Commission Regulation (EC) No 2305/2003 of 29 December 2003 opening and providing for the administration of a Community tariff quota for imports of barley from third countries
Date: 2003-12-29
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: barley, import (EU), import licence, originating product, tariff quota, third country

30.12.2003

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Official Journal of the European Union

L 342/7

COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 2305/2003

of 29 December 2003

opening and providing for the administration of a Community tariff quota for imports of barley
from third countries

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), and in particular Article 12(1) thereof,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

Following trade negotiations which resulted in the
conclusion of agreements in the form of an Exchange of
Letters with Canada and the United States of America,
approved respectively by Council Decisions 2003/253/
EC (2) and 2003/254/EC (3), the Community changed the
conditions for the import of common wheat of low and
medium quality and of barley by creating import quotas
from 1 January 2003. For barley,
the Community
decided to replace the system of preference margins by
two tariff quotas, one for malting barley and one for
barley, under Commission Regulation (EC) No 2376/
2002 (4).

Regulation (EC) No 2376/2002 opens a tariff quota of
300 000 tonnes for imports of barley falling within CN
code 1003 00 from third countries and derogates from
Regulation (EC) No 1766/92. Following the amendment
of Article 10(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1766/92 by Regu-
lation (EC) No 1104/2003 with regard to the calculation
of import duties on certain cereals, that tariff quota has
become definitive. As a result, Regulation (EC) No 2376/
2002 may no longer provide for a derogation. For the
sake of clarity and transparency, therefore, that Regu-
lation should be repealed and replaced by a new Regu-
lation.

On 1 May 2004 the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus,
Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and
Slovakia become Member States of the European Union.
Since the tariff quota for the import of 300 000 tonnes
of barley is an annual quota awarded weekly from 1
January 2004, it is possible that it will be exhausted or
largely used up on the scheduled accession date. For
2004 only, therefore, specific provisions should be laid
down to enable the new Member States to make use of
these quotas.

(1) OJ L 181, 1.7.1992, p. 21. Regulation as last amended by Regu-

lation (EC) No 1104/2003 (OJ L 158, 27.6.2003, p. 1).

(2) OJ L 95, 11.4.2003, p. 36.
(3) OJ L 95, 11.4.2003, p. 40.
(4) OJ L 358, 31.12.2002, p. 92. Regulation as last amended by Regu-

lation (EC) No 1113/2003 (OJ L 158, 27.6.2003, p. 24).

(4)

(5)

(6)

To ensure that imports of the barley covered by this
tariff quota are orderly and not speculative, they should
be made subject to the issue of import licences. These
licences will be issued, within the quantities set, at the
request of the interested parties, subject, where appro-
priate, to the fixing of a reduction coefficient in respect
of the quantities applied for.

To ensure the proper management of this quota, dead-
lines should be laid down for the lodging of licence
applications and the information to be included in appli-
cations and licences should be specified.

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

(7) With a view to the sound management of the quota, a
derogation should be made from Commission Regu-
lation (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 certifi-
cates for agricultural products (5) as regards the transfer-
able nature of the licences and the tolerance relating to
the quantities released into free circulation.

(8)

(9)

The security on the import licences should also be set at
a relatively high level, by derogation from Article 12 of
Commission Regulation (EC) No 1342/2003 of 28 July
2003 laying down special detailed rules for the applica-
tion of the system of import and export licences for
cereals and rice (6).

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

(10)

The Management Committee for Cereals has not issued
an opinion by the time limit laid down by its Chairman,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

A tariff

1.
tonnes of barley falling within CN code 1003 00.

import quota is hereby opened for 300 000

(5) OJ L 152, 24.6.2000, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regu-

lation (EC) No 325/2003 (OJ L 47, 21.2.2003, p. 21).

(6) OJ L 189, 29.7.2003, p. 12.

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Official Journal of the European Union

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The tariff quota shall be opened on 1 January each year.
2.
Duties on imports within the tariff quota shall be levied at a
rate of EUR 16 per tonne.

later than the third working day after the applications are
lodged, a single reduction coefficient to be applied to the quan-
tities requested.

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 quantity provided for in paragraph 1 of this Article.

For 2004, the second subparagraph shall apply to imports in
excess of the quantities provided for in paragraph 3 of this
Article in the period concerned.

For 2004, the annual quota is divided into two tranches

3.
for the following periods:

(a) tranche 1: 1 January to 30 April 2004 — 100 000 tonnes;

(b) tranche 2: 1 May to 31 December 2004 — 200 000

tonnes.

Unused quantities from tranche 1 will automatically be allo-
cated to tranche 2.

Article 2

All imports under the quota referred to in Article 1(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.

Article 3

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 for each subquota for the import
of the relevant product in the period concerned. Applicants
may submit one licence application only in the Member State
concerned.

For 2004, the quantity referred to in the second subparagraph
may not exceed the quantity available 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. Such notifications shall be made even when no applica-
tions have been submitted in a Member State. That information
must be communicated separately from the information on
other import licence applications for cereals.

If the Member State does not send the Commission notification
of applications within the given deadlines, the Commission
shall consider that no applications have been submitted in the
Member State concerned.

3.
If the total of the quantities granted since the start of the
year and the quantity referred to in paragraph 2 exceeds the
quota for the year concerned, the Commission shall set, no

For 2004, the single reduction coefficients referred to in the
first subparagraph shall be set if the total of the quantities
granted since the start of the period and the quantities referred
to in paragraph 2 exceeds the quota for the period concerned.

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 4

Import licences shall be valid for 45 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.

Article 5

By derogation from Article 9 of Regulation (EC) No 1291/
2000, rights deriving from the import licence shall not be
transferable.

Article 6

By derogation from Article 8(4) of Regulation (EC) No 1291/
the quantity released into free circulation may not
2000,
exceed that indicated in boxes 17 and 18 of the import licence.
To that end, the figure ‘0’ shall be entered in box 19 of the
licence.

Article 7

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

(a) in box 20, one of the following entries:

— Reglamento (CE) no 2305/2003

— Forordning (EF) nr. 2305/2003

— Verordnung (EG) Nr. 2305/2003
— Κανονισµóς (EK) αριθ. 2305/2003
— Regulation (EC) No 2305/2003

— Règlement (CE) no 2305/2003

— Regolamento (CE) n. 2305/2003

— Verordening (EG) nr. 2305/2003

— Regulamento (CE) n.o 2305/2003

— Asetus (EY) N:o 2305/2003

— Förordning (EG) nr 2305/2003

(b) in box 24, the words ‘EUR 16/tonne’.

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By derogation from Article 12(a) and (b) of Regulation (EC) No 1342/2003, the security for the import
licences provided for in this Regulation shall be EUR 30 per tonne.

Article 8

Regulation (EC) No 2376/2002 is hereby repealed.

Article 9

Article 10

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

It shall apply from 1 January 2004.

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

Done at Brussels, 29 December 2003.

For the Commission

Franz FISCHLER

Member of the Commission

ANNEX