2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 1
This document is meant purely as a documentation tool and the institutions do not assume any liability for its contents
►B COMMISSIONREGULATION(EC)No896/2001
of7May2001
laying down detailed rules for applying Council Regulation (EEC) No 404/93 as regards the
arrangementsforimportingbananasintotheCommunity
(OJ L 126, 8.5.2001, p. 6)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1Commission Regulation (EC) No 1613/2001 of 7 August 2001 L 214 19 8.8.2001
►M2Commission Regulation (EC) No 2351/2001 of 30 November 2001 L 315 46 1.12.2001
►M3Commission Regulation (EC) No 349/2002 of 25 February 2002 L 55 17 26.2.2002
►M4Commission Regulation (EC) No 323/2003 of 20 February 2003 L 47 12 21.2.2003
►M5Commission Regulation (EC) No 1303/2003 of 23 July 2003 L 185 5 24.7.2003
►M6Commission Regulation (EC) No 1439/2003 of 12 August 2003 L 204 30 13.8.2003
Corrected by:
►C1Corrigendum, OJ L 133, 16.5.2001, p. 19 (896/2001)
▼B
COMMISSIONREGULATION(EC)No896/2001
of7May2001
laying down detailed rules for applying Council Regulation (EEC)
No404/93asregardsthearrangementsforimportingbananasinto
theCommunity
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 404/93 of 13 February
1993 on the common organisation of the market in bananas (1), aslas t
amended by Regulation (EC) No 216/2001 (2), and in particular Article
20 thereof,
Whereas:
(1)By Regulation (EC) No 216/2001 the Council amended the rules
for importing bananasintroduced by Title IV of Regulation(EEC) No 404/93. In particular, that Regulation opened an
autonomousC tariff quota of 850 000 tonnesat EUR 300/tonne
customs duty in addition to the 2 200 000 tonnes secured underthe world Trade Organisation (WTO) and the additional quota of353 000 tonnes. All the provisions necessary to implement thoserules should be adopted, including such transitional measures asare justified by the entry into force of this Regulation on 1 July
2001, aswell asprovis ionsconcerning importsat the Common
Customs Tariff rate.
(2)Under the last subparagraph of Article 18(1) of Regulation(EEC) No 404/93, where there isno agreement with World
Trade Organisation contracting parties with a substantial interest
in the supply of bananas, the tariff quotas ‘A’ and ‘B’ need notbe allocated among supplier countries.
(3)Article 19 of Regulation (EEC) No 404/93 providesthat thetariff quotasmay be managed in accordance with the method
based on taking account of traditional trade flows (‘traditional/
newcomers’) and/or other methods. To implement the newarrangements from the second half of 2001, it is advisable togrant access to the tariff quotas to traditional operators whohave undertaken on their own account the purchase of fresh
productsfrom producersin third countries , or their production,
as well as their dispatch to and unloading in the customs terri-tory of the Community, during a reference period. For thepurposes of this Regulation, these activities are called ‘primaryimports’.
(4)A single definition of traditional operators should be adopted forall tariff quotas, and their reference quantities should be deter-mined according to the same rules, but separately depending onwhether these operators have supplied the Community marketwith bananasoriginating in non-ACP third countriesand non-
traditional importsfrom ACP Statesor with traditional ACP
bananasduring the reference period, within the meaning of thedefinitionsin Article 16 of Regulation (EEC) No 404/93 applic-able before the amendment introduced by Regulation (EC) No216/2001.
(5)The reference period to be used for defining categories of opera-torsand determining the reference quantitiesof traditionaloperatorss hould be the three-year period 1994 to 1996. Thethree-year period 1994 to 1996 isthe mos t recent for which theCommission has sufficiently reliable data on primary imports.
Using that period can also resolve a dispute which has been
going on for a number of yearswith certain of the Community'strading partners. In the light of the available data established for2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 2
(1) OJ L 47, 25.2.1993, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 31, 2.2.2001, p. 2.
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the purpose of administering the quotas opened in 1998, tradi-
tional operatorsneed not be regis tered.
(6)A share of the tariff quotas must be reserved for non-traditional
operators. That share must allow operators who did not carry out
any primary importsduring the reference period to continuetrading and to adapt to the new rulesand to allow new operatorsto enter thisimport trade, thereby encouraging healthy competi-tion.
(7)Experience from several years of applying the Communitybanana import arrangementsindicatesthe need to tighten thecriteria for non-traditional operatorsand the eligibility criteriafor new operators so as to avoid the registration of purelyfictious agents and the grant of allocations in response to artifi-cial or speculative applications. In particular, it is justifiable to
demand a minimum of experience in importing fresh bananas.
Also, to avoid applications for annual allocations which bearlittle relation to operators' actual capacities and which will notlead to applicationsfor import licencesfor the corres pondingquantities, submission of an application for import licences forthe corresponding quantities, submission of an application for
an annual allocation should be subject to the requirement that a
security in lieu of the import licence security be lodged. Thatsecurity should be released without delay in stages as operatorsactually use up their annual allocations and furnish proof thatthey have dispatched the goods and unloaded them in the
Community and had them released for free circulation on their
own account. For the same purpose, the grant of an annual allo-cation in subsequent years should be made subject to a minimumrate of use of the previous annual allocation.
(8)Operatorss hould be remineded that they may form mergersorgroupingson termsand conditionsdefined in national legis lation
in order to meet their obligations and exercise the rights arising
under thisRegulation.
(9)Rules should be adopted for registering non-traditional operatorsand determining their annual allocationsand the verificationsand checksto be carried out by the competent national authori-ties should be specified, as should the action to be taken in the
event that certain obligationsare not fulfilled, in particular as
regards registration and declarations made for the purpose ofobtaining allocationsunder the import arrangements .
(10)For the purposes of implementing the tariff quota arrangementson 1 July 2001, it isappropriate to maintain the adminis trative
rules based on periods as created by Commission Regulation
(EC) No 2362/98 of 28 October 1998 laying down detailed rulesfor the implementation of Council Regulation (EEC) No 404/93regarding importsof bananasinto the Community (
1), aslas t
amended by Regulation (EC) No 1632/2000 (2), with adjustments
where necessary. Those rules relate in particular to fixing the
indicative quantities for the first three quarters, the ceilings for
individual applications, the frequency for the submission oflicence applications and for the issue of licences, and the issueof licences for the re-use of unused quantities. However, thefact that tariff quotasA and B on the one hand and C on the
other are managed separately as regards the share allocated to
traditional operatorsmeansthat thos e operatorsmay s ubmitlicence applicationsonly under the tariff quota for which theyhave been granted and notified of a reference quantity.
(11)For the purposes of Article 18(6) and (7) of Regulation (EEC)No 404/93, there isa need to define the itemsmaking up the
balance sheet of production, consumption, imports and exports
which has to be established before an increase in the autono-mousquota can be made in the event of an increas e in demand2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 3
(1) OJ L 293, 31.10.1998, p. 32.
(2) OJ L 187, 26.7.2000, p. 6.
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or of exceptional circumstances affecting supplies to the
Community market.
(12)Except where derogationsare explicitly provided for, Commis -sion Regulation (EC) No 1291/2000 of 9 June 2000 laying
down common detailed rules for the application of the system
of import and export licencesand advance-fixing certificatesforagricultural products(
1), aslas t amended by Regulation (EC) No
369/2001 (2), should apply. Pursuant to Article 9 of that Regula-
tion, rights resulting from licences may be transferred by the
holder only once per licence or per extract from a licence during
the term of validity thereof.
(13)The rules for transferring licences should be specified in thelight of the definition of operator categories established by thisRegulation. Transfer restricted to a single transferee per licenceor extract therefrom will allow trade relationsto developbetween the various registered operators. However, artificial
trade, speculation or disturbance of normal trade should not be
encouraged by permitting transfer from non-traditional operatorsto traditional operators.
(14)All the necessary communications between operators, MemberStates and the Commission in pursuance of this Regulationshould be specified, in particular for the purpose of establishingoperators' reference quantities and allocations, administering
tariff quotasby period and market monitoring.
(15)Under the transitional measures necessitated by the application
of the new arrangementson 1 July 2001, derogationss hould beprovided for from administrative rules on the timetable for regis-tering non-traditional operators and on the transmission to thecompetent national authoritiesof the documentary evidencerelating to their registration.
(16)Further, the quantitieswhich can be imported for the third
quarter of 2001 under the tariff quotass hould be determined
and the ceiling for individual licence applicationsfrom operatorsand a strict timetable for the submission of those applicationsshould be fixed.
(17)The changesmade by thisRegulation to the arrangementsforimporting bananasinto the Community to define non-traditionaloperatorscall for verificationsand checksby the competent
national authorities, acting in cooperation with the Commission.
Such operationscan, if need be, lead to correctionsof operators 'allocations. It follows, inter alia , that those allocations may not
be regarded as vested rights, nor be pleaded by operators aslegitimate expectations.
(18)Regulation (EC) No 2362/98 should be repealed.
(19)Pursuant to Article 1 of Commission Regulation (EC) No 395/2001 (
3), Regulation (EC) No 216/2001 appliesfrom 1 July
2001. In order to enable operatorsto benefit under that Reguala-
tion from that date onwards, transitional measures should beenacted to allow the Member States and the Commission toassemble all the requisite information for ensuring that licencesare used from 1 July 2001 onwards.
(20)The Management Committee for Bananashasnot delivered anopinion within the time limit set by its Chairman,2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 4
(1) OJ L 152, 24.6.2000, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 55, 24.2.2001, p. 41.
(3) OJ L 58, 27.2.2001, p. 11.
▼B
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
TITLE I
INTRODUCTORYPROVISIONS
Article 1
ThisRegulation laysdown detailed rulesfor applying the arrangements
for importing bananasunder the tariff quotasprovided for in Article18(1) of Regulation (EEC) No 404/93 and also outside those quotas.
Article 2
1. Tariff quotasA and B asprovided for in Article 18(1)(a) and (b)
of Regulation (EEC) No 404/93 shall be made available as follows:
(a) 83 % to traditional operatorsA/B asdefined in Article 3(2) of this
Regulation;
(b) 17 % to non-traditional operatorsA/B asdefined in Article 6 of
thisRegulation.
2. Tariff quota C asprovided for in Article 18(1)(c) of Regulation
(EEC) No 404/93 shall be made available as follows:
(a) 89 % to traditional operatorsC asdefined in Article 3(3) of this
Regulation;
(b) 11 % to non-traditional operatorsC asdefined in Article 6 of this
Regulation.
TITLE II
MANAGEMENTOFTARIFFQUOTAS
Chapter 1
Definitionofoperators
SectionI: ‘Traditional operators’
Article 3
For the purposes of this Regulation:
1. ‘traditional operators’ means economic agents, whether natural
persons or entities having legal personality, individual agents orgroups, established in the Community, who, for their own account,purchased a minimum quantity of bananas originating in third coun-triesfrom the producersor, where applicable, produced, cons ignedand sold such products in the Community during one of the years
of the reference period used up to 31 December 2003.
Operations as defined in the previous subparagraph shall hereinafter
be called ‘primary imports’.
The minimum quantity referred to in the first subparagraph shall be
250 tonnes, or 20 tonnes where marketing or import concerns only
bananas with a length of 10 centimetres or less;
2. ‘traditional operatorsA/B’ meanstraditional operatorswho have
carried out the minimum quantity of primary importsof ‘third-
country bananas’ and/or ‘non-traditional ACP’ bananas in accor-
dance with the definitionsin Article 16 of Regulation (EEC) No404/93, asamended by Regulation (EC) No 1637/98 (
1);
3. ‘traditional operatorsC’ meanstraditional operatorswho have
carried out the minimum quantity of primary importsof ‘traditional2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 5
(1) OJ L 210, 28.7.1998, p. 28.▼M3
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ACP bananas’ in accordance with the definitons in the abovemen-
tioned Article 16, asamended by Regulation (EC) No 1637/98.
Article 4
1. The reference quantity for each traditional operator A/B and C
who submits a written application shall be established on the basis ofthe extent to which they used the import licences issued to them or
transferred to them under Article 20 for 2002 (in the case of imports
to be carried out in 2004) and 2003 (in the case of imports to becarried out in 2005), respectively.
2. Each traditional operator shall submit an application for a refer-
ence quantity to the competent national authority no later than 15September of the year preceding the year for which the tariff quota isopened.
Applicationss hall include detailsof the quantitiesof bananasfor which
the import licences issued for the year determining the reference quan-
tity in accordance with paragraph 1 have been used by the applicant.
They shall be accompanied by copies of the import licences used bythe applicant traditional operators.
3. Operators resulting from a merger of other traditional operators,
each with their own rights under this Regulation, shall enjoy the samerights as those former operators.
Article 5
1. The competent national authoritiess hall make the checksrequired
to determine the reference quantity of traditional operatorsfor each ofthe years2004 and 2005. The extent to which licenceshave been us edshall be verified on the basis of copies of the licences issued and used
by applicant operators.
Where licencesare trans ferred under Article 20, the competent national
authorities of the Member States concerned shall exchange the neces-
sary information.
2. The competent national authorities shall notify the Commission of
the sum of the reference quantities separately for tariff quotas A/B andC no later than 15 October of the year preceding the year for which thetariff quota isopened.
3. Using the information received under paragraph 2, and in the
light of the total quantitiesavailable under tariff quotasA/B and C,the Commission shall, where appropriate, set a single adjustment coef-
ficient to be applied to each traditional operator'sreference quantity.
4. The competent national authoritiess hall notify each traditional
operator of their reference quantity, adjusted where applicable by thecoefficient laid down in accordance with paragraph 3, no later than 15November.
5. Where the reference quantity allocated to an operator isexcep-
tionally low as a result of hardship affecting their activity during thereference year, a request for recognition of hardship may be submittedto the Commission by the competent national authority, accompanied
by the necessary supporting documents. Where required, the Commis-
sion shall take appropriate measures in accordance with Article 20 ofRegulation (EC) No 404/93, within the limitsof the quantitiesundertariff quotasA/B and C.
6. The competent authorities in each Member State shall be as listed
in the Annex. That list shall be amended by the Commission on thebasis of changes notified by the Member States.2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 6
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SectionII: ‘Non-traditional operators’
Article 6
For the purposes of this Regulation, ‘non-traditional operators’ means
economic agents established in the Community at the time of their
registration who:
(a) have been engaged independently and on their own account in the
commercial activity of importing into the Community fresh
bananasfalling within CN code 0803 00 19 in one of the two years
immediately preceding the year in respect of which registration issought;
(b) by virtue of thisactivity, have imported produce to a declared
customs value of EUR 1 200 000 or more during the periodreferred to in point (a); and
(c) do not have a reference quantity asa traditional operator under the
tariff quota for which they are applying for registration under
Article 7 and who are not a natural person or entity having legal
personality related, within the meaning of Article 143 of Commis-sion Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 (
1), to a traditional operator.
Article 7
1. Operators may be registered, in a single Member State of their
choice, asa non-traditonal operator under tariff quota A/B and/or tariffquota C.
Traditional operatorsunder a tariff quota may be regis tered asnon-
traditional operatorsunder the tariff quota for which they do not havea reference quantity.
However, traditional operatorsC may be regis tered asnon-traditional
operatorsunder tariff quota A/B only if they can s upply proof that
they have imported third-country bananasand/or non-traditional ACP
bananas to the declared customs value specified in point (b) of Article6 during the period indicated.
2. For the purposes of registration, operators shall send to the
competent authority as listed in the Annex the following supportingdocuments:
(a) proof of entry in a commercial register of the Member State or
other alternative proof acceptable to the said authorities; and
(b) evidence of having imported bananas, by presenting the import
licencesus ed; together with;
(c) a copy of an attestation from an independent, professionally regis-
tered chartered accountant certifying importsto the value requiredin point (b) of Article 6, or a copy of the corresponding customsdeclarations stamped by the customs authorities.
3. Applications for registration shall be submitted by 1 October each
year.
4. In order to have their registration renewed, operators shall provide
the competent authoritieswith proof that they have actually importedon their own account at least 50 % of the quantity allocated to themfor the current year. For the purposes of renewing registration for2002, that percentage shall be 30 %.
Applications for renewal shall be submitted by 1 October each year and
be accompanied by copiesof import licencesus ed, proof of payment ofthe customs duties due on the date of the completion of customs import2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 7
(1) OJ L 253, 11.10.1993, p. 1.▼M2
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formalities, and a copy of the import licence(s) issued for the current
quarter.
5. By 10 October each year, the Member Statess hall notify the
Commission of the list of operators who have submitted requests forregistration and for renewal of registration, and in the case of renewalsthe serial numbers of licences or any licence extracts, used and issued.
As and when required, the Commission shall forward those lists to the
other Member Stateswith a view to facilitating the detection or preven-
tion of false claims by operators.
The Commission may publish some of the details contained in the noti-
ficationsfrom Member States .
Article 8
1. At the same time as the operators concerned apply for registration
or renewal of their registration, they shall also request their annual
quota allocation.
To be accepted, such requests:
(a) may not cover a quantity greater than ►
M55%◄of the total
quantity allocated annually to non-traditional operators; and
(b) shall be accompanied by proof that a security of EUR 150 per
tonne requested has been lodged in accordance with Title III ofCommission Regulation (EEC) No 2220/85 (
1).
2. The security referred to in paragraph 1(b) shall be released in
stages, in proportion to the quantities actually imported, where opera-tors furnish proof of dispatch and unloading in the customs territoryof the Community on their own account. In cases of force majeure ,
the security shall not be forfeited.
Proof of dispatch shall be furnished by producing copies of the bill of
lading and the ship's manifest or, where applicable, the road or airtransport document, covering dispatch from the country of origin,drawn up in the name of the operator, for the quantitiesactually
imported.
Evidence of actual import shall be furnished by producing a copy of
the import licences used and proof of payment of the customs duties
value.
Article 9
1. By 10 October at the latest each year, the competent authorities
shall send the Commission a list of the non-traditional operators regis-tered, indicating for each one the annual allocation requested.
2. If the total quantity of allocationsapplied for under a given tariff
quota A/B or C exceedsthe quantity available to non-traditional opera-tors, the Commission shall immediately determine the percentagereduction to be applied to each application for an allocation.
If the procedure described in the first subparagraph results in an opera-
tor's receiving an annual allocation smaller than the amount requested,
the security provided for in Article 8(1)(b) shall be released in propor-
tion to the reduction arrived at.
3. By 15 November at the latest each year, the competent authorities
in the Member Statess hall determine and notify to each non-traditionaloperator the quantity allocated to them for the following year.2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 8
(1) OJ L 205, 3.8.1985, p. 5.▼M1
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Article 10
1. The Member States shall be responsible for ensuring compliance
with thiss ection.
In particular, they shall check that the operators concerned are
commercially active for their own account asimportersin the Commu-nity in the sector referred to in Article 6 and as independent economicunits in terms of management, staffing and operations. Where there aregrounds for suspecting that these conditions are not met, applicationsfor registration and requests for annual allocation shall be accepted
only subject to the operator's providing evidence of compliance which
is considered satisfactory by the competent national authorities.
2. The Member States and the Commission shall exchange all infor-
mation relevant to the application of thisArticle.
Article 11
1. The competent national authorities shall register as non-traditional
operatorsall economic agentswho s ubmit an appropriate application,
whether physical persons or legal entities, and whether individual
agentsor groupsthereof, provided that they are legally cons titutedunder the national legislation governing the exercice of the commercialactivities in question and that they satisfy the provisions of this Regu-lation.
A group of agentsmay be regis tered asa non-traditional operator if its
membersjointly meet the requirementsof thisRegulation. The group
shall stand for each of its members in exercising their rights andfulfilling their obligations.
2. Operatorsres ulting from a merger of other non-traditional opera-
tors, each with their own rights under this Regulation, shall enjoy the
same rights as those former operators.
Article 12
1. Failure by non-traditional operatorsto comply with the obligation
to register in only one Member State shall lead to the rejection of allapplications for registration that have been submitted and the cancella-tion of any annual allocation already granted. In addition, such failureshall result in a prohibition on the submission of any further applica-
tionsin the year following detection of the irregularity.
2. Where fraudulent manipulationsare undertaken or fraudulent
documentation iss upplied with a view to obtaining an unwarrantedregistration or annual allocation, such registration or allocation shallbe cancelled, without prejudice to the application of any relevantnational laws. In such cases, the security referred to in Article 8(1)(b)
shall be forfeit in full.
In addition, in such cases the operator shall be prohibited from
applying for a new registration in any Member State during the twoyearsfollowing the year in which the irregularity isdetected.
Chapter 2
Rulesforissuingimportlicences
Article 13
1. For the purposes of administration, the quantities of tariff quotas
A and B provided for in Article 18(1)(a) and (b) of Regulation (EEC)
No 404/93 shall be added together. Applications under quotas A and B
shall be dealt with together.
Tariff quota C, provided for in Article 18(1)(c) of the above Regula-
tion, shall be administered separately.
2. Traditional operatorsA/B may s ubmit licence applicationsonly
under tariff quota A/B.2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 9
▼B
Traditional operatorsC may s ubmit licence applicationsonly under
tariff quota C.
Traditional operators as referred to in the first two subparagraphs may
submit licence applications under the other tariff quota if they areregistered as non-traditional operators for that quota.
3. Non-traditional operatorsmay s ubmit import licence applications
under tariff quotasA/B or C, or under both if they are regis tered for
quotasA/B and C.
Article 14
1. For the first three quarters of the year, an indicative quantity
expressed as the same percentage of available quantities from each ofthe tariff quotas may be fixed for the purposes of issuing import
licences.
2. For the first three quarters of the year, it may be decided that
applicationsfor licencess ubmitted by a given operator may not in total
exceed a set percentage of the reference quantity fixed under Article 5of the annual allocation fixed under Article 9(3).
Article 15
1. For each quarter, applicationsfor import licencess hall be
submitted to the competent authorities of the Member State listed in
the Annex to this Regulation during the first seven days of the monthpreceding the quarter for the licences are being issued.
Applications for import licences shall be submitted to the competent
authorities of the Member State which established the reference quan-tity, in the case of traditional operators, and of the Member in whichthe operators are registered, in the case of non-traditional operators.
2. Licence applicationss ubmitted:
(a) by traditional operatorsA/B s hall bear the wording ‘Licence appli-
cation traditional operator A/B — Regulation (EC) No 896/2001’;
(b) by traditional operatorsC s hall bear the wording ‘Licence applica-
tion traditional operator C — Regulation (EC) No 896/2001’;
(c) by non-traditional operatorss hall bear the wording ‘Licence appli-
cation non-traditional operator A/B — Regulation (EC) No 896/2001’, or ‘Licence application non-traditional operator C — Regu-lation (EC) No 896/2001’, asthe cas e may be.
3. Licence applications submitted by an operator shall only be
accepted where:
(a) they bear the wording shown in paragraph 2;
(b) they cover a quantity no greater than that available for the tariff
quota indicated in the application, such quantity being published
periodically before the start of the application period;
(c) they cover a total quantity no greater than the quantity resulting
from applying Article 14(2) for the quarter concerned, or than theremaining balance of that operator'sreference quantity or annualallocation, asthe cas e may be.
4. The wordsreferred to in paragraph 2 s hall be entered in box 20 of
the licence.
Article 16
The competent authorities shall notify the Commission of the quantities
covered by licence applicationswithin two working daysof the end ofthe application period.
This notification shall present the quantities requested, broken down for
both tariff quota A/B and tariff quota C asbetween traditional and non-traditional operators.2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 10
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Article 17
Where, for a given quarter, the quantitiesapplied for appreciably
exceed any indicative quantity fixed under Article 14, or exceed thequantitiesavailable, a percentage reduction to be applied to theamounts requested shall be fixed.
Article 18
1. The competent authorities shall issue import licences not later
than the 23rd day of the month in which the application ismade.Where that day is not a working day, the licences shall be issued on
the first following working day at the latest.
2. Notwithstanding Article 23(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1291/2000,
the term of validity of import licencess hall run from the date on which
they are actually issued and shall expire on the seventh day of the
fourth month following the month in which they are issued. The dateof actual issue shall be included in the term of validity of a licence.
Article 19
1. Unused quantities covered by a given licence shall be reallocated
to the same operator — whether holder or transferee — upon applica-
tion, for use in a subsequent quarter but still within the year of issue ofthe original licence. Thisreallocation s hall be made for an importationof bananasunder the quota for which the original, fully or partiallyunused licence was issued.
The security for the initial licence shall be retained in proportion to the
quantitiesnot us ed up.
2. Applications for reallocation shall be submitted within the time
limit laid down in Article 15(1) and accompanied by the original or a
certified copy of the unused or partly used licence(s), as well as proof
asthe s ecurity referred to in Article 24 hasbeen lodged.
Applicationsfor reallocation and the reallocation licencesthems elves
shall bear the following wording in Box 20: ‘Reallocation licence —Article 19 of Regulation (EC) No 896/2001’ and one of the fourfollowing entries, as the case may be: ‘traditional operator A/B’, ‘tradi-tional operator C’, ‘non-traditional operator A/B’ or ‘non-traditionaloperator C’.
3. Applications for reallocation shall not be subject to any reduction
percentage that may be set under Article 17.
4. The competent authorities shall notify the Commission of the
quantitiescovered by any applicationsfor reallocation licences
received, within the time limit laid down in Article 16.
Article 20
1. Rights arising under licences issued in accordance with this
Chapter shall be transferable to a single transferee operator on thetermsand conditionslaid down in Article 9 of Regulation (EC) No
1291/2000, without prejudice to paragraph 2 of thisArticle.
2. Rightsmay be trans ferred only:
(a) between traditional operators, under a single tariff quota, either A/
B or C, asthe cas e may be;
(b) from traditional operatorsto non-traditional operatorsregis tered
under Article 7, under a single tariff quota, either A/B or C, asthe case may be.
(c) between non-traditional operators registered under a single tariff
quota, either A/B or C, asthe cas e may be.2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 11
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Article 21
1. Operators shall declare without delay to the competent authorities,
before the term of validity of the import licencesconcerned expires , allquantitiesof bananaswhich have been releas ed for free circulation andthen re-exported out of the Community. They shall return to the same
authoritiesthe originalsof the import licencesinvolved.
2. Within a month of the end of each quarter, the competent autho-
rities shall notify the Commission of all quantities re-exported,
specifying in each case the category of operators (traditional or non-traditional) to whom the import licences were issued and quoting theserial numbers of the relevant import licences or licence extracts.
3. One or more import licences shall be issued, up to the amount of
the quantitiesre-exported, either to the holder or to the trans feree ofthe original licence, during a subsequent quarter but still within the
year in which the original licence(s) was, or were, issued.
4. The competent authoritiess hall check that the quantitiesdeclared
under paragraph 1 have actually been re-exported from the Community.
5. The quantitiesof bananasre-exported s hall not be taken into
account in calculating the reference quantitiesof traditional operators
and the allocationsof non-traditional operators .
The first subparagraph shall also cover re-exports carried out in 1994
from Member Statesto Aus tria, Finland or Sweden, and re-exports
from the latter countriesto third ocuntries , including the Communityascons tituted on 31 December 1994.
TITLE III
RULES FOR IMPORTING BANANAS OUTSIDE THE TARIFF
QUOTAS
Article 22
1. Import licence applicationsmay be s ubmitted in any Member
States.
2. Licence applications and the licences themselves shall bear the
following wording in Box 20: ‘Non-quota imports— Article 22 of
Regulation (EC) No 896/2001’.
3. Licences shall be issued immediately, in accordance with Article
23(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1291/2000. The term of validity oflicences shall be three months.
4. Within a month of the end of each quarter, Member Statess hall
notify the Commission of the quantities covered by licences issuedunder thisArticle.
TITLE IV
GENERALPROVISIONS
Article 23
For the purposes of Article 18(6) and (7) of Regulation (EEC) No 404/
93, the balance sheet showing Community production, consumption,
imports and exports shall be based on:
(a) available data on the quantitiesof bananasmarketed in the
Community during the preceding year, broken down by origin;
(b) forecast production and sales of Community bananas;
(c) forecast imports of bananas from all origins;
(d) forecast consumption on the basis, in particular, of recent consump-
tion trendsand movementsin market prices .2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 12
▼B
Article 24
1. Import licence applicationss hall be accompanied by proof that a
security has been lodged under Title III of Regulation (EEC) No 2220/
85. This security shall amount to EUR 50 per tonne. However, this
requirement shall not apply to licence applications submitted by non-traditional operatorsunder the import arrangementsprovided for inTitle II.
2. Where licences are issued for quantities lower than those applied
for, the security shall be released forthwith in respect of the quantity
not allocated.
Article 25
Regulation (EC) No 1291/2000 shall apply, with the exception of the
fourth indent of Article 5(1) and Article 8(4) and (5) thereof, account
being taken of the derogationscontained in thisRegulation.
Notwithstanding Article 35(4) of Regulation (EC) No 1291/2000, proof
of acceptance of an import declaration for the quantity concerned shallbe furnished within 30 days of expiry of the validity of an importlicence, except in cases of force majeure .
Article 26
1. The customs offices at which the import declarations are lodged
with a view to the release into free circulation of third-country bananas
under the tariff quota arrangementss hall:
(a) keep a copy of each import licence and extract therefrom endorsed
on acceptance of a declaration of release into free circulation; and
(b) forward at the end of each fortnight a second copy of each import
licence or extract endorsed to the Member State authorities listed in
the Annex to this Regulation responsible for issuing the licences.Those authorities shall at the end of each fortnight forward a copyof the licencesand extractsreceived to the competent authoritiesofthe Member Stateslis ted in the abovementioned Annex which
issued those documents.
2. Where there isdoubt asto the authenticity of the licence, the
extract, or any information in or signatures on the documentspresented, or as to the status of the operators completing the formalitiesfor relase into free circulation or for the account of whom those form-alities are completed, and where irregularities are suspected, thecustoms offices at which those documents were presented shall imme-
diately inform the competent authoritiesof their Member State, as
referred to in paragraph 1, thereof by telecommunication. The lattershall immediately forward that information by telecommunication tothe competent authorities which issued the documents and to theCommission, for the purpose of a thorough check.
The Commission shall forward to the Member States' customs authori-
tiesthe lis t of traditional and non-traditional operatorsoperating under
the import arrangementsconcerned who may be holdersor trans fereesof an import licence or extract therefrom.
3. On the basis of the information received under paragraphs 1 and
2, the Member States' competent authorities listed in the Annex shallcarry out the additional checksneeded to ens ure the correct application
of the tariff quota arrangements, in particular verification of the quan-
tities imported under those arrangements, by means of a precisecomparison of the licences and extracts issued with the licences andextracts used. To that end, they shall verify in particular the authenti-city and conformity of the documentsus ed and that the documentshave been used by operators registered under Title II.2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 13
▼B
Article 27
The Member States shall forward to the Commission the following
statistical and economic data:
(a) every Wednesday: wholesale prices for yellow bananas, broken
down by country of origin, asrecorded the previousweek on therepresentative markets listed in Article 3 of Commission Regula-tion (EC) No 3223/94 (
1);
(b) details, broken down by origin, of the quantities of bananas falling
within CN code 0803 00 19 released for free circulation in accor-dance with Article 308d of Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 for thepurposes of the surveillance of imports under the tariff quotas andotherwise;
(c) on the 10th day of the month following expiry of the validity of
import licencesfor each quarter: the quantitiescovered by importlicences issued, the quantities covered by licences used andreturned to the issuing body, and the quantities covered by unusedlicences;
(d) on request: forecasts of production and sales.
TITLE V
TRANSITIONALARRANGEMENTS
Article 28
1. For the second half of 2001, the quantities available shall be:
— for tariff quotasA/B: 1 137 159 tonnes ,
— for tariff quota C: 509 359 tonnes.
2. For the second half of 2001, the reference quantity for each tradi-
tional operator established in accordance with Article 4 and after the
application of Article 5(2) shall be multiplied by the coefficient0,4454 in the case of traditional operators A/B and by the coefficient0,5992 in the case of traditional operators C.
Notwithstanding Article 5(3), the competent authorities shall notify
each operator of their reference quantity as adjusted by the adjustmentcoefficient not later than 7 June 2001.
Article 29
1. Notwithstanding Article 7, non-traditional operators shall submit
their applications for registration for the second half of 2001 in theMember State of their choice by 18 May 2001 at the latest.
2. For the second half of 2001, the Member States shall notify the
information on non-traditional operatorsrequired under Article 7(5) by29 May 2001 at the latest.
3. Using the information received under paragraph 2, the Commis-
sion shall determine the quantities for which the allocations for non-traditional operatorsare granted for the s econd half of 2001.
4. The competent authoritiess hall notify each non-traditional
operator of their allocation for the second half of 2001 by 7 June at
the latest.
Article 30
1. Notwithstanding Article 15, operators shall submit applications
for import licencesfor the third quarter of 2001 between 11 and 14June 2001.2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 14
(1) OJ L 337, 24.12.1994, p. 66.
▼B
To be accepted, applications for licences submitted by a single operator
must not exceed a total quantity greater than:
(a) 54 % of the reference quantity in the case of traditional operators;
(b) 54 % of the allocation in the case of non-traditional operators.
2. The competent national authorities shall issue import licences by
30 June 2001 at the latest.
Import licences shall be issued with a view to release for free circula-
tion asfrom 1 July 2001.
Licence applications and the licences themselves shall bear the
following wording in Box 24: ‘Issued with a view to release for free
circulation asfrom 1 July 2001’.
TITLE VI
FINALPROVISIONS
Article 31
Regulation (EC) No 2362/98 isrepealed from 1 July 2001.It shall, however, continue to apply to import licences issued for 2001.
Article 32
ThisRegulation s hall enter into force on the day following itspublica-
tion in the Official Journal of the European Communities .
It shall apply from 1 July 2001.
ThisRegulation s hall be binding in itsentirety and directly applicable
in all Member States.2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 15
▼M4
ANNEX
The competent authoritiesof the Member States :
Belgium
Bureau d'intervention et de restitution belge/Belgisch Interventie- en Restitutie-
bureau
Rue de Trèves, 82/Trierstraat 82
B-1040 Bruxelles/Brussel
Denmark
Ministeriet for Fødevarer, Landbrug og Fiskeri
Direktoratet for Fødevareerhverv; Eksportstøttekontoret
Kampmannsgade 3
DK-1780 København V
Germany
Bundesanstalt für Landwirtschaft und Ernährung
Referat 322
Adickesallee, 40
D-60322 Frankfurt am Main
Greece
OPEKEPE (ex-GEDIDAGEP)
Directorate Fruits and Vegetables, Wine and Industrial Products241, Acharnon Street
GR-10446 Athens
Spain
Ministerio de Economía
Secretaría General de Comercio ExteriorPaseo de la Castellana, 162
E-28046 Madrid
France
Office de développement de l'économie agricole desdépartementsd'outre-mer
(ODEADOM)
31, quai de Grenelle
F-75738 Paris
Cedex 15
Ireland
Department of Agriculture and Rural Development
Horticulture Division
Agriculture House (7W)
Kildare StreetDublin 2Ireland
ItalyMinistero delle Attività Produttive
DG Politica Commerciale e Gestione Regime Scambi — Div. IIViale Boston 25I-00144 Roma
Luxembourg
Ministère de l'agriculture/Administration des services techniques de l'agriculture
Service de l'horticulture
16, route d'EschBoîte postale 1904
L-1014 Luxembourg
Netherlands
Produktschap Tuinbouw
LouisPas teurlaan 6Postbus 2802700 AG ZoetermeerNetherlands
AustriaBundesministerium für Land- und Forstwirtschaft, Umwelt und Wasserwirtschaft
Abteilung III 10 — Obst, Gemüse, SonderkulturenStubenring 1A-1012 Wien2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 16
▼M4
Portugal
Ministério das Finanças
Direcção-Geral das Alfândegas e dos Impostos Especiais sobre o Consumo
Direcção de Serviçosde Licenciamento
Rua Terreiro do Trigo — Edifício da Alfândega
P-1149-060 Lisboa
Finland
Maa- ja Metsätalousministeriö
PL 30
FIN-00023
Valtioneuvosto, Helsinki
Sweden
Jordbruksverket
Vallgatan 8–10
S-551 82 Jönköping
UnitedKingdomRural PaymentsAgency
External Trade Division
Lancaster House
Hampshire Court
Newcastle Upon Tyne
NE4 7YH
United Kingdom2001R0896 — EN — 16.08.2003 — 006.001 — 17