1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 1
This document is meant purely as a documentation tool and the institutions do not assume any liability for its contents
►B COUNCILREGULATION(EC)No515/97
of13March1997
on mutual assistance between the administrative authorities of the Member States and coopera-
tion between the latter and the Commission to ensure the correct application of the law on
customsandagricultural matters
(OJ L 82, 22.3.1997, p. 1)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1Council Regulation (EC) No 807/2003 of 14 April 2003 L 122 36 16.5.2003
Corrected by:
►C1Corrigendum, OJ L 288, 27.10.1998, p. 55 (515/97)
▼B
COUNCILREGULATION(EC)No515/97
of13March1997
on mutual assistance between the administrative authorities of the
Member States and cooperation between the latter and theCommissiontoensurethecorrectapplicationofthelawoncustoms
andagricultural matters
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, andinparticular Articles 43 an d 235 thereof,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 729/70 of the Council
of 21 April 1970 on the financing of the common agriculturalpolicy (
1), and in particular Article 8 (3) thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (2),
Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament (3),
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social
Committee (4),
Whereas combating fraud in the context of the customs union and the
commonagricultural policy calls for close cooperationbetweentheadministrative authorities responsible in each Member State for theapplicationof provision s adopted inthose fields; whereas it also calls
for appropriate cooperation between these national authorities and the
Commission, which is responsible for ensuring the application of theTreaty and the provisions adopted by virtue thereof; whereas effectivecooperation in this field strengthens the protection of the financialinterests of the Community;
Whereas rules should therefore be drawnup whereby the Member
States' administrative authorities assist each other and cooperate with
the Commissioninorder to guaran tee the proper applicationof customsand agricultural regulations and legal protection for the Community'sfinancial interests, in particular by preventing and investigatingbreaches of those regulations and by investigating operations whichare or appear contrary to those regulations;
Whereas Council Regulation (EEC) No 1468/81 of 19 May 1981 on
mutual assistance between the administrative authorities of the MemberStates and cooperation between the latter and the Commission toensure the correct application of the law on customs or agriculturalmatters (
5) established close cooperationbetweenthe said authorities
and the Commission; whereas that system has proved effective;
Whereas it is nevertheless necessary, in the light of the experience
gained, to replace Regulation (EEC) No 1468/81 in its entirety withthe aim of strengthening cooperation both among the administrativeauthorities of the Member States responsible for the application of theprovisions adopted in the field of customs union and the common agri-cultural policy and between those authorities and the Commission;
whereas, to that end, new rules should be laid down at Community
level;
Whereas the introduction of Community provisions on mutual assis-
tance between Member States' administrations and their cooperationwith the Commissioninorder to guaran tee the proper applicationofcustoms or agricultural regulations is without prejudice to the applica-1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 2
(1) OJ No L 94, 28. 4. 1970, p. 13. Regulationas last amen ded by Regulation
(EEC) No 2048/88 (OJ No L 185, 15. 7. 1988, p. 1).
(2) OJ No C 56, 26. 2. 1993, p. 1; OJ No C 262, 28. 9. 1993, p. 8, and OJ No C
80, 17. 3. 1994, p. 12.
(3) OJ No C 20, 24. 1. 1994, p. 85, and Opinion of 16 January 1997 (OJ No C
33, 3. 2. 1997).
(4) OJ No C 161, 14. 6. 1993, p. 15.
(5) OJ No L 144, 2. 6. 1981, p. 1. Regulationas amen ded by Regulation(EEC)
No 945/87 (OJ No L 90, 2. 4. 1987, p. 3).
▼B
tion of the 1967 Convention for mutual assistance between customs
administrations in fields which remain the sole province of the MemberStates; whereas these Community provisions are not such as to affect
the applicationinthe Member States of rules onjudicial cooperation
incrimin al cases;
Whereas, furthermore, the general Community rules establishing a
system of mutual assistance and cooperation among the administrative
authorities of the Member States and between them and the Commis-
siondo n ot apply where they overlap with those laid downby specificregulations, save where the general rules improve or reinforce adminis-trative cooperation; whereas, in particular, the implementation of thecustoms information system does not in any way affect the MemberStates' obligations to provide information to the Commission, laid
downinter alia under Regulations (EEC, Euratom) No 1552/89(
1)a nd
(EEC) No 595/91 (2), or the established use of fraud information sheets
to circulate information of Community interest;
Whereas greater cooperationbetweenthe Member States requires the
coordination of enquiries and other activities carried out by the bodies
concerned; whereas it is therefore essential that the Commission should
be given more detailed information concerning such activities by theMember States;
Whereas the Commission must ensure that economic operators are
treated equally and that the application by the Member States of the
mutual administrative assistance system does not lead to discrimination
between economic operators in different Member States;
Whereas it is appropriate to define the Member States' obligations
under the mutual administrative assistance system in respect of casesin which representatives of the Member States' national administrations
conduct enquiries concerning the application of customs or agricultural
legislation with a mandate from, or under the authority of, the legalauthorities;
Whereas the powers of national representatives conducting enquiries in
other Member States should be defined; whereas provision should also
be made for Commission representatives to be present, where justified,at national enquiries concerning mutual administrative assistance, andfor their powers to be defined;
Whereas it is necessary for the successful functioning of administrative
cooperation that the Commission be informed of information
exchanged between Member States and third countries in cases ofparticular interest for the Community;
Whereas, with a view to securing the rapid and systematic exchange of
information forwarded to the Commission, there is a need to set up a
computerized customs information system at Community level;
whereas in that context sensitive data concerning frauds and irregulari-ties in the customs and agricultural domains should be stored in acentral database accessible to the Member States, while ensuring thatthe confidential nature of the information exchanged, in particulardata of a personal nature, is respected; whereas, given the justifiable
sensitivity of the issue, there should be clear and transparent rules to
protect the freedom of the individual;
Whereas customs authorities have daily to apply both Community and
non-Community provisions; whereas it is therefore desirable to haveavailable a single infrastructure for applying these provisions;1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 3
(1) Council Regulation (EEC, Euratom) No 1552/89 of 29 May 1989 imple-
menting Decision 88/376/EEC, Euratom on the system of the Communities'
ownresources (OJ No L 155, 7. 6. 1989, p. 1). Regulationlast amen ded by
Regulation(EC, Euratom) No 2729/94 (OJ No L 293, 12. 11. 1994, p. 5).
(2) Council Regulation (EEC) No 595/91 of 4 March 1991 concerning irregula-
rities and the recovery of money wrongly paid in connection with the
financing of the common agricultural policy and the organization of an
information system in this field and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 283/72
(OJ No L 67, 14. 3. 1991, p. 11).
▼B
Whereas the information exchanged may concern physical persons and
this Regulation must therefore implement, in its scope, the principles ofprotection of persons with regard to processing, by automatic means or
otherwise, of personal data; whereas these principles, as set out in
Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of24 October 1995 onthe protectionof in dividuals with regard to theprocessing of personal data and on the free movement of such data (
1)
should themselves, in compliance with the terms and conditions of this
Directive, be specified and supplemented in this Regulation; whereas
pending implementation of the national measures transposing thatDirective certainMember States which have n o protectionrules forpersonal data exchanged by non-automatic means should be exemptedfrom applying the provisions of this Regulation concerning the non-automatic exchange of data;
Whereas, inorder to take part inthe Customs In formationSystem, the
Member States and the Commission must adopt legislation on the
rights and freedoms of individuals with regard to the processing of
personal data; whereas, pending implementation of the nationalmeasures transposing Directive 95/46/EC, it is important that theMember States and the Commission guarantee a level of protectionbased on the principles contained in that Directive;
Whereas, in order to ensure that the rights of the persons concerned are
sufficiently protected, there needs to be a guarantee of independent
supervision of the processing of the personal data in the Customs Infor-
mationSystem both a Member State level an d inrespect of theCommission;
Whereas the Commission, in close cooperation with the Member
States, should facilitate the installation and management of computersystems inthe Member States;
Whereas the Commission should be notified of legal and administrative
proceedings brought for infringements of the law on customs or agri-cultural matters;
Whereas, with the aim of implementing certain provisions of this
Regulation, enabling the installation and functioning of the Customs
Information System and examining possible problems in connection
with the development of administrative cooperation as provided for inthis Regulation, it is necessary to establish a Committee;
Whereas the provisions of this Regulation refer both to the application
of the rules of the commonagricultural policy an d to the applicationofcustoms legislation; whereas the system set up under this Regulationconstitutes an integral Community entity; whereas, since the provisionsof the Treaty specifically covering customs matters do not empower the
Community to set up such a system, it is necessary to invoke Article
235,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
1. This Regulationlays downthe ways inwhich the admin istrative
authorities responsible for implementation of the legislation on customsand agricultural matters in the Member States shall cooperate with each
other and with the Commission in order to ensure compliance with that
legislationwithinthe framework of a Commun ity system.
2. The provisions of this Regulation shall not apply where they
overlap with the specific provisions of other legislation on mutualassistance between Member States' administrative authorities and coop-erationbetweenthe latter an d the Commissionfor the applicationofcustoms or agricultural legislation.1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 4
(1) OJ No L 281, 23. 11. 1995, p. 31.
▼B
Article 2
1. For the purposes of this Regulation:
—‘customs legislation’ means the body of Community provisions and
the associated implementing provisions governing the import,export, transit and presence of goods traded between Member Statesand third countries, and between Member States in the case of
goods that do not have Community status within the meaning of
Article 9 (2) of the Treaty or goods subject to additional controlsor investigations for the purposes of establishing their Communitystatus,
—‘agricultural legislation’ means the body of provisions adopted
under the common agricultural policy and the special rules adoptedwith regard to goods resulting from the processing of agricultural
products,
—‘applicant authority’ means the competent authority of a Member
State which makes a request for assistance,
—‘requested authority’ means the competent authority of a Member
State to which a request for assistance is made,
—‘administrative enquiry’ means all controls, checks and other action
takenby the staff of the admin istrative authorities specified inArticle 1 (1) inthe performan ce of their duties with a view toensuring proper application of customs and agricultural legislation
and, where necessary, checking the irregular nature of operations
which appear to breach that legislation, except action taken at therequest of or under a direct mandate from a judicial authority; theexpression ‘administrative enquiry’ also covers the Communitymissions referred to in Article 20,
—‘personal data’ means all information relating to an identified or
identifiable individual; an identifiable person is one who can be
identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to anidentification number or to one or more factors specific to hisphysical, psychological, mental, economic, cultural or social iden-tity.
2. Each Member State shall communicate to the other Member
States and the Commission a list of the competent authorities it has
appointed for the purposes of applying this Regulation.
For the purposes of this Regulation ‘competent authorities’ means the
authorities appointed in accordance with the preceding subparagraph.
Article 3
Where national authorities decide, in response to a request for adminis-
trative assistance or a communication based on this Regulation, to take
action involving measures which may be implemented only with theauthorizationor at the deman d of a judicial authority:
— any information thus obtained concerning the application of
customs and agricultural legislation, or at least
— that part of the file required to put a stop to a fraudulent practice,
shall be communicated as part of the administrative cooperation
provided for by this Regulation.
However, any such communication must have the prior authorization of
the judicial authority if the necessity of such authorization derives from
national law.
TITLE I
ASSISTANCEONREQUEST
Article 4
1. At the request of the applicant authority, the requested authority
shall transmit to it any information which may enable it to ensure1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 5
▼B
compliance with the provisions of customs or agricultural legislation,
and in particular those concerning:
— the application of customs duties and charges having equivalent
effect together with agricultural levies and other charges provided
for under the common agricultural policy or the special arrange-
ments applicable to certain goods resulting from the processing ofagricultural products,
— operations forming part of the system of financing by the European
Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund.
2. Inorder to obtainthe in formationsought, the requested authority
or the administrative authority to which it has recourse shall proceed asthough acting on its own account or at the request of another authorityinits owncoun try.
Article 5
At the request of the applicant authority, the requested authority shall
supply it with any attestation, document or certified true copy of a
document in its possession or obtained in the manner referred to in
Article 4 (2) which relates to operations covered by customs or agricul-tural legislation.
Article 6
1. At the request of the applicant authority, the requested authority
shall, while observin g the rules inforce inthe Member State inwhichit is based, notify the addressee or have it notified of all instruments ordecisions which emanate from the administrative authorities and
concern the application of customs or agricultural legislation.
2. Requests for notification, mentioning the subject of the instrument
or decision to be communicated, shall be accompanied by a translationin the official language or an official language of the Member State in
which the requested authority is based, without prejudice to the latter's
right to waive such a translation.
Article 7
At the request of the applicant authority, the requested authority shall
as far as possible keep a special watch or arrange for a special watch tobe kept withinits operation al area:
(a) on persons, and more particularly their movements, where there are
reasonable grounds for believing that they are breaching customs oragricultural legislation;
(b) onplaces where goods are stored ina way that gives groun ds to
suspect that they are intended to supply operations contrary tocustoms or agricultural legislation;
(c) on the movements of goods indicated as being the object of poten-
tial breaches of customs or agricultural legislation;
(d) on means of transport, where there are reasonable grounds for
believing that they are being used to carry out operations in breachof customs or agricultural legislation.
Article 8
At the request of the applicant authority, the requested authority shall
make available any information in its possession or obtained in the
manner referred to in Article 4 (2), and particularly reports and other
documents or certified true copies or extracts thereof, concerningoperations detected or planned which constitute, or appear to the appli-cant authority to constitute, breaches of customs or agriculturallegislation or, where applicable, concerning the findings of the special
watch carried out pursuant to Article 7.
However, original documents and items shall be provided only where
this is not contrary to the legislation in force in the Member State inwhich the requested authority is based.1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 6
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Article 9
1. The requested authority shall at the request of the applicant
authority carry out, or arrange to have carried out, the appropriateadministrative enquiries concerning operations which constitute, orappear to the applicant authority to constitute, breaches of customs oragricultural legislation.
The requested authority or the administrative authority to which it has
recourse shall conduct administrative enquiries as though acting on itsown account or at the request of another authority in its own country.
The requested authority shall communicate the results of such adminis-
trative enquiries to the applicant authority.
2. By agreement between the applicant authority and the requested
authority, officials appointed by the applicant authority may be presentat the administrative enquiries referred to in paragraph 1.
Administrative enquiries shall at all times be carried out by staff of the
requested authority. The applicant authority's staff may not, of theirown initiative, assume powers of inspection conferred on officials ofthe requested authority. They shall, however, have access to the same
premises and the same documents as the latter, through their inter-
mediary and for the sole purpose of the administrative enquiry beingcarried out.
In so far as national provisions on criminal proceedings reserve certain
acts to officials specifically designated by national law, the applicantauthority's staff shall not take part in such acts. In any event, they shalln ot participate inparticular insearches of premises or the formal ques-tioning of persons under criminal law. They shall, however, haveaccess to the information thus obtained subject to the conditions laid
downinArticle 3.
Article 10
By agreement between the applicant authority and the requested
authority and in accordance with the arrangements laid down by thelatter, officials duly authorized by the applicant authority may obtain,from the offices where the administrative authorities of the MemberState inwhich the requested authority is based exercise their fun ction s,
information concerning the application of the law on customs and agri-
cultural matters which is needed by the applicant authority and whichis derived from documentation to which the staff of those offices haveaccess. These officials shall be authorized to take copies of the saiddocumentation.
Article 11
Staff of the applicant authority present in another Member State in
accordance with Articles 9 and 10 must at all times be able to produce
written authority stating their identity and their official functions.
Article 12
Findings, certificates, information, documents, certified true copies and
any intelligence obtained by the staff of the requested authority andcommunicated to the applicant authority in the course of the assistanceprovided for in Articles 4 to 11 may be invoked as evidence by the
competent bodies of the Member States of the applicant authority.
TITLE II
SPONTANEOUSASSISTANCE
Article 13
The competent authorities of each Member State shall, as laid down in
Articles 14 and 15, provide assistance to the competent authorities ofthe other Member States without prior request.1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 7
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Article 14
Where they consider it useful for ensuring compliance with customs or
agricultural legislation, each Member State's competent authorities
shall:
(a) as far as is possible keep, or have kept, the special watch described
inArticle 7;
(b) communicate to the competent authorities of the other Member
States concerned all information in their possession, and in parti-
cular reports and other documents or certified true copies or
extracts thereof, concerning operations which constitute, or appearto them to constitute, breaches of customs or agricultural legisla-tion.
Article 15
The competent authorities of each Member State shall immediately
send to the competent authorities of the other Member States concernedall relevant information concerning operations which constitute, or
appear to them to constitute, breaches of customs or agricultural legis-
lation, and in particular concerning the goods involved and new waysand means of carrying out such operations.
Article 16
Information obtained by staff of one Member State and communicated
to another Member State in the course of the assistance provided for inArticles 13 to 15 may be invoked as evidence by the competent bodiesof the Member State receiving the information.
TITLE III
RELATIONSWITHTHECOMMISSION
Article 17
1. The competent authorities of each Member State shall communi-
cate to the Commissionas soonas it is available to them:
(a) any information they consider relevant concerning:
— goods which have beenor are suspected of havin g beenthe
object of breaches of customs or agricultural legislation,
— methods or practices used or suspected of having been used to
breach customs or agricultural legislation,
— requests for assistance, action taken and information exchanged
inapplicationof Articles 4 to 16 which are capable of revealin g
fraudulent tendencies in the field of customs and agriculture;
(b) any information on shortcomings or gaps in customs and agricul-
tural legislationthat become apparen t or may be deduced from theapplicationof that legislation .
2. The Commission shall communicate to the competent authorities
in each Member State, as soon as it becomes available, any informationthat would help them to enforce customs or agricultural legislation.
Article 18
1. Where a Member State's competent authorities become aware of
operations which constitute, or appear to constitute, breaches ofcustoms or agricultural legislationthat are of particular relevan ce atCommunity level, and especially:
— where they have, or might have, ramifications in other Member
States, or
— where it appears likely to the above authorities that similar opera-
tions have also been carried out in other Member States,
they shall communicate to the Commission as soon as possible, either
on their own initiative or in response to a reasoned request from theCommission, any relevant information, be it in the form of documents1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 8
▼B
or copies or extracts thereof, needed to determine the facts so that the
Commissionmay coordin ate the steps takenby the Member States.
The Commission shall convey this information to the competent autho-
rities of the other Member States.
2. Where a Member State's competent authorities invoke paragraph
1, they need not communicate information as provided in Articles 14(b) and 15 to the competent authorities of the other member States
concerned.
3. In response to a reasoned request from the Commission, the
Member State's competent authorities shall act in the manner laiddowninArticles 4 to 8.
4. Where the Commissioncon siders that irregularities have taken
place in one or more Member States, it shall inform the Member State
or States concerned thereof and that State or those States shall at theearliest opportunity carry out an enquiry, at which Commission offi-cials may be present under the conditions laid down in Articles 9 (2)and 11 of this Regulation.
The Member State or States concerned shall, as soon as possible,
communicate to the Commission the findings of the enquiry.
5. Officials of the Commissionmay collect the in formationspecified
in Article 10 under conditions laid down in that Article by commonaccord.
6. This Article is without prejudice to the Commission's right to
information and scrutiny by virtue of other legislation in force.
TITLE IV
RELATIONSWITHTHIRDCOUNTRIES
Article 19
Provided the third country concerned has given a legal undertaking to
provide the assistance required to gather proof of the irregular nature ofoperations which appear to constitute breaches of customs or agricul-tural legislation or to determine the scope of operations which havebeen found to constitute breaches of that legislation, information
obtained under this Regulation may be communicated to that third
country as part of a concerted action, subject to the agreement of thecompetent authorities supplying the information, in accordance withtheir internal provisions concerning the communication of personaldata to third countries.
The information shall be communicated either by the Commission or
by the Member States as part of the concerted action referred to inthe first paragraph; ineither case appropriate steps shall be takeninthe third country concerned to ensure a degree of protection equivalentto that laid downby Article 45 (1) an d (2).
Article 20
1. Inpursuit of the objectives of this Regulation , the Commission
may, under the conditions laid down in Article 19, conduct Communityadministrative and investigative cooperation missions in third countriesin coordination and close cooperation with the competent authorities ofthe Member States.
2. The Community missions to third countries referred to in para-
graph 1 shall be governed by the following conditions:
(a) they may be undertaken at the Commission's initiative, where
appropriate onthe basis of in formationsupplied by the EuropeanParliament, or at the request of one or more Member States;
(b) they shall be carried out by Commissionofficials appoin ted for that
purpose and by officials appointed for that purpose by the MemberState(s) concerned;1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 9
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(c) they may also, by agreement with the Commission and the Member
States concerned, be carried out on behalf of the Community byofficials of a Member State, inparticular un der a bilateral assis-
tance agreement with a third country; in that event the
Commission shall be informed of the results of the mission;
(d) mission expenses shall be paid by the Commission.
3. The Commission shall inform the Member States and the
European Parliament of the results of missions carried out pursuant tothis Article.
Article 21
1. The findings and information obtained in the course of the
Community missions referred to in Article 20 of this Regulation, andin particular documents passed on by the competent authorities of thethird countries concerned, shall be handled in accordance with Article45 of this Regulation.
2. Article 12 shall apply mutatis mutandis to the findings and infor-
mationreferred to inparagraph 1.
3. For the purposes of their use pursuant to Article 12, original
documents obtained or certified true copies thereof shall be forwardedby the Commissionto the competen t authorities of the Member Statesif they so request.
Article 22
Member States shall notify the Commission of information exchanged
within the framework of mutual administrative assistance with thirdcountries wherever, within the meaning of Article 18 (1), it is particu-larly relevant to the effectiveness of customs or agricultural legislation
pursuant to this Regulation and the information falls within the scope
of this Regulation.
TITLE V
CUSTOMSINFORMATIONSYSTEM
Chapter 1
EstablishmentofaCustomsInformationSystem
Article 23
1. An automated information system, the ‘Customs Information
System’, hereinafter referred to as the ‘CIS’, is hereby established to
meet the requirements of the administrative authorities responsible forapplying the legislation on customs or agricultural matters, as well asthose of the Commission.
2. The aim of the CIS, in accordance with the provisions of this
Regulation, shall be to assist in preventing, investigating and prose-
cuting operations which are in breach of customs or agriculturallegislation, by increasing, through more rapid dissemination of infor-mation, the effectiveness of the cooperation and control procedures ofthe competent authorities referred to in this Regulation.
3. The customs authorities of the Member States may use the tech-
nical infrastucture of the CIS in the performance of their duties in theframework of the customs cooperationreferred to inArticle K.1 (8) ofthe Treaty on European Union.
In such a case, the Commission shall ensure the technical management
of the infrastructure.
4. Those operations in connection with the application of agricul-
tural regulations which require the introduction of information into theCIS shall be determined by the Commission in accordance with theprocedure set out inArticle 43 (2).1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 10
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5. The exchange of information provided for under Articles 17 and
18 is not covered by the provisions of this Title.
6. The Member States and the Commission, hereinafter referred to
as the ‘CIS partners’, shall take part in the CIS under the conditionslaid downinthis Title.
Chapter 2
OperationanduseoftheCIS
Article 24
The CIS shall consist of a central database facility and it shall be
accessible via terminals in each Member State and at the Commission.It shall comprise exclusively data necessary to fulfil its aim as stated in
Article 23 (2), including personal data, in the following categories:
(a) commodities;
(b) means of transport;
(c) businesses;
(d) persons;
(e) fraud trends;
(f) availability of expertise.
Article 25
The items to be included in the CIS relating to each of categories (a) to
(f) in Article 24 shall be determined in accordance with the procedureprovided for in Article 43 (2) to the extent that this is necessary toachieve the aim of the System. No items of personal data shall beincluded in any event in categories (e) and (f) of Article 24. In cate-
gories (a) to (d) of Article 24 the items to be included in respect of
personal data shall comprise no more than:
(a) name, maiden name, forenames and aliases;
(b) date and place of birth;
(c) nationality;
(d) sex;
(e) any particular objective and permanent physical characteristics;
(f) reasonfor in clusionof data;
(g) suggested action;(h) a warning code indicating any history of being armed, violent or
escaping;
(i) registration number of the means of transport.
In all cases, personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political
opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membershipand data concerning the health or sex life of an individual shall not beincluded.
Article 26
The following principles must be observed in the implementation of the
CIS where personal data are concerned:
(a) collection and any other operation for processing personal data
must be carried out fairly and lawfully;
(b) data must be collected for the purposes defined in Article 23 (2)
and not subsequently processed in a manner incompatible withthose purposes;
(c) data must be adequate, relevant and not excessive in relation to the
purposes for which they are processed;
(d) data must be accurate and, where necessary, kept up to date;1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 11
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(e) data must be kept ina form which permits iden tificationof data
subjects for no longer than is necessary for the purposes in view.
Article 27
1. Data incategories (a) to (d) of Article 24 shall be in cluded inthe
CIS only for the purpose of sighting and reporting, discreet surveillanceor specific checks.
2. For the purposes of the actions referred to in paragraph 1,
personal data within any of categories (a) to (d) of Article 24 may be
included in the CIS only if, especially on the basis of prior illegal
activities, there is evidence to suggest that the person concerned hascommitted, is committing or will commit actions which are in breachof customs or agricultural legislationan d which are of particular rele-vance at Community level.
Article 28
1. If the actions referred to in Article 27 (1) are carried out, the
following information may, in whole or in part, be collected and trans-mitted to the CIS partner which suggested the actions:
(a) the fact that the commodity, means of transport, business or person
reported has beenfoun d;
(b) the place, time and reason for the check;
(c) route and destination of the journey;
(d) persons accompanying the person concerned or occupants of the
means of transport;
(e) means of transport used;
(f) objects carried;
(g) the circumstances under which the commodity, means of transport,
business or person was found.
Whensuch in formationis collected inthe course of discreet surveil-
lance, steps must be taken to ensure that the secret nature of thesurveillance is not jeopardized.
2. Inthe con text of the specific checks referred to inArticle 27 (1),
persons, means of transport and objects may be searched to the extentpermissible and in accordance with the laws, regulations and proce-dures of the Member State inwhich the search takes place. If thespecific checks are not permitted by the law of a Member State, they
shall automatically be converted by that Member State into sighting
and reporting or discreet surveillance.
Article 29
1. Direct access to data included in the CIS shall be reserved exclu-
sively for the national authorities designated by each Member State andthe departments designated by the Commission. These national authori-
ties shall be customs administrations, but may also include other
authorities competent, according to the laws, regulations and proce-dures of the Member State inquestion , to act inorder to achieve theaim stated inArticle 23 (2).
2. Each Member State shall send the Commission a list of its desig-
nated competent authorities which have direct access to the CIS stating,
for each authority, to which data it may have access and for whatpurposes.
The Commission shall inform the other Member States accordingly. It
shall also inform all the Member States of the corresponding details
concerning the Commission departments authorized to have access to
the CIS.
The list of national authorities and Commission departments thus
designated shall be published for information by the Commission intheOfficial Journal of the European Communities .1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 12
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3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2, the
Council, acting on a proposal from the Commission, may decide topermit access to the CIS by international or regional organizations,
provided that, where relevant, a protocol is at the same time concluded
with those organizations in conformity with Article 7 (3) of theConvention between Member States of the Community on the use ofinformation technology for customs purposes. In reaching the decisionaccount shall be taken in particular of any existing bilateral or Commu-
nity arrangements and of the adequacy of the level of data protection.
Article 30
1. CIS partners may use data obtained from the CIS only in order to
achieve the aim stated inArticle 23 (2); however, they may use it foradministrative or other purposes with the prior authorization of the CIS
partner which introduced the data into the system subject to conditions
imposed by it or, where applicable, the Commission, which included itinthe System. Such other use shall be inaccordan ce with the laws,regulations and procedures of the Member State which seeks to use itand, where appropriate, the corresponding provisions applicable to the
Commission in this connection and should take into account the princi-
ples set out in the Annex.
2. Without prejudice to paragraphs 1 and 4 of this Article and
Article 29 (3), data obtained from the CIS shall be used only►
C1by national authorities designated by each Member State ◄
and by departments designated by the Commission competent, inaccordance with the laws, regulations and procedures applicable tothem, to act inorder to achieve the aim stated inArticle 23 (2).
3. Each Member State shall send the Commission a list of the autho-
rities or departments referred to in paragraph 2.
The Commission shall inform the other Member States accordingly. It
shall also inform all the Member States of the corresponding details
concerning the Commission departments authorized to have access tothe CIS.
The list of the authorities or departments thus designated shall be
published for information by the Commission in the Official Journal
of the European Communities .
4. Data obtained from the CIS may, with the prior authorization of,
and subject to any conditions imposed by, the Member State whichincluded them in the System, be communicated for use by national
authorities other thanthose referred to inparagraph 2, third coun tries
and international or regional organizations wishing to make use ofthem. Each Member State shall take special measures to ensure thesecurity of such data when they are being transmitted or supplied todepartments located outside its territory.
The provisions referred to in the first subparagraph shall apply mutatis
mutandis to the Commissionwhere it has en tered the data inthe
System.
Article 31
1. The inclusion of data in the CIS shall be governed by the laws,
regulations and procedures of the supplying Member State and, whereappropriate, the corresponding provisions applicable to the Commission
in this connection, unless this Regulation lays down more stringent
provisions.
2. The processing of data obtained from the CIS, including their use
or performance of any action under Article 27 (1) suggested by thesupplying CIS partner, shall be governed by the laws, regulations andprocedures of the Member State processing or using such data and thecorresponding provisions applicable to the Commission in this connec-tion, unless this Regulation lays down more stringent provisions.1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 13
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Chapter 3
Amendmentofdata
Article 32
1. Only the supplying CIS partner shall have the right to amend,
supplement, correct or delete data which it has included in the CIS.
2. Should a supplying CIS partner note, or have drawn to its atten-
tion, that the data it included are factually inaccurate or were includedor are stored contrary to this Regulation, it shall amend, supplement,correct or delete the data, as appropriate, and shall advise the otherCIS partners accordingly.
3. If a CIS partner has evidence to suggest that an item of data is
factually inaccurate, or was included or is stored in the CIS contraryto this Regulation, it shall advise the supplying CIS partner as soon aspossible. The latter shall check the data concerned and, if necessary,
correct or delete the item without delay. The supplying CIS partner
shall advise the other partners of any correction or deletion affected.
4. If, when including data in the CIS, a CIS partner notes that its
report conflicts with a previous report with regard to content or
suggested action, it shall immediately advise the partner which made
the previous report. The two partners shall then attempt to resolve thematter. In the event of disagreement, the first report shall stand butthose parts of the new report which do not conflict shall be includedinthe System.
5. Subject to the other provisions of this Regulation, where in any
Member State a court, or other authority designated for the purposewithin that Member State, makes a final decision to amend, supple-ment, correct or delete data in the CIS, the CIS partners shall align
their actionthereon .
In the event of conflict between such decisions of courts or other
authorities designated for the purpose including those referred to in
Article 36 concerning correction or deletion, the Member State which
included the data in question shall delete them from the System.
The provisions in the first subparagraph shall apply mutatis mutandis
where a Commission decision on data contained in the CIS is declared
void by the Court of Justice.
Chapter 4
Retentionofdata
Article 33
1. Data included in the CIS shall be kept only for the time necessary
to achieve the purpose for which they were included. The need for theirretention shall be reviewed at least annually by the supplying CIS
partner.
2. The supplying CIS partner may, within the review period, decide
to retain data until the next review if their retention is necessary for the
purposes for which they were included. Without prejudice to Article
36, if there is no decision to retain data they shall automatically betransferred to that part of the CIS to which access shall be limited inaccordance with paragraph 4.
3. The CIS shall automatically inform the supplying CIS partner of a
scheduled transfer of data from the CIS under paragraph 2, giving onemonth's notice.
4. Data transferred under paragraph 2 shall continue to be retained
for one year within the CIS but, without prejudice to Article 36, shallbe accessible only to a representative of the Committee referred to inArticle 43 in connection with the application of the seventh, eighth andninth indents of paragraph 4 thereof, and paragraph 5 thereof, or to thesupervisory authorities referred to inArticle 37. Durin g that period the1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 14
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data may be consulted only for the purposes of checking their accuracy
and lawfulness. They must thereafter be deleted.
Chapter 5
Personal-dataprotection
Article 34
1. Each CIS partner intending to receive personal data from, or
include them in, the CIS shall, no later than the date of application ofthis Regulation, adopt national legislation, or internal rules applicableto the Commission, guaranteeing the protection of the rights and free-doms of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data.
2. A CIS partner may receive personal data from, or include them
in, the CIS only where the arrangements for the protection of such
data provided for in paragraph 1 have entered into force. Each MemberState shall also have previously designated a national supervisoryauthority or authorities as provided for inArticle 37.
3. In order to ensure the proper application of the personal-data
protection provisions in this Regulation, each Member State and the
Commission shall regard the CIS as a system for processing personal
data subject to the provisions referred to in paragraph 1 and the morestringent provisions contained in this Regulation.
The internal rules applicable to the Commission, as referred to in para-
graph 1, shall be published inthe Official Journal of the European
Communities .
Article 35
1. Subject to Article 30 (1), CIS partners shall be prohibited from
using personal data from the CIS other than for the purpose stated in
Article 23 (2).
2. Data may be duplicated only for technical purposes, provided that
such duplication is necessary for searching by the authorities referredto in Article 29. Subject to Article 30 (1), personal data included byother Member States or the Commissionmay n ot be copied from the
CIS into other data files for which the Member States or the Commis-
sionhave respon sibility.
Article 36
1. The rights of persons with regard to the personal data in the CIS,
inparticular their right of access, shall be put in to effect:
— in accordance with the laws, regulations and procedures of the
Member State inwhich such rights are in voked,
— in accordance with the internal rules applicable to the Commission
referred to inArticle 34 (1).
If laid down in the laws, regulations and procedures of the Member
State concerned, the national supervisory authority provided for inArticle 37 shall decide whether information is to be communicatedand the procedure for doing so.
2. A CIS partner to which an application for access to personal data
is made may refuse access if communication would be likely to preju-
dice the prevention, investigation and prosecution of operations whichare inbreach of customs or agricultural legislation . A Member Statemay also refuse access as provided for in its laws, regulations andprocedures inrelationto cases where such refusal con stitutes a measurenecessary to safeguard national security, defence, public safety and the
rights and freedoms of others. The Commission may refuse access
where such refusal constitutes a measure necessary to safeguard therights and freedoms of others.
Access shall be refused in any event during the period in which action
is taken for the purposes of sighting and reporting or discreet surveil-lance.1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 15
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3. If the personal data for which an application for access has been
made have been supplied by another CIS partner, access shall bepermitted only if the supplying partner has been given the opportunity
to state its position.
4. Any person may, in accordance with the laws, regulations and
procedures of each Member State or with the internal rules applicableto the Commission, have personal data relating to himself corrected or
deleted by each CIS partner if those data are factually inaccurate, or
were included or are stored in the CIS contrary to the aim stated inArticle 23 (2) or if the principles of Article 26 have not been observed.
5. Inthe territory of each Member State, an y personmay, inaccor-
dance with the laws, regulations and procedures of the Member State in
question, bring an action or, if appropriate, a complaint before thecourts or the authority designated for the purpose, in accordance withthose laws, regulations and procedures, in connection with personaldata relatin g to himself inthe CIS, inorder to:
(a) correct or delete factually inaccurate personal data;
(b) correct or delete personal data included or stored in the CIS
contrary to this Regulation;
(c) obtainaccess to person al data;
(d) obtain compensation under Article 40 (2).
With regard to data included by the Commission, an action may be
brought before the Court of Justice inaccordan ce with Article 173 ofthe Treaty.
The Member States and the Commission undertake mutually to enforce
the final decisions taken by a court, the Court of Justice or another
authority designated to that end which concern points (a), (b) and (c)of the first subparagraph.
6. The references in this Article and in Article 32 (5) to a ‘final
decision’ do not imply any obligation on the part of any Member State
or the Commissionto appeal again st a decisiontakenby a court orother authority designated for the purpose.
Chapter 6
Personal-dataprotectionsupervision
Article 37
1. Each Member State shall designate a national supervisory
authority or authorities responsible for personal-data protection to carryout independent supervision of such data included in the CIS.
The supervisory authorities, in conformity with their respective national
legislations, shall carry out independent supervision and checks to
ensure that the processing and use of data held in the CIS do notviolate the rights of data subjects. For this purpose the supervisoryauthorities shall have access to the CIS.
2. Any person may ask any national supervisory authority to check
personal data relating to himself in the CIS and the use which has been
or is being made of those data. The right shall be governed by the laws,regulations and procedures of the Member State in which the request ismade. If the data have been included by another Member State or theCommission, the check shall be carried out in close coordination with
that Member State's national supervisory authority or with the authority
provided for inparagraph 4.
3. The Commissionshall take every step withinits departmen ts to
ensure personal-data protection supervision which offers safeguards of
a level equivalent to that resulting from paragraph 1.
4. Pending the appointment of any authority or authorities set up for
the Community institutions and bodies, the Commission's activities asregards the data-protectionrules laid downinArticle 34 (1), Article36 (1) and Article 37 (3) shall be supervised by the Ombudsman1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 16
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provided for inArticle 138e of the Treaty establishin g the European
Community in the context of the task allotted to him by that Treaty.
Chapter 7
SecurityoftheCIS
Article 38
1. All appropriate technical and organizational measures necessary
to maintain security shall be taken:
(a) by the Member States and the Commission, each insofar as it
concerns them, in respect of the terminals of the CIS located ontheir respective territories and in the Commission's offices;
(b) by the Committee referred to inArticle 43 inrespect of the CIS
and the terminals located on the same premises as the CIS andused for technical purposes and the checks required by paragraph 3.
2. Inparticular, the Member States, the Commissionan d the
Committee referred to inArticle 43 shall take measures:
(a) to prevent any unauthorized person from having access to installa-
tions used for the processing of data;
(b) to prevent data and data media from being read, copied, modified
or deleted by unauthorized persons;
(c) to prevent the unauthorized entry of data and any unauthorized
consultation, modification or deletion of data;
(d) to prevent data in the CIS from being accessed by unauthorized
persons by means of data-transmission equipment;
(e) to guarantee that, with respect to the use of the CIS, authorized
persons have right of access only to data for which they havecompetence;
(f) to guarantee that it is possible to check and establish to which
authorities data may be transmitted by data-transmission equip-ment;
(g) to guarantee that it is possible to check and establish ex post facto
what data have been introduced into the CIS, when and by whom,and to monitor interrogation;
(h) to prevent the unauthorized reading, copying, modification or dele-
tion of data during the transmission of data and the transport ofdata media.
3. Inaccordan ce with Article 43, the Committee shall verify that the
searches carried out were authorized and were carried out by author-ized users. At least 1 % of all searches made shall be verified. Arecord of such searches and verifications shall be entered into thesystem and shall be used only for the said verifications. It shall bedeleted after six months.
Article 39
1. Each of the Member States shall designate a department which
shall be responsible for the security measures set out in Article 38, inrelation to the terminals located in its territory, the review functions setout in Article 33 (1) and (2), and, in general, for the proper implemen-
tation of this Regulation insofar as is necessary under its laws,
regulations and procedures.
2. The Commission, for its part, shall designate those of its depart-
ments which are to be responsible for the measures referred to inparagaph 1.1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 17
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Chapter 8
Responsibilitiesandpublication
Article 40
1. Each CIS partner that has included data in the System shall be
responsible for the accuracy, currency and lawfulness of those data.Each Member State or, where applicable, the Commissionshall alsobe responsible for complying with the provisions of Article 26 of thisRegulation.
2. Each CIS partner shall be liable, in accordance with national
laws, regulations and procedures or the equivalent Community provi-
sions, for injury caused to a person through the use of the CIS in the
Member State concerned or at the Commission.
This shall also be the case where the injury was caused by the
supplying CIS partner entering inaccurate data or entering data contraryto this Regulation.
3. If the CIS partner against which an action in respect of inaccurate
data is brought did not supply them, the partners concerned shall seekagreement as to what proportion, if any, of the sums paid out in
compensation shall be reimbursed by the supplying partner to the other
partner. Any such sums agreed shall be reimbursed on request.
Article 41
The Commissionshall publish a commun icationinthe Official Journal
of the European Communities concerning the implementation of the
CIS.
TITLE VI
PROTECTION OF DATA DURING THE NON-AUTOMATIC
EXCHANGEOFDATA
Article 42
The provisions applying to the automatic exchange and processing of
data shall apply mutatis mutandis to non-automatic exchange and
processing of data.
TITLE VII
FINALPROVISIONS
Article 43
1. The Commissionshall be assisted by a committee.
2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 5 and 7 of
Decision1999/468/EC (1) shall apply.
The period laid downinArticle 5(6) of Decision1999/468/EC shall be
set at three months.
3. The procedure laid downinparagraph 2 shall apply inparticular
to:
(a) decisions on items to be included in the CIS as provided for in
Article 25;
(b) determination of operations concerning the application of agricul-
tural legislation in respect of which information is to be entered inthe CIS, as provided for inArticle 23 (4).1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 18
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4. The committee shall examine all matters relating to the applica-
tionof this Regulationwhich may be raised by its chairman , either onhis own initiative or at the request of the representative of a Member
State, in particular concerning:
— the general working of the mutual assistance arrangements provided
for inthis Regulation ,
— the adoption of practical arrangements for forwarding the informa-
tionreferred to inArticles 16 an d 17,
— the information sent to the Commission pursuant to Articles 17 and
18 to see if anything can be learnt from it, decide on the measuresrequired to put an end to practices found to be in breach of customsor agricultural legislation and, where appropriate, suggest amend-ments to existing Community provisions or the drafting ofadditional ones,
— the preparation of enquiries carried out by the Member States and
coordinated by the Commission and Community missions asprovided for inArticle 20,
— measures taken to safeguard the confidentiality of information, in
particular personal data, exchanged under this Regulation, otherthanthat provided for inTitle V,
— the implementation and proper operation of the CIS and all the
technical and operational measures required to ensure the securityof the system,
— the necessity of storing information in the CIS,— the measures taken to safeguard the confidentiality of information
entered in the CIS under this Regulation, particularly personaldata, and to ensure compliance with the obligations of those respon-sible for processing,
— the measures adopted pursuant to Article 38 (2).
5. The committee shall examine all problems connected with the
operation of the CIS which are encountered by the supervisory autho-rities referred to inArticle 37. Insuch cases, the committee shall meetinanad hocformation comprising representatives nominated by each
Member State from its national supervisory authority or authorities.
The Ombudsmanreferred to inArticle 37 (4) or his represen tative
may also participate, on his own initiative, insofar as he considers itcompatible with his duties, inthe meetin gs of the committee insuchad hocformation. The committee shall meet in its ad hocformation
at least once a year.
6. For the purposes of this Article the committee shall have direct
access to, and may make direct use of, data from the CIS.
7. The committee shall adopt its rules of procedure.
Article 44
Without prejudice to the provisions in Title V on the CIS, the docu-
ments provided for in this Regulation may be replaced bycomputerized information produced in any form for the same purpose.
Article 45
1. Regardless of the form, any information transmitted pursuant to
this Regulation shall be of a confidential nature, including the datastored inthe CIS. It shall be covered by the obligationof profession alsecrecy and shall enjoy the protection extended to like information
under both the national law of the Member States receiving it and the
corresponding provisions applicable to Community authorities.
Inparticular, the in formationreferred to inthe first subparagraph may
not be sent to persons other than those in the Member States or withinthe Community institutions whose functions require them to know oruse it. Nor may it be used for purposes other thanthose provided forin this Regulation, unless the Member State, or the Commission, whichsupplied it or entered it in the CIS has expressly agreed, subject to the1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 19
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conditions laid down by that Member State or by the Commission and
insofar as such communication or use is not prohibited by the provi-sion s inforce inthe Member State inwhich the recipien t authority is
based.
2. Without prejudices to the provisions in Title V on the CIS, infor-
mation concerning natural and legal persons shall be transmitted underthis Regulation only where strictly necessary to prevent, investigate or
take proceedings in respect of operations in breach of customs or agri-
cultural legislation.
3. Paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not preclude the use of information
obtained under this Regulation in any legal action or proceedingssubsequently initiated in respect of failure to comply with customs or
agricultural legislation.
The competent authority which supplied that information shall be noti-
fied of such use forthwith.
4. Where the Commissionis n otified by a Member State that further
enquiries have exonerated from involvement in irregularities a natural
or legal person whose name was transmitted under this Regulation,
the Commissionshall forthwith n otify all parties to whom thesepersonal data have been transmitted on the basis of this Regulation.The person concerned shall then cease to be regarded as being involvedin the irregularity that gave rise to the initial notification.
Where the personal data relating to the person concerned are in the
CIS, they shall be removed from it.
Article 46
For the purposes of applying this Regulation, Member States shall take
all necessary steps to:
(a) ensure effective internal coordination between the administrative
authorities referred to inArticle 1 (1);
(b) establish in their mutual relations all necessary direct cooperation
betweenthe authorities empowered specifically for that purpose.
Article 47
Member States may decide by commonaccord whether procedures are
needed to ensure the smooth operation of the mutual-assistance
arrangements provided for in this Regulation, in particular in order to
avoid any interruption of surveillance of persons or goods where thismight be prejudicial to the detectionof operation s inbreach of customsand agricultural legislation.
Article 48
1. This Regulation shall not bind Member States' administrative
authorities to grant each other assistance where that would be likely tobe injurious to public policy (ordre public) or other fundamental inter-ests, inparticular with regard to data protection , of the Member Stateinwhich they are based.
2. Reasons shall be stated for any refusal to grant assistance.
The Commission shall be informed as early as possible of any refusal
to grant assistance and the reasons given for refusal.
Article 49
Without prejudice to the Commission's right to be notified under other
regulations in force, Member States shall transmit to the Commissionadministrative or legal decisions or the main elements thereof relatingto the applicationof pen alties for breaches of customs or agriculturallegislation in cases which have been the subject of communicationsunder Articles 17 or 18.1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 20
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Article 50
Without prejudice to the expenses associated with the implementation
of the CIS or damages under Article 40, Member States and the
Commission shall waive all claims for the reimbursement of expenses
incurred under this Regulation save, where appropriate, in respect offees paid to experts.
Article 51
This Regulationshall n ot affect the applicationinthe Member States of
rules on criminal procedure and mutual assistance in criminal matters,including those on secrecy of judicial inquiries.
Article 52
1. Regulation(EEC) No 1468/81 is hereby repealed.2. References made to the repealed Regulation shall be understood
as referring to the present Regulation.
Article 53
1. This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day following
its publicationinthe Official Journal of the European Communities .
It shall apply from 13 March 1998.2. However, Article 42 will not apply to Denmark, Ireland, Sweden
or the United Kingdom until Community rules exist applicable to all
the data covered by this Regulation.
As from the date whenthe rules referred to inthe first subparagraph
apply inall the Member States, Article 42 will be repealed an d thederogationprovided for inthe first subparagraph will cease to haveeffect.
If after 5 years the rules inquestionhave n ot yet become applicable,
the Commissionshall prepare a report, together with an y proposals it
deems necessary.
For as long as the four Member States concerned do not apply the
provisions of Article 42, the Member States and the Commission maysubject the non-automatic processing of personal data which they maycommunicate to those four Member States to compliance with rules ondata protectionequivalen t to those which they apply themselves to thenon-automatic processing of such data.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable
inall Member States.1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 21
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ANNEX
COMMUNICATIONOFDATA
(Article 30 (1))
1.Communicationtootherpublicbodies
Communication of data to public bodies should be permissible only if, in a
particular case:
(a) there exists a clear legal obligationor authorization , or with the author-
izationof the supervisory authority; or
(b) these data are essential for the recipient to fulfil his own lawful task,
provided that the aim of the collectionor processin g to be carried out
by the recipient is not incompatible with the original aim and that it is
not precluded by the legal obligations of the communicating body.
Communication is exceptionally permissible if, in a particular case:
(a) communication is undoubtedly in the interest of the data subject and
the data subject has consented or if circumstances are such as to allow
a clear presumption of such consent; or
(b) communication is necessary so as to prevent a serious and imminent
danger.
2.Communicationtoprivateindividuals
The communication of data to private individuals should be permissible
only if, in a particular case, there is a clear legal obligation or authoriza-
tion, or with the authorization of the supervisory authority.
Communication to private individuals is exceptionally permissible if, in a
particular case:
(a) communication is undoubtedly in the interest of the data subject and
the data subject has consented or circumstances are such as to allow a
clear presumption of such consent; or
(b) communication is necessary so as to prevent a serious and imminent
danger.
3.Internationalcommunication
Communication of data to foreign authorities should be permissible only:
(a) if there exists a clear legal provision under national or international
law;
(b) in the absence of such a provision, if communication is necessary for
the prevention of a serious and imminent danger;
and provided that domestic regulations for the protection of the data subject
are not prejudiced.
4.1.Requestsforcommunication
Subject to specific provisions contained in national legislation or in interna-
tional agreements, requests for communication of data should provide
indications as to the body or person requesting them as well as the reason
for the request and its objective.
4.2.Conditionsgoverningcommunication
As far as possible, the quality of data should be verified at the latest before
their communication. As far as possible, in all communications of data,
judicial decisions, as well as decisions not to prosecute, should be indicated
and data based on opinions or personal assessments should be checked at
source beforce being communicated and their degree of accuracy or relia-
bility indicated.
If it is discovered that the data are no longer accurate and up-to-date, they
should not be communicated; if outdated or inaccurate data have been
communicated, the communicating body should inform as far as possible
all the recipients of the data of their non-conformity.1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 22
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4.3.Safeguardsforcommunication
The data communicated to other bodies, private individuals and foreign
authorities should not be used for purposes other than those indicated in
the request for communication.
Use of the data for other purposes should, without prejudice to paragraphs
1 to 4.2, be made subject to the agreement of the communicating body.1997R0515 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 23