3.

Article 49 is replaced by the following: ‘Article 49 Amendments to programmes 1. The amendments to be made to the general programmes approved under Article 24(2) of Regulation (EC) No 247/2006 shall be submitted to the Commission for approval and shall be duly substantiated, in particular by giving the following information: (a) the reasons and any implementation problems justifying amendment of the overall programme; (b) the expected effects of the amendment; (c) the implications for financing and verification of commitments. Except in cases of force majeure or exceptional circumstances, Member States shall submit requests for amendments to programmes only once per calendar year and per programme. Such requests for amendment must be received by the Commission no later than 1 August each year. If the Commission raises no objections to the amendments requested, the amendments envisaged shall apply from 1 January of the year following that in which they were notified. Such amendments may apply earlier if the Commission confirms in writing to the Member State before the date referred to in the third subparagraph that the notified amendments comply with Community legislation. If the notified amendment does not comply with Community legislation, the Commission shall inform the Member State thereof and the amendment shall not apply until the Commission receives an amendment that can be declared as compliant. 2. By way of derogation from paragraph 1, for the following amendments, the Commission shall evaluate the Member States’ proposals and decide on their approval within four months of their submission at the latest in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 26(2) of Regulation (EC) No 247/2006: (a) the introduction of new measures, actions, products or aid schemes into the general programme; and (b) the increase of the unit level of support already approved for each existing measure, action, product or aid scheme by more than 50 % of the amount applicable at the time when the request for amendment is presented. The amendments thus approved shall apply from 1 January of the year following that in which the request for an amendment was made. 3. Member States may make the following amendments without recourse to the procedure set out in paragraph 1, provided that the amendments are notified to the Commission: (a) in the case of forecast supply balances, changes in the individual level of aid up to 20 % or changes in the quantities of the products concerned covered by the supply arrangements and, consequently, the global amount of aid allocated to support each line of products; (b) as regards Community programmes supporting local production, adjustments up to 20 % of the financial allocation for each individual measure; and (c) amendments following amendments to codes and descriptions laid down in Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 (4) used to identify the products benefiting from aid, as long as those amendments do not entail a change of the products themselves. The amendments referred to in subparagraph 1 shall not apply before the date on which they are received by the Commission. They shall be duly explained and justified and may be implemented only once per year except in the following cases: (a) force majeure or exceptional circumstances; (b) amendment of the quantities of products covered by the supply arrangements; (c) amendment of the statistical nomenclature and of the Common Customs Tariff codes as provided for in Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87; (d) budget transfers within production support measures. These amendments shall, however, be notified no later than 30 April of the year following the calendar year to which the amended financial allocation refers.