Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 (repealed)Show full title

PART I GENERAL IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

TITLE I GENERAL

CHAPTER 1 Definitions

Article 1

For the purposes of this Regulation:

1.

Code means:

Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 of 12 October 1992 establishing a Community Customs Code;

2.

ATA carnet means:

the international customs document for temporary importation established by virtue of the ATA Convention;

3.

Committee means:

the Customs Code Committee established in Article 247 of the Code;

4.

Customs Cooperation Council means:

the organization set up by the Convention establishing a Customs Cooperation Council, done at Brussels on 15 December 1950;

5.

Particulars required for identification of the goods means:

on the one hand, the particulars used to identify the goods commercially allowing the customs authorities to determine the tariff classification and, on the other hand, the quantity of the goods;

6.

Goods of a non-commercial nature means:

goods whose entry for the customs procedure in question is on an occasional basis and whose nature and quantity indicate that they are intended for the private, personal or family use of the consignees or persons carrying them, or which are clearly intended as gifts;

7.

Commercial policy measures means:

non-tariff measures established, as part of the common commercial policy, in the form of Community provisions governing the import and export of goods, such as surveillance or safeguard measures, quantitative restrictions or limits and import or export prohibitions;

8.

Customs nomenclature means:

one of the nomenclatures referred to in Article 20 (6) of the Code;

9.

Harmonized System means:

the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System;

10.

Treaty means:

the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community.

CHAPTER 2 Decisions

Article 2

Where a person making a request for a decision is not in a position to provide all the documents and information necessary to give a ruling, the customs authorities shall provide the documents and information at their disposal.

Article 3

A decision concerning security favourable to a person who has signed an undertaking to pay the sums due at the first written request of the customs authorities, shall be revoked where the said undertaking is not fulfilled.

Article 4

A revocation shall not affect goods which, at the moment of its entry into effect, have already been placed under a procedure by virtue of the revoked authorization.

However, the customs authorities may require that such goods be assigned to a permitted customs-approved treatment or use within the period which they shall set.

TITLE II BINDING TARIFF INFORMATION

CHAPTER 1 Definitions

Article 5

For the purpose of this Title:

1.

binding tariff information:

means tariff information binding on the administrations of all Community Member States when the conditions laid down in Articles 6 and 7 are fulfilled;

2.

applicant:

means a person who has applied to the customs authorities for binding tariff information;

3.

holder:

means the person in whose name the binding tariff information is issued.

CHAPTER 2 Procedure for obtaining binding tariff information — Notification of information to applicants and transmission to the Commission

Article 6

1. Applications for binding tariff information shall be made in writing either to the competent customs authorities in the Member State or Member States in which the information is to be used, or to the competent customs authorities in the Member State in which the applicant is established.

2. An application for binding tariff information shall relate to only one type of goods.

3. Applications shall include the following particulars:

(a) the holder's name and address;

(b) the name and address of the applicant where that person is not the holder;

(c) the customs nomenclature in which the goods are to be classified. Where an applicant wishes to obtain the classification of goods in one of the nomenclatures referred to in Article 20 (3) (b) and (6) (b) of the Code, the application for binding tariff information shall make express mention of the nomenclature in question;

(d) a detailed description of the goods permitting their identification and the determination of their classification in the customs nomenclature;

(e) the composition of the goods and any methods of examination used to determine this, where the classification depends on it;

(f) any samples, photographs, plans, catalogues or other documents available which may assist the customs authorities in determining the correct classification of the goods in the customs nomenclature, to be attached as annexes;

(g) the classification envisaged;

(h) agreement to supply a translation of any attached document in the official language (or one of the official languages) of the Member State concerned if requested by the customs authorities;

(i) any particulars to be treated as confidential;

(j) indication by the applicant whether to his knowledge binding tariff information for identical or similar goods has already been applied for or issued in the Community;

(k) acceptance that the information supplied may be stored on a database of the Commission of the European Communities; however, apart from Article 15 of the Code, the provisions governing the protection of information in force in the Member States shall apply.

4. Where the customs authorities consider that the application does not contain all the particulars they require to give an informed opinion, they shall ask the applicant to supply the missing information.

5. The list of customs authorities designated by the Member States to receive applications for or to issue binding tariff information shall be published in the C series of the Official Journal of the European Communities.

Article 7

1. Binding tariff information shall be notified to the applicant in writing as soon as possible. If it has not been possible to notify binding tariff information to the applicant within three months of acceptance of the application, the customs authorities shall contact the applicant to explain the reason for the delay and indicate when they expect to be able to notify the information.

2. Binding tariff information shall be notified by means of a form conforming to the specimen shown in Annex 1. The notification shall indicate what particulars are to be considered as having been supplied on a confidential basis. The possibility of appeal referred to in Article 243 of the Code shall be mentioned.

Article 8

1. A copy of the binding tariff information notified (copy No 2 of Annex 1) and the facts (copy No 4 of the same Annex) shall be transmitted to the Commission without delay by the customs authorities of the Member State concerned. Such transmission shall be effected by electronic means as soon as possible.

2. Where a Member State so requests the Commission shall send it without delay the particulars contained in the copy of the form and the other relevant information. Such transmission shall be effected by electronic means as soon as possible.

CHAPTER 3 Provisions applying in the event of inconsistencies in binding tariff information

Article 9

Where the Commission finds that different binding tariff information exists in respect of the same goods it shall if necessary adopt a measure to ensure the uniform application of the customs nomenclature.

CHAPTER 4 Legal effect of binding tariff information

Article 10

1. Without prejudice to Articles 5 and 64 of the Code, binding tariff information may be invoked only by the holder.

2. The customs authorities may require the holder, when fulfilling customs formalities, to inform the customs authorities that he is in possession of binding tariff information in respect of the goods being cleared through customs.

3. The holder of binding tariff information may use it in respect of particular goods only where it is established to the satisfaction of the customs authorities that the goods in question conform in all respects to those described in the information presented.

4. The customs authorities may ask for this information to be translated into the official language or one of the official languages of the Member State concerned.

Article 11

Binding tariff information supplied by the customs authorities of a Member State since 1 January 1991 shall become binding on the competent authorities of all the Member States under the same conditions.

Article 12

1. Upon adoption of one of the acts or measures referred to in Article 12 (5) of the Code, the customs authorities shall take the necessary steps to ensure that binding tariff information shall thenceforth be issued only in conformity with the act or measure in question.

2. For the purposes of paragraph 1 above, the date to be taken into consideration shall be as follows:

• for the regulations provided for in Article 12 (5) (a) of the Code concerning amendments to the customs nomenclature, the date of their applicability,

• for the regulations provided for in (a) of the same article and paragraph and establishing or affecting the classification of goods in the customs nomenclature, the date of their publication in the ‘L’ series of the Official Journal of the European Communities,

• for the measures provided for in (b) of the same article and paragraph, concerning amendments to the explanatory notes to the combined nomenclature, the date of their publication in the ‘C’ series of the Official Journal of the European Communities,

• for judgments of the Court of Justice of the European Community provided for in (b) of the same article and paragraph, the date of the judgment,

• for the measures provided for in (b) of the same article and paragraph concerning the adoption of a classification opinion or amendments to the explanatory notes to the Harmonized System Nomenclature by the Customs Cooperation Council, the date of the Commission communication in the ‘C’ series of the Official Journal of the European Communities.

3. The Commission shall communicate the dates of adoption of the measures and acts referred to in this article to the customs authorities as soon as possible.

CHAPTER 5 Provisions applying in the event of expiry of binding tariff information

Article 13

Where, pursuant to the second sentence of Article 12 (4) and Article 12 (5) of the Code, binding tariff information is void or ceases to be valid, the customs authority which supplied it shall notify the Commission as soon as possible.

Article 14

1. When a holder of binding tariff information which has ceased to be valid for reasons referred to in Article 12 (5) of the Code, wishes to make use of the possibility of invoking such information during a given period pursuant to paragraph 6 of that Article, he shall notify the customs authorities, providing any necessary supporting documents to enable a check to be made that the relevant conditions have been satisfied.

2. In exceptional cases where the Commission, in accordance with the last subparagraph of Article 12 (7) of the Code, adopts a measure derogating from the provisions of paragraph 6 of that Article, or where the conditions referred to in paragraph 1 concerning the possibility of continuing to invoke binding tariff information have not been fulfilled, the customs authorities shall notify the holder in writing.

CHAPTER 6 Transitional provision

Article 15

Binding tariff information supplied nationally before 1 January 1991 shall remain valid.

Nevertheless, binding tariff information supplied nationally whose validity extends beyond 1 January 1997 shall be invalid from that date.

TITLE III FAVOURABLE TARIFF TREATMENT BY REASON OF THE NATURE OF GOODS

CHAPTER 1 Goods subject to the condition that they be denatured

Article 16

Classification under the tariff subheadings listed in column 2 of the table below of the goods listed against each subheading in column 3 shall be subject to the condition that the goods are denatured so as to make them unfit for human consumption, by means of one of the denaturants referred to in column 4 used in the quantities indicated in column 5.

a This column contains the numbers corresponding to the Rewe Colour Index, 3rd edition, 1971, Bradford, England.
Order No	CN code	Description	Denaturant
			Name			Maximum quantity to be used in g per 100 kg of product to be denatured
(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)			(5)
1	0408	Birds' eggs, not in shell, and egg yolks, fresh, dried, cooked by steaming or by boiling in water, moulded, frozen or otherwise preserved, whether or not containing added sugar or other sweetening matter:	Spirit of turpentine Essence of lavender Oil of rosemary Birch oil			500 100 150 100
		– Egg yolks:
	0408 11	– – Dried:	Fish meal of subheading 2301 20 00 of the Combined Nomenclature, having a characteristic odour and containing by weight in the dry matter at least: 62,5 % crude protein and 6 % crude lipids (fatty matter)			5 000
	0408 11 90	– – – Other
	0408 19	– – Other
	0408 19 90	––– Other
	0408 91	–– Dried:
	0408 91 90	––– Other
	0408 99	–– Other
	0408 99 90	––– Other
2	1106	Flour and meal of the dried leguminous vegetables of heading No 0713, of sogo or of roots or tubers of heading No 0714; flour, meal and powder of the product of Chapter 8:	Fish oil or fish liver oil, filtered but not deodorized or decoloreized, with no additives			1 000
	1106 20	– Flour and meal of sogo, roots or tubers of heading No 0714:	Fish meal of subheading 2301 20 00 of the combined nomenclature, having a characteristic odour and containing by weight in the dry matter at least:
	1106 20 10	– – Denatured	62,5 % crude protein and 6 % crude lipids (fatty matter)			5 000
			Chemical name or description	Common name	Colour indexa
3	2501 00	Salt (including table salt and denatured salt) and pure sodium chloride, whether or not in aqueous solution; or containing added anti-caking or free-flowing agents; sea water	Sodium salt of 4-sulphobenzeneazore-sorcinol, or 2.4-dihydroxyzobenzene-4-sulphonic acid (colour: yellow)	Chrysoine S	14 270	6
		– Common salt (including table salt and denatured salt) and pure sodium chloride, whether or not in aqueous solution or containing added anti-caking or free-flowing agents	Disodium salt of l-(4-sulph-1 -phenylazo)-4-aminobenzene-5-sulphonic acid (colour: yellow)	Fast yellow AB	13 015	6
		– – Other:
	2501 00 51	––– Denatured or for industrial uses (including refining) other than the preservation or preparation of foodstuffs for human or animal consumption	Tetrasodium salt of l-(4-suplho-1 -naphthylazo)-2-naphtol-3,6,8-trisulfonic acid (colour: red)	Ponceau 6 R	16 290	1
			Tetrabromofluorescein (colour: flourescent yellow)	Eosine	45 380	0,5
			Naphtalene	Naphtalene	—	250
			Powdered soap	Powdered soap	—	1 000
			Sodium or potassium dichromate	Sodium or potassium dichromate	—	30
			Iron oxide containing not less than 50 % of Fe2O3 by weight. The iron oxide should be dark red to brown and should take the form of a fine powder of which at least 90 % passes through a sieve having a mesh of 0,10 mm	Iron oxide	—	250
			Sodium hypochlorite	Sodium hypochlorite		3 000
			Name
4	3502	Albumins, (including concentrates of two or more whey proteins containing by weight more than 80 % whey proteins, calculated on the dry matter), albuminates and other albumin derivatives:	Oil of rosemary (for liquid albumins only) Crude oil of camphor (for liquid and solid albumins) White oil of camphor (for liquid and solid albumins) Sodium azide (for liquid and solid albumins) Diethanolamine (for solid albumins only)			150 2 000 2 000 100 6 000
	3502 10	– Egg albumin:
	3502 10 10	– – Unfit, or to be rendered unfit, for human consumption
	3502 90	– Other
		–– Albumins, other than egg albumin:
	3502 90 10	––– Unfit, or to be rendered unfit, for human consumption

Article 17

Denaturing shall be carried out in such a way as to ensure that the product to be denatured and the denaturant are homogeneously mixed and cannot be separated again in a manner which is economically viable.

Article 18

By way of derogation from Article 16, any Member State may temporarily approve the use of a denaturant not specified in column 4 of the table referred to in that Article.

In such a case, notification shall be sent to the Commission within 30 days, giving detailed particulars of such denaturants and of the quantities used. The Commission shall inform the other Member States as soon as possible.

The question shall be referred to the Committee.

If, within 18 months of the date of receipt by the Commission of the notification, the Committee has not delivered an opinion to the effect that the denaturant in question should be included in column 4 of the said table, then use of such denaturant shall forthwith cease in all Member States.

Article 19

This Chapter shall apply without prejudice to Council Directive 70/524/EEC(1).

CHAPTER 2 Conditions for tariff classification of certain types of seed

Article 20

Classification under the tariff subheadings listed in column 2 of the table below of the goods listed against each subheading in column 3 shall be subject to the conditions laid down in Articles 21 to 24.

Order No	CN code	Description
1	0701	Potatoes, fresh or chilled
	0701 10 00	– Seed
2	0712	Dried vegetables, whole, cut sliced, broken or in powder, but not further prepared:
	0712 90	– other vegetables; mixtures of vegetables:
		– – sweet corn (Zea mays var. saccharata):
		– – – hybrids for sowing
3	1001	Wheat and meslin:
	1001 90	– other
	1001 90 10	– – spelt for sowing
4	1005	Maize (corn)
	1005 10	– Seed:
		– – hybrid:
	1005 10 11	– – – double hybrids and top cross hybrids
	1005 10 13	– – – three-cross hybrids
	1005 10 15	– – – simple hybrids
	1005 10 19	– – – other
5	1006	Rice
	1006 10	– rice in the husk (paddy or rough)
	1006 10 10	– – for sowing
6	1007 00	Grain sorghum
	1007 00 10	– hybrids for sowing
7	1201 00	Soya beans, whether or not broken
	1201 00 10	– for sowing
8	1202	Ground-nuts, not roasted or otherwise cooked, whether or not shelled or broken:
	1202 10	– in shell:
	1202 10 10	–– for sowing
9	1204 00	Linseed, whether or not broken:
	1204 00 10	– for sowing
10	1205 00	Rape or colza seeds, whether or not broken:
	1205 00 10	– for sowing
11	1206 00	Sunflower seed, whether or not broken:
	1206 00 10	– for sowing
12	1207	Other oil seeds and oleaginous fruits, whether or not broken:
	1207 10	– palm nuts and kernels:
	1207 10 10	– – for sowing
13	1207 20	– Cotton seeds:
	1207 20 10	– – for sowing
14	1207 30	– Castor oil seeds:
	1207 30 10	– – for sowing
15	1207 40	– Sesamum seeds:
	1207 40 10	– – for sowing
16	1207 50	– Mustard seeds:
	1207 50 10	– – for sowing
17	1207 60	– Safflower seeds:
	1207 60 10	– – for sowing
		– Other
18	1207 91	– – Poppy seeds:
	1207 91 10	– – – for sowing
19	1207 92	– – Shea seeds (karite nuts):
	1207 92 10	– – – for sowing
20	1207 99	– – Other:
	1207 99 10	– – – for sowing

Article 21

Seed potatoes shall satisfy the conditions laid down on the basis of Article 15 of Council Directive 66/403/EEC(2).

Article 22

Sweet corn, spelt, hybrid maize, rice and sorghum for sowing shall satisfy the conditions laid down on the basis of Article 16 of Council Directive 66/402/EEC(3).

Article 23

Oil seeds and oleaginous fruits for sowing shall satisfy the conditions laid down on the basis of Article 15 of Council Directive 69/208/EEC(4).

Article 24

Sweet corn, spelt, hybrid maize, rice, sorghum hybrid, oil seeds and oleaginous fruits of a kind to which Council Directives 66/402/EEC and 69/208/EEC do not apply shall not be entered in the subheadings indicated in Article 20 unless the person concerned establishes to the satisfaction of the competent authorities of the Member States that they are actually intended for sowing.

CHAPTER 3 Conditions for tariff classification of bolting cloth as piece goods

Article 25

The tariff classification of bolting cloth, not made up, falling within CN code 5911 20 00 shall be subject to the condition that it is marked as indicated below.

A mark consisting of a rectangle and its diagonals must be reproduced at regular intervals along both edges of the fabric without encroaching on the selvedges, in such a way that the distance between two consecutive marks, measured between the adjacent ends of the rectangles, is not more than one metre and that the marks on one edge are staggered so as to be half way between those on the other edge (the centre of each mark must be equidistant from the centre of the two nearest marks on the opposite edge). Each mark is to be so positioned that the long sides of the rectangle are parallel to the warp of the fabric (see sketch below).

The thickness of the lines forming the sides of the rectangle must be 5 mm, and that of the diagonals 7 mm. The rectangle from the outer edge of the lines must be at least 8 cm in length and 5 cm in width.

The marks must be printed in a single colour contrasting with the colour of the fabric and must be indelible.

CHAPTER 4 Goods for which a certificate of authenticity or quality, or other certificate, must he presented

Article 26

1. Classification under the tariff subheadings listed in column 2 of the table below of the goods listed against each subheading in column 3, imported from the countries shown in column 5, shall be subject to the presentation of certificates meeting the requirements specified in Articles 27 to 34.

The certificates are shown in Annexes 2 to 8, as indicated in column 4 of the table.

Certificates of authenticity apply to grapes, whisky, vodka and tobacco, certificates of designation of origin to wine, and certificates of quality to sodium nitrate.

2. By way of derogation from the provisions or paragraph 1, for port, Madeira, sherry and Setubal muscatel falling within CN codes 2204 21 41, 2204 21 51, 2204 29 41 and 2204 29 51, the approved commercial document completed and authenticated in accordance with the provisions of Article 9 (2) of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 986/89(5) shall be presented in place of the certificate of designation of origin.

3. However, tobacco exempt from customs duty on release for free circulation by virtue of a Community provision shall be classified in subheadings 2401 10 10 to 2401 10 49 and 2401 20 10 to 2401 20 49 without presentation of a certificate of authenticity. Such a certificate shall be neither issued nor accepted for tobacco of these types when more than one type is presented in the same immediate packing.

4. In respect of the goods listed under Order No 6 in the following table, for the purposes of this Article:

(a)

flue-cured Virginia type tobacco means tobacco which has been cured under artificial atmospheric conditions by a process of regulating the heat and ventilation without allowing smoke and fumes to come in contact with the tobacco leaves; the colour of the cured tobacco normally ranges from lemon to very dark orange or red. Other colours and combinations of colours frequently result from variations in maturity or cultural and curing techniques;

(b)

light air-cured Burley type tobacco (including Burley hybrids) means tobacco which has been cured under natural atmospheric conditions and does not carry the odour of smoke or fumes if supplemental heat or air circulation has been applied; the leaves normally range from light tan to reddish colour. Other colours and combinations of colours frequently result from variations in maturity or cultural and curing techniques;

(c)

light air-cured Maryland type tobacco means tobacco which has been cured under natural atmospheric conditions and does not carry the odour of smoke or fumes if supplemental heat or air circulation has been applied; the leaves normally range from a light-yellow to deep cherry red colour. Other colours and combinations of colours frequently result from variations in maturity or cultural and curing techniques;

(d)

fire-cured tobacco means tobacco which has been cured under artificial atmospheric conditions by the use of open fires from which wood smoke has been partly absorbed by the tobacco. Fire-cured tobacco leaves are normally thicker than leaves of Burley, flue-cured, or Maryland from the corresponding stalk position. Colours normally range from yellowish-brown to very dark brown. Other colours and combinations of colours frequently result from variations in maturity or cultural and curing techniques.

a When an authorized office is in a place other than that given in column 7 as the place where the headquarters of the relevent issuing body is established, the State concerned given in column 5 shall send the name and address of this authorized office to the Commission of the European Communities, which shall inform the customs authorities of the Member States thereof.
Order No	CN code	Description	Annex No	Issuing body
				Exporting country	Name		Place where established
(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)	(5)	(6)		(7)
1	0806	Grapes, fresh or dried:	2	United States of America	United States Department of Agriculture or its authorized officesa		Washington DC
	0806 10	– Fresh
		– – Table grapes
		– – – From 1 November to 14 July:
	0806 10 11	– – – – Of the variety Emperor (vitis vinifera cv) from 1 December to 31 January
2	2106	Food preparations not elsewhere specified or included:	3	Switzerland	Union suisse du commerce de fromage SA/Schweizerische Käseunion AG/Unione svizzera per il commercio del fromaggio SA		Berne
	2106 90	– Other:
	2106 90 10	– – Cheese fondues		Austria	Österreichische Hartkäse Export GmbH		Innsbruck
3	2204	Wine of fresh grapes, including fortified wines; grape must other than that of heading No 2009:			Name of wine
		– Other wine; grape must with fermentation prevented or arrested by the addition of alcohol:
	2204 21	– – in containers holding 2 or less
		– – – Other:
		– – – – Of an actual alcoholic strength by volume exceeding 15 % vol but not exceeding 18 % vol
	2204 21 41	– – – – – Tokay (Aszu and Szamorodni)	4	Hungary	Tokay (Aszu, Szamorodni)	Orszagos Borminosito Intezet Budapest II, Frenkel, Leo Utca I (National Institute for the approval of Wines)	Budapest
		– – – – Of an actual alcoholic strength by volume exceeding 18 % vol but not exceeding 22 % vol:
	2204 21 51	– – – – – Tokay (Aszu and Szamorodni)
	2204 29	– – Other:
		– – – Other:
		– – – – Of an actual alcoholic strength by volume exceeding 15 % vol but not exceeding 18 % vol:
	2204 29 45	– – – – – Tokay (Aszu and Szamorodni)
		– – – Of an actual alcoholic strength by volume exceeding 18 % vol but not exceeding 22 % vol:
	2204 29 55	– – – – – Tokay (Aszu and Szamorodni)
4	2208	Undenatured ethyl alcohol of an actual alcoholic strength by volume of less than 80 % vol; spirits, liqueurs and other spirituous beverages; compound alcoholic preparations of a kind used for the manufacture of beverages:		United States of America	United States Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms or its authorized regional officesa		Washington DC
	2208 30	– Whiskies:
		– – Bourbon whiskey, in containers holding:	5
	2208 30 11	– – – 2 litres or less
	2208 30 19	– – – More than 2 litres
5	2208 90	– Other:
		– – Vodka of an alcoholic strength by volume of 45,4 % vol or less and plum, pear or cherry spirit (excluding liqueurs), in containers holding:	6	Finland	ALKO Limited		Salmisaarenranta, 7 00100 Helsinki 10 Finland
		– – – 2 litres or less:
	2208 90 31	– – – – Vodka
		– – Other spirituous beverages, in containers holding:
		– – – 2 litres or less:
		– – – – Spirits (excluding liqueurs):
	2208 90 35	– – – – – Other
6	2401	Unmanufactured tobacco; tobacco refuse:	7	United States of America	Tobacco Association of the United States or its authorized officesa		Raleigh, North Carolina
	2401 10	– Tobacco, not stemmed/stripped:
		– – Flue-cured Virginia type and light air-cured Burley type tobacco (including Burley hybrids); light air-cured Maryland type and fire-cured tobacco:		Canada	Directorate General Food Production and Inspection, Agriculture Branch, Canada, or its authorized officesa Direction générale de la production et de l'inspection, Section agriculture, Canada, or its authorized officesa		Ottawa
	2401 10 10	– – – Flue-cured Virginia type
	2401 10 20	– – – Light air-cured Burley type (including Burley hybrid)
	2401 10 30	– – – Light air-cured Maryland type		Argentina	Cámara del Tabaco del Salta, or its authorized officesa		Salta
		– – – Fire-cured tobacco:			Cámara del Tabaco del Jujuy, or its authorized officesa		San Salvador de Jujuy
	2401 10 41	– – – – Kentucky type
	2401 10 49	– – – Other			Cámara de Comerico Exterior de Misiones or its authorized officesa		Posadas
	2401 20	– Tobacco, partly or wholly stemmed/stripped:		Bangladesh	Ministry of Agriculture, Department of Agriculture Extension, Cash Crop Division or its authorized officesa		Dacca
		– – Flue-cured Virginia type and light air-cured Burley type tobacco (including Burley hybrids); light air-cured Maryland type and fire-cured tobacco		Brazil	Carteira de Comercio Exterior do Banco do Brasil or its authorized officesa		Rio de Janeiro
	2401 20 10	– – – Flue-cured Virginia type		China	Shanghai Import and Export Commodity Inspection Bureau of the People's Republic of China or its authorized officesa		Shanghai
	2401 20 20	– – – Light air-cured Burley type (including Burley hybrids)
	2401 20 30	– – – Light air-cured Maryland type			Shandong Import and Export Commodity Inspection Bureau of the People's Republic of China or its authorized officesa		Qingdao
		– – – Fire-cured tobacco:
	2401 20 41 2401 20 49	– – – – Kentucky type – – – – Other			Hubei Import and Export Commodity Inspection Bureau of the People's Republic of China or its authorized officesa		Hankou
					Guangdong Import and Export Commodity Inspection Bureau of the People's Republic of China or its authorized officesa		Guangzhou
					Liaoning Import and Export Commodity Inspection Bureau of the People's Republic of China or its authorized officesa		Dalian
					Yunnan Import and Export Commodity Inspection Bureau of the People's Republic of China or its authorized officesa		Kunming
					Shenzhan Import and Export Commodity Inspection Bureau of the People's Republic of China or its authorized officesa		Shenzhan
					Hainan Import and Export Commodity Inspection Bureau of the People's Republic of China or its authorized officesa		Hainan
				Colombia	Superintendencia de Industria y Comercio — Division de Control de Normas y Calidades or its authorized officesa		Bogota
				Cuba	Empresa Cubana del Tabaco ‘Cubatabaco’ or its authorized officesa		Havana
				Guatemala	Dirección de Comercio Interior y Exterior del Ministerio de Economía, or its authorized officesa		Guatemala City
				India	Tobacco Board, or its authorized officesa		Guntur
				Indonesia	Lembaga Tembakou, or its authorized officesa
					— — Lembaga Tembakou Sumatra Utara		Medan
					— Lembaga Tembakou Java Tengah		Sala
					— Lembaga Tembakou Java Timur I		Surabaya
					— Lembaga Tembakou Java Timur II		Jembery
				Mexico	Secretaria de Comercio, or its authorized officesa		Mexico City
				Philippines	Philippine Virginia Tobacco Administration, or its authorized officesa		Quezon City
				South Korea	Office of Korean Monopoly Corporation, or its authorized officesa		Sintanjin
				Sri Lanka	Department of Commerce, or its authorized officesa		Colombo
				Switzerland	Administration fédérale des Douanes, Section de l'imposition du tabac, or its authorized officesa		Berne
				Thailand	Department of Foreign Trade, Ministry of Commerce, or its authorized officesa		Bangkok
7	3102	Mineral or chemical fertilizers, nitrogenous:	8	Chile	Servicio Nacional de Geologia y Mineria		Santiago
	3102 50	– Sodium nitrate:
	3102 50 10	– – Natural sodium nitrate
	3105	Mineral or chemical fertilizers containing two or three of the fertilizing elements nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium; other fertilizers; goods of this chapter in tablets or similar form or in packages of a gross weight not exceeding 10 kg:
	3105 90	– Other:
	3105 90 10	– – Natural potassic sodium nitrate, consisting of a natural mixture of sodium nitrate and potassium nitrate (the proportion of potassium nitrate may be as high as 44 %), of a total nitrogen content not exceeding 16,3 % by weight on the dry anhydrous product

Article 27

1. The certificates shall correspond to the specimens in the appropriate annexes indicated in column 4 of the table referred to in Article 26. They shall be printed and completed in one of the official languages of the European Economic Community and, where appropriate, in an official language of the exporting country.

2. Certificates shall measure approximately 210 × 297 millimetres.

The paper used shall be:

• in the case of the goods listed under Order No 3 in the table referred to in Article 26, white paper free of mechanical pulp, dressed for writing purposes and weighing not less than 55 g/m² and not more than 65 g/m².

  The front of the certificate shall have a printed guilloche pattern background in pink, such as to reveal any falsification by mechanical or chemical means,

• in the case of the goods listed under Order Nos 4 and 5 in the table referred to in Article 26, white paper with a yellow border weighing not less than 40 g/m²,

• in the case of the other goods in the table, white paper weighing at least 40 g/m².

3. In the case of the goods listed under Order No 3 in the table referred to in Article 26, the borders of the certificate may bear decorative designs on their outer edge in a band not exceeding 13 millimetres in width.

4. In the case of goods referred to under Order No 2 in the table referred to in Article 26, the certificate shall be made out in one original and two copies. The original shall be white, the first copy pink and the second copy yellow.

5. In the case of the goods listed under Order No 2 of the table referred to in Article 26, each certificate shall bear an individual serial number given by the issuing body, followed by the nationality symbol appropriate to that body.

The copies shall bear the same serial number and nationality symbol as the original.

6. The customs authorities of the Member State where the goods are declared for release for free circulation may require a translation of the certificate.

Article 28

The certificate shall be completed either in typescript or in manuscript. In the latter case it shall be completed in ink using block capitals.

Article 29

1. The certificate or, in the case of split consignments of the goods listed under Order Nos 1, 6 and 7 in the table referred to in Article 26, a photocopy of the certificate, as provided for in Article 34, shall be presented to the customs authorities of the importing Member State, together with the goods to which it relates, within the following time limits, running from the date of issue of the certificate:

• two months, in the case of the goods listed under Order No 2 in the table,

• three months, in the case of the goods listed under Order Nos 1, 3 and 4 in the table,

• six months, in the case of the goods listed under Order Nos 5 and 7 in the table,

• 24 months, in the case of the goods listed under Order No 6 in the table.

2. In the case of the goods listed under Order No 2 in the table referred to in Article 26:

• the original and the first copy of the certificate shall be presented to the appropriate authorities,

• the second copy of the certificate shall be sent by the issuing body direct to the customs authorities of the importing Member State.

Article 30

1. A certificate shall be valid only if it is duly endorsed by an issuing body appearing in column 6 of the table referred to in Article 26.

2. A duly endorsed certificate is one which shows the place and date of issue and bears the stamp of the issuing body and the signature of the person or persons empowered to sign it.

Article 31

1. An issuing body may appear in the table referred to in Article 26 only if:

(a) it is recognized as such by the exporting country;

(b) it undertakes to verify the particulars shown in certificates;

(c) it undertakes to provide the Commission and Member States, on request, with all appropriate information to enable an assessment to be made of the particulars shown in the certificates.

2. The table referred to in Article 26 shall be revised when the condition laid down in paragraph 1 (a) is no longer fulfilled or when an issuing body fails to fulfil one or more of its obligations.

Article 32

Invoices presented in support of declarations for free circulation shall bear the serial number or numbers of the corresponding certificate(s).

Article 33

The countries listed in column 5 of the table referred to in Article 26 shall send the Commission specimens of the stamps used by their issuing body or bodies and authorized offices. The Commission shall communicate this information to the customs authorities of the Member States.

Article 34

In the case of the goods listed under Order Nos 1, 6 and 7 in the table referred to in Article 26, where a consignment is split the original certificate shall be photocopied for each part consignment. The photocopies and the original certificate shall be presented to the customs office where the goods are located.

Each photocopy shall indicate the name and address of the consignee and be marked in red ‘Extract valid for ... kg’ (in figures and letters) together with the place and date of the splitting. These statements shall be authenticated by the customs office stamp and the signature of the customs official responsible. Particulars relating to the splitting of the consignment shall be entered on the original certificate, which shall be retained by the customs office concerned.

TITLE IV ORIGIN OF GOODS

CHAPTER 1 Non-preferential origin

Section 1 Working or processing conferring origin

Article 35

This chapter lays down, for textiles and textile articles falling within Section XI of the combined nomenclature, and for certain products other than textiles and textile articles, the working or processing which shall be regarded as satisfying the criteria laid down in Article 24 of the Code and shall confer on the products concerned the origin of the country in which they were carried out.

‘Country’ means either a third country or the Community as appropriate.

Subsection 1 Textiles and textile articles falling within Section XI of the combined nomenclature

Article 36

For textiles and textile articles falling within Section XI of the combined nomenclature, a complete process, as specified in Article 37, shall be regarded as a working or processing conferring origin in terms of Article 24 of the Code.

Article 37

Working or processing as a result of which the products obtained receive a classification under a heading of the combined nomenclature other than those covering the various non-originating materials used shall be regarded as complete processes.

However, for products listed in Annex 10, only the specific processes referred to in column 3 of that Annex in connection with each product obtained shall be regarded as complete, whether or not they involve a change of heading.

The method of applying the rules in Annex 10 is described in the introductory notes in Annex 9.

Article 38

For the purposes of the preceding Article, the following shall in any event be considered as insufficient working or processing to confer the status of originating products whether or not there is a change of heading:

(a)

operations to ensure the preservation of products in good condition during transport and storage (ventilation, spreading out, drying, removal of damaged parts and like operations);

(b)

simple operations consisting of removal of dust, sifting or screening, sorting, classifying, matching (including the making-up of sets of articles), washing, cutting up;

(c)

(i)

changes of packing and breaking-up and assembly of consignments;

(ii)

simple placing in bags, cases, boxes, fixing on cards or boards, etc., and all other simple packing operations;

(d)

the affixing of marks, labels or other like distinguishing signs on products or their packaging;

(e)

simple assembly of parts of products to constitute a complete product;

(f)

a combination of two or more operations specified in (a) to (e).

Subsection 2 Products other than textiles and textile articles falling within Section XI of the combined nomenclature

Article 39

In the case of products obtained which are listed in Annex 11, the working or processing referred to in column 3 of the Annex shall be regarded as a process or operation conferring origin under Article 24 of the Code.

The method of applying the rules set out in Annex 11 is described in the introductory notes in Annex 9.

Subsection 3 Common provisions for all products

Article 40

Where the lists in Annexes 10 and 11 provide that origin is conferred if the value of the non-originating materials used does not exceed a given percentage of the ex-works price of the products obtained, such percentage shall be calculated as follows:

• ‘value’ means the customs value at the time of import of the non-originating materials used or, if this is not known and cannot be ascertained, the first ascertainable price paid for such materials in the country of processing,

• ‘ex-works price’ means the ex-works price of the product obtained minus any internal taxes which are, or may be, repaid when such product is exported,

• ‘value acquired as a result of assembly operations’ means the increase in value resulting from the assembly itself, together with any finishing and checking operations, and from the incorporation of any parts originating in the country where the operations in question were carried out, including profit and the general costs borne in that country as a result of the operations.

Section 2 Implementing provisions relating to spare parts

Article 41

Essential spare parts for use with any piece of equipment, machine, apparatus or vehicle put into free circulation or previously exported shall be deemed to have the same origin as that piece of equipment, machine, apparatus or vehicle provided the conditions laid down in this section are fulfilled.

Article 42

The presumption of origin referred to in the preceding Article shall be accepted only:

• if this is necessary for importation into the country of destination,

• if the incorporation of the said essential spare parts in the piece of equipment, machine, apparatus or vehicle concerned at the production stage would not have prevented the piece of equipment, machine, apparatus or vehicle from having Community origin or that of the country of manufacture.

Article 43

For the purposes of Article 41:

(a)

‘piece of equipment, machine, apparatus or vehicle’ means goods listed in Sections XVI, XVII and XVIII of the combined nomenclature;

(b)

‘essential spare parts’ means parts which are:

• components without which the proper operation of the goods referred to in (a) which have been put into free circulation or previously exported cannot be ensured, and

• characteristic of those goods, and

• intended for their normal maintenance and to replace parts of the same kind which are damaged or have become unserviceable.

Article 44

Where an application is presented to the competent authorities or authorized agencies of the Member States for a certificate of origin for essential spare parts within the meaning of Article 41, box 6 (Item number, marks, numbers, number and kind of packages, description of goods) of that certificate and the application relating thereto shall include a declaration by the person concerned that the goods mentioned therein are intended for the normal maintenance of a piece of equipment, machine, apparatus or vehicle previously exported, together with the exact particulars of the said piece of equipment, machine, apparatus or vehicle.

Whenever possible, the person concerned shall also give the particulars of the certificate of origin (issuing authority, number and date of certificate) under cover of which was exported the piece of equipment, machine, apparatus or vehicle for whose maintenance the parts are intended.

Article 45

Where the origin of essential spare parts within the meaning of Article 41 must be proved for their release for free circulation in the Community by the production of a certificate of origin, the certificate shall include the particulars referred to in Article 44.

Article 46

In order to ensure application of the rules laid down in this section, the competent authorities of the Member States may require additional proof, in particular:

• production of the invoice or a copy of the invoice relating to the piece of equipment, machine, apparatus or vehicle put into free circulation or previously exported,

• the contract or a copy of the contract or any other document showing that delivery is being made as part of the normal maintenance service.

Section 3 Implementing provisions relating to certificates of origin

Subsection 1 Provisions relating to universal certificates of origin

Article 47

When the origin of a product is or has to be proved on importation by the production of a certificate of origin, that certificate shall fulfil the following conditions:

(a)

it shall be made out by a reliable authority or agency duly authorized for that purpose by the country of issue;

(b)

it shall contain all the particulars necessary for identifying the product to which it relates, in particular:

• the number of packages, their nature, and the marks and numbers they bear,

• the type of product,

• the gross and net weight of the product; these particulars may, however, be replaced by others, such as the number or volume, when the product is subject to appreciable changes in weight during carriage or when its weight cannot be ascertained or when it is normally identified by such other particulars,

• the name of the consignor;

(c)

it shall certify unambiguously that the product to which it relates originated in a specific country.

Article 48

1. A certificate of origin issued by the competent authorities or authorized agencies of the Member States shall comply with the conditions prescribed by Article 47 (a) and (b).

2. The certificates and the applications relating to them shall be made out on forms corresponding to the specimens in Annex 12.

3. Such certificates of origin shall certify that the goods originated in the Community.

However, when the exigencies of export trade so require, they may certify that the goods originated in a particular Member State.

If the conditions of Article 24 of the Code are fulfilled only as a result of a series of operations or processes carried out in different Member States, the goods may only be certified as being of Community origin.

Article 49

Certificates of origin shall be issued upon written request of the person concerned.

Where the circumstances so warrant, in particular where the applicant maintains a regular flow of exports, the Member States may decide not to require an application for each export operation, on condition that the provisions concerning origin are complied with.

Where the exigencies of trade so require, one or more extra copies of an origin certificate may be issued.

Such copies shall be made out on forms corresponding to the specimen in Annex 12.

Article 50

1. The certificate shall measure 210 x 297 mm. A tolerance of up to minus 5 mm or plus 8 mm in the length shall be allowed. The paper used shall be white, free of mechanical pulp, dressed for writing purposes and weigh at least 64 g/m² or between 25 and 30 g/m² where air-mail paper is used. It shall have a printed guilloche pattern background in sepia such as to reveal any falsification by mechanical or chemical means.

2. The application form shall be printed in the official language or in one or more of the official languages of the exporting Member State. The certificate of origin form shall be printed in one or more of the official languages of the Community or, depending on the practice and requirements of trade, in any other language.

3. Member States may reserve the right to print the certificate of origin forms or may have them printed by approved printers. In the latter case, each certificate must bear a reference to such approval. Each certificate of origin form must bear the name and address of the printer or a mark by which the printer can be identified. It shall also bear a serial number, either printed or stamped, by which it can be identified.

Article 51

The application form and the certificate of origin shall be completed in typescript or by hand in block capitals, in an identical manner, in one of the official languages of the Community or, depending on the practice and requirements of trade, in any other languages.

Article 52

Each origin certificate referred to in Article 48 shall bear a serial number by which it can be identified. The application for the certificate and all copies of the certificate itself shall bear the same number.

In addition, the competent authorities or authorized agencies of the Member States may number such documents by order of issue.

Article 53

The competent authorities of the Member States shall determine what additional particulars, if any, are to be given in the application. Such additional particulars shall be kept to a strict minimum.

Each Member State shall inform the Commission of the provisions it adopts in pursuance of the preceding paragraph. The Commission shall immediately communicate this information to the other Member States.

Article 54

The competent authorities or authorized agencies of the Member States which have issued certificates of origin shall retain the applications for a minimum of two years.

However, applications may also be retained in the form of copies thereof, provided that these have the same probative value under the law of the Member State concerned.

Subsection 2 Specific provisions relating to certificates of origin for certain agricultural products subject to special import arrangements

Article 55

Articles 56 to 65 lay down the conditions for use of certificates of origin relating to agricultural products originating in third countries for which special non-preferential import arrangements have been established, in so far as these arrangements refer to the following provisions.

(a) Certificates of origin

Article 56

1. Certificates of origin relating to agricultural products originating in third countries for which special non-preferential import arrangements are established shall be made out on a form conforming to the specimen in Annex 13.

2. Such certificates shall be issued by the competent governmental authorities of the third countries concerned, hereinafter referred to as the issuing authorities, if the products to which the certificates relate can be considered as products originating in those countries within the meaning of the rules in force in the Community.

3. Such certificates shall also certify all necessary information provided for in the Community legislation governing the special import arrangements referred to in Article 55.

4. Without prejudice to specific provisions under the special import arrangements referred to in Article 55 the period of validity of the certificates of origin shall be ten months from the date of issue by the issuing authorities.

Article 57

1. Certificates of origin drawn up in accordance with the provisions of this subsection shall consist only of a single sheet identified by the word ‘original’ next to the title of the document.

If additional copies are necessary, they shall bear the designation ‘copy’ next to the title of the document.

2. The competent authorities in the Community shall accept as valid only the original of the certificate of origin.

Article 58

1. The certificate of origin shall measure 210 x 297 mm; a tolerance of up to plus 8 mm or minus 5 mm in the length may be allowed. The paper used shall be white, not containing mechanical pulp, and shall weigh not less than 40 g/m². The face of the original shall have a printed yellow guilloche pattern background making any falsification by mechanical or chemical means apparent.

2. The certificates shall be printed and completed in one of the official languages of the Community.

Article 59

1. The certificate shall be completed in typescript or by means of a mechanical data-processing system, or similar procedure.

2. Entries must not be erased or overwritten. Any changes shall be made by crossing out the wrong entry and if necessary adding the correct particulars. Such changes shall be initialled by the person making them and endorsed by the issuing authorities.

Article 60

1. Box 5 of the certificates of origin issued in accordance with Articles 56 to 59 shall contain any additional particulars which may be required for the implementation of the special import arrangements to which they relate as referred to in Article 56 (3).

2. Unused spaces in boxes 5, 6 and 7 shall be struck through in such a way that nothing can be added at a later stage.

Article 61

Each certificate of origin shall bear a serial number, whether or not printed, by which it can be identified, and shall be stamped by the issuing authority and signed by the person or persons empowered to do so.

The certificate shall be issued when the products to which it relates are exported, and the issuing authority shall keep a copy of each certificate issued.

Article 62

Exceptionally, the certificates of origin referred to above may be issued after the export of the products to which they relate, where the failure to issue them at the time of such export was a result of involuntary error or omission or special circumstances.

The issuing authorities may not issue retrospectively a certificate of origin provided for in Articles 56 to 61 until they have checked that the particulars in the exporter's application correspond to those in the relevant export file.

Certificates issued retrospectively shall bear one of the following:

• expedido a posteriori,

• udstedt efterfølgende,

• Nachträglich ausgestellt,

• Εκδοθέν εκ των υστέρων,

• Issued retrospectively,

• Délivré a posteriori,

• rilasciato a posteriori,

• afgegeven a posteriori,

• emitido a posteriori,

in the ‘Remarks’ box.

(b) Administrative cooperation

Article 63

1. Where the special import arrangements for certain agricultural products provide for the use of the certificate of origin laid down in Articles 56 to 62, the entitlement to use such arrangements shall be subject to the setting up of an administrative cooperation procedure unless specified otherwise in the arrangements concerned.

To this end the third countries concerned shall send the Commission of the European Communities:

• the names and addresses of the issuing authorities for certificates of origin together with specimens of the stamps used by the said authorities,

• the names and addresses of the government authorities to which requests for the subsequent verification of origin certificates provided for in Article 64 below should be sent.

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

2. Where the third countries in question fail to send the Commission the information specified in paragraph 1, the competent authorities in the Community shall refuse access entitlement to the special import arrangements.

Article 64

1. Subsequent verification of the certificates of origin referred to in Articles 56 to 62 shall be carried out at random and whenever reasonable doubt has arisen as to the authenticity of the certificate or the accuracy of the information it contains.

For origin matters the verification shall be carried out on the initiative of the customs authorities.

For the purposes of agricultural rules, the verification may be carried out, where appropriate, by other competent authorities.

2. For the purposes of paragraph 1, the competent authorities in the Community shall return the certificate of origin or a copy thereof to the governmental authority designated by the exporting country, giving, where appropriate, the reasons of form or substance for an enquiry. If the invoice has been produced, the original or a copy thereof shall be attached to the returned certificate. The authorities shall also provide any information that has been obtained suggesting that the particulars given on the certificates are inaccurate or that the certificate is not authentic.

Should the customs authorities in the Community decide to suspend the application of the special import arrangements concerned pending the results of the verification they shall grant release of the products subject to such precautions as they consider necessary.

Article 65

1. The results of subsequent verifications shall be communicated to the competent authorities in the Community as soon as possible.

The said results must make it possible to determine whether the origin certificates remitted in the conditions laid down in Article 64 above apply to the goods actually exported and whether the latter may actually give rise to application of the special importation arrangements concerned.

2. If there is no reply within a maximum time limit of six months to requests for subsequent verification, the competent authorities in the Community shall definitively refuse to grant entitlement to the special import arrangements.

CHAPTER 2 Preferential origin

Section 1 Generalized system of preferences

Subsection 1 Definition of the concept of originating products

Article 66

For the purposes of the provisions concerning generalized tariff preferences granted by the Community to certain products originating in developing countries, the following shall be considered as products originating in a country entitled to those preferences (hereinafter referred to as a ‘beneficiary country’) provided that these products have been transported direct to the Community within the meaning of Article 75:

(a)

products wholly obtained in that country;

(b)

products obtained in that country in the manufacture of which products other than those referred to in (a) are used, provided that the said products have undergone sufficient working or processing within the meaning of Article 68 (1).

Article 67

1. The following shall be considered as wholly obtained in a beneficiary country within the meaning of Article 66 (a):

(a) mineral products extracted from its soil or from its sea bed;

(b) vegetable products harvested there;

(c) live animals born and raised there;

(d) products obtained from live animals there;

(e) products obtained by hunting or fishing conducted there;

(f) products of sea fishing and other products taken from the sea by its vessels;

(g) products made on board its factory ships exclusively from the products referred to in (f);

(h) used articles collected there fit only for the recovery of raw materials;

(i) waste and scrap resulting from manufacturing operations conducted there;

(j) products extracted from marine soil or subsoil outside its territorial waters, provided that it has sole rights to work that soil or subsoil;

(k) products produced there exclusively from products specified in (a) to (j).

2. The term ‘its vessels’ in paragraph 1 (f) shall apply only to vessels:

• which are registered or recorded in the beneficiary country,

• which sail under the flag of the beneficiary country,

• which are at least 50 % owned by nationals of the beneficiary country or by a company with its head office in that country, of which the manager or managers, chairman of the board of directors or of the supervisory board, and the majority of the members of such boards are nationals of that country and of which, in addition, in the case of partnerships or limited companies, at least half the capital belongs to that country or to public bodies or nationals of that country,

• of which the captain and officers are all nationals of the beneficiary country, and

• of which at least 75 % of the crew are nationals of the beneficiary country.

3. The term ‘in a beneficiary country’ shall also cover the territorial waters of that country.

4. Vessels operating on the high seas, including factory ships on which the fish caught is worked or processed, shall be deemed to be part of the territory of the beneficiary country to which they belong, provided that they satisfy the conditions set out in paragraph 2.

Article 68

1. For the purposes of Article 66 (b), non-originating materials shall be considered to be suffiently worked or processed when the product obtained is classified in a heading different from those in which all the non-originating materials used in its manufacture are classified, subject to paragraphs 2 and 3 below.

Annex 14 contains the notes concerning products made from non-originating materials.

The expressions ‘chapters’ and ‘headings’ used in these provisions shall mean the chapters and the headings (four-digit codes) used in the nomenclature which makes up the Harmonized System.

The expression ‘classified’ shall refer to the classification of a product or material under a particular heading.

2. For a product mentioned in columns 1 and 2 of the List in Annex 15, the conditions set out in column 3 for the product concerned shall be fulfilled instead of the rule in paragraph 1.

(a) The term ‘value’ in the list in Annex 15 shall mean the customs value at the time of importation of the non-originating materials used or, if this is not known and cannot be ascertained, the first ascertainable price paid for the materials in the country concerned. Where the value of the originating materials used needs to be established, this subparagraph shall be applied mutatis mutandis.

(b) The term ‘ex-works price’ in the list in Annex 15 shall mean the price paid for the product obtained to the manufacturer in whose undertaking the last working or processing is carried out, provided the price includes the value of all materials used in manufacture, minus any internal taxes which are, or may be, repaid when the product obtained is exported.

3. For the purposes of Article 66 (b), the following shall in any event be considered as insufficient working or processing to confer the status of originating products, whether or not there is a change of heading:

(a) operations to ensure the preservation of products in good condition during transport and storage (ventilation, spreading out, drying, chilling, placing in salt, sulphur dioxide or other aqueous solutions, removal of damaged parts, and like operations);

(b) simple operations consisting of removal of dust, sifting or screening, sorting, classifying, matching (including the making-up of sets of articles), washing, painting, cutting up;

(i)

changes of packing and breaking up and assembly of consignments,

(ii)

simple placing in bottles, flasks, bags, boxes, fixing on cards or boards, etc., and all other simple packing operations;

(d) the affixing of marks, labels or other like distinguishing signs on products or their packaging;

(e) simple mixing of products, whether or not of different kinds, where one or more components of the mixture do not meet the conditions laid down in this Title to enable them to be considered as originating products;

(f) simple assembly of parts of products to constitute a complete product;

(g) a combination of two or more operations specified in (a) to (f);

(h) slaughter of animals.

Article 69

In order to determine whether a product originates in a beneficiary country, it shall not be necessary to establish whether the power and fuel, plant and equipment, and machines and tools used to obtain such products originate in third countries or not.

Article 70

1. By way of derogation from Article 66, for the purposes of determining whether a product manufactured in a beneficiary country which is a member of a regional group originates therein within the meaning of that Article, products originating in any of the countries of that regional group and used in further manufacture in another country of the group shall be treated as if they originated in the country of further manufacture.

2. The country of origin of the final product shall be determined in accordance with Article 71.

3. Regional cumulation shall apply to three separate regional groups of GSP beneficiary countries:

(a) the Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean);

(b) the Central American Common Market (CACM);

(c) the Andean Group.

4. The expression ‘regional group’ shall be taken to mean the Asean or the CACM or the Andean group as the case may be.

Article 71

1. Products having originating status by virtue of Article 70 shall have the origin of the country of the regional group where the last working or processing was carried out provided that:

• the value added there, as defined in paragraph 3 of this Article, is greater than the highest customs value of the products used originating in any one of the other countries of the regional group,

• the working or processing carried out there exceeds that set out in Article 68 (3) and, in the case of textile products, also those operations referred to in Annex 16.

2. In all other cases products shall have the origin of the country of the regional group which accounts for the highest customs value of the originating products coming from other countries of the regional group.

3. ‘Value added’ means the ex-works price minus the customs value of each of the products incorporated which originated in another country of the regional group.

Article 72

1. Articles 70 and 71 shall apply only where:

(a) the rules regulating trade in the context of regional cumulation, as between the countries of the regional group, are identical to those laid down in this section;

(b) each country of the regional group has undertaken to comply or ensure compliance with the terms of this section and to provide the administrative cooperation necessary both to the Community and to the other countries of the regional group in order to ensure the correct issue of certificates of origin form A and the verification of certificates of origin form A and forms APR.

This undertaking shall be transmitted to the Commission through the Secretariat of the regional group. The Secretariats are as follows:

• (b) the Asean General Secretariat,

• the Permanent Secretariat of the Central American Common Market,

• the Junta del Acuerdo de Cartagena,

as the case may be.

2. The Commission shall inform the Member States when the conditions set out in paragraph 1 have been complied with in the case of each regional group.

Article 73

Accessories, spare parts and tools dispatched with a piece of equipment, machine, apparatus or vehicle which are part of the normal equipment and included in the price thereof or are not separately invoiced are regarded as one with the piece of equipment, machine, apparatus or vehicle in question.

Article 74

Sets, as defined in General Rule 3 of the Harmonized System, shall be regarded as originating when the component articles are originating products. Nevertheless, when a set is composed of originating and non-originating articles, the set as a whole shall be regarded as originating provided that the value of the non-originating articles does not exceed 15 % of the ex-works price of the set.

Article 75

1. The following shall be considered as transported direct from the exporting beneficiary country to the Community:

(a) products transported without passing through the territory of any other country except, when Article 70 applies, another country of the same regional group;

(b) products transported through the territories of countries other than the exporting beneficiary country or, when Article 70 applies, other than the territory of other countries of the same regional group, with or without transhipment or temporary warehousing within those countries, provided that transport through those countries is justified for geographical reasons or exclusively on account of transport requirements and that the products:

• (b) have remained under the supervision of the customs authorities of the country of transit or warehousing, and

• have not entered into commerce or been released for home use there, and

• have not undergone operations other than unloading, reloading or any operation intended to keep them in good condition;

(c) products transported through the territory of Austria, Finland, Norway, Sweden or Switzerland and subsequently re-exported in full or in part to the Community, provided that the goods:

• (c) have remained under the supervision of the customs authorities of the country of transit or warehousing and

• have not undergone operations other than unloading, reloading or any operation designed to keep them in good condition there;

(d) products which are transported by pipeline across territory other than of the exporting beneficiary country.

2. Evidence that the conditions specified in paragraph 1 (b) and (c) have been fulfilled shall be supplied to customs in the Community by the production of:

(a) a single transport document issued in the exporting beneficiary country covering the passage through the country of transit; or

(b) a certification issued by the customs authorities of the country of transit:

• (b) giving an exact description of the goods,

• stating the dates of unloading and reloading of the goods or of their embarkation or disembarkation, identifying the ships used, and

• certifying the conditions under which the goods remained in the transit country; or

(c) failing these, any substantiating documents.

Article 76

The conditions set out in this subsection concerning the acquisition of originating status shall be fulfilled without interruption in the beneficiary country.

If originating products exported from the beneficiary country to another country are returned, they shall be considered as non-originating unless it can be demonstrated to the satisfaction of the competent authorities that:

• the goods returned are the same goods as those exported, and

• they have not undergone any operations beyond that necessary to preserve them in good condition while in that country.

Article 77

1. Derogations to these provisions may be made in favour of the least-developed GSP beneficiary countries when the development of existing industries or the creation of new industries justifies them. The least-developed countries are those listed in the annual Council Regulations and ECSC Decisions applying generalized tariff preferences.

For this purpose, the country concerned shall submit to the Commission of the European Communities a request for a derogation together with the reasons for the request in accordance with paragraph 3.

2. The examination of requests shall in particular take into account:

(a) cases where the application of existing rules of origin would significantly affect the ability of an existing industry in the country concerned to continue its exports to the Community, with particular reference to cases where this could lead to cessation of its activities;

(b) specific cases where it can be clearly demonstrated that significant investment in an industry could be deterred by the rules of origin and where a derogation favouring the realization of the investment programme would enable these rules to be satisfied by stages;

(c) the economic and social impact of the decision to be taken especially in respect of employment.

3. In order to facilitate the examination of requests for derogation, the country making the request shall furnish the fullest possible information in support of its request, covering in particular the points listed below:

• description of the finished product,

• nature and quantity of products which have been processed there,

• manufacturing process,

• value added,

• number of employees in the undertaking concerned,

• anticipated volume of exports to the Community,

• reasons for the duration requested,

• other observations.

The same rules apply to any request for an extension.

Subsection 2 Proof of origin

(a) Certificate of origin form A

Article 78

1. Originating products within the meaning of this section shall be eligible, on importation into the Community, to benefit from the tariff preferences specified in Article 66 on production of a certificate of origin form A, a specimen of which appears in Annex 17, issued either by the customs authorities or by other governmental authorities of the beneficiary country, provided that the said country:

• has communicated to the Commission of the European Communities the information required by Article 93, and

• assists the Community 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 certificate of origin form A may be issued only where it can serve as the documentary evidence required for the purposes of the tariff preferences referred to in Article 66.

3. A certificate of origin form A shall be issued only upon written application by the exporter or his authorized representative.

4. The exporter or his representative shall submit with his application any appropriate supporting document proving that the products to be exported qualify for the issue of a certificate of origin form A.

5. The certificate shall be issued by the competent governmental authority of the beneficiary country if the products to be exported can be considered products originating in that country within the meaning of subsection 1.

6. For the purpose of verifying whether the condition stated in paragraph 5 has been met, the competent governmental authority shall have the right to call for any documentary evidence or to carry out any check, which it considers appropriate.

7. It shall be the responsibility of the competent governmental authorities of the exporting beneficiary country to ensure that certificates and applications are duly completed.

8. The completion of box 2 of the certificate of origin form A shall be optional. In consequence, box 12 shall be duly completed by indicating ‘European Economic Community’ or one of the Member States. However, in the case of application of the transit procedure referred to in Article 75 (1) (c) and Article 80, one of the countries referred to in the latter Article as the importing country should be mentioned instead, as provided for in the last subparagraph of Article 83 (3).

9. 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 certifying authority, shall be handwritten.

10. A certificate of origin form A shall be issued by the competent authorities of the exporting beneficiary country when the products to which it relates are exported. It shall be made available to the exporter as soon as exportation is actually carried out or when it is certain that it will be carried out.

Article 79

Since the certificate of origin form A constitutes the documentary evidence for the application of the provisions concerning tariff preferences, referred to in Article 66, it shall be the responsibility of the competent governmental authority of the exporting country to take any steps necessary to verify the origin of the products and to check the other statements on the certificate.

Article 80

Originating products within the meaning of this section shall be eligible on importation into the Community to benefit from tariff preferences referred to in Article 66 on production of a certificate of origin form A issued by the customs authorities of Austria, Finland, Norway, Sweden or Switzerland on the basis of a certificate of origin form A issued by the competent authorities of the exporting beneficiary country provided that the conditions laid down in Article 75 have been fulfilled and provided that Austria, Finland, Norway, Sweden or Switzerland assists the Community by allowing its customs authorities to verify the authenticity and accuracy of the certificates of origin form A. The verification procedure laid down in Article 95 shall apply mutatis mutandis. The time limit laid down in the first subparagraph of Article 95 (3) shall be extended to eight months.

Article 81

1. In exceptional cases a certificate of origin form A may be issued after the actual exportation of the products to which it relates, if it was not issued at the time of exportation as a result of involuntary errors or omissions or other special circumstances, and provided that the goods were not exported before the communication to the Commission of the European Communities of the information required by Article 93.

2. The competent governmental authority may issue a certificate retrospectively only after verifying that the particulars contained in the exporter's application agree with those contained in the corresponding export documents and that no certificate of origin form A was issued when the products in question were exported.

3. Box 4 of certificates of origin form A issued retrospectively shall bear the endorsement ‘Délivré a posteriori’ or ‘issued retrospectively’.

Article 82

1. In the event of the theft, loss or destruction of a certificate of origin form A, the exporter may apply to the competent governmental authority which issued it for a duplicate to be made out on the basis of the export documents in their possession. Box 4 of the duplicate form A issued in this way shall be endorsed: ‘Duplicata’ or ‘Duplicate’, together with the date of issue and the serial number of the original certificate.

2. For the purposes of Article 85 the duplicate shall take effect from the date of the original.

Article 83

1. It shall at any time be possible to replace one or more certificates of origin form A by one or more other such certificates, provided that this is done by the customs authorities in the Community responsible for controlling the products.

2. The replacement certificate issued under this Article or Article 80 shall be regarded as a definitive certificate of origin for the products referred to. The replacement certificate shall be issued on the basis of a written request by the re-exporter.

3. The replacement certificate shall indicate in the top right-hand box the name of the intermediary country where it is issued.

Box 4 shall contain one of the following endorsements: ‘replacement certificate’ or ‘certificat de remplacement’, as well as the date of the original certificate of origin and its serial number.

The name of the re-exporter shall be given in box 1.

The name of the final consignee may be given in box 2.

References to the re-exporter's invoice should be given in box 10.

Particulars from the original certificate relating to the re-exported products shall be entered in boxes 3 to 9.

The authority which issued the replacement certificate shall enter its certification in box 11. The responsibility of the authority is confined to the issue of the replacement certificate.

The entries in box 12 concerning the country of origin and the country of destination shall be taken from the original certificate. This box shall be signed by the re-exporter. A re-exporter who signs this box in good faith is not responsible for the correctness of the entries made on the original certificate.

4. The customs office which is requested to perform the operation shall note on the original certificate the weights, numbers and nature of the goods forwarded and indicate thereon the serial numbers of the corresponding replacement certificate or certificates. The original certificate shall be kept for at least two years by the customs office concerned.

5. A photocopy of the original certificate may be annexed to the replacement certificate.

Article 84

1. Subject to the provisions of paragraph (4) below the certificate of authenticity provided for in Article 1 (4) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 3833/90(6) shall be given in box 7 of the certificate of origin form A, provided for in Article 78.

2. The certificate mentioned in paragraph 1 shall consist of the description of the goods as set out in paragraph 3 below followed by the stamp of the competent governmental authority, with the handwritten signature of the official authorized to certify the authenticity of the description of the goods given in box 7.

3. The description of the goods in box 7 of the certificate of origin shall be as follows, according to the product concerned:

• ‘unmanufactured flue-cured tobacco Virginia type’ or ‘tabac brut ou non-fabriqué du type Virginia “flue-cured”’,

• ‘agave brandy “tequila”, in containers holding two litres or less’ or ‘eau-de-vie d'agave “tequila” en recipients contenant deux litres ou moins’,

• ‘spirits produced from grapes, called “Pisco” in containers holding two litres or less’ or ‘eau-de-vie a base de raisins, applée “Pisco” en recipients contenant deux litres ou moins’,

• ‘spirit produced from grapes, called “Singani” in containers holding two litres or less’ or ‘eau-de-vie a base de raisins, appélée “Singani” en recipients contenant deux litres ou moins’.

4. By way of derogation from paragraphs 1 and 2 above, and without prejudice to paragraph 3, the stamp of the authorities competent to certify the authenticity of the description of the goods set out in paragraph 3 shall not be placed in box 7 of the certificate of origin form A if the authority empowered to issue the certificate of origin is the governmental authority empowered to issue the certificate of authenticity.

Article 85

1. A certificate of origin form A shall be submitted within 10 months of the date of issue by the governmental authorities of the exporting beneficiary country, to the customs authorities of the importing Member State where the products are presented.

2. Certificates of origin form A presented to the customs authorities after expiry of the period of validity stipulated in paragraph 1 may be accepted for the purpose of applying the tariff preferences specified in Article 66 where the failure to observe this period is due to force majeure or to exceptional circumstances.

3. Customs may also accept such certificates where the products have been presented to them before expiry of the said time limit.

Article 86

1. Products sent from a beneficiary country for exhibition in another country and sold for importation into the Community shall benefit on importation from the tariff preferences referred to in Article 66 on condition that the products meet the requirements of this section entitling them to be recognized as originating in the exporting beneficiary country and provided that it is shown to the satisfaction of the customs authorities that:

(a) an exporter has consigned the products from the territory of the exporting beneficiary country direct to the country in which the exhibition is held;

(b) the products have been sold or otherwise disposed of by that exporter to a person in the Community;

(c) the products have been consigned to the Community in the state in which they were sent for exhibition;

(d) the products have not, since they were consigned for exhibition, been used for any purpose other than demonstration at the exhibition.

2. A certificate of origin form A shall be produced to the customs authorities in the normal manner. The name and address of the exhibition shall be indicated thereon. Where necessary, additional documentary evidence of the nature of the products and the conditions under which they have been exhibited may be required.

3. Paragraph 1 shall apply to any trade, industrial, agricultural or crafts exhibition, fair or similar public show or display which is not organized for private purposes in shops or business premises with a view to the sale of foreign products, and during which the products remain under the supervision of the customs authorities.

Article 87

The certificate of origin form A shall be presented to the customs authorities of the Member State of importation in support of the customs declaration. They may also require the declaration for release for free circulation to be accompanied by a statement from the importer to the effect that the products meet the conditions required for the tariff preferences referred to in Article 66.

Article 88

Without prejudice to Article 68 (3), where an unassembled or disassembled article falling within Chapter 84 or 85 of the Harmonized System is imported in several consignments on the conditions laid down by the customs authorities, at the request of the person declaring the goods to customs, it shall be considered to be a single article and a certificate of origin form A may be submitted for the whole article upon importation of the first consignment.

(b) Form APR

Article 89

1. Notwithstanding Article 78, in the case of products which form the subject of postal consignments (including parcels), evidence of originating status within the meaning of this Regulation shall be supplied by form APR, a specimen of which is in Annex 18, provided that they consist only of originating products and that the value does not exceed ECU 3 000 per consignment, and on condition that the assistance specified in Article 78 (1) is forthcoming in respect of the said form.

2. Form APR shall be completed and signed by the exporter or, on his responsibility, by his authorized representative. The signature in box 6 of the form shall be handwritten.

3. A form APR shall be completed for each postal consignment. After completing and signing the form the exporter shall, in the case of consignments by parcel post, attach it to the dispatch note. In the case of consignment by letter post, the exporter shall insert the form inside the package.

4. If the goods contained in the consignment have already been subject to verification in the exporting country concerning the concept of ‘originating products’, the exporter may refer to this check in box 7 ‘Remarks’ on form APR.

5. These provisions do not exempt exporters from complying with any other formalities required by customs or postal regulations.

6. Articles 85 and 87 shall apply to forms APR mutatis mutandis.

(c) Other provisions concerning proof of origin

Article 90

Products sent as small packages by private persons to private persons or contained in travellers' personal luggage shall be admitted as originating products benefiting from the tariff preferences referred to in Article 66 without requiring the production of a certificate of origin form A or the completion of a form APR, provided that such imports are of a non-commercial nature and have been declared as meeting the conditions required for the application of that Article, and where there is no doubt as to the veracity of such declaration.

The total value of these products must not exceed ECU 215 in the case of small packages or ECU 600 in the case of the contents of travellers' personal luggage.

Article 91

1. When Article 70 is applied, proof of the originating status of products exported from a country of a regional group to another country of the same group to be used in further working or processing, or to be re-exported where no further working or processing takes place, shall be established by a certificate of origin form A or a form APR issued or made out in the first country.

2. The authorities of the beneficiary country responsible for issuing a certificate of origin form A for products in the manufacture of which products originating in another member of the same regional group are used, shall take into consideration the certificate of origin form A issued by the competent authorities of that other country or form APR made out there. The country of origin determined in accordance with Article 71 shall be entered in box 12 of the certificates of origin form A or box 8 of form APR.

3. Certificates of origin form A issued in this way must bear the endorsement ‘cumul regional’ or ‘regional cumulation’ in box 4.

Article 92

The discovery of slight discrepancies between the statements made in the certificate and those made in the documents produced to the customs office for the purpose of carrying out the formalities for importing the products shall not ipso facto render the certificate null and void, provided it is duly established that the certificate corresponds to the products presented.

Subsection 3 Methods of administrative cooperation

Article 93

1. The beneficiary countries shall inform the Commission of the European Communities of the names and addresses of the governmental authorities who may issue certificates of origin form A, together with specimens of stamps used by these authorities and the name and address of the governmental authorities responsible for carrying out verifications of forms A and forms APR.

2. The beneficiary countries shall also inform the Commission of the European Communities of the names and addresses of the governmental authorities who may issue the certificates of authenticity mentioned in Article 84, together with specimens of the stamp they use.

3. The Commission shall forward this information to the customs authorities of the Member States.

Article 94

For the purposes of the provisions concerning tariff preferences specified in Article 66, every beneficiary country shall comply or ensure compliance with the rules concerning the completion and issue of certificates of origin form A, the conditions for the use of form APR and those concerning administrative cooperation.

Article 95

1. Subsequent verifications of certificates of origin form A and forms APR shall be carried out at random or whenever the customs authorities have reasonable doubt as to the authenticity of the document or as to the accuracy of the information regarding the true origin of the products in question.

2. For the purposes of paragraph 1, the customs authorities shall return the certificate of origin form A or the form APR to the competent governmental authority in the exporting beneficiary country, giving where appropriate the reasons of form or substance for an inquiry. If the invoice has been submitted, such invoice or a copy thereof shall be attached to form APR. The customs authorities shall also forward any information that has been obtained suggesting that the particulars given on the said certificate or the said form are inaccurate.

If the authorities concerned decide to suspend the tariff preferences referred to in Article 66 pending the results of the verification, they shall grant release of the products subject to any precautionary measures judged necessary.

3. When an application for subsequent verification has been made in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 1, such verification shall be carried out and its results communicated to the customs authorities in the Community within a maximum of six months. The results shall make it possible to determine whether the certificate of origin form A or the form APR in question applies to the products actually exported and whether these products were in fact eligible to benefit from the tariff preferences referred to in Article 66.

4. In the case of certificates of origin form A issued in accordance with Article 91, the reply shall include the references of the certificates of origin form A or forms APR taken into consideration.

5. If in cases of reasonable doubt there is no reply within the six 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 four 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, those authorities shall, except in the case of force majeure or in exceptional circumstances, refuse entitlement to the generalized preferences.

6. Where the verification procedure or any other available information appears to indicate that the provisions of this section are being contravened, the exporting beneficiary country on its own initiative or at the request of the Community shall carry out appropriate enquiries or arrange for such enquiries to be carried out with due urgency to identify and prevent such contraventions and for this purpose the beneficiary country concerned may invite the participation of the Community in these enquiries.

7. For the purpose of subsequent verification of certificates of origin form A, copies of the certificates as well as any export documents referring to them shall be kept for at least two years by the competent governmental authority in the exporting beneficiary country.

Article 96

The provisions of Article 75 (1) (c) and Article 80 are applicable only in so far as, in the context of the tariff preferences given by Austria, Finland, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland to certain products originating in developing countries, these countries apply provisions similar to those mentioned above.

Subsection 4 Final provision

Article 97

Without prejudice to Article 87, certificates of origin form A together with documentary evidence of direct transport may be produced for a period of six months from the date on which a country or territory is admitted or readmitted as a GSP beneficiary, in respect of products referred to in the Council regulations and ECSC decisions for the year in question, which are either in transit or being held in the Community in temporary storage, under the customs warehousing procedure or in a free zone or free warehouse.

Section 2 Occupied Territories

Subsection 1 Definition of the concept of originating products

Article 98

1. For the purposes of the provisions concerning tariff preferences granted by the Community to certain products originating in the Occupied Territories, the following products, on condition that they were transported direct within the meaning of Article 103, shall be considered as:

(a) products originating in the Occupied Territories:

(i)

products wholly obtained in those territories;

(ii)

products obtained in those territories, in the manufacture of which products other than those wholly obtained in these territories are used, provided that the said products have undergone sufficient working or processing within the meaning of Article 100. This condition shall not apply, however, to products which, within the meaning of this subsection, originate in the Community;

(b) products originating in the Community:

(i)

products wholly obtained in the Community;

(ii)

products obtained in the Community, in the manufacture of which products other than those wholly obtained in the Community are used, provided that the said products have undergone sufficient working or processing within the meaning of Article 100. This condition shall not apply, however, to products which, within the meaning of this subsection, originate in the Occupied Territories.

2. The term ‘Occupied Territories’ shall cover the West Bank of the River Jordan and the Gaza Strip, both occupied by Israel.

Article 99

The following shall be considered as wholly obtained in the Occupied Territories:

(a)

mineral products extracted from their soil or from their seabed;

(b)

vegetable products harvested there;

(c)

live animals born and raised there;

(d)

products from live animals raised there;

(e)

products obtained by hunting or fishing conducted there;

(f)

used articles collected there fit only for the recovery of raw materials;

(g)

waste and scrap resulting from manufacturing operations conducted therein;

(h)

products extracted from marine soil or subsoil outside their territorial waters, provided that the territory concerned has sole rights to work that soil or subsoil;

(i)

goods produced there exclusively from the products specified in subparagraphs (a) to (h).

Article 100

1. For the purposes of Article 98 (1) (a) (ii), and (b) (ii), non-originating materials shall be considered to have been sufficiently worked or processed when the product obtained is classified in a heading different from those in which all the non-originating materials used in its manufacture are classified, subject to paragraphs 2 and 3.

The second, third and fourth subparagraphs of Article 68 (1) shall apply.

2. For a product mentioned in columns 1 and 2 of the list in Annex 19, the conditions set out in column 3 for the product concerned must be fulfilled instead of the rule in paragraph 1.

(a) The term ‘value’ in the list in Annex 19 shall mean the customs value at the time of the import of the non-originating materials used or, if this is not known and cannot be ascertained, the first ascertainable price paid for those materials in the territory concerned.

Where the value of the originating materials used needs to be established, the preceding subparagraph shall be applied mutatis mutandis.

(b) The term ‘ex-works price’ in the list in Annex 19 shall mean the price paid to the manufacturer in whose undertaking the last working or processing is carried out, provided the price includes the value of all the materials used in manufacture, minus any internal taxes which are, or may be, repaid when the product obtained is exported.

3. For the purposes of Article 98 (1) (a) (ii) and (b) (ii), the operations referred to in Article 68 (3) (a) to (h) shall be considered as insufficient working or processing to confer the status of originating products, whether or not there is a change of heading.

Article 101

In order to determine whether goods originate in the Occupied Territories, it shall not be necessary to establish whether the electrical power, fuel, plant and equipment, and machines and tools used to obtain such goods or any materials or products used in the course of production which do not enter and which were not intended to enter into the final composition of the goods originate in third countries or not.

Article 102

The provisions of Articles 73 and 74 shall apply to this section.

Article 103

1. The following shall be considered as transported direct from the Occupied Territories to the Community and from the Community to the Occupied Territories:

(a) products transported without passing through another territory;

(b) products transported through territories other than the Occupied Territories or the Community, with or without transhipment or temporary warehousing, provided that transport through those territories is justified for geographical reasons or exclusively on account of transport requirements and that the products:

• (b) have not been released for home use there, and

• have not undergone operations other than unloading, reloading and any operation intended to keep them in good condition;

(c) products which are transported by pipeline across territories other than that of the Occupied Territories.

2. Evidence that the conditions specified in paragraph 1 (b) have been fulfilled shall be supplied to the customs authorities in the Community or to the Chambers of Commerce of the Occupied Territories by the production of:

(a) a single transport document drawn up in the Occupied Territories or in the Community covering the passage through the country of transit; or

(b) a certification by the customs authorities of the country of transit:

• (b) giving an exact description of the products,

• stating the dates of unloading and reloading of the products or of their embarkation or disembarkation, identifying the ships used,

• certifying the conditions under which the goods remained in the transit country; or

(c) failing these, any substantiating documents.

Article 104

The conditions set out in this subsection concerning the acquisition of originating status shall be fulfilled without interruption in the Community or the Occupied Territories.

If originating products exported from the Community or the Occupied Territories to another country are returned, they must be considered as non-originating unless it can be demonstrated to the satisfaction of the competent authorities that:

• the goods returned are the same goods as those exported, and

• they have not undergone any operation beyond that necessary to preserve them in good condition while in that country.

Subsection 2 Proof of origin

(a) Movement certificate EUR.1

Article 105

Evidence of originating status, within the meaning of this section, shall be given by a movement certificate EUR.1, a specimen of which appears in Annex 21.

Article 106

1. A movement certificate EUR.1 shall be issued on written application by the exporter or, under the exporter's responsiblity, his authorized representative. Such application shall be made on a form, a specimen of which appears in Annex 21, which shall be completed in accordance with the provision of this subsection.

Applications for movement certificates EUR.1 must be kept for at least two years by the Chambers of Commerce of the Occupied Territories.

2. The exporter or his representative shall submit with his request any appropriate supporting document proving that the products to be exported are such as to qualify for the issue of a movement certificate EUR.1.

He 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 his accounts and to any check on the circumstances in which the products were obtained by the said authorities.

3. A movement certificate EUR.1 may be issued only where it can serve as the documentary evidence required for the purposes of implementing the tariff preferences referred to in Article 98.

4. The movement certificate EUR.1 shall be issued by the Chambers of Commerce of the Occupied Territories or by the customs authorities of the exporting Member State, if the goods to be exported can be considered originating products within the meaning of this section.

5. Since the movement certificate EUR.1 constitutes the documentary evidence for the application of the preferential arrangements laid down, it shall be the responsibility of the Chambers of Commerce of the Occupied Territories or of the customs authorities of the exporting Member State to take any steps necessary to verify the origin of the goods and to check the other statements on the certificate.

6. For the purpose of verifying whether the conditions stated in paragraph 4 have been met, the Chambers of Commerce of the Occupied Territories 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.

7. It shall be the responsibility of the Chambers of Commerce of the Occupied Territories or the customs authorities of the exporting Member State to ensure that the forms referred to in paragraph 1 are duly completed. In particular, they shall check whether the space reserved for the description of the products has been completed in such a manner as to exclude all possibility of fraudulent additions. To this end, the description of the products shall be indicated without leaving any blank lines. Where the space is not completely filled a horizontal line shall be drawn below the last line of the description, the empty space being crossed through.

8. The date of issue of the movement certificate must be indicated in the part of the certificate reserved for the customs authorities.

9. A movement certificate EUR.1 shall be issued by the Chambers of Commerce of the Occupied Territories 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 export has actually been carried out or ensured.

Article 107

1. In exceptional circumstances a movement certificate EUR.1 may also be issued after export of the products to which it relates if it was not issued at the time of export because of involuntary errors or omissions or special circumstances.

2. For the purposes of paragraph 1, the exporter's application shall:

• indicate the place and date of export of the products to which the certificate relates,

• certify that no movement certificate EUR.1 was issued at the time of export of the products in question, and state the reasons.

3. The Chambers of Commerce of the Occupied Territories or the customs authorities of the exporting Member State 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 file.

Certificates issued retrospectively shall be endorsed with one of the following phrases:

• expedido a posteriori,

• udstedt efterfølgende,

• Nachträglich ausgestellt,

• Εκδοθέν εκ των υστέρων,

• Issued retrospectively,

• Délivré a posteriori,

• rilasciato a posteriori,

• afgegeven a posteriori,

• emitido a posteriori.

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

Article 108

1. In the event of the theft, loss or destruction of a movement certificate EUR.1, the exporter may apply to the Chambers of Commerce of the Occupied Territories or the customs authorities of the exporting Member State which issued it for a duplicate 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:

• DUPLICADO,

• DUPLIKAT,

• DUPLIKAT,

• ΑΝΤΙΓΡΑΦΟ,

• DUPLICATE,

• DUPLICATA,

• DUPLICATO,

• DUPLICAAT,

• SEGUNDA VIA.

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

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

Article 109

It shall at any time be possible to replace one or more movement certificates EUR.1 by one or more other movement certificates EUR.1 provided that this is done by the customs office in the Community where the goods are located.

Article 110

1. A movement certificate EUR.1 shall be submitted within 5 months of the date of issue by the Chambers of Commerce of the Occupied Territories to the customs authorities in the Member State where the products are presented.

2. A movement certificate EUR.1 which is submitted to the customs authorities of the Member State after the final date of presentation specified in paragraph 1 may be accepted for the purpose of applying preferential treatment, where the failure to submit the certificate by the final date set is due to force majeure or exceptional circumstances.

3. In other cases of belated presentation, the customs authorities of the importing Member State may accept the certificates where the products have been submitted to them before the said final date.

Article 111

1. Products sent or from the Occupied Territories for exhibition in a third country and sold after the exhibition for importation into the Community shall benefit on importation from the tariff preferences referred to in Article 98 on condition that they meet the requirements of this subsection entitling them to be recognized as originating in the Occupied Territories and provided that it is shown to the satisfaction of the customs authorities that:

(a) an exporter has consigned these products from the Occupied Territories to the country in which the exhibition is held and has exhibited them there;

(b) the products have been sold or otherwise disposed of by that exporter to a person in the Community;

(c) the products have been consigned during the exhibition or immediately thereafter to the Community in the state in which they were sent for exhibition;

(d) the products have not, since they were consigned for exhibition, been used for any purpose other than demonstration at the exhibition.

2. A movement certificate EUR.1 shall be produced to the customs authorities in the normal manner. The name and address of the exhibition shall be indicated thereon. Where necessary, additional documentary evidence of the nature of the products and the conditions under which they have been exhibited may be required.

3. Paragraph 1 shall apply to any trade, industrial, agricultural or crafts exhibition, fair or similar public show or display which is not organized for private purposes in shops or business premises with a view to the sale of foreign products, and during which the products remain under customs control.

Article 112

Movement certificates EUR.1 shall be submitted to the customs authorities in the Member State of importation in accordance with the procedures laid down by this section. Those authorities may require a translation of a certificate.

They may also require the declaration for release for free circulation to be accompanied by a statement from the importer to the effect that the products meet the conditions required for the implementation of the tariff preferences referred to in Article 98.

Article 113

Where, at the request of the declarant, an unassembled or disassembled article falling within Chapter 84 or 85 of the Harmonized System is imported in several consignments on the conditions laid down by the customs authorities, it shall be considered to be a single article and a movement certificate may be submitted for the whole article upon import of the first consignment.

Article 114

Movement certificates EUR.1 shall be kept by the customs authorities of the importing Member State in accordance with the rules in force.

(b) Form EUR.2

Article 115

1. Notwithstanding Article 106, in the case of consignments containing only originating products whose value does not exceed ECU 2 820 per consignment, the evidence of originating status, within the meaning of this section, shall be given by a form EUR.2, a specimen of which appears in Annex 22.

2. Form EUR.2 shall be completed and signed by the exporter or, under the exporter's responsibility, by his authorized representative.

3. A form EUR.2 shall be completed for each consignment.

4. These provisions do not exempt exporters from complying with any other formalities required by customs or postal regulations.

5. The exporter who made out form EUR.2 shall submit at the request of the Chamber of Commerce of the Occupied Territories all supporting documents concerning the use of this form.

Article 116

The discovery of slight discrepancies between the statements made in the movement certificate EUR.1 or in the form EUR.2 and those made in the documents submitted to the customs office for the purpose of carrying out the formalities for importing the materials shall not ipso facto render the document null and void if it is duly established that the movement certificate EUR.1 or the form EUR.2 does correspond to the goods presented.

Article 117

1. The following may be imported into the Community as originating products within the meaning of this section without it being necessary to produce documents referred to in Article 105 or in Article 115:

(a) products sent as small packages from private persons to private persons, provided that the value of the products does not exceed ECU 200;

(b) products contained in travellers' personal luggage, provided that the value of the products does not exceed ECU 565.

2. These provisions shall be applied only when such imports are of a non-commercial nature and have been declared as meeting the conditions required for the application of the preferences laid down, and where there is no doubt as to the veracity of such declaration.

Subsection 3 Methods of administrative cooperation

Article 118

The Occupied Territories shall send to the Commission specimens of the stamps used by the Chambers of Commerce together with the addresses of those authorities competent to issue movement certificates EUR.1 and carry out the subsequent verification of these certificates and of forms EUR.2.

The Commission shall send this information to the customs authorities of the Member States.

Article 119

1. Subsequent verifications of EUR.1 certificates or of forms EUR.2 shall be carried out at random or whenever the customs authorities in the importing Member State or the Chambers of Commerce of the Occupied Territories have reasonable doubts as to the authenticity of the document or the accuracy of the information regarding the true origin of the goods in question.

2. In order to ensure the proper application of subsection 1, the Occupied Territories shall assist the Community by allowing the customs authorities of the Member States to check the authenticity of movement certificates EUR.1 and forms EUR.2 and the accuracy of the information concerning the actual origin of the products concerned.

3. For the purposes of paragraph 1, the customs authorities of the importing Member State or territory shall return the EUR.1 certificate or form EUR.2 or a copy thereof to the Chambers of Commerce of the Occupied Territories or to the customs authorities of the exporting Member State, giving, where appropriate, the reasons of substance or form for an inquiry.

The requesting authorities shall attach the relevant commercial documents or a copy thereof to the EUR.1 certificate or form EUR.2 and shall forward, in support of the request for a subsequent verification, any documents and information that have been obtained suggesting that the particulars given on the said certificate or the said form are inaccurate.

If the customs authorities in the importing Member State decide to suspend the application of preferential treatment while awaiting the results of the verification, they shall grant release of the goods subject to any precautionary measures judged necessary.

4. The customs authorities in the importing Member State or the Chambers of Commerce of the Occupied Territories shall be informed of the results of the verification within six months. These results must make it possible to determine whether the documents returned under paragraph 3 apply to the goods actually exported, and whether these goods can, in fact, qualify for application of the preferential arrangements.

The provisions of Article 95 (5) shall apply to this paragraph.

5. For the purposes of the subsequent verification of EUR.1 certificates, the Chambers of Commerce of the Occupied Territories or the customs authorities in the exporting Member State shall keep the export documents or copies of the certificates replacing them for at least two years.

Section 3 Republics of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Slovenia and the territory of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

Subsection 1 Definition of the concept of originating products

Article 120

For the purposes of the provisions concerning tariff preferences granted by the Community to certain products originating in the Republics of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Slovenia and the territory of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, hereinafter referred to as a ‘beneficiary Republic’, the following products, on condition that they were transported direct within the meaning of Article 125, shall be considered as:

1.

products originating in a beneficiary Republic:

(a)

products wholly obtained in a beneficiary Republic;

(b)

products obtained in a beneficiary Republic in the manufacture of which products other than those wholly obtained in that Republic are used, provided that the said products have undergone sufficient working or processing within the meaning of Article 122. This condition shall not apply, however, to products which, within the meaning of this subsection, originate in the Community, providing they have undergone, in the beneficiary Republic concerned, working or processing exceeding the insufficient working or processing referred to in Article 122 (3);

2.

products originating in the Community:

(a)

products wholly obtained in the Community;

(b)

products obtained in the Community, in the manufacture of which products other than those wholly obtained in the Community are used, provided that the said products have undergone sufficient working or processing within the meaning of Article 122. This condition shall not apply, however, to products which, within the meaning of this subsection originate in a beneficiary Republic, providing they have undergone, in the Community, working or processing exceeding the insufficient working or processing referred to in Article 122 (3).

Article 121

1. The items referred to in Article 67 (1) (a) to (k) shall be considered as wholly obtained either in a beneficiary Republic or in the Community.

2. The term ‘its vessels’ in Article 67 (1) (f) shall apply only to vessels:

• which are registered or recorded in a Member State or in the beneficiary Republic concerned,

• which sail under the flag of a Member State or of the beneficiary Republic concerned,

• which are at least 50 %-owned by nationals of the Member States or the beneficiary Republic concerned or by a company with its head office in a Member State or in a beneficiary Republic, of which the manager, managers, Chairman of the board of directors or of the supervisory board, and the majority of the members of such a board, are nationals of the Member States or the beneficiary Republic and of which in addition, in the case of partnerships or limited companies, at least half the capital belongs to the Member States or the beneficiary Republic concerned or to public bodies or nationals of the Member States or of a beneficiary Republic,

• of which the captain and officers are all nationals of the Member States or of the beneficiary Republic concerned, and

• of which at least 75 % of the crew are nationals of the Member States or of the beneficiary Republic concerned.

3. The terms ‘Community’ and ‘beneficiary Republic’ shall also cover their territorial waters. Sea-going vessels, including factory ships, on which the fish caught is worked or processed, shall be considered as part of the territory of the State to which they belong, provided that they satisfy the conditions set out in paragraph 2.

Article 122

1. For the purposes of Article 120, non-originating materials shall be considered to be sufficiently worked or processed when the product obtained is classified in a heading different from those in which all the non-originating materials used in its manufacture are classified, subject to the provisions of paragraphs 2 and 3.

The provisions of the second, third and fourth subparagraphs of Article 68 (1) shall apply.

2. For a product mentioned in columns 1 and 2 of the list in Annex 20, the conditions set out in column 3 for the product concerned must be fulfilled instead of the rule in paragraph 1.

(a) Where in the list in Annex 20 a percentage rule is applied in determining the originating status of a product obtained in the Community or in a beneficiary Republic, the value added by the working or processing shall correspond to the ex-works price of the product obtained, less the customs value of third-country materials imported into the Community or a beneficiary Republic.

(b) The term ‘value’ in the list in Annex 20 shall mean the customs value at the time of the import of the non-originating materials used or, if this is not known and cannot be ascertained, the first ascertainable price paid for the materials in the territory concerned.

Where the value of the originating materials used needs to be established, the preceding subparagraph shall be applied mutatis mutandis.

(c) The term ‘ex-works price’ in the list in Annex 20 shall mean the price paid for the product to the manufacturer in whose undertaking the last working or processing is carried out, provided the price includes the value of all the materials used in manufacture, minus any internal taxes which are, or may be, repaid when the product obtained is exported.

3. For the purposes of paragraphs 1 and 2, the operations referred to in Article 68 (3) (a) to (h) shall be considered as insufficient working or processing to confer the status of originating products, whether or not there is a change of heading.

Article 123

In order to determine whether goods originate in a beneficiary Republic or in the Community it shall not be necessary to establish whether the electrical power, fuel, plant and equipment, and machines and tools used to obtain such goods or any materials or products used in the course of production which do not enter and which were not intended to enter into the final composition of the goods originate in third countries or not.

Article 124

The provisions of Articles 73 and 74 shall apply to this section.

Article 125

1. The tariff preferences referred to in Article 120 shall apply only to originating products or materials which are transported between the territory of a beneficiary Republic and that of the Community without entering any other territory. However, goods originating in a beneficiary Republic or in the Community and constituting a single consignment may be transported through territory other than that of a beneficiary Republic or the Community with or without transhipment or temporary warehousing in such territory, provided that the goods have remained under the supervision of the customs authorities in the country of transit or of warehousing, and have not undergone operations other than unloading, reloading or any other operation designed to preserve them in good condition.

Products originating in the beneficiary Republic or in the Community may be transported by pipeline across territory other than that of the Community or of the beneficiary Republic.

2. Evidence that the conditions referred to in paragraph 1 have been fulfilled shall be supplied to the competent customs authorities by the production of:

(a) a single transport document issued in the exporting country or territory covering the passage through the country of transit; or

(b) a certificate issued by the customs authorities of the country of transit:

• (b) giving an exact description of the goods,

• stating the dates of unloading and reloading of the goods or of their embarkation or disembarkation, identifying the ships used,

• certifying the conditions under which the goods remained in the transit country; or

(c) failing these, any substantiating documents.

Article 126

The conditions set out in this subsection concerning the acquisition of originating status shall be fulfilled without interruption in the Community or a beneficiary Republic.

If originating goods exported from the Community or a beneficiary Republic to another country are returned, they shall be considered as non-originating unless it can be demonstrated to the satisfaction of the customs authorities that:

• the goods returned are the same goods as those exported, and

• they have not undergone any operation beyond that necessary to preserve them in good condition while in that country.

Subsection 2 Proof of origin

(a) Movement certificate EUR.1

Article 127

Evidence of originating status of products, within the meaning of this section, shall be given by a movement certificate EUR.1, a specimen of which appears in Annex 21.

Article 128

1. A movement certificate EUR.1 shall be issued on written application by the exporter or, under the exporter's responsiblity, his authorized representative. Such application shall be made on a form, a specimen of which appears in Annex 21, which shall be completed in accordance with the provisions of this subsection.

Applications for movement certificates EUR.1 must be kept for at least two years by the customs authorities of the exporting Member State or beneficiary Republic.

2. The provisions of Article 106 (2) shall apply.

3. A movement certificate EUR.1 may be issued only where it can serve as the documentary evidence required for the purpose of implementing the tariff preferences referred to in Article 120.

4. The movement certificate EUR.1 shall be issued by the customs authorities of the exporting Member State or beneficiary Republic, if the goods can be considered originating products within the meaning of this section.

5. In cases where the goods are considered originating products within the meaning of Article 120 (1) (b), last sentence, or (2) (b), last sentence, the movement certificates EUR.1 shall be issued subject to the presentation of the proof of origin previously issued or made out. This proof of origin must be kept for at least two years by the customs authorities of the exporting Member State or beneficiary Republic.

6. Since the movement certificate EUR.1 constitutes the documentary evidence for the application of the tariff preferences referred to in Article 120, it shall be the responsibility of the customs authorities of the exporting Member State or beneficiary Republic to take any steps necessary to verify the origin of the goods and to check the other statements on the certificate.

7. For the purpose of verifying whether the conditions stated in paragraphs 4 and 5 have been met, the customs authorities of the exporting Member State or beneficiary Republic 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 customs authorities of the exporting Member State or beneficiary Republic to ensure that the form referred to in Article 127 is duly completed. In particular, they shall check whether the space reserved for the description of the products has been completed in such a manner as to exclude all possibility of fraudulent additions. To this end, the description of the products must be indicated without leaving any blank lines. Where the space is not completely filled a horizontal line must be drawn below the last line of the description, the empty space being crossed through.

9. The date of issue of the movement certificate must be indicated in the part of the certificate reserved for the customs authorities.

10. A movement certificate EUR.1 shall be issued by the customs authorities of the exporting Member State or beneficiary Republic when the products to which it relates are exported. It shall be made available to the exporter as soon as export has actually been carried out or ensured.

11. In the cases of the Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina and the territory of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, the references to the ‘customs authorities’ in this and the following articles shall be understood as referring to the Chambers of Economy for as long as the Chambers of Economy of those republics perform the functions in question.

Article 129

The provisions of Articles 107 to 109 shall apply to this section.

Article 130

1. A movement certificate EUR.1 shall be submitted within five months of the date of issue by the customs authorities in the exporting Member State or beneficiary Republic, to the customs authorities of the importing Member State or beneficiary Republic where the products are entered.

2. A movement certificate EUR.1 which is submitted to the customs authorities of the importing Member State or beneficiary Republic after the final date of presentation specified in paragraph 1 may be accepted for the purpose of applying preferential treatment, where the failure to submit the certificate by the final date set is due to force majeure or exceptional circumstances.

3. In other cases of belated presentation, the customs authorities of the importing Member State or beneficiary Republic may accept the certificates where the products have been submitted to them before the said final date.

Article 131

1. Products sent from the Community or from a beneficiary Republic for exhibition in another country and sold after the exhibition for importation into the Community shall benefit on importation from the tariff preferences referred to in Article 120 on condition that the goods meet the requirements of subsection 1 entitling them to be recognized as originating in the Community or in a beneficiary Republic and provided that it is shown to the satisfaction of the customs authorities that:

(a) an exporter has consigned these products from the Community or from a beneficiary Republic to the country in which the exhibition is held and has exhibited them there;

(b) the products have been sold or otherwise disposed of by that exporter to a person in a beneficiary Republic or in the Community;

(c) the products have been consigned during the exhibition or immediately thereafter to a beneficiary Republic or to the Community in the state in which they were sent for exhibition;

(d) the products have not, since they were consigned for exhibition, been used for any purpose other than demonstration at the exhibition.

2. The provisions of Article 111 (2) and (3) shall apply.

Article 132

Movement certificates EUR.1 shall be submitted to the customs authorities in the importing Member State or beneficiary Republic, in accordance with the procedures laid down by that Member State or by that beneficiary Republic. The said authorities may require a translation of a certificate.

They 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 tariff preferences referred to in Article 120.

Article 133

Without prejudice to Article 122 (3), where, at the request of the declarant, an unassembled or disassembled article falling within Chapter 84 and 85 of the Harmonized System is imported in several consignments on the conditions laid down by the customs authorities, it shall be considered to be a single article and a movement certificate may be submitted for the whole article upon import of the first consignment.

Article 134

Movement certificates EUR.1 shall be kept by the customs authorities of the importing Member State or beneficiary Republic in accordance with the rules in force in the Community or that beneficiary Republic.

(b) Form EUR.2

Article 135

1. Notwithstanding Article 127, in the case of consignments containing only originating products whose value does not exceed ECU 3 000 per consignment, the evidence of originating status within the meaning of subsection 1 shall be given by a form EUR.2, a specimen of which appears in Annex 22.

2. Form EUR.2 shall be completed and signed by the exporter or, under the exporter's responsibility, by his authorized representative. If the goods contained in the consignment have already been subject to verification in the exporting Member State or territory by reference to the definition of the concept of originating products, the exporter may refer to this check in the ‘remarks’ box of form EUR.2.

3. A form EUR.2 shall be completed for each consignment.

4. These provisions do not exempt exporters from complying with any other formalities required by customs or postal regulations.

5. The exporter who made out the form EUR.2 shall submit at the request of the customs authorities of the exporting Member State or beneficiary Republic all supporting documents concerning the use of this form.

Article 136

The following originating products within the meaning of subsection 1, shall be eligible on importation into the Community or into a beneficiary Republic, for the tariff preferences referred to in Article 120 without it being necessary to produce the documents referred to in Article 127 or in Article 135:

(a)

products sent as small packages from private persons to private persons, provided that the value of the products does not exceed ECU 215;

(b)

products contained in travellers' personal luggage, provided that the value of the products does not exceed ECU 600.

The provisions of Article 117(2) and (3) shall apply to this section.

Subsection 3 Methods of Administrative Cooperation

Article 137

The beneficiary Republics shall send the Commission specimens of the stamps used together with the addresses of the customs authorities competent to issue movement certificates EUR.1 and carry out the subsequent verification of these certificates and of forms EUR.2. The Commission shall forward this information to the customs authorities of the Member States.

Article 138

1. Subsequent verifications of EUR.1 certificates or of forms EUR.2 shall be carried out at random or whenever the customs authorities of the importing Member State or beneficiary Republic have reasonable doubts as to the authenticity of the document or the accuracy of the information regarding the true origin of the goods in question.

2. In order to ensure the proper application of these provisions, the beneficiary Republic and the Member States of the Community shall assist each other, through their respective customs authorities, in checking the authenticity of movement certificates EUR.1 and forms EUR.2 and the accuracy of the information concerning the true origin of the products concerned.

3. For the purposes of paragraph 1, the customs authorities of the importing Member State or beneficiary Republic shall return the EUR.1 certificate or form EUR.2 or a copy thereof to the customs authorities of the exporting country, giving, where appropriate, the reasons of substance or form for an inquiry.

The requesting authorities shall attach to the certificate EUR.1 or form EUR.2 the invoice or a copy thereof, if it has been produced, and shall forward any documents and information that have been obtained suggesting that the particulars given on the said certificate or the said form are inaccurate.

If the customs authorities of the importing Member State decide to suspend the tariff preferences specified in Article 120 while awaiting the results of the verification, they shall grant release of the products subject to any precautionary measures considered necessary.

4. The customs authorities of the importing Member State or of the beneficiary Republic shall be informed of the results of the verification within a maximum of six months. These results must make it possible to determine whether the documents returned under paragraph 3 apply to the products actually exported, and whether these products were, in fact, eligible for the tariff preferences referred to in Article 120.

If in cases of reasonable doubt there is no reply within six months of the date of the verification request, or if the reply does not contain sufficient information to determine the authenticity of the document in question or the true origin of the products, the requesting authorities shall refuse, except in the case of force majeure or exceptional circumstances, refuse entitlement to the preferential treatment.

5. For the purpose of the subsequent verification of EUR.1 certificates, the customs authorities of the exporting country shall keep copies of the certificates, as well as any export documents referring to them, for at least two years.

Subsection 4 Ceuta and Melilla

Article 139

1. The term ‘Community’ used in this section does not cover Ceuta or Melilla. The term ‘products originating in the Community’ does not cover products originating in these areas.

2. Subsections 1 to 3 of this section shall apply mutatis mutandis to products originating in Ceuta and Melilla, subject to the particular conditions set out in Article 140.

Article 140

1. The following paragraphs shall apply instead of Article 120 and references to that Article shall apply mutatis mutandis to this Article.

2. Providing they have been transported direct in accordance with the provisions of Article 125, the following shall be considered as:

(a) products originating in Ceuta and Melilla:

(i)

products wholly obtained in Ceuta and Melilla;

(ii)

products obtained in Ceuta and Melilla in the manufacture of which products other than those referred to in (i) are used, provided that the said products have undergone sufficient working or processing within the meaning of Article 122. This condition shall not apply, however, to products which, within the meaning of subsection 1, originate in the Community or in a beneficiary Republic, provided they undergo, in Ceuta and Melilla, working or processing which exceeds the insufficient working or processing set out in Article 122 (3);

(b) products originating in a beneficiary Republic:

(i)

products wholly obtained in a beneficiary Republic;

(ii)

products obtained in a beneficiary Republic in the manufacture of which products other than those referred to in (i) are used, provided that the said products have undergone sufficient working or processing within the meaning of Article 122. This condition shall not apply, however, to products which, within the meaning of subsection 1, originate in Ceuta and Melilla or the Community provided they undergo working or processing which exceeds the insufficient working or processing set out in Article 122 (3).

3. Ceuta and Melilla shall be considered as a single territory.

4. The exporter or his authorized representative shall enter the name of the beneficiary Republic concerned and ‘Ceuta and Melilla’ in box 2 of the movement certificate EUR.1.

In addition, in the case of products originating in Ceuta and Melilla, the originating status shall be indicated in box 4 of the movement certificate EUR.1.

5. The Spanish customs authorities shall be responsible for the application of these provisions in Ceuta and Melilla.

TITLE V CUSTOMS VALUE

CHAPTER 1 General provisions

Article 141

1. In applying the provisions of Articles 28 to 36 of the Code and those of this title, Member States shall comply with the provisions set out in Annex 23.

The provisions as set out in the first column of Annex 23 shall be applied in the light of the interpretative note appearing in the second column.

2. If it is necessary to make reference to generally accepted accounting principles in determining the customs value, the provisions of Annex 24 shall apply.

Article 142

1. For the purposes of this title:

(a) ‘the Agreement’ means the Agreement on implementation of Article VII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade concluded in the framework of the multilateral trade negotiations of 1973 to 1979 and referred to in the first indent of Article 31 (1) of the Code;

(b) ‘produced goods’ includes goods grown, manufactured and mined;

(c) ‘identical goods’ means 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;

(d) ‘similar goods’ 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;

(e) ‘goods of the same class or kind’ means goods which fall within a group or range of goods produced by a particular industry or industry sector, and includes identical or similar goods.

2. ‘Identical goods’ and ‘similar goods’, as the case may be, do not include goods which incorporate or reflect engineering, development, artwork, design work, and plans and sketches for which no adjustment has been made under Article 32 (1) (b) (iv) of the Code because such elements were undertaken in the Community.

Article 143

1. For the purposes of Articles 29 (1) (d) and 30 (2) (c) of the Code, persons shall be deemed to be related only if:

(a) they are officers or directors of one another's businesses;

(b) they are legally recognized partners in business;

(c) they are employer and employee;

(d) any person directly or indirectly owns, 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 directly or indirectly control a third person; or

(h) they are members of the same family. Persons shall be deemed to be members of the same family only if they stand in any of the following relationships to one another:

• (h) husband and wife,

• parent and child,

• brother and sister (whether by whole or half blood),

• grandparent and grandchild,

• uncle or aunt and nephew or niece,

• parent-in-law and son-in-law or daughter-in-law,

• brother-in-law and sister-in-law.

2. For the purposes of this title, 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 of paragraph 1.

Article 144

1. For the purposes of determining customs value under Article 29 of the Code of goods in regard to which the price has not actually been paid at the material time for valuation for customs purposes, the price payable for settlement at the said time shall as a general rule be taken as the basis for customs value.

2. The Commission and the Member States shall consult within the Committee concerning the application of paragraph 1.

Article 145

Where goods declared for free circulation are part of a larger quantity of the same goods purchased in one transaction, the price actually paid or payable for the purposes of Article 29 (1) of the Code shall be that price represented by the proportion of the total price which the quantity so declared bears to the total quantity purchased.

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 being valued have been damaged before entry into free circulation.

Article 146

Where the price actually paid or payable for the purposes of Article 29 (1) of the Code includes an amount in respect of any internal tax applicable within the country of origin or export in respect of the goods in question, the said amount shall not be incorporated in the customs value provided that it can be demonstrated to the satisfaction of the customs authorities concerned that the goods in question have been or will be relieved therefrom for the benefit of the buyer.

Article 147

1. For the purposes of Article 29 of the Code, the fact that the goods which are the subject of a sale are declared for free circulation shall be regarded as adequate indication that they were sold for export to the customs territory of the Community. This indication shall also apply in the case of successive sales before valuation; in such case each price resulting from these sales may, subject to the provisions of Articles 178 to 181, be taken as a basis for valuation.

2. However, where goods are used in a third country between the time of sale and the time of entry into free circulation the customs value need not be the transaction value.

3. The buyer need satisfy no condition other than that of being a party to the contract of sale.

Article 148

Where, in applying Article 29 (1) (b) of the Code, it is established that 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 an indirect payment by the buyer to the seller and part of the price actually paid or payable provided that the condition or consideration does not relate to either:

(a)

an activity to which Article 29 (3) (b) of the Code applies; or

(b)

a factor in respect of which an addition is to be made to the price actually paid or payable under the provisions of Article 32 of the Code.

Article 149

1. For the purposes of Article 29 (3) (b) of the Code, the term ‘marketing activities’ means all activities relating to advertising and promoting the sale of the goods in question and all activities relating to warranties or guarantees in respect of them.

2. Such activities undertaken by the buyer shall be regarded as having been undertaken on his own account even if they are performed in pursuance of an obligation on the buyer following an agreement with the seller.

Article 150

1. In applying Article 30 (2) (a) of the Code (the transaction value of identical goods), the customs value shall be determined by reference to the transaction value of identical goods in a sale at the same commercial level and in substantially the same quantity as the goods being valued. Where no such sale is found, the transaction value of identical goods sold at a different commercial level and/or in different quantities, adjusted to take account of differences attributable to commercial level and/or to quantity, shall be used, provided that such adjustments can be made on the basis of demonstrated evidence which clearly establishes the reasonableness and accuracy of the adjustment, whether the adjustment leads to an increase or a decrease in the value.

2. Where the costs and charges referred to in Article 32 (1) (e) of the Code are included in the transaction value, an adjustment shall be made to take account of significant differences in such costs and charges between the imported goods and the identical goods in question arising from differences in distances and modes of transport.

3. If, in applying this Article, more than one transaction value of identical goods is found, the lowest such value shall be used to determine the customs value of the imported goods.

4. In applying this Article, a transaction value for goods produced by a different person shall be taken into account only when no transaction value can be found under paragraph 1 for identical goods produced by the same person as the goods being valued.

5. For the purposes of this Article, the transaction value of identical imported goods means a customs value previously determined under Article 29 of the Code, adjusted as provided for in paragraphs 1 (b) and 2 of this Article.

Article 151

1. In applying Article 30 (2) (b) of the Code (the transaction value of similar goods), the customs value shall be determined by reference to the transaction value of similar goods in a sale at the same commercial level and in substantially the same quantity as the goods being valued. Where no such sale is found, the transaction value of similar goods sold at a different commercial level and/or in different quantities, adjusted to take account of differences attributable to commercial level and/or to quantity, shall be used, provided that such adjustments can be made on the basis of demonstrated evidence which clearly establishes the reasonableness and accuracy of the adjustment, whether the adjustment leads to an increase or a decrease in the value.

2. Where the costs and charges referred to in Article 32 (1) (e) of the Code are included in the transaction value, an adjustment shall be made to take account of significant differences in such costs and charges between the imported goods and the similar goods in question arising from differences in distances and modes of transport.

3. If, in applying this Article, more than one transaction value of similar goods is found, the lowest such value shall be used to determine the customs value for the imported goods.

4. In applying this Article, a transaction value for goods produced by a different person shall be taken into account only when no transaction value can be found under paragraph 1 for similar goods produced by the same person as the goods being valued.

5. For the purposes of this Article, the transaction value of similar imported goods means a customs value previously determined under Article 29 of the Code, adjusted as provided for in paragraphs 1 (b) and 2 of this Article.

Article 152

1. (a) If the imported goods or identical or similar imported goods are sold in the Community in the condition as imported, the customs value of imported goods, determined in accordance with Article 30 (2) (c) of the Code, shall be based on the unit price at which the imported goods or identical or similar imported goods are so sold in the greatest aggregate quantity, at or about the time of the importation of the goods being valued, to persons who are not related to the persons from whom they buy such goods, subject to deductions for the following:

(i)

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 Community of imported goods of the same class or kind;

(ii)

the usual costs of transport and insurance and associated costs incurred within the Community;

(iii)

the import duties and other charges payable in the Community by reason of the importation or sale of the goods.

(b) If neither the imported goods nor identical nor similar imported goods are sold at or about the time of importation of the goods being valued, the customs value of imported goods determined under this Article shall, subject otherwise to the provisions of paragraph 1 (a), be based on the unit price at which the imported goods or identical or similar imported goods are sold in the Community in the condition as imported at the earliest date after the importation of the goods being valued but before the expiration of 90 days after such importation.

2. If neither the imported goods nor identical nor similar imported goods are sold in the Community in the condition as imported, then, if the importer so requests, the customs value shall be based on the unit price at which the imported goods, after further processing, are sold in the greatest aggregate quantity to persons in the Community who are not related to the persons from whom they buy such goods, due allowance being made for the value added by such processing and the deductions provided for in paragraph 1 (a).

3. For the purposes of this Article, the unit price at which imported goods are sold in the greatest aggregate quantity is the price at which the greatest number of units is sold in sales to persons who are not related to the persons from whom they buy such goods at the first commercial level after importation at which such sales take place.

4. Any sale in the Community to a person who supplies directly or indirectly free of charge or at reduced cost for use in connection with the production and sale for export of the imported goods any of the elements specified in Article 32 (1) (b) of the Code should not be taken into account in establishing the unit price for the purposes of this Article.

5. For the purposes of paragraph 1 (b), the ‘earliest date’ shall be the date by which sales of the imported goods or of identical or similar imported goods are made in sufficient quantity to establish the unit price.

Article 153

1. In applying Article 30 (2) (d) of the Code (computed value), the customs authorities may not require or compel any person not resident in the Community to produce for examination, or to allow access to, any account or other record for the purposes of determining this value. However, information supplied by the producer of the goods for the purposes of determining the customs value under this Article may be verified in a non-Community country by the customs authorities of a Member State with the agreement of the producer and provided that such authorities give sufficient advance notice to the authorities of the country in question and the latter do not object to the investigation.

2. The cost or value of materials and fabrication referred to in the first indent of Article 30 (2) (d) of the Code shall include the cost of elements specified in Article 32 (1) (a) (ii) and (iii) of the Code.

It shall also include the value, duly apportioned, of any product or service specified in Article 32 (1) (b) of the Code which has been supplied directly or indirectly by the buyer for use in connection with the production of the imported goods. The value of the elements specified in Article 32 (1) (b) (iv) of the Code which are undertaken in the Community shall be included only to the extent that such elements are charged to the producer.

3. Where information other than that supplied by or on behalf of the producer is used for the purposes of determining a computed value, the customs authorities shall inform the declarant, if the latter so requests, of the source of such information, the data used and the calculations based on such data, subject to Article 15 of the Code.

5. The ‘general expenses’ referred to in the second indent of Article 30 (2) (d) of the Code, cover the direct and indirect costs of producing and selling the goods for export which are not included under the first indent of Article 30 (2) (d) of the Code.

Article 154

Where containers referred to in Article 32 (1) (a) (ii) of the Code are to be the subject of repeated importations, their cost shall, at the request of the declarant, be apportioned, as appropriate, in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.

Article 155

For the purposes of Article 32 (1) (b) (iv) of the Code, the cost of research and preliminary design sketches is not to be included in the customs value.

Article 156

Article 33 (c) of the Code shall apply mutatis mutandis where the customs value is determined by applying a method other than the transaction value.

CHAPTER 2 Provisions concerning royalties and licence fees

Article 157

1. For the purposes of Article 32 (1) (c) of the Code, royalties and licence fees shall be taken to mean in particular payment for the use of rights relating:

• to the manufacture of imported goods (in particular, patents, designs, models and manufacturing know-how), or

• to the sale for exportation of imported goods (in particular, trade marks, registered designs), or

• to the use or resale of imported goods (in particular, copyright, manufacturing processes inseparably embodied in the imported goods).

2. Without prejudice to Article 32 (5) of the Code, when the customs value of imported goods is determined under the provisions of Article 29 of the Code, a royalty or licence fee shall be added to the price actually paid or payable only when this payment:

• is related to the goods being valued, and

• constitutes a condition of sale of those goods.

Article 158

1. When the imported goods are only an ingredient or component of goods manufactured in the Community, an adjustment to the price actually paid or payable for the imported goods shall only be made when the royalty or licence fee relates to those goods.

2. Where goods are imported in an unassembled state or only have to undergo minor processing before resale, such as diluting or packing, this shall not prevent a royalty or licence fee from being considered related to the imported goods.

3. If royalties or licence fees relate partly to the imported goods and partly to other ingredients or component parts added to the goods after their importation, or to post-importation activities or services, an appropriate apportionment shall be made only on the basis of objective and quantifiable data, in accordance with the interpretative note to Article 32 (2) of the Code in Annex 23.

Article 159

A royalty or licence fee in respect of the right to use a trade mark is only to be added to the price actually paid or payable for the imported goods where:

• the royalty or licence fee refers to goods which are resold in the same state or which are subject only to minor processing after importation,

• the goods are marketed under the trade mark, affixed before or after importation, for which the royalty or licence fee is paid, and

• the buyer is not free to obtain such goods from other suppliers unrelated to the seller.

Article 160

When the buyer pays royalties or licence fees to a third party, the conditions provided for in Article 157 (2) shall not be considered as met unless the seller or a person related to him requires the buyer to make that payment.

Article 161

Where the method of calculation of the amount of a royalty or licence fee derives from the price of the imported goods, it may be assumed in the absence of evidence to the contrary that the payment of that royalty or licence fee is related to the goods to be valued.

However, where the amount of a royalty or licence fee is calculated regardless of the price of the imported goods, the payment of that royalty or licence fee may nevertheless be related to the goods to be valued.

Article 162

In applying Article 32 (1) (c) of the Code, the country of residence of the recipient of the payment of the royalty or licence fee shall not be a material consideration.

CHAPTER 3 Provisions concerning the place of introduction into the Community

Article 163

1. For the purposes of Article 32 (1) (e) and Article 33 (a) of the Code, the place of introduction into the customs territory of the Community shall be:

(a) for goods carried by sea, the port of unloading, or the port of transhipment, subject to transhipment being certified by the customs authorities of that port;

(b) for goods carried by sea and then, without transhipment, by inland waterway, the first port where unloading can take place either at the mouth of the river or canal or further inland, subject to proof being furnished to the customs office that the freight to the port of unloading is higher than that to the first port;

(c) for goods carried by rail, inland waterway, or road, the place where the first customs office is situated;

(d) for goods carried by other means, the place where the land frontier of the customs territory of the Community is crossed.

2. The customs value of goods introduced into the customs territory of the Community and then carried to a destination in another part of that territory through the territories of Austria, Switzerland, Hungary, the Czech and Slovak Republics or Yugoslavia as it was on 1 January 1991 shall be determined by reference to the first place of introduction into the customs territory of the Community, provided the goods are carried direct through the territories of Austria, Switzerland, Hungary, the Czech and Slovak Republics or Yugoslavia as defined above by a usual route across such territory to the place of destination.

3. The customs value of goods introduced into the customs territory of the Community and then carried by sea to a destination in another part of that territory shall be determined by reference to the first place of introduction into the customs territory of the Community, provided the goods are carried direct by a usual route to the place of destination.

4. Paragraphs 2 and 3 of this Article shall also apply where the goods have been unloaded, transhipped or temporarily immobilized in the territories of Austria, Switzerland, Hungary, the Czech and Slovak Republics or Yugoslavia within the meaning of paragraph 2, for reasons relating solely to their transport.

5. For goods introduced into the customs territory of the Community and carried directly from one of the French overseas departments to another part of the customs territory of the Community or vice versa, the place of introduction to be taken into consideration shall be the place referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 situated in that part of the customs territory of the Community from which the goods came, if they were unloaded or transhipped there and this was certified by the customs authorities.

6. When the conditions specified at paragraphs 2, 3 and 5 are not fulfilled, the place of introduction to be taken into consideration shall be the place specified in paragraph 1 situated in that part of the customs territory of the Community to which the goods are consigned.

CHAPTER 4 Provisions concerning transport costs

Article 164

In applying Article 32 (1) (e) and 33 (a) of the Code:

(a)

where goods are carried by the same mode of transport to a point beyond the place of introduction into the customs territory of the Community, transport costs shall be assessed in proportion to the distance covered outside and inside the customs territory of the Community, unless evidence is produced to the customs authorities to show the costs that would have been incurred under a general compulsory schedule of freight rates for the carriage of the goods to the place of introduction into the customs territory of the Community;

(b)

where goods are invoiced at a uniform free domicile price which corresponds to the price at the place of introduction, transport costs within the Community shall not be deducted from that price. However, such deduction shall be allowed if evidence is produced to the customs authorities that the free-frontier price would be lower than the uniform free domicile price;

(c)

where transport is free or provided by the buyer, transport costs to the place of introduction, calculated in accordance with the schedule of freight rates normally applied for the same modes of transport, shall be included in the customs value.

Article 165

1. All 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 country of importation.

2. No adjustment to the declared value shall, however, be made in respect of such charges in determining the value of consignments of a non-commercial nature.

3. Paragraphs 1 and 2 are not applicable to goods carried by the express postal services known as EMS-Datapost (in Denmark, EMS-Jetpost, in Germany, EMS-Kurierpostsendungen, in Italy, CAI-Post).

Article 166

The air transport costs to be included in the customs value of goods shall be determined by applying the rules and percentages shown in Annex 25.

CHAPTER 5 Valuation of certain carrier media for use in ADP equipment

Article 167

1. Notwithstanding Articles 29 to 33 of the Code, in determining the customs value of imported carrier media bearing data or instructions for use in data processing equipment, only the cost or value of the carrier medium itself shall be taken into account. The customs value of imported carrier media bearing data or instructions shall not, therefore, include the cost or value of the data or instructions, provided that such cost or value is distinguished from the cost or value of the carrier medium in question.

2. For the purposes of this Article:

(a) the expression ‘carrier medium’ shall not be taken to include integrated circuits, semiconductors and similar devices or articles incorporating such circuits or devices;

(b) the expression ‘data or instructions’ shall not be taken to include sound, cinematographic or video recordings.

CHAPTER 6 Provisions concerning rates of exchange

Article 168

For the purposes of Articles 169 to 171 of this chapter:

(a)

‘rate recorded’ shall mean:

• the latest selling rate of exchange recorded for commercial transactions on the most representative exchange market or markets of the Member State concerned, or

• some other description of a rate of exchange so recorded and designated by the Member State as the ‘rate recorded’ provided that it reflects as effectively as possible the current value of the currency in question in commercial transactions;

(b)

‘published’ shall mean made generally known in a manner designated by the Member State concerned;

(c)

‘currency’ shall mean any monetary unit used as a means of settlement between monetary authorities or on the international market.

Article 169

1. Where factors used to determine the customs value of goods are expressed at the time when that value is determined in a currency other than that of the Member State where the valuation is made, the rate of exchange to be used to determine that value in terms of the currency of the Member State concerned shall be the rate recorded on the second-last Wednesday of a month and published on that or the following day.

2. The rate recorded on the second-last Wednesday of a month shall be used during the following calendar month unless it is superseded by a rate established under Article 171.

3. Where a rate of exchange is not recorded on the second-last Wednesday indicated in paragraph 1, or, if recorded, is not published on that or the following day, the last rate recorded for the currency in question published within the preceding 14 days shall be deemed to be the rate recorded on that Wednesday.

Article 170

Where a rate of exchange cannot be established under the provisions of Article 169, the rate of exchange to be used for the application of Article 35 of the Code shall be designated by the Member State concerned and shall reflect as effectively as possible the current value of the currency in question in commercial transactions in terms of the currency of that Member State.

Article 171

1. Where a rate of exchange recorded on the last Wednesday of a month and published on that or the following day differs by 5 % or more from the rate established in accordance with Article 169 for entry into use the following month, it shall replace the latter rate from the first Wednesday of that month as the rate to be applied for the application of Article 35 of the Code.

2. Where in the course of a period of application as referred to in the preceding provisions, a rate of exchange recorded on a Wednesday and published on that or the following day differs by 5 % or more from the rate being used in accordance with this Chapter, it shall replace the latter rate and enter into use on the Wednesday following as the rate to be used for the application of Article 35 of the Code. The replacement rate shall remain in use for the remainder of the current month, provided that this rate is not superseded due to operation of the provisions of the first sentence of this paragraph.

3. Where, in a Member State, a rate of exchange is not recorded on a Wednesday or, if recorded, is not published on that or the following day, the rate recorded shall, for the application in that Member State of paragraphs 1 and 2, be the rate most recently recorded and published prior to that Wednesday.

Article 172

When the customs authorities of a Member State authorize a declarant to furnish or supply at a later date certain details concerning the declaration for free circulation of the goods in the form of a periodic declaration, this authorization may, at the declarant's request, provide that a single rate be used for conversion into that Member State's currency of elements forming part of the customs value as expressed in a particular currency. In this case, the rate to be used shall be the rate, established in accordance with this Chapter, which is applicable on the first day of the period covered by the declaration in question.

CHAPTER 7 Simplified procedures for certain perishable goods

Article 173

1. For the purpose of determining the customs value of products referred to in Annex 26, the Commission shall establish for each classification heading a unit value per 100 kg net expressed in the currencies of the Member States.

The unit values shall apply for periods of 14 days, each period beginning on a Friday.

2. Unit values shall be established on the basis of the following elements, which are to be supplied to the Commission by Member States, in relation to each classification heading:

(a) the average free-at-frontier unit price, not cleared through customs, expressed in the currency of the Member State in question per 100 kg net and calculated on the basis of prices for undamaged goods in the marketing centres referred to in Annex 27 during the reference period referred to in Article 174(1);

(b) the quantities entered into free circulation over the period of a calendar year with payment of import duties.

3. The average free-at-frontier unit price, not cleared through customs, shall be calculated on the basis of the gross proceeds of sales made between importers and wholesalers. However, in the case of the London, Milan and Rungis marketing centres the gross proceeds shall be those recorded at the commercial level at which those goods are most commonly sold at those centres.

There shall be deducted from the figures so arrived at:

• a marketing margin of 15 % for the marketing centres of London, Milan and Rungis and of 8 % for the other marketing centres,

• costs of transport and insurance within the customs territory,

• a standard amount of ECU 5 representing all the other costs which are not to be included in the customs value.

  This amount shall be converted into the currencies of the Member States on the basis of the latest rates in force established in accordance with Article 18 of the Code,

• import duties and other charges which are not to be included in the customs value.

4. The Member States may fix standard amounts for deduction in respect of transport and insurance costs in accordance with paragraph 3. Such standard amounts and the methods for calculating them shall be made known to the Commission immediately.

Article 174

1. The reference period for calculating the average unit prices referred to in Article 173 (2) (a) shall be the period of 14 days ending on the Thursday preceding the week during which new unit values are to be established.

2. Average unit prices shall be notified by Member States not later than 12 noon on the Monday of the week during which unit values are established pursuant to Article 173. If that day is a non-working day, notification shall be made on the working day immediately preceding that day.

3. The quantities entered into free circulation during a calendar year for each classification heading shall be notified to the Commission by all Member States before 15 June in the following year.

Article 175

1. The unit values referred to in Article 173 (1) shall be established by the Commission on alternate Tuesdays on the basis of the weighted average of the average unit prices referred to in Article 173 (2) (a) in relation to the quantities referred to in Article 173 (2) (b).

2. For the purpose of determining the weighted average, each average unit price as referred to in Article 173 (2) (a) shall be converted into ecu on the basis of the last conversion rates determined by the Commission and published in the Official Journal of the European Communities prior to the week during which the unit values are to be established. The same conversion rates shall be applied in converting the unit values so obtained back into the currencies of the Member States.

3. The last published unit values shall remain applicable until new values are published. However, in the case of major fluctuations in price in one or more Member States, as a result, for example, of an interruption in the continuity of imports of a particular product, new unit values may be determined on the basis of actual prices at the time of fixing those values.

Article 176

1. Consignments which at the material time for valuation for customs purposes contain not less than 5 % of produce unfit in its unaltered state for human consumption or the value of which has depreciated by not less than 20 % in relation to average market prices for sound produce, shall be treated as damaged.

2. Consignments which are damaged may be valued:

• either, after sorting, by application of unit values to the sound portion, the damaged portion being destroyed under customs supervision, or

• by application of unit values established for the sound produce after deduction from the weight of the consignment of a percentage equal to the percentage assessed as damaged by a sworn expert and accepted by the customs authorities, or

• by application of unit values established for the sound produce reduced by the percentage assessed as damaged by a sworn expert and accepted by the customs authorities.

Article 177

1. In declaring or causing to be declared the customs value of one or more products which he imports by reference to the unit values established in accordance with this Chapter, the person concerned joins the simplified procedure system for the current calendar year in respect of the product or products in question.

2. If subsequently the person concerned requires the use of a method other than the simplified procedures for the customs valuation of one or more of the products he imports, the customs authorities of the Member State concerned shall be entitled to notify him that he will not be allowed to benefit from the simplified procedures for the remainder of the current calendar year in regard to the product or products concerned; this exclusion can be extended for the following calendar year. Such notified exclusion shall be communicated without delay to the Commission, which shall in turn immediately inform the customs authorities of the other Member States.

CHAPTER 8 Declarations of particulars and documents to be furnished

Article 178

1. Where it is necessary to establish a customs value for the purposes of Articles 28 to 36 of the Code, a declaration of particulars relating to customs value (value declaration) shall accompany the customs entry made in respect of the imported goods. The value declaration shall be drawn up on a form D.V. 1 corresponding to the specimen in Annex 28, supplemented where appropriate by one or more forms D.V. 1 bis corresponding to the specimen in Annex 29.

2. It shall be a particular requirement that the value declaration prescribed in paragraph 1 shall be made only by a person who has his residence or place of business in the customs territory of the Community and is in possession of the relevant facts.

3. The customs authorities may waive the requirement of a declaration on the form referred to in paragraph 1 where the customs value of the goods in question cannot be determined under the provisions of Article 29 of the Code. In such cases the person referred to in paragraph 2 shall furnish or cause to be furnished to the customs authorities such other information as may be requested for the purposes of determining the customs value under another Article of the said Code; and such other information shall be supplied in such form and manner as may be prescribed by the customs authorities.

4. The lodging with a customs office of a declaration required by paragraph 1 shall, without prejudice to the possible application of penal provisions, be equivalent to the engagement of responsibility by the person referred to in paragraph 2 in respect of:

• the accuracy and completeness of the particulars given in the declaration,

• the authenticity of the documents produced in support of these particulars, and

• the supply of any additional information or document necessary to establish the customs value of the goods.

5. This Article shall not apply in respect of goods for which the customs value is determined under the simplified procedure system established in accordance with the provisions of Articles 173 to 177.

Article 179

1. Except where it is essential for the correct application of import duties, the customs authorities shall waive the requirement of all or part of the declaration provided for in Article 178 (1):

(a) where the customs value of the imported goods in a consignment does not exceed ECU 5 000, provided that they do not constitute split or multiple consignments from the same consignor to the same consignee; or

(b) where the importations involved are of a noncommercial nature; or

(c) where the submission of the particulars in question is not necessary for the application of the Customs Tariff of the European Communities or where the customs duties provided for in the Tariff are not chargeable pursuant to specific customs provisions.

2. The amount in ecu referred to in paragraph 1 (a) shall be converted in accordance with Article 18 of the Code. The customs authorities may round-off upwards or downwards the sum arrived at after conversion.

The customs authorities may maintain unamended the exchange value in national currency of the amount determined in ecu if, at the time of the annual adjustment provided for in Article 18 of the Code, the conversion of this amount, before the rounding-off provided for in this paragraph, leads to an alteration of less than 5 % in the exchange value expressed in national currency or to a reduction thereof.

3. In the case of continuing traffic in goods supplied by the same seller to the same buyer under the same commercial conditions, the customs authorities may waive the requirement that all particulars under Article 178 (1) be furnished in support of each customs declaration, but shall require them whenever the circumstances change and at least once every three years.

4. A waiver granted under this Article may be withdrawn and the submission of a D.V. 1 may be required where it is found that a condition necessary to qualify for that waiver was not or is no longer met.

Article 180

Where computerized systems are used, or where the goods concerned are the subject of a general, periodic or recapitulative declaration, the customs authorities may authorize variations in the form of presentation of data required for the determination of customs value.

Article 181

1. The person referred to in Article 178 (2) shall furnish the customs authorities with a copy of the invoice on the basis of which the value of the imported goods is declared. Where the customs value is declared in writing this copy shall be retained by the customs authorities.

2. In the case of written declarations of the customs value, when the invoice for the imported goods is made out to a person established in a Member State other than that in which the customs value is declared, the declarant shall furnish the customs authorities with two copies of the invoice. One of these copies shall be retained by the customs authorities; the other, bearing the stamp of the office in question and the serial number of the declaration at the said customs office shall be returned to the declarant for forwarding to the person to whom the invoice is made out.

3. The customs authorities may extend the provisions of paragraph 2 to cases where the person to whom the invoice is made out is established in the Member State in which the customs value is declared.

TITLE VI INTRODUCTION OF GOODS INTO THE CUSTOMS TERRITORY

CHAPTER 1 Examination of the goods and taking of samples by the person concerned

Article 182

1. Permission to examine the goods under Article 42 of the Code shall be granted to the person empowered to assign the goods a customs-approved treatment or use at his oral request, unless the customs authorities consider, having regard to the circumstances, that a written request is required.

The taking of samples may be authorized only at the written request of the person concerned.

2. A written request as referred to in paragraph 1 shall be signed by the person concerned and lodged with the relevant customs authorities. It shall include the following particulars:

• name and address of the applicant,

• the location of the goods,

• number of the summary declaration, where it has already been presented, save where the customs office undertakes to enter such information, or indication of the previous customs procedure, or the particulars for identifying the means of transport on which the goods are located,

• all other particulars necessary for identifying the goods.

The customs authorities shall indicate their authorization on the request presented by the person concerned. Where the request is for the taking of samples, the said authorities shall indicate the quantity of goods to be taken.

3. Prior examination of goods and the taking of samples shall be carried out under the supervision of the customs authorities, which shall specify the procedures to be followed in each particular case.

The person concerned shall bear the risk and the cost of unpacking, weighing, repacking and any other operation involving the goods. He shall also pay any costs in connection with analysis.

4. The samples taken shall be the subject of formalities with a view to assigning them a customs-approved treatment or use. Where examination of the samples results in their destruction or irretrievable loss, no debt shall be deemed to have been incurred. Article 182 (5) of the Code shall apply to waste and scrap.

CHAPTER 2 Summary declaration

Article 183

1. The summary declaration shall be signed by the person making it.

2. The summary declaration shall be endorsed by the customs authorities and retained by them for the purpose of verifying that the goods to which it relates are assigned a customs-approved treatment or use within the period laid down in Article 49 of the Code.

3. The summary declaration for goods which have been moved under a transit procedure before being presented to customs shall take the form of the copy of the transit document intended for the customs office of destination.

4. The customs authorities may allow the summary declaration to be made in computerized form. In that case, the rules laid down in paragraph 2 shall be adapted accordingly.

Article 184

1. Goods covered by a summary declaration which have not been unloaded from the means of transport carrying them shall be re-presented intact by the person referred to in Article 183 (1) whenever the customs authorities so require, until such time as the goods in question are assigned a customs-approved treatment or use.

2. Any person who holds goods after they have been unloaded in order to move or store them shall become responsible for compliance with the obligation to re-present all the goods intact at the request of the customs authorities.

CHAPTER 3 Temporary storage

Article 185

1. Where the places referred to in Article 51 (1) of the Code have been approved on a permanent basis for the placing of goods in temporary storage, such places shall be called ‘temporary storage facilities’.

2. In order to ensure the application of customs rules, the customs authorities may, where they do not themselves manage the temporary storage facility, require that:

(a) temporary storage facilities be double-locked, one key being held by the said customs authorities;

(b) the person operating the temporary storage facility keep stock accounts which enable the movements of goods to be traced.

Article 186

Goods shall be placed in a temporary storage facility on the basis of the summary declaration. However, the customs authorities may require the lodging of a specific declaration made out on a form corresponding to the model they have determined.

Article 187

Without prejudice to Article 56 of the Code or to the provisions applicable to the sale of goods by the customs authorities, the person who has made the summary declaration or, where such a declaration has not yet been lodged, the persons referred to in Article 44 (2) of the Code, shall be responsible for giving effect to the measures taken by the customs authorities pursuant to Article 53 (1) of the Code and for bearing the costs of such measures.

Article 188

Where the customs authorities sell the goods in accordance with Article 53 of the Code, this shall be done in accordance with the rules in force in the Member States.

CHAPTER 4 Special provisions applicable to goods consigned by sea or air

Section 1 General provision

Article 189

Where goods are brought into the customs territory of the Community from a third country by sea or air and are consigned under cover of a single transport document by the same mode of transport, without transhipment, to another port or airport in the Community, they shall be presented to customs, within the meaning of Article 40 of the Code, only at the port or airport where they are unloaded or transhipped.

Section 2 Special provisions applicable to the cabin baggage and hold baggage of travellers

Article 190

For the purposes of this section:

(a)

Community airport means any airport situated in Community customs territory;

(b)

international Community airport means any Community airport which, having been so authorized by the competent authorities, is approved for air traffic with third countries;

(c)

intra-Community flight means the movement of an aircraft between two Community airports, without any stopovers, which does not start from or end at a non-Community airport;

(d)

Community port means any sea port situated in Community customs territory;

(e)

intra-Community sea crossing means the movement between two Community ports without any intermediate calls, of a vessel plying regularly between two or more specified Community ports;

(f)

pleasure craft means private boats intended for journeys whose itinerary depends on the wishes of the user;

(g)

tourist or business aircraft means private aircraft intended for journeys whose itinerary depends on the wishes of the user;

(h)

baggage means all objects carried, by whatever means, by the person in the course of his journey.

Article 191

For the purposes of this section, in the case of air travel, baggage shall be considered as:

• hold baggage if it has been checked in at the airport of departure and is not accessible to the person during the flight nor, where relevant, during the stopovers referred to in Articles 192 (1) and (2) and 194 (1) and (2) of this chapter,

• cabin baggage if the person takes it into the cabin of the aircraft.

Article 192

Any controls and any formalities applicable to:

1.

the cabin and hold baggage of persons taking a flight in an aircraft which comes from a non-Community airport and which, after a stopover at a Community airport, continues to another Community airport, shall be carried out at this last airport provided it is an international Community airport; in this case, baggage shall be subject to the rules applicable to the baggage of persons coming from a third country when the person carrying such baggage cannot prove the Community status of the goods contained therein to the satisfaction of the competent authorities;

2.

the cabin and hold baggage of persons taking a flight in an aircraft which stops over at a Community airport before continuing to a non-Community airport, shall be carried out at the airport of departure provided it is an international Community airport; in this case, cabin baggage may be subject to control at the Community airport where the aircraft stops over, in order to ascertain that the goods it contains conform to the conditions for free movement within the Community;

3.

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-Community port shall be carried out at the port at which the baggage in question is loaded or unloaded as the case may be.

Article 193

Any controls and any formalities applicable to the baggage of persons on board:

1.

pleasure craft, shall be carried out in any Community port, whatever the origin or destination of these craft;

2.

tourist or business aircraft, shall be carried out:

• at the first airport of arrival which must be an international Community airport, for flights coming from a non-Community airport, where the aircraft, after a stopover, continues to another Community airport,

• at the last international Community airport, for flights coming from a Community airport where the aircraft, after a stopover, continues to a non-Community airport.

Article 194

1. Where baggage arriving at a Community airport on board an aircraft coming from a non-Community airport is transferred at that Community airport, to another aircraft proceeding on an intra-Community flight:

• any controls and any formalities applicable to hold baggage shall be carried out at the airport of arrival of the intra-Community flight, provided the latter airport is an international Community airport,

• all controls on cabin baggage shall be carried out in the first international Community airport; additional controls may be carried out at the airport of arrival of an intra-Community flight, only in exceptional cases where they prove necessary following controls on hold baggage,

• controls on hold baggage may be carried out at the first Community airport only in exceptional cases where they prove necessary following controls on cabin baggage.

2. Where baggage is loaded at a Community airport onto an aircraft proceeding on an intra-Community flight for transfer at another Community airport, to an aircraft whose destination is a non-Community airport:

• any controls and any formalities applicable to hold baggage shall be carried out at the airport of departure of the intra-Community flight, provided that airport is an international Community airport,

• all controls on cabin baggage shall be carried out in the last international Community airport; prior controls on such baggage may be carried out in the airport of departure of an intra-Community flight only in exceptional cases where they prove necessary following controls on hold baggage,

• additional controls on hold baggage may be carried out in the last Community airport only in exceptional cases where they prove necessary following controls on cabin baggage.

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

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

5. The Member States may carry out controls at the international Community airport where the transfer of hold baggage takes place on baggage:

• coming from a non-Community airport and transferred in an international Community airport to an aircraft bound for an international airport in the same national territory,

• having been loaded on an aircraft in an international airport for transfer in another international airport in the same national territory to an aircraft bound for a non-Community airport.

Article 195

The Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that:

• on arrival, persons cannot transfer goods before controls have been carried out on the cabin baggage not covered by Article 1 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 3925/91(7),

• on departure, persons cannot transfer goods after controls have been carried out on the cabin baggage not covered by Article 1 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 3925/91,

• on arrival, the appropriate arrangements have been made to prevent any transfer of goods before controls have been carried out on the hold baggage not covered by Article 1 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 3925/91,

• on departure, the appropriate arrangements have been made to prevent any transfer of goods after controls have been carried out on the hold baggage not covered by Article 1 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 3925/91.

Article 196

Hold baggage registered in a Community airport shall be identified by a tag affixed in the airport concerned. A specimen tag and the technical characteristics are shown in Annex 30.

Article 197

Each Member State shall provide the Commission with a list of airports corresponding to the definition of ‘international Community airport’ given in Article 190 (b). The Commission shall publish this list in the Official Journal of the European Communities, C Series.

TITLE VII CUSTOMS DECLARATIONS — NORMAL PROCEDURE

CHAPTER 1 Customs declarations in writing

Section 1 General provisions

Article 198

1. Where a customs declaration covers two or more articles, the particulars relating to each article shall be regarded as constituting a separate declaration.

2. Component parts of industrial plant coming under a single CN Code shall be regarded as constituting a single item of goods.

Article 199

Without prejudice to the possible application of penal provisions, the lodging with a customs office of a declaration signed by the declarant or his representative shall render him responsible under the provisions in force for:

• the accuracy of the information given in the declaration,

• the authenticity of the documents attached,

  and

• compliance with all the obligations relating to the entry of the goods in question under the procedure concerned.

Article 200

Documents accompanying a declaration shall be kept by the customs authorities unless the said authorities provide otherwise or unless the declarant requires them for other operations. In the latter case the customs authorities shall take the necessary steps to ensure that the documents in question cannot subsequently be used except in respect of the quantity or value of goods for which they remain valid.

Article 201

1. The declaration shall be lodged with the customs office where the goods were presented. It may be lodged as soon as such presentation has taken place.

2. The customs authorities may authorize the declaration to be lodged before the declarant is in a position to present the goods. In this case, the customs authorities may set a time limit, to be determined according to the circumstances, for presentation of the goods. If the goods have not been presented within this time limit, the declaration shall be considered not to have been lodged.

3. Where a declaration has been lodged before the goods to which it relates have arrived at the customs office or at another place designated by the customs authorities, it may be accepted only after the goods in question have been presented to customs.

Article 202

1. The declaration shall be lodged with the competent customs office during the days and hours appointed for opening.

However, the customs authorities may, at the request of the declarant and at his expense, authorize the declaration to be lodged outside the appointed days and hours.

2. Any declaration lodged with the officials of a customs office in any other place duly designated for that purpose by agreement between the customs authorities and the person concerned shall be considered to have been lodged in the said office.

Article 203

The date of acceptance of the declaration shall be noted thereon.

Article 204

The customs authorities may allow or require the corrections referred to in Article 65 of the Code to be made by the lodging of a new declaration intended to replace the original declaration. In that event, the relevant date for determination of any duties payable and for the application of any other provisions governing the customs procedure in question shall be the date of the acceptance of the original declaration.

Section 2 Forms to be used

Article 205

1. The official model for written declarations to customs by the normal procedure, for the purposes of placing goods under a customs procedure or re-exporting them in accordance with Article 182 (3) of the Code, shall be the Single Administrative Document.

2. Other forms may be used for this purpose where the provisions of the customs procedure in question permit.

3. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not preclude:

• waiver of the written declaration prescribed in Articles 225 to 236 for release for free circulation, export or temporary importation,

• waiver by the Member States of the form referred to in paragraph 1 where the special provisions laid down in Articles 237 and 238 with regard to consignments by letter or parcel-post apply,

• use of special forms to facilitate the declaration in specific cases, where the customs authorites so permit,

• waiver by the. Member States of the form referred to in paragraph 1 in the case of existing or future agreements or arrangements concluded between the administrations of two or more Member States with a view to greater simplification of formalities in all or part of the trade between those Member States,

• use by the persons concerned of loading lists for the completion of Community transit formalities in the case of consignments composed of more than one kind of goods,

• printing of export, transit or import declarations and documents certifying the Community status of goods not being moved under internal Community transit procedure by means of official or private-sector data-processing systems, if necessary on plain paper, on conditions laid down by the Member States,

• provision by the Member States to the effect that where a computerized declaration-processing system is used, the declaration, within the meaning of paragraph 1, may take the form of the Single Administrative Document printed out by that system.

4. When formalities are completed using public or private computers which also print out the declarations, the customs authorities may provide that:

• the handwritten signature may be replaced by another identification technique which may be based on the use of codes and having the same legal consequences as a handwritten signature. This facility shall only be granted if the technical and administrative conditions laid down by the competent authorities are complied with,

• the declarations thus produced may be directly authenticated by those systems, in place of the manual or mechanical application of the customs office stamp and the signature of the comptetent official.

5. Where in Community legislation, reference is made to an export, re-export or import declaration or a declaration placing goods under another customs procedure, Member States may not require any administrative documents other than those which are:

• expressly created by Community acts or provided for by such acts,

• required under the terms of international conventions compatible with the Treaty,

• required from operators to enable them to qualify, at their request, for an advantage or specific facility,

• required, with due regard for the provisions of the Treaty, for the implementation of specific regulations which cannot be implemented solely by the use of the document referred to in paragraph 1.

Article 206

The Single Administrative Document form shall, where necessary, also be used during the transitional period laid down in the Act of Accession of Spain and Portugal in connection with trade between the Community as constituted on 31 December 1985 and Spain or Portugal and between those two last-mentioned Member States in goods still liable to certain customs duties and charges having equivalent effect or which remain subject to other measures laid down by the Act of Accession.

For the purposes of the first paragraph, copy 2 or where applicable copy 7 of the forms used for trade with Spain and Portugal or trade between those Member States shall be destroyed.

It shall also be used in trade in Community goods between parts of the customs territory of the Community to which the provisions of Council Directive 77/388/EEC(8) apply and parts of that territory where those provisions do not apply, or in trade between parts of that territory where those provisions do not apply.

Article 207

Without prejudice to Article 205 (3), the customs administrations of the Member States may in general, for the purpose of completing export or import formalities, dispense with the production of one or more copies of the Single Administrative Document intended for use by the authorities of that Member State, provided that the information in question is available on other media.

Article 208

1. The Single Administrative Document shall be presented in subsets containing the number of copies required for the completion of formalities relating to the customs procedure under which the goods are to be placed.

2. Where the Community transit procedure or the common transit procedure is preceded or followed by another customs procedure, a subset containing the number of copies required for the completion of formalities relating to the transit procedure and the preceding or following procedure may be presented.

3. The subsets referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be taken from:

• either the full set of eight copies, in accordance with the specimen contained in Annex 31,

• or, particularly in the event of production by means of a computerized system for processing declarations, two successive sets of four copies, in accordance with the specimen contained in Annex 32.

4. Without prejudice to Articles 205 (3), 222 to 224 or 254 to 289, the declaration forms may be supplemented, where appropriate, by one or more continuation forms presented in subsets containing the declaration copies needed to complete the formalities relating to the customs procedure under which the goods are to be placed. Those copies needed in order to complete the formalities relating to preceding or subsequent customs procedures may be attached where appropriate.

The continuation subsets shall be taken from:

• either a set of eight copies, in accordance with the specimen contained in Annex 33,

• or two sets of our copies, in accordance with the specimen contained in Annex 34.

The continuation forms shall be an integral part of the Single Administrative Document to which they relate.

5. By way of derogation from paragraph 4, the customs authorities may provide that continuation forms shall not be used where a computerized system is used to produce such declarations.

Article 209

1. Where Article 208 (2) is applied, each party involved shall be liable only as regards the particulars relating to the procedure for which he applied as declarant, principal or as the representative of one of these.

2. For the purposes of paragraph 1, where the declarant uses a Single Administrative Document issued during the preceding customs procedure, he shall be required, prior to lodging his declaration, to verify the accuracy of the existing particulars for the boxes for which he is responsible and their applicability to the goods in question and the procedure applied for, and to supplement them as necessary.

In the cases referred to in the first subparagraph, the declarant shall immediately inform the customs office where the declaration is lodged of any discrepancy found between the goods in question and the existing particulars. In this case the declarant shall then draw up his declaration on fresh copies of the Single Administrative Document.

Article 210

Where the Single Administrative Document is used to cover several successive customs procedures, the customs authorities shall satisfy themselves that the particulars given in the declarations relating to the various procedures in question all agree.

Article 211

The declaration must be drawn up in one of the official languages of the Community which is acceptable to the customs authorities of the Member State where the formalities are carried out.

If necessary, the customs authorities of the Member State of destination may require from the declarant or his representative in that Member State a translation of the declaration into the official language or one of the official languages of the latter. The translation shall replace the corresponding particulars in the declaration in question.

By way of derogation from the preceding subparagraph, the declaration shall be drawn up in an official language of the Community acceptable to the Member State of destination in all cases where the declaration in the latter Member State is made on copies other than those initially presented to the customs office of the Member State of departure.

Article 212

1. The Single Administrative Document must be completed in accordance with the explanatory note in Annex 37 and any additional rules laid down in other Community legislation.

2. The customs authorities shall ensure that users have ready access to copies of the explanatory note referred to in paragraph 1.

3. The customs administrations of each Member State may, if necessary, supplement the explanatory note.

Article 213

The codes to be used in completing the forms referred to in Article 205 (1) are listed in Annex 38.

Article 214

In cases where the rules require supplementary copies of the form referred to in Article 205 (1), the declarant may use additional sheets or photocopies of the said form for this purpose.

Such additional sheets or photocopies must be signed by the declarant, presented to the customs authorities and endorsed by the latter under the same conditions as the Single Administrative Document. They shall be accepted by the customs authorities as if they were original documents provided that their quality and legibility are considered satisfactory by the said authorities.

Article 215

1. The forms referred to in Article 205 (1) shall be printed on self-copying paper dressed for writing purposes and weighing at least 40 g/m². The paper must be sufficiently opaque for the information on one side not to affect the legibility of the information on the other side and its strength should be such that in normal use it does not easily tear or crease.

The paper shall be white for all copies. However, on the copies used for Community transit (1, 4, 5 and 7), boxes 1 (first and third subdivisions), 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 15, 17, 18, 19, 21, 25, 27, 31, 32, 33 (first subdivision on the left), 35, 38, 40, 44, 50, 51, 52, 53, 55 and 56 shall have a green background.

The forms shall be printed in green ink.

2. The boxes are based on a unit of measurement of one tenth of an inch horizontally and one sixth of an inch vertically. The subdivisions are based on a unit of measurement of one-tenth of an inch horizontally.

3. A colour marking of the different copies shall be effected in the following manner:

(a) on forms conforming to the specimens shown in Annexes 31 and 33:

• (a) copies 1, 2, 3 and 5 shall have at the right hand edge a continuous margin, coloured respectively red, green, yellow and blue,

• copies 4, 6, 7 and 8 shall have at the right hand edge a broken margin coloured respectively blue, red, green and yellow;

(b) on forms conforming to the specimens shown in Annexes 32 and 34, copies 1/6, 2/7, 3/8 and 4/5 shall have at the right hand edge a continuous margin and to the right of this a broken margin coloured respectively red, green, yellow and blue.

The width of these margins shall be approximately 3 mm. The broken margin shall comprise a series of squares with a side measurement of 3 mm each one separated by 3 mm.

4. The copies on which the particulars contained in the forms shown in Annexes 31 and 33 must appear by a self-copying process are shown in Annex 35.

The copies on which the particulars contained in the forms shown in Annexes 32 and 34 must appear by a self-copying process are shown in Annex 36.

5. The forms shall measure 210 × 297 mm with a maximum tolerance as to length of 5 mm less and 8 mm more.

6. The customs administrations of the Member States may require that the forms show the name and address of the printer or a mark enabling the printer to be identified. They may also make the printing of the forms conditional on prior technical approval.

Section 3 Particulars required according to the customs procedure concerned

Article 216

1. The maximum list of boxes to be used for declarations of entry for a particular customs procedure using the Single Administrative Document is contained in Annex 37.

2. Annex 37 also contains the minimum list of boxes to be used of declarations of entry for a particular customs procedure.

Article 217

The particulars required when one of the forms referred to in Article 205 (2) is used depend on the form in question. They shall be supplemented where appropriate by the provisions relating to the customs procedure in question.

Section 4 Documents to accompany the customs declaration

Article 218

1. The following documents shall accompany the customs declaration for release for free circulation:

(a) the invoice on the basis of which the customs value of the goods is declared, as required under Article 181;

(b) where it is required under Article 178, the declaration of particulars for the assessment of the customs value of the goods declared, drawn up in accordance with the conditions laid down in the said Article;

(c) the documents required for the application of preferential tariff arrangements or other measures derogating from the legal rules applicable to the goods declared;

(d) all other documents required for the application of the provisions governing the release for free circulation of the goods declared.

2. The customs authorities may require transport documents or documents relating to the previous customs procedure, as appropriate, to be produced when the declaration is lodged.

Where a single item is presented in two or more packages, they may also require the production of a packing list or equivalent document indicating the contents of each package.

3. However, where goods qualify for duties under Article 81 of the Code, the documents referred to in paragraph 1 (b) and (c) need not be required.

In addition, where goods qualify for relief from import duty, the documents referred to in paragraph 1 (a), (b) and (c) need not be required unless the customs authorities consider it necessary for the purposes of applying the provisions governing the release of the goods in question for free circulation.

Article 219

1. The transit declaration shall be accompanied by the transport document. The office of departure may dispense with the presentation of this document at the time of completion of the formalities. However, the transport document shall be presented at the request of the customs office or any other competent authority in the course of transport.

2. Without prejudice to any applicable simplification measures, the customs document of export/dispatch or re-exportation of the goods from the customs territory of the Community or any document of equivalent effect shall be presented to the office of departure with the transit declaration to which it relates.

3. The customs authorities may, where appropriate, require production of the document relating to the preceding customs procedure.

Article 220

1. The documents to accompany the declaration of entry for a customs procedure with economic impact, except for the outward processing procedure, shall be as follows:

(a) the documents laid down in Article 218, except in cases of entry for the customs warehousing procedure in a warehouse other than type D;

(b) the authorization for the customs procedure in question or a copy of the application for authorization where the second subparagraph of Article 556 (1) applies, except in cases of entry for the customs warehousing procedure or where Articles 568 (3), 656 (3) or 695 (3) apply.

2. The documents to accompany the declaration of entry for the outward processing procedure shall be as follows:

(a) the documents laid down in Article 221;

(b) the authorization for the procedure or a copy of the application for authorization where the second subparagraph of Article 751 (1) applies, except where Article 760 (2) applies.

3. Article 218 (2) shall apply to declarations of entry for any customs procedure with economic impact.

4. The customs authorities may allow the documents referred to in paragraphs 1 (b) and 2 (b) to be kept at their disposal instead of accompanying the declaration.

Article 221

1. The export or re-export declaration shall be accompanied by all documents necessary for the correct application of export duties and of the provisions governing the export of the goods in question.

2. Article 218 (2) shall apply to export or re-export declarations.

CHAPTER 2 Computerized customs declarations

Article 222

1. The customs authorities may authorize the declarant to replace all or part of the particulars of the written declaration referred to in Annex 37 by sending to the customs office designated for that purpose, with a view to their processing by computer, codified data, or data made out in any other form specified by those authorities, corresponding to the particulars required for written declarations.

2. The customs authorities shall determine the conditions under which the data referred to in paragraph 1 are to be sent.

Article 223

The customs authorities may authorize the use of computers, inter alia, as follows:

• they may stipulate that the data necessary for completing the formalities in question shall be entered in their computerized declaration-processing systems, without a written declaration being required,

• they may provide that the declaration within the meaning of Article 205 (1) shall be constituted by entry of the data in the computer if a document corresponding to a declaration is not produced.

Article 224

1. When formalities are completed using public or private computer systems, the customs authorities shall authorize persons who so request to replace the handwritten signature with a comparable identification device, which may be based on the use of codes, and which has the same legal consequences as a handwritten signature.

2. The customs authorities may authorize the persons concerned to make out and transmit by computer in whole or in part the supporting documents referred to in Articles 218 to 221.

3. The facilities referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be granted only if the technical and administrative conditions laid down by the customs authorities are met.

CHAPTER 3 Customs declarations made orally or by any other act

Section 1 Oral declarations

Article 225

Customs declarations may be made orally for the release for free circulation of the following goods:

(a)

goods of a non-commercial nature:

• contained in travellers' personal luggage, or

• sent to private individuals, or

• in other cases of negligible importance, where this is authorized by the customs authorities;

(b)

goods of a commercial nature provided:

• the total value per consignment and per declarant does not exceed the statistical threshold laid down in the Community provisions in force, and

• the consignment is not part of a regular series of similar consignments, and

• the goods are not being carried by an independent carrier as part of a larger freight movement;

(c)

the goods referred to in Article 229, where these qualify for relief as returned goods;

(d)

the goods referred to in Article 230 (b) and (c).

Article 226

Customs declarations may be made orally for the export of:

(a)

goods of a non-commercial nature:

• contained in travellers' personal luggage, or

• sent by private individuals;

(b)

the goods referred to in Article 225 (b);

(c)

the goods referred to in Article 231 (b) and (c);

(d)

other goods in cases of negligible economic importance, where this is authorized by the customs authorities.

Article 227

1. The customs authorities may provide that Articles 225 and 226 shall not apply where the person clearing the goods is acting on behalf of another person in his capacity as customs agent.

2. Where the customs authorities are not satisfied that the particulars declared are accurate or that they are complete, they may require a written declaration.

Article 228

Where goods declared to customs orally in accordance with Articles 225 and 226 are subject to import or export duty the customs authorities shall issue a receipt to the person concerned against payment of the duty owing.

Article 229

1. Customs declarations may be made orally for the temporary importation of the following goods, in accordance with the conditions laid down in Article 696:

• (a) animals and equipment listed in Article 685,

• packings listed in Article 679,

• radio and television production and broadcasting equipment and vehicles specially adapted for use for the above purpose and their equipment imported by public or private organizations establised outside the customs territory of the Community and approved by the customs authorities issuing the authorization for the procedure to import such equipment and vehicles,

• instruments and apparatus necessary for doctors to provide assistance for patients awaiting an organ transplant pursuant to Article 671 (2) (c);

(b) the goods referred to in Article 232;

(c) other goods, where this is authorized by the customs authorities.

2. The goods referred to in paragraph 1 may also be the subject of an oral declaration for re-exportation discharging a temporary importation procedure.

Section 2 Customs declarations made by any other act

Article 230

The following, where not expressly declared to customs, shall be considered to have been declared for release for free circulation by the act referred to in Article 233:

(a)

goods of a non-commercial nature contained in travellers' personal luggage entitled to relief either under Chapter I, Title XI of Council Regulation (EEC) No 918/83(9), or as returned goods;

(b)

goods entitled to relief under Chapter I, Titles IX and X of Council Regulation (EEC) No 918/83;

(c)

means of transport entitled to relief as returned goods;

(d)

goods imported in the context of traffic of negligible importance and exempted from the requirement to be conveyed to a customs office in accordance with Article 38 (4) of the Code, provided they are not subject to import duty.

Article 231

The following, where not expressly declared to customs, shall be considered to have been declared for export by the act referred to in Article 233 (b):

(a)

goods of a non-commercial nature not liable for export duty contained in travellers' personal luggage;

(b)

means of transport registered in the customs territory of the Community and intended to be re-imported;

(c)

goods referred to in Chapter II of Council Regulation (EEC) No 918/83;

(d)

other goods in cases of negligible economic importance, where this is authorized by the customs authorities.

Article 232

1. The following, where not declared to customs in writing or orally, shall be considered to have been declared for temporary importation by the act referred to in Article 233, in accordance with Articles 698 and 735:

(a) travellers' personal effects and goods imported for sports purposes listed in Article 684;

(b) the means of transport listed in Articles 718 to 725.

2. Where they are not declared to customs in writing or orally, the goods referred to in paragraph 1 shall be considered to have been declared for re-exportation discharging the temporary importation procedure by the act referred to in Article 233.

Article 233

For the purposes of Articles 230 to 232, the act which is considered to be a customs declaration may take the following forms:

(a)

in the case of goods conveyed to a customs office or to any other place designated or approved in accordance with Article 38 (1) (a) of the Code:

• going through the green or ‘nothing to declare’ channel in customs offices where the two-channel system is in operation,

• going through a customs office which does not operate the two-channel system without spontaneously making a customs declaration;

• affixing a ‘nothing to declare’ sticker or customs declaration disc to the windscreen of passenger vehicles where this possibility is provided for in national provisions;

(b)

in the case of exemption from the obligation to convey goods to customs in accordance with the provisions implementing Article 38 (4) of the Code, in the case of export in accordance with Article 231 and in the case of re-exportation in accordance with Article 232 (2):

• the sole act of crossing the frontier of the customs territory of the Community.

Article 234

1. Where the conditions of Articles 230 to 232 are fulfilled, the goods shall be considered to have been presented to customs within the meaning of Article 63 of the Code, the declaration to have been accepted and release to have been granted, at the time when the act referred to in Article 233 is carried out.

2. Where a check reveals that the act referred to in Article 233 has been carried out but the goods imported or taken out do not fulfil the conditions in Articles 230 to 232, the goods concerned shall be considered to have been imported or exported unlawfully.

Section 3 Provisions common to Sections 1 and 2

Article 235

The provisions of Articles 225 to 232 shall not apply to goods in respect of which the payment of refunds or other amounts or the repayment of duties is sought, or which are subject to a prohibition or restriction or to any other special formality.

Article 236

For the purposes of Sections 1 and 2, ‘traveller’ means:

A.

on import:

1.

any person temporarily entering the customs territory of the Community, not normally resident there, and

2.

any person returning to the customs territory of the Community where he is normally resident, after having been temporarily in a third country;

B.

on export:

1.

any person temporarily leaving the customs territory of the Community where he is normally resident, and

2.

any person leaving the customs territory of the Community after a temporary stay, not normally resident there.

Section 4 Postal traffic

Article 237

1. The following postal consignments shall be considered to have been declared to customs:

A.

for release for free circulation:

(a)

at the time when they are introduced into the customs territory of the Community:

• postcards and letters containing personal messages only,

• braille letters,

• printed matter not liable for import duties, and

• all other consignments sent by letter or parcel post which are exempt from the obligation to be conveyed to customs in accordance with provisions pursuant to Article 38 (4) of the Code;

(b)

at the time when they are presented to customs:

• consignments sent by letter or parcel post other than those referred to at (a), provided they are accompanied by a C1 and/or C2/CP3 declaration;

B.

for export:

(a)

at the time when they are accepted by the postal authorities, in the case of consignments by letter and parcel post which are not liable to export duties;

(b)

at the time of their presentation to customs, in the case of consignments sent by letter or parcel post which are liable to export duties, provided they are accompanied by a C1 and/or a C2/CP3 declaration.

2. The consignee, in the cases referred to in paragraph 1A, and the consignor, in the cases referred to in paragraph 1B, shall be considered to be the declarant and, where applicable, the debtor. The customs authorities may provide that the postal administration shall be considered as the declarant and, where applicable, as the debtor.

3. For the purposes of paragraph 1, goods not liable to duty shall be considered to have been presented to customs within the meaning of Article 63 of the Code, the customs declaration to have been accepted and release granted:

(a) in the case of imports, when the goods are delivered to the consignee;

(b) in the case of exports, when the goods are accepted by the postal authorities.

4. Where a consignment sent by letter or parcel post which is not exempt from the obligation to be conveyed to customs in accordance with provisions pursuant to Article 38 (4) of the Code is presented without a C1 and/or C2/CP3 declaration or where such declaration is incomplete, the customs authorities shall determine the form in which the customs declaration is to be made or supplemented.

Article 238

Article 237 shall not apply:

• to consignments containing goods for commercial purposes of an aggregate value exceeding the statistical threshold laid down by the Community provisions in force; the customs authorities may lay down higher thresholds,

• to consignments containing goods for commercial purposes which form part of a regular series of like operations,

• where a customs declaration is made in writing, orally or using a data-processing technique,

• to consignments containing the goods referred to in Article 235.

TITLE VIII EXAMINATION OF THE GOODS, FINDINGS OF THE CUSTOMS OFFICE AND OTHER MEASURES TAKEN BY THE CUSTOMS OFFICE

Article 239

1. The goods shall be examined in the places designated and during the hours appointed for that purpose by the customs authorities.

2. However, the customs authorities may, at the request of the declarant, authorize the examination of goods in places or during hours other than those referred to in paragraph 1.

Any costs involved shall be borne by the declarant.

Article 240

1. Where the customs authorities elect to examine goods they shall so inform the declarant or his representative.

2. Where they decide to examine a pan of the goods only, the customs authorities shall inform the declarant or his representative which items they wish to examine. The customs authorities' choice shall be final.

Article 241

1. The declarant or the person designated by him to be present at the examination of the goods shall render the customs authorities the assistance required to facilitate their work. Should the customs authorities consider the assistance rendered unsatisfactory, they may require the declarant to designate another person able to give the necessary assistance.

2. Where the declarant refuses to be present at the examination of the goods or to designate a person able to give the assistance which the customs authorities consider necessary, the said authorities shall set a deadline for compliance, unless they consider that such an examination may be dispensed with.

If, on expiry of the deadline, the declarant has not complied with the requirements of the customs authorities, the latter, for the purpose of applying Article 75 (a) of the Code, shall proceed with the examination of the goods, at the declarant's risk and expense, calling if necessary on the services of an expert or any other person designated in accordance with the provisions in force.

3. The findings made by the customs authorities during the examination carried out under the conditions referred to in the preceding paragraph shall have the same validity as if the examination had been carried out in the presence of the declarant.

4. Instead of the measures laid down in paragraphs 2 and 3, the customs authorities shall have the option of deeming a declaration invalid where it is clear that the declarant's refusal to be present at the examination of the goods or to designate a person able to give the necessary assistance neither prevents, nor seeks to prevent, those authorities from finding that the rules governing the entry of the goods for the customs procedure concerned have been breached, and neither evades, nor seeks to evade, the provisions of Article 66 (1) or Article 80 (2) of the Code.

Article 242

1. Where the customs authorities decide to take samples, they shall so inform the declarant or his representative.

2. Samples shall be taken by the customs authorities themselves. However, they may ask that this be done under their supervision by the declarant or a person designated by him.

Samples shall be taken in accordance with the methods laid down in the provisions in force.

3. The quantities taken as samples should not exceed what is needed for analysis or more detailed examination, including possible check analysis.

Article 243

1. The declarant or the person designated by him to be present at the taking of samples shall render the customs authorities all the assistance needed to facilitate the operation.

2. Where the declarant refuses to be present at the taking of samples or to designate a person to attend, or where he fails to render the customs authorities all the assistance needed to facilitate the operation, the provisions of Article 241 (1), (2) and (3) shall apply.

Article 244

Where the customs authorities take samples for analysis or more detailed examination, they shall authorize the release of the goods in question without waiting for the results of the analysis or examination, unless there are other grounds for not doing so, and provided that, where a customs debt has been or is likely to be incurred, the duties in question have already been entered in the accounts and paid or secured.

Article 245

1. The quantities taken by the customs office as samples shall not be deducted from the quantity declared.

2. Where an export or outward processing declaration is concerned, the declarant shall be authorized, where circumstances permit, to replace the quantities of goods taken as samples by identical goods, in order to make up the consignment.

Article 246

1. Unless destroyed by the analysis or more detailed examination, the samples taken shall be returned to the declarant at his request and expense once they no longer need to be kept by the customs authorities, in particular after all the declarant's means of appeal against the decision taken by the customs authorities on the basis of the results of that analysis or more detailed examination have been exhausted.

2. Where the declarant does not ask for samples to be returned, they may either be destroyed or kept by the customs authorities. In specific cases, however, the customs authorities may require the declarant to remove any samples that remain.

Article 247

1. Where the customs authorities verify the declarations and accompanying documents or examine the goods, they shall indicate, at least in the copy of the declaration retained by the said authorities, or in a document attached thereto, the basis and results of any such verification or examination. In the case of partial examination of the goods, particulars of the consignment examined shall also be given.

Where appropriate, the customs authorities shall also indicate in the declaration that the declarant or his representative was absent.

2. Should the result of the verification of the declaration and accompanying documents or examination of the goods not be in accordance with the particulars given in the declaration, the customs authorities shall specify, at least in the copy of the declaration retained by the said authorities, or in a document attached thereto, the particulars to be taken into account for the purposes of the application of charges on the goods in question and, where appropriate, calculating any refunds or other amounts payable on exportation, and for applying the other provisions governing the customs procedure for which the goods are entered.

3. The findings of the customs authorities shall indicate, where appropriate, the means of identification adopted. They shall be dated and bear the particulars needed to identify the official issuing them.

4. Where the customs authorities neither verify the declaration nor examine the goods, they need not endorse the declaration or attached document referred to in paragraph 1.

Article 248

1. The granting of release shall give rise to the entry in the accounts of the import duties determined according to the particulars in the declaration. Where the customs authorities consider that the checks which they have undertaken may enable an amount of customs duties higher than that resulting from the particulars made in the declaration to be assessed, they shall further require the lodging of a security sufficient to cover the difference between the amount according to the particulars in the declaration and the amount which may finally be payable on the goods. However, the declarant may request the immediate entry in the accounts of the amount of duties to which the goods may ultimately be liable instead of lodging this security.

2. Where, on the basis of the checks which they have carried out, the customs authorities assess an amount of import duties different from the amount which results from the particulars in the declaration, the release of the goods shall give rise to the immediate entry in the accounts of the amount thus assessed.

3. Where the customs authorities have doubts about whether or not a prohibition or restriction applies and this cannot be resolved until the results of the checks the authorities have carried out are available, the goods in question cannot be released.

Article 249

1. The customs authorities shall determine the form of release, taking due account of the place in which the goods are located and of the special arrangements for their supervision.

2. Where the declaration is made in writing, a reference to the release and its date shall be made on the declaration or, where applicable, a document attached, and a copy shall be returned to the declarant.

Article 250

1. Where the customs authorities have been unable to grant release for one of the reasons specified in the second or third indent of Article 75 (a) of the Code, they shall give the declarant a time limit to regularize the situation of the goods.

2. Where, in the circumstances referred to in the second indent of Article 75 (a) of the Code, the declarant has not produced the requisite documents within the time limit referred to in paragraph 1, the declaration in question shall be deemed invalid and the customs office shall cancel it. The provisions of Article 66 (3) of the Code shall apply.

3. In the circumstances referred to in the third indent of Article 75 (a) of the Code, and without prejudice to any measures taken under the first subparagraph of Article 66 (1) or Article 182 of the Code, where the declarant has neither paid nor guaranteed the duties due within the time limit referred to in paragraph 1, the customs authorities may start the preliminary formalities for the sale of the goods. In this case the goods shall be sold unless the requisite conditions have been fulfilled in the interim, if necessary by forced sale where the law of the Member State of the authorities in question so permits. The customs authorities shall inform the declarant thereof.

The customs authorities may, at the risk and expense of the declarant, transfer the goods in question to special premises under their supervision.

Article 251

By way of derogation from Article 66 (2) of the Code, a customs declaration may be invalidated after the goods have been released, as provided below:

1.

where it is established that the goods have been declared in error for a customs procedure entailing the payment of import duties instead of being placed under another customs procedure, the customs authorities shall invalidate the declaration if a request to that effect is made within three months of the date of acceptance of the declaration provided that:

• any use of the goods has not contravened the conditions of the customs procedure under which they should have been placed,

• when the goods were declared, they were intended to be placed under another customs procedure, all the requirements of which they fulfilled, and

• the goods are immediately entered for the customs procedure for which they were actually intended.

The declaration placing the goods under the latter customs procedure shall take effect from the date of acceptance of the invalidated declaration.

The customs authorities may permit the three-month period to be exceeded in duly substantiated exceptional cases;

2.

where the goods have been declared for export or for the outward processing procedure, the declaration shall be invalidated provided that:

(a)

in the case of goods which are subject to export duty, to an application for the repayment of import duty, to refunds or other export amounts or to other special measures on export:

• the declarant provides the customs office of export with evidence that the goods have not left the customs territory of the Community,

• the declarant returns to the said office all copies of the customs declaration, together with any other documents issued to him on acceptance of the declaration,

• the declarant provides the customs office of export with evidence that any refunds and other amounts granted on the strength of the export declaration for the goods in question have been repaid or that the necessary measures have been taken by the departments concerned to ensure that they are not paid, and

• the declarant, in accordance with the provisions in force, complies with any other obligations laid down by the customs office of export to regularize the position of the goods.

Invalidation of the declaration shall entail cancellation of any adjustments made on an export licence or advance-fixing certificate presented in support of the declaration.

Where the goods declared for export are required to leave the customs territory of the Community by a specified time limit, failure to comply with that time limit shall entail invalidation of the relevant declaration;

(b)

in the case of other goods, the customs office of export has been informed in accordance with Article 796 that the goods declared have not left the customs territory of the Community.

3.

In so far as the re-export of the goods entails the lodging of a declaration, (2) above shall apply mutatis mutandis.

4.

Where Community goods have been placed under the customs warehousing procedure within the meaning of Article 98 (1) (b) of the Code, invalidation of the declaration of entry for that procedure may be requested and effected provided that the measures provided for in the relevant legislation in the event of failure to comply with the treatment or use prescribed have been taken.

If, on the expiry of the period laid down for the goods to remain under the customs warehousing procedure, no application has been made for their assignment to a treatment or use provided for in the relevant legislation, the customs authorities shall take the measures provided for in that legislation.

Article 252

Where the customs authorities sell the goods pursuant to Article 75 of the Code, this shall be done in accordance with Article 188.

TITLE IX SIMPLIFIED PROCEDURES

CHAPTER 1 Definitions

Article 253

1. The procedure for incomplete declarations shall allow the customs authorities to accept, in a duly justified case, a declaration which does not contain all the particulars required, or which is not accompanied by all documents necessary for the customs procedure in question.

2. The simplified declaration procedure shall enable goods to be entered for the customs procedure in question on presentation of a simplified declaration with subsequent presentation of a supplementary declaration which may be of a general, periodic or recapulative nature, as appropriate.

3. The local clearance procedure shall enable the entry of goods for the customs procedure in question to be carried out at the premises of the person concerned or at other places designated or approved by the customs authorities.

CHAPTER 2 Declarations for release for free circulation

Section 1 Incomplete declarations

Article 254

Declarations for release for free circulation which the customs authorities may accept, at the declarant's request, without their containing certain of the particulars referred to in Annex 37 shall contain at least the particulars referred to in Box 1 (first and second subdivisions), 14, 21, 31, 37, 40 and 54 of the Single Administrative Document and:

• a description of the goods in terms that are sufficiently precise to enable the customs authorities to determine immediately and unambiguously the combined nomenclature heading or subheading concerned,

• where the goods are liable to ad valorem duties, their value for customs purposes, or, where it appears that the declarant is not in a position to declare this value, a provisional indication of value which is considered acceptable by the customs authorities, due account being taken in particular of the information available to the declarant,

• any further particulars considered necessary by the customs authorities in order to identify the goods, implement the provisions governing their release for free circulation and determine the amount of any security required before the goods may be released.

Article 255

1. Declarations for release for free circulation which the customs authorities may accept at the declarant's request without their being accompanied by certain of the necessary supporting documents shall be accompanied at least by those documents which must be produced before the goods declared can be released for free circulation.

2. By way of derogation from paragraph 1, a declaration not accompanied by one or more of the documents required before the goods can be released for free circulation may be accepted once it is established to the satisfaction of the customs authorities that:

(a) the document concerned exists and is valid;

(b) it could not be annexed to the declaration for reasons beyond the declarant's control;

(c) any delay in accepting the declaration would prevent the release of the goods for free circulation or make them liable to a higher rate of duty.

Data relating to missing documents shall in all cases be indicated in the declaration.

Article 256

1. The period allowed by the customs authorities to the declarant for the communication of particulars or production of documents missing at the time when the declaration was accepted may not exceed one month from the date of such acceptance.

In the case of a document required for the application of a reduced or zero rate of import duty, where the customs authorities have good reason to believe that the goods covered by the incomplete declaration may qualify for such reduced or zero rate of duty, a further period may, at the declarant's request, be allowed for the production of the document in question. Such additional period may not exceed three months.

Where the missing particulars to be communicated or documents to be supplied concern customs value, the customs authorities may, where this proves absolutely necessary, set a longer time limit or extend the period previously set. The total period allowed shall take account of the prescribed periods in force.

2. Where a reduced or zero rate of import duty is applicable to goods released for free circulation only within certain tariff quotas or ceilings, the goods may be charged against the authorized limits only when the document on which the granting of the reduced or zero rate is conditional is actually produced. The document must in any case be produced:

• before the date on which a Community measure re-establishes the levying of normal import duties, in the case of tariff ceilings,

• before the limits laid down have been reached, in the case of tariff quotas.

3. Subject to paragraphs 1 and 2, the document on whose presentation the granting of the reduced or zero rate of import duty is conditional may be produced after the expiry date of the period for which the reduced or zero rate was set, provided the declaration in respect of the goods in question was accepted before that date.

Article 257

1. The customs authorities' acceptance of an incomplete declaration shall not prevent or delay the release of the goods thus declared, unless other grounds exist for so doing. Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 248, release shall take place in accordance with the conditions laid down in paragraphs 2 to 5 below.

2. Where the late production of particulars or of a supporting document missing at the time when a declaration is accepted cannot affect the amount of duties to which the goods covered by the said declaration are liable, the customs authorities shall immediately enter in the accounts the sum payable, calculated in the usual manner.

3. Where, pursuant to Article 254, a declaration contains a provisional indication of value, the customs authorities shall:

• enter immediately in the accounts the amount of duties determined on the basis of this indication,

• require, if necessary, the lodging of a security adequate to cover the difference between that amount and the amount to which the goods may ultimately be liable.

4. Where, in circumstances other than those referred to in paragraph 3, the late production of particulars or of a supporting document missing at the time when a declaration is accepted may affect the amount of duties to which the goods covered by the said declaration are liable:

(a) if late production of any missing particulars or document may lead to the application of duty at a reduced rate, the customs authorities shall:

• (a) immediately enter in the accounts the import duties payable at the reduced rate,

• require the lodging of a security covering the difference between that sum and the sum which would be payable were the import duties on the goods in question calculated at the normal rate;

(b) if the late production of any missing particulars or document may lead to admission of the goods with total relief from duties, the customs authorities shall require the lodging of a security covering the amount which would be payable were the duties charged at the normal rate.

5. Without prejudice to any subsequent changes which may arise, particularly as a result of the final determination of the customs value, the declarant shall have the option, instead of lodging a security, of requesting the immediate entry in the accounts:

• where the second indent of paragraph 3 or the second indent of paragraph 4 (a) applies, of the amount of duties to which the goods may ultimately be liable, or

• where paragraph 4 (b) applies, of the amount of duties calculated at the normal rate.

Article 258

If, at the expiry of the period referred to in Article 256, the declarant has not supplied the details necessary for the final determination of the customs value of the goods, or has failed to provide the missing particulars or documents, the customs authorities shall immediately enter in the accounts as duties to which the goods in question are subject the amount of the security provided in accordance with the provisions of the second indent of Article 257 (3), the second indent of Article 257 (4) (a) or Article 257 (4) (b).

Article 259

An incomplete declaration accepted under the conditions set out in Articles 254 to 257 may be either completed by the declarant or, by agreement with the customs authorities, replaced by another declaration which complies with the conditions laid down in Article 62 of the Code.

In both cases, the operative date for the fixing of any duties and the application of other provisions governing the release of goods for free circulation shall be the date of acceptance of the incomplete declaration.

Section 2 Simplified declaration procedure

Article 260

1. The declarant shall, upon written request containing all the necessary information, be authorized in accordance with the conditions and in the manner laid down in Articles 261 and 262, to make the declaration for release for free circulation in a simplified form when goods are presented to customs.

2. Such simplified declaration may be in the form

• either of an incomplete declaration on a Single-Administrative Document, or

• of an administrative or commercial document, accompanied by a request for release for free circulation.

It shall contain at least the particulars necessary for identification of the goods.

3. Where circumstances permit, the customs authorities may allow the request for release for free circulation referred to in the second indent of paragraph 2 to be replaced by a general request in respect of release operations to take place over a given period. A reference to the authorization granted in response to such general request shall be entered on the commercial or administrative document presented pursuant to paragraph 1.

4. The simplified declaration shall be accompanied by all documents the production of which may be required to secure the release of the goods for free circulation. Article 255 (2) shall apply.

5. This Article shall be without prejudice to Article 278.

Article 261

1. The authorization referred to in Article 260 shall be granted to the declarant on condition that it is possible to guarantee an effective check on compliance with import prohibitions or restrictions or other provisions governing release for free circulation.

2. Such authorization shall in principle be refused where the person who has made the request:

• has committed a serious infringement or repeated infringements of customs rules,

• declares goods for release for free circulation only occasionally.

It may be refused where the person in question is acting on behalf of another person who declares goods for release for free circulation only occasionally.

3. Without prejudice to Article 9 of the Code, the authorization may be revoked where the cases referred to in paragraph 2 arise.

Article 262

1. The authorization referred to in Article 260 shall:

• designate the customs office(s) competent to accept simplified declarations,

• specify the form and content of the simplified declarations,

• specify the goods to which it applies and the particulars which must appear on the simplified declaration for the purposes of identifying the goods,

• make reference to the security to be provided by the person concerned to cover any customs debt which may arise.

It shall also specify the form and content of the supplementary declarations, and shall set the time limits within which they must be lodged with the customs authority designated for this purpose.

2. The customs authorities may waive the presentation of the supplementary declaration where the simplified declaration concerns goods the value of which is below the statistical threshold laid down by the Community provisions in force and the simplified declaration already contains all the information needed for release for free circulation.

Section 3 Local clearance procedure

Article 263

Authorization to use the local clearance procedure shall be granted in accordance with the conditions and in the manner laid down in Articles 264 to 266 to any person wishing to have goods released for free circulation at his premises or at the other places referred to in Article 253 and who submits to the customs authorities a written request to this end containing all the particulars necessary for the grant of the authorization:

• in respect of goods subject either to the Community or common transit procedure and for which the person referred to above is authorized to use the simplified procedures to be carried out at the office of destination in accordance with Articles 406 to 409,

• in respect of goods previously placed under a customs procedure with economic impact, without prejudice to Article 278,

• in respect of goods which, after having been presented to customs pursuant to Article 40 of the Code, are consigned to those premises or places in accordance with a transit procedure other than that referred to in the first indent,

• in respect of goods which are brought into the customs territory of the Community with an exemption from the requirement that they be presented to customs, pursuant to Article 41 (b) of the Code.

Article 264

1. The authorization referred to in Article 263 shall be granted provided that:

• the applicant's records enable the customs authorities to carry out effective checks, in particular retrospective checks,

• it is possible to guarantee an effective check on compliance with import or export prohibitions or restrictions or any other provisions governing release for free circulation.

2. Authorization shall in principle be refused where the applicant:

• has committed a serious infringement or repeated infringements of customs rules,

• declares goods for release for free circulation only occasionally.

Article 265

1. Without prejudice to Article 9 of the Code, the customs authorities may refrain from revoking the authorization when:

• the holder fulfils his obligations within any time limit set by them, or

• the failure to fulfil an obligation is without any real consequence for the correct operation of the procedure.

2. An authorization shall in principle be revoked where the case referred to in the first indent of Article 264 (2) arises.

3. An authorization may be revoked where the case referred to in the second indent of Article 264 (2) arises.

Article 266

1. To enable the customs authorities to satisfy themselves as to the proper conduct of operations, the holder of the authorization referred to in Article 263 shall, upon arrival of the goods at the place designated for that purpose:

(a) duly notify the customs authorities of such arrival in the form and manner specified by them for the purpose of obtaining release of the goods;

(b) enter the said goods in his records. Such entry may be replaced by any other formality offering similar guarantees stipulated by the customs authorities. The entry shall indicate the date on which it is made and the particulars necessary for identification of the goods;

(c) make available to the customs authorities all documents the production of which may be required for the application of the provisions governing the release of goods for free circulation.

2. On condition that checks on the proper conduct of operations are not thereby affected, the customs authorities may:

(a) permit the notification referred to in paragraph 1 (a) to be effected as soon as the arrival of the goods becomes imminent;

(b) in certain special circumstances, where the nature of the goods in question and the rapid turnover so warrant, exempt the holder of the authorization from the requirement to notify the competent customs office of each arrival of goods, provided that he supplies the said office with all the information it considers necessary to enable it to exercise its right to examine the goods should the need arise.

In this case, entry of the goods in the records of the person concerned shall be equivalent to release.

Article 267

The authorization referred to in Article 263 shall lay down the specific rules for the operation of the procedure and in particular shall stipulate:

• the goods to which it applies,

• the form of the obligations referred to in Article 266 and the reference to the guarantee to be provided by the person concerned,

• the time of release of the goods,

• the time limit within which the supplementary declaration must be lodged with the competent customs office designated for that purpose,

• the conditions under which goods are to be covered by general, periodic or recapitulative declarations, as appropriate.

CHAPTER 3 Declarations for a customs procedure with economic impact

Section 1 Entry for a customs procedure with economic impact

Subsection 1 Entry for the customs warehousing procedure

A. Incomplete declarations

Article 268

1. Declarations for the customs warehousing procedure which the customs office of entry may accept at the declarant's request without their containing some of the particulars referred to in Annex 37 shall contain at least the particulars necessary for identification of the goods to which the declaration relates, including their quantity.

2. Articles 255, 256 and 259 shall apply mutatis mutandis.

3. This Article shall not apply to declarations for the procedure for the Community agricultural products referred to in Articles 529 to 534.

B. Simplified declaration procedure

Article 269

1. The declarant shall, upon request, be authorized, in accordance with the conditions and in the manner laid down in Article 270, to make the declaration of entry for the procedure in a simplified form when goods are presented to customs.

Such simplified declaration may be in the form:

• either of an incomplete declaration of the type referred to in Article 268, or

• of an administrative or commercial document, accompanied by a request for entry for the procedure;

It shall contain the particulars referred to in Article 268 (1).

2. Where this procedure is applied in a type D warehouse the simplified declaration shall also include the nature of the goods concerned, in sufficient detail to permit their immediate and unambiguous classification, and their customs value.

3. The procedure of paragraph 1 shall not apply to type B and F warehouses nor to the entry of the Community agricultural products referred to in Articles 529 to 534 for the procedure in any type of warehouse.

Article 270

1. The application referred to in Article 269 (1) shall be made in writing and contain all the particulars necessary for the grant of the authorization.

Where circumstances permit, the application referred to in Article 269 (1) may be replaced by a general request in respect of operations to take place over a given period.

In this case the application shall be made under the conditions laid down in Articles 497 to 502 and shall be submitted with the application to operate the customs warehouse or as a modification to the initial authorization, to the customs authority which issued the authorization for the procedure.

2. The authorization referred to in Article 269 (1) shall be granted to the person concerned provided that the proper conduct of operations is not thereby affected.

3. Such authorization shall in principle be refused where:

• the guarantees necessary for the proper conduct of operations are not given,

• the person concerned enters goods for the procedure only occasionally,

• the person concerned has committed a serious infringement or repeated infringements of customs rules.

4. Without prejudice to Article 9 of the Code, the authorization may be revoked where the cases referred to in paragraph 3 arise.

Article 271

The authorization referred to in Article 269 (1) shall lay down the specific rules for the operation of the procedure, including:

• the office(s) of entry for the procedure,

• the form and content of the simplified declarations.

A supplementary declaration need not be provided.

C. Local clearance procedure

Article 272

1. Authorization to use the local clearance procedure shall be granted according to the conditions and in the manner laid down in paragraph 2 and Articles 273 and 274.

2. Article 269 (2) and Article 270 shall apply mutatis mutandis.

Article 273

1. In order to allow the customs authorities to ensure the proper conduct of operations, the holder of by the authorization shall, upon arrival of the goods at the place designated for that purpose:

(a) duly notify such arrival to the supervising office in the form and manner specified by it;

(b) to make entries in the stock records;

(c) keep at the disposal of the supervising office all documents concerning the entry of the goods for the procedure.

The entry in the stock records referred to in (b) shall contain at least some of the particulars used to identify the goods commercially, including their quantity.

2. Article 266 (2) shall apply.

Article 274

The authorization referred to in Article 272 (1) shall lay down the specific rules for the operation of the procedure and shall specify in particular:

• the goods to which it applies,

• the form of the obligations referred to in Article 273,

• the time of release of the goods.

A supplementary declaration need not be required.

Subsection 2 Entry for the inward processing, processing under customs control or temporary importation procedures

A. Incomplete declarations

Article 275

1. Declarations of entry for a customs procedure with economic impact other than outward processing and customs warehousing which the customs office of entry for the procedure may accept at the declarant's request without their containing some of the particulars referred to in Annex 37 or without their being accompanied by certain documents referred to in Article 220 shall contain at least the particulars referred to in Box 14, 21, 31, 37, 40 and 54 of the Single Administrative Document and in Box 44, the reference to the authorization or:

• the reference to the request, where the second subparagraph of Article 556 (1), applies, or

• the information referred to in Articles 568 (3), 656 (3) or 695 (3) where it may be inserted in this box when the simplified procedures for issue of an authorization are applicable.

2. Articles 255, 256 and 259 shall apply mutatis mutandis.

3. In cases of entry for the inward processing procedure, drawback system, Articles 257 and 258 shall also apply mutatis mutandis.

B. Simplified declaration and local clearance procedures

Article 276

The provisions of Articles 260 to 267 and of Article 270 shall apply mutatis mutandis to goods declared for the customs procedures with economic impact covered by this subsection.

Subsection 3 Goods declared for the outward processing procedure

Article 277

The provisions of Articles 279 to 289 applying to goods declared for export shall apply mutatis mutandis to goods declared for export under the outward processing procedure.

Section 2 Discharge of a customs procedure with economic impact

Article 278

1. In cases of discharge of a customs procedure with economic impact other than the outward processing and customs warehousing procedures, the simplified procedures for release for free circulation, export and re-exportation may be applied. In the case of re-exportation, the provisions of Articles 279 to 289 shall apply mutatis mutandis.

2. The simplified procedures referred to in Articles 254 to 267 may be applied to release of goods for free circulation under the outward processing procedure.

3. In cases of discharge of the customs warehousing procedure, the simplified procedures for release for free circulation, export or re-export may be applied.

However:

(a) for goods entered for the procedure in a type F warehouse no simplified procedure may be authorized;

(b) for goods entered for the procedure in a type B warehouse only incomplete declarations and the simplified declaration procedure shall apply;

(c) issue of an authorization for a type D warehouse shall entail the automatic application of the local clearance procedure for release for free circulation.

However, in cases where the person concerned wishes to benefit from application of items of charge which cannot be checked without a physical examination of the goods, this procedure may not be applied. In this case, other procedures involving presentation of the goods to customs may be used;

(d) no simplified procedure shall apply for Community agricultural goods entered for the customs warehousing procedure pursuant to Articles 529 to 534.

CHAPTER 4 Export declarations

Article 279

The formalities to be carried out at the customs office of export as provided for in Article 792 may be simplified in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter.

The provisions of Articles 793 and 796 shall apply to this Chapter.

Section 1 Incomplete declarations

Article 280

1. Export declarations which the customs office may accept, at the declarant's request, without their containing certain of the particulars referred to in Annex 37 shall contain at least the particulars referred to in boxes 1 (first subdivision), 2, 14, 17, 31, 33, 38, 44 and 54 of the Single Administrative Document and:

• where the goods are liable for export duties or subject to any other measures provided for under the common agricultural policy, all the information required for the proper application of such duties or measures,

• any further information considered necessary in order to identify the goods, apply the provisions governing their export or determine the amount of any security required before the goods may be exported.

2. The customs authorities may allow the declarant not to complete boxes 17 and 33 on condition he declares that export of the goods in question is not subject to prohibitions or restrictions and the customs authorities have no reason for doubt in this respect and that the description of the goods allows the combined nomenclature classification to be determined immediately and unambiguously.

3. Copy No 3 shall include one of the following endorsements in box 44:

• Exportación simplificada

• Forenklet udførsel

• Vereinfachte Ausfuhr

• Απλουστευμένη εξαγωγή

• Simplified exportation

• Exportation simplifiée

• Esportazione semplificata

• Vereenvoudigde uitvoer

• Exportação simplificada.

4. Articles 255 to 259 shall apply mutatis mutandis to export declarations.

Article 281

Where Article 789 applies, the supplementary or replacement declaration may be lodged at the customs office responsible for the place where the exporter is established. Where the sub-contractor is established in a Member State other than where the exporter is established, this possibility shall only apply on condition that agreements have been made between the administrations of the Member States concerned.

The incomplete declaration shall include the office where the supplementary declaration will be lodged. The customs office where the incomplete declaration is lodged shall send copy Nos 1 and 2 to the customs office where the supplementary declaration or replacement declaration is lodged.

Section 2 Simplified declaration procedure

Article 282

1. On written request containing all the information required for the authorization to be granted, the declarant shall be authorized, under the conditions and in the manner laid down in Articles 261 and 262 applied mutatis mutandis, to make the export declaration in a simplified form when goods are presented to customs.

2. Without prejudice to Article 288, the simplified declaration shall take the form of the incomplete Single Administrative Document containing at least the particulars necessary for identification of the goods. Paragraphs 3 and 4 of Article 280 shall apply mutatis mutandis.

Section 3 Local clearance procedure

Article 283

On written request, authorization to use the local clearance procedure shall be granted under the conditions and in the manner laid down in Article 284 to any person, hereinafter referred to as an ‘approved exporter’, wishing to carry out export procedures at his premises or at the other places designated or approved by the customs authorities.

Article 284

Articles 264 and 265 shall apply mutatis mutandis.

Article 285

1. To enable the customs authorities to satisfy themselves as to the proper conduct of operations, the approved exporter shall, before removal of the goods from the places referred to in Article 283:

(a) duly notify the customs authorities of such removal in the form and manner specified by them for the purpose of obtaining release of the goods;

(b) enter the said goods in his records. Such entry may be replaced by any other formality offering similar guarantees stipulated by the customs authorities. The entry shall indicate the date on which it is made and the particulars necessary for identification of the goods;

(c) make available to the customs authorities any documents the presentation of which may be required for application of the provisions governing export of the goods.

2. In certain particular circumstances justified by the nature of the goods in question and the rapid turnover of export operations, the customs authorities may exempt the approved exporter from the requirement to notify the competent customs office of each removal of goods, provided that he supplies the said office with all the information it considers necessary to enable it to exercise its right to examine the goods should the need arise.

In this case, entry of the goods in the records of the approved exporter shall be equivalent to release.

Article 286

1. To check that the goods have actually left the customs territory of the Community, Copy No 3 of the Single Administrative Document shall be used as evidence of exit.

The authorization shall stipulate that Copy No 3 of the Single Administrative Document be authenticated in advance.

2. Prior authentication may be effected in one of the following ways:

(a) box A may be stamped in advance with the stamp of the competent customs office, and signed by an official from that office;

(b) the approved exporter may stamp the declaration using a special stamp conforming to the model shown in Annex 62.

The imprint of this stamp may be preprinted on the forms where the printing is entrusted to a printer approved for that purpose.

3. Before the departure of the goods the approved exporter shall:

• carry out the procedures referred to in Article 285;

• indicate on Copy No 3 of the Single Administrative Document the reference to entry in his records and the date on which this was done.

4. Box 44 of Copy No 3, completed in accordance with paragraph 2, shall include:

• the number of the authorization and the name of the issuing customs office;

• one of the endorsements referred to in Article 280 (3).

Article 287

1. The authorization referred to in Article 283 shall lay down the specific rules for the operation of the procedure and in particular shall stipulate:

• the goods to which it applies,

• the form of the obligations referred to in Article 285,

• the time of release of the goods,

• the content of Copy No 3 and the means by which it is to be validated,

• the procedure for presenting the supplementary declaration and the time limit within which it must be lodged.

2. The authorization shall include an undertaking by the approved exporter to take all necessary measures to ensure the safekeeping of the special stamp or of the forms bearing the imprint of the stamp of the customs office of export or the imprint of the special stamp.

Section 4 Provisions common to Sections 2 and 3

Article 288

1. Instead of the Single Administrative Document, Member States may allow a commercial or administrative document or any other medium to be used where the whole of an export operation is carried out on the territory of a single Member State, or whenever this possibility is provided for by means of agreements concluded between the administrations of the Member States concerned.

2. The document or medium referred to in paragraph 1 shall contain at least the particulars necessary for identification of the goods plus one of the endorsements referred to in Article 280 (3) and it shall be accompanied by a request for export.

Where circumstances so permit, the customs authorities may allow this request to be replaced by a global request covering export operations to be carried out over a given period. A reference to the authorization shall be made on the document or medium in question.

3. The commercial or administrative document shall be evidence of exit from the customs territory of the Community in the same way as Copy No 3 of the Single Administrative Document. Where other media are used, the arrangements for the exit endorsement shall be defined, where appropriate, in the agreement concluded between the administrations of the Member States concerned.

Article 289

Where the whole of an export operation takes place on the territory of a single Member State, that Member State may, in addition to the procedures referred to in Sections 2 and 3 and while ensuring compliance with Community policies, provide for other simplifications.

(1)

OJ No L 270, 14. 2. 1970, p. 1.

(2)

OJ No 125, 11. 7. 1966, p. 2320.

(3)

OJ No 125, 11. 7. 1966, p. 2309.

(4)

OJ No L 169, 10. 7. 1969, p. 3.

(5)

OJ No L 106, 18. 4. 1989, p. 1.

(6)

OJ No L 370, 31. 12. 1990, p. 86.

(7)

OJ No L 374, 31. 12. 1991, p. 4.

(8)

OJ No L 145, 13. 6. 1977, p. 1.

(9)

OJ No L 105, 23. 4. 1983, p. 1.