Contents

1. Introduction. 3

2. Enterprise and Industry. 4

3. Internal Market and Services. 15

4. Taxation and Customs Union. 30

5. Statistics. 37

6. Mobility and Transport. 46

7. Communications Networks, Content and Technology. 53

8. Energy. 57

9. Employment and Social Affairs. 63

10. Environment. 69

11. Climate Action. 78

12. Health and Consumer Policy. 83

13. Justice. 95

14. Home Affairs. 103

15. Agriculture and Rural Development. 110

16. Maritime Affairs and Fisheries. 119

17. Trade. 124

18. Budget. 129

19. Competition. 131

20. Overview of Implementation of REFIT Actions. 133

21. Overview of Areas under consideration for future REFIT initiatives. 142

1. Introduction

In the October 2013 REFIT Communication[1], the Commission referred to the joint effort of the Commission, the other EU institutions and Member States to deliver regulatory fitness. With the publication of an annual scoreboard, the Commission committed itself to monitor REFIT initiatives through the legislative process and at a later stage at the level of Member States implementation. The purpose of the Scoreboard is to track progress in the implementation of REFIT, providing information on the results and impact on-the-ground, allowing results to be measured against initial objectives and expectations, contributing to transparency on the whole regulatory cycle.

This Staff Working Document includes the first edition of this scoreboard covering 133 initiatives identified by the Commission in the context of REFIT, its SME policy and the ABR+ programme.[2]

The scoreboard identifies the main policy objectives and REFIT objectives of each initiative, indicates the main changes that are made to the REFIT objectives in the legislative procedure and includes an assessment of measures that have already been finally adopted.

In each policy area, the SWD also includes an overview of smart regulation activities and simplification efforts in 2013-2014 and a list of possible future REFIT actions.

2. Enterprise and Industry Smart regulation activity and simplification efforts in 2013-2014

The Commission is constantly adapting and modernising the acquis of the internal market for industrial products. Of the 73 Regulations and Directives covering industrial products 61 (equivalent to over 80%) have undergone scrutiny in the form of evaluations, impact assessments, fitness checks, repeals etc. between 2010 and now.[3]

In order to assess whether legislation governing industrial products is still relevant in helping the internal market to function effectively, DG ENTR conducted a comprehensive evaluation of legislation covering non-food products manufactured through an industrial process[4]. The evaluation concluded that legislation on the internal market for industrial products is relevant to meeting EU objectives of ensuring the effective functioning of the internal market in these products while safeguarding high levels of protection of health and safety, consumers and the environment. However, the assessment and the public consultation identified a number of areas that require further improvement and proposed several areas where attention should be focused, such as e.g.: stronger enforcement mechanisms, horizontal legislation on products, taking into account innovation and technological developments in the elaboration of any new proposals (e.g. e-Compliance initiative), applying systematically smart regulation principles.

The Commission will now consider the consolidation of legislation and the strengthening of enforcement mechanisms including a more harmonised approach to economic sanctions and a common framework for the marketing of industrial products based on Decision 768/2008/EC. In that context, the possibility for simplification of the legal framework in a horizontal Regulation will be explored which would considerably reduce the volume of legislation.

Planned REFIT Actions[5]

The following measures could be considered for future evaluation and Fitness Checks under REFIT:

Evaluation of the Late Payments Directive (to be completed 2016); Evaluation of the relevance of standardisation activities (to be completed 2015/2016); Evaluation of the legal framework for pre-packaging (to be completed 2015); Cumulative Cost Assessment of glass/ceramics (to be completed in 2015/2016); Evaluation of the mutual recognition regulation of goods (to be completed in 2015); Cumulative Cost Assessment of the construction sector (to be completed in 2016). Facilitating the implementation of the Regulation on Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH)[6]

REACH provides for the systematic registration of chemical substances and harmonises measures to manage risks in order to protect human health and the environment and ensure the free circulation of chemicals on the internal market while enhancing competitiveness and innovation of the European chemicals industry.

Since its adoption in 2006, REACH has been subject to an extensive and continuous dialogue with all relevant stakeholders in order to facilitate its implementation, hence this dedicated section.

In 2013, the Commission carried out a comprehensive review of REACH[7] which identified some needs for adjustments but concluded positively overall on the functioning of this legislation.

As a result of this review, the Commission decided not to amend REACH, but to take action to facilitate its implementation in areas where business has concerns. This also provides legislative stability and predictability for business.

In this context, the Commission is implementing a number of actions including:

Enhanced support to SMEs to meet the 2018 registration deadline: This includes an implementing act addressing the operation of Substance Information Exchange Forums (SIEF) with rules on transparency, fairness and non-discrimination of cost-sharing, refocusing the Directors Contact Group to advise the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) directly and with specific focus on SMEs, developing an ECHA 2018 registration roadmap and enhancing knowledge of the application of EU competition rules within the SIEFs. Monitoring the impacts of REACH on the competitiveness of industry, innovation and SMEs; Improving the overall efficiency of the REACH restriction procedure jointly with Member States and ECHA with specific attention given to finding ways to ensure the proper consultation of all parties involved, in particular SMEs; Developing tools for Member States to better evaluate the potential impacts of their restriction proposals on SMEs; Increasing the synergies and reducing the overlaps potential between REACH and other legislation related to chemicals such as the POP (Persistent Organic Pollutants) Regulation, the RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances) Directive, Occupational Safety and Health legislation and legislation on waste; Assessing the need to improve communication with SME stakeholders under REACH to ensure that their concerns are properly understood and considered and providing additional assistance by more structured use of the Enterprise Europe Network and National Helpdesks; Promoting the use of existing EU funding programmes such as HORIZON 2020 or of the LIFE programmes, to help SMEs find suitable alternatives to hazardous chemicals; Setting up a Roadmap for the identification of Substances of Very High Concern (SVHC) and the implementation of REACH Risk Management measures from now to 2020[8] along with deploying its Implementation Plan[9], developed in agreement with ECHA and Member States and following consultation with stakeholders. To improve communication with stakeholders and the general public in this area and to provide information on potential regulatory actions on substances early in the process, ECHA has developed a dedicated web-portal on substances of potential concern[10], that it will continue to improve;

The Commission reports progress on the delivery of these actions in collaboration with Member States and stakeholders via e.g. the meeting of Competent Authorities for REACH (CARACAL).

Without prejudice to legal stability, the Commission will consider other measures for the medium-term. These measures include:

Exploring ways to improve the overall efficiency of the authorisation process in order to make it simpler and more predictable for industry while safeguarding safety and environmental goals. Possibilities include: Examining possibilities for adjusting the frequency of new additions to the candidate list and of amendments to Annex XIV; Examining ways of simplifying the authorisation process in specific cases where risks to human health and the environment are clearly lower than the socio-economic benefits of continued use of the substances. The Commission is currently looking at possible regimes for legacy spare parts, recycled materials, biologically essential uses; Examining how socio-economic elements should be considered during the analysis of the best Risk Management Options for the identification of relevant Substances of Very High Concern to be listed in the Candidate List. Attention could also be paid to raw materials considered as critical or of high economic importance; Assessing practicability and SME-impacts systematically before any relevant, significant changes to the general annexes and guidelines are made as well as considering the need to ensure legal stability in view of the 2018 registration deadline; Improving the way public consultation are held under REACH to increase SMEs’ participation and facilitate SMEs’ input (e.g. with the use of summary cover sheets). Scoreboard

Legislative Actions

Late payments

Proposed legislation || Proposal for recast of Directive 2000/35/EC on combating late payment in commercial transactions (Adopted by the Commission on 8 April 2009 - COM(2009)126)

Status || Adopted on 16 February 2011 - Directive 2011/7/EU

Main objectives || Improving the effectiveness and the efficiency of remedies for late payment through the introduction of an entitlement to the recovery of administrative costs and compensation for internal costs incurred due to late payment. Accordingly, this proposal aims at improving the cash-flow of European businesses, especially SMEs.

Main REFIT objectives || The Directive brings the following specific simplification benefits: statutory interest may be charged when payment is not made within the contractual or legal deadline; maximum payment periods for payments by public authorities to businesses of 30 days are imposed and a flat rate compensation (5%) from the first day of delay amounting in addition to the interest for late payment and the compensation for recovery costs is introduced; the possibility to exclude claims for interest of less than €5 is abolished.

Source(s) || SME Scoreboard March 2013 – SWD(2013)60

Date of entry into application || 16 March 2013

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator

EP Position || Parliament introduced a possibility for Member States to extend the time limit of payments by public authorities to businesses up to a maximum of 60 calendar days for any public authority which carries out economic activities of an industrial or commercial nature or public entities providing healthcare

Council Position || Council supported the amendments by Parliament.

Assessment of final outcome || The discretion given to Member States to extend the time limit of payments by public authorities to businesses up to a maximum of 60 calendar days for any public authority which carries out economic activities of an industrial or commercial nature or public entities providing healthcare reduces the value of the initiative for SMEs, but the overall assessment of the outcome is positive.

Construction Products Regulation

Proposed legislation || Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down harmonised conditions for the marketing of construction products amending Council Directive 89/106/EEC of 21 December 1988 (adopted by the Commission on 23 May 2008 – COM(2008)311)

Status || Adopted on 9 March 2011 – Regulation (EU) 305/2011

Main objectives || Facilitate the circulation and use of construction products on the Single market with an appropriate level of safety. The Regulation simplifies and clarifies the existing legal framework for the marketing of construction products.

REFIT objectives || Building on the experience gained through the application of the Construction Products Directive, the Regulation includes a number of measures aimed at clarifying the system and simplifying the procedures for assessment and verification of the performance of products. For example, micro-enterprises can choose simpler ways of showing that any one-off construction product put on the market meets applicable product performance requirements.

Source(s) || SME Scoreboard March 2013 – SWD(2013)60

Date of entry into application || 01 July 2013

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator

EP Position || Approved by the European Parliament without material change.

Council Position || Approved, but with additional conditions. Firms applying these simplified procedures should demonstrate that their procedures are equivalent to those used in harmonised standards and that their products meet applicable requirements.

Assessment of final outcome || The simplification objective intended by the proposal was realized in the adopted act. A simplified regime for micro-enterprises through the use of simplified assessment methods has been established, albeit with additional administrative requirements.

Repeals

Classification, labelling and packaging of dangerous preparations

Existing/Proposed legislation || Repeal of Directive 1999/45/EC on dangerous preparations

Status || The Directive will be repealed in accordance with article 60 of the CLP Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 on 1 June 2015.

Main objectives || Repeal

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT – COM(2013)685

Evaluations / Fitness Checks:

Chemicals – "REACH Review"

Scope || Review of Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH)

Status || REACH review adopted 05/02/2013 (COM (2013)49 and SWD(2013)25)

Results || The REACH review identified needs for additional action in several areas. It notably concluded that registration costs were higher than anticipated due to the administration of the "one substance one registration" obligation, which poses a particular challenge to SMEs. In response to the findings of the review, the Commission has taken the following main actions: Lowering registration fees for SMEs; Appointment of a special envoy responsible for SMEs’ issues (a so-called 'SME Ambassador") ECHA; Producing specific guidance documents for SMEs; Organising an SME workshop to identify mitigating actions with regard to the 2018 registration deadlines for low volume substances; Developing analytical tools to increase the quality of restriction proposals made by Member States focusing on impacts on SMEs and competitiveness; Streamlining the registration process for essential oils taking account of the specificity of the sector and the fact that most (if not all) of its operators are SMEs (Workshop, April 2014); Enhancing coordination of Member States activities in relation to the identification of Substances of SVHC and restrictions via RiME; Developing enforcement indicators to better monitor the consistency of the implementation of REACH; Clarifying the overlaps between REACH and RoHS[11] and POP[12]; Several other actions addressing the REACH Review recommendations are ongoing-going and are described in section 3 of this document.

Source(s) || Communication on Follow-Up to the Top10 Consultation – COM(2013)446

Machinery

Scope || Evaluation of Directive 2006/42/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 May 2006 on machinery

Status || Evaluation planned to start in 2015 and expected to be finalised in 2016.

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT - COM(2013)685

Steel industry

Scope || Cumulative cost assessment to quantify the impact of EU regulatory costs on the cost structure of the European steel industry and on its international competitiveness.

Status || Cumulative cost assessment completed in June 2013: http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/metals-minerals/steel/

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT – COM(2013)685

Results || Cumulative EU regulatory costs are low compared to the overall cost of steel production, ranging from less than 2% to 3% depending on the furnaces considered. The steel industry is a pro-cyclical industry. Cumulative regulatory costs compared to key performance indicators such as EBITDA (Earnings Before Interests, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization) were in the area of 9-14% over EBITDA in the boom years, i.e. from 2006 to 2008. This is equivalent to around one per cent of the cost of a tonne of steel. Such a share of regulatory costs over EBITDA is unlikely to put EU steel makers in a dangerous competitive position. However in times of crisis, regulatory costs obviously make up a higher percentage of EBITDA (even if they do not change as a percentage of the cost of a tonne of steel), such as was the exceptional case of 2009, or, more often, fall in the area of 28% to 35% of the EBITDA. When regulatory costs of one per cent of a tonne of steel exceed EBITDA (especially when EBITDA is negative), then this is an indication that the sector is in difficulty.

Aluminium industry

Scope || Cumulative cost assessment to quantify the impact of EU regulatory costs on the cost structure of the European aluminium industry and on its international competitiveness.

Status || Cumulative cost assessment finalised in October 2013: http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/newsroom/cf/itemdetail.cfm?item_id=7124&lang=en&title=Final-report---Assessment-of-Cumulative-Cost-Impact-for-the-Aluminium-Industry

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT - COM(2013)685

Results || Cumulative costs are compared to production costs and margins in 2012 (so it does not take account of the cyclical nature of the industry and cuntinuingcontinuing weak global economic conditions) of the European primary aluminium industry, as well as to production costs of international primary aluminium producers and to aluminium prices (about 1300€/tonne). The analysis draws on a sample of 11 primary aluminium plants, representing 60% of the total EU27 primary aluminium production in 2012. For the entire sample, cumulative regulatory costs range from 114 to 149 €/tonne, with an intermediate estimate of 132 €/tonne. Overall, regulatory costs are equivalent to around one per cent of the cost of production. Since aluminium primary production is extremely energy intensive, the largest share of regulatory costs are related to energy prices: in the intermediate scenario, 41% of total regulatory costs are due directly to energy policies, while the ETS indirect costs (falling on the energy producers and passed on to the user) amount to 45%. Environmental regulation costs represent 13%.

Type-approval system for motor vehicles

Scope || Fitness check assessing whether the legal framework for the type approval of motor vehicles and their trailers is fit for purpose.

Status || Fitness check finalised and staff working document adopted in Nov 2013 (SWD(2013)466 final): http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/automotive/files/projects/report-cses-fitness-check_en.pdf

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT - COM(2013)685

Results || The fitness check concluded that the legal framework for the type-approval of motor vehicles is appropriate in achieving the main policy goals of harmonisation, effective operation of the single market and ensuring fair competition. It further identified the following priorities for the revision of framework Directive 2007/46/EC: introduction of market surveillance provisions, clarification of the recall system and safeguard procedures, assessing the suitability of alternative type-approval schemes and of the multi-stage type approval process; clarifying the responsibilities and co-operation of Member States' enforcement authorities and enhancing the criteria for assigning and monitoring technical services. No need for further simplification and reduction of administrative burden has been identified, since the type-approval legislation for motor vehicles has already been substantially simplified in 2009 by means of the regulation (EC) No 661/2009 on general safety of motor vehicles.

Internal market for Industrial Products

Scope || Evaluation of Industrial products legislation covering: non-food products manufactured through an industrial process. The EU acquis for industrial products currently includes 73 directives and regulations, both those covering specific industrial products and those that apply horizontally across many different product groups (such as REACH and the Ecodesign Directive).The majority (though not all) of the EU internal market legislation for industrial products was included within the scope of the evaluation[13].

Status || Evaluation finalised and annexed as a Staff Working Document (SWD(2014)23 final) to the Communication on 'A vision for the internal market for products' (COM(2014) 25 final) adopted on 22 January 2014.

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT - COM(2013)685

Results || The evaluation concluded that internal market for industrial products legislation is relevant to meeting EU objectives relating to the protection of consumers and of the environment. However, the assessment and the public consultation identified a number of areas that require further attention. Based on these conclusions, , the Commission decided to focus on the consolidation of legislation and the strengthening of enforcement mechanisms without adding regulatory burden – "A vision for the internal market for industrial products" (COM(2014)25).

Oil refining industry

Scope || Fitness check of EU legislation relevant for the petroleum refining industry such as the Renewables Energy Directive, the Energy Taxation Directive, the EU Emissions Trading System, the Fuels Quality Directive, the Directive on Clean and Energy Efficient Vehicles, the Industrial Emissions Directive, the Strategic Oil Stocks Directive, the Marine Fuels Directive, the Energy Efficiency Directive and the Air Quality Directive. The legislation will be assessed against the criteria of effectiveness, efficiency, coherence and relevance paying special attention to the competitiveness dimension.

Status || Fitness check ongoing and expected to be finalised in 2014

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT - COM(2013)685

Forest-based industries

Scope || Cumulative cost assessment of the most relevant EU legislation and policies for the EU forest-based industries (woodworking, furniture, pulp and paper and printing), notably on their profit margins and in relation to international competitors

Status || Cumulative cost assessment to start Q4 2014 and to be finalised in Q1 2016

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT - COM(2013)685

Chemical industry

Scope || Cumulative cost assessment of the most relevant EU legislation and policies relevant for the European chemicals industry.

Status || Cumulative cost assessment started Q1 2014 and expected to be finalised in Q2 2015

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT - COM(2013)685

Chemicals legislation (other than REACH)

Scope || Fitness Check on the most relevant chemicals legislation other than REACH as well as related aspects of legislation applied to downstream industries

Status || Fitness check expected to start in June 2014 and is expected to be finalised in Q4 2015

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT - COM(2013)685

Firearms

Scope || Evaluation of Directive 91/477/EEC on control of the acquisition and possession of weapons and Directive 2008/51/EC of the EP and of the Council of 21 May 2008 amending Council Directive 91/477/EEC on control of the acquisition and possession of weapons

Status || Evaluation ongoing and expected to be finalised in 2014; report to be submitted to the EP and the Council by 28 July 2015.

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT - COM(2013)685

3. Internal Market and Services Smart regulation activity and simplification efforts in 2013-2014

The key simplification measures proposed by the Commission in the area of Internal Market and Services include the trade mark reform, a strengthening of the protection of trade secrets and the proposal for a Single Member Company. The legislator adopted the Commission's proposal on MIFID[14].

The proposal on trade mark reform put forward by the Commission in March 2013 seeks to make trade mark systems in Europe more accessible, efficient and effective for businesses. The proposal suggests streamlining and harmonising of registration procedures, the clarification of trade mark rights and the incorporation of extensive case law of the Court of Justice. It will reduce trade mark fees and make trade mark protection cheaper and more accessible.

The Commission also proposed a strengthening of the protection of trade secrets in November 2013 which proposes to harmonise civil law remedies in case of misappropriation of trade secrets, improve enforcement and harmonize judicial redress regarding blocking the use of misappropriated trade secrets and obtaining compensation for the prejudice suffered.

The new Single-Member Company Directive proposal adopted by the Commission on 9 April 2014 will facilitate the establishment of companies with a single-shareholder and allow for electronic registration of such companies in all Member States.

The MiFID II – Markets in financial Instruments Directive II has been adopted by the legislator in April 2014, it will help SMEs reducing the ratio of cost against the capital gained in financial markets so that seeking financing in capital markets should become more attractive and access to capital for SMEs is made easier.

The Commission is currently undertaking a review of the EU copyright framework, which could lay the basis for further initiatives during the next political cycle. The review addresses, inter alia the following elements: territoriality in the Internal Market; harmonisation, limitations and exceptions to copyright in the digital age; fragmentation of the EU copyright market; and how to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of enforcement while underpinning its legitimacy in the wider context of copyright reform.

The post-crisis review of supervisory and transparency legislation, in particular creation of the European Securities and Markets Authority[15], review of transparency regime for EU securities markets[16] and modernisation of the EU network of business registers[17] bring a unique opportunity to harmonize and streamline reporting requirements, and cross-border public access to business information. These initiatives have created economic conditions to enhance the SME credit markets, to significantly ease the access of SMEs to the financial markets and in consequence lower the cost of capital for SMEs, across the EU. In the implementing phase of the legislative processes the Commission intends to oversee the agendas and standards developed by relevant EU and national authorities, in order to seek common approaches and application of best standards and practices. The Commission is also working closely with international standard setters relevant for business information (Financial Stability Board, International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation, XBRL International, World Wide Web Consortium, European Business Register and others), leveraging their activities and assuring applicability and quality the standards for business information. The new Financial Markets legislation has systematic evaluation and review clauses built-in.

Streamlining business reporting to different authorities also has been identified as cost-saver for SMEs. The Commission follows closely national initiatives aiming at developing common information standards and mechanisms for e-delivery of common business information to business registers, tax authorities, securities markets, statistical offices etc.[18] An EU coordination may need be considered in order to rationalize those efforts, identify synergies and avoid inconsistencies.

Planned REFIT actions

Legislation in the area of the internal market is subject to continuous scrutiny for simplification and burden reduction under REFIT. The Commission focuses on implementing the various initiatives identified under REFIT 2013 (see scoreboard).

In other key areas where wider policy reviews are in preparation such as the Digital Single Market, it will be important to identify the remaining barriers and assess the regulatory framework for costs and simplification potential.

The following proposal by the Commission pending in legislative procedure could be considered for withdrawal:

Proposal for a Directive amending Directive 97/9/EC on Investor Compensation Schemes – COM(2010)371, 2010/0199 COD

The following areas could be considered for future evaluations and Fitness Checks under REFIT:

Design system in EU; Prospectus Directive – 2003/71/EC. Insurance legislation (Fitness Check once sufficient experience is gained with the implementation). Scoreboard

The following initiatives for simplification and burden reduction are being implemented in the policy area of internal market and services:

Legislative Initiatives

Recognition of professional qualifications

Proposed legislation || Proposal for a Directive of the EP and of the Council amending Directive 2005/36/EC on the recognition of professional qualifications and Regulation (EU) No 1024/2012 on administrative cooperation through the Internal Market Information System (Commission proposal COM(2011)883 from 19 December 2011)

Status || Adopted by the legislator - Directive 2013/55/EU

Main objectives || Simplification of the rules organising the recognition of professional qualifications, reinforcing the safety and protection of patients/consumers and introducing a mutual evaluation exercise of regulated professions.

Main REFIT objectives || Lighter requirements for recognition of professional experience: clarification and simplification of the conditions for temporary provision of services and mutual recognition of qualifications, extending the scope of automatic recognition and introduction of the partial access concept as well as of recognition of professional traineeships. Easier information-sharing among Member States through IMI (Internal Market Information system): a European Professional Card (EPC) recognition procedure is introduced in order to facilitate recognition of qualifications; this is an electronic procedure based on IMI. The use of IMI becomes compulsory for administrative cooperation in this field. Access to information and electronic procedures: the scope of the PSCs is extended and all recognition procedures can be accomplished on line. Transparency and mutual evaluation of regulated professions aiming at increasing mobility and modernising regulation.

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT – COM(2013)685

Date of entry into application || 18 January 2016

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator

EP Position || Supportive.

Council Position || Supportive.

Assessment of final outcome || As far as REFIT objectives are concerned, the Commission’s proposal is reflected in the final text.

Public Procurement

Existing/Proposed legislation || Commission proposals: Proposal COM/2011/0896 final from 20 December 2011 for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on public procurement Proposal COM/2011/0895 final from 20 December 2011 for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on procurement by entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors Proposal COM/2011/0897 final from 20 December 2011 for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the award of concession contracts amending the following Directives on Public Procurement: Directive 2004/17/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 coordinating the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors Directive 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts

Status || Directive 2014/24/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on public procurement Directive 2014/25/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on procurement by entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors Directive 2014/23/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on the award of concession contracts adopted on 26 February 2014 and published in the OJ on 28 March 2014.

Main objectives of the initiative || Introduction of a stable legal framework for concessions, offering legal security for economic operators and contracting authorities. Creation of a level playing field for concessions across Europe. Introduction of transparency and equal treatment of economic operators bidding for concessions.

Main REFIT objectives || Simplification of procedures, reduction of administrative burden via: Specific measures for SMEs: Bidders for public tenders can provide self-declarations, rather than original documents or certificates, showing that they meet eligibility criteria. Only the winning bidder would be asked to provide the original documents. Breaking tenders down into smaller lots is encouraged. Reduction of the limitation of maximum turnover requirements to a maximum twice the contract value. Greater use of e-procurement is encouraged.

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT – COM(2013)685

Date of entry into application || 17 April 2014

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator

EP Position || REFIT objectives were strongly supported by EP, in particular with regard to SME-related measures and the generalised use of e-procurement. The EP insisted on an effective reduction of documentation requirements.

Council Position || The Council expressed broad support for the REFIT objectives. There was, however, no uptake for the European Procurement Passport which had been proposed by the Commission as an instrument for the simplification of documentation requirements. Member States found that such an additional document would create new administrative burdens and was at odds with new technical developments towards online databases making documents directly available to contracting authorities.

Assessment of final outcome || The adopted measure involves the creation of a European Single Procurement Document which is a standardised self-declaration that greatly facilitates participation in procurement procedures. The final outcome delivers a modern and effective set of procurement rules that achieves and even surpasses the REFIT objectives set for the Commission initiative.

European Long Term Investment Funds (ELTIF)

Existing/Proposed legislation || Proposal for a Regulation of the EP and of the Council on European Long-term Investment Funds

Status || Proposal adopted by the Commission on 26 June 2013 - COM(2013)462, pending in legislative procedure.

Main objectives of the initiative || Create a single market for funds focusing on long-term investment strategies, facilitate the access of retail and institutional investors to long-term assets and increase the financing of long-term projects

Main REFIT objectives || This regulation will create a harmonised fund for long term investments with a passport. It will enhance cross-border access to long term funding for Europe's real economy. The creation of a European fund with uniform rules and administrative procedures will also simplify the current situation where fragmented and often inconsistent requirements exist in different Member States.

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT – COM(2013)685

Date of entry into application || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator

EP Position || The ECON committee of the EP agreed on a compromise text which proposes changes to retail investors' access to their original capital as well as to the assets ELTIF can invest in.

Council Position || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Assessment of final outcome || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Undertakings for collective investment in transferable securities (UCITS)

Existing/Proposed legislation || Commission proposal to revise: Directive 2009/65/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 on the coordination of laws, regulations and administrative provisions relating to undertakings for collective investment in transferable securities (UCITS)

Status || The first part of the UCITS review (relating to securities financing transactions) was adopted by the Commission on 29 January 2014 together with the banking structural reform proposals - COM(2014) 43 final, 2014/0020-COD.

Main objectives of the initiative || The aim of the UCITS review is to align the investment profile of a UCITS (e.g. eligible assets, techniques using derivatives and security financing transactions) with a prudent policy on risk exposure suitable for retail investors and ensure the clarity of the rules.

Main REFIT objectives || Providing increased clarity of rules will make the practical application of the Directive simpler and this will help to increasing the choice of funds, in particular to retail investors.

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT – COM(2013)685

Date of entry into application || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached

Company law

Existing/Proposed legislation || Codification of 7 Company Law Directives: Directives 82/891, 2005/56, 2009/101, 2009/102, 2011/35, 2012/17, 2012/30

Status || Codification planned for Q3 2014

Main objectives of the initiative || Codification

Main REFIT objectives || To codify into one instrument various company law directives to increase transparency and readability

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT – COM(2013)685

Date of entry into application || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator (not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not yet been reached)

Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) for SMEs / Prospectus and disclosure requirements

Existing/Proposed legislation || Delegated Regulation pursuant to: Commission Regulation (EC) No 809/2004 of 29 April 2004 implementing Directive 2003/71/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards information contained in prospectuses as well as the format, incorporation by reference and publication of such prospectuses and dissemination of advertisements

Status || Adopted Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 486/2012 of 30 March 2012 / Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 862/2012 of 4 June 2012

Main objectives of the initiative || Increase efficiency (enhancement of legal clarity) Reduce administrative burdens and administrative costs for issuers when raising capital

Main REFIT objectives || This regulation amends disclosure rules to make Public offerings (including Initial Public Offerings) less costly and easier for small firms. To increase efficiency and reducing administrative burdens, the delegated Regulation lays down conditions under which a description of the index within the prospectus is not required when the index is composed by entities acting in association with or on behalf of the issuer. Moreover, for broadly based and recognised published indexes, a statement in the prospectus specifying where the information about the index can be found should be sufficient without a description of the composition of the index being necessary. In order to reduce the administrative costs for issuers when raising capital, this Regulation lays down conditions under which the report prepared by independent accountants or auditors accompanying profit forecasts and estimates is not required, notably where independent accountants or auditors are not able to sign the audit report because the complete set of documents constitutive of annual financial statements are not available to them.

Source(s) || SME Scoreboard – SWD(2013)60

Date of entry into application || 1 July 2012 and 22 September 2012

Insurance mediation

Existing/Proposed legislation || Proposal for the recast of Directive 2002/92/EC on insurance mediation

Status || Proposal adopted by the Commission on 3 July 2012 - COM(2012)360

Main objectives of the initiative || The main objective of the proposal is consumer protection in the sale of life and non-life insurance products through insurance intermediaries and insurance undertakings. Rules are introduced to address more effectively the risk of conflicts of interest, including disclosure of remuneration by intermediaries. Sales standards are strengthened and enhanced requirements apply to the sale of life insurance products with investment elements.

Main REFIT objectives || The proposal makes it easier for ancillary service providers to implement the sales rules, and some exceptions are provided for SMEs, for example giving them a five-year grace period to provide information to customers on the sale of non-life insurance products.

Source(s) || SME Scoreboard – SWD(2013)60

Date of entry into application || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator

EP Position || EP first reading report adopted on 26 February 2014 softens some of the disclosure and transparency requirements in the proposal, for example by making them available on request only. The Commission's proposal on SMEs remains unchanged.

Council Position || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Assessment of final outcome || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Copyright

Existing/Proposed legislation || Directive on collective management of copyright and related rights and multi-territorial licensing of rights in musical works for online uses in the internal market

Status || Directive 2014/26/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on collective management of copyright and related rights and multi-territorial licensing of rights in musical works for online use in the internal market

Main objectives of the initiative || The Directive will ensure the better governance and greater transparency of collective rights management on behalf of rightholders. It will also facilitate the multi-territorial licensing of online rights of authors in musical works by collective management organisations and make it easier for online service providers to obtain such licences.

Main REFIT objectives || Micro exemption is proposed for setting up a supervisory function and for certain financial reporting obligations.

Source(s) || SME Scoreboard – SWD(2013)60

Date of entry into application || 10 April 2016

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator

EP Position || Parliament suggested the removal of micro exemptions as Copyright Management Organisations manage rightsholders' financial interests and transparency and control should be ensured in all cases.

Council Position || Council supported this position.

Assessment of final outcome || The exemption for micro-companies proposed by the Commission was removed by the legislator.

Withdrawals:

Community patent

Existing/Proposed legislation || Withdrawal of a proposal for a Council regulation on the Community patent - COM(2000) 412

Status || The proposal was withdrawn on 21 May 2014.

Main objectives of the initiative || Withdrawal

Main REFIT objectives || Withdrawal Negotiations on this proposal failed in 2010 and enhanced cooperation among 25 Member States in this area was proposed. Regulations implementing enhanced cooperation in the area of unitary patent protection were adopted in December 2012.

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT – COM(2013)685

Legal protection of design

Existing/Proposed legislation || Withdrawal of a proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 98/71/EC on the legal protection of designs – COM(2004)582

Status || The proposal was withdrawn on 30 April 2014.

Main objectives of the initiative || Withdrawal

Main REFIT objectives || Withdrawal The proposal remained in legislative procedure since 2004 and did not receive the support of a sufficient number of Member States in Council.

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT – COM(2013)685

Statute of European private company

Existing/Proposed legislation || Withdrawal of a proposal for a Council Regulation on the Statute for a European private company – COM(2008)396/3

Status || The proposal was withdrawn on 30 April 2014.

Main objectives of the initiative || Withdrawal

Main REFIT objectives || Withdrawal The proposal did not receive the support of a sufficient number of Member States in Council (unanimity requirement).

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT – COM(2013)685

Follow-Up under the ABR+ programme:

Company accounts

Existing/Proposed legislation || Directive 2006/46/EC amending Council Directives 78/660/EEC on the annual accounts of certain types of companies, 83/349/EEC on consolidated accounts, 86/635/EEC on the annual accounts and consolidated accounts of banks and other financial institutions and 91/674/EEC on the annual accounts and consolidated accounts of insurance undertakings

Status || Follow-up/assessment under the ABR+ programme of the implementation by Member States is ongoing.

Main REFIT objectives of the initiative || The Directive increased the monetary thresholds defining small and medium-sized companies that were given in the Accounting Directive by around 20%. The Directive established the maximum size criteria ("thresholds") for balance sheet and net turnover which Member States may apply in determining which companies may be exempted from certain disclosure requirements. There was no obligation on Member States to make use of those increased thresholds, nor even to implement differentiation of companies based on size. The Member States had also the flexibility, when implementing categories based on size, to apply lower thresholds than those provided for in the Directive. The increase of thresholds by 20% nevertheless was a clear invitation for the Member States with size categories to increase the size-criteria (or "thresholds") defining their small companies and medium-sized companies so as to increase the population of small and medium-sized companies at the expense of the population of respectively medium-sized and large companies. The effect of such increase would have been that companies with a balance sheet total and / or turnover slightly exceeding the size-criteria defining a certain category (e.g. medium-sized) would have been "downgraded" into a lower category (e.g. small size category). This enabled savings where the requirements for financial information were less demanding in the lower category compared to a higher category. Savings potential calculated by the Centre for European Policy Studies in 2009 amounted to €863 million over the EU.

Source(s) || ABR+

Date of entry into application || July 2006

Amendments by co-legislator

Positions of Parliament and Council || Parliament felt that costly and inefficient over-regulation should be avoided, in particular for SMEs. Measures to enhance business transparency and liability for inappropriate behaviour should be proportionate to their actual benefit to shareholders and other interested parties. Excessive demands regarding disclosure should be avoided: the duty of disclosure should only be extended where this is relevant and necessary. Parliament also considered the inclusion of off-balance sheet transactions in the notes not necessary and clarified the proposed principles of collective responsibility and corporate governance. A new article was inserted in Directive 78/660/EC, which provides a 20 % increase of the thresholds for small and medium-sized companies.

Assessment of final outcome || The amendments in legislative procedure were the result of a compromise reached by Parliament, Council and Commission. Main change was the thresholds for SMEs were increased by 20% The main effect for SMEs benefitting the measure have been to change category (for instance, from large or medium to small), with less accounting requirements than in the category where they previously were. Only a limited number of SMEs could be affected, as this measure could have an effect only for those companies with a balance sheet total and/or turnover amount comprised between the amount before increase and the amount after increase. Other main changes aimed for better proportionality in the transparency on related parties’ transactions, for clearer provisions on the collective responsibility of board members towards the company in respect of annual reports and financial statements, and for better articulation of a corporate governance report.

Annual accounts of micro-enterprises

Existing/Proposed legislation || Directive 2012/6/EU of 14 March 2012 amending Council Directive 78/660/EEC on the annual accounts of certain types of companies as regards micro-entities

Status || Follow-up/assessment under the ABR+ programme of the implementation by Member States is ongoing.

Main REFIT objectives of the initiative || The Directive gives Member States the possibility to exempt micro-companies from certain accounting requirements in order to simplify their financial reporting.

Source(s) || ABR+

Date of entry into application || April 2012

Amendments by co-legislator

EP Position || Parliament proposed maintaining the obligation for companies to keep records showing the company’s business transactions and financial situation. That obligation was maintained in the final act with the obligation for micro entities to prepare a balance sheet and a profit & loss account.

Council Position || Reduction of the thresholds to EUR 250 000 for balance sheets and EUR 500 000 for net turnover and therefore reduction in the number of SMEs that could benefit from the exemption.

Assessment of final outcome || The amendments by the legislator reduced the scope of application and the number of SMEs to benefit from the simplification. The thresholds were reduced to EUR 350 000 for balance sheets and EUR 700 000 for the net turnover. The Directive makes a simpler accounting regime available to micro-entities, including a simplified balance sheet and profit and loss account, virtually no notes, no management report and simplified publication system. It is up to the Member States whether they want to use the option of implementing a simpler regime for their micro-entities. Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this directive if and when they decide to make use of any option provided in it.

Evaluations:

International accounting standards (IAS)

Scope || Evaluation of Regulation 1606/2002 on the application of international accounting standards (IAS)

Status || Evaluation ongoing. To be completed by the end of 2014.

Source(s) || REFIT Communication – COM(2013)685

Public procurement - remedies

Scope || Evaluation of Directive 2007/66/EC amending Council Directives 89/665/EEC and 92/13/EEC with regard to improving the effectiveness of review procedures concerning the award of public contracts

Status || Evaluation to start in 2014, to be supported by a study commissioned in 2013 with results expected by the end of 2014.

Source(s) || REFIT Communication – COM(2013)685

Commercial agents

Scope || Evaluation of Council Directive 86/653/EEC of 18 December 1986 on the coordination of the laws of the Member States relating to self-employed commercial agents

Status || Evaluation to start in 2014

Source(s) || REFIT Communication – COM(2013)685

Financial services

Scope of Evaluation || Assessment of the overall coherence and the ongoing and expected economic impacts of the reforms adopted or proposed during 2009 and 2014 to strengthen the regulation and supervision of EU financial services.

Status || Completed in May 2014 - Staff working document to be published in 2014, with a Commission Communication.

Results || The Economic Review sets out how the EU financial regulation agenda addresses the regulatory shortcomings and market failures that contributed to the financial crisis enhances financial stability and market integrity. Based on the analysis conducted, the total benefits of the financial regulation agenda, if fully implemented, are expected to outweigh the total costs. The financial system has already changed and improved in key aspects, and this will continue as the reforms take effect. The Economic Review explains that the reform agenda has been mindful of minimising the costs of the reforms, including the compliance burden for the financial services industry, and that further review and monitoring is required to ensure that the reforms, in particular the complex interactions between different rules, deliver the intended benefits while avoiding the undesired effects.

Source(s) || REFIT Communication – COM(2013)685

4. Taxation and Customs Union Smart regulation activity and simplification efforts in 2013-2014

Mini One Stop Shop: Doing business in more than one Member State often means dealing with several tax administrations in different languages. Dealing with multiple VAT obligations can be very burdensome and costly for companies. The implementation on 1st January 2015 of a mini One Stop Shop for the EU providers of telecommunications, broadcasting and electronic services to consumers (Council Directive 2008/8/EC – following a proposal from the Commission in 2003) will be a big step forward in simplifying VAT compliance rules in the EU. The One Stop Shop system that is currently limited to non-EU providers of electronic services is being extended to EU businesses and to broadcasting and telecom services. It will allow businesses to declare and pay the VAT in the Member State where they are established rather than where their customer belongs. In the future, the intention is to extend the One Stop Shop step by step to other supplies of goods and services. To ensure smooth implementation, the Commission published a Guide to the VAT mini One Stop Shop and a set of explanatory notes on place of supply rules. Three implementing regulations were also adopted. The estimated savings on administrative burden are €463 million.

Union Customs Code: Following the Commission's proposal of February 2012, the European Parliament and of the Council adopted Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 laying down the Union Customs Code on 9 October 2013. This recast of the Modernised Customs Code Regulation (EC) No 450/2008 was necessary to take account of the need for the Commission, the national customs administrations and the economic operators to develop a wide range of electronic systems, requiring important investments in new EU-wide IT systems as well as an unprecedented effort from the business community to operate according to new business models. Among the improvements are measures to complete the shift by customs to a paperless, fully electronic environment and provisions to reinforce swifter customs procedures for reliable traders. The new rules will be applied as of 1 May 2016 with a phased deployment of IT systems according to a work programme until 31 December 2020.

Planned REFIT Actions

Reduction of regulatory burden in the area of taxation and customs should involve stronger commitment by the co-legislator. The area of VAT is one of the main areas of EU regulatory burden identified by SMEs in the TOP-10 consultation and an area where simplification requires unanimous agreement of Member States in Council after consultation of Parliament and the Economic and Social Committee. For reasons of subsidiarity, Member States are reluctant to reduce regulatory burden through EU harmonisation in this area. The Commission notably regrets the lack of progress made in Council on the simplification of VAT administration for SMEs which led the Commission to withdraw its proposal. Another example of difficulties to simplify the regulatory environment in the area of VAT is the implementation of the VAT 'one-stop-shop' which will start to function in a more limited form than initially proposed by the Commission in 2003 (see scoreboard).

The following area could be considered for future legislative initiatives under REFIT to simplify and reduce regulatory burden:

Extension of the one-stop-shop to all business to consumer (B2C) supplies, notably to distance sales of goods, including imports of small consignments (2014-2016). The objective of the initiative is to reduce obstacles to cross border trade and safeguard Member States’ VAT revenues by making the EU VAT system simpler, neutral and more robust. By making business across the EU as simple and as safe as engaging in purely domestic activities, overall growth and development is ensured.

The following areas could be considered for future evaluations and Fitness Checks under REFIT:

REFIT evaluation of the VAT e-invoicing directive (2010/45/EU) – 2016/2017; Assessment of the implementation of the Mini One Stop Shop (2008/8/EC) – 2015/2016. Scoreboard

Legislative Actions:

Common consolidated corporate tax base (CCCTB)

Existing/Proposed legislation || Proposal for a Council Directive on a Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base (CCCTB)

Status || Proposed by the Commission on 16 March 2011 - COM(2011)121, pending in legislative procedure.

Main objectives || Proposing a common set of rules in the EU to calculate the corporate tax base of businesses operating in the internal market. This system is optional for Member States.

REFIT objectives || CCCTB reduces time and resources spent on tax compliance for businesses operating cross border in the EU. It is estimated that the current compliance costs could be reduced by 7% and the CCCTB would save businesses € 750 million in reduced compliance costs and €1 billion in reduced costs to expand cross-border.

Source(s) || REFIT Communication - COM(2013)685

Date of entry into application || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator

EP Position || Introduction of several amendments by the EP under the consultation procedure, these include notably an obligation to use CCCTB except for micro-companies. The proposal has not been accepted by the Commission as it would increase burden for local business with no cross-border operations.

Council Position || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Assessment of final outcome || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

EU standard VAT declaration

Existing/Proposed legislation || Proposal for a Council Directive amending Directive 2006/112/EC on the common system of value added tax as regards a standard VAT return

Status || Proposed by the Commission on 23 October 2013 - COM(2013)721, pending in legislative procedure.

Main objectives of proposal || Introduction of a mandatory standard VAT return system for Member States and business.

REFIT objectives || The aim of this initiative is to reduce red-tape for businesses, ease tax compliance and make tax administrations across the Union more efficient. The proposal foresees a uniform set of requirements for businesses when filing their VAT returns, regardless of the Member State in which they do it. The standard VAT return simplifies the information that businesses will have to provide to tax authorities. The declaration will have only 5 compulsory boxes for taxpayers to fill in. Member States are given leeway to request a number of additional standardised elements, up to a maximum of 26 information boxes. This is a major improvement on the current situation, whereby some Member States require up to 600 information boxes to be completed. Businesses will file the standard VAT return on a monthly basis, while micro-enterprises will only be obliged to do it on a quarterly basis. The proposal also encourages electronic filing, as the standard VAT return will be allowed to be submitted electronically throughout the Union. This major simplification of the process for VAT returns supports the Commission's wider commitments to reducing administrative burdens. The estimated savings on administrative burden are €15 billion per year.

Source(s) || REFIT Communication - COM(2013)685

Date of entry into application || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Amendments by co-legislator

EP Position || The EP first reading in February 2014 fully supports the Commission's proposal. Only a few amendments are made in recitals, mainly in order to strengthen the potential of the proposal in reducing administrative burden and VAT fraud.

Council Position || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Assessment of final outcome || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Withdrawals

Simplification of VAT obligations

Existing/Proposed legislation || Withdrawal of the Commission proposal for a Council Directive amending Directive 77/388/EEC with a view to simplifying value added tax obligations - COM(2004)728-1

Status || The proposal has been withdrawn on 21 May 2014

Main objectives and REFIT objectives || This proposal is part of a package of 3 proposals reviewing the VAT system, out of which two were adopted as Council Regulation (EC) Nº 143/2008 (administrative cooperation) and Directive 2008/9 (cross border refunds). The proposal foresaw the possibility for Member States to exempt companies with an annual turn-over of less than 100.000 EUR from VAT obligations and to establish an EU wide threshold for distance selling replacing the individual thresholds in each Member State. While the EP supported the Commission proposal, the Council could not agree on the proposal, which was last discussed in 2007. The Commission decided to withdraw the proposal in 2014.

Source(s) || REFIT Communication - COM(2013)685

Date of entry into application || Not applicable.

Evaluations and Fitness Checks:

Excise duty

Scope || Evaluation of Council Directive 2008/118/EC concerning the general arrangements for excise duty. The assessment covers the legal arrangements for cross-border movements of excise goods released for consumption between traders and distance selling companies.

Status || Ongoing and planned to be completed by end Q2 2015.

Source(s) || REFIT Communication - COM(2013)685

Excise duty of manufactured tobacco

Scope || Evaluation of Council Directive 2011/64/EU on the structure and rates of excise duty applied to manufactured tobacco. The assessment should identify potential for a reduction of administrative costs for operators and tax authorities with a higher degree of compliance and security in imposing excise duties on tobacco products.

Status || Ongoing and planned to be completed by end of 2014.

Source(s) || REFIT Communication - COM(2013)685

ABRplus

Common system of value added tax

Existing/Proposed legislation || Council Directive 2010/45/EU of 13 July 2010 amending Directive 2006/112/EC on the common system of value added tax as regards the rules on invoicing

Status || Directive 2010/45/EU was adopted on 13 July 2010. The directive is implemented by all Member States which have not reported any major problems of implementation. ABRPlus follow-up on Member State implementation.

Main objectives and REFIT objectives || Suppressing additional requirements on invoices and enabling wider use of electronic invoicing. The aim of the proposal is to increase the use of electronic invoicing, reduce burdens on business, support small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and help Member States to tackle fraud. The proposal simplifies, modernises and harmonises the VAT invoicing rules. In particular, it eliminates the current barriers to e-invoicing in the VAT Directive by treating paper and electronic invoices equally. The estimated savings are up to €18 billion. The Commission will make a formal assessment of the e-invoicing rules in 2016/2017, focusing on the decrease in administrative burdens for businesses.

Source(s) || ABR+ programme (High Level Group on Administrative Burden)

Date of entry into application || 1 January 2013

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator

EP Position || Most of the amendments tabled by the Parliament went beyond the Commission's proposal in terms of reduction of administrative burdens. As they were not in line with the ECOFIN's general approach reached in March 2010, and the Council could not agree on a large number of simplification measures proposed by the Commission, therefore, the Commission did not modify its proposal following the proposed EP amendments.

Council Position || Several options proposed by the Commission to simplify the content of invoices, their storage, as well as self-billing and outsourcing were not adopted by Council. Council also decreased the ceiling for use of simplified invoices to EUR 100. The proposed standardised date for chargeability to tax and invoicing date was also not accepted in full.

Assessment of final outcome || The main elements of the proposal, i.e. equal footing of the paper and electronic invoices, no technical restriction on issuance of e-invoices and no legal obstacles to the transmission and storage of e-invoices were achieved. Council could not agree on further simplification as proposed by Commission and Parliament.

Refund of value added tax

Existing/Proposed legislation || Directive 2008/9/EC laying down detailed rules for the refund of value added tax.

Status || Directive 2008/9/EC was adopted on 12 February 2008. The directive is implemented by all Member States. ABRPlus follow-up on Member State implementation

Main objectives and REFIT objectives || The Directive lays down the detailed rules for the refund of VAT to taxable persons not established in the Member State of refund suppressing the obligation to fill out paper forms. With the new rules applicants are able to file their applications electronically in their own Member State. The electronic procedure replaces the previous paper-based procedure which was slow, cumbersome, and costly ensuring a quicker refund to claimants. The estimated savings are €447 million.

Source(s) || ABR+ programme

Date of entry into application || 1 January 2010

Amendments by co-legislator

EP Position || The European Parliament proposed on 1 December 2005 only minor amendments inter alia suggesting additional notifications and clarifications of deadlines for refund.

Council Position || The Council added several options for Member States for the refund procedure such as supplementary coding of supplies and invoice requirements. It extended the processing time for refund requests from three months (as proposed by the Commission) to four months. The Council also added the option for Member States to specify the languages to be used for the refund process.

Assessment of final outcome || The electronic procedure and the estimated deadline for refund is an improvement compared to the previous mechanism. However, the numerous options to Member States added at the request of Council lead to difficulties in interoperability and to inconsistencies between the IT systems of Member States delaying the full roll out of the system.

5. Statistics Smart regulation activity and simplification efforts in 2013-2014

Cost-effectiveness and minimizing burden on respondents are basic, for the development, production and dissemination of European statistics. Following the Commission Communication (2009) 404, EUROSTAT and the national statistical institutes respond to the growing demands for high quality statistics while reducing response burden and production costs. Work is currently on-going in the European Statistical System on the priorities for the years to come. In this context, the Commission draws the attention to the main areas requiring further investments:

· Streamlining of EU legislation in statistics: Several activities are under way in the context or REFIT.

· Continuously improving the data quality and satisfying the users’ requests.

· Modernisation of ICT infrastructure: Modernisation of the ICT infrastructure is a priority in the further industrialisation of European statistics. A new setup for communication of data with built-in security features to allow distributed communication amongst the partners within the European Statistical System (ESS) will be necessary. Standards for ensuring reusability of information in the ESS and for providing shared statistical services are needed.

· More effective use of multiple sources data: The exploration of possibilities for re-use of already available data is noteworthy be it from existing administrative registers (micro-data exchange) or from “Big Data”. General principles for data re-use should be established. Based on the experience gained with SIMSTAT, some other domains such as statistics on multinationals, international trade in services and foreign direct investments could be considered as appropriate next candidates for micro-data exchange.

· More efficient allocation of responsibilities within the ESS. Co-operation models such as collaborative networks and centres of competence merit further exploration. The modernisation process provides also the right opportunity to rethink what could be better done at national and what at European level.

The European Statistical Programmes constitute the framework for planning European statistics related activities. Mid-term and ex-post evaluations of these programmes cover all statistics produced by Eurostat. They also identify possible improvements for the future programme design and implementation. The following recent initiatives also include aspects of simplification and reduction of administrative burden:

On 30 August 2013, the Commission adopted a proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulation (EC) No 91/2003 on rail transport statistics (COM(2013)611). This proposal adapts the statistical output to present and foreseeable user needs, reduces the burden on Member States and respondents without any significant loss in the quality of data and improves the timelines of disseminating passenger rail data. Commission Regulation (EU) No 1093/2013 of 4 November 2013 amending Regulation (EC) No 638/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Commission Regulation (EC) No 1982/2004 as regards the simplification within the Intrastat system and the collection of Intrastat information reduced the coverage rate for arrivals from 95% to 93% from 1 January 2014. This simplification enabled reducing the response burden on the parties responsible for providing statistical information, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises. Planned REFIT Actions

Legislation in the area of statistics is subject to continuous scrutiny for simplification and burden reduction under REFIT and the Commission focuses on the implementation of the initiatives already decided (see scoreboard).

The following areas could be considered for future action under REFIT:

The development of a new comprehensive architecture for business statistics

The Commission is preparing a modernised architecture for European business statistics and Intra-EU trade statistics in the context of the on-going modernisation of the production of official statistics in the European Statistical System.

Testing a modern way to reduce the response burden and increase quality of statistics for trading of goods in the Single market

Intra-EU trade in goods statistics, besides enabling the EU institutions and national authorities to evaluate the growth of the Single Market and the integration of EU economies, provide EU businesses with essential information for their sales and marketing policies. However, the underlying statistical data collection system – Intrastat – is expensive. The currently available detailed information costs annually 334 million € and imposes an administrative burden on enterprises evaluated at 317 million € per year[19]. This burden is very high even though the required information serves quite frequently also own needs of the businesses, for instance for detailed market research.

The various initiatives to reduce the burden on enterprises while providing users with sufficiently accurate intra-EU statistics have led to several simplifications. Nevertheless, the basic characteristics of the Intrastat data collection system were never changed since its establishment in 1991. Intrastat has, therefore, been chosen as a favourable frame to devise an integrated European statistical production process and save a share of the administrative burden on enterprises. Thus, the Commission conceived the Single Market Statistics project (SIMSTAT) to deliver the modernised business architecture for Intrastat.

SIMSTAT has to meet a two-fold target: (i) reduce sizeably the administrative burden on enterprises and at the same time (ii) guarantee that the statistical information that it will provide is of high quality and fit for the purpose of measuring the intra-EU trade. This is achieved via three "win-win" actions:

First action: simplify the reporting requirements for Member States on the import side. This enables Member States to design the compilation of their import data according to their needs and opens up the possibility for Member States to use other data sources. Second action: create an additional data source that guarantees the improvement of the quality of the statistical data, by making the exchange of (or providing mutual access to) micro-data on intra-EU exports among Member States compulsory. Independently of the compulsory nature of the sharing of micro-data, Member States decide to what extent these micro-data are used together with other sources in the compilation of the import statistics. Third action: further enhance the quality of statistical information on the export side through more concerted efforts on data compilation, analysis and validation.

SIMSTAT will be piloted in 2015. If it confirms its added value and cost-effectiveness, implementation will be aimed through the Framework Regulation Integrating Business Statistics.

Harmonised Indices of Consumer Prices

The Commission is preparing a proposal on Harmonised Indices of Consumer Prices (HICP). This will involve i.e. the simplifying, and streamlining of legal requirements for the compilation of Harmonised Indices of Consumer Prices (HICP) and a significant reduction of the number of existing legal acts. The new architecture will also take into account new methods for the collection of basic prices which will potentially reduce regulatory burden (e.g. use of scanner data – already available in electronic form in retail sale shops).

Reducing regulatory burden in the area of statistics should involve action at the level of Member States. In the area of statistics, Member States in certain cases maintain national requirements not required by EU legislation, such as in the area of Intrastat[20] and Prodcom[21] where data collected by respondents serve both national and EU needs. An area where some Member States have been able to streamline and reduce national requests for statistical data is the utilisation of VAT data in the compilation of the index of industrial turnover without requesting further data of businesses. This possibility which has also been suggested by stakeholders is currently used by about half of all Member States and should be employed more widely.

National statistical offices should carry out cost-benefit analysis in a systematic way to balance the general interest in market information against the cost for stakeholders of providing required statistics. The Commission continues to work with Member States to find the best solutions in this area.

Scoreboard

Legislative Actions

Integrating business statistics (FRIBS)

Existing/Proposed legislation || Proposal for a Framework Regulation integrating Business Statistics (FRIBS) repealing Regulation (EEC) No 696/93; Regulation (EC) No 295/2008; Regulation (EC) No 1165/1998; Regulation (EEC) No 3924/91 and Regulation (EC) No 912/2004; Regulation (EC) No 471/2009; Regulation (EC) No 638/2004; Regulation (EC) No 716/2007; Regulation (EC) No 177/2008; Regulation (EC) No 48/2004; Decision (EC) No 1608/2003 related to statistics; modifying Regulation (EC) No 184/2005; Regulation (EC) No 808/2004

Status || Proposal in preparation, adoption by the Commission scheduled for 2015

Main objectives || The initiative aims at integrating business statistics in a common legal framework to: · streamline and rationalise the reference framework for European business statistics, reduce the response burden on business · defining a new architecture for European business statistics instrumental to the compilation of quality and purpose-relevant European business statistics.

Main REFIT objectives || FRIBS work targets the integration of existing individual legal acts in one framework Regulation. This would guarantee that all actions would be undertaken in a consistent and time-coordinated way. Furthermore, it would allow the definitions of a flexible frame for future developments of business statistics in the EU, since changes in statistical areas would always take place within the framework of one single Regulation, and thus, per definition, in a consistent way. Moreover, specific provisions for accessing administrative sources would reduce the administrative burden on respondents.

Date of entry into application || Not applicable

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator (not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure as not yet been reached)

Integrating Social statistics

Existing/Proposed legislation || Proposal for a framework regulation for the production of European statistics relating to persons and households, based on data at individual level (Regulation on Social Statistics) Affected European surveys; possibly repealed/modified legislation: · EU Labour Force Survey Council Regulation (EC) No 577/98 of 9 March 1998 on the organisation of a labour force sample survey in the Community · EU-SILC: EU Statistics on Income and Living Conditions Regulation (EC) No 1177/2003 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 June 2003 concerning Community statistics on income and living conditions (EU-SILC) · AES: Adult Education Survey Regulation (EC) No 452/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2008 concerning the production and development of statistics on education and lifelong learning; Commission Regulation (EU) No 823/2010 of 17 September 2010 implementing Regulation (EC) No 452/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning the production and development of statistics on education and lifelong learning, as regards statistics on the participation of adults in lifelong learning · EHIS: European Health Interview Survey Regulation (EC) No 1338/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on Community statistics on public health and health and safety at work; Commission Regulation (EU) No 141/2013 of 19 February 2013 implementing Regulation (EC) No 1338/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council on Community statistics on public health and health and safety at work, as regards statistics based on the European Health Interview Survey (EHIS) · ICT (HH): Survey on ICT usage in households Regulation (EC) No 808/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 concerning Community statistics on the information society; Commission Regulation (EU) No 859/2013 of 5 September 2013 implementing Regulation (EC) No 808/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning Community statistics on the information society.

Status || Proposal in early stages of preparation, Commission adoption tentatively foreseen for 2015-2016

Main objectives || The preparatory work is focusing on: · consolidate and integrate statistical legislation integration ofon the production of European statistics relating to persons and households · enable progressive methodological and organisational integration of statistical surveys · increasing accountability, efficiency and responsiveness of statistical production and output.

Main REFIT objectives || The work concerns data collected from private households and individuals (persons), but not from enterprises. The objective is to make best possible use of the information provided by private households and individuals, and to meet current and future needs for European statistics while keeping the response burden at approximately the present level. This shall be achieved through the integration of European statistical data collections that are currently covered by different regulations.

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT - COM(2013)685

Date of entry into application || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator (not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure as not yet been reached)

Farm structure survey system

Existing/Proposed legislation || Proposal for a simplification of the Farm Structure Surveys and the survey on agricultural production methods

Status || Simplification proposal planned for 2018

Main objectives || After the 2016 Farm Structure Survey will be carried out, the Commission will propose a simplified system with the main objectives of ensuring continued high quality statistics while increasing flexibility and reducing response burden.

Main REFIT objectives || The proposal will simplify the survey and reduce regulatory burden.

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT - COM(2013)685

Date of entry into application || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure as not yet been reached

Repeal

Steel statistics

Existing/Proposed legislation || Regulation (EC) No 48/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 December 2003 on the production of annual Community statistics on the steel industry for the reference years 2003-2009.

Status || The proposal for repeal is scheduled for 2015.

Main objectives || Repeal - Data is no longer collected under Regulation (EC) No 48/2004 on the production of annual Community statistics on the steel industry.

REFIT objective || Repeal of obsolete regulation.

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT - COM(2013)685

Date of entry into application || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure as not yet been reached

Withdrawal

Statistics on safety from crime

Existing/Proposed legislation || Withdrawal of a proposal for a Regulation European Parliament and of the Council on European statistics on safety from crime (COM(2011)335)

Status || The proposal was withdrawn on 30 April 2014.

Main objectives || Withdrawal - It was decided to withdraw the proposal following the rejection of the European Parliament, and considering the need for re-prioritisation within the European statistical system.

REFIT objectives || Withdrawal

Source(s) || Communication on REFIT - COM(2013)685

ABRplus

Statistics on intra-EU trade

Existing/Proposed legislation || Commission Regulation (EU) No 1093/2013 of 4 November 2013 amending Regulation (EC) No 638/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Commission Regulation (EC) No 1982/2004 as regards the simplification within the Intrastat system and the collection of Intrastat information

Status || Adopted on 4 November 2013 ABRPlus follow-up on Member States' implementation. Included in the on-going project for Integrating Business Statistics

Main objectives || Following technical and economic developments, the established minimum coverage rate for arrivals could be adapted to allow reducing the response burden on the parties responsible for providing statistical information, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises.

REFIT objectives || Reducing the number of respondents when compiling statistics on intra-EU trade The coverage rate for arrivals was reduced from 95 % to 93 %.

Source(s) || ABR+

Date of entry into application || 26 November 2013

Survey on industrial production

Existing/Proposed legislation || Commission Regulations establishing the annual 'Prodcom list' of industrial products provided for by Council Regulation (EEC) No 3924/91

Status || Adopted ABRPlus follow-up on Member State implementation Included in the on-going project for Integrating Business Statistics

Main objectives || Reducing reporting requirements on industrial production in the EU.

REFIT objectives || List of products of the European Community (Prodcom lists) are adopted annually to align production statistics with external trade statistics, and to ensure comparability of data across Member States and with other nomenclatures. The list takes into account the aim to reduce reporting requirements related to industrial production in the EU. The most recent Prodcom list was adopted by Commission Regulation (EU) No 936/2013 of 12 September 2013 establishing for 2013 the ‘Prodcom list’ of industrial products provided for by Council Regulation (EEC) No 3924/91. An important review took place in 2004 regarding the number of products surveyed, the information required on each product and the frequency. The regulations governing the Prodcom list - Commission Regulation (EC) No 317/2006 of 22 December 2005, Commission Regulation (EC) No 294/2007 of 20 February 2007, Commission Regulation (EC) No 36/2009 of 11 July 2008, Commission Regulation (EC) 830/2011 of 27 July 2011; Regulation (EC) 907/2012 of 20 August 2012; and Regulation (EC) 936/2013 of 12 September 2013 - have gradually reduced the number of products required, from around 5600 in the years up to 2004 to the current 3805. Measures recommended to Member States to reduce the administrative burden on respondents included the simplification of the Prodcom list, the transition from quarterly to annual data requirements and the exchange of information between administrations as well as process improvements, such as promoting electronic questionnaires.

Source(s) || ABR +

Date of entry into application || Different dates of entry into application following the annual gradual simplification

6. Mobility and Transport Smart regulation activity and simplification efforts in 2013-2014

Transport is essential to our economy and enables growth and job creation. The main priorities in the area of Mobility and Transport are completing the Single Market, pushing innovation and projecting the EU's mobility and transport objectives and defending EU political and industrial interests internationally.

Simplification, burden reduction and legislative efficiency are a continuous priority in the area of transport. Since 2013, a simplification of legislation on the digital tachograph has been achieved and SMEs have been exempted, however some Member States have imposed stricter requirements as foreseen by EU legislation. A proposal for a Directive on driving licenses and driver cards has been withdrawn. A proposal to simplify cabotage rules in road transport is planned for 2014. Assessment continues whether a repeal of legislation on retrofitting of mirrors to heavy goods vehicles respects road safety is appropriate. Evaluations of the Directives on tunnel safety and passenger ship safety legislation have started and the evaluation of combined transport is planned for the second semester of 2014.

At the same time, differences in national implementation of transport legislation are an important concern from a perspective of simplification and burden reduction. For instance, the diverse implementation of road cabotage rules[22] by Member States has led to a number of practical difficulties for transport companies[23] which the Commission intends to address in its REFIT proposal on road cabotage under preparation (see scoreboard).

2. Planned REFIT actions

Legislation in the area of transport is subject to continuous scrutiny for simplification and burden reduction under REFIT. Reducing regulatory burden in this area should involve action at the level of Member States, including more rigorous implementing of EU legislation, stronger cooperation, better data exchanges and common agreement on the interpretation of specific dispositions.

For new REFIT actions in the area of transport, the Commission focuses on legislation in the field of maritime safety and road transport and safety.

This could include the following future actions under REFIT:

· Repeal of Council Regulation No 11 concerning the abolition of discrimination in transport rates and conditions, in implementation of Article 79 (3) of the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community of 16 August 1960;

· Evaluation on training, qualification, licenses in road transport covering: Directive 2003/59/EC on the initial qualification and periodic training of drivers of certain road vehicles for the carriage of goods or passengers;

· Evaluation of Maritime Transport and Safety Rules;

· Evaluation of Directive 2000/59/EC on port reception facilities for ship-generated waste and cargo residues.

The following proposal by the Commission pending in legislative procedure could be considered for withdrawal:

Proposal for a Directive on Aviation Security Charges – COM(2009)217, 2009/0063 COD Proposal for a Regulation on the establishment of a fund for the compensation of oil pollution damage in European waters and related measures – COM(2002)313 / 2000/0326 COD

3. Scoreboard

Legislative Actions

Recording Equipment in Road Transport

Existing/Proposed legislation || Commission proposal (COM(2011)0451 - 2011/0196 (COD)) of 19 July 2011 amending Council Regulation (EEC) No 3821/85 on recording equipment in road transport and amending Regulation (EC) No 561/ of 15 March 2006 on the harmonisation of certain social legislation relating to road transport

Status || Following the proposal, legislation has been adopted and published: Regulation (EU) No 165/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 February 2014 on tachographs in road transport, repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 3821/85 on recording equipment in road transport and amending Regulation (EC) No 561/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the harmonisation of certain social legislation relating to road transport

Main objectives of the initiative || The initiative updates legislation on the digital tachograph linking up to satellite positioning systems and to public control authorities.

Main REFIT objectives || The further use of digital tachographs will improve enforcement of rules and reduce the administrative burden for transport companies, which use tachographs, in the medium and long term. The so-called "form of attestation of activities", major source of administrative burden according to stakeholders, has been repealed. Member States should have the option to exempt lorries of less than 7.5 t from the tachograph regulation if they carry materials, equipment or machinery for the driver’s use in the course of his work and used within a radius of 100 km and provided that driving the vehicle is not the driver’s main activity (mainly craftsmen).

Source(s) || REFIT Communication– COM(2013)685

Date of entry into force Date of application || 1 March 2014 Subject to the transitional measures in Article 46, the Regulation shall apply from 2 March 2016. However, Articles 24, 34 and 45 shall apply from 2 March 2015.

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator

EP position regarding main REFIT objectives || In its First Reading resolution, Parliament suggested to decrease the threshold for the tachograph exemption to 2.8 t. In its Second Reading resolution of 15 January 2014, Parliament adopted the exemption for craftsmen, a total weight of less than 7.5 t, and within a 100 km radius. This exemption is included in article 3 of Regulation 561/2006 (scope of the regulation) and therefore will be applicable in all Member States. The other exemptions for which an extension of radius from 50 to 100 km was agreed will keep the same regime as currently (optional).

Council position regarding main REFIT objectives || The Council position left the Commission's original administrative burden reduction objectives largely intact. The most important part of the initial proposal which was not maintained following discussions in the ordinary legislative procedure concernedconcerned the merging of the tachograph cards with the driving licences. This measure, aiming to very significantly reduce the fraud with driver cards, was not retained by Member States which argued that it created too much administrative burden. However, the estimates of the impact assessment prepared by the Commission showed that this measure could have actually reduced the administrative burden by 100 million euros per year.

Assessment of final outcome regarding main REFIT objectives || The outcome is satisfactory and corresponds to an important extent to the Commission's original administrative burden reduction objectives. The finally adopted Regulation does not include a provision on the merger of tachograph driver cards with driving licences, which weakens the foreseen reduction of administrative burden. However, the new Regulation did suppress the "form of attestation of activities", which according to the estimates of the High Level Group on AB could reduce the administrative burden on transport companies by around € 184 million. The craftsmen option has turned from an optional exemption into a general exclusion from the scope.

Cabotage Rules in Road Transport

Existing/Proposed legislation || Simplification proposal amending Regulations (EC) 1071/2009 on access to the occupation of road transport operator and 1072/2009 on common rules for access to the international road haulage market

Status || The proposal could be presented by early 2015.

Main objectives of the initiative || The proposal would aim to clarify and simplify certain problematic provisions of Regulations (EC) No 1071/2009 and 1072/2009. The corresponding amendments would facilitate their implementation by Member States and bring a more uniform application across the EU.

Main REFIT objectives || The amendments envisaged would reduce administrative burden both for public authorities and private operators. On the one hand, it would make it easier for control authorities to enforce the existing legislation. Better use of existing control tools is likely to reduce the duration of checks, whereas targeting of checks thanks to the technical capabilities of the new digital tachograph will increase detection levels. On the other hand, operators would enjoy increased certainty when planning their transport operations, thanks to the application of uniform control provisions throughout the EU.

Source(s) || REFIT Communication– COM(2013)685

Date of entry into application || Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not been reached.

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator Not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure as not yet been reached

Withdrawal:

Driving Licences and Driver Card

Existing/Proposed legislation || Withdrawal of the proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2006/126/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards driving licences which include the functionalities of a driver card (COM(2011)0710

Status || Withdrawn on 21 May 2014.

Main objectives of the proposal || To simplify procedures and reduce the number of documentary evidence for professional drivers.

Source(s) || REFIT Communication– COM(2013)685

Repeals

Retrofitting of Mirrors to Heavy Goods Vehicles

Existing/Proposed legislation || Directive 2007/38/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 July 2007 on the retrofitting of mirrors to heavy goods vehicles registered in the Community

Status || Under preparation.[24]

Main objectives of the proposal || Ensuring that older trucks are equipped with mirrors in order to avoid blind-spot accidents involving vulnerable road users when the truck is turning

REFIT objectives || Reduction of EU regulation through repeal of a measure no longer having any significant practical impact.

Source(s) || REFIT Communication– COM(2013)685

Date of entry into application || 6 August 2008

Amendments to REFIT objectives by co-legislator (not yet applicable as this stage in the procedure has not yet been reached)

ABR+ follow-up

Abolition of Discrimination in Transport Rates and Conditions

Existing/Proposed legislation || Council Regulation (EC) No 569/2008 of 12 June 2008 amending Regulation No 11 concerning the abolition of discrimination in transport rates and conditions, in implementation of Article 79(3) of the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community

Status || The follow-up/assessment under the ABR+ programme of the implementation by Member States is ongoing.

Main objectives of the initiative || To ensure equal and transparent market conditions for transport operators, to avoid market disturbance and to facilitate controls by requiring specific evidence to be on board.

Main REFIT objectives || To mainstream to the internal transport market and reducing administrative procedures and costs by: · Abolition of notification of transport tariffs · Alleviating the obligation to keep documentary evidence on board

Source(s) || Commission Communication on the Action Programme for Reducing Administrative Burdens in the European Union (ABR) of 24 January 2007 - COM(2007)23 final Commission Communication on EU Regulatory Fitness (ABR+) of 12 December 2012 - COM(2012) 746 final

Date of entry into application || 20 June 2008

Evaluations and Fitness Checks:

Safety Rules and Standards for Passenger Ships

Scope || Fitness Check of: · Directive 2009/45/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 May 2009 on safety rules and standards for passenger ships · Directive 2003/25/EC on specific stability requirements for ro-ro passenger ships · Directive 1999/35/EC on a system of mandatory surveys for the safe operation of regular ro-ro ferry and high-speed passenger craft services · Directive 1998/41/EC on the registration of persons sailing on board passenger ships operating to or from ports of the Member States of the Community

Status || Evaluation ongoing, results expected Q2 2015.

Source(s) || REFIT Communication – COM(2013)685

Combined Transport

Scope || Evaluation of Council Directive 92/106/EEC of 7 December 1992 on the establishment of common rules for certain types of combined transport of goods b