Proposal for a Council Regulation amending Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 of 23 July 1987 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and the Common Customs Tariff
Date: 1999-12-06
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Combined Nomenclature, common customs tariff, computer systems, data collection, statistics

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES

Brussels, 06.12.1999
COM(1999)649 final

1999/0261 (ACC)

Proposal for a

COUNCIL REGULATION

amending Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 of 23 July 1987 on the tariff and
statistical nomenclature and the Common Customs Tariff

(presented by the Commission)

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

The purpose of the present proposal is to modify Council Regulation (EEC)
No 2658/87, mainly with a view to modernising and to simplifying the
Combined Nomenclature (CN) as envisaged in the context of the SLIM
initiative (Simpler Legislation for the Internal Market).

is
In order to facilitate the access to the CN and tariff-related data, it
proposed to amend the Regulation so that
the Commission, whenever
possible, shall disseminate such data by electronic means, in particular on the
Internet and on carrier media like CD-ROM.

With a view to modernising and simplifying the presentation of the EU tariff
schedule, it is proposed to delete the reference to autonomous duties in the
regulation, having as a consequence the elimination of the current column 3
("autonomous rate of duty"). In those cases where the relevant autonomous
duty rate applies because it is lower than the conventional rate of duty,
provision will be made to retain these rates, most likely as footnotes in the
tariff schedule.

In order to limit the creation of new lines at the 8-digit CN code level, it is
proposed to provide the legal basis for collecting external trade data at
TARIC level for specific requirements.

It is proposed to adjust the definition of the TARIC code, its structure and its
use for external trade measures. It is also important to clarify that the TARIC
is held in a database and that TARIC data is transmitted and disseminated by
electronic means.

In addition,
Regulation.

the proposal

includes various technical adjustments to the

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1999/0261 (ACC)

Proposal for a

COUNCIL REGULATION

amending Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 of 23 July 1987 on the tariff and
statistical nomenclature and the Common Customs Tariff

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, in particular
Articles 26, 37 and 133 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 of 23 July 1987 on the tariff and
statistical nomenclature and on the Common Customs Tariff1, as last amended
by Regulation (EC) No …./99 of ….. 19992, provides the legal basis for the
establishment and management of the Combined Nomenclature, the Common
Customs Tariff and the Integrated Tariff of the Communities (TARIC).

It
is appropriate to modernise and to simplify the presentation and the
management of Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 as envisaged by the SLIM
initiative (Simpler Legislation for the Internal Market).

The data contained in Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 and other data published
by virtue of that regulation, and in particular its Articles 6 and 9, should,
whenever possible, be made available to the public additionally in electronic
format.

The schedule of customs duties in Annex I Part II of Regulation (EEC)
No 2658/87 includes in columns 3 and 4 respectively the autonomous and the
conventional duty rates. With a view to rationalising and simplifying the use
of the tariff schedule, only one of these columns should be maintained and this
column should reflect the conventional duty rates. Any exception from the
application of a conventional rate of duty by autonomous measures should
nevertheless be indicated.

(5)

Statistical requirements are normally covered at the level of the combined
nomenclature. In order to limit the number of CN subheadings and to avoid
parallel data collection systems it would, in certain cases, be more appropriate

1

2

OJ L 256 of 7.9.1987, p. 1.
OJ L …. of ……1999, p.1.

3

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

to satisfy such requirements, by creating TARIC subdivisions or TARIC
additional codes for statistical purposes.

The current definition of the TARIC,
the
its management, data
composition of
transmission and publication should be revised in order to take account of
recent developments.

its codes and the description of

the coverage of its measures,

The collaboration of Member States’ customs
should be
encouraged in order to ensure a uniform application of the Common Customs
Tariff and the TARIC.

laboratories

of

(3)

of Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92

The Customs Tariff of the European Communities has been defined by
12 October 1992
Article 20
establishing the Community Customs Code3,
by
amended
Regulation (EC) No 955/1999 of 13 April 19994. It is consequently no longer
necessary to provide a definition of the Common Customs Tariff in this
Regulation. The use of the Combined Nomenclature for external
trade
statistics has already been set out in Article 1 of this Regulation and in
Article 8 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1172/95 of 22 May 1995 on the
statistics relating to the trading of goods by the Community and its Member
States with non-member countries5, as last amended by Regulation (EC)
No 374/98 of 12 February 19986. Article 4 can therefore be deleted.

last

as

Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 of 2 July 1993 laying down
provisions for the implementation of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92
establishing the Community Customs Code7,
by
Regulation (EC) No 502/1999 of 12 February 19998, sets out the rules for the
codes to be entered in customs declarations at Community and Member State
level.

amended

last

as

(10)

The committee procedure set out
in Article 10 of Regulation (EEC)
No. 2658/87 must reflect Council Decision 1999/468/EC laying down the
implementing powers conferred on the
procedures for
Commission9.

the exercise of

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

3

4

5

6

7

8

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OJ L 302 of 19.10.1992, p. 1.
OJ L 119 of 7.5.1999. p. 1.
OJ L 118 of 25.5.1995, p. 10.
OJ L 48 of 19.2.1998, p. 1.
OJ L 253 of 11.10.1993, p. 1.
OJ L 65 of 12.3.1999, p. 1.
OJ L 184 of 17.7.1999, p. 23.

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Article 1

Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 shall be amended as follows:

1.

Article 1 (1) is replaced by the following:

“A goods nomenclature, hereinafter called the "Combined Nomenclature", or
in abbreviated form "CN", is hereby established to meet, at one and the same
time, the requirements of the Common Customs Tariff, the external trade
statistics of the Community and other Community policies concerning the
importation or exportation of goods."

2.

Article 1 (3) is replaced by the following:

“The Combined Nomenclature is reproduced in Annex I. The rates of duty of
the supplementary
the Common Customs Tariff and, where applicable,
statistical units as well as other necessary information, are laid down in the
said Annex.

The Annex comprises the conventional rates of duty.

However, whenever autonomous
than the
conventional rates of duty or where conventional rates of duty do not apply,
the autonomous rates are also shown in the said Annex.”

rates of duty are lower

3.

Article 2 is replaced by the following:

“An Integrated Tariff of the Communities, hereinafter referred to as the
‘TARIC’, is hereby established to meet the requirements of the Common
Customs Tariff, external trade statistics, the commercial, agricultural and
other Community policies concerning the importation or exportation of
goods.

It shall be based on the Combined Nomenclature and include:

a)

b)

c)

d)

e)

the measures contained in this Regulation;

the additional Community subdivisions,
referred to as "TARIC
subheadings", which are needed for the implementation of specific
Community measures listed in Annex II;

other

information

any
or
management of the TARIC codes and additional codes as defined in
Article 3 (2) and (3);

implementation

necessary

the

for

the rates of customs duty and other import and export charges,
including duty exemptions and preferential tariff rates applicable to
specific goods on importation or exportation;

measures shown in Annex II applicable on the importation and
exportation of specific goods.”

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4.

5.

Article 4 shall be deleted.

Article 5 is replaced by the following:

"1. The TARIC shall be used by the Commission and the Member States
for the application of Community measures concerning importation
into and exportation from the Community.

2.

TARIC codes and TARIC additional codes shall be applied to the
importation and, where applicable, to the exportation of goods covered
by the corresponding subheadings.

3. Member States may add subdivisions or additional codes for national
purposes. Identifying codes shall be assigned to such subdivisions or
additional codes in accordance with Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93.”

6.

Article 6 is replaced by the following:

"The Commission shall be responsible for the management of the TARIC
and its dissemination by using, wherever possible, computerised means. It
shall, in particular, take the necessary steps to:

a)

b)

c)

d)

integrate all measures contained in this Regulation or shown in
Annex II into the TARIC,

attribute TARIC codes and TARIC additional codes,

update the TARIC immediately,

disseminate in electronic format changes to the TARIC immediately.”

7.

In Article 9 (1), subparagraphs (a) and (g) are replaced by the following:

“(a) application of the combined nomenclature and the Taric concerning in

particular:

–

–

–

the classification of goods in the nomenclatures referred to in
Article 8,

explanatory notes;

the creation of TARIC subheadings or additional codes for
statistical purposes;”

“(g) questions relating to the application, functioning and management of
the harmonised system to be discussed within the Customs Co-
operation Council, as well as their implementation by the Community.”

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8.

Article 9 (2) is replaced by the following:

“2. The provisions adopted under paragraph 1 shall not amend:

–

–

–

–

the rates of customs duties,

agricultural duties, refunds or other amounts applicable within
the framework of the common agricultural policy or within that
of specific schemes applicable to certain goods resulting from the
processing of agricultural products,

quantitative restrictions laid down under Community provisions,

nomenclatures adopted within the framework of the common
agricultural policy.”

9.

10.

In Article 10 (2), third sentence, the word “shall” is replaced by “may”.

Article 12 is replaced by the following:

"1. The Commission shall adopt each year, by means of a regulation, a
complete version of the Combined Nomenclature, together with the
rates of duty in accordance with Article 1, as resulting from measures
adopted by the Council or the Commission. The said Regulation shall
be published not later than 31 October in the Official Journal of the
European Communities and it shall apply from 1 January of the
following year.

2. Measures and information concerning the Common Customs Tariff or
TARIC shall, whenever possible, be disseminated in electronic format
by using computerised means.

3.

In order to ensure the uniform application of the Common Customs
Tariff and the TARIC, the Commission shall take the necessary steps
to harmonise the practices of Member States’ customs laboratories,
using wherever possible, computerised means.”

11.

Article 13 shall be deleted.

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Article 2

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

This Regulation shall apply from 1 January 2000.

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

Done at Brussels,

For the Council
The President

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FINANCIAL STATEMENT

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Title of operation: Proposal for a Council Regulation amending Council Regulation
(EEC) No 2658/87 of 23 July 1987 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and the
Common Customs Tariff.

Budget heading involved: Chap. 12 Art. 120.

Legal basis: Art. 26, 37 and 133 of the Treaty.

Description of operation: Modification of the Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 with a
view to modernising and simplifying the combined nomenclature (CN), in order to
provide a legal basis for the dissemination of CN/TARIC related data by electronic
means and to clarify the TARIC coding, integration and dissemination procedures.

Fraud prevention measures: not applicable.

Financial impact: No financial impact expected.

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