exporting goods under the GSP scheme;

(c)	has informed the competent authority of the beneficiary country or the customs authorities of the Member State that he no longer intends to export goods under the GSP scheme;

(d)	intentionally or negligently draws up, or causes to be drawn up, a statement on origin which contains incorrect information and leads to wrongfully obtaining the benefit of preferential tariff treatment.

4. The competent authority of a beneficiary country or the customs authorities of a Member State may revoke the registration if the registered exporter fails to keep the data concerning his registration up-to-date.

5. Revocation of registrations shall take effect for the future, i.e. in respect of statements on origin made out after the date of revocation. Revocation of registration shall have no effect on the validity of statements on origin made out before the registered exporter is informed of the revocation.

6. The competent authority of a beneficiary country or the customs authorities of a Member State shall inform the registered exporter about the revocation of his registration and of the date from which the revocation will take effect.

7. Judicial remedy shall be available to the exporter or the re-consignor of goods in the event of revocation of his registration.

8. The revocation of a registered exporter shall be cancelled in case of an incorrect revocation. The exporter or the re-consignor of goods shall be entitled to use the registered exporter number assigned to him at the time of the registration.

9. Exporters or re-consignors of goods whose registration has been revoked may make a new application to become a registered exporter in accordance with Article 86 of this Regulation. Exporters or re-consignors of goods whose registration has been revoked in accordance with paragraphs 3(d) and 4 may only be registered again if they prove to the competent authorities of the beneficiary country or to the customs authorities of the Member State which had registered them that they have remedied the situation which led to the revocation of their registration.

10. The data relating to a revoked registration shall be kept in the REX system by the competent authority of the beneficiary country or by the customs authorities of the Member State, which introduced them into that system, for a maximum of 10 calendar years after the calendar year in which the revocation took place. After those 10 calendar years, the competent authority of a beneficiary country or the customs authorities of the Member State shall delete the data.

Article 90

Automatic withdrawal from the record of registered exporters when a country is withdrawn from the list of beneficiary countries

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The Commission shall revoke all registrations of exporters registered in a beneficiary country if the beneficiary country is removed from the list of beneficiary countries in Annex II to Regulation (EU) No 978/2012 or if the tariff preferences granted to the beneficiary country have been temporarily withdrawn in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 978/2012.

2. Where that country is reintroduced in that list or where the temporary withdrawal of the tariff preferences granted to the beneficiary country is terminated, the Commission shall re-activate the registrations of all exporters registered in that country provided that the registration data of the exporters are available in the system and have remained valid for at least the GSP scheme of Norway or Switzerland, or Turkey. Otherwise, exporters shall be registered again in accordance with Article 86 of this Regulation.

3. In the event of revocation of the registrations of all registered exporters in a beneficiary country in accordance with the first paragraph, the data of the revoked registrations will be kept in the REX system for at least 10 calendar years after the calendar year in which the revocation took place. After that 10-year period, and when the beneficiary country has not been a beneficiary country of the GSP scheme of Norway, Switzerland, nor Turkey for more than 10 years, the Commission will delete the data of the revoked registrations from the REX system.

Article 91

Obligations of exporters

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Exporters and registered exporters shall comply with the following obligations:

(a)	they shall maintain appropriate commercial accounting records concerning the production and supply of goods qualifying for preferential treatment;

(b)	they shall keep available all evidence relating to the materials used in the manufacture;

(c)	they shall keep all customs documentation relating to the materials used in the manufacture;

(d)

they shall keep for at least 3 years from the end of the calendar year in which the statement on origin was made out, or longer if required by national law, records of:

(i)	the statements on origin they made out;

(ii)	their originating and non-originating materials, production and stock accounts.

Those records and those statements on origin may be kept in an electronic format but shall allow the materials used in the manufacture of the exported products to be traced and their originating status to be confirmed.

2. The obligations provided for in paragraph 1 shall also apply to suppliers who provide exporters with suppliers’ declarations certifying the originating status of the goods they supply.

3. The re-consignors of goods, whether registered or not, who make out replacement statements on origin shall keep the initial statements on origin they replaced for at least 3 years from the end of the calendar year in which the replacement statement on origin was made out, or longer if required by national law.

Article 92

General provisions on the statement on origin

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. A statement on origin may be made out at the time of exportation to the Union or when the exportation to the Union is ensured.

Where the products concerned are considered as originating in the beneficiary country of export or another beneficiary country in accordance with the second sub-paragraph of Article 55(4) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 or with the second sub-paragraph of Article 55(6) of that Regulation, the statement on origin shall be made out by the exporter in the beneficiary country of export.

Where the products concerned are exported without further working or processing or after being only subject to operations described in Article 47(1)(a) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 and have therefore retained their origin in accordance with the third subparagraph of Article 55(4) and with the third subparagraph of Article 55(6) of that Regulation, the statement on origin shall be made out by the exporter in the beneficiary country of origin.

2. A statement on origin may also be made out after exportation (‘retrospective statement’) of the products concerned. Such a retrospective statement on origin shall be admissible if presented to the customs authorities in the Member State of lodging of the customs declaration for release for free circulation at the latest 2 years after the importation.

Where the splitting of a consignment takes place in accordance with Article 43 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 and provided that the 2-year deadline referred to in the first sub-paragraph is respected, the statement on origin may be made out retrospectively by the exporter of the country of exportation of the products. This applies mutatis mutandis if the splitting of a consignment takes place in another beneficiary country or in Norway, Switzerland or Turkey.

3. The statement on origin shall be provided by the exporter to its customer in the Union and shall contain the particulars specified in Annex 22-07 of. It shall be made out in English, French or Spanish.

It may be made out on any commercial document allowing identification of the exporter concerned and the goods involved.

4. Paragraphs 1 to 3 shall apply mutatis mutandis to statements on origin made out in the Union for the purpose of bilateral cumulation.

Article 93

Statement on origin in the case of cumulation

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. For the purpose of establishing the origin of materials used under bilateral or regional cumulation, the exporter of a product manufactured using materials originating in a country with which cumulation is permitted shall rely on the statement on origin provided by the supplier of those materials. In these cases, the statement on origin made out by the exporter shall, as the case may be, contain the indication ‘EU cumulation’, ‘regional cumulation’, ‘Cumul UE’, ‘Cumul regional’ or ‘Acumulación UE’, ‘Acumulación regional’.

2. For the purpose of establishing the origin of materials used within the framework of cumulation under Article 54 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, the exporter of a product manufactured using materials originating in Norway, Switzerland or Turkey shall rely on the proof of origin provided by the supplier of those materials on condition that that proof has been issued in accordance with the provisions of the GSP rules of origin of Norway, Switzerland or Turkey, as the case may be. In this case, the statement on origin made out by the exporter shall contain the indication ‘Norway cumulation’, ‘Switzerland cumulation’, ‘Turkey cumulation’, ‘Cumul Norvège’, ‘Cumul Suisse’, ‘Cumul Turquie’ or ‘Acumulación Noruega’, ‘Acumulación Suiza’, ‘Acumulación Turquía’.

3. For the purpose of establishing the origin of materials used within the framework of extended cumulation under Article 56 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, the exporter of a product manufactured using materials originating in a party with which extended cumulation is permitted shall rely on the proof of origin provided by the supplier of those materials on condition that that proof has been issued in accordance with the provisions of the relevant free-trade agreement between the Union and the party concerned.

In this case, the statement on origin made out by the exporter shall contain the indication ‘extended cumulation with country x’, ‘cumul étendu avec le pays x’ or ‘Acumulación ampliada con el país x’.

Subsection 6

Procedures at release for free circulation in the Union applicable within the framework of the GSP scheme of the Union until the date of the application of the registered exporter system

Article 94

Submission and validity of certificates of origin Form A or invoice declarations and belated presentation thereof

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Certificates of origin Form A or invoice declarations shall be submitted to the customs authorities of the Member States of importation in accordance with the procedures concerning the customs declaration.

2. A proof of origin shall be valid for 10 months from the date of issue in the exporting country and shall be submitted within the said period to the customs authorities of the importing country.

Proofs of origin submitted to the customs authorities of the importing country after the lapsing of their period of validity may be accepted for the purpose of applying the tariff preferences, where failure to submit these documents by the final date set is due to exceptional circumstances.

In other cases of belated presentation, the customs authorities of the importing country may accept the proofs of origin where the products have been presented to customs before the said final date.

Article 95

Replacement of certificates of origin Form A and invoice declarations

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Where originating products not yet released for free circulation are placed under the control of a customs office of a Member State, that customs office shall, on written request from the re-consignor, replace the initial certificate of origin Form A or invoice declaration by one or more certificates of origin Form A (replacement certificate) for the purposes of sending all or some of these products elsewhere within the Union or to Norway or Switzerland. The re-consignor shall indicate in his request whether a photocopy of the initial proof of origin is to be annexed to the replacement certificate.

2. The replacement certificate shall be drawn up in accordance with Annex 22-19.

The customs office shall verify that the replacement certificate is in conformity with the initial proof of origin.

3. Where the request for a replacement certificate is made by a re-consignor acting in good faith, he shall not be responsible for the accuracy of the particulars entered on the initial proof of origin.

4. The customs office which is requested to issue the replacement certificate shall note on the initial proof of origin or on an attachment thereto the weights, numbers, nature of the products forwarded and their country of destination and indicate thereon the serial numbers of the corresponding replacement certificate or certificates. It shall keep the initial proof of origin for at least 3 years.

5. In the case of products which benefit from the tariff preferences under a derogation granted in accordance with Article 64(6) of the Code, the procedure laid down in this Article shall apply only when such products are intended for the Union.

Article 96

Importation by instalments using certificates of origin Form A or invoice declarations

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Where, at the request of the importer and on the conditions laid down by the customs authorities of the importing Member State, unassembled or disassembled products within the meaning of general interpretative rule 2(a) of the Harmonised System and falling within Section XVI or XVII or heading 7308 or 9406 of the Harmonised System are imported by instalments, a single proof of origin for such products may be submitted to the customs authorities on importation of the first instalment.

2. At the request of the importer and having regard to the conditions laid down by the customs authorities of the importing Member State, a single proof of origin may be submitted to the customs authorities at the importation of the first consignment when the goods:

(a)	are imported within the framework of frequent and continuous trade flows of a significant commercial value;

(b)	are the subject of the same contract of sale, the parties of this contract established in the exporting country or in the Member State(s);

(c)	are classified in the same code (eight digits) of the Combined Nomenclature;

(d)	come exclusively from the same exporter, are destined for the same importer, and are made the subject of entry formalities at the same customs office of the same Member State.

This procedure shall be applicable for a period determined by the competent customs authorities.

Article 97

Exemptions from the obligation to provide a certificate of origin Form A or an invoice declaration

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Products sent as small packages from private persons to private persons or forming part of travellers’ personal luggage shall be admitted as originating products benefiting from GSP tariff preferences without requiring the presentation of a certificate of origin Form A or an invoice declaration, provided that:

(a)

such products:

(i)	are not imported by way of trade;

(ii)	have been declared as meeting the conditions required for benefiting from the GSP scheme;

(b)	there is no doubt as to the veracity of the declaration referred to in point (a)(ii).

2. Imports shall not be considered as imports by way of trade if all the following conditions are met:

(a)	the imports are occasional;

(b)	the imports consist solely of products for the personal use of the recipients or travellers or their families;

(c)	it is evident from the nature and quantity of the products that no commercial purpose is in view.

3. The total value of the products referred to in paragraph 2 shall not exceed EUR 500 in the case of small packages or EUR 1 200 in the case of products forming part of travellers’ personal luggage.

Article 98

Discrepancies and formal errors in certificates of origin Form A or invoice declarations

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The discovery of slight discrepancies between the statements made in the certificate of origin Form A or in an invoice declaration, and those made in the documents submitted to the customs office for the purpose of carrying out the formalities for importing the products shall not ipso facto render the certificate or declaration null and void if it is duly established that that document does correspond to the products submitted.

2. Obvious formal errors on a certificate of origin Form A, a movement certificate EUR.1 or an invoice declaration shall not cause this document to be rejected if these errors are not such as to create doubts concerning the correctness of the statements made in that document.

Subsection 7

Procedures at release for free circulation in the Union applicable within the framework of the GSP scheme of the Union from the date of the application of the registered exporter system

Article 99

Validity of statement on origin

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. A statement on origin shall be made out for each consignment.

2. A statement on origin shall be valid for 12 months from the date on which it is made out.

3. A single statement on origin may cover several consignments if the goods meet the following conditions:

(a)	they are presented unassembled or disassembled within the meaning of General Interpretative rule 2(a) of the Harmonised System;

(b)	they are falling within Sections XVI or XVII or headings 7308 or 9406 of the Harmonised System; and

(c)	they are intended to be imported by instalments.

Article 100

Admissibility of a statement on origin

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

In order for importers to be entitled to claim benefit from the GSP scheme upon declaration of a statement on origin, the goods shall have been exported on or after the date on which the beneficiary country from which the goods are exported started the registration of exporters in accordance with Article 79 of this Regulation.

When a country is admitted or readmitted as a beneficiary country in respect of products referred to in Regulation (EU) No 978/2012, goods originating in that country shall benefit from the generalised scheme of preferences on condition that they were exported from the beneficiary country on or after the date on which this beneficiary country started applying the registered exporters system referred to in Article 70(3) of this Regulation.

Article 101

Replacement of statements on origin

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Where originating products not yet released for free circulation are placed under the control of a customs office of a Member State, the re-consignor may replace the initial statement on origin by one or more replacement statements on origin (replacement statements), for the purposes of sending all or some of the products elsewhere within the customs territory of the Union or to Norway or Switzerland.

The replacement statement shall be drawn up in accordance with the requirements in Annex 22-20.

Replacement statements on origin may only be made out if the initial statement on origin was made out in accordance with Articles 92, 93, 99 and 100 of this Regulation and Annex 22-07.

2. Re-consignors shall be registered for the purposes of making out replacement statements on origin as regards originating products to be sent elsewhere within the territory of the Union where the total value of the originating products of the initial consignment to be split exceeds EUR 6 000.

However, re-consignors who are not registered may make out replacement statements on origin where the total value of the originating products of the initial consignment to be split exceeds EUR 6 000 if they attach a copy of the initial statement on origin made out in the beneficiary country.

3. Only re-consignors registered in the REX system may make out replacement statements on origin as regards products to be sent to Norway or Switzerland.

4. A replacement statement on origin shall be valid for 12 months from the date of making out the initial statement on origin.

5. Paragraphs 1 to 4 shall also apply to statements replacing replacement statements on origin.

6. Where products benefit from tariff preferences under a derogation granted in accordance with Article 64(6) of the Code, the replacement provided for in this Article may only be made if such products are intended for the Union.

Article 102

General principles and precautions to be taken by the declarant

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Where a declarant requests preferential treatment under the GSP scheme, he shall make reference to the statement on origin in the customs declaration for release for free circulation. The reference to the statement on origin will be its date of issue with the format yyyymmdd, where yyyy is the year, mm is the month and dd is the day. Where the total value of the originating products consigned exceeds EUR 6 000, the declarant shall also indicate the number of the registered exporter.

2. Where the declarant has requested application of the GSP scheme in accordance with paragraph 1, without being in possession of a statement on origin at the time of the acceptance of the customs declaration for release for free circulation, that declaration shall be considered as being incomplete within the meaning of Article 166 of the Code and treated accordingly.

3. Before declaring goods for release for free circulation, the declarant shall take due care to ensure that the goods comply with the rules in this Subsection, Subsections 3 to 9 of this Section and Subsections 2 and 3 of Title II Chapter 1 Section 2 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, in particular, by checking:

(a)	on the public website that the exporter is registered in the REX system, where the total value of the originating products consigned exceeds EUR 6 000; and

(b)	that the statement on origin is made out in accordance with Annex 22-07 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446.

Article 103

Exemptions from the obligation to provide a statement on origin

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The following products shall be exempted from the obligation to make out and produce a statement on origin:

(a)	products sent as small packages from private persons to private persons, the total value of which does not exceed EUR 500;

(b)	products forming part of travellers’ personal luggage, the total value of which does not exceed EUR 1 200.

2. The products referred to in paragraph 1 shall meet the following conditions:

(a)	they are not imported by way of trade;

(b)	they have been declared as meeting the conditions for benefiting from the GSP scheme;

(c)	there is no doubt as to the veracity of the declaration referred to in point (b).

3. For the purposes of point (a) of paragraph 2, imports shall not be considered as imports by way of trade if all the following conditions are met:

(a)	the imports are occasional;

(b)	the imports consist solely of products for the personal use of the recipients or travellers or their families;

(c)	it is evident from the nature and quantity of the products that no commercial purpose is in view.

Article 104

Discrepancies and formal errors in statements on origin; Belated presentation of statements on origin

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The discovery of slight discrepancies between the particulars included in a statement on origin and those mentioned in the documents submitted to the customs authorities for the purpose of carrying out the formalities for importing the products shall not ipso facto render the statement on origin null and void if it is duly established that the document does correspond to the products concerned.

2. Obvious formal errors such as typing errors on a statement on origin shall not cause this document to be rejected if these errors are not such as to create doubts concerning the correctness of the statements made in that document.

3. Statements on origin which are submitted to the customs authorities of the importing country after the period of validity mentioned in Article 99 of this Regulation may be accepted for the purpose of applying the tariff preferences, where failure to submit these documents by the final date set is due to exceptional circumstances. In other cases of belated presentation, the customs authorities of the importing country may accept the statements on origin where the products have been presented to customs before the said final date.

Article 105

Importation by instalments using statements on origin

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The procedure referred to in Article 99(3) of this Regulation shall apply for a period determined by the customs authorities of the Member States.

2. The customs authorities of the Member States of importation supervising the successive releases for free circulation shall verify that the successive consignments are part of the unassembled or disassembled products for which the statement on origin has been made out.

Article 106

Suspension of the application of the preference

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The customs authorities may, where they have doubts with regard to the originating status of the products request the declarant to produce, within a reasonable time period which they shall specify, any available evidence for the purpose of verifying the accuracy of the indication on origin of the declaration or the compliance with the conditions under Article 43 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446.

2. The customs authorities may suspend the application of the preferential tariff measure for the duration of the verification procedure laid down in Article 109 of this Regulation where:

(a)	the information provided by the declarant is not sufficient to confirm the originating status of the products or the compliance with the conditions laid down in Article 42 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 or Article 43 of that Regulation;

(b)	the declarant does not reply within the time period allowed for provision of the information referred to in paragraph 1.

3. While awaiting either the information requested from the declarant, referred to in paragraph 1, or the results of the verification procedure, referred to in paragraph 2, release of the products shall be offered to the importer subject to any precautionary measures judged necessary.

Article 107

Refusal to grant tariff preference

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The customs authorities of the Member State of importation shall refuse to grant tariff preferences, without being obliged to request any additional evidence or send a request for verification to the beneficiary country where:

(a)	the goods are not the same as those mentioned in the statement on origin;

(b)	the declarant fails to submit a statement on origin for the products concerned, where such a statement is required;

(c)	without prejudice to Article 78(1)(b) and to Article 79(3) of this Regulation, the statement on origin in possession of the declarant has not been made out by an exporter registered in the beneficiary country;

(d)	the statement on origin is not made out in accordance with Annex 22-07;

(e)	the conditions of Article 43 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 are not met.

2. The customs authorities of the Member State of importation shall refuse to grant tariff preferences, following a request for verification within the meaning of Article 109 addressed to the competent authorities of the beneficiary country, where the customs authorities of the Member State of importation:

(a)	have received a reply according to which the exporter was not entitled to make out the statement on origin;

(b)	have received a reply according to which the products concerned are not originating in a beneficiary country or the conditions of Article 42 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 were not met;

(c)

had reasonable doubt as to the validity of the statement on origin or the accuracy of the information provided by the declarant regarding the true origin of the products in question when they made the request for verification, and either of the following conditions are met:

(i)	they have received no reply within the time period permitted in accordance with Article 109 of this Regulation; or

(ii)	they have received a reply not providing adequate answers to the questions raised in the request.

Subsection 8

Control of origin within the framework of the GSP scheme of the Union

Article 108

Obligations of the competent authorities relating to the control of origin after the date of application of the registered exporter system

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. For the purpose of ensuring compliance with the rules concerning the originating status of products, the competent authorities of the beneficiary country shall carry out:

(a)	verifications of the originating status of products at the request of the customs authorities of the Member States;

(b)	regular controls on exporters on their own initiative.

The first sub-paragraph shall apply mutatis mutandis to requests sent to the authorities of Norway and Switzerland for the verification of replacement statements on origin made out on their territory, with a view to requesting these authorities to further liaise with the competent authorities in the beneficiary country.

Extended cumulation shall only be permitted under Article 56 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, if a country with which the Union has a free-trade agreement in force has agreed to provide the beneficiary country with its support in matters of administrative cooperation in the same way as it would provide such support to the customs authorities of the Member States in accordance with the relevant provisions of the free-trade agreement concerned.

2. The controls referred to in point (b) of paragraph 1 shall ensure the continued compliance of exporters with their obligations. They shall be carried out at intervals determined on the basis of appropriate risk analysis criteria. For that purpose, the competent authorities of the beneficiary countries shall require exporters to provide copies or a list of the statements on origin they have made out.

3. The competent authorities of the beneficiary countries shall have the right to call for any evidence and to carry out any inspection of the exporter’s accounts and, where appropriate, those of producers supplying him, including at the premises, or to carry out any other check considered appropriate.

Article 109

Subsequent verification of statements on origin and replacement statements on origin

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Subsequent verifications of statements on origin or replacement statements on origin shall be carried out at random or whenever the customs authorities of the Member States have reasonable doubts as to their authenticity, the originating status of the products concerned or the fulfilment of other requirements of this Subsection, Subsections 3 to 9 of this Section and Subsections 2 and 3 of Title II Chapter 1 Section 2 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446.

Where the customs authorities of a Member State request the cooperation of the competent authorities of a beneficiary country to carry out a verification of the validity of statements on origin, the originating status of products, or of both, it shall, where appropriate, indicate on its request the reasons why it has reasonable doubts on the validity of the statement on origin or the originating status of the products.

A copy of the statement on origin or the replacement statement on origin and any additional information or documents suggesting that the information given on that statement or that replacement statement is incorrect may be forwarded in support of the request for verification.

The requesting Member State shall set a 6-month initial deadline to communicate the results of the verification, starting from the date of the verification request, with the exception of requests sent to Norway or Switzerland for the purpose of verifying replacement statements on origin made out in their territories on the basis of a statement on origin made out in a beneficiary country, for which this deadline shall be extended to 8 months.

2. If in cases of reasonable doubt there is no reply within the period specified in paragraph 1 or if the reply does not contain sufficient information to determine the real origin of the products, a second communication shall be sent to the competent authorities. This communication shall set a further deadline of not more than 6 months. If after the second communication the results of the verification are not communicated to the requesting authorities within 6 months from the date on which the second communication was sent, or if this result do not allow the authenticity of the document in question or the real origin of the products to be determined, the requesting authorities shall refuse entitlement to the tariff preferences.

3. Where the verification provided for in paragraph 1 or any other available information appears to indicate that the rules of origin are being contravened, the exporting beneficiary country shall on its own initiative or at the request of the customs authorities of the Member States or the Commission carry out appropriate inquiries or arrange for such inquiries to be carried out with due urgency to identify and prevent such contraventions. For this purpose, the Commission or the customs authorities of the Member States may participate in those inquiries.

Article 110

Subsequent verification of certificates of origin Form A and invoice declarations

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Subsequent verifications of certificates of origin Form A and invoice declarations shall be carried out at random or whenever the customs authorities of the Member States have reasonable doubts as to the authenticity of such documents, the originating status of the products concerned or the fulfilment of the other requirements of this Subsection, Subsections 3 to 9 of this Section and Subsections 2 and 3 of Title II Chapter 1 Section 2 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446.

2. When they make a request for subsequent verification, the customs authorities of the Member States shall return the certificate of origin Form A and the invoice, if it has been submitted, the invoice declaration, or a copy of these documents, to the competent governmental authorities in the exporting beneficiary country giving, where appropriate, the reasons for the enquiry. Any documents and information obtained suggesting that the information given on the proof of origin is incorrect shall be forwarded in support of the request for verification.

If the customs authorities of the Member States decide to suspend the granting of the tariff preferences while awaiting the results of the verification, release of the products shall be offered to the importer subject to any precautionary measures judged necessary.

3. When a request for subsequent verification has been made, such verification shall be carried out and its results communicated to the customs authorities of the Member States within a maximum of 6 months or, in the case of requests sent to Norway, Switzerland or Turkey for the purpose of verifying replacement proofs of origin made out in their territories on the basis of a certificate of origin Form A or an invoice declaration made out in a beneficiary country, within a maximum of 8 months from the date on which the request was sent. The results shall be such as to establish whether the proof of origin in question applies to the products actually exported and whether these products can be considered as products originating in the beneficiary country.

4. In the case of certificates of origin Form A issued following bilateral cumulation, the reply shall include a copy (copies) of the movement certificate(s) EUR.1 or, where necessary, of the corresponding invoice declaration(s).

5. If, in cases of reasonable doubt, there is no reply within the 6 months specified in paragraph 3 or if the reply does not contain sufficient information to determine the authenticity of the document in question or the real origin of the products, a second communication shall be sent to the competent authorities. If after the second communication the results of the verification are not communicated to the requesting authorities within 4 months from the date on which the second communication was sent, or if these results do not allow the authenticity of the document in question or the real origin of the products to be determined, the requesting authorities shall, except in exceptional circumstances, refuse entitlement to the tariff preferences.

6. Where the verification procedure or any other available information appears to indicate that the rules of origin are being contravened, the exporting beneficiary country shall, on its own initiative or at the request of the customs authorities of the Member States, carry out appropriate inquiries or arrange for such inquiries to be carried out with due urgency to identify and prevent such contraventions. For this purpose, the Commission or the customs authorities of the Member States may participate in the inquiries.

7. For the purposes of the subsequent verification of certificates of origin Form A, the exporters shall keep all appropriate documents proving the originating status of the products concerned and the competent governmental authorities of the exporting beneficiary country shall keep copies of the certificates, as well as any export documents referring to them. These documents shall be kept for at least 3 years from the end of the year in which the certificate of origin Form A was issued.

Article 111

Subsequent verification of proofs of origin relating to products having acquired origin through cumulation

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

Articles 73 and 110 of this Regulation shall also apply between the countries of the same regional group for the purposes of provision of information to the Commission or to the customs authorities of the Member States and of the subsequent verification of certificates of origin Form A or invoice declarations issued in accordance with the rules on regional cumulation of origin.

Subsection 9

Other provisions applicable within the framework of the GSP scheme of the Union

Article 112

Ceuta and Melilla

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Articles 41 to 58 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 shall apply in determining whether products may be regarded as originating in a beneficiary country when exported to Ceuta or Melilla or as originating in Ceuta and Melilla when exported to a beneficiary country for the purposes of bilateral cumulation.

2. Articles 74 to 79 and Articles 84 to 93 of this Regulation shall apply to products exported from a beneficiary country to Ceuta or Melilla and to products exported from Ceuta and Melilla to a beneficiary country for the purposes of bilateral cumulation.

3. For the purposes mentioned in paragraphs 1 and 2, Ceuta and Melilla shall be regarded as a single territory.

Subsection 10

Proofs of origin applicable within the framework of the rules of origin for the purposes of preferential tariff measures adopted unilaterally by the Union for certain countries or territories

Article 113

General requirements

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

Products originating in one of the beneficiary countries or territories shall benefit from the tariff preferences referred to in Article 59 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, on submission of either of the following:

(a)	a movement certificate EUR.1, issued using the form set out in Annex 22-10; or

(b)

in the cases specified in Article 119(1), a declaration, the text of which appears in Annex 22-13, given by the exporter on an invoice, a delivery note or any other commercial document which describes the products concerned in sufficient detail to enable them to be identified (hereinafter referred to as the ‘invoice declaration’).

Box 7 of movement certificates EUR.1 or invoice declarations shall contain the indication ‘Autonomous trade measures’ or ‘Mesures commerciales autonomes’.

Article 114

Procedure for the issue of a movement certificate EUR.1

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Originating products within the meaning of Title II, Chapter 1, Section 2, Subsection 4 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 shall be eligible, on importation into the Union, to benefit from the tariff preferences referred to in Article 59 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, provided that they have been transported direct to the Union within the meaning of Article 69 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, on submission of an EUR.1 movement certificate issued by the customs or other competent governmental authorities of a beneficiary country or territory, on condition that the beneficiary country or territory:

(a)	has communicated to the Commission the information required by Article 124 of this Regulation; and

(b)	assists the Union by allowing the customs authorities of Member States to verify the authenticity of the document or the accuracy of the information regarding the true origin of the products in question.

2. A movement certificate EUR.1 may be issued only where it can serve as the documentary evidence required for the purposes of the tariff preferences referred to in Article 59 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446.

3. A movement certificate EUR.1 shall be issued only on written application from the exporter or his representative. Such application shall be lodged using the form set out in Annex 22-10 and shall be completed in accordance with the provisions of this Article and Articles 113, 115, 116, 117, 118, 121 and 123 of this Regulation.

Applications for movement certificates EUR.1 shall be kept by the competent authorities of the exporting beneficiary country or territory or Member State for at least 3 years from the end of the year in which the movement certificate was issued.

4. The exporter or his representative shall submit with his application any appropriate supporting documents proving that the products to be exported qualify for the issue of a movement certificate EUR.1.

The exporter shall undertake to submit, at the request of the competent authorities, any supplementary evidence they may require for the purpose of establishing the correctness of the originating status of the products eligible for preferential treatment and shall undertake to agree to any inspection of their accounts and to any check by the said authorities on the circumstances in which the products were obtained.

5. The movement certificate EUR.1 shall be issued by the competent governmental authorities of the beneficiary country or territory or by the customs authorities of the exporting Member State, if the products to be exported can be considered as originating products within the meaning of Title II, Chapter 1, Section 2, Subsection 4 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446.

6. Since the movement certificate EUR.1 constitutes the documentary evidence for the application of the preferential arrangements set out in Article 59 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, it shall be the responsibility of the competent governmental authorities of the beneficiary country or territory or of the customs authorities of the exporting Member State to take any steps necessary to verify the origin of the products and to check the other statements on the certificate.

7. For the purpose of verifying whether the conditions set out in paragraph 5 have been met, the competent governmental authorities of the beneficiary country or the customs authorities of the exporting Member State shall have the right to call for any documentary evidence or to carry out any check which they consider appropriate.

8. It shall be the responsibility of the competent governmental authorities of the beneficiary country or territory or of the customs authorities of the exporting Member State to ensure that the forms referred to in paragraph 1 are duly completed.

9. The date of issue of the movement certificate EUR.1 shall be indicated in that part of the certificate reserved for the customs authorities.

10. A movement certificate EUR.1 shall be issued by the competent authorities of the beneficiary country or territory or by the customs authorities of the exporting Member State when the products to which it relates are exported. It shall be made available to the exporter as soon as the export has taken place or is ensured.

Article 115

Importation by instalments

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

Where, at the request of the importer and on the conditions laid down by the customs authorities of the importing country, unassembled or disassembled products within the meaning of general interpretative rule 2(a) of the Harmonised System and falling within Sections XVI or XVII or headings 7308 or 9406 of the Harmonised System are imported by instalments, a single proof of origin for such products shall be submitted to the customs authorities on importation of the first instalment.

Article 116

Submission of proof of origin

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

Proofs of origin shall be submitted to the customs authorities of the Member State of importation in accordance with the procedures laid down in Article 163 of the Code. The said authorities may require a translation of a proof of origin and may also require the import declaration to be accompanied by a statement from the importer to the effect that the products meet the conditions required for the application of this Subsection.

Article 117

Movement certificates EUR.1 issued retrospectively

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. By way of derogation from Article 114(10), a movement certificate EUR.1 may exceptionally be issued after exportation of the products to which it relates if either of the following conditions are fulfilled:

(a)	it was not issued at the time of exportation because of errors or involuntary omissions or special circumstances; or

(b)	it is demonstrated to the satisfaction of the competent authorities that a movement certificate EUR.1 was issued but was not accepted at importation for technical reasons.

2. The competent authorities may issue a movement certificate EUR.1 retrospectively only after verifying that the information supplied in the exporter’s application agrees with that in the corresponding export file and that a movement certificate EUR.1 satisfying the provisions of this Subsection was not issued when the products in question were exported.

3. Movement certificates EUR.1 issued retrospectively shall be endorsed with one of the following phrases:

BG: ‘ИЗДАДЕН ВПОСЛЕДСТВИЕ’

ES: ‘EXPEDIDO A POSTERIORI’

HR: ‘IZDANO NAKNADNO’

CS: ‘VYSTAVENO DODATEČNĚ’

DA: ‘UDSTEDT EFTERFØLGENDE’

DE: ‘NACHTRÄGLICH AUSGESTELLT’

ET: ‘VÄLJA ANTUD TAGASIULATUVALT’

EL: ‘ΕΚΔΟΘΕΝ ΕΚ ΤΩΝ ΥΣΤΕΡΩΝ’

EN: ‘ISSUED RETROSPECTIVELY’

FR: ‘DÉLIVRÉ À POSTERIORI’

IT: ‘RILASCIATO A POSTERIORI’

LV: ‘IZSNIEGTS RETROSPEKTĪVI’

LT: ‘RETROSPEKTYVUSIS IŠDAVIMAS’

HU: ‘KIADVA VISSZAMENŐLEGES HATÁLLYAL’

MT: ‘MAĦRUĠ RETROSPETTIVAMENT’

NL: ‘AFGEGEVEN A POSTERIORI’

PL: ‘WYSTAWIONE RETROSPEKTYWNIE’

PT: ‘EMITIDO A POSTERIORI’

RO: ‘ELIBERAT ULTERIOR’

SL: ‘IZDANO NAKNADNO’

SK: ‘VYDANÉ DODATOČNE’

FI: ‘ANNETTU JÄLKIKÄTEEN’

SV: ‘UTFÄRDAT I EFTERHAND’

4. The endorsement referred to in paragraph 3 shall be inserted in the ‘Remarks’ box of the movement certificate EUR.1.

Article 118

Issue of a duplicate movement certificate EUR.1

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. In the event of theft, loss or destruction of a movement certificate EUR.1, the exporter may apply to the competent authorities which issued it, for a duplicate to be made out on the basis of the export documents in their possession.

2. The duplicate issued in this way shall be endorsed with one of the following words:

BG: ‘ДУБЛИКАТ’

ES: ‘DUPLICADO’

HR: ‘DUPLIKAT’

CS: ‘DUPLIKÁT’

DA: ‘DUPLIKÁT’

DE: ‘DUPLIKAT’

ET: ‘DUPLIKAAT’

EL: ‘ΑΝΤΙΓΡΑΦΟ’

EN: ‘DUPLICATE’

FR: ‘DUPLICATA’

IT: ‘DUPLICATO’

LV: ‘DUBLIKĀTS’

LT: ‘DUBLIKATAS’

HU: ‘MÁSODLAT’

MT: ‘DUPLIKAT’

NL: ‘DUPLICAAT’

PL: ‘DUPLIKAT’

PT: ‘SEGUNDA VIA’

RO: ‘DUPLICAT’

SL: ‘DVOJNIK’

SK: ‘DUPLIKÁT’

FI: ‘KAKSOISKAPPALE’

SV: ‘DUPLIKAT’

3. The endorsement referred to in paragraph 2 shall be inserted in the ‘Remarks’ box of the movement certificate EUR.1.

4. The duplicate, which shall bear the date of issue of the original movement certificate EUR.1, shall take effect as from that date.

Article 119

Conditions for making out an invoice declaration

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The invoice declaration may be made out by either of the following:

(a)	an approved Union exporter within the meaning of Article 120 of this Regulation;

(b)	any exporter for any consignment consisting of one or more packages containing originating products whose total value does not exceed EUR 6 000, and on condition that the assistance referred to in Article 114(1) of this Regulation shall apply to this procedure.

2. An invoice declaration may be made out if the products concerned can be considered as originating in the Union or in a beneficiary country or territory and fulfil the other requirements of Title II, Chapter 1, Section 2, Subsections 4 and 5 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446.

3. The exporter making out an invoice declaration shall be prepared to submit at any time, at the request of the customs or other competent governmental authorities of the exporting country or territory, all appropriate documents proving the originating status of the products concerned as well as the fulfilment of the other requirements of Title II, Chapter 1, Section 2, Subsections 4 and 5 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446.

4. An invoice declaration shall be made out by the exporter by typing, stamping or printing on the invoice, the delivery note or any other commercial document, the declaration, the text of which appears in Annex 22-13 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, using one of the linguistic versions set out in that Annex and in accordance with the provisions of the domestic law of the exporting country. If the declaration is handwritten, it shall be written in ink, in printed characters.

5. Invoice declarations shall bear the original handwritten signature of the exporter. However, an approved exporter within the meaning of Article 120 of this Regulation shall not be required to sign such declarations provided that he gives the customs authorities a written undertaking that he accepts full responsibility for any invoice declaration which identifies him as if it had been signed with his handwritten signature.

6. In the cases referred to in paragraph 1(b), the use of an invoice declaration shall be subject to the following special conditions:

(a)	an invoice declaration shall be made out for each consignment;

(b)	if the goods contained in the consignment have already been subject to verification in the exporting country by reference to the definition of ‘originating products’, the exporter may refer to this check in the invoice declaration.

The provisions of the first subparagraph shall not exempt exporters from complying with any other formalities required under customs or postal regulations.

Article 120

Approved exporter

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The customs authorities in the Union may authorise any exporter established in the customs territory of the Union, hereinafter referred to as an ‘approved exporter’, who makes frequent shipments of products originating in the Union within the meaning of Article 59(2) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, and who offers, to the satisfaction of the customs authorities, all guarantees necessary to verify the originating status of the products as well as the fulfilment of the other requirements of Title II, Chapter 1, Section 2, Subsections 4 and 5 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, to make out invoice declarations, irrespective of the value of the products concerned.

2. The customs authorities may grant the status of approved exporter subject to any conditions which they consider appropriate.

3. The customs authorities shall assign the approved exporter a customs authorisation number which shall appear on the invoice declaration.

4. The customs authorities shall monitor the use of the authorisation by the approved exporter.

5. The customs authorities may withdraw the authorisation at any time. They shall do so where the approved exporter no longer offers the guarantees referred to in paragraph 1, does not fulfil the conditions referred to in paragraph 2, or otherwise makes improper use of the authorisation.

Article 121

Validity of proof of origin

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. A proof of origin shall be valid for 4 months from the date of issue in the exporting country, and shall be submitted within the said period to the customs authorities of the importing country.

2. Proofs of origin which are submitted to the customs authorities of the importing country after the final date for presentation specified in paragraph 1 may be accepted for the purpose of applying the tariff preferences referred to in Article 59 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, where the failure to submit these documents by the final date set is due to exceptional circumstances.

3. In other cases of belated presentation, the customs authorities of the importing country may accept the proofs of origin where the products have been submitted before the said final date.

4. At the request of the importer and having regard to the conditions laid down by the customs authorities of the importing Member State, a single proof of origin may be submitted to the customs authorities at the importation of the first consignment when the goods fulfil the following conditions:

(a)	they are imported within the framework of frequent and continuous trade flows of a significant commercial value;

(b)	they are the subject of the same contract of sale, the parties of this contract established in the exporting country or in the Union;

(c)	they are classified in the same code (eight digits) of the Combined Nomenclature;

(d)	they come exclusively from the same exporter, are destined for the same importer, and are made the subject of entry formalities at the same customs office in the Union.

This procedure shall be applicable for the quantities and a period determined by the competent customs authorities. This period cannot, in any circumstances, exceed 3 months.

5. The procedure described in the preceding paragraph shall also apply where a single proof of origin is submitted to the customs authorities for importations by instalments in accordance with Article 115 of this Regulation. However, in this case, the competent customs authorities may grant a period of application exceeding 3 months.

Article 122

Exemptions from proof of origin

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Products sent as small packages from private person to private persons or forming part of travellers’ personal luggage shall be admitted as originating products benefiting from the tariff preferences referred to in Article 59 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 without requiring the submission of a movement certificate EUR.1 or an invoice declaration, provided that such products are not imported by way of trade and have been declared as meeting the conditions required for the application of Title II, Chapter 1, Section 2, Subsections 4 and 5 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, and where there is no doubt as to the veracity of such a declaration.

2. Imports which are occasional and consist solely of products for the personal use of the recipients or travellers or their families shall not be considered as imports by way of trade if it is evident from the nature and quantity of the products that no commercial purpose is in view.

Furthermore, the total value of the products shall not exceed EUR 500 in the case of small packages or EUR 1 200 in the case of products forming part of traveller’s personal luggage.

Article 123

Discrepancies and formal errors

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

The discovery of slight discrepancies between the statements made in the proof of origin and those made in the documents submitted to the customs office for the purpose of carrying out the formalities for importing the products shall not ipso facto render the proof of origin null and void if it is duly established that the document does correspond to the products submitted.

Obvious formal errors such as typing errors on a proof of origin should not cause this document to be rejected if these errors are not such as to create doubts concerning the correctness of the statements made in that document.

Subsection 11

Methods of administrative cooperation for the purpose of origin verification within the framework of preferential tariff measures adopted unilaterally by the Union for certain countries or territories

Article 124

Administrative cooperation

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. The beneficiary countries or territories shall inform the Commission of the names and addresses of the governmental authorities situated in their territory which are empowered to issue movement certificates EUR.1, together with specimen impressions of the stamps used by those authorities, and the names and addresses of the relevant governmental authorities responsible for the control of the movement certificates EUR.1 and the invoice declarations. The stamps shall be valid as from the date of receipt by the Commission of the specimens. The Commission shall forward this information to the customs authorities of the Member States. When these communications are made within the framework of an amendment of previous communications, the Commission shall indicate the date of entry into use of those new stamps according to the instructions given by the competent governmental authorities of the beneficiary countries or territories. This information is for official use; however, when goods are to be released for free circulation, the customs authorities in question may allow the importer to consult the specimen impressions of stamps mentioned in this paragraph.

2. The Commission shall send, to the beneficiary countries or territories, the specimen impressions of the stamps used by the customs authorities of the Member States for the issue of movement certificates EUR.1.

Article 125

Verification of proofs of origin

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. Subsequent verifications of movement certificates EUR.1 and of invoice declarations shall be carried out at random or whenever the customs authorities in the importing Member State or the competent governmental authorities of the beneficiary countries or territories have reasonable doubts as to the authenticity of such documents, the originating status of the products within the meaning of Title II, Chapter 1, Section 2, Subsections 4 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 concerned or the fulfilment of the other requirements of Title II, Chapter 1, Section 2, Subsection 5 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446.

2. For the purposes of implementing the provisions of paragraph 1, the competent authorities in the importing Member State or beneficiary country or territory shall return the EUR.1 movement certificate and the invoice, if it has been submitted, the invoice declaration, or a copy of these documents, to the competent authorities in the exporting beneficiary country or territory or Member State, giving, where appropriate, the reasons for the enquiry. Any documents and information obtained suggesting that the information given on the proof of origin is incorrect shall be forwarded in support of the request for verification.

If the customs authorities in the importing Member State decide to suspend the granting of the tariff preferences referred to in Article 59 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 while awaiting the results of the verification, release of the products shall be offered to the importer subject to any precautionary measures judged necessary.

3. When an application for subsequent verification has been made in accordance with paragraph 1, such verification shall be carried out and its results communicated to the customs authorities of the importing Member States or to the competent governmental authorities of the importing beneficiary country or territory within a maximum of 6 months. The results shall be such as to establish whether the proof of origin in question applies to the products actually exported and whether these products can be considered as originating in the beneficiary country or territory or in the Union.

4. If in cases of reasonable doubt there is no reply within the 6 months specified in paragraph 3 or if the reply does not contain sufficient information to determine the authenticity of the document in question or the real origin of the products, a second communication shall be sent to the competent authorities. If after the second communication the results of the verification are not communicated to the requesting authorities within 4 months, or if these results do not allow the authenticity of the document in question or the real origin of the products to be determined, the requesting authorities shall, except in exceptional circumstances, refuse entitlement to the tariff preferences.

5. Where the verification procedure or any other available information appears to indicate that the provisions of Title II, Chapter 1, Section 2, Subsections 4 and 5 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 are being contravened, the exporting beneficiary country or territory shall, on its own initiative or at the request of the Union, carry out appropriate inquiries or arrange for such inquiries to be carried out with due urgency to identify and prevent such contraventions. For this purpose, the Union may participate in the inquiries.

6. For the purposes of the subsequent verification of movement certificates EUR.1, copies of the certificates as well as any export documents referring to them shall be kept by the competent governmental authorities of the exporting beneficiary country or territory or by the customs authorities of the exporting Member State for at least 3 years from the end of the year in which the movement certificates were issued.

Subsection 12

Other provisions applicable within the framework of the rules of origin for the purposes of preferential tariff measures adopted unilaterally by the Union for certain countries or territories

Article 126

Ceuta and Melilla

(Article 64(1) of the Code)

1. This Subsection shall apply mutatis mutandis in determining whether products may be regarded as originating in the exporting beneficiary countries or territories benefiting from the preferences when imported into Ceuta and Melilla or as originating in Ceuta and Melilla.

2. Ceuta and Melilla shall be regarded as a single territory.

3. The provisions of this Subsection concerning the issue, use and subsequent verification of movement certificates EUR.1 shall apply mutatis mutandis to products originating in Ceuta and Melilla.

4. The Spanish customs authorities shall be responsible for the application of this Subsection in Ceuta and Melilla.

CHAPTER 3

Value of goods for customs purposes

Article 127

General provisions

(Article 70(3)(d) of the Code)

1. For the purposes of this Chapter, two persons shall be deemed to be related if one of the following conditions is fulfilled:

(a)	they are officers or directors of the other person’s business;

(b)	they are legally recognised partners in business;

(c)	they are employer and employee;

(d)	a third party directly or indirectly owns or controls or holds 5% or more of the outstanding voting stock or shares of both of them;

(e)	one of them directly or indirectly controls the other;

(f)	both of them are directly or indirectly controlled by a third person;

(g)	together they control a third person directly or indirectly;

(h)	they are members of the same family.

2. Persons who are associated in business with one another in that one is the sole agent, sole distributor or sole concessionaire, however described, of the other shall be deemed to be related only if they fall within the criteria referred to in paragraph 1.

3. For the purposes of paragraph 1(e),(f) and (g) one person is deemed to control another when the former is legally or operationally in a position to exercise direction over the latter.

Article 128

Transaction value

(Article 70(1) of the Code)

1. The transaction value of the goods sold for export to the customs territory of the Union shall be determined at the time of acceptance of the customs declaration on the basis of the sale occurring immediately before the goods were brought into that customs territory.

2. Where the goods are sold for export to the customs territory of the Union not before they were brought into that customs territory but while in temporary storage or while placed under a special procedure other than internal transit, end-use or outward processing, the transaction value will be determined on the basis of that sale.

Article 129

Price actually paid or payable

(Article 70(1) and (2) of the Code)

1. The price actually paid or payable within the meaning of Article 70(1) and (2) of the Code shall include all payments made or to be made as a condition of sale of the imported goods by the buyer to any of the following persons:

(a)	the seller;

(b)	a third party for the benefit of the seller;

(c)	a third party related to the seller;

(d)	a third party where the payment to that party is made in order to satisfy an obligation of the seller.

Payments may be made by way of letters of credit or negotiable instruments, and payments may be made directly or indirectly.

2. Activities, including marketing activities, undertaken by the buyer or an undertaking related to the buyer on his or its own account, other than those for which an adjustment is provided in Article 71 of the Code, shall not be considered an indirect payment to the seller.

Article 130

Discounts

(Article 70(1) and (2) of the Code)

1. For the purposes of determining the customs value under Article 70(1) of the Code, discounts shall be taken into account if, at the time of acceptance of the customs declaration, the sales contract provides for their application and their amount.

2. Discounts for early payment shall be taken into account with regard to goods for which the price has not actually been paid at the time of acceptance of the customs declaration.

3. Discounts arising from amendments to the contract subsequent to the time of acceptance of the customs declaration shall not be taken into account.

Article 131

Partial delivery

(Article 70(1) of the Code)

1. Where goods declared for a customs procedure are part of a larger quantity of the same goods purchased in one transaction, the price actually paid or payable shall, for the purposes of Article 70(1) of the Code, be calculated pro rata on the basis of the price for the total quantity purchased.

2. Apportioning the price actually paid or payable shall also apply in the case of the loss of part of a consignment or when the goods have been damaged before the goods are released for free circulation.

Article 132

Price adjustments for defective goods

(Article 70(1) of the Code)

An adjustment made by the seller, to the benefit of the buyer, of the price actually paid or payable for the goods may be taken into consideration for the determination of the customs value in accordance with Article 70(1) of the Code, if the following conditions are fulfilled:

(a)	the goods were defective at the time of acceptance of the customs declaration for release for free circulation;

(b)

the seller made the adjustment to compensate for the defect in order to fulfil either of the following:

(i)	a contractual obligation entered into before the acceptance of the customs declaration;

(ii)	a statutory obligation applicable to the goods;

(c)	the adjustment is made within a period of 1 year following the date of acceptance of the customs declaration.

Article 133

Valuation of conditions and considerations

(Article 70(3)(b) of the Code)

Where the sale or price of imported goods is subject to a condition or consideration the value of which can be determined with respect to the goods being valued, such value shall be regarded as part of the price actually paid or payable, unless those conditions or considerations relate to either of the following:

(a)	an activity to which Article 129(2) of this Regulation applies;

(b)	an element of the customs value under Article 71 of the Code.

Article 134

Transactions between related persons

(Article 70(3)(d) of the Code)

1. Where the buyer and the seller are related, and in order to determine whether such relationship did not influence the price, the circumstances surrounding the sale shall be examined as may be necessary, and the declarant shall be given an opportunity to supply further detailed information as may be necessary about those circumstances.

2. However, the goods shall be valued in accordance with Article 70(1) of the Code where the declarant demonstrates that the declared transaction value closely approximates to one of the following test values, determined at or about the same time:

(a)	the transaction value in sales, between buyers and sellers who are not related in any particular case, of identical or similar goods for export to the customs territory of the Union;

(b)	the customs value of identical or similar goods, determined in accordance with Article 74(2)(c) of the Code;

(c)	the customs value of identical or similar goods, determined in accordance with Article 74(2)(d) of the Code.

3. When establishing the value of identical or similar goods referred to in paragraph 2, account shall be taken of the following elements:

(a)	demonstrated differences in commercial levels;

(b)	quantity levels;

(c)	the elements listed in Article 71(1) of the Code;

(d)	costs incurred by the seller in sales in which he and the buyer are not related, where such costs are not incurred by the seller in sales between related persons.

4. The test values listed in paragraph 2 are to be used at the request of the declarant. They shall not substitute for the declared transaction value.

Article 135

Goods and services used for the production of the imported goods

(Article 71(1)(b) of the Code)

1. Where a buyer supplies any of the goods or services listed in Article 71(1)(b) of the Code to the seller, the value of those goods and services shall be deemed to be equal to their purchasing price. The purchasing price shall include all the payments which the buyer of the goods or services listed in Article 71(1)(b) is required to make to acquire the goods or services.

Where those goods or services were produced by the buyer or a person related to him, their value shall be the cost of producing them.

2. Where the value of the goods and services listed in Article 71(1)(b) of the Code cannot be determined in accordance with paragraph 1, it shall be determined on the basis of other objective and quantifiable data.

3. Where the goods listed in Article 71(1)(b) of the Code have been used by the buyer before they were supplied, their value shall be adjusted to take account of any depreciation.

4. The value of the services referred to in Article 71(1)(b) of the Code, shall include the costs of unsuccessful development activities insofar as those were incurred in respect of projects or orders relating to the imported goods.

5. For the purposes of Article 71(1)(b)(iv) of the Code, the costs of research and preliminary design sketches shall not be included in the customs value.

6. The value of the goods and services supplied, as established in accordance with paragraphs 1 to 5 shall be apportioned pro rata over the imported goods.

Article 136

Royalties and licence fees

(Article 71(1)(c) of the Code)

1. Royalties and licence fees are related to the imported goods where in particular, the rights transferred under the licence or royalties agreement are embodied in the goods. The method of calculation of the amount of the royalty or licence fee is not the decisive factor.

2. Where the method of calculation of the amount of royalties or licence fees derives from the price of the imported goods, it shall in the absence of evidence to the contrary be assumed that the payment of those royalties or licence fees is related to the goods to be valued.

3. If royalties or licence fees relate partly to the goods being valued and partly to other ingredients or component parts added to the goods after their importation, or to post-importation activities or services, an appropriate adjustment shall be made.

4. Royalties and licence fees are considered to be paid as a condition of sale for the imported goods when any of the following conditions is met:

(a)	the seller or a person related to the seller requires the buyer to make this payment;

(b)	the payment by the buyer is made to satisfy an obligation of the seller, in accordance with contractual obligations;

(c)	the goods cannot be sold to, or purchased by, the buyer without payment of the royalties or license fees to a licensor.

5. The country in which the recipient of the royalties or licence fees payment is established is not a material consideration.

Article 137

Place where goods are brought into the customs territory of the Union

(Article 71(1)(e) of the Code)

1. For the purposes of Article 71(1)(e) of the Code, the place where goods are brought into the customs territory of the Union shall be:

(a)	for goods carried by sea, the port where the goods arrive first in the customs territory of the Union;

(b)

for goods carried by sea into one of the French overseas departments which are part of the customs territory of the Union, and carried directly to another part of the customs territory of the Union, or vice versa, the port where the goods arrive first in the customs territory of the Union, provided that they were unloaded or transhipped there;

(c)	for goods carried by sea and then, without transhipment, by inland waterway, the first port where unloading can take place;

(d)	for goods carried by rail, inland waterway, or road, the place where the customs office of entry is situated;

(e)	for goods carried by other modes of transport, the place where the frontier of the customs territory of the Union is crossed.

2. For the purposes of Article 71(1)(e) of the Code, where the goods are brought into the customs territory of the Union and then carried to a destination in another part of that territory through territories outside of the customs territory of the Union, the place where the goods are brought into the customs territory of the Union shall be the place where goods were first brought into that customs territory, provided that the goods are carried directly through those territories by a usual route to the place of destination.

3. Paragraph 2 shall also apply where the goods have been unloaded, transhipped or temporarily immobilised in territories outside of the customs territory of the Union for reasons relating solely to their transport.

4. Where the conditions laid down in paragraphs 1(b), 2 and 3 are not fulfilled, the place where goods are brought into the customs territory of the Union shall be the following:

(a)	for goods carried by sea, the port of unloading;

(b)	for goods carried by other means of transport the place specified in points (c), (d) or (e) of paragraph 1 situated in that part of the customs territory of the Union to which the goods are consigned.

Article 138

Transport costs

(Article 71(1)(e) of the Code)

1. Where goods are carried by the same means of transport to a point beyond the place where they are brought into the customs territory of the Union, transport costs shall be assessed in proportion to the distance to the place where the goods are brought into the customs territory of the Union in accordance with Article 137 of this Regulation, unless evidence is produced to the customs authorities to show the costs that would have been incurred under a standard schedule of freight rates for the carriage of the goods to the place where goods are brought into the customs territory of the Union.

2. Air transport costs, including air express delivery costs, to be included in the customs value of goods shall be determined in accordance with Annex 23-01.

3. Where transport is free of charge or provided by the buyer, the transport costs to be included in the customs value of the goods shall be calculated in accordance with the schedule of freight rates normally applied for the same modes of transport.

Article 139

Charges levied on postal consignments

(Article 70(1) of the Code)

Postal charges levied up to the place of destination in respect of goods sent by post shall be included in the customs value of these goods, with the exception of any supplementary postal charge levied in the customs territory of the Union.

Article 140

Non-acceptance of declared transaction values

(Article 70(1) of the Code)

1. Where the customs authorities have reasonable doubts that the declared transaction value represents the total amount paid or payable as referred to in Article 70(1) of the Code, they may ask the declarant to supply additional information.

2. If their doubts are not dispelled, the customs authorities may decide that the value of the goods cannot be determined in accordance with Article 70(1) of the Code.

Article 141

Customs value of identical or similar goods

(Article 74(2)(a) and (b) of the Code)

1. When determining the customs value of imported goods in accordance with Article 74(2)(a) or (b) of of the Code, the transaction value of identical or similar goods in a sale at the same commercial level and in substantially the same quantities as the goods being valued shall be used.

Where no such sale is found, the customs value shall be determined having regard to the transaction value of identical or similar goods sold at a different commercial level or in different quantities. This transaction value should be adjusted to take account of differences attributable to commercial level and/or quantity.

2. An adjustment shall be made to take account of significant differences in costs and charges between the imported goods and the identical or similar goods in question due to differences in distances and modes of transport.

3. Where more than one transaction value of identical or similar goods is found, the lowest of those values shall be used to determine the customs value of the imported goods.

4. ‘Identical goods’ and ‘similar goods’, as the case may be, do not include goods which incorporate or reflect engineering, development, artwork, design work, plans or sketches for which no adjustment has been made under Article 71(1)(b)(iv) of the Code because such work was undertaken in the Union.

5. A transaction value for goods produced by a different person is to be taken into account only when no transaction value can be found for identical or similar goods produced by the person who produced the goods being valued.

Article 142

Deductive method

(Article 74(2)(c) of the Code)

1. The unit price used to determine the customs value under Article 74(2)(c) of the Code shall be the price at which the imported goods or imported identical or similar goods are sold in the Union, in the condition as imported, at or about the time of importation of the goods being valued.

2. In the absence of a unit price as referred to in paragraph 1, the unit price used shall be the price at which the imported goods or imported identical or similar goods are sold in the conditions as imported in the customs territory of the Union at the earliest time after the importation of the goods to be valued and in any case within 90 days of that importation.

3. In the absence of a unit price as referred either to paragraphs 1 and 2, at the request of the declarant the unit price at which the imported goods are sold in the customs territory of the Union after further working or processing shall be used, due allowance being made for the value added by such working or processing.

4. The following sales shall not be taken into account for the purposes of determining the customs value under Article 74(2)(c) of the Code:

(a)	sales of goods at a commercial level other than the first after importation;

(b)	sales to related persons;

(c)	sales to persons who directly or indirectly supply, free of charge or at reduced cost, the goods or services listed in Article 71(1)(b) of the Code for use in connection with the production and sale for export of the imported goods;

(d)	sales in quantities which are not sufficient to allow the unit price to be determined.

5. When determining the customs value, the following shall be deducted from the unit price determined in accordance with paragraphs 1 to 4:

(a)

either the commissions usually paid or agreed to be paid or the additions usually made for profit and general expenses (including the direct and indirect costs of marketing the goods in question) in connection with sales in the customs territory of the Union of imported goods of the same class or kind which are goods that fall within a group or range of goods produced by a particular industrial sector;

(b)	usual costs of transport and insurance and associated costs incurred within the customs territory of the Union;

(c)	import duties and other charges payable in the customs territory of the Union by reason of the import or sale of the goods.

6. The customs value of certain perishable goods as referred to in Annex 23-02 imported on consignment may be directly determined in accordance with Article 74(2)(c) of the Code. For this purpose the unit prices shall be notified to the Commission by the Member States and disseminated by the Commission via TARIC in accordance with Article 6 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 (16).

Such unit prices may be used to determine the customs value of the imported goods for periods of 14 days. Each period shall start on a Friday.

The unit prices shall be calculated and notified as follows:

(a)	after the deductions provided for in paragraph 5 unit price per 100 kg net for each category of goods shall be notified by the Member States to the Commission. Member States may fix standard amounts for the costs referred to point (b) of paragraph 5, which shall be made known to the Commission;

(b)	the reference period for determining unit prices shall be the preceding period of 14 days which ends on the Thursday preceding the week during which new unit prices are to be established;

(c)

Member States shall notify the unit prices in euro to the Commission not later than 12.00 on the Monday of the week in which they are to be disseminated by the Commission. Where that day is not a working day, notification shall be made on the working day immediately preceding that day. Unit prices shall only apply if this notification is disseminated by the Commission.

Article 143

Computed Value method

(Article 74(2)(d) of the Code)

1. In applying Article 74(2)(d) of the Code, the customs authorities may not require or compel any person not established in the customs territory of the Union to produce for examination, or to allow access to, any account or other record for the purposes of determining the customs value.

2. The cost or value of materials and fabrication referred to in Article 74(2)(d)(i) of the Code shall include the cost of elements specified in Article 71(1)(a) (ii) and (iii) of the Code. It shall also include the apportioned cost of any product or service specified in Article 71(1)(b) of the Code which has been supplied directly or indirectly by the buyer for use in connection with the production of the goods being valued. The value of elements specified in Article 71(1)(b)(iv) of the Code which are undertaken in the Union shall be included only to the extent that those elements are charged to the producer.

3. The cost of production includes all expenditure incurred in creating, adding to or substantially enhancing economic goods. It also includes the costs specified in Article 71(1)(b)(ii) and (iii) of the Code.

4. The general expenses referred to in Article 74(2)(d)(ii) of the Code, cover the direct and indirect costs of producing and selling the goods for export which are not included under Article 74(2)(d)(i) of the Code.

Article 144

Fall-back method

(Article 74(3) of the Code)

1. When determining the customs value under Article 74(3) of the Code, reasonable flexibility may be used in the application of the methods provided for in Articles 70 and 74(2) of the Code. The value so determined shall, to the greatest extent possible, be based on previously determined customs values.

2. Where no customs value can be determined under paragraph 1, other appropriate methods shall be used. In this case the customs value shall not be determined on the basis of any of the following:

(a)	the selling price within the customs territory of the Union of goods produced in the customs territory of the Union;

(b)	a system whereby the higher of two alternative values is used for customs valuation;

(c)	the price of goods on the domestic market of the country of exportation;

(d)	the cost of production, other than computed values which have been determined for identical or similar goods under Article 74(2)(d) of the Code;

(e)	prices for export to a third country;

(f)	minimum customs values;

(g)	arbitrary or fictitious values.

Article 145

Supporting documents regarding customs value

(Article 163(1) of the Code)

The invoice which relates to the declared transaction value is required as a supporting document.

Article 146

Currency conversion for customs valuation purposes

(Article 53(1)(a) of the Code)

1. In accordance with Article 53(1)(a) of the Code, the following rates of exchange shall be used for currency conversion for customs valuation purposes:

(a)	the rate of exchange published by the European Central Bank, for the Member States whose currency is the euro;

(b)	the rate of exchange published by the competent national authority or, where the national authority has designated a private bank for the purposes of publishing the rate of exchange, the rate published by that private bank, for the Member States whose currency is not the euro.

2. The rate of exchange to be used in accordance with paragraph 1 shall be the rate of exchange published on the second last Wednesday of each month.

Where no rate of exchange has been published on that day, the most recently published rate shall apply.

3. The rate of exchange shall apply for a month, beginning on the first day of the following month.

4. Where a rate of exchange has not been published as referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2, the rate to be used for the application of Article 53(1)(a) of the Code shall be determined by the Member State concerned. This rate must reflect the value of the currency of the Member State concerned as closely as possible.

TITLE III

CUSTOMS DEBT AND GUARANTEES

CHAPTER 1

Guarantee for a potential or existing customs debt

Section 1

General provisions

Article 147

Electronic systems relating to guarantees

(Article 16 of the Code)

For the exchange and storage of information pertaining to guarantees which may be used in more than one Member State, an electronic system set up for those purposes pursuant to Article 16(1) of the Code shall be used.

The first paragraph of this Article shall be applicable from the date of deployment of the UCC GUM system referred to in the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/255/EU.

Article 148

Individual guarantee for a potential customs debt

(Article 90(1) subparagraph 2 of the Code)

1. Where it is compulsory for a guarantee to be provided, a guarantee covering a single operation (individual guarantee) for a potential customs debt shall cover the amount of import or export duty corresponding to the customs debt which may be incurred, calculated on the basis of the highest rates of duty applicable to goods of the same type.

2. Where the other charges due in connection with the import or export of goods are to be covered by the individual guarantee, their calculation shall be based on the highest rates applicable to goods of the same type in the Member State where the goods concerned are placed under the customs procedure or are in temporary storage.

Article 149

Optional guarantee

(Article 91 of the Code)

Where the customs authorities decide to require a guarantee which is optional, Articles 150 to 158 of this Regulation shall apply.

Article 150

Guarantee in the form of cash deposit

(Article 92(1)(a) of the Code)

Where a guarantee is required for special procedures or temporary storage and is provided as an individual guarantee in the form of a cash deposit, that guarantee shall be provided to the customs authorities of the Member State where the goods are placed under the procedure or are in temporary storage.

Where a special procedure other than the end-use procedure has been discharged or the supervision of end-use goods or the temporary storage has ended correctly, the guarantee shall be repaid by the customs authority of the Member State where it was provided.

Article 151

Guarantee in the form of an undertaking by a guarantor

(Articles 92(1)(b) and 94 of the Code)

1. The undertaking given by a guarantor shall be approved by the customs office where the guarantee is provided (customs office of guarantee) which shall notify the approval to the person required to provide the guarantee.

2. The customs office of guarantee may revoke the approval of the undertaking by a guarantor at any time. The customs office of guarantee shall notify the revocation to the guarantor and the person required to provide the guarantee.

3. A guarantor may cancel his undertaking at any time. The guarantor shall notify the cancellation to the customs office of guarantee.

4. The cancellation of the undertaking of the guarantor shall not affect goods which, at the moment where the cancellation takes effect, have already been placed and still are under a customs procedure or in temporary storage by virtue of the cancelled undertaking.

5. An individual guarantee provided in the form of an undertaking shall be given using the form set out in Annex 32-01.

6. A comprehensive guarantee provided in the form of an undertaking shall be given using the form set out in Annex 32-03.

7. Notwithstanding paragraphs 5 and 6 and Article 160, each Member State may, in accordance with national law, allow an undertaking given by a guarantor to take a form different from the ones set out in Annexes 32-01, 32-02 and 32-03 provided it has the same legal effect.

Article 152

Individual guarantee provided in the form of an undertaking by a guarantor

(Articles 89 and 92(1)(b) of the Code)

1. Where an individual guarantee is provided in the form of an undertaking by a guarantor, the proof of that undertaking shall be kept by the customs office of guarantee for the period of validity of the guarantee.

2. Where an individual guarantee is provided in the form of an undertaking by a guarantor, the holder of the procedure shall not modify the access code associated with the guarantee reference number.

Article 153

Mutual assistance between customs authorities

(Article 92(1)(c) of the Code)

Where a customs debt is incurred in a Member State other than the Member State which has accepted a guarantee in one of the forms referred to in Article 83(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, which may be used in more than one Member State, the Member State which has accepted the guarantee shall transfer to the Member State where the customs debt is incurred, on a request made by the latter after the expiry of the time-limit for payment, the amount of import or export duty within the limits of the accepted guarantee and of the unpaid duty.

That transfer shall be made within 1 month of reception of the request.

Article 154

Guarantee reference number and access code

(Article 89(2) of the Code)

1. Where an individual guarantee may be used in more than one Member State, the customs office of guarantee shall communicate to the person who has provided the guarantee or, in case of a guarantee in the form of vouchers, to the guarantor the following information:

(a)	a guarantee reference number;

(b)	an access code associated with the guarantee reference number.

2. Where a comprehensive guarantee may be used in more than one Member State, the customs office of guarantee shall communicate to the person who has provided the guarantee the following information:

(a)	a guarantee reference number for each part of the reference amount to be monitored in accordance with Article 157 of this Regulation;

(b)	an access code associated with the guarantee reference number.

Upon request of the person who has provided the guarantee, the customs office of guarantee shall assign one or more additional access codes to this guarantee to be used by that person or his representatives.

3. A customs authority shall verify the existence and the validity of the guarantee each time a person communicates to it a guarantee reference number.

Section 2

Comprehensive guarantee

Article 155

Reference amount

(Article 90 of the Code)

1. Unless otherwise provided for in Article 158 of this Regulation, the amount of the comprehensive guarantee shall be equal to a reference amount established by the customs office of guarantee in accordance with Article 90 of the Code.

2. Where a comprehensive guarantee is to be provided for import or export duty and other charges the amount of which can be established with certainty at the time when the guarantee is required, the part of the reference amount covering those duties and charges shall correspond to the amount of the import or export duty and of the other charges payable.

3. Where a comprehensive guarantee is to be provided for import or export duty and other charges, the amount of which cannot be established with certainty at the time when the guarantee is required or which vary in amount over time, the part of the reference amount covering those duties and charges shall be fixed as follows:

(a)	for the part that is to cover import or export duty and other charges which have been incurred, the reference amount shall correspond to the amount of the import or export duty and of the other charges payable;

(b)

for the part that is to cover import or export duty and other charges which may be incurred, the reference amount shall correspond to the amount of the import or export duty and of the other charges which may become payable in connection with each customs declaration or temporary storage declaration in respect of which the guarantee is provided, in the period between the placing of the goods under the relevant customs procedure or in temporary storage and the moment when that procedure is discharged or the supervision of end-use goods or temporary storage is ended.

For the purposes of point (b), account shall be taken of the highest rates of import or export duty applicable to goods of the same type and of the highest rates of other charges due in connection with the import or export of goods of the same type in the Member State of the customs office of guarantee.

Where the information necessary to determine the part of the reference amount pursuant to the first subparagraph is not available to the customs office of guarantee, that amount shall be fixed at EUR 10 000 for each declaration.

4. The customs office of guarantee shall establish the reference amount in cooperation with the person required to provide the guarantee. When fixing the part of the reference amount in accordance with paragraph 3, the custom office of guarantee shall establish that amount on the basis of the information on goods placed under the relevant customs procedures or in temporary storage in the preceding 12 months and on an estimate of the volume of intended operations as shown, inter alia, by the commercial documentation and accounts of the person required to provide the guarantee.

5. The customs office of guarantee shall review the reference amount on its own initiative or following a request from the person required to provide the guarantee, and shall adjust it to comply with the provisions of this Article and Article 90 of the Code.

Article 156

Monitoring of the reference amount by the person required to provide a guarantee

(Article 89 of the Code)

The person required to provide a guarantee shall ensure that the amount of import or export duty, and of other charges due in connection with the import or export of goods where they are to be covered by the guarantee, which is payable or may become payable does not exceed the reference amount.

That person shall inform the customs office of guarantee when the reference amount is no longer at a level sufficient to cover his operations.

Article 157

Monitoring of the reference amount by the customs authorities

(Article 89(6) of the Code)

1. The monitoring of the part of the reference amount that covers the amount of import or export duty, and of other charges due in connection with the import or export of goods, which will become payable with respect to goods placed under release for free circulation shall be ensured for each customs declaration at the time of placing of goods under the procedure. Where customs declarations for release for free circulation are lodged in accordance with an authorisation referred to in Articles 166(2) or 182 of the Code, the monitoring of the relevant part of the reference amount shall be ensured on the basis of the supplementary declarations or, where applicable, on the basis of the particulars entered in the records.

2. The monitoring of the part of the reference amount that covers the amount of import or export duty, and other charges due in connection with the import or export of goods, which may become payable with respect to goods placed under the Union transit procedure shall be ensured, by means of the electronic system referred to in Article 273(1) of this Regulation, for each customs declaration at the time of placing of goods under the procedure. That monitoring shall not apply to goods placed under the Union transit procedure using the simplification referred to in Article 233(4)(e) of the Code where the customs declaration is not processed by the electronic system referred to in Article 273(1) of this Regulation.

3. The monitoring of the part of the reference amount that covers the amount of import or export duty, and other charges due in connection with the import or export of goods where they are to be covered by the guarantee, which will be incurred or may be incurred in cases other than those referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be ensured by regular and appropriate audit.

Article 158

Level of the comprehensive guarantee

(Article 95(2) and (3) of the Code)

1. For the purposes of Article 95(2) of the Code, the amount of the comprehensive guarantee shall be reduced to:

(a)	50% of the part of the reference amount determined in accordance with Article 155(3) of this Regulation where the conditions of Article 84(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 are fulfilled;

(b)	30% of the part of the reference amount determined in accordance with Article 155(3) of this Regulation where the conditions of Article 84(2) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 are fulfilled; or

(c)	0% of the part of the reference amount determined in accordance with Article 155(3) of this Regulation where the conditions of Article 84(3) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 are fulfilled.

2. For the purposes of Article 95(3) of the Code, the amount of the comprehensive guarantee shall be reduced to 30% of the part of the reference amount determined in accordance with Article 155(2) of this Regulation.

Section 3

Provisions for the Union transit procedure and the procedure under the TIR and the ATA Conventions

Subsection 1

Union transit

Article 159

Calculation for the purpose of common transit

(Article 89(2) of the Code)

For the purpose of the calculation referred to in Article 148 and in the second subparagraph of Article 155(3)(b) of this Regulation, Union goods carried in accordance with the Convention on a common transit procedure (17) shall be treated as non-Union goods.

Article 160

Individual guarantee in the form of vouchers

(Article 92(1)(b) of the Code)

1. In the context of Union transit procedure, an individual guarantee in the form of an undertaking by a guarantor may also be provided by the guarantor by issuing vouchers to persons who intend to be the holders of the procedure.

The proof of that undertaking shall be made out using the form set out in Annex 32-02 and the vouchers shall be made out using with the form set out in Annex 32-06.

Each voucher shall cover an amount of EUR 10 000 for which the guarantor shall be liable.

The period of validity of a voucher shall be 1 year from the date of issue.

2. The guarantor shall provide the customs office of guarantee with any required details about the individual guarantee vouchers that he has issued.

3. For each voucher, the guarantor shall communicate to the person who intends to be the holder of the procedure the following information:

(a)	a guarantee reference number;

(b)	an access code associated with the guarantee reference number.

The person who intends to be the holder of the procedure shall not modify the access code.

4. The person who intends to be the holder of the procedure shall submit at the customs office of departure a number of vouchers corresponding to the multiple of EUR 10 000 required to cover the sum of the amounts referred to in Article 148 of this Regulation.

Article 161

Revocation and cancellation of an undertaking provided in case of an individual guarantee in the form of vouchers

(Articles 92(1)(b) and 94 of the Code)

The customs authority responsible for the relevant customs office of guarantee shall introduce into the electronic system referred to in Article 273(1) of this Regulation information of any revocation or cancellation of an undertaking provided in case of an individual guarantee in the form of vouchers and the date when it becomes effective.

Article 162

Comprehensive guarantee

(Articles 89(5) and 95 of the Code)

1. In the context of Union transit procedure, the comprehensive guarantee may only be provided in the form of an undertaking by a guarantor.

2. The proof of that undertaking shall be kept by the customs office of guarantee for the period of validity of the guarantee.

3. The holder of the procedure shall not modify the access code associated with the guarantee reference number.

Subsection 2

Procedures under the TIR and the ATA Conventions

Article 163

Liability of guaranteeing associations for TIR operations

(Article 226(3)(b) of the Code)

For the purposes of Article 8(4) of the TIR Convention, including any subsequent amendments thereof, (TIR Convention) where a TIR operation is carried out on the customs territory of the Union, any guaranteeing association established in the customs territory of the Union may become liable for the payment of the secured amount relating to the goods concerned in the TIR operation up to a limit, per TIR carnet, of EUR 60 000 or the national currency equivalent thereof.

Article 164

Notification of non-discharge of a procedure to guaranteeing associations

(Article 226(3)(b) and (c) of the Code)

A valid notification of non-discharge of a procedure in accordance with the TIR Convention or with the ATA Convention or with the Istanbul Convention, made by the customs authorities of one Member State to a guaranteeing association, shall constitute a notification to any other guaranteeing association of another Member State identified as liable for payment of an amount of import or export duty or other charges.

CHAPTER 2

Recovery, payment, repayment and remission of the amount of import or export duty

Section 1

Determination of the amount of import or export duty, notification of the customs debt and entry in the accounts

Subsection 1

Article 165

Mutual assistance between customs authorities

(Articles 101(1) and 102(1) of the Code)

1. Where a customs debt is incurred, the customs authorities competent for the recovery of the amount of import or export duty corresponding to the customs debt shall inform the other customs authorities involved of the following:

(a)	the fact that a customs debt was incurred;

(b)	the action taken against the debtor to recover the sums concerned.

2. The Member States shall assist each other in the recovery of the amount of import or export duty corresponding to the customs debt.

3. Without prejudice to Article 87(4) of the Code, where the customs authority of the Member State in which the goods were placed under a special procedure other than transit, or were in temporary storage, obtains, before the expiry of the time-limit referred to in Article 80 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, evidence that the events from which the customs debt arises or is deemed to arise have occurred in another Member State, that customs authority shall immediately and in any event within that time-limit send all the information available to the customs authority responsible for that place. The latter customs authority shall acknowledge receipt of the communication and indicate whether it is responsible for the recovery. If no response is received within 90 days, the sending customs authority shall immediately proceed with the recovery.

4. Without prejudice to Article 87(4) of the Code, where the customs authority of the Member State in which it has been found that the customs debt has been incurred with respect to goods which were neither placed under a customs procedure nor under temporary storage, obtains, before the notification of the customs debt, evidence that the events from which the customs debt arises or is deemed to arise have occurred in another Member State, that customs authority shall immediately and in any event before that notification, send all the information available to the customs authority responsible for that place. The latter customs authority shall acknowledge receipt of the communication and indicate whether it is responsible for the recovery. If no response is received within 90 days, the sending customs authority shall immediately proceed with the recovery.

Article 166

Customs office of coordination relating to ATA carnets or CPD carnets

(Article 226(3)(c) of the Code)

1. The customs authorities shall designate a customs office of coordination responsible for any action concerning customs debts which are incurred through non-compliance with obligations or conditions relating to ATA carnets or CPD carnets under Article 79 of the Code.

2. Each Member State shall communicate to the Commission the customs office of coordination together with its reference number. The Commission shall make this information available on its website.

Article 167

Recovery of other charges under the Union transit procedure and transit in accordance with the TIR Convention

(Article 226(3)(a) and (b) of the Code)

1. Where the customs authorities who notified the customs debt and the obligation to pay other charges due in connection with the import or export of goods placed under the Union transit procedure or under the transit procedure in accordance with the TIR Convention obtain evidence regarding the place where the events giving rise to the customs debt and the obligation to pay other charges occurred, those customs authorities shall suspend the recovery procedure and immediately send all the necessary documents, including an authenticated copy of the evidence, to the authorities responsible for that place. The sending authorities shall simultaneously request confirmation of the responsibility of the receiving authorities for recovery of the other charges.

2. The receiving authorities shall acknowledge receipt of the communication and shall indicate whether they are competent for recovery of the other charges. If no response is received within 28 days, the sending authorities shall immediately resume the recovery proceedings they initiated.

3. Any pending proceedings for recovery of other charges initiated by the sending authorities shall be suspended as soon as the receiving authorities have acknowledged receipt of communication and indicated that they are competent of recovering the other charges.

As soon as the receiving authorities provide proof that they have recovered the sums in question, the sending authorities shall repay any other charges already recovered or cancel the recovery proceedings.

Article 168

Notification of recovery of duties and other charges under the Union transit procedure and transit in accordance with the TIR Convention

(Article 226(3)(a) and (b) of the Code)

Where a customs debt is incurred with respect to goods placed under the Union transit procedure or under the transit procedure in accordance with the TIR Convention, the customs authorities competent for recovery shall inform the customs office of departure of the recovery of duties and other charges.

Articles 169

Recovery of other charges for goods placed under transit in accordance with the ATA Convention or the Istanbul Convention

(Article 226(3)(c) of the Code)

1. Where the customs authorities who notified the customs debt and the obligation to pay other charges for goods placed under transit in accordance with the ATA Convention/ or the Istanbul Convention obtain evidence regarding the place where the events giving rise to the customs debt and the obligation to pay other charges occurred, those customs authorities shall immediately send all the necessary documents, including an authenticated copy of the evidence, to the authorities competent for that place. The sending authorities shall simultaneously request confirmation of the responsibility of the receiving authorities for recovery of the other charges.

2. The receiving authorities shall acknowledge receipt of the communication and shall indicate whether they are competent for recovery of the other charges. For those purposes, the receiving authorities shall use the model of discharge set out in Annex 33-05 indicating that claim proceedings have been initiated with respect to the guaranteeing association in the receiving Member State. If no response is received within 90 days, the sending authorities shall immediately resume the recovery proceedings they initiated.

3. Where the receiving authorities are competent, they shall initiate new proceedings for recovery of other charges, where appropriate after the period referred to in paragraph 2, and they shall inform the sending authorities immediately.

The receiving authorities shall where necessary collect from the guaranteeing association with which they are connected the amount of duties and other charges due at the rates applicable in the Member State where those authorities are located.

4. As soon as the receiving authorities indicate that they are competent for recovery of other charges, the sending authorities shall refund to the guaranteeing association with which they are connected any sums which that association may have deposited or provisionally paid.

5. The proceedings shall be transferred within a period of 1 year from the date of expiry of the validity of the carnet unless that payment has become definitive pursuant to Article 7(2) or (3) of the ATA Convention or Article 9(1)(b) and (c) of Annex A to the Istanbul Convention.

Article 170

Recovery of other charges for goods placed under temporary admission in accordance with the ATA Convention or the Istanbul Convention

(Article 226(3)(c) of the Code)

In case of recovery of other charges for goods placed under temporary admission in accordance with the ATA Convention or the Istanbul Convention, Article 169 shall apply mutatis mutandis.

Subsection 2

Notification of the customs debt and claim for payment from guaranteeing association

Article 171

Claim for payment from a guaranteeing association under the procedure of the ATA Convention and the Istanbul Convention

(Article 98 of the Code)

1. Where the customs authorities establish that the customs debt has been incurred for goods covered by an ATA carnet, they shall make a claim against the guaranteeing association without delay. The coordinating customs office making the claim referred to in Article 86 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 shall at the same time send to the coordinating customs office in the jurisdiction of which the customs office of placement under temporary admission is situated, an information memo on the claim for payment sent to the guaranteeing association. It shall use the form set out in Annex 33-03.

2. The information memo shall be accompanied by a copy of the non-discharged voucher, if the coordinating customs office has it in its possession. The information memo may be used whenever this is deemed necessary.

3. The taxation form as referred to in Article 86 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 may be sent later than the claim to the guaranteeing association is made, though not more than 3 months from the claim and in any event not more than 6 months from the date on which the customs authorities initiate the recovery proceedings. The taxation form is set out in Annex 33-04.

Section 2

Repayment and remission

Article 172

Application for repayment or remission

(Article 22(1) of the Code)

Applications for repayment or remission shall be submitted by the person who has paid or is liable to pay the amount of import or export duty, or by any person who has succeeded him in his rights and obligations.

Article 173

Presentation of goods as a condition for repayment or remission

(Article 116(1) of the Code)

Repayment or remission shall be subject to the presentation of the goods. Where the goods cannot be presented to the customs authorities, the customs authority competent to take the decision shall grant repayment or remission only where it has evidence showing that the goods in question are the goods in respect of which repayment or remission has been requested.

Article 174

Restriction on the transfer of goods

(Article 116(1) of the Code)

Without prejudice to Article 176(4) of this Regulation and until a decision has been taken on an application for repayment or remission, the goods in respect of which repayment or remission has been requested shall not be transferred to a location other than that specified in the application unless the applicant notifies in advance the customs authority referred to in Article 92(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, which shall inform the customs authority competent to take the decision.

Article 175

Mutual assistance between the customs authorities

(Articles 22 and 116(1) of the Code)

1. Where for the purposes of repayment or remission supplementary information must be obtained from the customs authority of a Member State other than that in which the customs debt has been notified or where the goods must be examined by that authority in order to ensure that the conditions for repayment or remission are fulfilled, the customs authority competent to take the decision shall request the assistance of the customs authority of the Member State where the goods are located, specifying the nature of the information to be obtained or the checks to be carried out.

The request for information shall be accompanied by the particulars of the application and all documents necessary to enable the customs authority of the Member State where the goods are located to obtain the information or carry out the checks requested.

2. Where the customs authority competent to take the decision sends the request referred to in paragraph 1 by means other than electronic data-processing techniques in accordance with Article 93 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, it shall send to the customs authority of the Member State where the goods are located two copies of the request made out in writing using the form set out in Annex 33-06.

3. The customs authority of the Member State where the goods are located shall comply promptly with the request referred to in paragraph 1.

The customs authority of the Member State where the goods are located shall obtain the information or carry out the checks requested by the customs authority competent to take the decision, within 30 days of the date of receipt of the request. It shall enter the results obtained in the relevant part of the original of the request referred to in paragraph 1 and shall return that document to the customs authority competent to take the decision together with all the documents referred to in the second subparagraph of paragraph 1.

Where the customs authority of the Member State where the goods are located is unable to obtain the information or carry out the checks requested within the period laid down in the second subparagraph, it shall return the request, duly annotated, within 30 days of the date of receipt of the request.

Article 176

Completion of customs formalities

(Article 116(1) of the Code)

1. Where repayment or remission is subject to the completion of customs formalities, the holder of the decision for repayment or remission shall inform the monitoring customs office that he has completed those formalities. Where the decision specifies that the goods may be exported or placed under a special procedure, and the debtor avails himself of that opportunity, the monitoring customs office shall be the customs office where the goods are placed under that procedure.

2. The monitoring customs office shall notify the customs authority competent to take the decision of the completion of the customs formalities to which the repayment or remission is subject by means of a reply referred to in Article 95 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 using the form set out in Annex 33-07 of this Regulation.

3. Where the customs authority competent to take the decision has decided that repayment or remission is justified, the amount of duty shall be repaid or remitted only after that customs authority has received the information referred to in paragraph 2.

4. The customs authority competent to take the decision may authorise completion of the customs formalities to which any repayment or remission may be subject, before it takes a decision. Such authorisation shall be without prejudice to that decision. In these cases, paragraphs 1 to 3 shall be applicable mutatis mutandis.

5. For the purposes of this article, monitoring customs office shall mean the customs office which ensures, where appropriate, that the formalities or requirements to which repayment or remission of the amount of import and export duty is subject, are fulfilled.

Article 177

Formalities related to the decision on repayment or remission

(Article 116(2) of the Code)

1. When taking a decision on repayment or remission of the import or export duties subject to the prior completion of certain customs formalities, the customs authority shall set a time-limit, which shall not exceed 60 days from the date of the notification of that decision, for completion of those customs formalities.

2. Failure to observe the time-limit referred to in paragraph 1 shall result in loss of entitlement to repayment or remission except where person concerned proves that he was prevented from meeting that time-limit due to unforeseeable circumstances or force majeure.

Article 178

Parts or components of a single article

(Article 116(1) of the Code)

Where repayment or remission is subject to destruction, abandonment to the State or placement under a special procedure or the export procedure of goods, but the corresponding formalities are completed only for one or more parts or components of those goods, the amount to be repaid or remitted shall be the difference between the amount of import or export duty on the goods and the amount of import or export duty which would have been applicable on the remainder of the goods if they had been placed in an unaltered state under a customs procedure involving the incurrence of a customs debt, on the date on which the goods were so placed.

Article 179

Waste and scrap

(Article 116(1) of the Code)

Where destruction of goods authorised by the customs authority competent to take the decision produces waste or scrap, such waste or scrap shall be deemed to be non-Union goods once a decision granting repayment or remission has been taken.

Article 180

Export or destruction without customs supervision

(Article 116(1) of the Code)

1. In cases covered by the second subparagraph of Article 116(1), Article 118 or in Article 120 of the Code, where export or destruction took place without customs supervision, repayment or remission on the basis of Article 120 of the Code shall be conditional on the following:

(a)

the applicant submitting to the customs authority competent to take the decision evidence needed to establish whether the goods in respect of which repayment or remission is requested fulfil one of the following conditions:

(a)	the goods have been exported from the customs territory of the Union;

(b)	the goods have been destroyed under the supervision of authorities or persons authorised by those authorities to certify such destruction;

(b)

the applicant returning to the customs authority competent to take the decision any document certifying or containing information confirming the customs status of Union goods of the goods in question, under cover of which the said goods may have left the customs territory of the Union, or the presentation of whatever evidence the said authority considers necessary to satisfy itself that the document in question cannot be used subsequently in connection with goods brought into the customs territory of the Union.

2. The evidence establishing that the goods in respect of which repayment or remission is requested have been exported from the customs territory of the Union shall consist of the following documents:

(a)	the certification of exit referred to in Article 334 of this Regulation;

(b)	the original or a certified copy of the customs declaration for the procedure involving the incurrence of the customs debt;

(c)

where necessary, commercial or administrative documents containing a full description of the goods which were presented with the customs declaration for the said procedure or with the customs declaration for export from the customs territory of the Union or with the customs declaration made for the goods in the third country of destination.

3. The evidence establishing that the goods in respect of which repayment or remission is requested have been destroyed under the supervision of authorities or persons authorised to certify officially such destruction shall consist of either of the following documents:

(a)	a report or declaration of destruction drawn up by the authorities under whose supervision the goods were destroyed, or a certified copy thereof;

(b)	a certificate drawn up by the person authorised to certify destruction, accompanied by evidence of his authority.

Those documents shall contain a full description of the destroyed goods to establish, by means of comparison with the particulars given in the customs declaration for a customs procedure involving the incurrence of the customs debt and the supporting documents, that the destroyed goods are those which had been placed under the said procedure.

4. Where the evidence referred to in paragraphs 2 and 3 is insufficient for the customs authority to take a decision on the case submitted to it, or where certain evidence is not available, such evidence may be supplemented or replaced by any other documents considered necessary by the said authority.

Article 181

Information to be provided to the Commission

(Article 121(4) of the Code)

1. Each Member State shall communicate to the Commission a list of the cases where repayment or remission has been granted on the basis of Article 119 or Article 120 of the Code and where the amount repaid or remitted to a certain debtor with respect to one or more import or export operations but as a result of a single error or special situation is more than EUR 50 000, except cases referred to in Article 116(3) of the Code.

2. The communication shall be made during the first and third quarters of each year for all cases in which it was decided to repay or remit duties during the preceding half-year.

3. Where a Member State has not taken any decision on cases referred to in paragraph 1 during the half-year in question, it shall send the Commission a communication with the entry ‘Not applicable’.

4. Each Member State shall hold at the disposal of the Commission a list of the cases where repayment or remission has been granted on the basis of Article 119 or Article 120 of the Code and where the amount repaid or remitted is equal to or less than EUR 50 000.

5. For each of the cases referred to in this Article, the following information shall be provided:

(a)	the reference number of the customs declaration or of the document notifying the debt;

(b)	the date of the customs declaration or of the document notifying the debt;

(c)	the type of the decision;

(d)	the legal basis for the decision;

(e)	the amount and currency;

(f)	the case particulars (including a brief explanation as to why the customs authorities consider the conditions for remission/repayment of the relevant legal basis fulfilled).

TITLE IV

GOODS BROUGHT INTO THE CUSTOMS TERRITORY OF THE UNION

CHAPTER 1

Entry summary declaration

Article 182

Electronic system relating to entry summary declarations

(Article 16 of the Code)

An electronic information and communication system set up pursuant to Article 16(1) of the Code shall be used for the submission, processing, storage and exchange of information relating to entry summary declarations, and for the subsequent exchanges of information provided for in this Chapter.

By derogation from the first paragraph of this Article, until the date of the upgrading of the system referred to therein in accordance with the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/255/EU, Member States shall use the electronic system developed for the lodging and exchange of information relating to entry summary declarations in accordance with Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93.

Article 183

Lodging of an entry summary declaration

(Article 127(5) and (6) of the Code)

1. The particulars of the entry summary declaration may be provided by the submission of more than one dataset.

2. For the purpose of lodging the entry summary declaration by the submission of more than one dataset, the customs office of first entry shall be the customs office according to the knowledge of the person concerned at the time of submitting the particulars, in particular based on the place to which the goods are consigned.

3. Until the dates of the upgrading of the Import Control System referred to in the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/255/EU, paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article shall not apply.

Article 184

Obligations to inform relating to the provision of particulars of the entry summary declaration by persons other than the carrier

(Article 127(6) of the Code)

1. In the cases referred to in Article 112(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, the carrier and any of the persons issuing a bill of lading shall, in the partial dataset of the entry summary declaration, provide the identity of any person who has concluded a transport contract with them, issued a bill of lading in respect of the same goods and does not make the particulars required for the entry summary declaration available to them.

Where the consignee indicated in the bill of lading that has no underlying bills of lading does not make the required particulars available to the person issuing the bill of lading, that person shall provide the identity of the consignee.

2. In the cases referred to in Article 112(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, the person issuing the bill of lading shall inform of the issuance of that bill of lading the person who concluded a transport contract with him and issues the bill of lading to him.

In the case of a goods co-loading arrangement, the person issuing the bill of lading shall inform of the issuance of that bill of lading the person with whom he entered into that arrangement.

3. In the cases referred to in Article 113(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, the carrier and any of the persons issuing an air waybill shall, in the partial dataset of the entry summary declaration, provide the identity of any person who has concluded a transport contract with them, issued an air waybill in respect of the same goods and does not make the particulars required for the entry summary declaration available to them.

4. In the cases referred to in Article 113(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, the person issuing an air waybill shall inform of the issuance of that air waybill the person who concluded a transport contract with him and issues the air waybill to him.

In the case of a goods co-loading arrangement, the person issuing the airway bill shall inform of the issuance of that airway bill the person with whom he entered into that arrangement.

5. In the cases referred to in Article 113(2) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, the carrier shall, in the partial dataset of the entry summary declaration, provide the identity of the postal operator who does not make the particulars required for the entry summary declaration available to him.

6. Until the date of deployment of the upgrading of the Import Control System referred to in the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/255/EU, paragraphs 1 to 5 shall not apply.

Article 185

Registration of the entry summary declaration

(Article 127(1) of the Code)

1. The customs authorities shall register the entry summary declaration upon its receipt and shall notify the person who has lodged it of its registration immediately and shall communicate a MRN of the entry summary declaration and the date of registration to that person.

2. Where the particulars of the entry summary declaration are provided by submitting more than one dataset, the customs authorities shall register each of those submissions of particulars of the entry summary declaration upon receipt and shall immediately notify the person who has made those submissions of their registration and shall communicate a MRN of each submission and the date of registration for each submission to that person.

3. The customs authorities shall immediately notify the carrier of the registration provided that the carrier has requested to be notified and has access to the electronic system referred to in Article 182 of this Regulation in any of the following cases:

(a)	where the entry summary declaration is lodged by a person referred to in the second subparagraph of Article 127(4) of the Code;

(b)	where particulars of the entry summary declaration are provided in accordance with Article 127(6) of the Code.

4. Until the dates of the upgrading of the Import Control System referred to in the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/255/EU, paragraph 2 and point b) of paragraph 3 shall not apply.

Article 186

Risk analysis

(Articles 127(3) and 128 of the Code)

1. Risk analysis shall be carried out before the arrival of the goods at the customs office of first entry provided that the entry summary declaration has been lodged within the time-limits laid down in Articles 105 to 109 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, unless a risk is identified or an additional risk analysis needs to be carried out.

In the case of containerised cargo brought into the customs territory of the Union by sea as referred to in Article 105(a) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, the customs authorities shall complete the risk analysis within 24 hours of the receipt of the entry summary declaration or, in the cases referred to in Article 127(6) of the Code, of the particulars of the entry summary declaration submitted by the carrier.

In addition to the first subparagraph, in the case of goods brought into the customs territory of the Union by air, the risk analysis shall be carried out upon receipt of at least the minimum dataset of the entry summary declaration referred to in second subparagraph of Article 106(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446.

2. The risk analysis shall be completed following, where necessary, the exchange of risk-related information and risk analysis results as referred to in Article 46(5) of the Code.

3. Where the completion of the risk analysis requires further information on the particulars of the entry summary declaration that analysis shall only be completed after that information is provided.

For those purposes, the customs authorities shall request that information from the person who lodged the entry summary declaration or, where applicable, the person who submitted those particulars of the entry summary declaration. Where that person is different from the carrier, the customs authorities shall inform the carrier, provided that the carrier has requested to be notified and has access to the electronic system referred to in Article 182 of this Regulation.

4. Where, in the case of goods brought into the customs territory of the Union by air, where customs authorities have reasonable grounds to suspect that the consignment could pose a serious aviation security threat, they shall notify the person who lodged the entry summary declaration or, where applicable, the person who submitted the particulars of the entry summary declaration and, where that person is different from the carrier, inform the carrier, provided that the carrier has access to the electronic system referred to in Article 182 of this Regulation, that the consignment has to be screened as High Risk Cargo and Mail, in accordance with point 6.7.3. of the Annex to Commission Decision C(2010) 774 of 13 April 2010 laying down detailed measures for the implementation of the common basic standards on aviation security containing information as referred to in Article 18(a) of Regulation (EC) No 300/2008 before being loaded on board an aircraft bound to the customs territory of the Union. Following the notification, that person shall inform the customs authorities of whether the consignment had already been screened or has been screened in accordance with the aforementioned requirements and provide all relevant information on that screening. The risk analysis shall only be completed after that information is provided.

5. Where, in the case of containerised cargo brought into the customs territory of the Union by sea as referred to in Article 105(a) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 or in the case of goods brought into the customs territory of the Union by air, the risk analysis provides reasonable grounds for the customs authorities to consider that the entry of the goods into the customs territory of the Union would pose such a serious threat to security and safety that immediate action is required, the customs authorities shall notify the person who lodged the entry summary declaration or, where applicable, the person who submitted the particulars of the entry summary declaration and, where that person is different from the carrier, inform the carrier, provided that the carrier has access to the electronic system referred to in Article 182 of this Regulation, that the goods are not to be loaded. That notification shall be made and that information shall be provided immediately after the detection of the relevant risk and, in the case of containerised cargo brought into the customs territory of the Union by sea as referred to in Article 105(a) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, within the time-limit laid down in the second subparagraph of paragraph 1.

6. Where a consignment has been identified as posing a threat of such nature that immediate action is required upon arrival, the customs office of first entry shall take that action upon arrival of the goods.

7. Where a risk is identified that does not pose such a serious threat to security and safety that would require immediate action, the customs office of first entry shall pass on the results of the risk analysis including, where necessary, information about the most appropriate place where a control action should be carried out and the entry summary declaration data to all the customs offices potentially concerned by the movement of the goods.

8. Where goods for which the obligation to lodge an entry summary declaration is waived in accordance with Article 104(1) (c) to (k), (m) and (n) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 and the first subparagraph of Article 104(2) of that Regulation, are brought into the customs territory of the Union, the risk analysis shall be carried out upon the presentation of the goods, where available on the basis of the temporary storage declaration or the customs declaration covering those goods.

9. Goods presented to customs may be released for a customs procedure or re-exported as soon as the risk analysis has been carried out and the results of the risk analysis and, where required, the measures taken, allow such a release.

10. Risk analysis shall also be carried out if the particulars of the entry summary declaration are amended in accordance with Article 129 of the Code. In that case the risk analysis shall be completed immediately upon receipt of the particulars unless a risk is identified or an additional risk analysis needs to be carried out.

Article 187

Risk Analysis

(Article 126 of the Code)

1. Until the date of deployment of upgrading of the Import Control System referred to in the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/255/EU, Article 186(1) to (8) shall not apply.

2. Risk analysis shall be carried out before the arrival of the goods at the customs office of first entry provided that the entry summary declaration has been lodged within the time-limits laid down in Articles 105 to 109 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 unless a risk is identified.

3. In case of containerised cargo brought into the customs territory of the Union by sea as referred to in Article 105(a) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, the customs authorities shall complete the risk analysis within 24 hours of the receipt of the entry summary declaration. Where that analysis provides reasonable grounds for the customs authorities to consider that the entry of the goods into the customs territory of the Union would pose such a serious threat to security and safety that immediate action is required, the customs authorities shall notify the person who lodged the entry summary declaration, and, where that person is different from the carrier, inform the carrier provided that the carrier has access to the electronic system referred to in Article 182 of this Regulation, that the goods are not to be loaded. That notification shall be made and that information shall be provided immediately after the detection of the relevant risk and within 24 hours of receipt of the entry summary declaration.

4. Where a vessel or aircraft is to call at more than one port or airport in the customs territory of the Union, provided that it moves between those ports without calling at any port or airport outside the customs territory of the Union the following applies:

(a)

for all the goods carried by said vessel or aircraft, an entry summary declaration shall be lodged at the first Union port or airport. The customs authorities at said port or airport of entry shall carry out the risk analysis for security and safety purposes for all the goods by the vessel or aircraft concerned. Additional risk analyses may be carried out for those goods at the port or airport at which they are discharged;

(b)

in the case of consignments identified as posing a threat of such a serious nature that immediate intervention is required, the customs office of the first port or airport of entry in the Union shall take prohibitive action, and, in any case, pass on the results of the risk analysis to the subsequent ports or airports; and

(c)	at subsequent ports or airports in the customs territory of the Union, Article 145 of the Code shall apply for goods presented to customs at that port or airport.

5. Where goods for which the obligation to lodge entry summary declaration is waived in accordance with Article 104(1)(c) to (k), (m) and (n), (2) and (2a) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 are brought into the customs territory of the Union, the risk analysis shall be carried out upon presentation of the goods where available on the basis of the temporary storage declaration or the customs declaration covering those goods.

Article 188

Amendment of an entry summary declaration

(Article 129(1) of the Code)

1. Where the particulars of the entry summary declaration are submitted by different persons, each person may only be permitted to amend the particulars that that person submitted.

2. The customs authorities shall immediately notify the person who lodged amendments to the particulars of the entry summary declaration of their decision to register or reject the amendments.

Where the amendments to the particulars of the entry summary declaration are lodged by a person different from the carrier, the customs authorities shall also notify the carrier, provided that the carrier has requested to be notified and has access to the electronic system referred to in Article 182 of this Regulation.

3. Until the dates of the upgrading of the Import Control System referred to in the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/255/EU paragraph 1 of this Article shall not apply.

CHAPTER 2

Arrival of goods

Section 1

Entry of goods into the customs territory of the Union

Article 189

Diversion of a sea-going vessel or aircraft

(Article 133 of the Code)

1. Where a sea-going vessel or an aircraft entering the customs territory of the Union is diverted and is expected to arrive first at a customs office located in a Member State that was not indicated in the entry summary declaration as a country of routing, the operator of that means of transport shall inform the customs office indicated in the entry summary declaration as the customs office of first entry of that diversion.

The first subparagraph shall not apply where goods have been brought into the customs territory of the Union under a transit procedure in accordance with Article 141 of the Code.

2. The customs office indicated in the entry summary declaration as the customs office of first entry shall immediately after being informed in accordance with paragraph 1 notify the customs office which according to that information is the customs office of first entry of the diversion. It shall ensure the availability of the relevant particulars of the entry summary declaration and of the results of the risk analysis to the customs office of first entry.

Section 2

Presentation, unloading and examination of goods

Article 190

Presentation of goods to customs

(Article 139 of the Code)

Customs authorities may accept use of port or airport systems or other available methods of information for the presentation of goods to customs.

Section 3

Temporary storage of goods

Article 191

Consultation procedure between customs authorities prior to authorising temporary storage facilities

(Article 22 of the Code)

1. The consultation procedure referred to in Article 14 of this Regulation shall be followed in accordance with paragraphs 2 and 3 of this Article before a decision is taken to authorise the operation of temporary storage facilities involving more than one Member State unless the customs authority competent to take the decision is of the opinion that the conditions for granting such an authorisation are not fulfilled.

Before issuing an authorisation the customs authority competent to take the decision shall obtain the agreement of the consulted customs authorities.

2. The customs authority competent to take the decision shall communicate the application and the draft authorisation to the consulted customs authorities at the latest 30 days after the date of acceptance of the application.

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