# EUR-Lex - 52013PC0631 - EN

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# 52013PC0631

**Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION on the conclusion of a Protocol to the Stabilisation and Association Agreement between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of Albania, of the other part, to take account of the accession of the Republic of Croatia to the European Union /* COM/2013/0631 final - 2013/0311 (NLE) */**

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

On 24 September 2012 the Council authorised
the Commission to open negotiations, on behalf of the European Union and its
Member States and the Republic of Croatia, with Albania in order to conclude a
Protocol to the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (of 1st April 2009) between the
European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Republic
of Albania, of the other part, to take account of the accession of the Republic
of Croatia to the European Union.

These negotiations took place on 19
November 2012 and on 10 January 2013. Following further technical
clarifications and correspondence, the Albanian authorities informed of their
agreement with the draft Protocol proposed by the Commission on 18 June 2013. The
text of the draft Protocol is attached.

The attached proposals are for (1) a
Council decision on the signature and provisional application of the protocol
and (2) a Council and Commission decision on the conclusion of the protocol.

The Commission proposes that the Council
decides on the signature and provisional application of the Protocol on behalf
of the European Union and concludes the Protocol on behalf of the European
Union and its Member States. For the conclusion of the Protocol on behalf of
the European Atomic Energy Community, the Commission proposes that the Council
gives its approval, pursuant to the second paragraph of Article 101 of the
Treaty establishing the EAEC.

The attached proposal is for
a Council decision on the conclusion of the protocol. The Commission proposes
that the Council:

– 
concludes the Protocol on behalf of the European
Union and its Member States.

2013/0311 (NLE)

Proposal for a

COUNCIL DECISION

on the conclusion of a Protocol to the
Stabilisation and Association Agreement between the European Communities and
their Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of Albania, of the other
part, to take account of the accession of the Republic of Croatia to the
European Union

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the
Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 217 in conjunction
Article 218(6)(a) and the second subparagraph of Article 218(8) thereof,

Having regard to the Act concerning the
conditions of accession of the Republic of Croatia, and in particular Article
6(2) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the
European Commission,[1]

Having regard to the consent of the
European Parliament[2],

Whereas:

(1)       The
Protocol to the Stabilisation and Association Agreement between the European
Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of
Albania, of the other part, to take account of the accession of the Republic of
Croatia to the European Union, has been signed on behalf of the European Union
on [xx.xx.201x] in accordance with Council decision no [xxx][3].

(2)       The signature and
conclusion of the Protocol is subject to a separate procedure as regards
matters falling under the European Atomic Energy Community.

(3)       The Protocol should be
concluded.

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

The Protocol to the Stabilisation and
Association Agreement between the European Communities and their Member States,
of the one part, and the Republic of Albania, of the other part, to take
account of the accession of the Republic of Croatia to the European Union is
hereby approved on behalf of the European Union, the European Atomic
Energy Community and the Member States

Article 2

The
President of the Council shall designate the person empowered to proceed, on
behalf of the European Union and its Member States, to the deposit of the
instruments of approval provided for in Article 9 of the Protocol.

Done at Brussels,

For
the Council

The
President

PROTOCOL

to
the Stabilisation and Association Agreement between the European Communities
and their Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of Albania, of the
other part, to take account of the accession of the Republic of Croatia to the
European Union

THE KINGDOM OF BELGIUM,

THE REPUBLIC OF BULGARIA,

THE CZECH REPUBLIC,

THE KINGDOM OF DENMARK,

THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY,

THE REPUBLIC OF ESTONIA,

IRELAND,

THE HELLENIC REPUBLIC,

THE KINGDOM OF SPAIN,

THE FRENCH REPUBLIC,

THE REPUBLIC OF CROATIA,

THE ITALIAN REPUBLIC,

THE REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS,

THE REPUBLIC OF LATVIA,

THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA,

THE GRAND DUCHY
OF LUXEMBOURG,

HUNGARY,

THE REPUBLIC OF MALTA,

THE KINGDOM OF
THE NETHERLANDS,

THE REPUBLIC OF AUSTRIA,

THE REPUBLIC OF POLAND,

THE PORTUGUESE REPUBLIC,

ROMANIA,

THE REPUBLIC OF SLOVENIA,

THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC,

THE REPUBLIC OF FINLAND,

THE KINGDOM OF SWEDEN,

THE UNITED
KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND

Contracting Parties to the Treaty on
European Union, the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and the
Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community, hereinafter referred
to as the 'Member States', and

THE EUROPEAN UNION and THE EUROPEAN ATOMIC
ENERGY COMMUNITY,

hereinafter referred to as 'the European
Union',

of the one part, and

THE REPUBLIC OF ALBANIA, hereinafter
referred to as "Albania"

of the other part,

Having regard to the accession of the Republic of Croatia (hereinafter referred to as 'Croatia') to the European Union on 1 July
2013,

Whereas:

(1) 
The Stabilisation and Association Agreement
between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of Albania, of the other part, (hereinafter referred to as 'the SAA') was signed in Luxemburg on
12 June 2006 and entered into force on 1 April 2009.

(2) 
The Treaty concerning the accession of Croatia to the European Union (hereinafter referred to as 'the Treaty of Accession') was signed in Brussels on 9 December 2011.

(3) 
Croatia acceded to the
European Union on 1 July 2013.

(4) 
Pursuant to Article 6(2) of the Act of Accession
of Croatia, the accession of Croatia to the SAA shall be agreed by the
conclusion of a protocol to the SAA.

(5) 
Consultations pursuant to Article 36(3) of the
SAA have taken place so as to ensure that account is taken of the mutual
interests of the European Union and Albania stated in this Agreement,

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:

Section I

Contracting Parties

Article
1

Croatia shall be Party to the Stabilisation
and Association Agreement between the European Communities
and their Member States, of the one part, and the
Republic of Albania, of the other part, signed in Luxemburg on 12 June 2006 and
shall respectively adopt and take note, in the same manner as the other Member
States of the European Union, of the texts of the Agreement, as well as of the
Joint Declarations, and the Unilateral Declarations annexed to the Final Act
signed on the same date.

ADJUSTMENTS
TO THE TEXT OF THE SAA INCLUDING ITS ANNEXES AND PROTOCOLS

Section II

AGricultural Products

Article
2

Agricultural
Products sensu stricto

1.           Annex
II(c) to the SAA shall be replaced by the text set out in Annex I to this Protocol.

Section III

Rules of Origin

Article
3

Annex IV of Protocol 4 to the SAA shall be
replaced by the text set out in Annex II to this Protocol.

TRANSITIONAL
PROVISIONS

Section
IV

Article 4

WTO

Albania undertakes
that it shall not make any claim, request or referral nor modify or withdraw
any concession pursuant to GATT 1994 Articles XXIV.6 and XXVIII in relation to
this enlargement of the European Union.

Article
5

Proof
of origin and administrative cooperation

1.           Without
prejudice to the application of any measure deriving from the common commercial
policy, proof of origin properly issued by either Albania or Croatia or made
out in the framework of a preferential agreement applied between them shall be
accepted in the respective countries, provided that:

(a) 
the acquisition of such origin confers
preferential tariff treatment on the basis of the preferential tariff measures
contained in the SAA;

(b) 
the proof of origin and the transport documents
were issued or made out no later than the day before the date of accession;

(c) 
the proof of origin is submitted to the customs
authorities within a period of four months from the date of accession.

Where goods were declared for importation in
either Albania or Croatia, prior to the date of accession, proof of origin
issued or made out under a preferential agreement may also be accepted provided
that such proof is submitted to the customs authorities within a period of four
months from the date of accession.

2.           Albania and Croatia are authorised to
retain the authorisations with which the status of “approved exporters” has
been granted in the framework of a preferential agreement applied between them,
provided that:

(a) 
such a provision is also provided for in the SAA
concluded prior to the date of Croatia's accession between Albania and the European Union; and

(b) 
the approved exporters apply the rules of origin
in force under that agreement.

(c) 
These authorisations shall be replaced, no later
than one year after the date of accession of Croatia, by new authorisations
issued under the conditions of the SAA.

3.           Requests
for subsequent verification of proof of origin issued under the preferential
agreement referred to in paragraph 1 shall be accepted by the competent customs
authorities of either Albania or Croatia for a period of three years after the
issue of the proof of origin concerned and may be made by those authorities for
a period of three years after acceptance of the proof of origin submitted to
those authorities in support of an import declaration.

Article
6

Goods
in transit

1.           The
provisions of the SAA may be applied to goods exported from either Albania to
Croatia or from Croatia to Albania, which comply with the provisions of
Protocol 4 to the SAA and that on the date of accession of Croatia are either en
route or in temporary storage, in a customs warehouse or in a free zone in
Albania or in Croatia.

2.           Preferential
treatment may be granted in such cases, subject to the submission to the
customs authorities of the importing country, within four months from the date
of accession of Croatia, of a proof of origin issued retrospectively by the
customs authorities of the exporting country.

Article
7

Quotas
in 2013

For the year 2013, the volumes of the new
tariff quotas and the increases of the volumes of existing tariff quotas shall
be calculated as a pro rata of the basic volumes, taking into account the part
of the period elapsed before 1 July 2013.

GENERAL
AND FINAL PROVISIONS

Section V

Article
8

This Protocol and the Annexes thereto shall
form an integral part of the SAA.

Article
9

1.           This
Protocol shall be approved by the European Communities
and their Member States and by the Republic of Albania in accordance with their own procedures.

2.           The
Parties shall notify each other of the completion of the corresponding
procedures referred to in paragraph 1. The instruments of approval shall be
deposited with the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union.

Article
10

1.           This
Protocol shall enter into force on the first day of the first month following
the date of the deposit of the last instrument of approval.

2.           If
not all the instruments of approval of this Protocol have been deposited before
1 July 2013, this Protocol shall apply provisionally with effect from 1
July 2013.

Article
11

This Protocol is drawn up in duplicate in
the Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Irish,
Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian,
Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovene, Spanish, Swedish
languages and in Albanian language, each of these texts being equally
authentic.

Article
12

The text of the SAA, including the Annexes
and Protocols which form an integral part thereof, and the Final Act together
with the declarations annexed thereto shall be drawn up in the Croatian language,
and these texts shall be authentic in the same way as the original texts. The
Stabilisation and Association Council shall approve these texts.

ANNEX I

Annex II(c)

Albanian tariff concessions for agricultural primary
products originating in the Community

(referred to in Article 27(3)(c))

CN Code || Description || Annual quota (in tonnes) || Rate of in-quota duty

0401 10 10 || MILK AND CREAM OF A FAT CONTENT BY WEIGHT OF <= 1%, IN IMMEDIATE PACKINGS OF <= 2 L, NOT CONCENTRATED NOR CONTAINING ADDED SUGAR OR OTHER SWEETENING MATTER || 790 || 0%

0401 20 11 || MILK AND CREAM OF A FAT CONTENT BY WEIGHT OF <= 3% BUT > 1%, IN IMMEDIATE PACKINGS OF <= 2 L, NOT CONCENTRATED NOR CONTAINING ADDED SUGAR OR OTHER SWEETENING MATTER

0401 20 91 || MILK AND CREAM OF A FAT CONTENT BY WEIGHT OF > 3% BUT <= 6%, IN IMMEDIATE PACKINGS OF <= 2 L, NOT CONCENTRATED NOR CONTAINING ADDED SUGAR OR OTHER SWEETENING MATTER

1001 91 20 (formerly 1001 90 91) || COMMON WHEAT AND MESLIN SEED || 42 000 || 0%

1001 99 00 (formerly 1001 90 99) || SPELT, COMMON WHEAT AND MESLIN (EXCLUDING SEED)

1005 90 00 || MAIZE (EXCL. SEED) || 10 000 || 0%

ANNEX
II

Annex
IV

TEXT
OF THE INVOICE DECLARATION

The
invoice declaration, the text of which is given below, must be made out in
accordance with the footnotes. However, the footnotes do not have to be
reproduced.

Bulgarian
version

Износителят
на
продуктите,
обхванати от
този
документ
(митническо
разрешение №
... (1[4]))
декларира, че
освен където
ясно е
отбелязано
друго, тези
продукти са с
.... (2) преференциален произход.

Spanish
versión

El
exportador de los productos incluidos en el presente documento (autorización
aduanera n° ... (1)) declara que, salvo indicación en sentido contrario, estos
productos gozan de un origen preferencial ... (2).

Czech
versión

Vývozce
výrobků uvedených v tomto dokumentu (číslo povolení ... (1))
prohlašuje, že kromě zřetelně označených mají tyto výrobky
preferenční původ v ... (2).

Danish
version

Eksportøren
af varer, der er omfattet af nærværende dokument, (toldmyndighedernes
tilladelse nr. ... (1)), erklærer, at varerne, medmindre andet tydeligt er
angivet, har præferenceoprindelse i ... (2).

German
version

Der
Ausführer (Ermächtigter Ausführer; Bewilligungs-Nr. ... (1)) der Waren, auf die
sich dieses Handelspapier bezieht, erklärt, dass diese Waren, soweit nicht
anderes angegeben, präferenzbegünstigte ... (2) Ursprungswaren sind.

Estonian
version

Käesoleva
dokumendiga hõlmatud toodete eksportija (tolli kinnitus nr. ... (1)) deklareerib,
et need tooted on ... (2) sooduspäritoluga, välja arvatud juhul, kui on selgelt
näidetud teisiti.

Greek version

Ο
εξαγωγέας των
προϊόντων που
καλύπτονται
από το παρόν
έγγραφο (άδεια
τελωνείου
υπ’αριθ. ... (1))
δηλώνει ότι,
εκτός εάν
δηλώνεται
σαφώς άλλως, τα
προϊόντα αυτά
είναι
προτιμησιακής
καταγωγής ... (2).

English
version

The
exporter of the products covered by this document (customs authorization No ...
(1)) declares that, except where otherwise clearly indicated, these products
are of ... (2) preferential origin.

French
version

L’exportateur
des produits couverts par le présent document (autorisation douanière n° ... (1))
déclare que, sauf indication claire du contraire, ces produits ont l’origine
préférentielle ... (2).

Croatian
version

Izvoznik
proizvoda obuhvaćenih ovom ispravom (carinsko ovlaštenje br. ... (1))
izjavljuje da su, osim ako je drukčije izričito navedeno, ovi
proizvodi ... (2) preferencijalnog
podrijetla.

Italian
version

L’esportatore
delle merci contemplate nel presente documento (autorizzazione doganale n. ...
(1)) dichiara che, salvo indicazione contraria, le merci sono di origine
preferenziale ... (2).

Latvian
version

To
produktu eksportētājs, kuri ietverti šajā dokumentā (muitas
atļauja Nr. ... (1)), deklarē, ka, izņemot tur, kur ir citādi
skaidri noteikts, šiem produktiem ir preferenciāla izcelsme ... (2).

Lithuanian
version

Šiame
dokumente išvardytų prekių eksportuotojas (muitinės liudijimo
Nr. ... (1)) deklaruoja, kad, jeigu kitaip nenurodyta, tai yra ... (2)
preferencinės kilmės prekės.

Hungarian
version

A jelen
okmányban szereplő áruk exportőre (vámfelhatalmazási szám: ... (1))
kijelentem, hogy eltérő egyértelmű jelzés hiányában az áruk
preferenciális ... (2) származásúak.

Maltese
version

L-esportatur
tal-prodotti koperti b’dan id-dokument (awtorizzazzjoni tad-dwana nru. ... (1))
jiddikjara li, ħlief fejn indikat b’mod ċar li mhux hekk, dawn
il-prodotti huma ta’ oriġini preferenzjali ... (2).

Dutch
version

De
exporteur van de goederen waarop dit document van toepassing is (douanevergunning
nr. ... (1)), verklaart dat, behoudens uitdrukkelijke andersluidende vermelding,
deze goederen van preferentiële ... oorsprong zijn (2).

Polish
version

Eksporter
produktów objętych tym dokumentem (upoważnienie władz celnych nr
... (1)) deklaruje, że z wyjątkiem gdzie jest to wyraźnie
określone, produkty te mają ... (2)
preferencyjne pochodzenie.

Portuguese
version

O
abaixo-assinado, exportador dos produtos abrangidos pelo presente documento
(autorização aduaneira n.° ... (1)), declara que, salvo indicação expressa em
contrário, estes produtos são de origem preferencial ... (2).

Romanian
version

Exportatorul
produselor ce fac obiectul acestui document (autorizaţia vamală nr. ...
(1)) declară că, exceptând cazul în care în mod expres este indicat
altfel, aceste produse sunt de origine preferenţială ... (2).

Slovak
version

Vývozca
výrobkov uvedených v tomto dokumente (číslo povolenia ... (1)) vyhlasuje, že
okrem zreteľne označených, majú tieto výrobky preferenčný pôvod
v ... (2).

Slovenian
version

Izvoznik
blaga, zajetega s tem dokumentom (pooblastilo carinskih organov štr. ... (1))
izjavlja, da, razen če ni drugače jasno navedeno, ima to blago
preferencialno ... (2) poreklo.

Finnish
version

Tässä
asiakirjassa mainittujen tuotteiden viejä (tullin lupa n:o ... (1)) ilmoittaa,
että nämä tuotteet ovat, ellei toisin ole selvästi merkitty, etuuskohteluun
oikeutettuja ... alkuperätuotteita (2).

Swedish
version

Exportören
av de varor som omfattas av detta dokument (tullmyndighetens tillstånd nr. ...
(1)) försäkrar att dessa varor, om inte annat tydligt markerats, har
förmånsberättigande ... ursprung (2).

Albanian
version

Eksportuesi
i produkteve të përfshira në këtë dokument (autorizim doganor Nr. ... (1))
deklaron që, përveç rasteve kur tregohet qartësisht ndryshe, këto produkte janë
me origjinë preferenciale ... ( 2 ).

.............................................................................................................................................
(3)

(Place
and date)

.............................................................................................................................................
(4)

(Signature of the exporter. In addition,
the name of the person signing the declaration has to be indicated in clear
script.)

[1]               OJ C [...], [...], p.[...].

[2]               OJ C [...], [...], p.[...].

[3]               OJ L [...], [...], p.[...].

[4]

(1)           When the invoice
declaration is made out by an approved exporter, the authorization number of
the approved exporter must be entered in this space. When the invoice
declaration is not made out by an approved exporter, the words in brackets
shall be omitted or the space left blank.

(2)           Origin of products to
be indicated. When the invoice declaration relates, in whole or in part, to
products originating in Ceuta and Mellila, the exporter must clearly indicate
them in the document on which the declaration is made out by means of the
symbol ‘CM’.

(3)           These indications may
be omitted if the information is contained on the document itself.

(4)           In cases where the
exporter is not required to sign, the exemption of signature also implies the
exemption of the name of the signatory.'