Decision No 2/2002

of the ACP-EC Customs Cooperation Committee

of 28 October 2002

derogating from the concept of "originating products" to take account of the special situation of the ACP States regarding the production of canned tuna and of tuna loins (HS heading ex 16.04)

(2002/891/EC)

THE ACP-EC CUSTOMS COOPERATION COMMITTEE,

Having regard to the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement signed at Cotonou on 23 June 2000, and in particular Article 38 of Protocol I thereto,

Whereas:

(1) Article 1 of Decision 1/2000 of the ACP-EC Council of Ministers of 27 July 2000 on transitional measures valid from 2 August 2000(1) provides that the trade provisions of the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement, including Protocol 1 concerning the definition of the concept of "originating products" and methods of administrative cooperation, apply from 2 August 2000.

(2) Article 38(1) of the said Protocol provides for derogations from the rules of origin to be granted whenever the development of an existing industry or the establishment of a new one warrants it.

(3) Article 38(8) of the said Protocol provides that the derogations are granted automatically within an annual quota of 8000 tonnes for canned tuna and of 2000 tonnes for tuna loins.

(4) The ACP/EC Customs Cooperation Committee has allocated a share of these quotas to six individual African, Caribbean and Pacific States, hereinafter referred to as "ACP States"(2).

(5) In order to permit the effective and full utilisation of the quota available, the ACP States submitted on 18 June 2002 a request for a new global derogation, valid for all ACP States, and covering the full annual quantities, i.e. 8000 tonnes of canned tuna and 2000 tonnes of tuna loins, imported into the Community from 1 October 2002 to 28 February 2005.

(6) The ACP States also requested that, in order to ensure the continuation of the benefit of the derogations for operators, the individual decisions that are still valid on 1 October 2002 be repealed, as the derogations provided for by these decisions should be covered by the new global decision from that date onwards.

(7) The derogation is requested under the relevant provisions of Protocol 1, particularly with regard to Article 38(8) and, provided that the current decisions be repealed, the requested quantities fall within the limits of the annual quota which is granted automatically upon request of the ACP States.

(8) Therefore, pursuant to Article 38(8), a new global derogation can be granted to the ACP States in respect of canned tuna and of tuna loins for the quantities and for the periods requested.

(9) The quantities for which a derogation is adopted, should be managed by the Commission in collaboration with the customs authorities of the Member States and those of the ACP States. To that end, detailed rules should be adopted,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

By way of derogation from the special provisions in the list in Annex II to Protocol 1 of the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement, canned tuna and tuna loins of HS heading ex 16.04 produced in the ACP States from non-originating tuna shall be regarded as originating in the ACP States in accordance with the terms of this Decision.

Article 2

The derogation provided for in Article 1 shall apply to the products and the quantities shown in the Annex to this Decision which are imported into the Community from the ACP States during the period of 1 October 2002 to 28 February 2005.

Article 3

1. The quantities set out in the Annex shall be managed by the Commission, which shall take all administrative action it deems advisable for their efficient management.

2. Where an importer presents, in a Member State, a declaration for release for free circulation, incorporating a request to benefit from this Decision, the Member State shall, if the declaration has been accepted by the customs authorities, notify the Commission of its wish to draw a quantity corresponding to its needs.

3. Requests for drawing, showing the date of acceptance of the declarations, shall be transmitted by the Member State concerned to the Commission without delay.

4. Drawings shall be granted by the Commission in order of the date of acceptance of the declarations of release for free circulation by the customs authorities of the Member States, provided that the available balance so permits.

5. If a Member State fails to use a drawing it shall return it, as soon as possible, to the appropriate quota.

6. If the quantities requested exceed the available balance of a given quota, the quantities shall be allocated on a pro rata basis. The Commission shall inform the Member States of drawings from the quotas.

7. Each Member State shall ensure that importers have continuous and equal access to the quantities available as long as the balance permits.

Article 4

1. The customs authorities of the ACP States shall take the necessary steps to carry out quantitative checks on exports of the products referred to in Article 1. To that end, all the certificates they issue pursuant to this Decision shall bear a reference to it.

2. The competent authorities of those countries shall forward to the Commission every three months, via the Secretariat of the ACP Group, a statement of the quantities in respect of which movement certificates EUR.1 have been issued pursuant to this Decision and the serial numbers of those certificates.

Article 5

Box 7 of movement certificates EUR.1 issued under this Decision shall contain one of the following indications:

- Excepción - Decisión n° 2/2002

- Undtagelse - afgørelse nr. 2/2002

- Abweichung - Beschluss Nr. 2/2002

- Παρέκκλιση - Απόφαση αριθ. 2/2002

- Derogation - Decision No 2/2002

- Dérogation - Décision n° 2/2002

- Deroga - decisione n. 2/2002

- Afwijking - Βesluit nr. 2/2002

- Derrogação - Decisão n.o 2/2002

- Poikkeus - päätös N:o 2/2002

- Undantag - beslut nr 2/2002.

Article 6

The ACP States, the Member States and the European Community shall take the measures necessary on their part to implement this Decision.

Article 7

1. The following decisions are hereby repealed:

- Decision No 4/2001 of the ACP/EC Customs Cooperation Committee of 27 June 2001 derogating from the definition of "originating products" to take account of the special situation of Senegal regarding the production of canned tuna (HS heading ex 16.04),

- Decision No 5/2001 of the ACP/EC Customs Cooperation Committee of 7 December 2001 derogating from the definition of "originating products" to take account of the special situation of Côte d'Ivoire and Papua New Guinea regarding the production of canned tuna (HS heading ex 16.04),

- Decision No 1/2002 of the ACP/EC Customs Cooperation Committee of 26 June 2002 derogating from the definition of "originating products" to take account of the special situation of the Seychelles regarding the production of tuna loins (HS heading ex 16.04).

2. Where an importer presents, in a Member State, a declaration for release for free circulation, incorporating a request to benefit from one of the Decisions referred to in paragraph 1, that reference shall be deemed to refer to this Decision.

Article 8

This Decision shall enter into force on the date of its adoption.

This Decision shall apply from 1 October 2002.

Done at Brussels, 28 October 2002.

For the ACP-EC Customs Cooperation Committee

The Joint Chairmen

Robert Verrue

Edwin P.J. Laurent

(1) OJ L 195, 1.8.2000, p. 46.

(2) Decision No 1/2000 of the ACP/EC Customs Cooperation Committee of 18 October 2000 derogating from the definition of "originating products" to take account of the special situation of Fiji, Mauritius, Papua New Guinea and the Seychelles regarding the production of canned tuna and of tuna loins (HS heading ex 16.04) (OJ L 276, 28.10.2000, p. 89); Decision No 4/2001 of the ACP/EC Customs Cooperation Committee of 27 June 2001 derogating from the definition of "originating products" to take account of the special situation of Senegal regarding the production of canned tuna (HS heading ex 16.04) (OJ L 192, 14.7.2001, p. 27); Decision No 5/2001 of the ACP/EC Customs Cooperation Committee of 7 December 2001 derogating from the definition of "originating products" to take account of the special situation of Côte d'Ivoire and Papua New Guinea regarding the production of canned tuna (HS heading ex 16.04) (OJ L 334, 18.12.2001, p. 31); Decision No 1/2002 of the ACP/EC Customs Cooperation Committee of 26 June 2002 derogating from the definition of "originating products" to take account of the special situation of the Seychelles regarding the production of tuna loins (HS heading ex 16.04) (OJ L 172, 2.7.2002, p. 65).

ANNEX

>TABLE>