COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) No 958/93 of 5 April 1993 establishing a Community procedure for administering quantitative import restrictions and monitoring of textile and clothing products originating in certain third countries

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, and in particular Article 113 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Whereas the Community has negotiated agreements with a number of supplier countries on trade in textile products on the basis of the Protocol for the extension of the Multi-Fibre Arrangement; whereas a number of other protocols, arrangements or specific import regimes are also applied with some third countries in the context of association agreements and other types of preferential arrangements;

Whereas these agreements, protocols and arrangements provide, inter alia, that the supplier countries' exports into the Community of certain textile products falling within Section XI of the combined nomenclature shall be subject to quantitative limits fixed at Community level or to a monitoring procedure;

Whereas a basic characteristic of these agreements, protocols and arrangements is the establishment of a double-checking system in order to ensure compliance with the quantitative limits established thereunder;

Whereas Article 8a of the Treaty provides for the creation of an internal market, comprising an area without internal frontiers in which the free circulation of goods is ensured; whereas for this reason and also to take account of the principles laid down by the Court of Justice of the European Communities the above agreements, protocols and arrangements do not provide any more for the breakdown of the Community quantitative limits into national sub-quotas;

Whereas in order to apply Community quantitative limits and monitoring procedures in conformity with the agreements, protocols and arrangements negotiated with the supplier countries it is necessary to establish a special management procedure;

Whereas it is desirable that such a common management system be decentralized as far as possible by allowing import authorizations to be issued, as in the past, by the Member States' authorities in accordance with the double-checking system established in those agreements, protocols and arrangements;

Whereas, however, it is necessary, in the absence of the breakdown of the Community quantitative limits into national sub-quotas, to make sure that the competent authorities of the Member States, when issuing the import licences, do not exceed the quantitative limits establishing in the agreements, protocols or arrangements;

Whereas for this purpose the competent authorities of the Member States should not issue import licences before obtaining the prior confirmation of the Commission that there are still amounts available of the total Community quantitative limit for which an application is submitted by an importer to the said competent authorities;

Whereas the Commission should provide its confirmation to the requests notified by Member States, and shall allocate to the extent possible, the full amount notified;

Whereas requests notified by the competent authorities to the Commission shall be considered to be valid if they establish the supplier third country, the category of textile products concerned, the amount to be imported, the number of the export licence and the Member State of intended customs clearance;

Whereas pending the establishing and smooth operation of the central computerized system it is necessary to provide, for a limited period of time, that Member States shall not issue import licences over a certain initial maximum amount of the total Community import limit; whereas this maximum amount should be fixed in terms of certain percentages of the Community quota uniform for each product category and for each third country concerned;

Whereas for the effective management of the Community quantitative limits and to establish the total amount of imports subject to a monitoring procedure during this transitional period, the competent authorities of the Member States should submit at regular intervals statistical information of the licences issued;

Whereas it should be possible during this transitional period to allow for certain adjustments to be made to the maximum amounts provided for each Member State, so as to take account of the number of import applications submitted in the Member States as well as the level of utilization of each quantitative limit concerned;

Whereas it is necessary to provide that a committee will assist the Commission for the purposes of implementation of this Regulation,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

General Principles

Article 1

1. This Regulation applies to imports into the Community of textile products listed in Annex I, originating in certain third countries.

2. For the purposes of paragraph 1, textile products falling within Section XI of the combined nomenclature shall be classified in categories as set out in Annex I.

3. For the purposes of this Regulation, the term originating products and the methods for controlling the origin of those products shall be as defined by the relevant Community rules in force.

Article 2

1. This Regulation lays down the rules and procedures governing the administration of quantitative import limits and monitoring procedures established by the Community in the framework of protocols, bilateral agreements with supplier third countries pursuant to the Multi-fibre Arrangement in force or in the framework of arrangements or other specific import regimes in which a double-checking mechanism to control or to monitor imports is laid down.

2. Annex II indicates the quantitative limits in the agreements, protocols, arrangements or specific import regimes with the third countries referred to in paragraph 1 to which this Regulation applies. Annex III indicates the third countries and the categories of products subject to the monitoring procedures referred to in paragraph 1 to which this Regulation applies.

Article 3

1. The release for free circulation into the Community of imports subject to quantitative limits or monitoring procedures referred to in Article 2 shall be subject to the presentation of an import authorization or equivalent document issued by the Member States' authorities.

2. In order to ensure that quantities for which import licences are issued shall not exceed at any moment the total Community limits for each textile category and each third country concerned, the competent authorities shall issue import authorizations or equivalent documents only upon confirmation by the Commission that there are still quantities available of the total Community quotas for the categories of textile products and for the third countries concerned, for which an importer or importers have submitted applications with the said authorities.

Specific rules for the administration of Community import limits

Article 4

1. For the purpose of applying Article 3 (2), the competent authorities of the Member States shall notify the Commission of requests for import authorizations received.

2. A request shall be valid if it clearly establishes the supplier third country, the category of textile products concerned, the amount to be imported, the Member State in which the products are intended to be put into free circulation, and the number of the export licence. The Commission shall notify the amounts of the Community quantitative limits and, where appropriate, the relevant sub-limit, for which import licences may be issued by the competent authorities.

3. The competent authorities of the Member States shall notify requests received, either individually or batched on a daily basis, and the Commission shall notify its confirmation that there are amounts of the quantities available for importation either in writing or by telex, telefax or other means of communication such as electronics or telematics, provided that all the elements set out in paragraph 2 are clearly established.

Article 5

In the allocation of the Community quantitative limits referred to in Article 4, the Commission shall allocate, as far as possible, the full amount indicated in the request submitted for each category of products and each third country concerned.

Article 6

1. The competent authorities shall notify the Commission immediately after being informed of any previously allocated quantity that is not used during the six months duration of validity of the import authorization. Such unused quantities shall automatically be transferred into the remaining quantities of the total Community import limit for each category of product and each third country concerned.

In the case of Egypt and Malta, the duration of validity of import authorizations shall be three months, and in the case of Turkey, the duration of validity shall be two months.

2. Member States may, in exceptional circumstances, extend the duration of validity of import authorizations. Member States shall inform the Commission of any such extensions.

Transitional provisions

Article 7

1. Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 3 to 5 and pending the establishment and smooth operation of the computerized system for the administration at Community level of the import limits referred to in Article 2, the competent authorities shall make sure, when issuing import licences for the period between 1 January to 31 March 1993, initially not to issue licences in excess of a maximum of 9 % of the total Community import limit for each product category and each third country concerned, except for Germany for which the maximum amount shall be fixed at 15 %, and for Greece, Ireland and Portugal for which the maximum amount shall be fixed at 5 % each. For the three Benelux States together the maximum amount shall be fixed ad 9 %.

2. The remaining 16 % of each Community import limit shall constitute, for the same period referred to in paragraph 1, a Community reserve quantity. The Commission shall authorize out of this reserve quantity, upon request by a Member State, amounts higher than those referred to in paragraph 1, if this is necessary to satisfy import licence applications.

3. During the period referred to in paragraph 1, the competent authorities shall communicate to the Commission, at least every two weeks, statistics of the total amount of quantities for each product category and each third country concerned for which they have issued import licences.

4. The Commission may, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 9, review the time limit of 31 March 1993 and the maximum amounts referred to in paragraph 1.

Article 8

Textile products covered by this Regulation and shipped before 1 January 1993 shall be governed by the provisions on issuing of import licences in force at the time of their shipment. For the purposes of this Article, shipment of the products shall be considered as having taken place on the date on which they were loaded on the exporting aircraft, train, vehicle or vessel.

Decision-making and final provisions

Article 9

1. The Commission shall be assisted by a Committee composed of the representatives of the Member States and chaired by the representative of the Commission.

2. Where reference is made to the procedure laid down in this Article, the Chairman, on his own initiative or at the request of a Member State, shall refer the matter to the Committee.

The Commission representative shall lay draft measures before the Committee. The Committee shall deliver an opinion on the draft measures within a period which may be fixed by the Chairman in accordance with the degree of urgency of the matter. The Committee shall decide by the majority specified in Article 148 (2) of the Treaty for the adoption of decisions by the Council on a proposal from the Commission. In the case of votes within the Committee, the votes of Member States' representatives shall be weighted in accordance with the abovementioned Article. The Chairman shall not vote.

The Commission shall adopt the measures proposed where they are in conformity with the Committee's opinion.

Where the measures proposed are not in conformity with the Committee's opinion, or where no opinion has been given, the Commission shall present to the Council, without delay, a proposal for the measures to be taken. The Council shall act by a qualified majority.

Should the Council fail to take a decision within one month of the date on which the proposal was laid down before it, the Commission shall adopt the proposed measures.

3. At the request of the Chairman, acting on his own initiative or in response to a request from one of the Member States' representatives the Committee shall examine any other matter relating to the application of this Regulation.

Article 10

Amendments to the Annexes to this Regulation which may be necessary to take into account the conclusion, amendment or expiry of agreements, protocols, arrangements or specific import regimes with third countries or amendments made to Community rules on statistics, customs arrangements or common rules for imports shall be adopted in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 9.

Article 11

This Regulation shall enter into force on the day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

It shall apply from 1 January 1993.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Luxembourg, 5 April 1993.

For the Council

The President

N. HELVEG PETERSEN

ANNEX I

PRODUCTS REFERRED TO IN ARTICLE 1 (1)

1. When the constitutive material of the products of categories 1 to 114 is not specifically mentioned, these products are to be taken to be made exclusively of wool or of fine hair, of cotton or of man-made fibres (2).

2. Garments which are not recognizable as being garments for men or boys or as being garments for women or girls are classified with the latter.

3. Where the expression 'babies' garments' is used, this is meant to cover garments up to and including commercial size 86.

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(1) Covers only categories 1 to 114, with the exception of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam for which categories 1 to 161 are covered and of Poland, Hungary, the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic, Bulgaria and Romania for which categories 1 to 123 are covered. In the case of Poland, Hungary, the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic, Bulgaria and Romania categories 115 to 123 are included in Group III B.(2) In the case of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam the products covered by each category are determined by the CN codes. Where there is an 'ex' symbol in front of a CN code, the products covered in each category are determined by the scope of the CN code and by that of the corresponding description.

ANNEX II

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Appendix

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(1) See Appendix. (2) See Appendix. (3) See Appendix. (4) See Appendix. (5) See Appendix. (6) See Appendix. (7) See Appendix. (8) See Appendix. (9) See Appendix. (10) See Appendix. (11) See Appendix.

ANNEX III

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(1) CN-Codes 5508 10 19, 5509 31 10, 5509 31 90, 5509 32 10, 5509 32 90.(2) CN-Codes 6207 91 00, 6208 91 10.