Draft DECISION OF THE EEA JOINT COMMITTEE amending Annex XIII (Transport) to the EEA Agreement - Draft common position of the Community - (presented by the Commission)

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

1. In order to ensure the requisite legal security and homogeneity, the EEA Joint Committee is to integrate all the relevant Community legislation into the EEA Agreement as soon as possible after its adoption.

2. The EEA Joint Committee should therefore adopt the attached decision to amend Annex XIII to the EEA Agreement by adding recently adopted acquis in the field of Transport. The decision concerns:

- 398 L 0076: Council Directive 98/76/EC of 1 October 1998 amending Directive 96/26/EC on admission to the occupation of road haulage operator and road passenger transport operator and mutual recognition of diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications intended to facilitate for these operators the right to freedom of establishment in national and international transport operations (OJ L 277, 14.10.1998, p. 17).

3. The proposal includes a number of technical adaptations and a delayed entry into force for Liechtenstein. The reason for the latter is that the pertinent commercial/trade legislation in Liechtenstein has been modified several times since 1996. Now a consolidation of the said legislation is planned, and this Directive would be taken into account in that procedure.

4. Article 1(3)(a) of Council Regulation (EC) No 2894/94 concerning the arrangements for implementing the EEA Agreement envisages that the Council, after consulting the European Parliament, establishes the Community position for decisions extending Community legislation with substantial changes.

5. The Council is requested to approve the attached draft decision for adoption by the EEA Joint Committee.

Draft DECISION OF THE EEA JOINT COMMITTEE amending Annex XIII (Transport) to the EEA Agreement

THE EEA JOINT COMMITTEE,

Having regard to the Agreement on the European Economic Area, as adjusted by the Protocol adjusting the Agreement on the European Economic Area, hereinafter referred to as 'the Agreement', and in particular Article 98 thereof,

Whereas Annex XIII to the Agreement was amended by Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No ... of [1];

[1] OJ L

Whereas Council Directive 98/76/EC of 1 October 1998 amending Directive 96/26/EC on admission to the occupation of road haulage operator and road passenger transport operator and mutual recognition of diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications intended to facilitate for these operators the right to freedom of establishment in national and international transport operations [2] is to be incorporated into the Agreement;

[2] OJ L 277, 14.10.1998, p. 17.

Whereas Liechtenstein is to be granted a transitional period with regard to the provisions of Directive 98/76/EC,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

The following shall be added in point 19 (Council Directive 96/26/EC) in Annex XIII to the Agreement:

', as amended by:

- 398 L 0076: Council Directive 98/76/EC of 1 October 1998 amending Directive 96/26/EC on admission to the occupation of road haulage operator and road passenger transport operator and mutual recognition of diplomas, certificates and other evidence of formal qualifications intended to facilitate for these operators the right to freedom of establishment in national and international transport operations (OJ L 277, 14.10.1998, p. 17).

The provisions of the Directive shall, for the purposes of the present Agreement, be read with the following adaptations:

(a) Liechtenstein shall comply with the amendments made to the Directive by Council Directive 98/76/EC by [date one year after adoption of the Joint Committee Decision incorporating Council Directive 98/76/EC];

(b) in Article 3(3)(c), regarding the EFTA States, "those national currencies which are non participants in the third stage of monetary union" shall read "the national currencies of the EFTA States" and "published in the Official Journal of the European Communities" shall read "published officially in each EFTA State";

(c) the EFTA States shall recognize the Community certificate issued by the EC Member States in accordance with Article 3(4)(d) of the Directive. For the purposes of such recognition, in the provisions of the Community certificate set out in Annex Ia to the Directive, references to "Member State(s)" shall read "EC Member State(s), Iceland, Liechtenstein and/or Norway";

(d) the Community and the EC Member States shall recognize the certificate issued by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway in accordance with the Directive as adapted in Appendix 7 to this Annex;

(e) when issued by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, the certificate shall correspond to the model set out in Appendix 7 to this Annex.'

Article 2

The Appendix in the Annex to this Decision shall become Appendix 7 to Annex XIII to the Agreement.

Article 3

The texts of Council Directive 98/76/EC in the Icelandic and Norwegian languages, which are annexed to the respective language versions of this Decision, are authentic.

Article 4

This Decision shall enter into force on ... 1999, provided that all the notifications under Article 103(1) of the Agreement have been made to the EEA Joint Committee [3].

[3] Notification required. No notification required.

Article 5

This Decision shall be published in the EEA Section of, and in the EEA Supplement to, the Official Journal of the European Communities.

Done at Brussels, ...... 1999.

For the EEA Joint Committee

The President

The Secretaries to the EEA Joint Committee

ANNEX to Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No .../1999

APPENDIX 7

CERTIFICATE REFERRED TO IN ANNEX Ia OF COUNCIL DIRECTIVE 98/76/EC, AS ADAPTED FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE EEA AGREEMENT (see adaptation (d) in point 19 of Annex XIII to the Agreement)

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