WRITTEN QUESTION No. 418/99 by Michl EBNER Bank charges on exchange transactions
Date: 1999-03-01
Institutions: EBNER, European Parliament
Subjects: bank, bank charges, euro, exchange rate, exchange transaction, fixing of prices, monetary union, national currency, publication of tariffs, restriction on competition

21.12.1999

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 370/39

(1999/C 370/050)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0416/99

by Jens-Peter Bonde (I-EDN) to the Commission

(1 March 1999)

Subject: Rights of Greenlanders and Danes

What rights do Danes resident in Denmark have that Danes and Greenlanders in Greenland do not under
the provisions on Union citizenship and the fundamental rights in the EU recognised by the Court of
Justice?

Supplementary answer
given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(30 June 1999)

Any special provisions concerning Greenland and affecting the rights of the residents of Greenland under
Community law were originally provided by the act of accession of Denmark to the Communities as well
as the treaties establishing the Communities and the secondary legislation giving them effect.

The Treaty amending, with regard to Greenland, the treaties establishing the Communities entered into
force on 1 February 1985 (1). Pursuant to this treaty proposed by Denmark, the treaties establishing the
Communities ceased to apply to Greenland and the provisions of the treaty applicable to overseas
countries and territories (OCT) were chosen as the new framework for the relations between the
Communities and Greenland.

Since 1 February 1985 Greenland has been one of the overseas countries and territories to which Articles
182 to 187 of the EC Treaty (ex Articles 131 to 136) apply and which are listed in Annex II of the EC
Treaty. According to Article 188 of the EC Treaty (ex Article 136a) the provisions of Articles 182 to 187
shall apply to Greenland, subject to the specific provisions for Greenland set out in the Protocol on special
arrangements for Greenland annexed to the EC Treaty.

Article 17 of the Treaty establishing the European Union (ex Article 8) provides that every person holding
a nationality of a Member State shall be a citizen of the Union. Therefore, any person resident in
Greenland, who is a national of a Member State, is also a citizen of the Union.

Article 5(1) of the act of accession of Denmark to the Schengen Convention provides that the Convention
does not apply to Greenland. However, according to Article 5(2) people travelling between Greenland and
the Schengen countries (and Iceland and Norway) will not be controlled at the frontiers. This will apply
once Denmark has implemented the Schengen Convention. However, it should be noted that there are no
controls at the frontiers between Greenland and the countries of the Nordic Passport Union.

(1) OJ L 29, 1.2.1985.

(1999/C 370/051)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0418/99

by Michl Ebner (PPE) to the Commission

(1 March 1999)

Subject: Bank charges on exchange transactions

Since the beginning of this year the exchange rates of the EU-11 currencies have been fixed, so that banks
have lost the profits resulting from fluctuating exchange rates. In order to offset this loss, banks have
apparently raised the rate of commission they charge on exchange transactions. As a result it is now not
unusual for banks to charge 3 % or more in commission.