This Regulation opens and manages, from 2016, an annual import tariff quota for the products indicated in Annex I, for the period from 1 January until 31 December.

The quantity of products covered by the quota referred to in paragraph 1, the applicable rate of customs duty and the order numbers shall be as set out in Annex I.

The import tariff quota referred to in paragraph 1 shall be managed in accordance with the method referred to in Article 184(2)(b) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 and by attributing import rights as a first step and issuing import licences as a second step.

Regulations (EC) No 1301/2006, (EC) No 376/2008 and (EC) No 382/2008 shall apply, unless otherwise provided for in this Regulation.

Applications for import rights shall be submitted in the first seven days of the month preceding each of the subperiods referred to in Article 2.

A security of EUR 6 per 100 kilograms net weight shall be lodged at the time of submission of an import rights application.

Applicants for import rights shall, when presenting their first application for a given quota year, submit the proof that a quantity of beef falling under CN codes 0201 or 0202 has been imported by them or on their behalf under the relevant customs provisions (‘the reference quantity’). Such proof shall relate to the 12 months' period ending 1 month before their first application. A company formed by the merger of companies, each having imported reference quantities, may use those reference quantities as basis for its application.

The total quantity of products covered by an application for import rights submitted in one of the subperiods referred to in Article 2 shall not exceed 25 % of the applicant's reference quantity. A competent authority shall reject applications not complying with this rule.

Member States shall notify the Commission, by the 14th day of the month in which applications are submitted, of the total quantities, including nil returns, of all applications, expressed in kilograms of product weight.

Import rights shall be awarded as from the 23rd day of the month in which applications are submitted and at the latest by the last day of that month.

Where the application of the allocation coefficient referred to in Article 7(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1301/2006 results in fewer import rights to be allocated than had been applied for, the security lodged in accordance with Article 3(2) of this Regulation shall be released proportionally without delay.

Import rights shall be valid from the first day of the subperiod for which the application has been submitted until the end of the annual quota period. Import rights shall not be transferable.

The release into free circulation of the quantities awarded under the import tariff quota referred to in Article 1(1) shall be subject to the presentation of an import licence.

Import licence applications shall cover the total quantity of import rights allocated. The obligation referred to in Article 23(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) No 907/2014 shall be respected.

Import licence applications shall be submitted only in the Member State where the applicant has applied for and obtained import rights under the import tariff quota referred to in Article 1(1).

Each issuing of an import licence shall result in a corresponding reduction of the import rights obtained and the security lodged in accordance with Article 3(2) shall be released proportionally without delay.

Import licences shall be issued upon application by and in the name of the operator who has obtained the import rights.

Import licence applications shall refer to only one order number. They may concern several products covered by different CN codes. In that case, all the CN codes and their descriptions shall be entered in boxes 15 and 16 of the licence application and the licence respectively.

Each import licence shall mention the quantity for each CN code.

By way of derogation from Article 5(3)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 382/2008, the import licences shall be valid 30 days from the actual day of issue of the licence within the meaning of Article 22(2) of Regulation (EC) No 376/2008. The term of validity of the import licences shall, however, expire on 31 December of each import tariff quota period at the latest.

By way of derogation from the second subparagraph of Article 11(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1301/2006, Member States shall notify the Commission not later than the 10th day of the month following the last day of each subperiod, of the quantities, including nil returns, covered by licences they have issued during that subperiod.

No later than 30 April following the end of each tariff import quota period, Member States shall notify the Commission of the quantities of products, which were actually released into free circulation during that import tariff quota period.

In the case of the notifications referred to in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3, the quantity shall be expressed in kilograms of product weight.