1.Before deciding to confer management powers relating to a component, a programme or a measure on the beneficiary country, the Commission shall satisfy itself that the country concerned meets the conditions referred to in Article 56(2) of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002, in particular as regards the management and control systems established, and that the accreditations as laid down in Articles 12 and 13 are in force.
2.For that purpose, the management and control systems set up in the beneficiary country shall provide for effective controls in at least the areas set out in the Annex. Provisions on other areas which have been laid down in the sectoral or financing agreements shall apply in addition to this Regulation.
3.Where specific persons have been given responsibility for an activity in relation to the management, implementation and control of programmes, the beneficiary country shall enable such persons to exercise the duties associated with that responsibility, including in cases where there is no hierarchical link between them and the bodies participating in that activity. The beneficiary country shall, in particular, provide those persons with the authority to establish, through formal working arrangements between them and the bodies concerned:
(a)an appropriate system for the exchange of information, including the power to require information and a right of access to documents and staff on the spot if necessary;
(b)the standards to be met;
(c)the procedures to be followed.
4.Any other component specific requirements which have been established in sectoral agreements or the financing agreements shall apply in addition to this Regulation.
1.The competent accrediting officer as referred to in Article 24 shall be responsible for the accreditation of the national authorising officer described in Article 25, both as the head of the national fund in accordance with Article 25(2)(a) and with regard to his capacity to fulfil the responsibilities laid down in Article 25(2)(b). The accreditation of the national authorising officer shall cover the national fund described in Article 26.
2.Prior to accrediting the national authorising officer, the competent accrediting officer shall satisfy himself that the applicable requirements set out in Article 11 are fulfilled, supported by an audit opinion drawn up by an external auditor functionally independent from all actors in the management and control systems. The audit opinion shall be based on examinations conducted according to internationally accepted auditing standards.
3.The competent accrediting officer shall notify the Commission of the accreditation of the national authorising officer, not later than the notification of the accreditation of the first operating structure as described in Article 13(3). The competent accrediting officer shall provide all relevant supporting information required by the Commission.
4.The competent accrediting officer shall immediately inform the Commission of any changes concerning the national authorising officer or the national fund. Where a change affects the national authorising officer or the national fund in relation to the applicable requirements as set out in Article 11, the competent accrediting officer shall send to the Commission an assessment of the consequences of such a change on the validity of the accreditation. Where such a change is significant, the competent accrediting officer shall also notify the Commission of his decision concerning the accreditation.
1.The national authorising officer shall be responsible for the accreditation of the operating structures as referred to in Article 28.
2.Prior to accrediting an operating structure, the national authorising officer shall satisfy himself that the requirements set out in Article 11 are fulfilled by the operating structure concerned. This assurance shall be supported by an audit opinion drawn up by an external auditor functionally independent from all actors in the management and control systems. The audit opinion shall be based on examinations conducted according to internationally accepted auditing standards.
3.The national authorising officer shall notify the Commission of the accreditation of the operating structures and shall provide all relevant supporting information required by the Commission, including a description of the management and control systems.
1.Before the conferral of management powers, the Commission shall review the accreditations referred to in Articles 12 and 13 and examine the procedures and structures of any of the bodies or authorities concerned within the beneficiary country. This may include on-the-spot verifications by its services or subcontracted to an audit firm.
2.The Commission may, in its decision to confer management powers, set further conditions, with a view to ensuring that the requirements referred to in Article 11 are met. These further conditions must be fulfilled within a fixed period determined by the Commission for the conferral of management powers to remain effective.
3.The Commission Decision on the conferral of management powers shall lay down the list of the ex ante controls, if any, to be performed by the Commission on the tendering of contracts, launch of calls for proposals and the award of contracts and grants. This list may vary with the component or the programme. The ex ante controls shall apply, depending on the component or programme, until the Commission allows for decentralised management without ex ante controls as referred to in Article 18.
4.The Commission Decision may lay down provisions concerning the suspension or withdrawal of the conferral of management powers in relation to specific bodies or authorities.
1.After the conferral of management powers by the Commission, the competent accrediting officer shall be responsible for monitoring the continuing fulfilment of all the requirements for this accreditation to be maintained and shall inform the Commission of any significant change related thereto.
2.If any of the applicable requirements set out in Article 11 are not, or are no longer, fulfilled, the competent accrediting officer shall either suspend or withdraw the accreditation of the national authorising officer, and shall immediately inform the Commission of his decision and of the reasons for his decision. The competent accrediting officer shall assure himself that those requirements are again fulfilled before restoring the accreditation. This assurance shall be supported by an audit opinion as specified in Article 12(2).
3.Where the accreditation of the national authorising officer is withdrawn or suspended by the competent accrediting officer, the provisions of this paragraph shall apply.
The Commission shall cease to make transfers of funds to the beneficiary country during the period when the accreditation is not in force.
During the period when the accreditation is not in force, all the euro accounts or the euro accounts for the components concerned shall be blocked and no payment made by the National Fund from those euros accounts which are blocked shall be considered eligible for Community funding.
Without prejudice to any other financial corrections, the Commission may make financial corrections as laid down in Article 49 against the beneficiary country in respect of its past non-compliance with the requirements for the conferral of management powers.
1.After the conferral of management powers by the Commission, the national authorising officer shall be responsible for monitoring the continuing fulfilment of all the requirements for this accreditation to be maintained and shall inform the Commission and the competent accrediting officer of any significant change related thereto.
2.If any of the requirements set out in Article 11 are not, or are no longer, fulfilled, the national authorising officer shall either suspend or withdraw the accreditation of the operating structure concerned, and shall immediately inform the Commission and the competent accrediting officer of his decision and of the reasons for his decision.
The national authorising officer shall assure himself that those requirements are again fulfilled before restoring the accreditation concerned. This assurance shall be supported by an audit opinion as referred to in Article 13(2).
3.Where the accreditation of an operating structure is withdrawn or suspended by the national authorising officer, the provisions of this paragraph shall apply.
The Commission shall make no transfers to the beneficiary country of funds relating to programmes or operations implemented by the operating structure concerned while its accreditation is suspended or withdrawn.
Without prejudice to any other financial corrections, the Commission may make financial corrections as laid down in Article 49 against the beneficiary country in respect of its past non-compliance with the requirements and conditions for the conferral of management powers.
No new legal commitments made by the operating structure concerned shall be considered eligible during the period when the accreditation is not in force.
The national authorising officer shall be responsible for taking any appropriate safeguard measures regarding payments made or contracts signed by the operating structure concerned.
1.The Commission shall monitor compliance with the requirements set out in Article 11.
2.Irrespective of the decision by the competent accrediting officer to maintain, suspend or withdraw the accreditation of the national authorising officer, or of the decision by the national authorising officer to maintain, suspend or withdraw the accreditation of the operating structure, the Commission may withdraw or suspend the conferral of management powers at any time, in particular in the event that any of the requirements mentioned in Article 11 are not, or no longer, fulfilled.
3.Where the conferral of management powers is withdrawn or suspended by the Commission, the provisions of this paragraph shall apply.
The Commission shall cease to make transfers of funds to the beneficiary country.
Without prejudice to any other financial corrections, the Commission may make financial corrections as laid down in Article 49 against the beneficiary country in respect of its past non-compliance with the requirements for the conferral of management powers.
The Commission may lay down other consequences of such a suspension or withdrawal in a specific Commission Decision.
1.Decentralisation without ex ante controls by the Commission shall be the objective for the implementation of all IPA components where assistance is implemented on a decentralised basis in accordance with Article 10. The timing for attainment of this objective may vary depending on the IPA Component concerned.
2.Before dispensing with the ex ante controls laid down in the Commission Decision on conferral of management powers, the Commission shall satisfy itself of the effective functioning of the management and control system concerned in accordance with the relevant Community and national rules.
3.In particular, the Commission shall monitor the implementation, by the beneficiary country, of the roadmap included in the financing agreement as laid down in Article 8(4)(c), which may refer to a phased waiver of different types of ex ante controls.
4.The Commission shall take due account of the results achieved by the beneficiary country in this context, in particular in the provision of assistance and in the negotiation process.
1.Beneficiary countries shall ensure investigation and effective treatment of suspected cases of fraud and irregularities and shall ensure the functioning of a control and reporting mechanism equivalent to that referred to in Commission Regulation (EC) No 1828/2006(1). In the case of suspected fraud or irregularity, the Commission shall be informed without delay.
2.Furthermore, beneficiary countries shall take any appropriate measure to prevent and counter any active or passive corruption practices at any stage of the procurement procedure or grant award procedure or during the implementation of corresponding contracts.
The national authorising officer shall ensure that all the relevant information is available to ensure at all times a sufficiently detailed audit trail. This information shall include documentary evidence of the authorisation of payment applications, of the accounting and payment of such applications, and of the treatment of advances, guarantees and debts.
1.The beneficiary country shall designate the following different bodies and authorities:
(a)a national IPA coordinator,
(b)a strategic coordinator for the regional development component and the human resources development component,
(c)a competent accrediting officer,
(d)a national authorising officer,
(e)a national fund,
(f)an operating structure by IPA component or programme,
(g)an audit authority.
2.The beneficiary country shall ensure that appropriate segregation of duties applies to the bodies and authorities under points (a) to (g) of paragraph 1, in accordance with Article 56(2) of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002.
3.The Commission shall confer management powers on the beneficiary country, in accordance with Article 14 of this Regulation, only after the bodies and authorities referred to in paragraph 1 have been designated and put in place.
1.A national IPA coordinator shall be appointed by the beneficiary country. He shall be a high-ranking official in the government or the state administration of the beneficiary country, who shall ensure the overall coordination of assistance under the IPA Regulation.
2.He shall, in particular:
(a)ensure partnership between the Commission and the beneficiary country, and a close link between the general accession process and the use of assistance under the IPA Regulation;
(b)bear overall responsibility for:
(b)the coherence and coordination of the programmes provided under this Regulation,
the annual programming for the transition assistance and institution building component at national level,
the coordination of the participation of the beneficiary country in the relevant cross-border programmes, both with Member States and with other beneficiary countries, as well as in the transnational, interregional or sea basins programmes under other Community instruments. The national IPA coordinator may delegate the tasks relating to this coordination to a cross-border cooperation coordinator,
(c)draw up and, after examination by the IPA monitoring committee, submit the IPA annual and final reports on implementation as defined in Article 61(3) to the Commission with a copy to the national authorising officer.
1.A strategic coordinator shall be appointed by the beneficiary country to ensure the coordination of the regional development component and human resources development component under the responsibility of the national IPA coordinator. The strategic coordinator shall be an entity within the state administration of the beneficiary country, with no direct involvement in the implementation of components concerned.
2.The strategic coordinator shall, in particular:
(a)coordinate assistance granted under the regional development component and the human resources development component;
(b)draft the strategic coherence framework as defined in Article 154;
(c)ensure coordination between sectoral strategies and programmes.
1.A competent accrediting officer shall be appointed by the beneficiary country. He shall be a high-ranking official in the government or the state administration of the beneficiary country.
2.The competent accrediting officer shall be responsible for issuing, monitoring and suspending or withdrawing the accreditation of the national authorising officer and the national fund, in accordance with Articles 12 and 15.
1.A national authorising officer shall be appointed by the beneficiary country. He shall be a high-ranking official in the government or the state administration of the beneficiary country.
2.The national authorising officer shall:
(a)as the head of the national fund, bear overall responsibility for the financial management of EU funds in the beneficiary country; he shall be responsible for the legality and regularity of the underlying transactions;
(b)be responsible for the effective functioning of management and control systems under the IPA Regulation.
3.For the purposes of paragraph 2(a), the national authorising officer shall in particular fulfil the following tasks:
(a)provide assurance about the regularity and legality of underlying transactions;
(b)draw up and submit to the Commission certified statements of expenditure and payment applications; the national authorising officer shall bear overall responsibility for the accuracy of the payment application and for the transfer of funds to the operating structures and/or final beneficiaries;
(c)verify the existence and correctness of the co-financing elements;
(d)ensure the identification and immediate communication of any irregularity;
(e)make the financial adjustments required in connection with irregularities detected, according to the provisions of Article 50;
(f)be the contact point for financial information sent between the Commission and the beneficiary country.
4.For the purposes of paragraph 2(b), the national authorising officer shall in particular fulfil the following tasks:
(a)be responsible for issuing, monitoring and suspending or withdrawing the accreditation of the operating structures;
(b)ensure the existence and effective functioning of systems of management of assistance under the IPA Regulation;
(c)ensure that the system of internal control concerning the management of funds is effective and efficient;
(d)report on the management and control systems;
(e)ensure that a proper reporting and information system is functioning;
(f)follow-up the findings of audit reports from the audit authority, in accordance with Article 30(1);
(g)immediately notify the Commission, with a copy of the notification to the competent accrediting officer, of any significant change concerning the management and control systems.
5.Pursuant to the responsibilities laid down in paragraphs 2(a) and (b), the national authorising officer shall draw up an annual statement of assurance, as defined in Article 27.
The national fund shall be a body located in a state level Ministry of the beneficiary country with central budgetary competence. The national fund shall act as a central treasury and be in charge of tasks of financial management of assistance under the IPA Regulation, under the responsibility of the national authorising officer.
It shall in particular be in charge of organising the bank accounts, requesting funds from the Commission, authorising the transfer of funds received from the Commission to the operating structures or to the final beneficiaries, and the financial reporting to the Commission.
1.In accordance with Article 25(5), the national authorising officer shall make an annual management declaration, which shall take the form of a statement of assurance to be presented to the Commission by 28 February each year. He shall forward a copy of the statement of assurance to the competent accrediting officer.
2.The statement of assurance shall be based on the national authorising officer's actual supervision of the management and control systems throughout the financial year.
3.The statement of assurance shall be drawn up as specified in the framework agreement, and shall include:
(a)a confirmation of the effective functioning of the management and control systems;
(b)a confirmation regarding the legality and regularity of underlying transactions;
(c)information concerning any changes in systems and controls, and elements of supporting accounting information.
4.If the confirmations required in accordance with points (a) and (b) of paragraph 3 are not available, the national authorising officer shall inform the Commission of the reasons and potential consequences, as well as of the actions being taken to remedy the situation and to protect the interests of the Community. He shall forward a copy of this information to the competent accrediting officer.
1.For each IPA component or programme, an operating structure shall be established to deal with the management and implementation of assistance under the IPA Regulation.
The operating structure shall be a body or a collection of bodies within the administration of the beneficiary country.
2.The operating structure shall be responsible for managing and implementing the programme or programmes concerned in accordance with the principle of sound financial management. For those purposes, it shall carry out a number of functions that include:
(a)drafting the annual or multi-annual programmes;
(b)monitoring programme implementation and guiding the work of the sectoral monitoring committee as defined in Article 59, notably by providing the documents necessary for monitoring the quality of implementation of the programmes;
(c)drawing up the sectoral annual and final implementation reports defined in Article 61(1) and, after their examination by the sectoral monitoring committee, submitting them to the Commission, to the national IPA coordinator and to the national authorising officer;
(d)ensuring that operations are selected for funding and approved in accordance with the criteria and mechanisms applicable to the programmes, and that they comply with the relevant Community and national rules;
(e)setting up procedures to ensure the retention of all documents required to ensure an adequate audit trail, in accordance with Article 20;
(f)arranging for tendering procedures, grant award procedures, the ensuing contracting, and making payments to, and recovery from, the final beneficiary;
(g)ensuring that all bodies involved in the implementation of operations maintain a separate accounting system or a separate accounting codification;
(h)ensuring that the national fund and the national authorising officer receive all necessary information on the procedures and verifications carried out in relation to expenditure;
(i)setting up, maintaining and updating the reporting and information system;
(j)carrying out verifications to ensure that the expenditure declared has actually been incurred in accordance with applicable rules, the products or services have been delivered in accordance with the approval decision, and the payment requests by the final beneficiary are correct. These verifications shall cover administrative, financial, technical and physical aspects of operations, as appropriate;
(k)ensuring internal audit of its different constituting bodies;
(l)ensuring irregularity reporting;
(m)ensuring compliance with the information and publicity requirements.
3.The heads of the bodies constituting the operating structure shall be clearly designated and shall be responsible for the tasks assigned to their respective bodies, in accordance with Article 11(3).
1.An audit authority, functionally independent from all actors in the management and control systems and complying with internationally accepted audit standards, shall be designated by the beneficiary country. The audit authority shall be responsible for verifying the effective and sound functioning of the management and control systems.
2.The audit authority, under the responsibility of its head, shall in particular:
(a)during the course of each year, establish and fulfil an annual audit work plan which encompasses audits aimed at verifying:
(a)the effective functioning of the management and control systems,
the reliability of accounting information provided to the Commission.
The audit work shall include audits of an appropriate sample of operations or transactions, and an examination of procedures.
The annual audit work plan shall be submitted to the national authorising officer and the Commission before the start of the year in question.
(b)submit the following:
(b)an annual audit activity report following the model to be found in the framework agreement, setting out the resources used by the audit authority, and a summary of any weaknesses found in the management and control systems or in transaction findings from the audits carried out in accordance with the annual audit work plan during the previous 12 month period, ending on 30 September of the year concerned. The annual audit activity report shall be addressed to the Commission, the national authorising officer, and the competent accrediting officer, by 31 December each year. The first such report shall cover the period from the entry into force of this regulation up until 30 November 2007,
an annual opinion following the model set out in the framework agreement as to whether the management and control systems functions effectively and conforms to the requirements of this Regulation and/or any other agreements between the Commission and the beneficiary country. This opinion shall be addressed to the Commission, the national authorising officer, and the competent accrediting officer. It shall cover the same period and have the same deadline as the annual audit activity report,
an opinion on any final statement of expenditure submitted to the Commission by the national authorising officer, for the closure of any programme or of any part thereof. Where appropriate, the final statement of expenditure may include payment applications in the form of accounts submitted annually. The opinion on any final statement of expenditure shall follow the model provided in annex to the framework agreement. It shall address the validity of the final payment application and the accuracy of the financial information, and, where appropriate, be supported by a final audit activity report. It shall be sent to the Commission and to the competent accrediting officer, at the same time as the relevant final statement of expenditure submitted by the national authorising officer, or at least within three months of the submission of that final statement of expenditure.
Further specific requirements for the annual audit work plan and/or the reports and opinions mentioned in paragraph (b) may be set out in the sectoral or financing agreements.
With regard to the methodology for the audit work, reports and audit opinions required by this Article, the audit authority shall comply with international standards on auditing, in particular as regards the areas of risk assessment, audit materiality and sampling. That methodology may be complemented by any further guidance and definitions from the Commission, notably in relation to an appropriate general approach to sampling, confidence levels and materiality.
1.Following receipt of the reports and opinions referred to in the first and second indents of Article 29 (2) (b), the national authorising officer shall:
(a)decide whether any improvements to the management and control systems are required, record the decisions in that respect and ensure the timely implementation of those improvements;
(b)make any necessary adjustments to the payment applications to the Commission.
2.The Commission may decide either to take follow-up action itself in response to the reports and opinions, for example by initiating a financial correction procedure, or to require the beneficiary country to take action, while informing the national authorising officer and the competent accrediting officer of its decision.
Within the overall framework defined by the structures and authorities as set out in Article 21, the functions described in Article 28 may be grouped and assigned to specific bodies within or outside the operating structures designated. This grouping and assignation shall respect the appropriate segregation of duties imposed by Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 and ensure that the final responsibility for the functions described in the said Article shall remain with designated operating structure. Such a structure shall be formalised in written agreements and shall be subject to accreditation by the national authorising officer and the conferral of management by the Commission.]
Textual Amendments
1.In the event of centralised or joint management, the beneficiary country shall designate a national IPA coordinator, who shall act as the representative of the beneficiary country vis-à-vis the Commission. He shall ensure that a close link is maintained between the Commission and the beneficiary country, with regard both to the general accession process and to EU pre-accession assistance under IPA.
The national IPA coordinator shall also be responsible for coordinating the beneficiary country's participation in the relevant cross-border programmes, both with Member States and with other beneficiary countries, as well as in the transnational, interregional or sea basins programmes under other Community instruments. He may delegate the tasks relating to this latter responsibility to a cross-border cooperation coordinator.
2.In the case of the cross-border cooperation component, operating structures shall be designated and put in place by the beneficiary country, in accordance with the provisions of Article 139.
In the case of cross–border programmes implemented through shared management with a Member State, the following structures shall be put in place in one of the Member States participating in the cross–border programme, as set out in Article 102:
a single managing authority,
a single certifying authority,
a single audit authority.