Article 102General rules
1.The competent authorities in the Member States concerned shall provide each other with administrative assistance in accordance with Articles 104 to 107, in order to ensure the correct application of the rules referred to in Article 1(2) in cases which have relevance in more than one Member State.
2.Administrative assistance shall include, where appropriate, and, by agreement between the competent authorities concerned, participation by the competent authorities of a Member State in on-the-spot official controls that the competent authorities of another Member State perform.
3.This Title shall be without prejudice to national law:
(a)applicable to the release of documents and information that are the object of, or related to, judicial investigations and court proceedings, including criminal investigations; and
(b)aimed at the protection of natural or legal persons’ commercial interests.
4.Member States shall take measures to facilitate the transmission, from other law enforcement authorities, public prosecutors and judicial authorities, to the competent authorities, of information on possible non-compliance with the rules referred to in Article 1(2) which is relevant for the application of this Title and which may constitute:
(a)a risk to human, animal or plant health, or to animal welfare, or, as regards GMOs and plant protection products, also to the environment; or
(b)a possible violation of the rules referred to in Article 1(2) perpetrated through fraudulent or deceptive practices.
5.All communications between competent authorities in accordance with Articles 104 to 107 shall be in writing, on paper or in electronic form.
6.In order to streamline and simplify communication exchanges, the Commission shall, by means of implementing acts, establish a standard format for:
(a)the requests for assistance provided for in Article 104(1); and
(b)the communication of common and recurrent notifications and responses.
Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 145(2).