Judgment of the General Court (Eighth Chamber) of 3 December 2015 —

Poland v Commission

(Case T‑367/13)

‛EAGGF — Guarantee Section — EAGF and EAFRD — Expenditure excluded from financing — Rural Development — Expenditure incurred by Poland — Article 33b of Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999 — Article 7 of Regulation (EC) No 1258/1999 — Article 31 of Regulation (EC) No 1290/2005 — Mixed financial correction — Obligation to state reasons’

1. Agriculture — Common agricultural policy — EAGGF financing — Clearance of accounts — Disallowance of expenses arising from irregularities in applying EU rules — Challenge by the Member State concerned — Burden of proof — Shared by the Commission and the Member State (Council Regulations No 1258/1999 and No 1290/2005) (see paras 25-28, 92)

2. European Union law — Interpretation — Methods — Literal, systematic and teleological interpretation (see para. 37)

3. Agriculture — Common agricultural policy — EAGGF financing — Support for rural development — Special measures applicable to Member States which joined the EU in 2004 — Support for semi-subsistence forms subject to restructuring — Obligation of the beneficiaries to undertake to devote part of the aid granted to restructuring operations (Arts 39 TFEU, 42 TFEU and 43 TFEU; Council Regulation No 1257/1999, Art. 33b) (see paras 39, 41-43, 45, 48, 49, 81)

4. Agriculture — Common agricultural policy — EAGGF financing — Support for rural development — Special measures applicable to Member States which joined the EU in 2004 — Support for semi-subsistence forms subject to restructuring — Obligation of Member States to monitor compliance by beneficiaries with their agricultural development plans and carry out on-the-spot checks — Two types of control independent in character (Council Regulation No 1257/1999, Art. 33b; Commission Regulation No 817/2004, Art. 69) (see paras 56, 58, 59)

5. Agriculture — Common agricultural policy — EAGGF financing — Support for rural development — Special measures applicable to Member States which joined the EU in 2004 — Support for semi-subsistence forms subject to restructuring — Obligation of Member States to carry out administrative controls when aid applications made — Implied obligation — Scope (Council Regulation No 1257/1999; Commission Regulation No 817/2004, Arts 67 and 68) (see paras 67, 71, 72)

6. Agriculture — Common agricultural policy — EAGGF financing — Clearance of accounts — Disallowance of expenses arising from irregularities in applying EU rules — Finding of defects in the control system established by a Member State — Flat-rate correction issued by the Commission in accordance with internal guidelines — Lawfulness (Council Regulations No 1258/1999, Art. 7(4), and No 1290/2005, Art. 31(2)) (see para. 91)

7. Agriculture — Common agricultural policy — EAGGF financing — Procedure for the clearance of accounts — Conciliation procedure — Opinion of the conciliation body — No binding effect (Commission Regulation No 885/2006, Art. 12(b) and (c)) (see para. 106)

8. Acts of the institutions — Statement of reasons — Obligation — Scope — Decision relating to the clearance of accounts in respect of expenditure financed by the EAGGF (Art. 296 TFEU; Council Regulations No 1258/1999, Art. 7(4), and No 1290/2005, Art. 31) (see paras 111, 112)

Re:

APPLICATION for annulment of Commission Implementing Decision 2013/214/EU of 2 May 2013 on excluding from European Union financing certain expenditure incurred by the Member States under the Guarantee Section of the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF), under the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) and under the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) (OJ 2013 L 123, p. 11), in so far as the Commission applies in that decision corrections amounting to EUR 8292783.94 and EUR 71610559.39 to expenditure declared by the Republic of Poland in respect of support for semi-subsistence farms.

Operative part

The Court:

1. Dismisses the action;