Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 481/2012Show full title

Article 1 Subject matter and scope

1. This Regulation lays down rules for the management of an annual Union tariff quota for high-quality beef provided for in Regulation (EC) No 617/2009, hereinafter referred to as ‘the tariff quota’. The tariff quota period, volume and duty shall be as set out in Annex I to this Regulation.

2. This Regulation shall apply to high-quality fresh, chilled or frozen beef that fulfils the requirements laid down in Annex II.

For the purposes of this Regulation, ‘frozen meat’ means meat with an internal temperature of – 12 °C or lower when it enters the customs territory of the European Union.

Article 2 Management of the tariff quota

1. The tariff quota shall be managed on a first-come, first-served basis in accordance with Articles 308a and 308b and Article 308c(1) of Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93. No import licences shall be required.

2. The tariff quota shall be managed as a parent tariff quota under order number 09.2201 with four quarterly sub-tariff quotas under order number 09.2202.

The benefit from the tariff quota can be granted only by applying for order number 09.2202 referring to the sub-tariff quotas.

3. The drawings on the sub-tariff quotas until 30 September, 31 December and 31 March shall be stopped respectively on the fifth working day of the Commission in November, February and May. Their unused balances shall be added to the quantities for the quarterly sub-tariff quotas starting respectively on 1 October, 1 January and 1 April. No unused balance at the end of a quota year shall be transferred to another quota year.

Article 3 Certificates of authenticity

1. In order to benefit from the tariff quota, a certificate of authenticity issued in the third country concerned, together with a customs declaration for release for free circulation for the goods concerned, shall be presented to the Union’s customs authorities.

2. The certificate of authenticity referred to in paragraph 1 shall be established in accordance with the model set out in Annex III.

3. On the reverse side of the certificate of authenticity it shall be stated that the meat originating in the exporting country fulfils the requirements laid down in Annex II.

4. A certificate of authenticity shall be valid only if it is duly completed and endorsed by the issuing authority.

5. A certificate of authenticity shall be considered to have been duly endorsed if it states the date and place of issue and if it bears the stamp of the issuing authority and the signature of the person or persons empowered to sign it.

6. The stamp may be replaced by a printed seal on the original of the certificate of authenticity and any copies thereof.

7. The validity of a certificate of authenticity shall expire at the latest on 30 June following the date of its issue.

Article 4 Issuing authorities in third countries

1. The issuing authority referred to in Article 3 shall:

(a) be recognised as such by the competent authority of the exporting country;

(b) undertake to verify entries in the certificates of authenticity.

2. The following information shall be notified to the Commission:

(a) the name and address, if possible including e-mail and internet address, of the authority or authorities recognised to issue the certificates of authenticity referred to in Article 3;

(b) specimen of the stamps used by the issuing authority or authorities;

(c) the procedures and criteria followed by the issuing authority or authorities in order to establish whether the requirements laid down in Annex II are fulfilled.

Article 5 Third country notifications

When the requirements laid down in Annex II are fulfilled, the Commission shall publish the name of the issuing authority or authorities concerned in the C series of the Official Journal of the European Union or by any other appropriate means.

Article 6 On-the-spot checks in third countries

The Commission may request the third country to authorise representatives of the Commission to carry out, where required, on-the-spot checks in that third country. Those checks shall be performed jointly with the competent authorities of the third country concerned.

Article 7 Repeal

Regulation (EC) No 620/2009 is repealed.

Article 8 Transitional measures

Licence applications submitted in accordance with Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 620/2009 during the first seven days of June 2012 shall be rejected on the date of entry into force of this Regulation. The securities lodged in relation with those applications shall be released.

Article 9 Entry into force and application

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

It shall apply from 1 July 2012.

However, Article 8 shall apply from the date of entry into force of this Regulation.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels, 7 June 2012.

For the Commission

The President

José Manuel Barroso