- Latest available (Revised)
- Point in Time (10/06/2009)
- Original (As adopted by EU)
Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97 of 9 December 1996 on the protection of species of wild fauna and flora by regulating trade therein
When the UK left the EU, legislation.gov.uk published EU legislation that had been published by the EU up to IP completion day (31 December 2020 11.00 p.m.). On legislation.gov.uk, these items of legislation are kept up-to-date with any amendments made by the UK since then.
Legislation.gov.uk publishes the UK version. EUR-Lex publishes the EU version. The EU Exit Web Archive holds a snapshot of EUR-Lex’s version from IP completion day (31 December 2020 11.00 p.m.).
Point in time view as at 10/06/2009.
There are currently no known outstanding effects for the Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97, Introductory Text.
Revised legislation carried on this site may not be fully up to date. At the current time any known changes or effects made by subsequent legislation have been applied to the text of the legislation you are viewing by the editorial team. Please see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ for details regarding the timescales for which new effects are identified and recorded on this site.
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 130s (1) thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission(1),
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee(2),
Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 189c of the Treaty(3),
(1) Whereas Regulation (EEC) No 3626/82(4) applies the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora in the Community with effect from 1 January 1984; whereas the purpose of the Convention is to protect endangered species of fauna and flora through controls on international trade in specimens of those species;
(2) Whereas, in order to improve the protection of species of wild fauna and flora which are threatened by trade or likely to be so threatened, Regulation (EEC) No 3626/82 must be replaced by a Regulation taking account of the scientific knowledge acquired since its adoption and the current structure of trade; whereas, moreover, the abolition of controls at internal borders resulting from the Single Market necessitates the adoption of stricter trade control measures at the Community's external borders, with documents and goods being checked at the customs office at the border where they are introduced;
(3) Whereas the provisions of this Regulation do not prejudice any stricter measures which may be taken or maintained by Member States, in compliance with the Treaty, in particular with regard to the holding of specimens of species covered by this Regulation;
(4) Whereas it is necessary to lay down objective criteria for the inclusion of species of wild fauna and flora in the Annexes to this Regulation;
(5) Whereas the implementation of this Regulation necessitates the application of common conditions for the issue, use and presentation of documents relating to authorization of the introduction into the Community and the export or re-export from the Community of specimens of the species covered by this Regulation; whereas it is necessary to lay down specific provisions relating to the transit of specimens through the Community;
(6) Whereas it is for a management authority of the Member State of destination, assisted by the scientific authority of that Member State and, where appropriate, taking into account any opinion of the Scientific Review Group, to decide on the requests for introduction of specimens into the Community;
(7) Whereas it is necessary to supplement the provisions on re-export with a consultation procedure, in order to limit the risk of infringement;
(8) Whereas, in order to guarantee effective protection of species of wild fauna and flora, additional restrictions may be imposed on the introduction of specimens into, and the export thereof from, the Community; whereas, with regard to live specimens, these restrictions may be supplemented by restrictions at Community level on the holding or movement of such specimens within the Community;
(9) Whereas it is necessary to lay down specific provisions applicable to captive-born and bred, or artificially propagated specimens, to specimens which are personal or household effects, and to non-commercial loans, donations or exchanges between registered scientists and scientific institutions;
(10) Whereas there is a need, in order to ensure the broadest possible protection for species covered by this Regulation, to lay down provisions for controlling trade and movement of specimens within the Community, and the conditions for housing specimens; whereas the certificates issued under this Regulation, which contribute to controlling these activities, must be governed by common rules on their issue, validity and use;
(11) Whereas measures should be taken to minimize the adverse effects on live specimens of transport to their destination, from or within the Community;
(12) Whereas, to ensure effective controls and to facilitate customs procedures, customs offices should be designated, with trained personnel responsible for carrying out the necessary formalities and corresponding checks where specimens are introduced into the Community, in order to assign them a customs-approved treatment or use within the meaning of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 of 12 October 1992 establishing the Community Customs Code(5), or where they are exported or re-exported from the Community; whereas there should also be facilities guaranteeing that live specimens are adequately housed and cared for;
(13) Whereas the implementation of this Regulation also calls for the designation of management and scientific authorities by the Member States;
(14) Whereas informing the public and making them aware of the provisions of this Regulation, particularly at border crossing points, is likely to encourage compliance with these provisions;
(15) Whereas, in order to ensure effective enforcement of this Regulation, Member States should closely monitor compliance with its provisions and, to that end, cooperate closely between themselves and with the Commission; whereas this requires the communication of information relating to the implementation of this Regulation;
(16) Whereas the monitoring of levels of trade in the species of wild fauna and flora covered by this Regulation is of crucial importance for assessing the effects of trade on the conservation status of species; whereas detailed annual reports should be drawn up in a common format;
(17) Whereas, in order to guarantee compliance with this Regulation, it is important that Member States impose sanctions for infringements in a manner which is both sufficient and appropriate to the nature and gravity of the infringement;
(18) Whereas it is essential to lay down a Community procedure enabling the implementing provisions and amendments to the Annexes of this Regulation to be adopted within a suitable period; whereas a Committee must be set up to permit close and effective cooperation between the Member States and the Commission in this field;
(19) Whereas the multitude of biological and ecological aspects to be considered in the implementation of this Regulation requires the setting up of a Scientific Review Group, whose opinions will be forwarded by the Commission to the Committee and the management bodies of the Member States, to assist them in making their decisions,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Opinion of the European Parliament of 15 December 1995 (OJ No C 17, 22.1.1996, p. 430). Common position of the Council of 26 February 1996 (OJ No C 196, 6.7.1996, p. 58) and Decision of the European Parliament of 18 September 1996 (OJ No C 320, 28. 10. 1996).
OJ No L 384, 31.12.1982, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 558/95 (OJ No L 57, 15.3.1995, p. 1).
OJ No L 302, 19.10.1992, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by the 1994 Act of Accession.
Latest Available (revised):The latest available updated version of the legislation incorporating changes made by subsequent legislation and applied by our editorial team. Changes we have not yet applied to the text, can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area.
Original (As adopted by EU): The original version of the legislation as it stood when it was first adopted in the EU. No changes have been applied to the text.
Point in Time: This becomes available after navigating to view revised legislation as it stood at a certain point in time via Advanced Features > Show Timeline of Changes or via a point in time advanced search.
Geographical Extent: Indicates the geographical area that this provision applies to. For further information see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.
Show Timeline of Changes: See how this legislation has or could change over time. Turning this feature on will show extra navigation options to go to these specific points in time. Return to the latest available version by using the controls above in the What Version box.
Access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item from this tab. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
This timeline shows the different versions taken from EUR-Lex before exit day and during the implementation period as well as any subsequent versions created after the implementation period as a result of changes made by UK legislation.
The dates for the EU versions are taken from the document dates on EUR-Lex and may not always coincide with when the changes came into force for the document.
For any versions created after the implementation period as a result of changes made by UK legislation the date will coincide with the earliest date on which the change (e.g an insertion, a repeal or a substitution) that was applied came into force. For further information see our guide to revised legislation on Understanding Legislation.
Use this menu to access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
Click 'View More' or select 'More Resources' tab for additional information including: