Decision No 1/2004 of the EU/Switzerland Mixed Committee established by the Agreement concluded between the European Union, the European Community and the Swiss Confederation concerning the latter's association in the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis of 26 October 2004 adopting its Rules of Procedure
Date: 2004-10-26
Institutions: EU–Switzerland Joint Committee
Subjects: Schengen Agreement, Switzerland, joint committee (EU), rules of procedure

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Official Journal of the European Union

14.12.2004

Decision No 1/2004 of the EU/Switzerland Mixed Committee established by the Agreement
concluded between the European Union, the European Community and the Swiss Confederation
concerning the latter's association in the implementation, application and development of the
Schengen acquis

of 26 October 2004

adopting its Rules of Procedure

(2004/C 308/02)

THE MIXED COMMITTEE,

Having regard to the Agreement concluded between the Euro-
pean Union, the European Community and the Swiss Confed-
eration concerning the latter's association in the implementa-
tion, application and development of the Schengen acquis (here-
inafter the Agreement), and in particular Article 3(2) thereof,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

In exceptional
reasons,
hold a meeting elsewhere.

circumstances

and for duly substantiated
the Mixed Committee may decide unanimously to

Article 3

Meetings of the Mixed Committee shall not be public, unless
the Mixed Committee unanimously decides otherwise.

Article 1

Article 4

The Mixed Committee shall be composed of representatives of
the Government of the Swiss Confederation (hereinafter Swit-
zerland), the members of the Council of the European Union
(hereinafter the Council) and the Commission of the European
Communities (hereinafter the Commission).

The Committee shall be chaired:

— at the level of experts:

by the delegation representing the member of the Council
holding the Presidency,

— at the level of senior officials and Ministers:

in the first six months of the year: by the delegation repre-
senting the member of the Council holding the Presidency;

in the second six months of the year: by the delegation
representing the Government of Switzerland (hereinafter
the Swiss delegation).

The delegation representing the member of the Council holding
the Presidency may cede the chair of the Mixed Committee to
the delegation which will hold the next Council Presidency.
The Swiss delegation may cede the chair of
the Mixed
Committee meeting at the level of senior officials and Ministers
to another delegation prepared to perform that function.

Article 2

The Mixed Committee shall meet at the seat of the Council in
Brussels.

The Mixed Committee shall meet, at any appropriate level,
when convened by its Chairperson on his/her own initiative or
at the request of one of its members.

Meetings of the Mixed Committee at ministerial
level shall
normally be convened for the day of a Council meeting dealing
with issues in the area covered by Article 1 of the Agreement.

If, in a case contemplated in Article 7(4) of the Agreement, the
Swiss delegation considers that
the content of an act or
measure is of a nature to affect the principles of neutrality,
federalism or direct democracy as enshrined in the constitu-
tional order of Switzerland, a meeting of the Mixed Committee
at ministerial level shall be convened by or at the request of
that delegation within three weeks. The Mixed Committee shall
carefully examine all ways to continue the Agreement, in par-
ticular any alternative solutions proposed by the Swiss delega-
If, after an in-depth examination within the period
tion.
the Mixed
referred to in Article 7(4) of
Committee does not accept such ways,
the
Agreement shall take effect three months after expiry of that
period.

the Agreement,

termination of

Article 5

The Mixed Committee at ministerial level shall be composed of
representatives of Switzerland and the members of the Council
at ministerial level, authorised to commit the governments of
their States, and a member of the Commission.

When the Council meets in a different place pursuant to its
Rules of Procedure, the Mixed Committee shall also meet at
ministerial level there.

The presence of at least half of the members of the Council, of
the representative of Switzerland at ministerial level and of the
member of the Commission is required to enable the Mixed
Committee to take decisions.

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Meetings of the Mixed Committee at ministerial level shall be
prepared by the Mixed Committee at senior official level. All
items on the provisional agenda for a meeting of the Mixed
Committee at ministerial level shall be examined in advance by
the Mixed Committee at senior official level, which shall endea-
vour to reach agreement at its level. If necessary, such items are
to be submitted to the Mixed Committee at ministerial level.

Article 6

The Chairperson shall draw up the provisional agenda for each
meeting. The provisional agenda shall contain the item in
respect of which a meeting has been requested in accordance
with Article 4. The invitation to the meeting and the provi-
sional agenda shall be forwarded to the addressees mentioned
in Article 9 in due time before the meeting. The agenda shall
be accompanied by all the necessary working documents.

Without prejudice to the rights of Switzerland laid down in
Article 4 of the Agreement, the agenda shall be adopted unani-
mously by the Mixed Committee at the beginning of each
meeting and the Mixed Committee may decide unanimously to
include in the agenda an item which does not appear on the
provisional agenda. The delegations representing the United
Kingdom and Ireland may not oppose the unanimity which is
required to place on the agenda an item relating to the area
covered by Article 1 of the Agreement, in which those States
do not participate.

The minutes shall be adopted unanimously by the Mixed
Committee. The Mixed Committee may use a written proce-
dure.

Article 9

Notifications made by the Chairperson in accordance with
these Rules of Procedure shall be addressed to the Swiss
mission to the European Communities, to the representations
of
the European Union and to the
Commission.

the Member States of

Correspondence to the Mixed Committee shall be sent to its
Chairperson, at the address of the General Secretariat of the
Council (Council of the European Union, Rue de la Loi 175, B-
1048 Brussels).

Article 10

The detailed arrangements for handling requests by the public
to the Mixed Committee for access to its documents shall be
identical to those which the Council has adopted in respect of
European Parliament, Council and Commission documents (1).

Article 11

The secretariat of the Mixed Committee shall be provided by
the General Secretariat of the Council.

Article 7

Article 12

The working documents for the Mixed Committee shall be
drawn up in the languages of the Council, unless the Mixed
Committee unanimously decides otherwise.

The deliberations of the Mixed Committee shall be confidential,
unless the Mixed Committee decides otherwise.

Article 8

The rules of the Council on measures for the protection of clas-
sified information applicable to the General Secretariat of the
Council (2), shall also apply to the protection of classified infor-
mation to be used by the Mixed Committee.

Minutes of each meeting of the Mixed Committee at ministerial
the
level shall be drawn up by the General Secretariat of
Council, under
the Chairperson, and
forwarded to the delegations.

the responsibility of

The minutes shall, as a general rule, indicate in respect of each
item on the agenda:

— the documents submitted to the Mixed Committee,

— the conclusions and decisions

reached by the Mixed

Committee,

— the statements whose entry is requested by a delegation.

Any delegation may request that more details be inserted in the
minutes regarding any item on the agenda.

Article 13

Where the Mixed Committee has been notified in accordance
with Article 7(4) of the Agreement, any decision by the Mixed
Committee to continue the Agreement shall require unanimity.

Where the termination of the Agreement results from non-
acceptance of an act or a measure which does not apply to
Ireland and/or the United Kingdom, their representatives may
not oppose unanimity.

(1) Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of the European Parliament and of
the Council of 30 May 2001 regarding public access to European
Parliament, Council and Commission documents
(OJ L 145,
31.5.2001, p. 43).

(2) Council Decision 2001/264/EC of 19 March 2001 adopting the
Council's security regulations (OJ L 101, 11.4.2001, p. 1). Decision
as amended by Decision 2004/194/EC (OJ L 63, 28.2.2004, p. 48).

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Article 14

Article 16

Where the Mixed Committee has been notified of a dispute in
accordance with Article 10 of the Agreement, the dispute shall
be placed on the provisional agenda for the Mixed Committee
at ministerial level.

Decisions by the Mixed Committee on settlement of disputes
shall be taken unanimously.

Where the settlement of a dispute relates to the interpretation
or application of a provision which does not apply to Ireland
and/or the United Kingdom,
their representatives may not
oppose unanimity.

Article 15

Decisions of the Mixed Committee relating to procedural ques-
tions, except for those for which these Rules of Procedure
require unanimity, shall be taken by a majority of its delega-
tions.

Amendments to these Rules of Procedure shall be adopted
unanimously by the Mixed Committee at ministerial level.

This Decision shall take effect on the date of its adoption.

Article 17

This Decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the
European Union. Switzerland shall be responsible for its official
publication in Switzerland.

Done at Luxembourg, 26 October 2004.

For the Mixed Committee

The Chairperson