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COM (83) 159 
 
 
Vol. 1983/0044 
  
 
Disclaimer  
Conformém ent au règlement (CEE, Euratom) n° 354/83 du Conseil du 1er février 1983 
concernant l'ouverture au public des archives historiques de la Communauté économique 
européenne et de la Communauté européenne de l'énergie atomique (JO L 43 du 15.2.1983, 
p. 1), tel que modifié par le règlement (CE, Euratom) n° 1700/2003 du 22 septembre 2003 
(JO L 243 du 27.9.2003, p. 1), ce dossier est ouvert au public. Le cas échéant, les documents 
classifiés présents dans ce dossier ont été déclassifiés conformément à l'article 5 dudit 
règlem ent. 
In accordance with Council Regulation (EEC, Euratom) No 354/83 of 1 February 1983 
concerning the opening to the public of the historical archives of the European Econom ic 
Communit y and the European Atom ic Energy Communit y (OJ L 43, 15.2.1983, p. 1), as 
amended by Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1700/2003 of 22 September 2003 (OJ L 243, 
27.9.2003, p. 1), t his file is open to the public. Where necessary, classified documents in this 
file have been declassified in conformity with Article 5 of the aforementioned regulation.  
In Übereinstimmung mit der Verordnung (EWG, Euratom) Nr. 354/83 des Rates vom  1. 
Februa r 1983 über die Freigabe der historischen Archive der Europäischen  
Wirtschaftsgemeinschaft und der Europäischen Atomgem einschaft (ABI. L 43 vom  15.2.1983,  
S. 1), geändert durch die Verordnung (EG, Euratom) Nr. 1700/2003 vom 22. Septem ber 2003  
(ABI. L 243 v om 27.9.2003, S. 1), ist diese Datei der Öffentlichkeit zugänglich. Soweit  
erforderlich, wurden die Verschlusssachen in dieser Datei in Übereinstimmung mit Artikel 5  
der genannten Verordnung freigegeben.  
COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
C 0P K 83) 159 final  
Brussels, 28 M arch 1983
Proposal for a  
CQUNCIL_REGyLATION_(EEC)
opening, allocating and providing for the administration  
of a  C om m unity tariff quota for rum , arrack and tafia  
falling within subheading 22.09 C  I  of the C o m m o n  Custom s  
Tariff and originating in the A C P  States (1983/84)
(submitted to the Council by the Commission)
C O M (83) 159 final

E X P L A N A T O R Y  M E M O R A N D U M
Protocol N o  5  annexed to the Convention between the A C P  States and  
the E E C  (L om é II) provides that the products falling within sub­
heading N o  22.09 C  I  of the C C T  (rum, arrack, tafia), originating  
in the A C P  States, shall be imported duty free into the Com m unity.
These preferential arrangements are restricted to a  quantity which  
is to be fixed annually by the C om m unity on the basis of the largest  
quantifies imported annually from  the A C P  States during the last  
three years for whihc statistics are available, increased by certain  
annual growth rates.
T he preferential system in question should therefore be put into force
and a  C om m unity tariff quota should be opened for rum , arrack and
tafia originating in the A C P  States. Because there has already been
taken admeasure until 30 June 1983 this tariff quota should be opened for the
period 1  July 1983 to 30 June 1984.
C om m unity imports of the goods concerned during the last three years  
ware as follow :
- in hectolitres of pure alcohol -
1980 1981 1982
Benelux 1 5860 5656 5  820
D en m ark 1959 2004 1  76
G erm any 34 295 38971 29 747
Greece 4 1 3 5 294
France 4194 2705 2  445
I  re land 2124 2619 2  307
Italy 413 328 333
United K ingdom 85 423 79 756 72 693
E C 144 309 132 074 115 615

T he quota volume to be taken into account on this basis for the period  
1  July 1983 to 3 D  June 1984 should be 189 077 hectolitres of pure alcohol.
The administration of this tariff measure in the form of a Community  
tariff quota has the aim of ensuring that :
- imports of the products in question do not exceed the global volume  
fixed,
- each C om m unity importer has equal and continuous access to .he said  
quota,
- the preferential rate is applied without interruption to all imports  
in all the M em b er States, and
- in particular, th e preferential rate is applied uniformly and constan­
tly throughout the Com m unity.
T he facility for drawing supplementary quota-shares from  the C om m unity  
reserve and the obligation to return unused quantities - two fundamental  
rules in the context of C om m unity measures - are capable of being run in  
accordance with these principles.
5. F or these reasons the provisions of the Regulation provide for the  
splitting u p  of the quota volume into two parts, the first of which  
will be allocated am ong the M em b er States as quota shares, with the  
second forming a  reserve.
T he calculation of these shares is based on the imports of the products  
in question from  A C P  States during the previous three years 1980, 1981  
and 1982 and the economic outlook for the period in question, respecHw^  
however, the growth rates mentioned under point 1.
6. T he annexed table shows in detail the amounts actually charged, against  
the tariff quotas in question during the periods 1978/79, 1979/80, 1980/81  
and 1981/82).
7. It is proposed that the draft for a  Council Regulation described above  
should be approved (see annex).

A C P  - R u m  - heading 22.09 C  I
A m ou n ts actuaLLy charged against the tariff quotas opened for 1978/79, 1979/80, 1980/81 and 1981/82
1978/79 1979/80 !  1980/81 1981/82
Member Volume of Amount Volume of Amount Volume of Amount Volume of Amount
State the quota actually the quota actually the quota actually thequotaactually
charged charged charged charged
- hi --hi- % - hi --hi- %- hi - -hi- % - hi --hi- %
Benelux 6  000 5  816 97 6  912 5  7 3 1 83 7  631 7  6 3 1 100 1 5262 6  089 40
Denmark 3  698 1  448 39 3  722 938 2 5 2  443 1  235 50 2157 2  056 95
Germany 24 706 24 706 100 33 979 28 5 3 1 84 3 5  714 32 194 90 4 5000 23 905 7 5
Greece - - - - - - - - - 49 - —
France 9 022 3  5 5 1 39 6  449 1  144 1 8 5  438 4  236 78 4585 2  408 53
Ireland 1  000 492 49 2  704 1  154 43 3  209 2  008 63 2678 2  109 79
Ita lie 424 424 100 426 3 5 1 82 535 429 80 522 402 77
United Kingdom 116 957 103 872 89 122 645 85 256 69 123 330 78 097 63 118 825 74 378 63
C .E . 1 6 1  807  
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ L14
0 309 87 176 837 123 105 70 178 300 125 830 7 1 189 078 121 347 64

PROPOSAL FOR A  
C O U N C IL  R EG U LA TIO N  (EEC)
opening, allocating and providing for the adm inistration of a C om m unity tariff  
quota for rum, arrack and tafia falling within subheading 22.09 C I of the  
C om m on  Custom s Tariff and originating in the ACP States ( 1 9 8 3 /8 4 )
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN 
COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European 
Economic Community, and in particular Article 113 
thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
Whereas Protocol 5 annexed to the second ACP-EEC 
Convention, signed at Lomé on 31 October 1979 Cl), 
provides that products originating in the ACP States 
which fall within subheading 22.09 C I of the 
Common Customs Tariff shall, until the entry into 
force of a common organization of the market in 
spirits, be allowed into the Community free of 
customs duties under conditions such as to permit the 
development of traditional trade flows between the 
ACP States and the Community and between the 
Member States ; whereas the Community shall fix 
each year the quantities which may be imported free 
of customs duties on the basis of the largest quantities 
imported annually from the ACP States into the 
^Ctfmmunity in the past three years for which statistics 
k  are available, increased by an annual growth rate of 
40 % on the market of the United Kingdom and 
18 % on the other markets of the Com m unity;
Whereas, having regard to the levels reached by 
imports of the products concerned into the Commu­
nity and' the Member States during the past three 
years for which statistics are available, the size of the 
tariff quota for the period 1  July 1983 to 30 June 
1984 should be fixed at189077 hectolitres of pure, 
alcohol ;
C D O J  No 347, 22.12.1980, p . 1 4 1 .

Whereas it is in particular necessary to ensure for all 
Community importers equal and uninterrrupted 
access to ■  the abovementioned quota and 
uninterrupted application of the rates laid down for 
that quota to all imports of the products concerned 
into all Member States until the quota has been used 
up; whereas, having regard to the above principles, 
the Community nature of the quota can be respected 
by allocating the Community tariff quota among the 
Member States; whereas, in order to reflect as 
accurately as possible the actual trend of the market 
in the products in question, such allocation should be 
in proportion to the requirements of the Member 
States, calculated by reference to the statistics of each 
State’s imports of the said products from ACP“Countries  
representative reference period and also to the 
economic outlook for the quota period in question;
Whereas, during the past three years for which statis­
tics are available, the corresponding imports by each 
of the Member States represent the following percen­
tages of the imports into the Community from the 
countries in question of the products concerned :
Member States 1980 1981 1982
Beneluxt
Denmark
GermanyGreece 'rrance
Ireland
Italy
United Kingdom'1 1 .0 0  
1 .3 5  
2 3 .7 7  
0 .0 3  
2 .9 0  
1  .4 6  
0 .2 9  
5 9 .2 04 .0 4  
1  .2 3  
2 4 .0 0  
0 .0 3  
1  .9 3  
1  .4 6  
0 .2 3  
6 7 .0 85 .0 3  
1  .71
2 5 .7 4
0 .2 5
2 .1 1
2 .0 0
0 .2 9
6 2 .8 7
Whereas, in view of these factors of market forecasts 
for the products in question and of the estimates 
submitted by certain Member States, initial quota 
shares may be fixed approximately at the following 
percentages :
Benelux6 .9 7
Denmark 1.53
Germany 2 6 .2 8
Greece 0.09
trance 2 3 8
Ireland 1 3 0
Italy 0 2 7
United Kingdom 6 0 .6 8

- 3 -
Whercas, in order to cake into account import trends 
for the products concerned in the various Member 
States, the quotq volume should be divided into two 
instalments, the first being shared among the Member 
States and the second constituting a reserve to cover 
ai a later date the requirements of Member States 
which have used up their initial quota shares; 
whereas, in order to give importers in each Member 
State a certain degree security, the first instalment 
of the Community quota should, under the present 
circumstances, be fixed at9Q %  of the quota volume;
Whereas the Member States’ initial shares may be 
used up at different times; whereas, in order to take 
this fact into account and avoid any break in 
continuity, any Member State which has almost used 
up its initial share must draw an additional share from 
the reserve; whereas this must be done by each 
Member State as and when each of its additional 
shares is almost entirely used up, and repeated as 
many times as the reserve allows; whereas the initial 
and additional shares must be valid until the end of 
the quota period; whereas this method of 
administration requires close cooperation between the 
Member States and—the Commission, and the 
Commission must be in a position to monitor the 
extent to which the quota volume has been used up 
and inform the Member States thereof;
Whereas if, at a given date in the quota period, a 
considerable quantity is left over in any Member 
State, it is essential that that Member State should 
return a significant' proportion to the reserve to 
prevent a part of the Community quota from 
remaining unused'in one Member State when it could 
be used in others;
W hereas, since the Kingdom of Belgium, the 
Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Grand Duchy 
of Luxembourg arc united within and jointly 
represented by the Benelux Economic Union, any 
operation relating to the administration of the quota 
shares allocated to that economic union may be 
carried out by any pne of its members,

-4-
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION :
Article 1
1 . From 1  July 198 3 to 30 June 1984 rum, arrack and 
tafia falling within subheading 22.09 C I of the 
Common Customs Tariff and originating in the ACP 
States, shall be imported duty free into the Commu­
nity within the limits of a Community tariff
quota o f1 89077 hectolitres of pure alcohol.
as indicated in Article 2
2 . ‘Within the limit of its share,/the Hellenic 
Republic shall apply customs duties calculated in 
accordance with the relevant provisions of the 1979 
Act of Accession and of Regulation (EEC) No 
439/81 ( P  .
Article 2
'1. The Community tariff quota referred to in 
Article 1  shall be divided into two instalments.
2. A first instalment, amounting to 170100 
hectolitres shall be shared among the Member States; 
the respective shares, which subject to Article 5 shall 
be valid until 30 June 1984 shall be as follows:
— in hectolitres of pure alcohol-
— Benelux: 11.860
— Denmark: 2600
— Germany: 44 700
— Greece: 150
— France: 4050
— Ireland: 3070
— Italy: 460
— United Kingdom: 103 210
3. The second instalment of18 9 7 7 hectolitres shall 
constitute the reserve.
Article 3
1. If 90 %  or more of a Member State’s initial 
share s * 5  specified in Article 2 (2), or of that share 
' miputf the portion returned to the reserve, where 
Article 5 is applied, has been used up, that Member 
Stale shall without delay, by notifying the 
Commission, draw a second share equal to 10%  of 
its initial share, rounded up where necessary to the 
next unit, to the extent permitted by the amount of 
the reserve.
(1 ) 0J No L 5 3 , 2 7 .2 .1 9 8 1 , p . 1 9 .

- 5 -
t
2. If, after its initial share has been used up, 90 % 
or more of the second share drawn by a Member 
State has been used up, that Member State shall, in 
accordance with the conditions laid down in 
paragraph 1, draw a third share equal to 5 % of its 
initial share, rounded up where necessary to the next 
unit.
3. If, after its second share has been used up, 90 %  
or more of the third share drawn by a Member State 
has been used up, that Member State shah, in 
accordance with the same conditions, draw a fourth 
share equal to the third.
This process shall continue until the reserve is used 
up.
4. By way of derogation from paragraphs 1, 2 and 
3, a Member State may draw shares smaller than 
those fixed in those paragraphs if there is reason to 
believe that they might not be used up. It shall inform 
the Commission of its reasons for applying this 
.paragraph.
Article 4
Additional shares drawn pursuant to Article 3 shall be 
valid until 30 June 198.4.
Article 5
The Member States shall return to the reserve, not 
later than 1  April 198 4 the unused portion of their 
initial share which, on l£  March 198 4ps in excess of 
20 % of the initial volume. They may return a larger 
quantity if there are grounds for believing that this 
quantity may not be used.
The Member States shall, not later than 1  April 1984, 
notify the Commission of the total quantities of the 
said goods imported, up to 15 March 198 4 inclusive 
and charged against the Community quota, and of 
any quantities of the initial shares returned to the 
reserve.'

-6-
Article 6
The Commission shall keep an account of the shares 
opened by thei Member States pursuant to Articles 2 
and 3 and shall as soon as it has been notified, inform 
each State of the extent to which the reserve has been 
used up.
It shall inform the Member States, not later than 
5 April 198 4 of the amount in the reserve after 
quantities have been returned pursuant to Article 5.
The Commission shall ensure that the drawing which 
uses up the reserve is limited to the balance available 
and to this end shall specify the amount thereof to the 
Member State which makes the last drawing.
Article 7
1. The Member States shall take all measures 
necessary to ensure that additional shares drawn 
pursuant to Article 3, are opened in such a way that 
imports may be charged without interruption against 
their accumulated shares of the Community quota.
2. The Member States shall ensure that importers 
of the said products have
free access to the shares allocated to them.
3. The extent to which a Member State has used 
up its share shall be determined on the basis of the 
imports of thé goods in question entered with the 
customs authorities for free circulation.
Article  8
1. Member States shall inform the Commission 
each month of imports actually charged against the 
tariff quota.
2 .  The Commission shall regularly inform the 
Member States of the extent to which the tariff quota 
has been used up.
3 . Where necessary, consultations may be held at 
the request of a Member State or on the initiative of 
the Commission.
Article 9
The fy^mber ' States and the Commission shall 
cooperate closely in order to ensure that this Regu­
lation is complied with.

- 7 -
A rticle  1  0
Council Regulation (EEC) No 1470/80 of 9 June 1980 
on the safeguard measures provided for in the second 
ACP-EEC Convention (') shall apply in respect of the 
products covered by this Regulation.
A  rticle 1 1
This Regulation shall enter into force on 1  July 198 3
■  V ■ ■ ·  ■
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member 
States.
Done at Brussels,
For the Council  
The President
{') OJ No L 147, ‘ l3. 6. 19S0, p. 4.