Commission Regulation (EC) No 2375/2002 of 27 December 2002 opening and providing for the administration of Community tariff quotas for common wheat of a quality other than high quality from third countries and derogating from Council Regulation (EEC) No 1766/92
Date: 2002-12-27
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: common wheat, derogation from EU law, import, import licence, product quality, tariff quota, third country

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 2375/2002

of 27 December 2002

opening and providing for the administration of Community tariff quotas for common wheat of a
quality other than high quality from third countries and derogating from Council Regulation (EEC)
No 1766/92

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 1766/92 of 30
June 1992 on the common organisation of the market in
cereals (1), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1666/
2000 (2), and in particular Article 12(1) thereof,

Having regard to the Council Decision of 19 December 2002
concerning the conclusion of an Agreement in the form of an
Exchange of Letters between the European Community and the
United States of America, with a view to the modification of
concessions with respect to cereals provided for in schedule
CXL annexed to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
(GATT) (3), and in particular Article 2 thereof,

Having regard to the Council Decision of 19 December 2002
concerning the conclusion of an Agreement in the form of an
Exchange of Letters between the European Community and
Canada pursuant to Article XXVIII of the General Agreement
on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), with a view to the modification
of concessions with respect to cereals provided for in EC sche-
dule CXL annexed to the GATT (4), and in particular Article 2
thereof,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

that

low and medium quality,

Following trade negotiations,
the Community has
changed the conditions for the import of common
wheat of
is common
wheat of a quality other than high quality, as defined in
Annex I to Commission Regulation (EC) No 1249/96 of
28 June 1996 (5) on rules of application (cereal sector
import duties) for Council Regulation (EEC) No 1766/
92, as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1900/
2002 (6), by creating an import quota from 1 January
2003.

This import quota relates to a maximum annual quantity
of 2 981 600 tonnes,
including 572 000 tonnes for
imports originating in the United States and 38 000
tonnes for imports originating in Canada.

The opening of this quota means that Regulation (EEC)
No 1766/92 has to be adapted. In order to enable the
quota to be opened on 1 January 2003, provision should

(1) OJ L 181, 1.7.1992, p. 21.
(2) OJ L 193, 29.7.2000, p. 1.
(3) Not yet published in the Official Journal.
(4) Not yet published in the Official Journal.
(5) OJ L 161, 29.6.1996, p. 125.
(6) OJ L 287, 25.10.2002, p. 15.

be made to derogate from Regulation (EEC) No 1766/92
during a transitional period expiring on the date of entry
into force of the amendment to that Regulation, but
until 30 June 2003 at the latest.

To ensure that imports of the common wheat covered
by these tariff quotas are orderly and not speculative,
they should be made subject to the issue of import
licences. The licences are to be issued, within the quanti-
ties set, at the request of the interested parties, subject
where appropriate to the fixing of a reduction coefficient
in respect of the quantities applied for.

To ensure the proper management of these quotas, dead-
lines for the lodging of licence applications should be
laid down and the information to be included in applica-
tions and licences should be specified.

To take account of supply conditions, a derogation
should be made concerning the period of validity of the
licences.

(4)

(5)

(6)

(7) With a view to the sound management of the quotas,
provision should be made to derogate from Commission
Regulation (EC) No 1291/2000 of 9 June 2000 laying
down common detailed rules for the application of the
system of import and export licences and advance fixing
certificates for agricultural products (7), as last amended
by Regulation (EC) No 2299/2001 (8), as regards the
the licences and the tolerance
transferable nature of
relating to the quantities released into free circulation.

(8)

(9)

(10)

To ensure sound management of the quotas, the security
on the import licences should be set at a relatively high
level, notwithstanding Article 10 of Commission Regula-
tion (EC) No 1162/95 of 23 May 1995 laying down
special detailed rules for the application of the system of
import and export licences for cereals and rice (9), as last
amended by Regulation (EC) No 1322/2002 (10).

Rapid two-way communication should be established
between the Commission and the Member States
regarding the quantities applied for and imported.

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in
the Management
accordance with the opinion of
Committee for Cereals,

(7) OJ L 152, 24.6.2000, p. 1.
(8) OJ L 308, 27.11.2001, p. 19.
(9) OJ L 117, 24.5.1995, p. 2.
(10) OJ L 194, 23.7.2002, p. 22.

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HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 5

Article 1

Notwithstanding Article 10(1) and (2) of Regulation (EEC) No
1766/92, the import duty for common wheat falling in CN
code 1001 90 99, of a quality other than high quality as
defined in Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 1249/96, shall be
fixed in the framework of the quota opened by this Regulation.

Article 10(1) of Regulation (EEC) No 1766/92 shall apply to
imports of the products referred to in this Regulation in excess
of the quantities provided for in Article 3.

Article 2

1.
A tariff quota of 2 981 600 tonnes of common wheat
falling in CN code 1001 90 99 of a quality other than high
quality is hereby opened from 1 January 2003.

2.
The tariff quota shall be opened on 1 January each year.
Duties on imports within the tariff quota shall be levied at a
rate of EUR 12 per tonne.

Article 3

The annual

1.
subquotas:

tariff quota shall be divided into three

(a) Subquota I: 572 000 tonnes for

the United States of

America;

(b) Subquota II: 38 000 tonnes for Canada;

(c) Subquota III: 2 371 600 tonnes for other third countries.

2. Where, in the course of a year, it emerges that there is a
serious shortfall in the take-up of subquota I or II, the Commis-
sion may, with the agreement of the third country concerned,
adopt arrangements to transfer the unused quantities to the
other subquotas, in accordance with the procedure laid down
in Article 23 of Regulation (EEC) No 1766/92.

Subquota III shall be divided into four quarterly tranches

3.
of 592 900 tonnes each for the following periods:

(a) Tranche No 1 — 1 January to 31 March;

(b) Tranche No 2 — 1 April to 30 June;

(c) Tranche No 3 — 1 July to 30 September;

Applications for import licences shall be lodged with the
the Member States no later than

1.
competent authorities of
13.00 (Brussels time) every Monday.

Each licence application must be for a quantity that may not
exceed the quantity available under the subquota for the import
of the product concerned in the period concerned.

2.
No later than 18.00 Brussels time on the day of lodging
of licence applications, the competent authorities shall forward
to the Commission by fax a notification in accordance with the
model annexed hereto, and the total quantity resulting from
the sum of all quantities indicated on the import licence appli-
cations. If the day for lodging the licence applications is a
national holiday, the Member State concerned shall send the
said notification no later than 18.00 Brussels time on the
working day preceding the national holiday.

That information must be communicated separately from the
information on other import licence applications for cereals.

3.
If the total of the quantities since the start of the period
and the quantity referred to in paragraph 2 exceeds the relevant
subquota for the period concerned, the Commission shall set,
no later than the third working day after the applications are
lodged, single reduction coefficients to be applied to the quanti-
ties requested.

4. Without prejudice to paragraph 3, licences shall be issued
on the fourth working day following the day on which the
application was lodged. No later than 18.00 Brussels time on
the day the licences are issued, the competent authorities shall
fax the Commission, at the number mentioned in the Annex
hereto, the total quantity resulting from the sum of the quanti-
ties for which import licences have been issued that same day.

Article 6

Import licences shall be valid for 60 days from the day of issue.
In accordance with Article 23(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1291/
2000, the period of validity of the licence shall be calculated
from the actual date of issue.

(d) Tranche No 4 — 1 October to 31 December.

Article 7

4.
Unused quantities in any tranche except tranche No 4,
referred to in subparagraph 3(d), shall be automatically allo-
cated to the following tranche. Where a tranche is exhausted,
the Commission may anticipate the opening of the following
tranche in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article
23 of Regulation (EC) No 1766/92.

Notwithstanding Article 9 of Regulation (EC) No 1291/2000,
the rights resulting from the import licences shall not be trans-
ferable.

Article 4

All imports under the quota referred to in Article 2(1) shall be
conditional upon the production of an import licence issued in
accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1291/2000, subject to the
provisions of this Regulation.

Notwithstanding Article 8(4) of Regulation (EC) No 1291/
2000,
the quantity released into free circulation may not
exceed that indicated in sections 17 and 18 of the import
licence. The figure ‘0’ shall be entered to that effect in section
19 of the licence.

Article 8

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Article 9

Article 10

The import licence application and the import licence shall
contain the following information:

Notwithstanding Article 10(a) and (b) of Regulation (EC) No
1162/95, the security for the import licences provided for in
this Regulation shall be EUR 30 per tonne.

(a) in section 8, the name of the country of origin;

(b) in section 20, one of the following entries:

— Reglamento (CE) no 2375/2002

— Forordning (EF) nr. 2375/2002

— Verordnung (EG) Nr. 2375/2002
— Κανονισµóς (EK) αριθ. 2375/2002
— Regulation (EC) No 2375/2002

— Règlement (CE) no 2375/2002

— Regolamento (CE) n. 2375/2002

— Verordening (EG) nr. 2375/2002

— Regulamento (CE) n.o 2375/2002

— Asetus (EY) N:o 2375/2002

— Förordning (EG) nr 2375/2002

(c) in section 24, the words ‘EUR 12/tonne’.

Article 11

In the framework of the tariff quota, the release into free circu-
lation in the Community of common wheat of a quality other
than high quality originating in a third country shall be condi-
tional upon production of a certificate of origin issued by the
competent national authorities of that country, in accordance
with Articles 55 to 65 of Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 (1).

Article 12

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

It shall apply from 1 January 2003.

It shall apply until the date of entry into force of the Regulation
amending Article 10 of Regulation (EEC) No 1766/92, but until
30 June 2003 at the latest.

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

Done at Brussels, 27 December 2002.

For the Commission

Franz FISCHLER

Member of the Commission

(1) OJ L 253, 11.10.1993, p. 1.

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ANNEX