Council Act of 18 January 1999 adopting the Financial Regulation applicable to the budget of Europol
Date: 1999-01-18
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: Europol, budget, inclusion in the budget

30.1.1999

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

C  25/1

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

COUNCIL  ACT

of  18  January  1999

adopting  the  Financial  Regulation  applicable  to  the  budget  of  Europol

(1999/C  25/01)

THE  COUNCIL  OF  THE  EUROPEAN  UNION,

Having  regard  to  the  Convention  based  on  Article  K.3  of  the  Treaty  on  European  Union,  on
the  establishment  of  a  European  Police  Office  (Europol  Convention)(cid:216)(˛),  and  in  particular
Article  35(9)  and  Article  36(6)  thereof,

Having  regard  to  the  opinion  of  the  Management  Board,

Having  regard  to  the  opinion  of  the  Joint  Audit  Committee,

Whereas  the  principles  of  sound  financial  management  and  in  particular  those  of  economy  and
cost(cid:220)effectiveness  must  apply  to  the  Europol  budget,  clear  objectives  for  planned  activities  must
be  identified  in  the  annual  budgets  and  business  plans,  progress  of  their  realisation  monitored
and,  if  necessary,  any  further  action  taken  to  achieve  them,

HAS  ADOPTED  THIS  REGULATION:

(˛)(cid:217)OJ  C  316,  27.11.1995,  p.  1.

C  25/2

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

30.1.1999

CONTENTS

PREAMBLE

TITLE(cid:217)I

General  principles  (Articles  1  to  12).....................................................................................

TITLE(cid:217)II

Establishment  and  structure  of  the  budget ..........................................................................

Section(cid:217)I

Establishment  of  the  budget  (Articles  13  and  14)...............................................................

Section(cid:217)II

Structure  of  the  budget  (Article  15) .....................................................................................

Section(cid:217)III

Changes  to  the  budget  (Articles  16  and  17)........................................................................

TITLE(cid:217)III

Implementation  of  the  budget ...............................................................................................

Section(cid:217)I

General  provisions  (Articles  18  to  24)..................................................................................

Section(cid:217)II

Handling  of  revenue  and  expenditure  (Articles  25  to  36).................................................

Page

3

5

5

6

6

6

6

8

Section(cid:217)III Member  States’  contributions  (Articles  37  to  40)...............................................................

11

Section(cid:217)IV

Conclusion  of  contracts  and  inventory  (Articles  41  to  46) ...............................................

11

Section(cid:217)V

Accountancy  (Articles  47  and  48).........................................................................................

13

Section(cid:217)VI

Responsibilities  of  Authorising  Officers,  the  Accounting  Officer,  Administrators  of
imprest  accounts  and  the  Financial  Controller  (Article  49) ..............................................

13

TITLE(cid:217)IV

Presenting  and  auditing  the  accounts...................................................................................

14

Section(cid:217)I

Presenting  the  accounts  (Articles  50  and  51)......................................................................

14

Section(cid:217)II

Auditing  the  accounts  (Articles  52  to  55) ............................................................................

15

TITLE(cid:217)V

Final  provisions  (Articles  56  to  59).......................................................................................

16

30.1.1999

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

C  25/3

TITLE  I

GENERAL  PRINCIPLES

Article  1

"the
1.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  budget  of  Europol  (hereinafter  called 
the
for 
budget’ 
estimated  revenue  and  expenditure  of  Europol  for  each
financial  year.

instrument  which  provides 

the 

is 

The  five(cid:220)year  financing  plan  of  Europol  (hereinafter
called  "the  financing  plan’)  stipulates  the  revenue  and
expenditure  of  Europol  for  the  financial  year  which  the
draft  budget  concerns  and  the  following  four  financial
years.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  appropriations  entered  into  the  budget  shall  be
provided  for  the  duration  of  one  financial  year.

Expenditure  may  not  be  provided  for  a  period  extending
beyond  the  financial  year.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)Expenditure  arising  from:

-(cid:217)contracts  which  have  been  concluded,  in  accordance

with  local  usage,  or

Without  prejudice  to  Article  22,  no  expenditure  may  be
committed  or  authorised  in  excess  of  the  authorised
appropriations.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  establishment  plan  adopted  pursuant  to  Article
14  shall  constitute  an  absolute  limit  for  Europol;  no
appointment  may  be  made  in  excess  of  the  limit  set.

Instances  of  part(cid:220)time  work  may  be  compensated  for  by
the  engagement  of  other  staff  within  the  limits  set.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)No  donation,  legacy,  subsidy  or  the  like  may  be
received  without  prior  approval  by  the  Management
Board.  The  Management  Board  shall  act  unanimously.

Article  5

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  financial  year  shall  run  from  1  January  to  31
December.

-(cid:217)contractual  provisions  relating,  in  particular,  to  the

supply  of  equipment,

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Revenue  shall  be  entered  in  the  accounts  for  the
financial  year  in  which  it  is  collected.

for  periods  extending  beyond  the  finanacial  year  shall  be
charged  against  the  budget  for  the  financial  year  in
which  it  is  effected.

Notwithstanding  the  preceding  subparagraph,  Member
States’  contributions  to  the  budget  received  before  the
beginning  of  the  financial  year  which  they  concern  shall
be  credited  to  the  budget  for  that  financial  year.

Article  2

The  budget  appropriations  shall  be  used  in  accordance
with  the  principles  of  sound  financial  management,  and
in  particular  those  of  economy  and  cost(cid:220)effectiveness.

Article  3

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)Subject  to  Article  22,  all  revenue  and  expenditure
shall  be  entered  in  full  in  the  budget  and  in  the  accounts
without  any  adjustment  against  each  other.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Total  revenue  shall  cover  total  expenditure.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  allotted  appropriations  may  be  used  solely  to
cover  expenditure  properly  entered  into  and  paid  under
the  finanacial  year  for  which  they  were  granted,  save  as
otherwise  provided  in  Article  6,  and  to  cover  the  debts
relating  to  proceding  fianancial  years  for  which  no  apro(cid:220)
priation  was  carried  forward.

The  expenditure  of  a  financial  year  shall  be  entered  in
the  accounts  for  that  year  on  the  basis  of  expenditure
authorised  no  later  than  31  December,  and  for  which  the
the
corresponding  payments 
following  1  March.

effected 

before 

are 

Article  4

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)No  revenue  shall  be  collected  and  no  expenditure
effected  unless  credited  to  or  charged  against  an  Article
in  the  budget.

Article  6

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  following  rules  shall  govern  the  utilisation  of
appropriations:

C  25/4

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

30.1.1999

(a)(cid:217)appropriations  still  uncommitted  at  the  end  of  the
financial  year  for  which  they  were  entered  shall,  as  a
rule,  lapse;

Expenditure  relating  to  rents  or  certain  associated  expen(cid:220)
diture  which  is  payable  in  advance  in  accordance  with
provisions  laid  down  by  law  or  contracts  may  give  rise  to
payments  from  20  December  onwards  being  charged  to
the  appropriations  for  the  next  financial  year.

(b) appropriations 

relating 
allowances  of  staff  may  not  be  carried  over;

remuneration 

to 

and

in 

still
respect 
of 
(c) appropriations 
outstanding 
virtue  of
31  December 
commitments  duly  entered  into  between  1  January
and  31  December  shall  be  carried  over  automatically
to  the  next  financial  year  only.

payments 
by 

at 

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Notwithstanding  paragraph  1,  the  Director  may
forward  to  the  Management  Board,  before  31  January,
duly  substantiated  requests  to  carry  over  to  the  next
financial  year  appropriations  not  committed  at  31
December.

The  carry(cid:220)over  of  such  appropriations  may  be  proposed
only  for  exceptional  reasons.

The  Management  Board  shall  act  on  such  requests  for
carry(cid:220)over  by  1  March  at  the  latest.  It  shall  act  unani(cid:220)
mously.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)Appropriations  carried  over  from  one  financial  year
to  the  following  lapse  if  still  uncommitted  at  the  end  of
the  financial  year  to  which  they  were  carried  over.

4.(cid:218)(cid:217)A  list  of  the  appropriations  to  be  carried  forward
automatically  shall  be  forwarded  to  the  Management
Board  for  information  before  1  April.

Article  8

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)If  the  budget  is  not  adopted  at  the  beginning  of  the
financial  year,  expenditure  already  approved  in  principle
in  the  last  budget  duly  adopted  may  be  effected  under
the  conditions  laid  down  in  this  Article.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Payments  may  be  made  monthly  in  respect  of  any
chapter  up  to  one(cid:220)twelfth  of  the  total  appropriations
entered  in  the  chapter  in  question  for  the  preceding
financial  year  in  so  far  as  this  is  required  to  meet
Europol’s  legal  obligations.

in 

the 

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)At  the  request  of  the  Director,  the  Management
light  of  administrative  needs,
Board  may, 
authorise  two  or  more  provisional  twelfths  at  the  same
time  or,  in  exceptional  cases,  payments  not  required  to
meet  Europol’s  legal  obligations.  In  doing  so  it  shall  act
unanimously.

4.(cid:218)(cid:217)Under  the  circumstances  referred  to  in  paragraph  1,
Member  States’  contributions  amounting 
three
twelfths  of  the  contributions  called  up  according  to  the
last  budget  duly  adopted  may  be  called  up.

to 

5.(cid:218)(cid:217)At  the  request  of  the  Director,  and  after  obtaining
the  opinion  of  the  Management  Board,  the  Council  may,
in  the  light  of  financial  needs,  authorise  further  Member
States’  contributions  to  be  called  up.  In  doing  so  it  shall
act  unanimously.

5.(cid:218)(cid:217)For  the  purpose  of  implementing  the  budget,  the
utilisation  of  appropriations  carried  forward  shall  be
shown  separately,  for  each  budget  item,  in  the  accounts
for  the  current  financial  year.

The  budget  and  any 
supplementary  or  amending
budgets,  as  adopted,  shall  be  published  in  the  Official
Journal  of  the  European  Communities,  at  the  behest  of  the
President  of  the  Council.

Article  9

Article  7

Publication  shall  normally  take  palce  within  one  month
from  the  date  of  the  adoption.

Current  expenditure  chargeable  to  the  next  financial  year
and  which,  by  its  nature,  arises  at  the  beginning  of  that
financial  year  may,  as  from  15  November  of  each  year,
be  charged  as  an  expected  commitment  against  the
appropriations  provided  for 
the  next
financial  year  up  to  a  maximum  of  one  quarter  of  the
total  corresponding  appropriations  for  the  current  year.
However,  such  commitments  may  only  apply  to  new
expenditure  of  a  kind  not  yet  approved  in  principle  in
the  budget  of  the  current  financial  year  if  the  budget  for
the  next  financial  year  has  already  been  adopted.

in  respect  of 

Article  10

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  budget  and  the  financing  plan  shall  be  drawn
up  in  ecus,  as  defined  in  Article  1  of  Council  Regulation
(EC)  No  3320/94(cid:216)(˛).

(˛)(cid:217)OJ  L  350,  31.12.1994,  p.  27.

30.1.1999

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

C  25/5

Any  future  amendment  to  that  Regulation  shall  apply  to
this  provision.

Article  12

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)A  Financial  Committee  is  hereby  established.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Any  operations  involving  conversion  of  the  ecu  into
a  national  currency  shall,  in  principle,  be  effected  on  the
basis  of  the  exchange  rate  applicable  on  that  day;
derogations  from  this  principle  may  be  permitted 
in
exceptional  cases,  in  accordance  with  the  implementing
rules  provided  for  in  Article  57(2).

Article  11

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  composition  of  the  Financial  Committee  shall
be  as  defined  in  Article  35(8)  of  the  Europol  Convention.
The  committee  shall  be  chaired  by  a  representative  of  the
Member  State  holding  the  Presidency  of  the  Council.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  tasks  of  the  Financial  Committee  shall  be  as
defined  in  Article  35  of  the  Europol  Convention  and  in
this  Regulation.

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)On  the  basis  of  a  review  of  the  existing  business
plan,  the  Director  shall  each  year  draw  up  a  draft
business  plan  setting  out  the  planned  activities  and  devel(cid:220)
opments  for  Europol  for  the  following  five  years.  As  an
integral  part  of  the  business  plan,  the  financing  plan  shall
describe  the  financial  and  human  resources  deemed
necessary  for  the  proposed  yearly  activities.

Furthermore,  the  committee  shall  undertake  such  tasks
concerning  budgetary  and  financial  matters  which  the
Management  Board  or  the  Council  refer  to  it.

In  carrying  out  its  tasks,  the  committee  shall  in  particular
examine  whether  the  principles  set  out  in  Article  2  are
being  duly  adhered  to.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  draft  business  plan  shall  be  sumitted  to  the
Management  Board  which,  after  obtaining  the  opinion
of  the  Financial  Committee,  shall  take  a  decision  on  it.
The  Management  Board  shall  act  unanimously.

4.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  committee  may  require  the  Director  to  furnish
it  with  any 
it  considers
information  or  evidence 
necessary  concerning  budgetary  and  financial  matters  for
the  supervision  of  which  it  is  responsible.

TITLE  II

ESTABLISHMENT  AND  STRUCTURE  OF  THE  BUDGET

SECTION  I

Establishment  of  the  budget

(c) a  description  of  the  assumptions  and  the  NLG/ECU

exchange  rate  on  which  the  drafts  are  based;

Article  13

(d) an  explanation  of  the  changes  in  appropriations  from

one  financial  year  to  the  next.

The  budget  shall  be  adopted,  and  the  financing  plan
decided  on,  in  accordance  with  Article  35  of  the  Europol
Convention.

Article  14

In  respect  of  staff,  the  draft  budget  shall  further  be
accompanied  by  a  working  document  containing  the
following  information:

The  draft  budget  and  the  draft  financing  plan  shall  be
accompanied  by 
in
particular:

explanatory  notes 

containing 

(a)(cid:217)a  general  policy  declaration  on  the  objectives  to  be

achieved  with  the  budget;

(b) a  description  of  the  activities  for  which  the  appro(cid:220)
priations  are  requested,  taking  account  of  the  prin(cid:220)
ciples  set  out  in  Article  2  and  the  business  plan  as
provided  for  in  Article  11;

(a)(cid:217)for  each  category  of 

staff,  a  detailed 

list  of
budgetary  posts  and  numbers  of  persons  in  post  on
the  date  of  the  submission  of  the  draft  budget,  indi(cid:220)
cating  their  distribution  by  grade  and  administrative
unit;

(b) where  a  change 

in 

the  number  of  persons 

is

proposed,  a  statement  justifying  such  changes.

C  25/6

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

30.1.1999

SECTION  II

Structure  of  the  budget

Article  15

The  budget  shall  be  subdivided 
into  titles,  chapters,
articles  and  items  according  to  the  nature  of  the  revenue
thereof,
or  expenditure  or 
following  a  decimal  classification  system.

intended  purpose 

the 

SECTION  III

Changes  to  the  budget

Article  16

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)In 
the  event  of  unavoidable,  exeptional  or
unforeseen  circumstances,  the  Director  may  submit  draft
supplementary  and/or  amending  budgets.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)"Draft  supplementary  budget’  means  any  proposal
which  would  either  increase  the  total  amount  of  appro(cid:220)
priations  or  finance  one  or  more  new  activities  without
increasing  the  total  amount  of  appropriations.

"Draft  amending  budget’  means  any  proposal  which
would  involve  amendments  to  the  budget  of  a  financial
or  technical  nature,  without  causing  an  increase  in  the
total  amount  of  appropriations  and  without  providing  for
new  activities.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)Draft 
supplementary  and/or  amending  budgets
shall  be  submitted,  examined  and  adopted  in  the  same
form  and  using  the  same  procedure  as  the  budget  whose
estimates  they  are  amending.

4.(cid:218)(cid:217)Supplementary  and/or  amending  budgets  shall  be
adopted  in  accordance  with  the  procedure  laid  down  in
Article  35  of  the  Europol  Convention.

Article  17

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)During  the  last  four  months  of  the  financial  year
the  Director  may  transfer:

-(cid:217)a  maximum  of  25(cid:216)%  of  the  total  appropriations

within  each  chapter,

-(cid:217)appropiations  between  chapters  within  the  same  title
in  order  to  increase  the  total  sum  of  appropriations
within  any  chapter  by  no  more  than  25(cid:216)%.

The  Director  shall  inform  the  Management  Board  three
weeks  before  making  such  transfers.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  Director  may  propose  transfers  of  appro(cid:220)
priations  other  than  those  provided  for  in  paragraph  1.

The  Management  Board  shall  take  a  decision  on  such
proposals  for  transfers.  It  shall  act  unanimously.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)Notwithstanding  paragraph  2,  no  appropriations
can  be  transferred  to  or  from  the  title  concerning
personnel  expenditure.

TITLE  III

IMPLEMENTATION  OF  THE  BUDGET

Council,  shall  implement  the  budget  on  his  own  respon(cid:220)
sibility  in  accordance  with  this  Regulation  and  within  the
limits  of  the  appropriations  allotted.

SECTION  I

General  provisions

Article  18

The  budget  shall  be  implemented  in  accordance  with  the
the  Authorising  Officers,  Accounting
principle 
Officers  and  Financial  Controller  are  different 
indi(cid:220)
viduals.

that 

The  duties  of  Authorising  Officer,  Accounting  Officer
and  Financial  Controller  shall  be  mutually  incompatible.

The  Director  may  delegate  his  powers  under  conditions
to  be  laid  down  by  him  and  within  the  limits  set  by  the
act  of  delegation,  which  shall  be  communicated  to  the
empowered  person, 
the
Financial  Controller,  the  Management  Board  and  the
Joint  Audit  Committee.

the  Accounting  Officer, 

Article  19

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)In  accordance  with  Article  29(3)  of  the  Europol
Convention,  the  Director,  being  accountable  to  the

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Every  three  months  the  Director  shall  report  to  the
Management  Board  and  the  Financial  Committee  on  the
implementation  of  the  budget.

30.1.1999

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

C  25/7

Article  20

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)A  Financial  Controller 
accordance  with  Article 
Convention.

shall  be  appointed 

in
the  Europol

35(7)  of 

The  Financial  Controller  may  be  assisted  in  his  duties  or
temporarily  replaced  by  one  or  more  Assistant  Financial
Controllers  also  to  be  appointed  in  accordance  with
Article  35(7)  of  the  Europol  Convention.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)In  carrying  out  his  duties,  the  Financial  Controller
shall  be  accountable  solely  to  the  Management  Board.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  Financial  Controller  shall  be  responsible  for
the  monitoring  of:

-(cid:217)the  commitment  of  all  expenditure,

-(cid:217)the  disbursement  of  all  expenditure,

-(cid:217)all  revenue.

By  way  of  derogation  from  Article  25(2),  Article  26(2)
and  (4),  Article  27(2),  Article  29(3),  and  Article  34(2)  of
this  Regulation,  and  in  accordance  with  Article  35(7)  of
the  Europol  Convention, 
rules
provided  for  in  Article  57(2)  of  this  Regulation  may
make  provision  for  ex(cid:220)post  monitoring  by  the  Financial
Controller  in  the  case  of  minor  items  of  income  or
expenditure.

implementing 

the 

4.(cid:218)(cid:217)Furthermore,  the  Financial  Controller  shall  review,
evaluate  and  report  on  the  soundness,  adequacy  and
application  of  systems,  procedures  and  related  internal
controls.

Reports  on  each  separate 
inspection,  evaluation  and
investigation  shall  be  submitted  to  the  Director  and  to
the  Management  Board.  The  Director  shall  notify  the
Management  Board  of 
taken
following  each  report.

the  measures 

to  be 

5.(cid:218)(cid:217)For  each  financial  year  the  Financial  Controller
shall  submit  a  report  to  the  Management  Board  on  the
internal  supervision  activities  for  that  year.

Article  21

The  receipt  of  revenue  and  the  discharge  of  expenditure
shall  be  carried  out  by  an  Accounting  Officer  appointed
by  and  being  responsible  to  the  Director.  Subject  to
Article  32(2),  the  Accounting  Officer  shall  be  the  only
person  empowered  to  manage  funds  and  assets.  He/she
shall  be  responsible  for  their  safekeeping.

The  Accounting  Officer  may  be  assisted  in  his/her  tasks
by  one  or  more  Assistant  Accounting  Officers  appointed
under  the  same  conditions  as  the  Accounting  Officer.

Article  22

Notwithstanding  Article  3(1)  and  Article  4(1):

(a)(cid:217)the  following  deductions  may  be  made  from  all  bills,
invoices  or  statements,  which  shall  then  be  passed  for
payment  of  the  net  amount:

-(cid:217)adjustment  of  amounts  paid  in  error,  which  may
be  achieved  by  means  of  deduction  beforehand
when  another  validation  of  the  same  type  is  being
effected  under  the  chapter,  article  and  financial
year  in  respect  of  which  the  excess  payment  was
made,

-(cid:217)the  value  of  vehicles,  apparatus,  equipment  and
installations  taken  in  part  exchange  in  accordance
with  commercial  usage  upon  purchase  of  new
vehicles,  apparatus,  equipment  and  installation  of
the  same  kind.

Discounts,  refunds  and  rebates  on  invoices  and  bills
shall  not  be  recorded  as  separate  revenue;

(b) the 

following  sums  may  be  re(cid:220)used  under 

the
initial  expenditure  was

heading 
charged:

to  which 

the 

-(cid:217)revenue  arising  from  refund  of  amounts  paid  in
the

error  against  appropriations  entered 
budget,

in 

-(cid:217)proceeds  from  supply  of  goods  and  services  to

other  institutions  or  bodies,

-(cid:217)insurance  payments  received,

-(cid:217)refund  of  taxes  incorporated  in  the  price  of  the

products  or  services  provided  to  Europol,

-(cid:217)proceeds  from  the  sale  of  vehicles,  apparatus,
installations  which  are  being

equipment  and 
replaced  or  scrapped.

Sums  must  be  re(cid:220)used  before  the  end  of  the  financial
year 
the  revenue  was
collected.

in  which 

following 

that 

The  chart  of  accounts  as  provided  for  in  Article  48
shall 
include  suspense  accounts  to  record  re(cid:220)use
operations  for  both  revenue  and  expenditure;

C  25/8

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

30.1.1999

(c) adjustments  may  be  made  in  respect  of  exchange
differences  occurring  in  budget  operations,  and  in
respect  of  debtor  and  creditor  interest  rates  relating
to  cash  operations.  Only  the  final  gain  or  loss  shall
be  included  in  the  balance  for  the  year.

Article  23

The  balance  from  each  financial  year  shall  be  entered  in
the  budget  for  the  second  financial  year  following  the
financial  year  from  which  it  derives  in  accordance  with
Article  40(2).

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  approved  debt  forecasts  shall  be  registered
provisionally  by  the  Accounting  Officer.

Article  26

the  collection  of  any  amounts  owing 

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)For 
to
Europol  the  issue  of  a  recovery  order  by  the  Authorising
Officer  shall  be  required.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Recovery  orders 
Accounting  Officer,  who  shall  submit 
Financial  Controller  for  approval.

shall  be 

forwarded 
them 

to 
to 

the
the

Article  24

The  purpose  of  this  approval  shall  be  to  establish  that:

Where  revenue  and  expenditure  operations  are  managed
by  means  of  integrated  computer  systems,  the  provisions
of  Section  II  of  this  Title  and  Title  IV  shall  apply  with
due  allowance  for  the  possibilities  and  requirements
deriving  from  computerised  management.  To  this  end:

-(cid:217)the  supporting  documents  may  remain  with  the  Auth(cid:220)
orising  Officer  or  the  Accounting  Officer  for  the
purposes  of  checking,

(a)(cid:217)the  revenue  has  been  booked  to  the  correct  item;

(b) the  recovery  order  is  in  order  and  conforms  to  the

correct  item;

(c) the  supporting  documents  are  in  order;

(d) the  debtor  is  correctly  described;

-(cid:217)signatures  and  approvals  may  be  added  in  appro(cid:220)

priate  computerised  form.

(e) the  due  date  is  indicated;

The  conditions  for  implementing  this  Article  shall  be
determined  by  implementing  rules  provided  for  in  Article
57(2).

(f) the  principles  of 

sound 

financial  management

referred  to  in  Article  2  have  been  applied;

SECTION  II

(g) the  amount  and  currency  of  the  sum  to  be  recovered

are  correct.

Handling  of  revenue  and  expenditure

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  Accounting  Officer  shall  assume  responsibility
for  the  recovery  orders  duly  drawn  up.

Article  25

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)Any  measure  or  situation  which  may  give  rise  to  or
modify  a  debt  due  to  Europol  must  be  preceded  by  a
debt  forecast  from  the  Authorising  Officer.  Such  forecast
shall  mention,  in  particular,  the  type  of  revenue  and  the
budget  item  to  which  it  is  to  be  booked  and  also,  as  far
as  possible,  the  estimated  amount  and  the  name  and
description  of  the  debtor.

He/she  shall  exercise  all  due  diligence  to  ensure  that
payment  of  the  revenue  of  Europol  is  made  at  the  proper
time  and  that  the  rights  of  Europol  are  preserved.

4.(cid:218)(cid:217)If  the  Authorising  Officer  waives  the  right  to
recover  an  established  debt,  he/she  shall  first  forward  a
proposal  for  cancellation  to  the  Accounting  Officer,  who
shall  submit  it  to  the  Financial  Controller  for  approval.

forecasts 

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Debt 
Accounting  Officer  who  shall  submit 
Financial  Controller  for  approval.

shall  be 

forwarded 

them 

to 
to 

the
the

The  Financial  Controller’s  approval  shall  serve  to  certify
that  the  waiver  is  in  order  and  conforms  with  the  prin(cid:220)
in
ciples  of  sound  financial  management  referred  to 
Article  2.

The  purpose  of  this  approval  shall  be  to  establish  that:

(a)(cid:217)the  revenue  is  booked  to  the  correct  item;

Article  27

(b) the  forecast  is  in  order  and  conforms  to  the  relevant

provisions.

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)Any  measure  likely  to  involve  expenditure  against
the  current  or  any  subsequent  budget  must  first  be  the
subject  of  a  proposal  for  a  commitment  of  expenditure

30.1.1999

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

C  25/9

from  the  Authorising  Officer.  Such  proposal  shall  show
the  purpose  of  the  expenditure,  the  estimated  amount
involved,  the  budget  item  to  which  the  expense  is  to  be
charged  and  the  creditor.

A  provisional  commitment  may  be  entered 
current  expenditure.

into  for

The  Authorising  Officer  may  have 
carried  out  under  his  responsibility.

the  verifications

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)Salaries,  wages,  emoluments  and  allowances  shall
be  validated  in  accordance  with  a  collective  statement
drawn  up  by  the  Personnel  Department,  except  where
individual  validation  is  necessary.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Proposals  for  commitment  shall  be  forwarded  to
the  Accounting  Officer,  who  shall  submit  them  to  the
Financial  Controller  for  approval.

The  purpose  of  this  approval  shall  be  to  establish  that:

Article  29

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)Authorisation  shall  be  the  act  whereby  the  Auth(cid:220)
orising  Officer,  by  the  issue  of  a  payment  order,  auth(cid:220)
orises  the  Accounting  Officer  to  pay  an  item  of  expen(cid:220)
diture  which  has  been  validated.

(a)(cid:217)the  proposal  for  commitment  has  been  presented  in

accordance  with  paragraph  1;

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Payment  orders  shall  state:

(b) the  expenditure  has  been  correctly  charged;

-(cid:217)the  financial  year  against  which  the  payment  shall  be

charged,

(c) the  appropriations  are  available;

(d) the  expenditure  is  in  order  and  conforms  to  the

relevant  provisions;

-(cid:217)the  budget  article  and  any  other  subdivision  that  may

apply,

-(cid:217)the  amount  and  the  currency  of  the  sum  to  be  paid,

(e) the  principles  of 

sound 

financial  management

referred  to  in  Article  2  have  been  applied.

-(cid:217)the  name  and  address  of  the  payee,

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)Approval  may  not  be  conditional.

4.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  Accounting  Officer  shall  register  the  approved
proposal  for  commitment.

-(cid:217)the  purpose  of  the  expenditure,

-(cid:217)the  method  of  payment,  wherever  possible,

-(cid:217)the  numbers  and  dates  of  the  relevant  approvals  of

commitment.

Article  28

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  purpose  of  validation  of  expenditure  by  the
Authorising  Officer  shall  be:

They  shall  be  accompanied  by  the  original  supporting
documents  or,  in  exceptional  circumstances,  by  certified
true  copies.

(a)(cid:217)to  verify  the  creditor’s  claim;

(b) to  determine  or  verify  the  existence  and  the  amount

of  the  sum  due;

(c) to  verify  the  conditions  under  which  the  payment

falls  due;

(d) to  verify  that  goods  have  been  delivered  or  services

as  ordered.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Validation  of  any  expenditure  shall  be  subject  to
the  submission  of  supporting  documents  showing  the
creditor’s  rights.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)Payment  orders 
Accounting  Officer,  who  shall  submit 
Financial  Controller  for  approval.

shall  be 

forwarded 

them 

to 
to 

the
the

The  purpose  of  this  approval  shall  be  to  establish  that:

(a)(cid:217)the  payment  order  was  properly  issued;

(b) the  payment  order  agress  with  the  commitment  of
expenditure  and  that  the  amount  thereof  is  correct,
taking  account  of  the  principles  of  sound  financial
management  referred  to  in  Article  2;

(c) the  expenditure  is  charged  to  the  correct  item;

The  Authorising  Officer  and  another  member  of  staff
shall  carry  out  and  sign  for  the  verification  referred  to  in
paragraph  1(d).

(d) the  appropriations  are  available;

(e) the  supporting  documents  are  in  order;

C  25/10

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

30.1.1999

(f) the  payee  is  correctly  named  and  described.

4.(cid:218)(cid:217)After  approval,  the  original  of  the  payment  order,
shall  be
the 
together  with 
forwarded  to  the  Accounting  Officers.

supporting  documents, 

Article  30

For  payment  by  instalments,  this  first  payment  order
shall  be  accompanied  by  documents  establishing  the
creditor’s  claim  to  payment  of  the  instalment  in  question.
Subsequent  payment  orders  shall  refer  to  the  supporting
documents  already  furnished.

Only  the  Accounting  Officer  may  replenish  the  imprest
accounts,  save 
the
in  exceptional  cases  defined 
implementing  rules  provided  for  in  Article  57(2).

in 

Article  34

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  Accounting  Officer  may  grant  advances  to
staff  if  a  provision  laid  down  by  regulation  or  in  the
implementing  rules,  provided 
in  Article  57(2),
provides  therefore.

for 

The  Accounting  Officer  may  grant  advances  to  cover
disbursements  to  be  effected  by  a  member  of  staff  on
behalf  of  Europol.

Article  31

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)Payment  shall  be  the  final  act  whereby  Europol  is
discharged  of  its  obligations  towards  its  creditors.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Apart  from  the  imprest  accounts  referred  to  in
Article  33,  no  advance  may  be  paid  unless  it  has  been
approved  beforehand  by  the  Financial  Controller.

Payment  shall  be  made  by  the  Accounting  Officer  within
the  limits  of  the  funds  available.

Article  35

In  the  event  of  a  substantive  error  or  of  the  validity  of
the  discharge  being  contested  or  of  failure  to  observe  the
formalities  prescribed  by  this  Regulation,  the  Accounting
Officer  shall  suspend  payment.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)If  payment  is  suspended,  the  Accounting  Officer
shall  give  the  reasons  therefore  in  a  written  statement
which  he/she  shall  forward  to  the  Authorising  Officer
and,  for  information,  to  the  Financial  Controller.

Article  32

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)Payments  shall  be  effected  as  a  general  rule
through  a  bank  account  or  post  office  giro  account.

The  Director  shall  establish  such  bank  accounts  and  post
office  giro  accounts  in  Europol’s  name.  The  procedure
for  opening,  administering  and  using  these  accounts  shall
be  laid  down  in  the  implementing  rules  provided  for  in
Article  57(2).

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Cheques  and  post  office  giro  bank  transfer  orders
shall  require  the  joint  signature  of  two  officials  auth(cid:220)
orised  by  the  Director,  one  signature  necessarily  being
that  of  the  Accounting  Officer.

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)Should  the  Financial  Controller  withhold  his/her
approval  as  provided  for  in  Article  25(2),  Article  26(2),
Article  26(4),  Article  27(2),  Article  29(3)  or  Article
34(2),  he/she  shall  give  his/her  reasons  therefore  in  a
written  statement  which  shall  be  forwarded  to  the
Accounting  Officer,  who  shall  inform  the  Authorising
Officer  of  the  refusal.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)In  the  event  of  a  refusal  to  approve,  except  for
cases  where  the  availability  of  appropriations  is  in  doubt,
the  Director  may  confirm  the  debt  forecast,  recovery
order,  proposal  for  cancellation,  commitment  of  expen(cid:220)
diture,  payment  order  or  advance  in  a  reasoned  decision.

The  debt  forecast,  recovery  order,  proposal  for  cancel(cid:220)
lation,  commitment  of  expenditure,  payment  order  or
advance  shall  then  be  considered  to  have  been  validly
made.

The  Management  Board  and  the  Joint  Audit  Committee
shall  be  informed  immediately  whenever  this  provision  is
applied.

Article  36

the  Europol
In  accordance  with  Article  5(9)  of 
Convention,  costs  relating  to  the  activities  of 
liaison
officers  shall,  as  a  general  rule,  be  borne  by  the
seconding  Member  States.

Article  33

For  payment  of  certain  categories  of  expenditure,
imprest  accounts  may  be  set  up  in  accordance  with  the
implementing  rules  provided  for  in  Article  57(2).

However,  costs  in  relation  to  activities  undertaken  by
liaison  officers  on  behalf  of  Europol  and  in  agreement
with  the  seconding  Member  States  or  requested  by

30.1.1999

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

C  25/11

Europol  or  which  otherwise  fall  within  the  general
competence  of  Europol,  shall  be  borne  by  the  Europol
budget.  Expenditure  which  is  not  attributable  shall  also
be  borne  by  the  Europol  budget.

SECTION  III

Member  States’  contributions

Article  37

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)Each  Member  State’s  contribution  to  the  budget  for
the  financial  year  "t’  shall,  in  accordance  with  Article
35(2)  of  the  Europol  Convention,  be  calculated  on  the
basis  of  that  State’s  gross  national  product  (hereinafter
called  "GNP’)  for  the  year  "t(cid:216)(cid:134)2’.

The  contribution  shall  be  expressed  in  ecus.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  calculation  of  the  contributions  used  when
drawing  up  the  budget  shall  be  based  on  the  GNP
forecasts,  in  national  currencies,  used  when  drawing  up
the  European
the  preliminary  draft 
"t(cid:216)(cid:134)2’.  These
the 
Communities 
forecasts  shall  be  converted 
into  ecus  applying  the
average  exchange  rate  of  the  year  "t(cid:216)(cid:134)2’.

budget  of 
financial  year 

for 

Article  38

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)Before  1  December  of  the  year  "t(cid:216)(cid:134)1’  or  no  later
than  one  month  after  the  budget  is  adopted,  whichever
the
date 
contributions  for  the  financial  year  "t’.

the  Director  shall  call  up 

later, 

the 

is 

Article  40

figures 

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)On  the  basis  of  the  revenue  and  expenditure
account  for  the  financial  year  "t’  drawn  up  in  accordance
with  Article  53,  the  Director  shall,  by  applying  the  actual
GNP 
in  national
currencies  by  the  European  Commission  and  the  average
exchange  rate  for  the  same  year,  recalculate  the  Member
States’  contributions  necessary  for  the  financial  year  "t’  in
order  to  finance  the  actual  expenditure  for  this  year  and
the  carry(cid:220)overs  to  the  following  fiancial  year.

"t(cid:216)(cid:134)2’  as  established 

for 

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)To  take  account  of  the  surplus  from  the  financial
year  "t’  and  the  differences  between  the  provisional  and
the  actual  GNP 
following
figures 
procedure  shall  be  applied:

"t(cid:216)(cid:134)2’, 

the 

for 

(a)(cid:217)for 

those  Member  States  whose  contributions
actually  paid  for  the  fiancial  year  "t’  exceed  the
contributions  necessary  according  to  paragraph  1,
the  amount  paid  in  excess  shall  be  deducted  from  the
contributions  called  up  for  the  financial  year  "t(cid:216)+2’;

(b) for 

the  contributions  necessary  according 

those  Member  States  whose  contributions
actually  paid  for  the  financial  year  "t’  are  smaller
to
than 
paragraph  1,  the  outstanding  amount  shall  be  called
up  together  with  the  contributions  called  up  for  the
financial  year  "t  +2’.

SECTION  IV

Conclusion  of  contracts  and  inventory

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Subject  to  Article  8,  payment  of  the  Member  States’
contributions  shall  be  made  in  full  before  31  March  of
the  year 
later  than  one  month  after  the
contributions  are  called  up,  whichever  date  is  the  later.

"t’  or  no 

Article  41

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)Contracts  for  the  purchase  and  hiring  of  buildings
or  goods,  for  the  provision  of  services  or  for  the
performance  of  construction  work  shall  be  in  writing.

Payment  shall  be  made  in  ecus  or  in  national  currency.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)Interest  shall  be  charged,  at  a  normal  loan  rate  to
be  specified  in  the  implementing  rules  provided  for  in
that  part  of  a  Member  State’s
Article  57(2),  on 
contribution  which  has  not  been  paid  within  one  month
of  the  time  specified  in  paragraph  2.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Apart  from  contracts  relating  to  the  purchase  of  a
building  already  constructed  or  the  leasing  of  a  building,
all  such  contracts  shall  be  concluded  after  an  invitation
to  tender  has  been  issued.

However,  contracts  may  be  made  by  private  treaty  in  the
following  circumstances:

The  Management  Board  shall  be  informed  whenever  this
provision  is  applied.

(a)(cid:217)within  the  limit  laid  down  by  the  implementing  rules

provided  for  in  Article  57(2);

Article  39

Articles  37  and  38  shall  apply  likewise  in  the  event  of  a
supplementary  budget.

(b) where  the  purchase  or  hiring  of  goods,  the  provision
of  services  or  building  works  are  so  urgently  needed
that 
is  not  possible  to  wait  for  a  tendering
procedure  to  be  carried  out;

it 

C  25/12

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

30.1.1999

(c) where  the  tendering  procedures  do  not  give  any
result  or  where  the  prices  quoted  are  not  acceptable;

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)By  way  of  guarantee  of 
the  performance  of
contracts,  suppliers  or  contractors  may  be  required  by  a
warranty  clause  to  make  a  preliminary  deposit.

(d) where 

for 

technical,  practical,  security  or 

legal
reasons  the  supply  of  goods  and  services  can  be
carried  out  only  by  a  particular  contractor  or
supplier;

(e) for  contracts  for  the  supply  of  additional  goods  and
services  or 
for  ancillary  building  works  which,
technically,  cannot  be  seperated  from  their  main
contract.

In  the  cases  referred  to  under  (a),  (b)  and  (c),  Europol
shall  nonetheless  be  bound,  as  far  as  possible  and  by  all
appropriate  means,  to  enable  suppliers  who  are  likely  to
be  able  to  supply  the  goods  and  services  in  question  to
compete.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)Invitations  to  tender  shall,  as  a  general  rule,  be
published  in  all  the  Member  States  and,  where  appro(cid:220)
priate,  in  third  countries  in  so  far  as  this  is  compatible
with  the  development  of  relevant  industries  within  the
European  Union.  However,  their  publication  may  be
restricted  where  the  scale  or  nature  of  the  goods  or
services  is  such  that  they  are  not  appropriate  for  a
general  invitation  to  tender.

4.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  tendering  procedures,  award  criteria  and  price
adjustment  procedures  occurring  after  the  conclusion  of
contracts  shall  be  determined  and  governed  by  the
implementing  rules  provided  for  in  Article  57(2),  given
that  the  award  criteria  shall  be  defined  by  analogy  with
the  provisions  of  the  derectives  referred  to  in  Article  44.

The  amount  of  the  deposit  shall  be  fixed  according  to
the  usual  trade  terms  and  conditions.

Where  a  contract  has  not  been  performed  or  completion
has  been  late,  Europol  shall  ensure  that  it  is  adequately
compensated  in  respect  of  all  damages,  interests  and
costs  by  the  deduction  of  the  amount  from  the  deposit,
whether  this  has  been  lodged  directly  by  the  supplier  or
contractor  or  by  a  third  party.

Article  44

in  respect  of  which  the
When  concluding  contracts 
amounts 
involved  are  equal  to  or  greater  than  the
thresholds  laid  down  by  the  Council  Directives  coordi(cid:220)
nating  the  procedures  for  the  conclusion  of  contracts
covering  public  works,  supplies  and  services,  Europol
shall  be  subject  to  the  same  obligations  which  are
incumbent  on  parties  in  the  Member  States  pursuant  to
the  Directives.

Article  45

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)A  permanent  inventory  showing  the  quantity  and
value  of  all  movable  and  immovable  property  belonging
to  Europol  shall  be  kept.  Only  movable  property
exceeding  a  specific  value  laid  down  in  the  implementing
rules  provided  for  in  Article  57(2)  shall  be  entered  in  this
inventory.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)All  acquisitions  of  such  movable  or 
immovable
property  shall  be  entered  in  the  permanent  inventory
before  payment  can  be  made.

5.(cid:218)(cid:217)Contracts  exceeding  the  limit  laid  down  by  the
implementing  rules  provided  for  in  Article  57(2)  shall  be
subject  to  the  authorisation  of  the  Management  Board.

The  entry  shall  be  recorded  in  the  corresponding  invoice
or  attached  document  drawn  up  with  a  view  to  payment
of  the  expenditure.

Article  42

No  discrimination  shall  be  practised  between  nationals  of
Member  States  on  grounds  of  nationality  in  respect  of
contracts  entered  into  by  Europol.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)Europol  shall  carry  out 
inspection  to
ascertain  that  entries  in  the  inventory  correspond  to  the
facts.

its  own 

Article  46

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)The 
advertised.

sale  movable  property 

shall  be 

suitably

Article  43

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)Contracts  may  be  made  against  invoice  or  bill  of
costs  where  the  expected  value  of  the  goods,  services  or
works  does  not  exceed  the  amounts  laid  down  by  the
implementing  rules  provided  for  in  Article  57(2).

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)A  statement  or  record  shall  be  drawn  up  by  the
Authorising  Officer  whenever  any  property 
the
inventory  is  sold,  given  away  free  of  charge,  scrapped,
hired  out,  or  missing  on  account  of  loss,  theft  or  other

in 

30.1.1999

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

C  25/13

reason.  The  statement  or  record  shall  be  forwarded  to
the  Accounting  Officer,  who  shall  submit 
it  to  the
Financial  Controller  for  authentication.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Any  advance,  other  than  regular  advances  which
are  periodically  re(cid:220)examined,  shall  be  entered 
in  a
suspense  account  and  settled  at  the  latest  during  the
financial  year  which  follows  the  payment  of  this  advance.

The  statement  or  record  shall  refer  in  particular  to  any
obligation  that  may  devolve  on  a  member  of  the  staff  of
Europol  or  any  other  person  to  replace  the  item  in
question.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)Apart  from  sales  by  public  auction,  members  of
staff  may  not  acquire  any  movable  property  sold  by
Europol.

immovable  property  or 

4.(cid:218)(cid:217)If 
installations  are
made  available  free  of  charge,  they  must  be  covered  by
contracts  approved  by  the  Financial  Controller.

large 

5.(cid:218)(cid:217)Article  4(3)  shall  apply  likewise.

SECTION  V

Accountancy

Article  47

shall  be  kept 

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  accounts 
the
double(cid:220)entry  method,  on  the  basis  of  the  financial  year.
They  shall  show  all  revenue  and  expenditure  for  the
financial  year;  they  shall  be  authenticated  by  supporting
documents.

in  ecus  by 

The  accounts  shall  be  closed  at  the  end  of  the  financial
year  to  enable  the  balance  sheet  and  the  revenue  and
expenditure  account  referred  to 
in  Article  53  to  be
drawn  up.  The  revenue  and  expenditure  account  shall  be
submitted  to  the  Financial  Controller.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  revenue  and  expenditure  account  and  the
balance  sheet  shall  be  drawn  up  in  ecus.

Article  48

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  chart  of  accounts  shall  make  a  clear  distinction
between  budgetary  accounts  and  cash  accounts.

It  shall  comprise  two  parts:

(a)(cid:217)accounts  of  budgetary  expenditure  and  revenue
the

implementation  of 

the  detailed 

which  show 
budget;

(b) the  balance  sheet  accounts  which  disclose  the  assets

and  liabilities  of  Europol.

However,  the  advances  referred  to  in  Article  34  shall  be
settled  as  a  general  rule  within  six  weeks  following
completion  of  the  project  for  which  they  were  granted.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  detailed  conditions  for  the  establishment  and
operation  of  the  chart  of  accounts  for  transactions,
the
relating  both 
implementation  of  the  budget,  including  the  accounting
standards,  shall  be  determined  by  the  implementing  rules
provided  for  in  Article  57(2).

to  assets  and 

liabilities  and 

to 

4.(cid:218)(cid:217)Supporting  documents  pertaining  to  the  accounts
and  the  preparation  of  the  revenue  and  expenditure
account  and  the  balance  sheet  shall  be  kept  for  a  period
of  five  years  following  the  date  of  the  decision  provided
for  in  Article  55(2)  giving  discharge  in  respect  of  the
implementation  of  the  budget.

However,  the  documents  relating  to  transactions  not
finally  closed  shall  be  kept  for  longer  that  the  said  period
until  the  end  of  the  year  following  the  year  in  which
such  transactions  are  finally  closed.

SECTION  VI

Responsibilities  of  Authorising  Officers,  the  Accounting
imprest  accounts  and  the
Officer,  Administrators  of 

Financial  Controller

Article  49

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)An  Authorising  Officer  shall  render  himself  liable
to
to  disciplinary  action  and,  where  appropriate, 
into  a
payment  of  compensation 
commitment  of  expenditure  or  signs  a  payment  order
without  complying  with  this  Regulation.

if  he/she  enters 

The  same  shall  apply  if  he/she  omits  to  draw  up  a
document  establishing  a  debt  or  if  he/she  neglects  to
issue  a  recovery  order  or  is,  without  justification,  late  in
issuing  it.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  Accounting  Officer  and  Assistant  Accounting
Officers  shall  render  themselves 
liable  to  disciplinary
action  and,  where  appropriate,  to  payment  of  compen(cid:220)
sation  in  the  following  cases:

These  accounts  shall  show 
Europol’s  legal  obligations.

the  expected  effect  of

(a)(cid:217)if  they  fail  to  comply  with  Article  31(1);

C  25/14

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

30.1.1999

(b) if  the  payments  made  by  them  do  not  agree  with  the
amounts  and  currencies  of  the  payment  orders;

(b) where  they  effect  payment  to  parties  other  than

entitled  payees.

(c) if  they  effect  payment  to  a  party  other  than  the

lawful  payee.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  Accounting  Officer  and  Assistant  Accounting
Officers  shall  insure  themselves  against  the  risk  arising
under  paragraph  2.

Europol  shall  cover  the  insurance  costs  relating  thereto.

imprest  accounts  shall  render
4.(cid:218)(cid:217)Adminstrators  of 
themselves  liable  to  disciplinary  action  and,  where  appro(cid:220)
priate,  to  payment  of  compensation  in  the  following
cases:

(a)(cid:217)where  they  cannot  show  due  warrant  with  proper

documents  for  payments  made  by  them;

5.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  Financial  Controller  and  Assistant  Financial
Controllers  shall  render  themselves  liable  to  disciplinary
action  and,  where  appropriate,  to  payment  of  compen(cid:220)
sation  if  they  exceed  the  budget  appropriations  or  if  they
are  guilty  of  gross  negligence  in  the  performance  of  their
duties.

liability 

of  Authorising  Officers, 

6.(cid:218)(cid:217)The 
the
Accounting  Officer,  Assistant  Accounting  Officers  and
Administrators  of 
to  payment  of
compensation  and  disciplinary  action  shall  be  determined
in  accordance  with  the  relevant  provisions  of  the  Staff
Regulations  of  officials  of  Europol.

imprest  accounts 

These  provisions  shall  also  apply,  mutatis  mutandis,  in
case  of  liability  of  the  Financial  Controller  and  Assistant
Financial  Controllers  to  payment  of  compensation  and
disciplinary  action.

TITLE  IV

PRESENTING  AND  AUDITING  THE  ACCOUNTS

SECTION  I

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  annual  report  shall  in  particular  describe:

Presenting  the  accounts

Article  50

The  Director  shall  each  year  draw  up  and  present  a
revenue  and  expenditure  account  of  a  balance  sheet  of
assets  and  liabilities  as  at  31  December  of  the  preceding
financial  year 
in  accordance  with  Article  36  of  the
Europol  Convention.

The  revenue  and  expenditure  account  shall  cover  all
revenue  and  expenditure  transactions  relating  to  the
preceding  financial  year.  It  shall  be  submitted  in  the
same  form  and  following  the  same  subdivisions  as  the
budget.

The  balance  sheet  shall  include,  on  the  asset  side,  the
amount  of  revenue  to  be  collected  and,  on  the  liabilities
side,  the  amount  of  expenditure  chargeable  to  the
financial  year,  which  have  not  yet  been  entered  in  the
accounts.

A  statement  showing  the  movements  and  balances  of  the
accounts  at  31  December  of  the  preceding  financial  year
shall  be  attached  to  the  balance  sheet.

Article  51

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  Director  shall  send  the  revenue  and  expen(cid:220)
diture  account,  the  balance  sheet  and  the  report  on  the
annual  accounts,  as  provided  for  in  Article  36(1)  of  the
Europol  Convention,  to  the  Council  and  the  Joint  Audit
Committee  and,  for  information,  to  the  Management
Board  and  the  Financial  Committee  by  31  May  of  the
following  year  at  the  latest.

(a)(cid:217)the  commitments  entered  into  and  payments  made

chargeable  to  the  financial  year;

(b) the  total  revenue  and  expenditure  booked  under

each  article  of  the  budget;

(c) the  appropriations  unused  at  the  end  of  the  financial
year  and  not  carried  over  to  the  following  financial
year;

(d) the  appropriations  carried  over  to  the  following

financial  year  pursuant  to  Article  6;

(e) the  use  of  appropriations  carried  over  from  the

preceding  financial  year;

(f) an  explanation  where  revenue  or  expenditure  has
been  higher  or  lower  than  anticipated  in  the  budget;

(g) the  assets  and  liabilities  of  Europol;

(h) the  capital  investments  made  during  the  financial

year;

(i)

such  further  explanations  as  may  be  necessary  for  a
proper  understanding  of 
the  annual  accounts
including  an  assessment  of  Europol’s  future  financial
situation.

30.1.1999

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

C  25/15

SECTION  II

Auditing  the  accounts

Article  52

The  purpose  of  the  audit,  carried  out  by  the  Joint  Audit
Committee  in  accordance  with  recognised  practise,  based
on  records  and,  if  necessary,  performed  on  the  spot,
shall  be  to  establish  that  all  revenue  has  been  received
and  all  expenditure  incurred  in  a  lawful  and  regular
manner,  in  accordance  with  the  terms  of  the  Europol
Convention,  the  budget  and  this  Regulation,  in  particular
Article  2,  and  that  the  financial  management  has  been
sound.

Article  53

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  Director  shall  provide  the  Members  of  the
Joint  Audit  Committee  with  all  information  and  every
assistance  which  they  require  in  order  to  perform  their
task.

treat  all  information  acquired  about  Europol  and  its
activities  as  confidential.

4.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  audit  report  as  provided  for  in  Article  36(3)  of
the  Europol  Convention  may  be  published,  in  full  or  in
part,  only  if  approved  beforehand  unanimously  by  the
Management  Board.

Article  54

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)In  addition  to  its  responsibility  for  auditing  the
accounts,  the  Joint  Audit  Committee  shall  make  any
appropriate  comments  on  the  accounting  methods  used
and,  in  general,  on  the  financial  implications  of  the
administrative  practices  followed.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Any  comments  which  in  the  opinion  of  the  Joint
Audit  Committee  should  be  contained  in  the  audit  report
provided  for  in  Article  36(3)  of  the  Europol  Convention
shall  be  brought  to  the  attention  of  the  Director  and  the
Financial  Controller.  The  Director  and  the  Financial
Controller  shall  send  the  Joint  Audit  Committee  their
replies  to  any  such  comments.

In  particular,  the  Diretor  shall  place  all  cash  and  goods
accounts  and  all  vouchers,  supporting  documents  and
stock  registers  which  the  Members  of  the  committee
consider  necessary  for  auditing  the  revenue  and  expen(cid:220)
diture  account  at  their  disposal.

Article  55

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  Joint  Audit  Committee  shall  produce  its  report,
by  31  October  at  the  latest,  on  the  accounts  of  the
preceding  financial  year.

The  Members  of  the  Joint  Committee  shall  have  personal
access  to  the  premises  of  Europol  and  shall  have  the
right  to  interview  the  Director,  the  Deputy  Directors  and
any  other  employee  of  Europol  responsible  for  trans(cid:220)
actions  involving  revenue  or  expenditure.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Notwithstanding  paragraph  1,  the  Director  may,  in
exceptional  cases,  deny  the  Members  of  the  Joint  Audit
Committee  access  to 
in  whatever  form,
covered  by  provisions  of  the  Europol  Convention  or  acts
adopted  in  accordance  therewith  concerning  confiden(cid:220)
tiality.

information, 

the  Management  Board
inform 
The  Director  shall 
is  applied.  The
this  provision 
immediately  when 
Management  Board  may  by  unanimous  decision  grant
the  Members  of  the  Joint  Audit  Committee  access  to  the
information  in  question.

In  its  report  the  committee  shall  indicate  the  extent  and
nature  of  the  audit  performed  and  give  its  comments  on
the  accounts  and 
sheet  and  a  brief
the  balance 
assessment  of  the  financial  management  of  Europol.

The  audit  report,  together  with  the  Director’s  and  the
Financial  Controller’s  replies,  shall  be  submitted  to  the
Management  Board  by  31  December  at  the  latest.

the  basis  of  an  opinion  of 

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)On 
the  Financial
Committee,  the  Management  Board  shall  draw  up  a
recommendation  to  the  Council  concerning  discharge  to
be  given  to  the  Director  in  respect  of  the  implementation
of  the  budget.  Before  30  April  of  the  following  year  and
in  accordance  with  Article  36(5)  of 
the  Europol
Convention,  the  Council  shall  take  a  decision  on  this
discharge.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  Director  shall  take  all  appropriate  steps  to  act
on 
the  decision  giving
discharge.

the  comments  appearing 

in 

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  Members  of  the  Joint  Audit  Committee  and
anybody  assisting  them  in  carrying  out  their  tasks  shall

4.(cid:218)(cid:217)The  Financial  Controller  shall  take  account  of  the
comments  appearing  in  the  decision  giving  discharge.

C  25/16

EN

Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities

30.1.1999

TITLE  V

FINAL  PROVISIONS

Article  56

Article  58

The  Management  Board  shall  inform  the  Joint  Audit
Committee,  as  soon  as  possible,  of  all  decisions  and
measures  taken  in  implementation  of  Articles  6,  8,  17,
and  20.

The  Joint  Audit  Committee  and  the  Financial  Controller
shall  be  informed  of  the  appointment  of  Authorising
Officers,  the  Accounting  Officer,  Assistant  Accounting
Officers  and  Administrators  of  imprest  accounts,  and  of
to
the  acts  of  delegation  or  appointment  pursuant 
Articles  19(1)  and  21.

The  Management  Board  shall  forward  to  the  Joint  Audit
Committee  any  rules  of  procedure  which  it  adopts  in
respect  of  financial  matters.

Article  57

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)Amendments  to  this  Regulation  shall  be  adopted  in
accordance  with  Article  35(9)  of  the  Europol  Convention
and  after  consultation  of  the  Joint  Audit  Committee.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)Acting  upon  a  proposal  from  the  Director,  and
after  consultation  of  the  Financial  Controller  and  the
Financial  Committee,  the  Management  Board  shall  adopt
the  rules  required  for  implementing  this  Regulation.  It
shall  act  unanimously.

1.(cid:218)(cid:217)When  Europol  takes  up  its  activities,  it  shall  auto(cid:220)
matically  succeed  to  all  financial  rights  and  obligations
recorded  in  the  accounts  of  the  Europol  Drugs  Unit.

2.(cid:218)(cid:217)In  accordance  with  Article  45(5)  of  the  Europol
Convention,  Europol  shall  become  the  owner  of  all
equipment  financed  from  the  Europol  Drugs  Unit  joint
budget,  developed  or  produced  by  the  Europol  Drugs
Unit  or  placed  at  its  disposal  free  of  charge  by  the
Netherlands  Government  for  its  permanent  use.

3.(cid:218)(cid:217)When  Europol  takes  up  its  activities,  the  coor(cid:220)
dinator  of  the  Europol  Drugs  Unit  shall  present  to  the
Council  a  report  on  the  statement  of  accounts  of  that
Unit,  as  well  as  an  inventory  list  of  all  the  equipment  of
in  accordance  with
which  Europol  becomes  owner 
paragraph  2.

This  report  shall  also  be  sent  to  the  auditor  of  the
Europol  Drugs  Unit  and  to  the  Joint  Audit  Committee.

Article  59

This  Regulation  shall  enter  into  force  on  1  February
1999.

Done  at  Brussels,  18  January  1999.

For  the  Council

The  President

O.  LAFONTAINE