1.Where specific agricultural conditions so warrant, a Member State may decide, by 1 August 2004 at the latest, to apply the single payment scheme after a transitional period which shall expire either on 31 December 2005 or on 31 December 2006.
In the case where the Member State concerned decides to apply the single payment scheme before the end of the transitional period, it shall decide by 1 August at the latest of the calendar year preceding the calendar year in respect of which the single payment scheme will apply.
[F1For hops, the transitional period referred to in the first subparagraph shall expire on 31 December 2005 . The transitional period referred to in the first subparagraph shall not apply in respect of cotton, olive oil and table olives and tobacco.]
[F22. Without prejudice to Article 70(2), in the transitional period the Member State concerned shall apply each of the direct payments referred to in Annex VI under the conditions established in Title IV, Chapters 3, 6 and 7 to 13 within the limit of budgetary ceilings corresponding to the component of these direct payments in the national ceiling referred to in Article 41, fixed in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 144(2).]
In the case of dried fodder payment, Member States shall grant an aid under conditions to be defined in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 144(2), within the aforementioned budgetary limits.
3.The single payment scheme shall apply on 1 January of the calendar year following the calendar year of expiry of the transitional period.
In this case, the Member State concerned shall take the decisions referred to in Articles 58(1), 63(3), 64(1) and 70 by 1 August 2005 or alternatively 2006 according to the deadline decided under paragraph 1 of this Article.
4.The Commission in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 144(2) shall take the necessary measures in case the application of this transitional period causes severe distortion of competition in the Community market and in order to ensure the respect of the Community international obligations.
Textual Amendments
F1 Inserted by Council Regulation (EC) No 864/2004 of 29 April 2004 amending Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003 establishing common rules for direct support schemes under the common agricultural policy and establishing certain support schemes for farmers, and adapting it by reason of the accession of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia to the European Union.