Council Act of 18 December 1997 drawing up, on the basis of Article K.3 of the Treaty on European Union, the Convention on mutual assistance and cooperation between customs administrations - Declarations
Date: 1997-12-18
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: aid policy, customs cooperation, customs regulations

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(Acts  adopted  under  Title  VI  of  the  Treaty  on  European  Union)

COUNCIL  ACT

of  18  December  1997

drawing  up,  on  the  basis  of  Article  K.3  of  the  Treaty  on  European  Union,  the  Convention  on
mutual  assistance  and  cooperation  between  customs  administrations

(98/C  24/01)

THE  COUNCIL  OF  THE  EUROPEAN  UNION,

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  European  Union,  and  in  particular  point  c  of  Article  K.3(2)
thereof,

Whereas  for  the  purposes  of  achieving  the  objectives  of  the  Union,  Member  States  regard
customs  cooperation  as  a  matter  of  common  interest,  coming  under  the  cooperation  provided
for  in  Title  VI  of  the  Treaty;

HAVING  DECIDED that the Convention, the text of which is given in the Annex and which has
been  signed  today  by  the  representatives  of  the  Governments  of  the  Member  States,  is  hereby
drawn  up,

RECOMMENDS  that  it  be  adopted  by  the  Member  States  in  accordance  with  their  respective
constitutional  requirements.

Done  at  Brussels,  18  December  1997.

For  the  Council

The  President

F.  BODEN

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drawn  up  on  the  basis  of  Article  K.3  of  the  Treaty  on  European  Union,  on  mutual  assistance
and  cooperation  between  customs  administrations

CONVENTION

THE  HIGH  CONTRACTING  PARTIES  to  this  Convention,  Member  States  of  the  European  Union,

REFERRING  to  the  Act  of  the  Council  of  the  European  Union  of  18  December  1997,

RECALLING  the  need  to  strengthen  the  commitments  contained  in  the  Convention  on  mutual  assistance
between  customs  administrations,  signed  in  Rome  on  7  September  1967,

CONSIDERING  that  customs  administrations  are  responsible  on  the  customs  territory  of  the  Community
and,  in  particular  at  its  points  of  entry  and  exit,  for  the  prevention,  investigation  and  suppression  of
offences not only against Community rules, but also against national laws, in particular the cases covered by
Articles  36  and  223  of  the  Treaty  establishing  the  European  Community,

CONSIDERING  that  a  serious  threat  to  public  health,  morality  and  security  is  constituted  by  the
developing  trend  towards  illicit  trafficking  of  all  kinds,

CONSIDERING  that  particular  forms  of  cooperation  involving  cross-border  actions  for  the  prevention,
investigation and prosecution of certain infringements of both the national legislation of the Member States
and  Community  customs  regulations  should  be  regulated,  and  that  such  cross-border  actions  must  always
be carried out in compliance with the principles of legality (conforming with the relevant law applicable in
the  requested  Member  State  and  with  the  Directives  of  the  competent  authorities  of  that  Member  State),
subsidiarity  (such  actions  to  be  launched  only  if  it  is  clear  that  other  less  significant  actions  are  not
appropriate)  and  proportionality  (the  scale  and  duration  of  the  action  to  be  determined  in  the  light  of  the
seriousness  of  the  presumed  infringement),

CONVINCED  that  it  is  necessary  to  reinforce  cooperation  between  customs  administrations,  by  laying
down  procedures  under  which  customs  administrations  may  act  jointly  and  exchange  data  concerned  with
illicit trafficking activities,

BEARING  IN  MIND  that  the  customs  administrations  in  their  day-to-day  work  have  to  implement  both
Community  and  national  provisions,  and  that  there  is  consequently  an  obvious  need  to  ensure  that  the
provisions  of  mutual  assistance  and  cooperation  in  both  sectors  evolve  as  far  as  possible  in  parallel,

HAVE  AGREED  ON  THE  FOLLOWING  PROVISIONS:

TITLE  I

GENERAL  PROVISIONS

—  prosecuting 

and 

punishing 

infringements 

of

Community  and  national  customs  provisions.

Article  1

Scope

to 

the  competences  of 

the
1. Without  prejudice 
Community,  the  Member  States  of  the  European  Union
shall provide each other with mutual assistance and shall
cooperate  with  one  another  through  their  customs
administrations,  with  a  view  to:

—  preventing  and  detecting  infringements  of  national

customs  provisions,

and

in 

agreements 

criminal  matters  between 

2. Without  prejudice  to  Article  3,  this  Convention  shall
not  affect  the  provisions  applicable  regarding  mutual
assistance 
judicial
authorities,  more  favourable  provisions  in  bilateral  or
multilateral 
States
governing  cooperation  as  provided  for  in  paragraph  1
between  the  customs  authorities  or  other  competent
authorities  of  the  Member  States,  or  arrangements  in  the
same field agreed on the basis of uniform legislation or of
a  special  system  providing  for  the  reciprocal  application
of  measures  of  mutual  assistance.

between  Member 

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Article  2

Powers

The  customs  administrations  shall  apply  this  Convention
with the limits of the powers conferred upon them under
national  provisions.  Nothing  in  this  Convention  may  be
construed  as  affecting  the  powers  conferred  under
national  provisions  upon  the  customs  administrations
within  the  meaning  of  this  Convention.

Article  3

Relationship  to  mutual  assistance  provided  by  the
judicial authorities

1. This  Convention  covers  mutual  assistance  and
cooperation  in  the  framework  of  criminal  investigations
concerning  infringements  of  national  and  Community
customs  provisions,  concerning  which  the  applicant
authority  has  jurisdiction  on  the  basis  of  the  national
provisions  of  the  relevant  Member  State.

2. Where  a  criminal  investigation  is  carried  out  by  or
under  the  direction  of  a  judicial  authority,  that  authority
shall determine whether requests for mutual assistance or
cooperation  in  that  connection  shall  be  submitted  on  the
basis  of  the  provisions  applicable  concerning  mutual
assistance  in  criminal  matters  or  on  the  basis  of  this
Convention.

Article  4

Definitions

For  the  purposes  of  this  Convention,  the  following
definitions  shall  apply:

1.  ‘national  customs  provisions’:  all  laws,  regulations
and  administrative  provisions  of  a  Member  State  the
application  of  which  comes  wholly  or  partly  within
the  jurisdiction  of  the  customs  administration  of  the
Member  State  concerning:

—  cross-border  traffic  in  goods  subject  to  bans,
restrictions  or  controls,  in  particular  pursuant  to
Articles 36 and 223 of the Treaty establishing the
European  Community,

—  non-harmonised  excise  duties;

2.  ‘Community  customs  provisions’:

—  the body of Community provisions and associated
implementing  provisions  governing  the  import,
export,  transit  and  presence  of  goods  traded
between  Member  States  and  third  countries,  and
between  Member  States  in  the  case  of  goods  that
the
do  not  have  Community  status  within 

meaning  of  Article  9(2)  of  the  Treaty  establishing
the  European  Community  or  goods  subject  to
additional  controls  or 
the
purposes  of  establishing  their  Community  status,

investigations 

for 

—  the  body  of  provisions  adopted  at  Community
level  under  the  common  agricultural  policy  and
the  specific  provisions  adopted  with  regard  to
goods resulting from the processing of agricultural
products,

—  the  body  of  provisions  adopted  at  Community
level 
for
for  harmonised  excise  duties  and 
value-added  tax  on  importation  together  with  the
national  provisions  implementing  them;

3.  ‘infringement’:  acts 

in  conflict  with  national  or
Community  customs  provisions,  including,  inter alia:

—  participation  in,  or  attempts  to  commit,  such

infringements,

—  participation 

in 

a 

criminal 

organization

committing  such  infringements,

—  the 

laundering  of  money  deriving  from  the

infringements  referred  to  in  this  paragraph;

4.  ‘mutual assistance’: the granting of assistance between
in  this

customs  administrations  as  provided  for 
Convention;

5.  ‘applicant  authority’:  the  competent  authority  of  the
Member  State  which  makes  a  request  for  assistance;

6.  ‘requested  authority’:  the  competent  authority  of  the
Member  State  to  which  a  request  for  assistance  is
made;

7.  ‘customs  administrations’:  Member  States’  customs
authorities  as  well  as  other  authorities  with
jurisdiction  for  implementing  the  provisions  of  this
Convention;

8.  ‘personal  data’:  all 

information  relating 

to  an
identified  or  identifiable  natural  person;  a  person  is
considered  to  be  identifiable  if  he  or  she  can  be
directly or indirectly identified, inter alia by means of
an  identification  number  or  of  one  or  more  specific
elements  which  are  characteristic  of  his  or  her
physical,  physiological,  psychological,  economic,
cultural  or  social  identity;

9.  ‘cross-border 

cooperation’: 

cooperation  between
customs  administrations  across  the  borders  of  each
Member  State.

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Article  5

(c)  providing  support 

in  dealing  with  requests  for

assistance;

Central  coordinating  units

in 

1. Member  States  shall  appoint 
their  customs
authorities  a  central  unit  (coordinating  unit).  It  shall  be
responsible  for  receiving  all  applications  for  mutual
assistance  under  this  Convention  and  for  coordinating
mutual assistance, without prejudice to paragraph 2. The
unit  shall  also  be  responsible  for  cooperation  with  other
authorities  involved  in  an  assistance  measure  under  this
Convention. The coordinating units of the Member States
shall  maintain  the  necessary  direct  contact  with  each
other,  particularly  in  the  cases  covered  by  Title  IV.

2. The activity of the central coordinating units shall not
exclude,  particularly  in  an  emergency,  direct  cooperation
between  other  services  of  the  customs  authorities  of  the
Member States. For reasons of efficiency and consistency,
the  central  coordinating  units  shall  be  informed  of  any
action  involving  such  direct  cooperation.

3.
If  the  customs  authority  is  not,  or  not  completely,
competent  to  process  a  request,  the  central  coordinating
unit  shall  forward  the  request  to  the  competent  national
authority  and  inform  the  applicant  authority  that  it  has
done  so.

4.
If  it  is  not  possible  to  accede  to  the  request  for  legal
or  substantive  reasons,  the  coordinating  unit  shall  return
the 
the  applicant  authority  with  an
explanation  as  to  why  the  request  could  not  be
processed.

request 

to 

Article  6

Liaison  officers

1. Member  States  may  make  agreements  between
themselves  on  the  exchange  of  liaison  officers  for  limited
or 
on  mutually-agreed
conditions.

unlimited 

periods, 

and 

2. Liaison  officers  shall  have  no  powers  of  intervention
in  the  host  country.

3.
In  order  to  promote  cooperation  between  Member
States’ customs administrations, liaison officers may, with
the  agreement  or  at  the  request  of  the  competent
authorities  of  the  Member  States,  have  the  following
duties:

(a)  promoting  and 

speeding  up 

the  exchange  of

information  between  the  Member  States;

(b) providing  assistance  in  investigations  which  relate  to
their  own  Member  State  or  the  Member  State  they
represent;

(d) advising  and  assisting  the  host  country  in  preparing

and  carrying  out  cross-border  operations;

(e)  any  other  duties  which  Member  States  may  agree

between  themselves.

4. Member  States  may  agree  bilaterally  of  multilaterally
on  the  terms  of  reference  and  the  location  of  the  liaison
officers.  Liaison  officers  may  also  represent  the  interests
of  one  or  more  Member  States.

Article  7

Obligation  to  prove  identity

Unless  otherwise  specified  in  this  Convention,  officers  of
the  applicant  authority  present  in  another  Member  State
in  order  to  exercise  the  rights 
in  this
Convention  shall  at  all  times  be  able  to  produce  written
their  official
authority 
functions.

identity  and 

laid  down 

stating 

their 

TITLE  II

ASSISTANCE  ON  REQUEST

Article  8

Principles

In  order  to  provide  the  assistance  required  under  this
1.
Title,  the  requested  authority  or  the  competent  authority
which  it  has  addressed  shall  proceed  as  though  it  were
acting  on  its  own  account  or  at  the  request  of  another
authority  in  its  own  Member  State.  In  so  doing  it  shall
avail  itself  of  all  the  legal  powers  at  its  disposal  within
the framework of its national law in order to respond to
the  request.

2. The requested authority shall extend this assistance to
all  circumstances  of  the  infringement  which  have  any
recognisable  bearing  on  the  subject  of  the  request  for
assistance  without  this  requiring  any  additional  request.
In  case  of  doubt,  the  requested  authority  shall  firstly
contact  the  applicant  authority.

Article  9

Form  and  content  of  the  request  for  assistance

1. Requests  for  assistance  shall  always  be  made  in
writing.  Documents  necessary  for  the  execution  of  such
requests  shall  accompany  the  request.

2. Requests  pursuant  to  paragraph  1  shall  include  the
following  information:

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(a)  the  applicant  authority  making  the  request;

Article  11

(b) the  measure  requested;

Requests  for  surveillance

(c)  the  object  of,  and  the  reason  for,  the  request;

(d) the  laws,  rules  and  other  legal  provisions  involved;

(e)  indications as exact and comprehensive as possible on
the  natural  or  legal  persons  being  the  target  of  the
investigations;

(f)  a  summary  of  the  relevant  facts,  except  in  cases

provided  for  in  Article  13.

3. Requests shall be submitted in an official language of
the  Member  State  of  the  requested  authority  or  in  a
language  acceptable  to  such  authority.

4. When  required  because  of  the  urgency  of  the
situation,  oral  requests  shall  be  accepted,  but  must  be
confirmed  in  writing  as  soon  as  possible.

5.
If  a  request  does  not  meet  the  formal  requirements,
the  requested  authority  may  ask  for  it  to  be  corrected  or
completed;  measures  necessary  to  comply  with  the
request  may  be  commenced  in  the  meantime.

6. The  requested  authority  shall  agree  to  apply  a
particular  procedure  in  response  to  a  request,  provided
that  that  procedure  is  not  in  conflict  with  the  legal  and
administrative  provisions  of  the  requested  Member
State.

Article  10

Requests  for  information

1. At  the  request  of  the  applicant  authority,  the
requested  authority 
it  all
information  which  may  enable  it  to  prevent,  detect  and
prosecute  infringements.

shall  communicate 

to 

At  the  request  of  the  applicant  authority,  the  requested
authority  shall  as  far  as  possible  keep  a  special  watch  or
arrange  for  a  special  watch  to  be  kept  on  persons  where
there  are  serious  grounds  for  believing  that  they  have
infringed  Community  or  national  customs  provisions  or
that they are committing or have carried out preparatory
acts  with  a  view 
such
infringements.  At  the  request  of  the  applicant  authority,
the requested authority shall also keep a watch on places,
means  of  transport  and  goods  connected  with  activities
which might be in breach of the abovementioned customs
provisions.

the  commission  of 

to 

Article  12

Requests  for  enquiries

1. The  requested  authority  shall  at  the  request  of  the
applicant  authority  carry  out,  or  arrange  to  have  carried
out,  appropriate  enquiries  concerning  operations  which
constitute,  or  appear  to  the  applicant  authority  to
constitute,  infringements.

The  requested  authority  shall  communicate  the  results  of
such  enquiries  to  the  applicant  authority.  Article  10(2)
shall  apply  mutatis  mutandis.

2. By agreement between the applicant authority and the
requested  authority,  officers  appointed  by  the  applicant
authority  may  be  present  at  the  enquiries  referred  to  in
paragraph 1. Enquiries shall at all times be carried out by
officers  of 
the  requested  authority.  The  applicant
authority’s  officers  may  not,  of  their  own  initiative,
assume the powers conferred on officers of the requested
authority.  They  shall,  however,  have  access  to  the  same
premises  and  the  same  documents  as  the  latter,  through
their intermediary and for the sole purpose of the enquiry
being  carried  out.

2. The information communicated is to be accompanied
by  reports  and  other  documents,  or  certified  copies  or
extracts  of  the  same,  on  which  that  information  is  based
and  which  are  in  the  possession  of  the  request  authority
or  which  were  produced  or  obtained  in  order  to  execute
the  request  for  information.

3. By agreement between the applicant authority and the
requested  authority,  officers  authorised  by  the  applicant
authority  may,  subject  to  detailed  instructions  from  the
requested  authority,  obtain 
information  pursuant  to
paragraph  1  from  the  offices  of  the  requested  Member
State. This shall apply to all information derived from the
documentation  to  which  the  staff  of  those  offices  have
access.  Those  officers  shall  be  authorised  to  take  copies
of  the  said  documentation.

Article  13

Notification

1. At  the  request  of  the  applicant  authority,  the
requested authority shall, in accordance with the national
rules of the Member State in which it is based, notify the
addressee  or  have  it  notified  of  all  instruments  or
decisions  which  emanate  from  the  competent  authorities
of  the  Member  State  in  which  the  applicant  authority  is
based  and  concern  the  application  of  this  Convention.

2. Requests  for  notification,  mentioning  the  subject  of
the  instrument  or  decision  to  be  notified,  shall  be
accompanied  by  a  translation  in  the  official  language  or
an  official  language  of  the  Member  State  in  which  the

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requested  authority  is  based,  without  prejudice  to  the
latter’s  right  to  waive  such  a  translation.

concerning  planned  or  committed  infringements  and,  in
particular,  information  concerning  the  goods  involved
and  new  ways  and  means  of  committing 
such
infringements.

Article  14

Use  as  evidence

Article  18

Use  as  evidence

Findings,  certificates,  information,  documents,  certified
true copies and other papers obtained in accordance with
their  national  law  by  officers  of  the  requested  authority
and transmitted to the applicant authority in the cases of
assistance  provided  for  in  Articles  10  to  12  may  be  used
as  evidence  in  accordance  with  national  law  by  the
competent  bodies  of  the  Member  State  where  the
applicant  authority  is  based.

Surveillance reports and information obtained by officers
of  one  Member  State  and  communicated  to  another
Member State in the course of the spontaneous assistance
provided  for  in  Articles  15  to  17  may  be  used  in
accordance  with  national 
law  as  evidence  by  the
competent  bodies  of  the  Member  State  receiving  the
information.

TITLE  III

SPONTANEOUS  ASSISTANCE

Article  15

Principle

The competent authorities of each Member State shall, as
laid  down 
in  Articles  16  and  17,  subject  to  any
limitations imposed by national law, provide assistance to
the  competent  authorities  of  the  other  Member  States
without  prior  request.

Article  16

Surveillance

Where it serves the prevention, detection and prosecution
of  infringements  in  another  Member  State,  each  Member
State’s  competent  authorities  shall:

(a)  as  far  as  is  possible  keep,  or  have  kept,  the  special

watch  described  in  Article  11;

(b) communicate  to  the  competent  authorities  of  the
other  Member  States  concerned  all  information  in
their  possession  and,  in  particular,  reports  and  other
documents or certified true copies or extracts thereof,
concerning  operations  which  are  connected  with  a
planned  or  committed  infringement.

Article  17

Spontaneous  information

The  competent  authorities  of  each  Member  State  shall
immediately  send  to  the  competent  authorities  of  the
other  Member  States  concerned  all  relevant  information

TITLE  IV

SPECIAL  FORMS  OF  COOPERATION

Article  19

Principles

1. Customs  administrations  shall  engage  in  cross-border
cooperation  in  accordance  with  this  Title.  They  shall
provide each other with the necessary assistance in terms
of  staff  and  organisational  support.  Requests 
for
cooperation shall, as a rule, take the form of requests for
assistance  in  accordance  with  Article  9.  In  specific  cases
referred to in this Title, officers of the applicant authority
may  engage  in  activities  in  the  territory  of  the  requested
State,  with  the  approval  of  the  requested  authority.

Coordination  and  planning  of  cross-border  operations
shall  be  the  responsibility  of  the  central  coordinating
units  in  accordance  with  Article  5.

2. Cross-border  cooperation  within  the  meaning  of
paragraph  1  shall  be  permitted  for  the  prevention,
investigation  and  prosecution  of  infringements  in  cases
of:

(a)  illicit  traffic  in  drugs  and  psychotropic  substances,
weapons,  munitions,  explosive  materials,  cultural
goods, dangerous and toxic waste, nuclear material or
materials  or  equipment  intended  for  the  manufacture
of  atomic,  biological  and/or  chemical  weapons
(prohibited  goods);

(b) trade  in  substances  listed  in  Tables  I  and  II  of  the
United  Nations  Convention  against  illicit  traffic  in
narcotic  drugs  and  psychotropic  substances  and
intended 
illegal  manufacture  of  drugs
(precursor  substances);

the 

for 

(c)  illegal cross-border commercial trade in taxable goods
to  evade  tax  or  to  obtain  unauthorised  State
payments  in  connection  with  the  import  or  export  of
goods,  where  the  extent  of  the  trade  and  the  related
to
risk 

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taxes and subsidies is such that the potential financial
cost  to  the  budget  of  the  European  Communities  or
the  Member  States  is  considerable;

Member State shall be treated in the same way as officers
of  that  State  as  regards  infringements  committed  against
them  or  by  them.

(d) any other trade in goods prohibited by Community or

national  rules.

3. The  requested  authority  shall  not  be  obliged  to
engage in the specific forms of cooperation referred to in
this  Title  if  the  type  of  investigation  sought  is  not
permitted  or  not  provided  for  under  the  national  law  of
the  requested  Member  State.  In  this  case,  the  applicant
authority  shall  be  entitled  to  refuse,  for  the  same  reason,
the corresponding type of cross-border cooperation in the
reverse  case,  where  it  is  requested  by  an  authority  of  the
requested  Member  State.

for  approval  of 

4.
If  necessary  under  the  national  law  of  the  Member
States,  the  participating  authorities  shall  apply  to  their
judicial  authorities 
the  planned
investigations.  Where  the  competent  judicial  authorities
make  their  approval  subject  to  certain  conditions  and
requirements,  the  participating  authorities  shall  ensure
that  those  conditions  and  requirements  are  observed  in
the  course  of  the  investigations.

5. Where officers of a Member State engage in activities
in the territory of another Member State by virtue of this
Title  and  cause  damage  by  their  activities,  the  Member
State  in  whose  territory  the  damage  was  caused  shall
make  good  the  damage,  in  accordance  with  its  national
legislation  in  the  same  way  as  it  would  have  done  if  the
damage  had  been  caused  by  its  own  officers.  That
Member  State  will  be  reimbursed  in  full  by  the  Member
State  whose  officers  have  caused  the  damage  for  the
amounts  it  has  paid  to  the  victims  or  to  other  entitled
persons  or  institutions.

6. Without prejudice to the exercise of its rights vis-à-vis
third  parties and notwithstanding  the obligation  to make
good  damages  according  to  the  second  sentence  of
paragraph 5, each Member State shall refrain, in the case
provided  for  in  the  first  sentence  of  paragraph  5,  from
requesting  reimbursement  of  the  amount  of  damages  it
has  sustained  from  another  Member  State.

7.
Information  obtained  by  officers  during  cross-border
cooperation  provided  for  in  Articles  20  to  24  may  be
used,  in  accordance  with  national  law  and  subject  to
particular  conditions 
laid  down  by  the  competent
authorities  of  the  State  in  which  the  information  was
obtained,  as  evidence  by  the  competent  bodies  of  the
Member  State  receiving  the  information.

Article  20

Hot  pursuit

in 

the  act  of  committing  one  of 

1. Officers  of  the  customs  administration  of  one  of  the
Member  States  pursuing  in  their  country,  an  individual
observed 
the
infringements  referred  to  in  Article  19(2)  which  could
give  rise  to  extradition,  or  participating  in  such  an
infringement,  shall  be  authorised  to  continue  pursuit  in
the  territory  of  another  Member  State  without  prior
authorisation  where,  given  the  particular  urgency  of  the
situation,  it  was  not  possible  to  notify  the  competent
authorities of the other Member State prior to entry into
that territory or where these authorities have been unable
to  reach  the  scene  in  time  to  take  the  pursuit.

The  pursuing  officers  shall,  not  later  than  when  they
cross the border, contact the competent authorities of the
Member  State  in  whose  territory  the  pursuit  is  to  take
place.  The  pursuit  shall  cease  as  soon  as  the  Member
State  in  whose  territory  the  pursuit  is  taking  place  so
requests.  At  the  request  of  the  pursuing  officers,  the
competent  authorities  of  the  said  Member  State  shall
challenge  the  pursued  person  so  as  to  establish  his
identity or to arrest him. Member States shall inform the
depositary  of  the  pursuing  officers  to  whom  this
provision  applies;  the  depositary  shall  inform  the  other
Member  States.

2. The  pursuit  shall  be  carried  out  in  accordance  with
the  following  procedures,  defined  by  the  declaration
provided  for  in  paragraph  6:

(a)  the  pursuing  officers  shall  not  have  the  right  to

apprehend;

(b) however,  if  no  request  to  cease  the  pursuit  is  made
and if the competent authorities of the Member State
in  whose  territory  the  pursuit  is  taking  place  are
unable  to  intervene  quickly  enough,  the  pursuing
officers  may  apprehend  the  person  pursued  until  the
officers  of  the  said  Member  State,  who  must  be
informed  without  delay,  are  able  to  establish  his
identity  or  arrest  him.

3. Pursuit  shall  be  carried  out  in  accordance  with
paragraphs  1  and  2  in  one  of  the  following  ways  as
defined  by  the  declaration  provided  for  in  paragraph  6:

8.
In  the  course  of  the  operations  referred  to  in  Articles
20  to  24,  officers  on  mission  in  the  territory  of  another

(a)  in an area or during a period, as from the crossing of
the  border,  to  be  established  in  the  declaration;

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(b) without  limit  in  space  or  time.

4. Pursuit  shall  be  subject  to  the  following  general
conditions:

(a)  the pursuing officers shall comply with the provisions
of  this  Article  and  with  the  law  of  the  Member  State
in  whose  territory  they  are  operating;  they  shall  obey
the  instructions  of  the  competent  authorities  of  the
said  Member  State;

(b) when  the  pursuit  takes  place  on  the  sea,  it  shall,
where  it  extends  to  the  high  sea  or  the  exclusive
economic zone, be carried out in conformity with the
international  law  of  the  sea  as  reflected  in  the  United
Nations  Convention  on  the  Law  of  the  Sea,  and,
when  it  takes  place  in  the  territory  of  another
Member  State,  it  shall  be  carried  out  in  accordance
with  the  provisions  of  this  Article;

(c)  entry  into  private  homes  and  places  not  accessible  to

the  public  shall  be  prohibited;

(d) the pursuing officers shall be easily identifiable, either
by  their  uniform  or  an  armband  or  by  means  of
accessories  fitted  to  their  means  of  transport;  the  use
of civilian clothes combined with the use of unmarked
means  of  transport  without  the  aforementioned
identification is prohibited; the pursuing officers shall
at all times be able to prove that they are acting in an
official capacity;

(e)  the pursuing officers may carry their service weapons,
save  (i)  where  the  requested  Member  State  has  made
a  general  declaration  that  weapons  may  never  be
carried  into  its  territory  or  (ii)  where  specifically
decided  otherwise  by  the  requested  Member  State.
When officers of another Member State are permitted
to  carry  their  service  weapons,  their  use  shall  be
prohibited  save  in  cases  of  legitimate  self-defence;

(f)  once  the  pursued  person  has  been  apprehended  as
provided  for  in  paragraph  2(b),  for  the  purpose  of
bringing  him  before  the  competent  authorities  of  the
Member  State  in  whose  territory  the  pursuit  took
place  he  may  be  subjected  only  to  a  security  search;
handcuffs  may  be  used  during  his  transfer;  objects
carried  by  the  pursued  person  may  be  seized;

where the pursuit has not resulted in the arrest of the
pursued  person;

(h) the  authorities  of  the  Member  State  from  which  the
pursuing  officers  have  come  shall,  when  requested  by
the authorities of the Member State in whose territory
the  pursuit  took  place,  assist  the  enquiry  subsequent
to  the  operation  in  which  they  took  part,  including
legal proceedings.

5. A  person  who,  following  the  action  provided  for  in
paragraph  2,  has  been  arrested  by  the  competent
authorities  of  the  Member  State  in  whose  territory  the
pursuit took place may, whatever his nationality, be held
for  questioning.  The  relevant  rules  of  national  law  shall
apply  mutatis  mutandis.

If  the  person  is  not  a  national  of  the  Member  State  in
whose  territory  he  was  arrested,  he  shall  be  released  no
later  than  six  hours  after  his  arrest,  not  including  the
hours between midnight and 9 a.m., unless the competent
authorities  of  the  said  Member  State  have  previously
received  a  request  for  his  provisional  arrest  for  the
purposes  of  extradition  in  any  form.

6. On  signing  this  convention,  each  Member  State  shall
make  a  declaration  in  which  it  shall  define,  on  the  basis
of  paragraphs  2,  3  and  4, 
for
implementing  pursuit  in  its  territory.

the  procedures 

A  Member  State  may  at  any  time  replace  its  declaration
by  another  declaration,  provided  the  latter  does  not
restrict  the  scope  of  the  former.

Each  declaration  shall  be  made  after  consultations  with
each of the Member States concerned and with a view to
obtaining  equivalent  arrangements  in  those  States.

7. Member  States  may,  on  a  bilateral  basis,  extend  the
scope  of  paragraph  1  and  adopt  additional  provisions  in
implementation  of  this  Article.

8. When  depositing  its  instruments  of  adoption  of  this
Convention,  a  Member  State  may  declare  that  it  is  not
bound by this Article or by part thereof. Such declaration
may  be  withdrawn  at  any  time.

Article  21

Cross-border  surveillance

(g)  after  each  operation  mentioned  in  paragraphs  1,  2
and  3,  the  pursuing  officers  shall  present  themselves
before the competent authorities of the Member State
in  whose  territory  they  were  operating  and  shall  give
an  account  of  their  mission;  at  the  request  of  those
authorities,  they  must  remain  at  their  disposal  until
the  circumstances  of 
their  action  have  been
adequately  elucidated;  this  condition  shall  apply  even

1. Officers  of  the  customs  administration  of  one  of  the
Member  States  who  are  keeping  under  observation  in
their  country  persons  in  respect  of  whom  there  are
serious  grounds  for  believing  that  they  are  involved  in
one of the infringements referred to in Article 19(2) shall
be  authorised  to  continue  their  observation 
in  the
territory  of  another  Member  State  where  the  latter  has

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authorised  cross-border  observation  in  response  to  a
for  assistance  which  has  previously  been
request 
submitted.  Conditions  may  be  attached 
the
authorisation.

to 

(b) except  in  the  situations  provided  for  in  paragraph  2,
the  officers  shall,  during  the  observation,  carry  a
document  certifying  that  authorisation  has  been
granted;

Member States shall inform the depositary of the officers
to  whom  this  provision  applies;  the  depositary  shall
inform  the  other  Member  States.

On  request,  the  observation  shall  be  entrusted  to  officers
of  the  Member  State  in  whose  territory  it  is  carried  out.

The request referred to in the first subparagraph shall be
sent  to  an  authority  designated  by  each  of  the  Member
States empowered to grant the requested authorisation or
pass  on  the  request.

(c)  the  officers  conducting  the  observation  shall  be  able
at all times to provide proof that they are acting in an
official capacity;

(d) the  officers  conducting  the  observation  may  carry
their  service  weapons  during  the  observation  save  (i)
where  the  requested  Member  State  has  made  a
general  declaration  that  weapons  may  never  be
carried  into  its  territory  or  (ii)  where  specifically
decided  otherwise  by  the  requested  Member  State.
When officers of another Member State are permitted
to  carry  their  service  weapons,  their  use  shall  be
prohibited  save  in  cases  of  legitimate  self-defence;

(e)  entry  into  private  homes  and  places  not  accessible  to

the  public  shall  be  prohibited;

inform  the  depositary  of  the
Member  States  shall 
authority designated for this purpose; the depositary shall
inform  the  other  Member  States.

(f)  the  officers  conducting  the  observation  may  neither
challenge  nor  arrest  the  person  under  observation;

for  particularly  urgent 

reasons,  prior
2. Where, 
authorisation  of  the  other  Member  State  cannot  be
requested, the officers conducting the observation shall be
authorised to continue beyond the border the observation
of  persons  in  respect  of  whom  there  are  serious  grounds
for  believing  that  they  are  involved  in  one  of  the
infringements  referred  to  in  Article  19(2),  provided  that
the  following  conditions  are  met:

(a)  the  competent  authorities  of  the  Member  State  in
whose  territory  the  observation  is  to  be  continued
shall  be  notified  immediately  of  the  crossing  of  the
border,  during  the  observation;

(b) a  request  submitted  in  accordance  with  paragraph  1
and  outlining  the  grounds  for  crossing  the  border
without  prior  authorisation  shall  be  submitted
without  delay.

Observation  shall  cease  as  soon  as  the  Member  State  in
whose  territory  it  is  taking  place  so  requests,  following
the  notification  referred  to  in  (a)  or  the  request  referred
to  in  (b),  or  where  authorisation  has  not  been  obtained
five  hours  after  the  border  was  crossed.

3. The  observation  referred  to  in  paragraph  1  and  2
shall  be  carried  out  only  under  the  following  general
conditions:

(g)  all  operations  shall  be  the  subject  of  a  report  to  the
authorities  of  the  Member  State  in  whose  territory
they 
the
observation  may  be  required  to  appear  in  person;

the  officers  conducting 

took  place; 

(h) the  authorities  of  the  Member  State  from  which  the
observing officers have come shall, when requested by
the authorities of the Member State in whose territory
the  observation 
the  enquiry
subsequent  to  the  operation  in  which  they  took  part,
including legal proceedings.

took  place,  assist 

4. The Member States may, at bilateral level, extend the
scope  of  this  Article  and  adopt  additional  measures  in
implementation  thereof.

5. When  depositing  its  instruments  of  adoption  of  this
Convention,  a  Member  State  may  declare  that  it  is  not
bound by this Article or by part thereof. Such declaration
may  be  withdrawn  at  any  time.

Article  22

Controlled delivery

(a)  the  officers  conducting  the  observation  shall  comply
with the provisions of this Article and with the law of
the  Member  State 
in  whose  territory  they  are
operating;  they  must  obey  the  instructions  of  the
competent  authorities  of  the  said  Member  State;

1. Each Member State shall undertake to ensure that, at
the  request  of  another  Member  State,  controlled
deliveries  may  be  permitted  on  its  territory  in  the
framework  of  criminal  investigations  into  extraditable
offences.

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in  each 

2. The decision to carry out controlled deliveries shall be
taken 
the  competent
individual  case  by 
authorities  of  the  requested  Member  State,  with  due
regard  for  the  national  law  of  that  State.

3. Controlled  deliveries  shall  take  place  in  accordance
with  the  procedures  of  the  requested  Member  State.
Competence to act and to direct operations shall lie with
the  competent  authorities  of  that  Member  State.

The  requested  authority  shall  take  over  control  of  the
delivery when the goods cross the border or at an agreed
hand-over  point  in  order  to  avoid  any  interruption  of
surveillance. During the rest of the journey it shall ensure
that the goods are kept permanently under surveillance in
such  a  way  that  at  any  time  it  has  the  possibility  of
arresting  the  perpetrators  and  seizing  the  goods.

determined by the requested authority in accordance with
its  national  law.

4. The  requested  authority  shall  provide  the  necessary
manpower  and  technical  support.  It  shall  take  measures
to  protect  the  officers  referred  to  in  paragraph  1,  while
they  are  active  in  the  requested  Member  State.

5. When  depositing  its  instruments  of  adoption  of  this
Convention,  a  Member  State  may  declare  that  it  is  not
bound  by  this  Article  or  part  thereof.  Such  declaration
may  be  withdrawn  at  any  time.

Article  24

Joint  special  investigation  teams

4. Consignments  the  controlled  delivery  of  which  is
agreed  to  may,  with  the  consent  of  the  Member  States
concerned,  be  intercepted  and  allowed  to  continue  with
the  initial  contents  intact  or  removed  or  replaced  in
whole  or  in  part.

1. By  mutual  agreement,  the  authorities  of  several
Member  States  may  set  up  a  joint  special  investigation
team  based  in  a  Member  State  and  comprising  officers
with  the  relevant  specialisations.

Article  23

Covert  investigations

1. At  the  request  of  the  applicant  authority,  the
requested authority may authorise officers of the customs
administration of the requesting Member State or officers
acting  on  behalf  of  such  administration  operating  under
cover  of  a  false  identity  (covert  investigators)  to  operate
on  the  territory  of  the  requested  Member  State.  The
applicant  authority  shall  make  the  request  only  where  it
would  be  extremely  difficult  to  elucidate  the  facts
without  recourse  to  the  proposed  investigative  measures.
The  officers  in  question  shall  be  authorised  in  the  course
of their activities to collect information and make contact
with  subjects  or  other  persons  associated  with  them.

2. Covert  investigations  in  the  requested  Member  State
shall  have  a  limited  duration.  The  preparation  and
supervision  of  the  investigations  shall  take  place  in  close
cooperation  between  the  relevant  authorities  of  the
requested  and  applicant  Member  States.

3. The  conditions  under  which  a  covert  investigation  is
allowed,  as  well  as  the  conditions  under  which  it  is
carried  out,  shall  be  determined  by  the  requested
authority  in  accordance  with  its  national  law.  If,  in  the
course  of  a  covert  investigation,  information  is  acquired
in relation to an infringement other than that covered by
the  original  request,  then  the  conditions  concerning  the
use  to  which  such  information  may  be  put  shall  also  be

The  joint  special  investigation  team  shall  have  the
following  tasks:

of 

—  implementation 

demanding
investigations  of  specific 
infringements,  requiring
simultaneous,  coordinated  action  in  the  Member
States  concerned,

difficult 

and 

—  coordination  of  joint  activities  to  prevent  and  detect
particular 
and  obtain
information  on  the  persons  involved,  their  associates
and  the  methods  used.

infringement 

types  of 

Joint  special  investigation  teams  shall  operate  under

2.
the  following  general  conditions:

(a)  they  shall  be  set  up  only  for  a  specific  purpose  and

for  a  limited  period;

(b) an officer from the Member State in which the team’s

activities  take  place  shall  head  the  team;

(c)  the participating officers shall be bound by the law of
the  Member  State  in  whose  territory  the  team’s
activities take place;

(d) the  Member  State  in  which  the  team’s  activities  take
the  necessary  organisational

place 
arrangements  for  the  team  to  operate.

shall  make 

3. Membership  of  the  team  shall  not  bestow  on  officers
any  powers  of  intervention  in  the  territory  of  another
Member  State.

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TITLE  V

DATA  PROTECTION

(d) the forwarding and receipt of exchanged data shall be

recorded  by  the  authorities  concerned;

Article  25

Data  protection  for  the  exchange  of  data

information 

is  exchanged, 

the  relevant  provisions  of 

the  customs
1. When 
administrations  shall  take  into  account  in  each  specific
case the requirements for the protection of personal data.
They  shall  respect 
the
Convention of the Council of Europe of 28 January 1981
for the protection of individuals with regard to automatic
processing  of  personal  data.  In  the  interest  of  data
protection,  a  Member  State  may,  in  accordance  with
paragraph 2, impose conditions concerning the processing
of personal data by another Member State to which such
personal  data  may  be  passed.

the  provisions  of 

2. Without  prejudice 
the
to 
Convention concerning the use of information technology
for  customs  purposes,  the  following  provisions  shall
apply to personal data which are communicated pursuant
to  the  application  of  this  Convention:

(a)  processing  of  the  personal  data  by  the  recipient
authority  shall  be  authorised  only  for  the  purpose
referred  to  in  Article  1(1).  That  authority  may
forward  them,  without  prior  consent  from  the
its  customs
Member  State  supplying 
administrations,  its  investigative  authorities  and  its
judicial  bodies  to  enable  them  to  prosecute  and
punish  infringements  within  the  meaning  of  Article
4(3).  In  all  other  cases  of  data  transmission,  the
consent  of  the  Member  State  which  supplied  the
information  is  necessary;

them, 

to 

(b) the 

authority  of 

the  Member 

State  which
communicates data shall ensure that they are accurate
and up-to-date. If it emerges that inaccurate data have
been communicated or data have been communicated
which  should  not  have  been  communicated  or  that
lawfully  communicated  data  are  required  at  a  later
stage  to  be  erased  in  accordance  with  the  law  of  the
communicating  Member  State,  the  recipient  authority
shall  be  immediately  informed  thereof.  It  shall  be
obliged  to  correct  such  data  or  have  them  erased.  If
the  recipient  authority  has  reason  to  believe  that
communicated  data  are  inaccurate  or  should  be
erased,  it  shall  inform  the  communicating  Member
State;

(c)  in  cases  where  communicated  data  should,  according
to  the  law  of  the  communicating  Member  State,  be
erased  or  amended,  the  persons  concerned  must  be
given  the  effective  right  to  correct  the  data;

the 

(e)  if  so  requested,  the  communicating  and  recipient
authorities  shall  inform  the  person  concerned,  at  that
person’s  request,  of  the  personal  data  communicated
and  the  use  to  which  they  are  to  be  put.  There  is  no
obligation  to  provide  the  information  if  it  is  found,
on consideration of the matter, that the importance to
the  public  of 
information  being  withheld
outweighs  the  importance  to  the  person  concerned  of
receiving 
it.  Moreover,  the  right  of  the  person
concerned  to  receive  information  about  the  personal
data communicated shall be determined in accordance
with the national laws, regulations and procedures of
the  Member  State  in  whose  territory  the  information
is  requested.  Before  any  decision 
taken  on
providing  information,  the  communicating  authority
shall  be  given  the  opportunity  of  stating  its  position;

is 

(f)  Member  States  shall  be  liable,  in  accordance  with
their own laws, regulations and procedures, for injury
caused  to  a  person  through  the  processing  of  data
communicated  in  the  Member  State  concerned.  This
shall also be the case where the injury was caused by
the communication of inaccurate data or the fact that
the  communicating  authority  communicated  data  in
violation  of  the  Convention;

(g)  the data communicated shall be kept for a period not
exceeding  that  necessary  for  the  purposes  for  which
they  were  communicated.  The  need  to  keep  them
shall  be  examined  at  the  appropriate  moment  by  the
Member  State  concerned;

(h) in  any  event,  the  data  shall  enjoy  at  least  the  same
protection  as  is  given  to  similar  data  in  the  Member
State  which  received  them;

(i)  every  Member  State  shall  take  the  appropriate
measures  to  ensure  compliance  with  this  Article  by
the  application  of  effective  controls.  Every  Member
State  may  assign  the  task  of  control  to  the  national
supervisory  authority  mentioned  in  Article  17  of  the
Convention  concerning 
information
technology  for  customs  purposes.

the  use  of 

3. For  the  purposes  of  this  Article,  ‘the  processing  of
personal data’ shall be understood in accordance with the
definition  in  Article  2(b)  of  Directive  95/46/EC  of  the
European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  24  October
1995  on  the  protection  of  individuals  with  regard  to  the
processing of personal data and on the free movement of
such  data (1).

(1)  OJ  L  281,  23.11.1995,  p.  31.

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TITLE  VI

that  a  decision  on  the  question  is  necessary  to  enable
it  to  give  judgment.

INTERPRETATION  OF  THE  CONVENTION

Article  26

Court  of  Justice

1. The  Court  of  Justice  of  the  European  Communities
shall  have  jurisdiction  to  rule  on  any  dispute  between
interpretation  or  the
Member  States  regarding  the 
application  of  this  Convention  whenever  it  has  proved
impossible  for  the  dispute  to  be  settled  by  the  Council
within six months of its being referred to the Council by
one  of  its  members.

2. The  Court  of  Justice  of  the  European  Communities
shall  have  jurisdiction  to  rule  on  any  dispute  between
Member  States  and  the  Commission  concerning  the
interpretation  or  application  of  this  Convention  which  it
has  proved  impossible  to  settle  through  negotiation.  The
dispute may be submitted to the Court of Justice after the
expiry of a period of six months from the data on which
one of  the parties notified  the  other  of  the existence of a
dispute.

3. The Court of Justice shall have jurisdiction, subject to
the  conditions  laid  down  in  paragraphs  4  to  7,  to  give
preliminary 
this
the 
Convention.

interpretation  of 

rulings  on 

4. By  a  declaration  made  at  the  time  of  the  signing  of
this  Convention  or  at  any  time  thereafter,  any  Member
State shall be able to accept the jurisdiction of the Court
to  give
of  Justice  of 
preliminary 
this
Convention  as  specified  in  either  paragraph  5(a)  or  (b).

the  European  Communities 

interpretation  of 

rulings  on 

the 

6. The Protocol on the Statute of the Court of Justice of
the  European  Communities  and  the  Rules  of  Procedure
of  that  Court  of  Justice  shall  apply.

7. Any  Member  State,  whether  or  not  it  has  made  a
declaration  pursuant  to  paragraph  4,  shall  be  entitled  to
submit  statements  of  case  or  written  observations  to  the
Court  in  cases  which  arise  under  paragraph  5.

8. The  Court  of  Justice  shall  not  have  jurisdiction  to
check the validity or proportionality of operations carried
out  by  competent  law  enforcement  agencies  under  this
Convention  nor  to  rule  on  the  exercise  of  responsibilities
which  devolve  upon  Member  States  for  maintaining  law
and  order  and  for  safeguarding  internal  security.

TITLE  VII

IMPLEMENTATION  AND  FINAL  PROVISIONS

Article  27

Confidentiality

The  customs  administrations  shall  take  account,  in  each
the
specific  case  of  exchange  of 
requirements  of  investigation  secrecy.  To  that  end,  a
Member State may impose conditions covering the use of
information  by  another  Member  State  to  which  that
information  may  be  passed.

information,  of 

5. A  Member  State  which  has  made  a  declaration
pursuant  to  paragraph  4  shall  specify  that  either:

Exemptions  from  the  obligation  to  provide  assistance

Article  28

(a)  any  court  or  tribunal  of  that  State  against  whose
decisions  there  is  no  judicial  remedy  under  national
law may request the Court of Justice of the European
Communities  to  give  a  preliminary  ruling  on  a
question  raised  in  a  case  pending  before  it  and
concerning  the  interpretation  of  this  Convention  if
that court or tribunal considers that a decision on the
question  is  necessary  to  enable  it  to  give  judgement,
or

(b) any  court  or  tribunal  of  that  State  may  request  the
Court of Justice of the European Communities to give
a  preliminary  ruling  on  a  question  raised  in  a  case
pending before it and concerning the interpretation of
this  Convention  if  that  court  or  tribunal  considers

interests  of 

1. This  Convention  shall  not  oblige  the  authorities  of
Member  States  to  provide  mutual  assistance  where  such
assistance  would  be  likely  to  harm  the  public  policy  or
other  essential 
the  State  concerned,
particularly  in  the  field  of  data  protection,  or  where  the
scope of the action requested, in particular in the context
of  the  special  forms  of  cooperation  provided  for  in  Title
IV, is obviously disproportionate to the seriousness of the
presumed  infringement.  In  such  cases,  assistance  may  be
refused 
in  part  or  made  subject  to
compliance  with  certain  conditions.

in  whole  or 

2. Reasons  must  be  given  for  any  refusal  to  provide
assistance.

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Article  29

Expenses

1. Member  States  shall  normally  waive  all  claims  for
reimbursement of costs incurred in the implementation of
this  Convention,  with  the  exception  of  expenses  for  fees
paid  to  experts.

2.
If  expenses  of  a  substantial  and  extraordinary  nature
are,  or  will  be,  required  to  execute  the  request,  the
customs  administrations 
to
determine  the  terms  and  conditions  under  which  a
request shall be executed as well as the manner in which
the  costs  shall  be  borne.

shall  consult 

involved 

Article  30

Reservations

1. Save  as  provided  in  Article  20(8),  Article  21(5)  and
Article  23(5),  this  Convention  shall  not  be  the  subject  of
any reservations.

2. Member  States  which  have  already  established
agreements  between  them  covering  matters  regulated  in
Title  IV  of  this  Convention  may  make  reservations
pursuant  to  paragraph  1  only 
in  so  far  as  such
reservations  do  not  affect  their  obligations  under  such
agreements.

3. Accordingly,  the  obligations  arising  out  of  the
provisions  of 
the  Convention  of  19  June  1990
implementing  the  Schengen  Agreement  of  14  June  1985
on  the  gradual  abolition  of  checks  at  their  common
borders which provide for closer cooperation shall not be
affected  by  this  Convention  in  the  context  of  relations
between  the  Member  States  which  are  bound  by  those
provisions.

Article  31

Territorial application

1. This  Convention  shall  apply  to  the  territories  of  the
Member  States  as  referred  to  in  Article  3(1)  of  Council
Regulation  (EEC)  No  2913/92  of  12  October  1992
establishing the Community Customs Code (1), as revised
by  the  Act  concerning  the  conditions  of  accession  of  the
Republic  of  Austria,  the  Republic  of  Finland  and  the
Kingdom  of  Sweden  and  the  adjustments  to  the  Treaties
on  which  the  European  Union  is  founded (2)  and  in
Regulation  (EC)  No  82/97  of  the  European  Parliament
and  of  the  Council  of  19  December  1996 (3),  including,
for  the  Federal  Republic  of  Germany,  the  Island  of

(1)  OJ  L  302,  19.10.1992,  p.  2.
(2)  OJ  L  1,  1.1.1995,  p.  181.
(3)  OJ  L  17,  21.1.1997,  p.  2.

Heligoland  and  the  territory  of  Büsingen  (within  the
framework  of  and  pursuant  to  the  Treaty  of  23
November  1964  between 
the  Federal  Republic  of
Germany and the Swiss Confederation on the inclusion of
the  commune  of  Büsingen  am  Hochrhein  in  the  customs
territory  of  the  Swiss  Confederation,  or  the  current
version  thereof)  and,  for  the  Italian  Republic,  the
municipalities  of  Livigno  and  Campione  d’Italia,  and  to
the territorial waters, the inland maritime waters and the
airspace  of  the  territories  of  the  Member  States.

2. The  Council,  acting  unanimously  by  the  procedure
provided  for  in  Title  VI  of  the  Treaty  on  European
Union, may adapt paragraph 1 to any amendment of the
provisions  of  Community  law  referred  to  therein.

Article  32

Entry  into  force

1. This  Convention  shall  be  subject  to  adoption  by  the
Member  States 
in  accordance  with  their  respective
constitutional  requirements.

2. Member  States  shall  notify  the  depositary  of  the
completion  of  the  constitutional  procedures  for  the
adoption  of  this  Convention.

3. This  convention  shall  enter  into  force  90  days  after
the  notification  referred  to  in  paragraph  2  by  the  State,
Member  of  the  European  Union  at  the  time  of  adoption
by  the  Council  of  the  Act  drawing  up  this  Convention,
which  is  last  to  complete  that  formality.

4. Until  this  Convention  enters  into  force,  any  Member
State  may,  when  giving  the  notification  referred  to  in
paragraph  2,  or  at  any  other  later  time,  declare  that  as
far as it is concerned this Convention, with the exception
of  Article  23  thereof,  shall  apply  to  its  relations  with
Member  States  that  have  made  the  same  declaration.
Such  declarations  shall  take  effect  90  days  after  the  date
of  deposit  thereof.

5. This  Convention  shall  apply  only 
to  requests
submitted  after  the  date  on  which  it  enters  into  force  or
is  applied  as  between  the  requested  Member  State  and
the  applicant  Member  State.

6. On  the  date  of  entry  into  force  of  this  Convention,
the  Convention  on  the  provision  of  mutual  assistance
between  customs  administrations  of  7  September  1967
shall  be  repealed.

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Article  33

Accession

1. This  Convention  shall  be  open  to  accession  by  any
State  that  becomes  a  Member  State  of  the  European
Union.

2. The  text  of  the  Convention  in  the  language  of  the
acceding  Member  State,  as  drawn  up  by  the  Council  of
the  European  Union,  shall  be  authentic.

3. The  instruments  of  accession  shall  be  deposited  with
the  depositary.

4. This Convention shall come into force with respect to
any  State  that  accedes  to  it  90  days  after  the  deposit  of
its  instrument  of  accession  or  on  the  date  of  entry  into
force of the Convention if it has not already entered into
force  upon  expiry  of  the  said  period  of  90  days.

5. Where this Convention has not yet entered into force
at  the  time  of  the  deposit  of  their  instrument  of
accession,  Article  32(4)  shall  apply  to  acceding  Member
States.

Article  34

Amendments

1. Amendments to this Convention may be proposed by
any Member State that is a High Contracting Party. Any

proposed amendment shall be sent to the depositary, who
shall 
the
to 
Commission.

the  Council  and 

communicate 

it 

2. Without  prejudice  to  Article  31(2),  the  amendments
to  the  Convention  shall  be  adopted  by  the  Council,
which  shall  recommend  them  to  the  Member  States  for
respective
in 
adoption 
constitutional  requirements.

accordance  with 

their 

3. Amendments  adopted  in  accordance  with  paragraph
2  shall  come  into  force  in  accordance  with  Article
32(3).

Article  35

Depositary

1. The Secretary-General of the Council of the European
Union  shall  act  as  depositary  of  this  Convention.

2. The depositary shall publish in the Official Journal of
the  European  Communities  information  on  the  progress
of 
implementation,
declarations  and  reservations,  and  also  any  other
notification  concerning  this  Convention.

accessions, 

adoptions 

and 

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En  fe  de  lo  cual  los  plenipotenciarios  abajo  firmantes  suscriben  el  presente  Convenio.

Til  bekræftelse  heraf  har  undertegnede  befuldmægtigede  underskrevet  denne  konvention.

Zu  Urkund  dessen  haben  die  unterzeichneten  Bevollmächtigten  ihre  Unterschrift  unter  dieses
Übereinkommen  gesetzt.

Σ(cid:229)  (cid:240)(cid:221)(cid:243)(cid:244)ω(cid:243)η  (cid:244)(cid:239)ν  Æνω(cid:244)(cid:229)ρω,  (cid:239)Ø  υ(cid:240)(cid:239)γρ(cid:192)(cid:230)(cid:239)ν(cid:244)(cid:229)ς  (cid:240)ληρ(cid:229)Œ(cid:239)υ(cid:139) (cid:243)Ø(cid:239)Ø  (cid:229)(cid:139) θ(cid:229)(cid:243)Æν  (cid:244)ην  υ(cid:240)(cid:239)γρÆ(cid:230)η(cid:139) (cid:244)(cid:239)υς  κ(cid:192)(cid:244)ω  Æ(cid:240)(cid:222)
(cid:244)ην  (cid:240)Æρ(cid:239)ú(cid:243)Æ(cid:240)Æρ(cid:239)υ(cid:139) (cid:243)Æ  (cid:243)υ(cid:139) µ(cid:226)Æ(cid:243)η.

In  witness  whereof,  the  undersigned  Plenipotentiaries  have  hereunto  set  their  hands.

En foi de quoi, les ple´nipotentiaires soussigne´s ont appose´ leurs signatures au bas de la pre´sente
convention.

Dá  Fhianú  sin,  chuir  la  Lánchumhachtaigh  thíos-sínithe  a  lámh  leis  an  gCoinbhinsiún  seo.

In  fede  di  che,  i  plenipotenziari  sottoscritti  hanno  apposto  le  loro  firme  in  calce  alla  presente
convenzione.

Ten  blijke  waarvan  de  ondergetekende  gevolmachtigden  hun  handtekening  onder  deze  Over-
eenkomst  hebben  gesteld.

Em  fe´ do  que,  os  plenipotenciários  abaixo-assinados  apuseram  as  suas  assinaturas  no  final  da
presente  Convenção.

Tämän  vakuudeksi  alla  mainitut 
yleissopimuksen.

täysivaltaiset  edustajat  ovat  allekirjoittaneet 

tämän

Till  bekräftelse  härav  har  undertecknade  befullmäktigade  ombud  undertecknat  denna
konvention.

Hecho en Bruselas, el dieciocho de diciembre de mil novecientos noventa y siete, en un ejemplar
único, en lenguas alemana, danesa, española, finesa, francesa, griega, inglesa, irlandesa, italiana,
neerlandesa,  portuguesa  y  sueca,  cuyos  textos  son  igualmente  aute´nticos  y  que  será  depositado
en  los  archivos  de  la  Secretaría  General  del  Consejo  de  la  Unión  Europea.

Udfærdiget i Bruxelles, den attende december nitten hundrede og syvoghalvfems, i e´t eksemplar
på dansk, engelsk, finsk, fransk, græsk, irsk, italiensk, nederlandsk, portugisisk, spansk, svensk
og  tysk,  idet  hver  af  disse  tekster  har  samme  gyldighed;  de  deponeres  i  arkiverne  i
Generalsekretariatet  for  Rådet  for  Den  Europæiske  Union.

Geschehen  zu  Brüssel  am  achtzehnten  Dezember  neunzehnhundertsiebenundneunzig  in  einer
Urschrift  in  dänischer,  deutscher,  englischer,  finnischer,  französischer,  griechischer,  irischer,
italienischer,  niederländischer,  portugiesischer,  schwedischer  und  spanischer  Sprache,  wobei
jeder  Wortlaut  gleichermaßen  verbindlich 
im  Archiv  des
Generalsekretariats  des  Rates  der  Europäischen  Union  hinterlegt.

ist;  die  Urschrift  wird 

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˛γØν(cid:229)  (cid:239)(cid:244)Øς  ΒρυŒ(cid:229)(cid:139) λλ(cid:229)ς,  (cid:243)(cid:244)Øς  (cid:228)(cid:229)(cid:139) κÆ(cid:239)κ(cid:244)ω(cid:139) ∆(cid:229)κ(cid:229)µ(cid:226)ρ(cid:221)(cid:239)υ  ł(cid:221)λØÆ  (cid:229)ννØÆκ(cid:222)(cid:243)ØÆ  (cid:229)ν(cid:229)νη(cid:139) ν(cid:244)Æ  (cid:229)(cid:240)(cid:244)(cid:192),  (cid:243)(cid:229)  (cid:229)(cid:139) νÆ  µ(cid:222)ν(cid:239)
Æν(cid:244)(cid:221)(cid:244)υ(cid:240)(cid:239)  (cid:243)(cid:244)ην  ÆγγλØκη(cid:139) ,  γÆλλØκη(cid:139) ,  γ(cid:229)ρµÆνØκη(cid:139) ,  (cid:228)ÆνØκη(cid:139) ,  (cid:229)λληνØκη(cid:139) ,  ØρλÆν(cid:228)Øκη(cid:139) ,  Ø(cid:243)(cid:240)ÆνØκη(cid:139) ,  Ø(cid:244)ÆλØκη(cid:139) ,
(cid:239)λλÆν(cid:228)Øκη(cid:139) ,  (cid:240)(cid:239)ρ(cid:244)(cid:239)γÆλØκη(cid:139) ,  (cid:243)(cid:239)υη(cid:228)Øκη(cid:139) κÆØ  (cid:230)ØνλÆν(cid:228)Øκη(cid:139) γλω(cid:139) (cid:243)(cid:243)Æﬂ  κ(cid:192)θ(cid:229)  κ(cid:229)(cid:221)µ(cid:229)ν(cid:239)  (cid:229)(cid:221)νÆØ  (cid:229)Œ(cid:221)(cid:243)(cid:239)υ  Æυθ(cid:229)ν(cid:244)Øκ(cid:222)
κÆØ  κÆ(cid:244)Æ(cid:244)(cid:221)θ(cid:229)(cid:244)ÆØ  (cid:243)(cid:244)Æ  Æρł(cid:229)(cid:221)Æ  (cid:244)ης  Γ(cid:229)νØκη(cid:139) ς  ΓρÆµµÆ(cid:244)(cid:229)(cid:221)Æς  (cid:244)(cid:239)υ  Συµ(cid:226)(cid:239)υλ(cid:221)(cid:239)υ  (cid:244)ης  Ευρω(cid:240)Æϊκη(cid:139) ς  ˛νω(cid:243)ης.

Done at Brussels on the eighteenth day of December in the year one thousand nine hundred and
ninety-seven in a single original, in the Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Greek,
Irish,  Italian,  Portuguese,  Spanish  and  Swedish  languages,  each  text  being  equally  authentic,
such original remaining deposited in the archives of the General Secretariat of the Council of the
European  Union.

Fait  à  Bruxelles,  le  dix-huit  de´cembre  mil  neuf  cent  quatre-vingt-dix-sept,  en  un  exemplaire
unique,  en  langues  allemande,  anglaise,  danoise,  espagnole,  finnoise,  française,  grecque,
irlandaise,  italienne,  ne´erlandaise,  portugaise  et  sue´doise,  chaque  texte  faisant  e´galement  foi,
exemplaire  qui  est  de´pose´ dans  les  archives  du  Secre´tariat  ge´ne´ral  du  Conseil  de  l’Union
europe´enne.

Arna dhe´anamh sa Bhruise´il ar an ochtú lá de´ag de Nollaig sa bhliain míle naoi gce´ad nócha a
seacht, i scríbhinn bhunaidh amháin sa Bhe´arla, sa Danmhairgis, san Fhionlainnis, sa Fhraincis,
sa  Ghaeilge,  sa  Ghearmáinis,  sa  Ghre´igis,  san  lodáilis,  san  Ollainnis,  sa  Phortainge´ilis,  sa
Spáinnis  agus  sa  tSualainnis  agus  comhúdarás  ag  na  te´acsanna  i  ngach  ceann  de  na  teangacha
sin;  de´anfar  an  scríbhinn  bhunaidh  sin  a  thaisceadh  i  gcartlann  Ardrúnaíocht  Chomhairle  an
Aontais Eorpaigh.

Fatto a Bruxelles, addì diciotto dicembre millenovecentonovantasette, in un unico esemplare, in
lingua  danese,  finlandese,  francese,  greca,  inglese,  irlandese,  italiana,  portoghese,  spagnola,
svedese  e  tedesca,  ciascun  testo  facente  ugualmente  fede,  e  depositato  negli  archivi  del
Segretariato  generale  del  Consiglio  dell’Unione  europea.

Gedaan  te  Brussel,  de  achttiende  december  negentienhonderd  zevenennegentig,  in  e´e´n  exem-
plaar,  in  de  Deense,  de  Duitse,  de  Engelse,  de  Finse,  de  Franse,  de  Griekse,  de  Ierse,  de
Italiaanse,  de  Nederlandse,  de  Portugese,  de  Spaanse  en  de  Zweedse  taal,  zijnde  alle  teksten
gelijkelijk  authentiek,  dat  wordt  neergelegd  in  het  archief  van  het  Secretariaat-generaal  van  de
Raad  van  de  Europese  Unie.

Feito  em  Bruxelas,  em  dezoito  de  Dezembro  de  mil  novecentos  e  noventa  e  sete  em  exemplar
único,  nas  línguas  alemã,  dinamarquesa,  espanhola,  finlandesa,  francesa,  grega,  inglesa,
irlandesa,  italiana,  neerlandesa,  portuguesa  e  sueca,  fazendo  igualmente  fe´ todos  os  textos,
depositado  nos  archivos  do  Secretariado-Geral  do  Conselho  da  União  Europeia.

Brysselissä 

kahdeksantenatoista 

Tehty 
vuonna
tuhatyhdeksänsataayhdeksänkymmentäseitsemän  englannin,  espanjan,  hollannin,  iirin,  italian,
tanskan  kielellä  yhtenä
kreikan,  portugalin, 
alkuperäiskappaleena, joka talletetaan Euroopan unionin neuvoston pääsihteeristön arkistoon ja
jonka  jokainen  teksti  on  yhtä  todistusvoimainen.

joulukuuta 

ranskan, 

päivänä 

ruotsin, 

suomen 

saksan, 

ja 

Som  skedde  i  Bryssel  den  artonde  december  nittonhundranittiosju  i  ett  enda  exemplar  på
danska,  engelska,  finska,  franska,  grekiska,  iriska,  italienska,  nederländska,  portugisiska,
spanska, svenska och tyska språken, vilka samtliga texter är lika giltiga, vilket skall deponeras i
arkivet  vid  generalsekretariatet  vid  Europeiska  unionens  råd.

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Pour  le  gouvernement  du  royaume  de  Belgique
Voor  de  Regering  van  het  Koninkrijk  België
Für  die  Regierung  des  Königreichs  Belgien

For  regeringen  for  Kongeriget  Danmark

Für  die  Regierung  der  Bundesrepublik  Deutschland

ΓØÆ  (cid:244)ην  κυ(cid:226)(cid:229)(cid:139) ρνη(cid:243)η  ΕλληνØκη(cid:139) ς  ∆ηµ(cid:239)κρÆ(cid:244)(cid:221)Æς

Por  el  Gobierno  del  Reino  de  España

Pour  le  gouvernement  de  la  Re´publique  française

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Thar  ceann  Rialtas  na  hÉireann
For  the  Government  of  Ireland

Per  il  governo  della  Repubblica  italiana

Pour  le  gouvernement  du  grand-duche´ de  Luxembourg

Voor  de  regering  van  het  Koninkrijk  der  Nederlanden

Für  die  Regierung  der  Republik  Österreich

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Pelo  Governo  da  República  Portuguesa

Suomen  hallituksen  puolesta
På  finska  regeringens  vägnar

På  Konungariket  Sveriges  vägnar

For  the  Government  of  the  United  Kingdom  of  Great  Britain  and  Northern  Ireland

C  24/20

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

23.1.98

ANNEX

DECLARATIONS  TO  BE  ANNEXED  TO  THE  CONVENTION  AND  PUBLISHED  IN  THE  OFFICIAL
JOURNAL

1.  Re  Articles  1(1)  and  28

With  reference  to  the  exceptions  to  the  obligation  to  provide  assistance  under  Article  28  of  the
Convention,  Italy  declares  that  the  execution  of  mutual  assistance  requests,  on  the  basis  of  the
Convention,  concerning  infringements  which  under  Italian  law  are  not  infringements  of  national  or
community  customs  provisions,  may  —  for  reasons  relating  to  the  subdivision  of  competence  among
domestic authorities in prevention and prosecution of crimes — harm the public policy or other national
essential  interests.

2.  Re  Articles  1(2)  and  3(2)

Denmark  and  Finland  declare  that  they  interpret  the  term  ‘judicial  authorities’  or  ‘judicial  authority’  in
Articles  1(2)  and  3(2)  of  the  Convention  in  the  sense  of  their  declarations  made  pursuant  to  Article  24
of the European Convention on mutual assistance in criminal matters, signed in Strasbourg on 20 April
1959.

3.  Re  Article  4(3)  second  indent

Denmark  declares,  as  far  as  it  is  concerned,  that  Article  4(3),  second  indent,  covers  only  actions  by
which a person participates in the commission by a group of people, acting toward a common goal, of
one  or  more  of  the  infringements  concerned,  including  situations  where  the  person  concerned  does  not
take  part  in  the  actual  commission  of  the  offence  or  offences  in  question;  such  participation  must  be
based on knowledge of the purpose and general criminal activities of the group, or on knowledge of the
group’s  intention  to  commit  the  offence(s)  in  question.

4.  Re  Article  4(3),  third  indent

Denmark declares, as far as it is concerned, that Article 4(3), third indent, applies only to the predicate
offences in respect of which at any time receiving stolen goods is punishable under Danish law, including
Section  191a  of  the  Danish  criminal  Code  on  receiving  stolen  drugs  and  Section  284  of  the  Criminal
Code  on  receiving  goods  in  connection  with  smuggling  of  a  particularly  aggravated  nature.

5.  Re  Article  6(4)

Denmark,  Finland  and  Sweden  declare  that  the  liaison  officers  referred  to  in  Article  6(4)  may  also
represent  the  interests  of  Norway  and  Iceland  or  vice  versa.  The  five  Nordic  countries  have  since  1982
had  an  arrangement  whereby  the  stationed  liaison  officers  from  one  of  the  countries  involved  also
represent  the  other  Nordic  countries.  This  arrangement  was  made  in  order  to  strengthen  the  fight
against  drug  trafficking  and  to  limit  the  economic  burden  imposed  on  individual  countries  by  the
stationing  of  the  liaison  officers.  Denmark,  Finland  and  Sweden  attach  great  importance  to  the
continuation  of  this  arrangement,  which  operates  well.

6.  Re  Article  20(8)

Denmark  declares  that  it  accepts  the  provisions  of  Article  20,  subject  to  the  following  conditions:

In case of a hot pursuit exercised by the customs authorities of another Member State at sea or through
the  air,  such  pursuit  may  be  extended  to  Danish  territory,  including  Danish  territorial  waters  and  the
airspace  above  Danish  territory  and  territorial  waters,  only  if  the  competent  Danish  authorities  have
received  prior  notice  thereof.

7.  Re  Article  21(5)

Denmark  declares  that  it  accepts  the  provisions  of  Article  21,  subject  to  the  following  conditions:

Cross-border surveillance without prior authorisation may be carried out only in accordance with Article
21(2) and (3) if there are serious grounds for believing that the persons under observation are involved
in  one  of  the  infringements  referred  to  in  Article  19(2)  which  could  give  rise  to  extradition.

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EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

C  24/21

8.  Re  Article  25(2)(i)

Member States undertake to keep each other informed in the Council on measures taken to ensure that
the  commitments  referred  to  in  point  (i)  are  observed.

9.  Declaration  made  pursuant  to  Article  26(4)

At the time of the signing of this Convention, the following declared that they accepted the jurisdiction
of  the  Court  of  Justice  in  accordance  with  the  procedures  laid  down  in  Article  26(5):

—  Ireland  in  accordance  with  the  procedures  laid  down  in  Article  26(5)(a),

—  the  Federal  Republic  of  Germany,  the  Hellenic  Republic,  the  Italian  Republic  and  the  Republic  of

Austria  in  accordance  with  the  procedures  laid  down  in  Article  26(5)(b).

C  24/22

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

23.1.98

DECLARATION

The  Federal  Republic  of  Germany,  the  Italian  Republic  and  the  Republic  of  Austria,  reserve  the  right  to
make provision in their national law to the effect that, where a question relating to the interpretation of the
Convention  on  mutual  assistance  and  cooperation  between  customs  administrations  is  raised  in  a  case
pending  before  a  national  court  or  tribunal  against  whose  decision  there  is  no  judicial  remedy  under
national  law,  that  court  or  tribunal  will  be  required  to  refer  the  matter  to  the  Court  of  Justice  of  the
European  Communities.