Judgment — ECLI:EU:C:2013:368
Date: 2013-06-06
Language of the case: Bulgarian
Court formation: Second Chamber
Subject matter: External relations;Free movement of goods;Commercial policy;Customs Union
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: Bulgaria

Summary — Judgment of the Court (Second Chamber), 6 June 2013 1. Common commercial policy — Protection against dumping — Circumvention — Extension of anti-dumping measures — Duty to register the imports concerned — Means of registration — Absence of information in the anti-dumping regulation and in the regulation initiating the circumvention investigation — Determination by the Member States — Conditions — Identification of the imports concerned allowing the correct retroactive levy of the extended anti-dumping duties (Council Regulations No 1225/2009, Arts 13(1) and 14(5), and No 723/2011, Art. 1; Commission Regulation No 966/2010, Art. 2) 2. Common commercial policy — Protection against dumping — Circumvention — Extension of anti-dumping measures — Rate of the extended anti-dumping duty (Council Regulations No 91/2009, Art. 1(2) and No 723/2011) 1. The sole purpose of a regulation extending an anti-dumping duty is to ensure the effectiveness of that duty and to prevent its circumvention. Consequently, a measure extending a definitive anti-dumping duty is merely ancillary to the initial act establishing that duty which protects the effective application of the definitive measures. It follows that the obligation to register the imports concerned, in the specific context of a circumvention, is also aimed at ensuring the effectiveness of the extended definitive measures by making possible the retroactive application of duties and thereby avoiding a situation in which the definitive measures to be applied are deprived of their effectiveness. In that respect, since the Commission has directed the competent national authorities to take the appropriate steps to register the imports concerned in order to ensure the retroactive imposition of extended anti-dumping duties, those authorities are required to comply with that obligation. However, in the absence of any information on the manner in which the Member States must carry out the registration in Regulation No 1225/2009 on protection against dumped imports from countries not members of the European Community or in Regulation No 966/2010 initiating an investigation concerning the possible circumvention of anti-dumping measures imposed by Regulation No 91/2009, it is for the Member States to establish the means of that registration in such a way as to ensure that the retroactive application of the extended anti-dumping duties is correctly carried out and the objective of that regulation is thereby achieved. Thus, Article 14(5) of Regulation No 1225/2009, referred to in Article 2 of Regulation No 966/2010, must be interpreted as meaning that means of registration, inasmuch as they leave no doubt as to the identification of every import transaction of the products concerned subject to levy and allow the effective collection of all the available information in order to require an accurate retroactive levy of extended anti-dumping duties, are in accordance with that provision. They suffice, therefore, for the retroactive levy of an anti-dumping duty pursuant to Article 1 of Implementing Regulation No 723/2011 extending the definitive anti-dumping duty imposed by Regulation No 91/2009 on imports of certain iron or steel fasteners originating in the People’s Republic of China to imports of certain iron or steel fasteners consigned from Malaysia, whether declared as originating in Malaysia or not, following an investigation finding circumvention of the definitive anti‑dumping duties imposed by Regulation No 91/2009 imposing a definitive anti-dumping duty on imports of certain iron or steel fasteners originating in the People’s Republic of China. (see paras 28, 29, 32, 33, 38 and operative part) 2. In accordance with Article 1(2) of Regulation No 91/2009 imposing a definitive anti-dumping duty on imports of certain iron or steel fasteners originating in the People’s Republic of China, the rate of the extended anti-dumping duty levied retroactively on goods imported prior to the entry into force of Implementing Regulation No 723/2011 extending the definitive anti-dumping duty imposed by Regulation No 91/2009 on imports of certain iron or steel fasteners originating in the People’s Republic of China to imports of certain iron or steel fasteners consigned from Malaysia, whether declared as originating in Malaysia or not, is 85% for ‘all other companies’. (see para. 38, and operative part)