Proposal for a Council Regulation (EC) on the statistics relating to the trading of goods by the Community and its Member States with non-member countries (94/C 5/07) COM(93) 476 final

(Submitted by the Commission on 9 December 1993)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

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

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament,

Whereas Community statistics on external trade are an indispensable tool for management of the common commercial policy and must be drawn up on the basis of a methodology common to all the Member States;

Whereas, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, the Member States are, for reasons of efficiency, to make the necessary arrangements for the collection and analysis of the data while the Commission is to handle the integration and dissemination of Community results;

Whereas Council Regulation (EEC) No 1736/75 of 24 June 1975 on the external trade statistics of the Community and statistics of trade between Member States (1), as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 1629/88 (2), laid down the methodological bases for all such statistics;

Whereas since the adoption of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2954/85 of 22 October 1985 laying down certain measures for the standardization and simplification of the statistics of trade between Member States (3) and of Council Regulation (EEC) No 3330/91 of 7 November 1992 on the statistics relating to the trading of goods between Member States (4), certain provisions of Regulation (EEC) No 1736/75 are no longer sufficiently clear;

Whereas statistics on the trading of goods by the Community and its Member States with non-member countries must continue to be compiled on the basis of customs procedures; whereas the provisions already in force should simply be adjusted in line with the amendments in customs legislation introduced with a view to the completion of the internal market;

Whereas it appears advisable to replace the relevant legislation in order to increase transparency via consolidation of the legal texts and the clarification of certain terms;

Whereas it is preferable that the technical provisions relating to the compiling of external trade statistics should be incorporated in the implementing provisions of this Regulation;

Whereas it appears advisable to replace the relevant legislation in order to increase transparency by consolidating the legal texts and clarifying certain terms;

Whereas, to guarantee the uniform application of this Regulation, there must be close and effective cooperation between the Member States and the Commission; whereas this cooperation can be organized within the Committee established by Regulation (EEC) No 3330/91,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

The Community and its Member States shall compile statistics relating to the trading of goods by the Community and its Member States with non-member countries, in accordance with the rules laid down in this Regulation.

CHAPTER I

General provisions

Article 2

For the purposes of this Regulation and without prejudice to any individual provisions:

(a) 'trading of goods with non-member countries` means any movement of goods between a non-member country and a Community country or vice-versa;

b) 'goods` means all movable property, including electric current;

c) 'Community goods` means goods:

- wholly obtained or produced in the customs territory of the Community and not incorporating goods imported from countries or territories not forming part of the customs territory of the Community,

- imported from countries of territories not forming part of the customs territory of the Community which have been released for free circulation,

- obtained or produced in the customs territory of the Community, either from goods referred to in the second indent alone or from goods referred to in first and second indents;

(d) 'non-Community goods` means goods other than those referred to in (c).

Without prejudice to agreements concluded with non-member countries for the implementation of the Community transit arrangements, goods which, while fulfilling the conditions laid down in (c), are reintroduced into the customs territory of the Community after export therefrom are also considered as non-Community goods;

(e) 'non-member countries` means any country or territory which does not form part of the statistical territory of the Community within the meaning of Article 3.

Article 3

1. The statistical territory of the Community shall comprise the customs territory of the Community as defined in Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 of 12 October 1992 establishing the Community customs code (5), with the exception of the French overseas departments and the Canary Islands.

2. The Member States shall define their statistical territory in accordance with paragraph 1.

Article 4

1. Statistics relating to the trading of goods by the Community and its Member States with non-member countries shall be compiled for all goods which, after entering or before leaving the statistical territory of the Community, are subject to customs-approved treatment or use within the meaning of Article 4 (15) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92.

The said statistics shall also include goods which, being unable to undergo customs-approved treatment or use, are the subject of trade between parts of the statistical territory of the Community and the French overseas departments or the Canary Islands.

However, the goods referred to in the second subparagraph of Article 3 (1) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 3330/91 shall be excluded from these statistics.

2. Paragraph 1 shall apply to both non-Community and Community goods, whether or not they are the subject of a commercial transaction.

Article 5

1. Statistics relating to the trading of goods by the Community and its Member States with non-member countries shall include the following specific statistics:

- statistics relating to external trade,

- statistics relating to transit,

- statistics relating to customs warehouses,

- statistics relating to free zones and free warehouses.

Without prejudice to customs legislation, the Commission may, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 21 and for a period defined in advance and not exceeding three years, organize the compiling of other special statistics to meet specific needs of the Community or of the Member States.

2. Among the goods referred to in Article 4, the same goods may be the subject of more than one set of special statistics.

In accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 21, the Commission shall adopt the provisions making it possible to quantify the extent to which each statistic overlaps with others.

CHAPTER II

External trade statistics

Article 6

(1) Among the goods referred to in Article 4, external trade statistics shall be compiled on:

(a) those goods which, having entered the statistical territory of the Community:

- are placed there under the customs procedure of release for free circulation, inward processing or processing under customs control,

- are referred to in Article 4 (1), second subparagraph;

(b) those goods which, since they are to leave the statistical territory of the Community:

- are placed there under customs export or outward processing arrangements,

- are re-exported from the customs territory of the Community following inward processing or, where appropriate, processing under customs control,

- are referred to in Article 4 (1), second subparagraph.

2. In accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 21, the Commission may amend paragraph 1:

- to take account of changes in customs legislation,

- without prejudice to such legislation, to avoid double counts and take account of the specific needs of new Member States or the need for international comparability of external trade statistics.

Article 7

Without prejudice to Article 23, the Single Administrative Document which, pursuant to Article 205 of Commission Regulation (EC) No . . ./93 of . . . laying down certain implementing provisions for Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 establishing the Community customs code, is used to make the declaration regarding one of the customs-approved treatments or uses referred to in Article 6 shall be used as the statistical data medium.

Article 8

(1) On the statistical data medium, and without prejudice to Article 23, goods shall be designated by type in such a way as to permit easy and precise classification (Taric subheading) in the most detailed relevant subdivision of the version of the integrated tariff of the European Communities in force at the time, as defined in Article 2 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 of 23 July 1987 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and the Common Customs Tariff (6).

2. For each type of goods classified pursuant to paragraph 1, the code number referred to in Article 3 of the abovementioned Regulation shall be given.

3. The goods shall be designated in accordance with paragraphs 1 and 2, even when other Community legislation requieres that they be designated simultaneously in accordance with other classifications.

Article 9

1. On the statistical data medium, countries and territories shall be designated in such a way as to permit easy and precise classification under the relevant heading in the classification of countries and territories which the Commission is introducing, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 21, with a view to meeting the requirements of the Common Customs Tariff and those of external trade statistics and statistics of trade between Member States.

The first subparagraph shall apply without prejudice either to the provisions regarding the Single Administrative Document or to Article 23.

2. In accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 21, for each country or territory classified pursuant to paragraph 1, the alphabetical or numerical codes used in the abovementioned classification shall be given in accordance with the procedures decided by the Commission.

3. Until the introduction of the classification referred to in paragraph 1 by the Commission, the relevant provisions of Regulation (EEC) No 1736/75 on the external trade statistics of the Community and statistics of trade between Member States, namely Articles 6, 35, 36, 41 (1) (b) and the last sentence of the second subparagraph of Article 47, shall continue to apply.

Article 10

1. Without prejudice to the provisions regarding the Single Administrative Document, for each type of goods classified pursuant to Article 8 (1), the following data shall be given on the statistical data medium:

(a) either the customs-approved treatment or use, or the statistical procedure;

(b) for the goods referred to in Article 6 (1) (a), the country of origin or the country of consignment, save as otherwise provided pursuant to the second indent of paragraph 3;

(c) for the goods referred to in Article 6 (1) (b), the country of destination;

(d) the quantity of goods, in net mass and in supplementary units;

(e) the statistical value of the goods;

(f) the mode of transport at the external frontier;

(g) as from 1 January 1995, the internal mode of transport;

(h) where appropriate, the specific movement;

(i) the nationality of the means of transport crossing the frontier;

(j) the container.

2. Without prejudice to customs legislation, the Commission may, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 21, add the following data to the list in paragraph 1, deciding in each case the date from which it shall be entered on the statistical data medium:

(a) the place of loading or unloading of the goods;

(b) the customs post of entry or exit;

(c) the preference;

(d) the quota;

(e) the amount invoiced;

(f) the nature of the transaction;

(g) the delivery terms.

3. Without prejudice to customs legislation, the following shall be decided by the Commission in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 21:

- the definition of the data referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2,

- the rules for entering them on the statistical data medium.

4. Without prejudice to Article 11 (2), in order to meet national requirements the Member States may require that the following be entered on the statistical data medium:

- in the case of the goods referred to in Article 6 (1) (a), the Member State of destination, and in the case of the goods referred to in Article 6 (1) (b), the actual Member State of export,

- data other than those referred to in paragraph 1, in so far as the supply of such data is already authorized by the provisions regarding the Single Administrative Document.

Article 11

1. The Community and its Member States shall compile external trade statistics from the data referred to in Article 10 (1), pursuant to the provisions adopted by the Commission in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 21.

2. Without prejudice to the provisions regarding the Single Administrative Document:

(a) any provision adopted by the Commission pursuant to paragraph 1 which has the effect of excluding goods referred to in Article 6 (1) from the results shall also exclude the collection of data relating to these goods;

(b) Member States shall refrain from ordering the collection of data not used to compile statistics on trade with non-member countries.

Article 12

1. The statistical threshold shall be defined as the limit expressed in value or net mass below which results are not compiled.

2. The statistical thresholds shall be fixed by the Commission in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 21.

Article 13

1. Member States shall forward on a monthly basis their results of the statistics on trade with non-member countries, compiled as provided for in Article 11 (1), including the data declared confidential pursuant to national legislation or practices governing statistical confidentiality, in accordance with the provisions of Council Regulation (Euratom, EEC) No 1588/90 of 11 June 1990 on the transmission of data subject to statistical confidentiality to the Statistical Office of the European Communities (7). The said Regulation governs the confidential treatment of information.

2. Where necessary, the technical procedures for such transmission shall be fixed by the Commission in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 21.

Article 14

The Commission shall compile the results of the external trade statistics of the Community and of its Member States on the basis of the results transmitted to it by the Member States and shall make them available to users broken down by combined nomenclature subheadings.

Article 15

Provisions regarding the simplification of statistical information shall be adopted by the Commission in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 21.

CHAPTER III

Statistics relating to transit, customs warehouses, free zones and free warehouses

Article 16

Among the goods referred to in Article 4, those which enter the statistical territory of a Member State, remain there for some time or are subject to transport-related stoppages before leaving it under a customs transit procedure shall be covered by transit statistics.

Article 17

Among the goods referred to in Article 4, those which are placed under customs warehouse procedure or for which the said procedure has been discharged pursuant to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 shall be covered by customs warehouse statistics.

Article 18

Among the goods referred to in Article 4, those which enter or leave the free zones and free warehouses pursuant to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 shall be covered by free zone and free warehouse statistics.

Article 19

1. On a proposal from the Commission and without prejudice to customs legislation, the Council shall adopt the provisions necessary for the Community or the Member States to compile the statistics referred to in Articles 16, 17 and 18.

2. Without prejudice to other Community provisions, the Member States' provisions in this field shall continue to apply until the date on which the provisions referred to in paragraph 1 enter into force.

CHAPTER IV

Committee on statistics relating to the trading of goods

Article 20

The committee established by Article 29 of Regulation (EEC) No 3330/91, hereinafter called 'the committee on statistics relating to the trading of goods`, may examine any question relating to the implementation of this Regulation raised by its chairman, either on his own initiative or at the request of the representative of a Member State.

Article 21

The Commission, assisted by the committee referred to in Article 20, shall take the necessary steps to ensure that this Regulation is implemented in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 30 (2) and (3) of Regulation (EEC) No 3330/91.

CHAPTER V

Final provisions

Article 22

1. The statistical results compiled pursuant to this Regulation shall be disseminated even though indirect identification of exporters or importers is possible. At the request of exporters or importers, such data shall not be disseminated, provided the general objectives set for these statistics are not thereby disproportionately impaired.

2. The measures necessary to ensure uniform standards for the application of paragraph 1 shall be decided by the Commission in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 21.

Article 23

1. In accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 21, the Commission may, without prejudice to customs legislation, establish simplified data collection procedures and, in particular, create the conditions for increased use of automatic data processing and electronic data transmission.

2. Until the procedures referred to in paragraph 1 have been introduced, the Member States' provisions in this field shall continue to apply.

Article 24

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

It shall apply from the date of entry into force of the implementing provisions referred to in Article 21. On that date and without prejudice to Article 9, Regulation (EEC) No 1736/75 and Council Regulation (EEC) No 200/83 of 24 January 1983 on the adaptation of the external trade statistics of the Community to the Directives concerning the harmonization of procedures for the export of goods and for the release of goods for free circulation (8) shall be repealed. References to these Regulations in current Community legislation shall be understood as being made to this Regulation.

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

(1) OJ No L 183, 14. 7. 1975, p. 3.

(2) OJ No L 147, 14. 6. 1988, p. 1.

(3) OJ No L 285, 25. 10. 1985, p. 1.

(4) OJ No L 316, 16. 11. 1991, p. 1

(5) OJ No L 302, 19. 10. 1992, p. 1.

(6) OJ No L 256 7. 9. 1987, p. 1.

(7) OJ No L 151, 15. 6. 1990, p. 1.

(8) OJ No L 26, 28. 1. 1983, p. 1.