This Regulation shall enter into force on the seventh day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

It shall apply from 1 January 2005. However, the first sub-paragraph of paragraph 3 of Article 21 of Regulation (EC) No 817/2004, as added by Article 1(1) of this Regulation, shall not affect the validity of commitments extended before the date of entry into force of this Regulation.