A third country is classified as free from avian influenza and Newcastle disease if it fulfils the following general criteria:

1. (a)

   it must have a general animal-health structure allowing adequate monitoring of poultry flocks;

2. (b)

   it must have legislation which makes avian influenza and Newcastle disease notifiable diseases for all species of poultry and for all birds kept in captivity;

3. (c)

   it must undertake to examine closely any suspicion of those diseases;

4. (d)

   if there is suspicion, it must submit samples of each avian influenza virus or paramyxovirus found to specific laboratory testing in accordance with the procedure set out in Annex A;

5. (e)

   it must have at its disposal laboratory capacity in its own official laboratories or have arrangements with other national laboratories for rapid testing;

6. (f)

   F1it must send a list of these laboratories, as well as a description of the methods used for diagnosis and pathotyping of avian influenza and Newcastle disease to the Commission and allow checking of them by experts from the Community;

7. (g)

   for each primary outbreak it must send virusisolates to the EC reference laboratory in Weybridge (Addlestone, United Kingdom);

8. (h)

   it must notify to the Commission, within 24 hours after confirmation, of initial outbreaks in each previously free part of its territory;

9. i)

   it must send to the Commission, at least monthly in the event of subsequent outbreaks in the same part of the territory, a report on the disease situation;

10. (j)

    in cases where vaccination against avian influenza and/or Newcastle disease is not forbidden, it must officially control the production, testing and distribution for the vaccines;

11. (k)

    it must communicate to the Commission the characteristics of each strain used for the production of vaccines against avian influenza or Newcastle disease.