PART TWOCOMMON PROVISIONS APPLICABLE TO THE ESI FUNDS

TITLE IXFINANCIAL MANAGEMENT, EXAMINATION AND ACCEPTANCE OF ACCOUNTS AND FINANCIAL CORRECTIONS, DECOMMITMENT

CHAPTER IVDecommitment

Article 86Principles

1

All programmes shall be submitted to a decommitment procedure established on the basis that amounts linked to a commitment which are not covered by pre-financing or by a request for payment within a defined period, including any request for payment for which all or part is subject to an interruption of the payment deadline or a suspension of payments, shall be decommitted.

2

The commitment related to the last year of the period shall be decommitted in accordance with the rules to be followed for the closure of the programmes.

3

The Fund-specific rules shall specify the precise application of the decommitment rule for each ESI Fund.

4

The part of commitments still open shall be decommitted if any of the documents required for the closure have not been submitted to the Commission by the deadlines established in the Fund-specific rules.

5

The budgetary commitments in respect of the performance reserve shall be subject only to the decommitment procedure set out in paragraph 4.

Article 87Exception to the decommitment

1

The amount concerned by decommitment shall be reduced by the amounts equivalent to that part of the budget commitment for which:

a

the operations are suspended by a legal proceeding or by an administrative appeal having suspensory effect; or

b

it has not been possible to make a request for payment for reasons of force majeure seriously affecting implementation of all or part of the programme.

The national authorities claiming force majeure under point (b) of the first subparagraph shall demonstrate the direct consequences of the force majeure on the implementation of all or part of the programme.

For the purpose of points (a) and (b) of the first subparagraph, the reduction may be requested once, if the suspension or force majeure lasted no longer than one year, or a number of times that corresponds to the duration of the force majeure or the number of years between the date of the legal or administrative decision suspending the implementation of the operation and the date of the final legal or administrative decision.

2

By 31 January, the Member State shall send to the Commission information on the exceptions referred to in points (a) and (b) of the first subparagraph of paragraph 1 for the amount to be declared by the end of the preceding year.

Article 88Procedure

1

The Commission shall inform the Member State and the managing authority in good time whenever there is a risk of application of the decommitment rule under Article 86.

2

On the basis of the information it has received as of 31 January, the Commission shall inform the Member State and the managing authority of the amount of the decommitment resulting from that information.

3

The Member State shall have two months to agree to the amount to be decommitted or to submit its observations.

4

By 30 June, the Member State shall submit to the Commission a revised financing plan reflecting, for the financial year concerned, the reduced amount of support over one or more priorities of the programme taking into account the allocation by Fund and by category of region, where appropriate. Failing such submission, the Commission shall revise the financing plan by reducing the contribution from the ESI Funds for the financial year concerned. That reduction shall be allocated to each priority proportionately.

5

The Commission shall amend the decision adopting the programme, by means of implementing acts, not later than 30 September.