PART TWOSPECIAL PROVISIONS

TITLE IEUROPEAN AGRICULTURAL GUARANTEE FUND

Article 168Special provisions on the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund

1

Parts One and Three shall, except as otherwise provided in this Title, apply to expenditure effected by the authorities and bodies referred to in the rules relating to the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF), and to revenue,.

2

Operations managed directly by the Commission shall be implemented in accordance with the rules laid down in Parts One and Three.

Article 169Commitments of EAGF appropriations

1

For each financial year, the EAGF appropriations shall include non-differentiated appropriations, with the exception of the expenditure related to the measures referred to in Article 3(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1290/2005, which shall be covered by differentiated appropriations.

2

Payment appropriations which have been carried over but which have not been used by the end of the financial year shall be cancelled.

3

Non-committed appropriations relating to the actions referred to in Article 3(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1290/2005 may be carried over to the following financial year only.

Such carryover shall not exceed, within a limit of 2 % of the initial appropriations, the amount of the adjustment of direct payments as referred to in Article 11 of Council Regulation (EC) No 73/2009 of 19 January 2009 establishing common rules for direct support schemes for farmers under the common agricultural policy and establishing certain support schemes for farmers24, and which was applied during the preceding financial year.

Appropriations which are carried over shall be returned exclusively to the budgetary lines which cover the actions referred to in point (c) of Article 3(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1290/2005.

Such carryover may lead to an additional payment only to the final recipients who were subject, in the preceding financial year, to the adjustment of direct payments as referred to in Article 11 of Regulation (EC) No 73/2009.

The carryover decision shall be taken, by 15 February of the year to which the carryover is being made, by the Commission, which shall inform the European Parliament and the Council thereof.

Article 170Global provisional commitments of EAGF appropriations

1

The Commission shall reimburse the EAGF expenditure incurred by the Member States.

2

The Commission decisions fixing the amount of reimbursement of such expenditure shall constitute global provisional commitments, which may not exceed the total appropriations entered for the EAGF.

3

As of 15 November of the financial year, routine management expenditure for the EAGF may be committed in advance against the appropriations provided for the following financial year. Such commitments shall not, however, exceed three quarters of the total corresponding appropriations for the financial year. They shall apply only to expenditure for which the principle is laid down in an existing basic act.

Article 171Schedule and timing of EAGF budgetary commitments

1

Expenditure effected by the authorities and bodies referred to in the rules relating to the EAGF shall, within two months of receipt of the statements sent in by Member States, be the subject of a commitment by chapter, article and item. Such commitments may be made after the lapse of that two-month period where a procedure for a transfer of appropriations concerning the relevant budget lines is necessary. Except where payment has not yet been made by the Member States or where eligibility is in doubt, the amounts shall be charged as payments within the same two-month period.

The commitments referred to in the first subparagraph shall be deducted from the global provisional commitment referred to in Article 170.

2

Global provisional commitments which have been made for a financial year and which have not given rise to a commitment on specific lines in the budget nomenclature by 1 February of the following financial year shall be cancelled in respect of the financial year concerned.

3

Paragraphs 1 and 2 shall apply subject to the examination and acceptance of accounts.

Article 172Accounting of EAGF expenditure

In budgetary accounting, expenditure shall be booked to the accounts for a financial year on the basis of the repayments made by the Commission to the Member States by 31 December of that financial year, provided that the payment order has reached the accounting officer by 31 January of the following financial year.

Article 173Transfer of EAGF appropriations

1

Where the Commission transfers appropriations pursuant to Article 26(1), it shall take its decision by 31 January of the following financial year and shall inform the European Parliament and the Council as provided for in Article 26(1).

2

In cases other than those referred to in paragraph 1, the Commission shall submit transfer proposals to the European Parliament and the Council by 10 January of the following financial year.

The European Parliament and the Council shall take decisions on such transfers in accordance with the procedure provided for in Article 27, but for the purposes of this Article, the time limit applicable shall be three weeks.

Article 174Assigned EAGF revenue

1

Assigned revenue under this Title shall be assigned according to the origin of the revenue in accordance with Article 21(3).

2

The result of decisions referred to in Article 30 of Regulation (EC) No 1290/2005, shall be entered in a single article.