Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1287/2003 of 15 July 2003 on the harmonisation of gross national income at market prices (GNI Regulation) (Text with EEA relevance)
Date: 2003-07-15
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: EU statistics, European accounting system, committee (EU), data transmission, gross national product, own resources

19.7.2003

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Official Journal of the European Union

L 181/1

I

(Acts whose publication is obligatory)

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC, EURATOM) No 1287/2003

of 15 July 2003

on the harmonisation of gross national income at market prices (GNI Regulation)

(Text with EEA relevance)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Atomic
Energy Community,

Having regard to Council Decision 2000/597/EC, Euratom of
29 September 2000 on the system of the Communities' own
resources (1), and in particular Article 8(2) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (2),

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament (3),

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

The increasing share of the Community's own resource
based on the gross national product at market prices
(hereinafter referred to as GNPmp) of the Member States,
makes it necessary to further reinforce the comparability,
reliability and exhaustiveness of this aggregate.

These data are also an important analytical tool for the
coordination of national economic policies and for
various Community policies.

For own resource purposes, Council Decision 2000/597/
EC, Euratom states that GNPmp is equal
to gross
national income at market prices (hereinafter referred to
as GNI) as provided by the Commission in application of
the European system of national and regional accounts
(hereinafter referred to as ESA 95) in accordance with
Council Regulation (EC) No 2223/96 of 25 June 1996
on the European system of national and regional
accounts in the Community (4).

if

GNI data must be comparable. These data can be
comparable only
and
accounting rules of ESA 95 are complied with. For that
purpose, the assessment procedures and the basic data
actually used should permit the correct application of
the definitions and accounting rules of ESA 95.

definitions

relevant

the

(1) OJ L 253, 7.10.2000, p. 42.
(2) OJ C 45 E, 25.2.2003, p. 61.
(3) Opinion of 12 March 2003 (not yet published in the Official

Journal).

(4) OJ L 310, 30.11.1996, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regula-
tion (EC) No 359/2002 of the European Parliament and of the
Council (OJ L 58, 28.2.2002, p. 1).

(5)

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

(10)

The sources and methods used to compile GNI must be
reliable. This means that sound techniques should be
applied to robust and suitable basic statistics as much as
possible.

they
GNI data must be exhaustive. This means that
should take account also of the activities that are not
reported in statistical surveys or to fiscal, social and
other administrative authorities. Improved GNI coverage
presupposes developing suitable statistical bases and
assessment procedures and making adequate adjust-
ments.

In order to fulfil its mission of providing GNI data for
own resource purposes,
take
measures aimed at improving the comparability, relia-
bility and exhaustiveness of Member States' GNI.

the Commission shall

Council Directive 89/130/EEC, Euratom of 13 February
1989 on the harmonisation of the compilation of gross
national product at market prices (5) has set up a proce-
dure to verify and assess the comparability, reliability
and exhaustiveness of GNP within the GNP Committee
in which Member States and the Commission cooperate
closely. This procedure should be adjusted to take
account of the use of ESA 95 GNI for the purposes of
own resources.

The measures necessary for the implementation of this
Regulation should be adopted in accordance with
Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying
down the procedures for the exercise of implementing
powers conferred on the Commission (6).

Statistical

Programme Committee

The
been
consulted in accordance with Article 3 of Council Deci-
sion 89/382/EEC, Euratom of 19 June 1989 establishing
a Committee on the Statistical Programmes of
the
European Communities (7),

has

(5) OJ L 49, 21.2.1989, p. 26.
(6) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.
(7) OJ L 181, 28.6.1989, p. 47.

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Official Journal of the European Union

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HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Chapte r I

Definition and calculation of gross national

income at

sions made to earlier GNI estimates. The content and format of
this report shall
follow the guidelines laid down by the
Commission in accordance with the procedure referred to in
Article 4(2).

market prices

Article 1

1.
Gross national income at market prices (GNI) and gross
domestic product at market prices (GDP) shall be defined in
accordance with the European system of national and regional
accounts (ESA 95).

GDP is the final result of the production activity of resi-

2.
dent producer units. It can be defined in three ways:

(a) GDP is the sum of gross value added of the various institu-
tional sectors or the various industries plus taxes and less
subsidies on products (which are not allocated to sectors
and industries). It is also the balancing item in the total
economy production account;

(b) GDP is the sum of final uses of goods and services by resi-
dent institutional units (actual final consumption and gross
capital formation) plus exports and minus imports of goods
and services;

(c) GDP is the sum of uses in the total economy generation of
income account
taxes on
production and imports less subsidies, gross operating
surplus and mixed income of the total economy).

(compensation of employees,

3.
GNI represents total primary income receivable by resi-
dent institutional units: compensation of employees, taxes on
production and imports less subsidies, property income (recei-
vable less payable), gross operating surplus and gross mixed
income. GNI equals GDP minus primary income payable by
resident units to non-resident units plus primary income recei-
vable by resident units from the rest of the world.

Ch a p te r II

Forwarding of GNI data and additional information

Article 2

1. Member States shall establish GNI
Article 1 in the context of regular national accounting.

in accordance with

2.
Before 22 September each year, Member States shall
provide the Commission (Eurostat), in the context of national
accounting procedures, with figures for aggregate GNI and its
components, according to the definitions referred to in Article
1. Totals for GDP and its components may be presented
according to the three approaches mentioned in Article 1(2).
The figures provided shall cover the preceding year and any
changes made to the figures for previous years.

3. When they communicate the data referred to in para-
graph 2, Member States shall transmit a report on the quality
of GNI data to the Commission (Eurostat). The report shall
supply the information necessary to show how the aggregate
was reached, and in particular describe any significant changes
in the procedures and basic statistics used and explain the revi-

Article 3

Member States shall provide the Commission (Eurostat),
in
accordance with the guidelines laid down by the latter and in
accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 4(2), with
an inventory of the procedures and basic statistics used to
calculate GNI and its components according to ESA 95.
Member States
inventory
according to those guidelines.

improve and update their

shall

Chap ter III

Procedures and checks on the calculation of GNI

Article 4

1.
The Commission shall be assisted by a committee, herein-
after referred to as the ‘GNI Committee’, composed of represen-
tatives of the Member States and chaired by the representative
of the Commission.

2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 5 and
7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply.

The period laid down in Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/468/EC
shall be set at three months.

3.

The Committee shall adopt its rules of procedure.

Article 5

The Commission shall verify the sources and methods
1.
used by Member States to calculate GNI. Measures to make
GNI data more comparable, reliable and exhaustive shall be
adopted in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article
4(2).

2.
The GNI Committee shall examine questions raised by its
Chairman, either on his own initiative or at the request of the
representative of a Member State, relating to the implementa-
tion of this Regulation, in particular with regard to:

(a) compliance each year with the definitions referred to in

Article 1;

(b) the examination each year of the data forwarded under the
terms of Article 2(2) and the information forwarded under
the terms of Article 2(3) concerning the statistical sources
and the procedures for calculating GNI and its components.
This examination shall lead to a GNI Committee opinion
on the appropriateness of Member States' GNI data for own
resource purposes with respect to reliability, comparability
and exhaustiveness. This opinion will
indicate the main
documents on which the examination is based. Reliability,
comparability and exhaustiveness of GNI and its compo-
nents must be assessed taking account of the cost-benefit
principle.

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In this context, the cost-benefit principle entails a judgment
on the potential size and significance of specific activities
or transactions based on whatever information is available.
This information is often qualitative,
though it may be
quantitative in some cases. The Commission (Eurostat)
examines the comparability in the treatment of similar
cases
in the Member States and reports to the GNI
Committee on all cases where the cost-benefit principle is
considered to apply. The application of
this principle
should avoid committing disproportionate resources to
calculate insignificant items;

(c) expressing its views, without prejudice to Article 4, on
Commission proposals aiming to improve GNI calculations,
including interpreting ESA 95 definitions where necessary
and quantifying the impact of these proposals on GNI.

3.
The GNI Committee shall dedicate particular efforts to
the improvement of Member States' GNI compilation practices
and to the dissemination of best practices in this domain.

It shall also deal with questions relating to the revision of GNI
data and the problem of the exhaustiveness of GNI.

Article 6

Without prejudice to the inspections provided for in Article 19
of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1150/2000 (1), joint GNI infor-
mation visits may, where deemed appropriate, be carried out in
Member States by the Commission's services and representa-
tives from other Member States in consultation with the
Member States visited. The participation of Member States in
these visits is voluntary.

Ch a p te r IV

Final provisions

Article 7

Before the end of 2005, the Commission shall submit a report
on the application of this Regulation to the European Parlia-
ment and to the Council.

Article 8

It shall, if necessary, suggest to the Commission measures to
make GNI data more comparable and more reliable.

This Regulation shall enter into force on the day of its publica-
tion in the Official Journal of the European Union.

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

Done at Brussels, 15 July 2003.

For the Council

The President

G. TREMONTI

(1) OJ L 130, 31.5.2000, p. 1.