Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/141Show full title

Article 1 U.K. Amendment of Delegated Regulation (EU) No 639/2014

Delegated Regulation (EU) No 639/2014 is amended as follows:

(1)

Article 49 is amended as follows:

(a)

in the first subparagraph of paragraph 1, point (b) is replaced by the following:

‘(b) a young farmer within the meaning of Article 50(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013 exercises effective and long-term control over the legal person in terms of decisions related to management, benefits and financial risks in each year in respect of which the legal person applies for the payment under the young farmers scheme. Where several natural persons, including person(s) who are not young farmer(s), participate in the capital or management of the legal person, the young farmer(s) shall in each year in respect of which the legal person applies for the payment under the young farmers scheme be capable of exercising such effective and long-term control either solely or jointly together with other farmers, subject to paragraph 1a of this Article.’;

(b)

the following paragraph 1a is inserted:

‘1a. By way of derogation from point (b) of the first subparagraph of paragraph 1, Member States may decide that, as of calendar year 2016 or 2017, the young farmer(s) shall exercise the effective and long-term control referred to in that point solely. Such a decision shall be taken before the date of opening of the application period for the first year to which it applies and it shall be taken only once. No such decision shall be possible after the date of opening of the application period for calendar year 2017.

Where Member States use the derogation provided for in the first subparagraph, for determining the date of setting up referred to in Article 50(2)(a) and Article 50(5) of Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013, the period in which the young farmer exercised control jointly together with other farmers in accordance with point (b) of the first subparagraph of paragraph 1 of this Article in the calendar years preceding the calendar year as of which the derogation is applied shall be taken into account.

If Member States use that derogation, they shall decide whether or not to require sole control by young farmers for those legal persons or groups of natural persons which have already received payment under the young farmers scheme in the year(s) preceding the year as of which the derogation is used while a young farmer or young farmers exercised the control jointly together with farmers who were not young farmers’;

(2)

in Article 53(2), the following third subparagraph is added:

‘Without prejudice to Article 52(5) of Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013, for the per unit amount of support referred to in the second subparagraph of this paragraph, Member States may decide to apply modulated per unit amounts in respect of certain categories of farmers or at farm level in order to take into account economies of scale resulting from the size of the production structures in the targeted specific type of farming or specific agricultural sector, or, if the measure targets a region or an entire sector, in the region or sector concerned. Article 67(1) of this Regulation shall apply mutatis mutandis to the notification of such decisions.’;

(3)

the following Article 53a is inserted:

‘Article 53a Transfer of funds between measures

1. Without prejudice to the requirements set out in Chapter I of Title IV of Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013, Member States may decide to use the amounts notified in accordance with point (3)(i) of Annex I to this Regulation for the purpose of financing one or several other support measures under Chapter I of Title IV of Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013 in respect of the same claim year.

A transfer of funds between support measures shall not result in a support measure notified to the Commission pursuant to Article 54 of Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013 and Article 67(1) and (2) of this Regulation becoming void.

2. Where the area or the number of animals eligible for support under a voluntary coupled support measure in the claim year concerned equals to or exceeds the quantitative limit notified in accordance with point (3)(j) of Annex I to this Regulation, the support measure shall not benefit from a transfer of funds from any other support measure(s).

3. Where the area or the number of animals eligible for support under a voluntary coupled support measure in the claim year concerned is lower compared to the quantitative limit notified in accordance with point (3)(j) of Annex I to this Regulation, a transfer of funds shall not result in the per unit amount becoming lower than the ratio between the amount fixed for the financing as notified in accordance with point (3)(i) of that Annex and the quantitative limit.

4. Where Member States grant coupled support for protein crops while using the possibility provided for in Article 53(3) of Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013, a transfer of funds shall not result in the support available for protein crops to be less than 2 % of the annual national ceiling set out in Annex II to that Regulation.

5. A decision to transfer funds between support measures shall be taken before the date of the first payment or payment of advances to farmers in respect of the voluntary coupled support. However, in respect of transfers from and to measures for which no payment has been made yet, such decision may be taken after that date, but no later than:

(a) the last day of the month in which the first payment or payment of advances to farmers in respect of the voluntary coupled support is made;

(b) 30 November where such first payment or payment of advances is made in the period from 16 to 31 October.

6. The competent authority of the Member State intending to take a decision to transfer funds between support measures shall inform farmers of a possible transfer before the date of opening of the application period.’;

(4)

in Article 54, paragraph 3 is replaced by the following:

‘3. Where support under a certain coupled support measure may also be granted under another coupled support measure, or under a measure implemented under other Union measures and policies, Member States shall ensure that the farmer concerned may receive support aiming at the objective referred to in Article 52(5) of Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013 under only one such measure per sector, region, specific type of farming or specific agricultural sector that is targeted in accordance with Article 52(3) of that Regulation.’;

(5)

in Article 66, the following paragraph 4 is added:

‘4. Member States shall notify the Commission of any decision taken pursuant to Article 49(1a) at the latest 15 days after the date on which such decision was taken.’;

(6)

in Article 67, the following paragraph 3 is added:

‘3. Member States shall notify the Commission of any decision taken pursuant to Article 53a(1) by the first day of the month following that in which the first payment or payment of advances to farmers in respect of the voluntary coupled support has been made. However, where such payment was made in the period from 16 to 31 October, that notification shall be made by 1 December. That notification shall include the following:

(a) a list of the affected measures and the amounts transferred;

(b) for each affected measure, the eligible areas or number of animals in the relevant claim year after all checks of the submitted applications have been carried out;

(c) for each affected measure, a justification that a transfer does not create an incentive to produce beyond current levels of production and that the decisions notified to the Commission pursuant to Article 54 of Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013 and paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article do not become void.’;

(7)

Annex I is amended in accordance with the Annex to this Regulation.