Proposal for a COUNCIL REGULATION laying down the weightings applicable from 1 January 2004 to the remuneration of officials of the European Communities serving in third countries

(presented by the Commission)

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

I. Regulation (Euratom, ECSC, EEC) No 3019/87 of 5 October 1987 amended the Staff Regulations by adding an Annex X laying down special and exceptional provisions, including special arrangements for emoluments, applicable to officials of the European Communities serving in third countries.

Articles 11, 12 and 13 of Annex X deal with the remuneration of officials posted in countries outside the European Union. Remuneration is payable in euros in Belgium but there is also provision for all or part of an official's remuneration to be paid in the currency of the country of employment. In that event, the portion paid in local currency is subject to a weighting.

Article 13 of Annex X requires the Council to determine the weightings for third countries every six months.

This proposal concerns the adjustment of weightings applicable to the remuneration of officials of the European Communities serving in third countries from

1 January 2004.

The budgetary impact is negligible compared with the total operating costs of the delegations.

II. Council Regulation (ECSC, EEC, Euratom) No 2175/88 of 18 July 1988 laid down the initial weightings applicable from 10 October 1987. Since then these weightings have been adjusted by the Council every six months, most recently by Regulation No 64/2004 of 9 January 2004, which took effect on 1 July 2003.

The remuneration system for staff serving in countries outside the Community is based on purchasing power parity of remuneration paid in local currency to officials serving in third countries compared with that paid in Brussels.

To apply this principle Eurostat calculates the economic parities. The weighting is the factor obtained by dividing the economic parity by the exchange rate. This means that implementation of the weighting system primarily involves calculating economic parities between Brussels and other places of employment.

The exchange rates used for accounting purposes are those of December 2003.

Table A sets out the new economic parities, the corresponding exchange rates and the resulting weightings as at 1 January 2004 for all places of employment.

Table B shows the variation in percentage terms between the figures in Table A and those of the previous half-year for all places of employment.

ANNEX

TABLE A

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ANNEX

TABLE B

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Proposal for a COUNCIL REGULATION laying down the weightings applicable from 1 January 2004 to the remuneration of officials of the European Communities serving in third countries

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to the Staff Regulations of officials of the European Communities and the conditions of employment of other servants of the Communities laid down by Regulation (EEC, Euratom, ECSC) No 259/68, [1] as last amended by Regulation (EC, ECSC, Euratom) No 2182/2003 [2] and in particular the first paragraph of Article 13 of Annex X thereto,

[1] OJ L 56, 4.3.1968, p. 1.

[2] OJ L 327, 16.12.2003, p. 3.

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Whereas:

(1) Account should be taken of changes in the cost of living in countries outside the Community and the weightings applicable from 1 January 2004 to remuneration paid in the currency of the country of employment to officials serving in third countries should be determined accordingly.

(2) The weightings, in respect of which payment has been made on the basis of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 64/2004 [3], may lead to retrospective upward or downward adjustments to remuneration.

[3] OJ L 10, 16.1.2004, p. 1.

(3) Provision should be made for back-payments in the event of an increase in remuneration as a result of the new weightings.

(4) Provision should be made for the recovery of sums overpaid in the event of a reduction in remuneration as a result of the new weightings for the period between 1 January 2004 and the date of entry into force of this Regulation.

(5) Provision should be made for any such recovery to be restricted to a period of no more than six months preceding the decision laying down the weightings and for its effects to be spread over a period of no more than twelve months following the date of that decision, as is the case with the weightings applicable within the European Community to remuneration and pensions of officials and other servants of the European Communities,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

With effect from 1 January 2004, the weightings applicable to the remuneration of officials of the European Communities serving in third countries payable in the currency of the country of employment shall be as shown in the annex.

The exchange rates for the calculation of such remuneration shall be those used for implementation of the general budget of the European Union for the month preceding the date referred to in the first paragraph.

Article 2

1. The institutions shall make back-payments in the event of an increase in remuneration as a result of the weightings shown in the annex.

2. The institutions shall make retrospective downward adjustments to remuneration in the event of a reduction as a result of the weightings shown in the annex for the period between 1 January 2004 and the date of entry into force of this Regulation.

Retrospective adjustments involving the recovery of sums overpaid shall be restricted to a period of no more than six months preceding the date of entry into force of this Regulation. Recovery shall be spread over no more than twelve months from that date.

Article 3

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

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

Done at Brussels, [...]

For the Council

The President

ANNEX

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FINANCIAL STATEMENT

1. TITLE OF OPERATION

Proposal for a Council Regulation laying down the weightings applicable from 1 January 2004 to the remuneration of officials of the European Communities serving in third countries

2. BUDGET HEADING INVOLVED

XX-010102-01

3. LEGAL BASIS

Articles 12 and 13 of Annex X to the Staff Regulations

4. FINANCIAL IMPACT

4.1 Provisional real expenditure EUR 125 139 579

for 2004 (EUR 10 428 298,25 per month) (1)

4.2 Estimate of effect of

January 2004 weightings + EUR 10 729,56 (2)

4.3 Estimated expenditure for six

months [(2) x 6] + EUR 64 377,36

4.4 Impact in relation to provisional

real expenditure [(2) : (1)] + 0,102888886%

This budgetary impact does not take account of the adjustment of the weightings laid down each month by the Commission.