Commission Regulation (EC) No 329/2000 of 11 February 2000 amending Regulation (EC) No 1238/95 establishing implementing rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 2100/94 as regards the fees payable to the Community Plant Variety Office
Date: 2000-02-11
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Community body, crop production, tax system

12. 2. 2000

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

L 37/19

COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 329/2000

of 11 February 2000

amending Regulation (EC) No 1238/95 establishing implementing rules for the application of
Council Regulation (EC) No 2100/94 as regards the fees payable to the Community Plant Variety
Office

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 2100/94 of 27
July 1994 on Community plant variety rights (1), as amended
by Regulation (EC) No 2506/95 (2), and in particular Article
113 thereof,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

(6)

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1238/95 of 31 May
1995 establishing implementing rules for the application
of Council Regulation (EC) No 2100/94 as regards the
fees payable to the Community Plant Variety Office (3)
has specified the acts and circumstances for which fees
are payable to the Community Plant Variety Office, and
the respective levels of such fees.

The financial situation of the Community Plant Variety
Office has developed such as to conclude that the annual
revenues of the Community Plant Variety Office mainly
based on the fees as currently specified will in future
likely exceed, in principle, the annual expenditures of the
Office.

Moreover, no subsidies from the general budget of the
European Communities have been included in the
annual revenues.

The Administrative Council of the Community Plant
Variety Office has forwarded draft amendments relating
to that financial situation to the Commission, pursuant
to Article 36(2) second indent, of Regulation (EC) No
2100/94.

Therefore a reduction in the level of certain fees charged
to applicants for, and holders of, Community plant
variety rights is now justified.

It is necessary to clarify the power to fix the adminis-
trative fee for the delivery of extracts from the registers
of the Community Plant Variety Office, referred to in
Article 82(2) of Commission Regulation (EC) No 1239/
95 of 31 May 1995 establishing implementing rules for
the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 2100/94
as regards proceedings before the Community Plant

Variety Office (4), as amended by Regulation (EC) No
448/96 (5).

(7)

(8)

(9)

In order to minimise cases of dispute, the description of
genera or species on which is based the categorisation of
varieties into one of the three examination fee groups in
Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 1238/95, requires greater
precision.

Regulation (EC) No 1238/95 should be amended accord-
ingly.

It is necessary to apply the new measures with effect of
the beginning of the budget year 2000.

(10) Article 2 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1103/97 of 17
June 1997 on certain provisions relating to the introduc-
tion of the euro (6) provides that any reference to the ecu
is replaced by a reference to the euro.

(11)

(12)

The Administrative Council has
been consulted,
pursuant to Article 113(4) of Regulation (EC) No 2100/
94.

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in
accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee
on Plant Variety Rights,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Regulation (EC) No 1238/95 is hereby amended as follows:

1. In Article 7(1),

‘1 000’ shall be replaced by ‘900’.

2. In Article 8:

— in paragraph 2, ‘one month after’ shall be deleted, and
— in paragraph 5, ‘Implementing Rules’ shall be replaced

by ‘Proceedings Regulation’.

3. In Article 12:

— in paragraph 1(c), ‘issued by the Office.’ shall be replaced

by ‘issued by the Office; and’,

— in paragraph 1, the following shall be added:

‘(d) the administrative fee referred to in Article 82(2) of

the Proceedings Regulation.’

— in paragraph 2, ‘paragraph 1(b) and (c)’ shall be replaced

by ‘paragraph 1(b), (c) and (d)’.

(1) OJ L 227, 1.9.1994, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 258, 28.10.1995, p. 3.
(3) OJ L 121, 1.6.1995, p. 31.

(4) OJ L 121, 1.6.1995, p. 37.
(5) OJ L 62, 13.3.1996, p. 3.
(6) OJ L 162, 19.6.1997, p. 1.

L 37/20

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

12. 2. 2000

4. Annex I shall be replaced by the following:

‘ANNEX I

The examination fee due to be paid pursuant to Article 8
shall be as follows:

Group A

EUR 1 000

Group A covers the following genera or species:

Avena sativa L., Beta vulgaris L. ssp. vulgaris var. altissima Döll,
Beta vulgaris L. ssp. vulgaris var. crassa (Alef.) Wittm, Brassica
napus L., Glycine max (L.) Merril, Gossypium L., Helianthus
annuus L., Hordeum vulgare L. sensu lato, Oryza sativa L.,
Phalaris canariensis L., Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench, Sorghum
sudanense
(L.) Moench x
Sorghum sudanense (Piper) Stapf., Secale cereale L., Solanum
tuberosum L., Triticum aestivum L. emend. Fiori et Paol.,
Triticum durum Desf., Triticum spelta L., X Triticosecale Wittm.,
Zea mays L.

(Piper) Stapf., Sorghum bicolor

Group B

Group B covers:

EUR 800

1. agricultural crops (including grasses), other than those

covered by Group A; and

2. the following genera or species:

Allium cepa L. var. cepa L., Capsicum annuum L., Cichorium
endivia L., Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum et. Nakai,
Cucumis melo L., Cucumis sativus L., Cucurbita pepo L.,
Cucurbita moschata L. (Duch.) Duch. Ex. Prior, Cucurbita
maxima Duch., Lactuca sativa L., Lycopersicon lycopersicum
(L.) Karst. ex. Farw., Phaseolus vulgaris L., Pisum sativum L.
(partim), Solanum melongena L., Vicia faba L. (partim);

L., Anthurium Schott,

Alstroemeria
Begonia-Elatior-
Chrysanthemum L.,
Hybriden,
Dianthus L., Euphorbia pulcherrima Willd. ex Klotzsch,

Calibrachoa-Hybriden,

Impatiens L., Kalanchoe Adans.,
Fuchsia L., Gerbera L.,
Lilium L., Orchidaceae, Pelargonium L'Hérit. ex Ait., Pentas
Benth., Petunioa Juss., Rhododendron L., Rosa L., Saintpualia
H. Wendl., Spathiphyllum Schott.

Group C

EUR 700

Group C covers all genera or species, other than those
covered by Group A or Group B.’

5. Annex II shall be replaced by the following:

‘ANNEX II

On the basis of the groups referred to in Annex I, the
annual fee to be paid pursuant to Article 9 shall be as
follows.

(EUR)

C

300

400

500

600’

Group

B

400

500

600

700

Year

1

2

3

A

400

600

800

4 and subsequent years

1 000

Article 2

1.
This Regulation shall enter into force on the day of its
publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

2.
It shall apply to fees which become due to the Office on
1 January 2000 or later, pursuant to the relevant provisions of
Regulation (EC) No 1238/95.

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

Done at Brussels, 11 February 2000.

For the Commission

David BYRNE

Member of the Commission