Commission Regulation (EC) No 136/2004
of 22 January 2004
laying down procedures for veterinary checks at Community border inspection posts on products imported from third countries
(Text with EEA relevance)
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Council Directive 97/78/EC of 18 December 1997 laying down the principles governing the organisation of veterinary checks on products entering the Community from third countries(1), and particularly Article 3(5), Article 4(5), Article 5(4), Article 8(7), Article 16(3) and Article 19(1) thereof,
Whereas:
(1) The original requirements for veterinary checks on products entering the Community from third countries were laid down in Council Directive 90/675/EEC(2), which has been repealed and replaced by Directive 97/78/EC.
(2) In the light of experience gained since the adoption of Directive 90/675/EEC, there have been some changes to procedures introduced by Directive 97/78/EC. Commission Decision 93/13/EEC of 22 December 1992 laying down the procedures for veterinary checks at the Community border inspection posts on products from third countries(3), as last amended by Decision 2003/279/EC(4), was adopted an the basis of the first directive and should therefore be updated.
(3) The certificate issued after completion of veterinary checks and currently laid down in Annex B to Decision 93/13/EEC should be adapted to take account of changes to procedures both for consignments meeting Community rules and for consignments not meeting Community rules, and whether for import into or transit of the Community.
(4) Detailed rules concerning the use of that certificate are set out in Commission Decision 2000/208/EC of 24 February 2000 establishing detailed rules for the application of Council Directive 97/98/EC concerning the transit of products of animal origin from one third country to another third country by road only across the European Community(5), and Commission Decision 2000/571/EC of 8 September 2000 laying down the methods of veterinary checks for products from third countries destined for introduction into free zones, free warehouses, customs warehouses or operators supplying cross border means of sea transport(6).
(5) However, it is necessary to lay down specific rules regarding the practical management of the certificate in situations where consignments receive veterinary clearance at the border inspection post but remain under customs supervision for fiscal reasons for some time. In such cases a system of traceability, and clarification as to the documentation to accompany the consignment, are required.
(6) For the proper functioning of the system of veterinary checks in the single market all the information pertaining to a product should be brought together in a single document with a uniform design to reduce problems of differences of language in different Member States.
(7) Specific details of harmonised sampling and laboratory testing of different types of product will be made the subject of later implementing decisions, but in the meantime national rules should continue to apply except in the case of particular safeguard measures.
(8) Experience has shown that it is of fundamental importance to have good sources of information regarding all consignments entering the Community to reduce fraud and evasion of checks. Checking of manifests is a key feature of this information-gathering process but is a very substantial and time-consuming task that should be automated by electronic means wherever possible.
(9) In addition to the efficient gathering of the pertinent information among all the appropriate operators, the competent authority should be allowed to have access to the relevant databases of the customs authorities. All the operators should be integrated to this system of databases to ensure the availability of updated information by those involved.
(10) Certain plant products posing a risk of spreading infectious or contagious diseases to animals should be subjected to veterinary checks. A list of such products should be drawn up together with a list of third countries or parts of third countries which may be authorised to export those products to the Community.
(11) For small amounts of products of animal origin being carried for their personal consumption by passengers arriving from third countries, exemptions from the requirements of veterinary checks procedures are possible. Certain of those products are the subject of a safeguard measure in accordance with Commission Decision 2002/995/EC of 9 December 2002 laying down interim safeguard measures with regard to imports of products of animal origin for personal consumption(7). Reference to those measures should be retained pending the adoption of permanent rules in this sector.
(12) The measures in this Regulation replace those laid down in Decision 93/13/EEC and that decision should therefore be repealed.
(13) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
Veterinary checks
1. The documentary checks provided for in Article 4(3) of Directive 97/78/EC shall be carried out in accordance with Annex I to this Regulation.
2. The laboratory checks and analyses of official samples provided for in Article 4(4)(b) of Directive 97/78/EC shall be carried out in accordance with Annex II to this Regulation.
Article 2
Notification of arrival of products by means of the Common Veterinary Entry Document
1. Before the physical arrival of the consignment on Community territory the person responsible for the load shall notify the arrival of the products to the veterinary staff of the border inspection post to which the products are to be submitted, using the Common Veterinary Entry Document (CVED), as set out in Annex III.
2. The CVED shall be issued in accordance with the general rules relating to certification laid down in other relevant Community legislation.
3. The CVED shall be drawn up in an original and copies as determined by the competent authority to meet the requirements of this Regulation. The person responsible for the load shall fill in part 1 of the CVED and transmit this to the veterinary staff of the border inspection post.
4. Without prejudice to paragraphs 1 and 3, the information contained in the CVED may, with the agreement of the competent authorities concerned by the consignment, be made the object of an advanced notification through telecommunications or other systems of electronic data transmission. Where this is done, the information supplied in electronic form shall be that required by part 1 of the model CVED.
Article 3
Procedure to be followed after completion of the veterinary checks
1. After completion of the veterinary checks provided for in Article 4 of Directive 97/78/EC, part 2 of the CVED shall be completed under the responsibility of the official veterinarian responsible for the border inspection post. The CVED shall be signed by that official veterinarian or by another official veterinarian operating under supervision of the former, to give veterinary clearance to the consignment.
In the case of border inspection posts checking imports of fish in accordance with Commission Decision 93/352/EEC(8), the designated official agent may carry out the functions of the official veterinarian including the completion and signature of the CVED.
2. The original of the CVED for consignments to which veterinary clearance has been given shall consist of parts 1 and 2 together, duly completed and signed.
3. The official veterinarian or the person responsible for the load shall notify the customs authorities for the border inspection post of the veterinary clearance of the consignment as provided for in paragraph 1 by submitting the original of the CVED, or by electronic means.
- After customs clearance(9) is obtained, the original of the CVED shall accompany the consignment to the first establishment of destination.
- The official veterinarian at the border inspection post shall retain a copy of the CVED.
- The official veterinarian shall transmit a copy of the CVED to the person responsible for the load.
4. The official veterinarian shall retain the original veterinary certification or documentation issued by the third country and accompanying the consignment, as well as a copy of the CVED, for at least three years. However, for consignments of products in transit or for storage in a warehouse approved under Articles 12(4) or 13 of Directive 97/78/EC, and ultimately intended for destinations outside the Community, the original veterinary documents accompanying the consignment on arrival shall travel onwards with the consignment and only copies of these documents shall be retained at the border inspection post.
Article 4
Procedure to be followed where consignments of products have received veterinary clearance but are still under customs supervision
1. Where consignments of products have received veterinary clearance at the border inspection post as provided for in Article 3(1), but remain under customs supervision and are released for free circulation at a later stage, the procedure set out in paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 shall apply.
2. The original of the CVED shall accompany the consignment as long as the consignment remains under customs supervision through one or more establishments, until custom clearance is requested by the person responsible for the load.
3. For first customs clearance the person responsible for the load shall present the original of the CVED to the customs office responsible for the establishment where the consignment is located. This may also be done by electronic means, subject to authorisation of the competent authority.
4. Where the customs clearance has been requested as provided for in paragraph 3, the operator of the establishment shall:
(a) keep a copy of the CVED accompanying the consignment;
(b) record the date of reception of the consignment; and
(c) record the date of customs clearance, or the dates of such clearance if the consignment is split up into parts as provided for in Article 5.
Article 5
Procedure to be followed where consignments under customs supervision are split up into parts
1. Where a consignment referred to in Article 4(1) is split up into parts, the original of the CVED shall be presented to the competent customs authorities responsible for the establishment where the consignment is split up. A copy of the CVED will then remain at the establishment where the consignment is split.
2. The competent authority responsible for the establishment in paragraph 1 may issue an authenticated photocopy of the original of the CVED to accompany each part consignment, marked with information on the revised quantity or weight.
The competent authority may require the operator of the establishment where the consignment is split to keep records to ensure traceability of the different parts of the consignment.
Records and copies of the CVED must be kept for three years.
Article 6
Coordination with other enforcement services
To ensure that all products of animal origin entering the Community undergo veterinary checks the competent authority and the official veterinarians of each Member State shall coordinate with other enforcement services to gather all pertinent intelligence regarding introduction of animal products This shall apply in particular to the following:
(a) information available to customs services;
(b) information on ship, boat, rail or aircraft manifests;
(c) other sources of information available to the road, rail, port or airport commercial operators.
Article 7
Access to databases and integration of information technology systems
For the purpose of Article 6, the competent authority shall have access to the databases or relevant parts thereof available to the customs services.
Subject to appropriate data security, the information technology systems used by the competent authority shall, in so far as is possible and where appropriate, be integrated with those of the customs services, and with those of commercial operators, in order to speed the transfer of information.
Article 8
Specific rules for products which form part of travellers' luggage or are sent as small consignments to private persons
1. Without prejudice to specific Community rules relating to certain products, the products referred to in Article 16(1)(a), (b), and (d) of Directive 97/78/EC shall not be subject to the systematic veterinary checks set out in Chapter 1 of that Directive if they are less than 1 kg in weight only and destined for personal human consumption.
However, such products may only be introduced into the Community from approved third countries or parts of approved third countries.
2. Paragraph 1 shall not affect the animal health and public health rules set out in the appropriate Community legislation.
3. For small packages containing products of animal origin introduced into Denmark from Greenland and the Faeroe Islands for direct consumption by private persons, the weight limit provided for in paragraph 1 shall be 5 kg.
4. For fish caught for recreation and introduced into Finland and Sweden from Russia in the personal luggage of travellers, for direct consumption by private persons, the weight limit provided for in paragraph 1 shall be 15 kg or one fish of any weight, whichever is higher.
Article 9
Veterinary checks of certain plant products
1. Member States shall submit the plant products listed in Annex IV, from the countries authorised and listed in Annex V, to the documentary checks referred to in Article 1(1) of this Regulation, and, as appropriate, to the laboratory checks referred to in Article 1(2) of this Regulation and other physical checks set out in Annex III to Directive 97/78/EC.
2. The requirements of Directive 97/78/EC and of this Regulation shall apply to all plant products listed in Annex IV to this Regulation which, in particular on account of their origin and subsequent destination, may give rise to the risk of spreading infectious or contagious animal diseases.
Article 10
Use of electronic certification
The production, use, transmission and storage of the CVED as set down in the various situations described in this Regulation may be done by electronic means at the discretion of the competent authority.
Article 11
Repeal
Decision 93/13/EEC is repealed.
References to the repealed Decision shall be construed as references to this Regulation.
Article 12
Entry into force
This Regulation shall enter into force on 1 March 2004.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.
Done at Brussels, 22 January 2004.