Common Position (EC) No 9/2007 of 21 May 2007 adopted by the Council, acting in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 251 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, with a view to the adoption of a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a common framework for business registers for statistical purposes and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 2186/93
Date: 2007-05-21
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: EU statistics, company structure, directory, statistical method, statistics, type of business

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Official Journal of the European Union

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III

(Preparatory Acts)

COUNCIL

COMMON POSITION (EC) No 9/2007

adopted by the Council on 21 May 2007

with a view to adopting Regulation (EC) No …/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council
of … establishing a common framework for business registers for statistical purposes and repealing
Council Regulation (EEC) No 2186/93

(2007/C 193 E/01)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EURO-
PEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Com-
munity, and in particular Article 285(1) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Acting in accordance with the procedure
Article 251 of the Treaty (1),

laid down in

Whereas:

(1)

Council Regulation (EEC) No 2186/93 of 22 July 1993 (2)
established a common framework for setting up business
registers for statistical purposes with harmonised defini-
tions, characteristics, scope and updating procedures. In
order to maintain the development of business registers
in a harmonised framework, a new regulation should be
adopted.

(2)

Council Regulation (EEC) No 696/93 of 15 March 1993
on the statistical units for the observation and analysis of
the production system in the Community (3) contains the

(1) Opinion of the European Parliament of 1 June 2006 (not yet published
in the Official Journal), Council common position of 21 May 2007 and
Position of the European Parliament of … (not yet published in the
Official Journal). Council Decision of … (not yet published in the Offi-
cial Journal).

(2) OJ L 196, 5.8.1993, p. 1. Regulation as amended by Regulation (EC)
the Council

the European Parliament and of

No 1882/2003 of
(OJ L 284, 31.10.2003, p. 1).

requires

definitions of the statistical unit to be used. The internal
improved statistical comparability to
market
meet Community requirements. In order to achieve that
improvement,
and descriptions
should be adopted for enterprises and other relevant
statistical units to be covered.

common definitions

(3)

(4)

Council Regulation (EC,
Euratom) No 58/97 of
20 December 1996 concerning structural business statis-
tics (4) and Council Regulation (EC) No 1165/98 of
19 May 1998 concerning short-terms statistics (5) estab-
lished a common framework for the collection, compila-
tion, transmission and evaluation of Community statistics
on the structure, activity, competitiveness and perfor-
mance of businesses in the Community. Business registers
for statistical purposes represent a basic element of such
a common framework, making it possible to organise
and coordinate statistical surveys by providing a harmo-
nised sampling frame.

Business registers are one method by which to reconcile
the conflicting requirements for collating increased infor-
mation on enterprises on the one hand and lightening
their administrative burden on the other, in particular by
using existing information in administrative and legal
files, especially in the case of micro, small and medium-
sized enterprises, as defined in Commission Recommen-
dation 2003/361/EC of 6 May 2003 (6).

(4) OJ L 14, 17.1.1997, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation
(EC) No 1893/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council
(OJ L 393, 30.12.2006, p. 1).

(5) OJ L 162, 5.6.1998, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation

(3) OJ L 76, 30.3.1993, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation

(EC) No 1882/2003.

(EC) No 1893/2006.

(6) OJ L 124, 20.5.2003, p. 36.

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(5)

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

(10)

Council Regulation (EC) No 322/97 of 17 February 1997
on Community Statistics (1) set the framework for estab-
lishing a Community statistical programme and estab-
lished a common framework for statistical confidentiality.

prise groups, business registers should be further harmo-
nised.

The specific rules for processing data within the frame-
work of the Community statistical programme do not
affect Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and
of the Council of 24 October 1995 on the protection of
individuals with regard to the processing of personal data
and on the free movement of such data (2).

Business registers for statistical purposes are the main
source for business demography, as they keep track of
business creations and closures as well as the structural
changes in the economy by concentration or de-concen-
tration, brought about by operations such as mergers,
takeovers, break ups, split offs and restructuring.

Business registers provide the basic information that is
required to meet a strong policy interest in rural develop-
ment, not only as regards agriculture but also as regards
its
increasing combination with other activities not
covered by product-based agricultural statistics.

Public enterprises play an important role in the national
economies of
the Member States. Commission Direc-
tive 80/723/EEC of 25 June 1980 on the transparency of
financial relations between Member States and public
undertakings (3) covers particular categories of public
undertaking. Public enterprises and public corporations
should therefore be identified in business registers and
this can be done by the institutional sector classification.

Information on links of control between legal units is
needed in order to define enterprise groups, delineate the
enterprises correctly, profile large and complex units and
study the level of concentration on particular markets.
Enterprise group information improves the quality of the
business registers and can be used to reduce the risk of
disclosure of confidential data. Certain financial data are
the group or
often more meaningful at
subgroup than at that of the individual enterprise; indeed,
they may be available only at the level of the group or
subgroup. Recording
group data makes
enterprise
possible, when necessary, surveys of the group rather
than of the group's enterprises, and this may reduce the
response burden significantly. In order to register enter-

the level of

(11)

(12)

(13)

(14)

Increasing economic globalisation challenges the current
production of several statistics. By recording data from
multinational enterprise groups, business registers form a
basic tool for the improvement of many statistics related
to globalisation: international trade in goods and services,
balance of payments, foreign direct investment, foreign
affiliates, research, development and innovation, and the
international labour market. The majority of these statis-
tics cover the whole economy and thus require that busi-
ness registers cover all sectors of the economy.

Pursuant to Article 3(2) of Council Regulation (Euratom,
EEC) No 1588/90 of 11 June 1990 on the transmission
of data subject to statistical confidentiality to the Statis-
tical Office of the European Communities (4), national
rules on statistical confidentiality may not be invoked to
prevent the transmission of confidential statistical data to
the Community authority (Eurostat) where an act of
Community law provides for the transmission of such
data.

In order to guarantee the fulfilment of the obligations
laid down in this Regulation, Member States' institutions
responsible for the collection of the data may need access
to administrative data sources such as registers held by
tax and social security authorities, central banks, other
public institutions, and other data bases containing infor-
mation on cross-border transactions and positions, wher-
ever such data are necessary for the production of Com-
munity statistics.

Regulation (EC) No 184/2005 of the European Parlia-
ment and of the Council of 12 January 2005 on Com-
munity statistics concerning balance of payments, inter-
national trade in services and foreign direct investment (5)
established a common framework for the compilation,
transmission and evaluation of
relevant Community
statistics.

(15)

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).

(1) OJ L 52, 22.2.1997, p. 1. Regulation as amended by Regulation (EC)

No 1882/2003.

(2) OJ L 281, 23.11.1995, p. 31. Directive as amended by Regulation (EC)

No 1882/2003.

(4) OJ L 151, 15.6.1990, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation

(EC) No 1882/2003.

(5) OJ L 35, 8.2.2005, p. 23. Regulation as amended by Commission Regu-

lation (EC) No 602/2006 (OJ L 106, 19.4.2006, p. 10).

(3) OJ L 195, 29.7.1980, p. 35. Directive as last amended by Direc-

(6) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23. Decision as amended by Decision

tive 2005/81/EC (OJ L 312, 29.11.2005, p. 47).

2006/512/EC (OJ L 200, 22.7.2006, p. 11).

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(16)

to adopt

In particular, power should be conferred on the Commis-
sion to update the list of register characteristics in the
Annex, their definitions and their continuity rules, to
decide on the coverage of the smallest enterprises and all-
resident enterprise groups,
for
updating registers, as well as to establish common quality
standards and the content and periodicity of the quality
reports. Since these measures are of general scope and
are designed to amend non-essential elements or supple-
ment this Regulation by the addition of new non-essen-
tial elements, they should be adopted in accordance with
the regulatory procedure with scrutiny provided for in
Article 5a of Council Decision 1999/468/EC.

rules

the

(17)

Regulation (EEC) No 2186/93 should therefore be
repealed.

(d) ‘Multinational enterprise group’ shall mean an enterprise
two enterprises or legal units

least

group which has at
located in different countries;

(e) ‘Truncated enterprise group’ shall mean the enterprises and
the legal units of a multinational enterprise group, which
are resident in the same country. It may comprise only one
unit, if the other units are non-resident. An enterprise may
be the truncated enterprise group or part thereof.

Article 3

Scope

(18)

The Statistical Programme Committee established by
Council Decision 89/382/EEC, Euratom (1) has been
consulted,

1.
In accordance with the definitions given in Article 2 and
subject to the limitations specified in this Article, registers shall
be compiled of:

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Purpose

This Regulation establishes a common framework for business
registers for statistical purposes in the Community.

Member States shall set up one or more harmonised registers
for statistical purposes, as a tool for the preparation and coordi-
nation of surveys, as a source of information for the statistical
analysis of the business population and its demography, for the
use of administrative data, and for
the identification and
construction of statistical units.

Article 2

Definitions

For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions
apply:

(a) ‘Legal unit’,

‘enterprise’,

‘local unit’ and ‘enterprise group’
shall be as defined in the Annex to Regulation (EEC)
No 696/93;

(b) ‘National authorities’ shall be as defined in Article 2 of

Regulation (EC) No 322/97;

(c) ‘Statistical purposes’ shall be as described in Article 2(4) of

Regulation (EEC) No 1588/90;

(1) OJ L 181, 28.6.1989, p. 47.

(a) all enterprises carrying on economic activities contributing
to the gross domestic product (GDP), and their local units;

(b) the legal units of which those enterprises consist;

(c) truncated enterprise groups and multinational enterprise

groups; and

(d) all-resident enterprise groups.

2.
The requirement in paragraph 1 shall not, however, apply
to households insofar as the goods and services they produce
are for their own consumption, or involve the letting of own
property.

legal

separate

Local units not

3.
entities
constituting
(branches), which are dependent on foreign enterprises, and clas-
sified as quasi-corporations in accordance with the European
System of Accounts 1995 set up by Council Regulation (EC)
No 2223/96 of 25 June 1996 on the European system of
national and regional accounts in the Community (2) and the
United Nation's 1993 System of National Accounts, shall be
deemed to be enterprises for the purposes of the business regis-
ters.

Enterprise groups can be identified through the links of
4.
control between their legal units. In order to delineate enterprise
groups,
in point 2.26 of
the definition of control set out
Annex A to Regulation (EC) No 2223/96 shall be used.

5.
This Regulation shall apply only to units which, wholly or
partially, exercise an economic activity. Any activity comprising
the offer of goods and services on a given market shall be
regarded as an economic activity.
In addition, non-market
services contributing to the GDP, as well as direct and indirect
holdings of active legal units shall be regarded as economic
activities for the purposes of business registers. Economically
inactive legal units are part of an enterprise only in combination
with economically active legal units.

(2) OJ L 310, 30.11.1996, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation
(EC) No 1267/2003 of the European Parliament and of the Council
(OJ L 180, 18.7.2003, p. 1).

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6.
The measures seeking to modify non-essential elements of
this Regulation concerning the extent to which enterprises with
less than half a person employed and all-resident enterprise
groups of no statistical importance to the Member States are to
be included in the registers, and the definition of units consis-
tent with those for agricultural statistics, shall be decided in
accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred
to in Article 16(3).

known and not later than six months after any such change
enters into force.

The Commission shall submit a report to the European
5.
Parliament and the Council on the implementation of this Regu-
lation, addressing in particular the cost of the statistical system,
the burden on business and the benefits.

Article 4

Data sources

1. While complying with conditions as to quality referred to
in Article 6, Member States may collect the information required
under this Regulation using any sources that they consider rele-
vant. National authorities shall be authorised, within their
sphere of competence, to collect, for statistical purposes, infor-
mation covered by this Regulation contained in administrative
and legal files.

2. Where the required data cannot be collected at a reason-
able cost, national authorities may use statistical estimation
procedures, while respecting the need for accuracy and quality.

Article 5

Register characteristics

1.
The units listed in the registers shall be characterised by an
identity number and the descriptive details specified in the
Annex.

2.
The measures seeking to modify non-essential elements of
this Regulation by supplementing them concerning the updating
of the list of characteristics and the definition of the characteris-
tics and continuity rules shall be adopted in accordance with the
regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 16(3).

Article 7

Recommendations manual

The Commission shall publish a business registers recommenda-
tions manual. The manual shall be updated in close cooperation
with the Member States.

Article 8

Time reference and periodicity

Entries onto and removals from the registers shall be

1.
updated at least annually.

2.
The frequency of updating shall depend on the kind of
unit, the variable considered, the size of the unit and the source
generally used for the update.

The measures relating to the rules for updating shall be
3.
adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scru-
tiny referred to in Article 16(3).

4. Member States shall make annually a copy that reflects the
state of the registers at the end of the year and keep that copy
for at least 30 years for the purpose of analysis.

Article 9

Transmission of reports

Article 6

Quality standards and reports

1. Member States shall carry out statistical analyses of the
registers and transmit
the information to the Commission
(Eurostat), following a format and a procedure defined by the
Commission in accordance with the regulatory procedure
referred to in Article 16(2).

1. Member States shall take all measures necessary to ensure
the quality of the business registers.

2. Member States shall provide the Commission (Eurostat),
on its request, with a report on the quality of the business regis-
ters (hereinafter referred to as quality reports).

States

2. Member
to the Commission
(Eurostat), at its request, any relevant information with regard to
the implementation of this Regulation in the Member States.

transmit

shall

Article 10

3.
The measures relating to common quality standards, as
well as the content and periodicity of the quality reports, shall
be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with
scrutiny referred to in Article 16(3), and taking into account the
cost of compiling the data.

4. Member States shall inform the Commission (Eurostat) of
major methodological or other changes that would influence
the quality of the business registers as soon as they become

Exchange of confidential data between Member States

The exchange of confidential data may take place, exclusively for
statistical purposes, between the appropriate national authorities
of different Member States, in accordance with national legisla-
tion, where the exchange is to ensure the quality of the multina-
tional enterprise group information in the European Union.
National central banks may be party to the exchange in accord-
ance with national legislation.

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Article 11

Exchange of confidential data between the Commission
(Eurostat) and Member States

1.
National authorities shall transmit data on multinational
enterprise groups and their constituent units, as defined in the
Annex, to the Commission (Eurostat), to provide information,
exclusively for statistical purposes, on multinational groups in
the European Union.

In order to ensure a consistent record of data, exclusively
2.
for
shall
statistical purposes,
transmit to the appropriate national authorities of each Member
including its
State, data on a multinational enterprise group,
constituent units, when at least one legal unit of the group is
located in the territory of that Member State.

the Commission (Eurostat),

In order to ensure that the data transmitted under this
3.
Article is used exclusively for statistical purposes, the purpose,
scope, format, security and confidentiality measures, and proce-
dure for the transmission of data on individual units to the
Commission (Eurostat) and for the transmission of data on the
multinational enterprise groups to the appropriate national
authorities shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory
procedure referred to in Article 16(2).

Article 12

Exchange of confidential data between the Commission
(Eurostat) and central banks

1.
For the purposes of this Regulation, the exchange of confi-
dential data may take place, exclusively for statistical purposes,
between the Commission (Eurostat) and national central banks,
and between the Commission (Eurostat) and the European
Central Bank, where the exchange is to ensure the quality of
multinational enterprise group information in the European
Union, and where the exchange is explicitly authorised by the
appropriate national authority.

In order to ensure that the data transmitted under this
2.
Article is used exclusively for statistical purposes, the purpose,
scope, format, security and confidentiality measures, and proce-
dure for the transmission of data on the multinational enterprise
groups to the national central banks and the European Central
Bank shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory proce-
dure referred to in Article 16(2).

Article 13

confidential data pursuant to Articles 10, 11 and 12, they shall
treat that information confidentially in accordance with Regu-
lation (EC) No 322/97.

2.
For the purposes of this Regulation, and notwithstanding
Article 14 of Regulation (EC) No 322/97, any transmission of
confidential data between national authorities and the Commis-
sion (Eurostat) may take place to the extent that such transmis-
sion is necessary for the production of specific Community
statistics. Any further transmission must be explicitly authorised
by the national authority that collected the data.

Article 14

Transition period and derogations

When business registers require a major overhaul, the Commis-
sion may grant a derogation at the request of a Member State
for a transitional period that shall not exceed … (*).

For agriculture, forestry and fishing, public administration and
defence, and compulsory social security, and for the additional
characteristics relating to enterprise groups, the Commission
may grant a derogation at the request of a Member State for a
transitional period that shall not exceed … (**).

Article 15

Implementing measures

1.
The following measures designed to amend non-essential
elements of this Regulation, inter alia, by supplementing it, shall
be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with
scrutiny referred to in Article 16(3):

(a) the coverage of

the smallest enterprises and all-resident

enterprise groups, as provided for in Article 3(6);

(b) the updating of the list of registers characteristics in the
Annex,
their definitions and their continuity rules, as
provided for in Article 5, taking into account the principle
that the benefits of the updating must outweigh its cost and
the principle that the additional resources involved either for
Member States or for enterprises remain reasonable;

(c) the establishment of common quality standards, as well as
the quality reports as

the content and periodicity of
provided for in Article 6(3); and

Confidentiality and access to identifiable data

(d) the rules for updating registers, as provided for in Article 8

(3).

1. When the Commission (Eurostat), national authorities,
national central banks and the European Central Bank receive

(*) Two years from the entry into force of this Regulation.
(**) Five years from the entry into force of this Regulation.

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2. Measures, relating to the following shall be adopted in
accordance with the regulatory procedure referred to in Article
16(2):

(a) the transmission of information arising from the statistical

analyses of registers, as provided for in Article 9;

(b) the transmission of data on individual units for multina-
tional enterprise groups between the Commission (Eurostat)
and the Member States, as provided for in Article 11; and

(c) the transmission of multinational enterprise group data
between the Commission (Eurostat) and central banks, as
provided for in Article 12.

Article 16

Committee

The Commission shall be assisted by the Statistical

1.
Programme Committee.

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

3. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5a(1)
to (4) and Article 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply,
having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

Article 17

Repeal

Regulation (EEC) No 2186/93 shall be repealed.

References to the repealed Regulation shall be construed as
being made to this Regulation.

Article 18

Entry into force

2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5 and 7
of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to the
provisions of Article 8 thereof.

This Regulation shall enter into force on the 20th day following
the day of its publication 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,

For the European Parliament

The President

…

For the Council

The President

…

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ANNEX

The business registers shall contain the following information by unit. The information does not have to be separately
stored for each unit, if it can be derived from (an)other unit(s).

Unmarked items are mandatory, items marked ‘conditional’ are mandatory if available in the Member State and items
marked ‘optional’ are recommended.

Identification characteristics

1.1

1.2a

1.2b

1. Legal unit

Identity number

Name

Address (including postcode) at the most detailed
level

Demographic characteristics

1.2c

Optional

Telephone and fax numbers, electronic mail address,
and information to permit electronic collection of
data

1.3

1.4

1.5

Value Added Tax (VAT) registration number or,
failing that, other administrative identity number

Date of incorporation for legal persons or date of
official recognition as an economic operator for
natural persons

Date on which the legal unit ceased to be part of an
enterprise (as identified in 3.3)

Economic/stratification
tics

characteris-

1.6

Legal form

Links with other registers

1.7a

1.7b

Optional

Reference to associated registers, in which the legal
unit is recorded and which contain information that
can be used for statistical purposes

Reference to the register of intra-Community opera-
tors set up in accordance with Regulation (EC)
No 638/2004 (1), and Reference to customs files or
to the register of extra-Community operators

Reference to balance sheet data (for units required
to publish accounts), and

Reference to the balance of payments register or
foreign direct investment register, and

Reference to the farm register

(1) Regulation (EC) No 638/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on Community statistics relating to

the trading of goods between Member States and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 3330/91(OJ L 102, 7.4.2004, p. 1).

Additional characteristics for legal units which are part of enterprises belonging to an enterprise group:

Link with enterprise group

1.8

1.9

1.10

Identity number of the all-resident/truncated enter-
prise group (4.1), to which the unit belongs

Date of association to the all-resident/truncated
group

Date of separation from the all-resident/truncated
group

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Control of units

The resident control
links can be recorded either
top-down (1.11a) or bottom-up (1.11b). Only the
first level of control, direct or indirect, is recorded
for each unit (the whole chain of control can be
obtained by combining these).

Identity number(s) of resident legal unit(s), which
are controlled by the legal unit

Identity number of the resident legal unit, which
controls the legal unit

Country(ies) of registration, and identity number(s)
or name(s) and address(es) of the non-resident legal
unit(s), which are controlled by the legal unit

1.11a

1.11b

1.12a

1.12b

Conditional

VAT number(s) of non-resident legal unit(s), which
are controlled by the legal unit

1.13a

Country of registration, and identity number or
name and address of the non-resident legal unit,
which controls the legal unit

1.13b

Conditional

VAT number of the non-resident legal unit, which
controls the legal unit

Ownership of units

Conditional

The resident ownership can be recorded either top-
down (1.14a) or bottom-up (1.14b).

The recording of the information and the threshold
used for the shareholding are subject to the avail-
ability of
this information in the administrative
sources. The recommended threshold is 10 % or
more of direct ownership.

1.14a

Conditional

(a) Identity number(s), and

(b) shares (%)

of resident legal unit(s) owned by the legal unit

1.14b

Conditional

(a) Identity number(s), and

(b) shares (%)

of resident legal unit(s), which own(s) the legal unit

1.15

Conditional

(a) Country(ies) of registration, and

(b) identity number(s) or, name(s), address(es) and

VAT number(s), and

(c) shares (%)

of non-resident legal unit(s) owned by the legal unit

1.16

Conditional

(a) Country(ies) of registration, and

(b) identity number(s) or, name(s), address(es), and

VAT number(s), and

(c) shares (%)

of non-resident legal unit(s), which own(s) the legal
unit

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Identification characteristics

2.1

Identity number

2. Local unit

2.2a

2.2b

Name

Address (including postcode) at the most detailed
level

2.2c

Optional

Telephone and fax numbers, electronic mail address,
and information to permit electronic collection of
data

2.3

2.4

2.5

Identity number of the enterprise (3.1), to which
the local unit belongs

Date of commencement of activities

Date of final cessation of activities

Demographic characteristics

Economic/stratification
tics

characteris-

2.6

Principal activity code at NACE 4-digit level

2.7

Conditional

Secondary activities,
if any, at NACE 4-digit level;
this point concerns only local units which are the
subject of surveys

2.8

Optional

Activity carried out in the local unit constituting an
ancillary activity of
the enterprise to which it
belongs (Yes/No)

2.9

2.10a

Number of persons employed

Number of employees

2.10b

Optional

Number of employees in full-time equivalents

2.11

Geographical location code

Links with other registers

2.12

Conditional

Reference to associated registers, in which the local
unit appears and which contain information which
can be used for statistical purposes (if such asso-
ciated registers exist)

Identification characteristics

3. Enterprise

3.1

3.2a

Identity number

Name

3.2b

Optional

Postal, electronic mail and web site addresses

3.3

Identity number(s) of the legal unit(s) of which the
enterprise consist(s)

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Demographic characteristics

3.4

3.5

Date of commencement of activities

Date of final cessation of activities

Economic/stratification
tics

characteris-

3.6

Principal activity code at NACE 4-digit level

3.7

Conditional

Secondary activities,
if any, at NACE 4-digit level;
this point concerns only enterprises which are the
subject of surveys

3.8

3.9a

Number of persons employed

Number of employees

3.9b

Optional

Number of employees in full-time equivalents

3.10a

Turnover save as provided in 3.10b

3.10b

Optional

Turnover
for agriculture, hunting and forestry,
fishing, and public administration and defence,
compulsory social security, private households with
employed persons and extra-territorial organisations

3.11

Institutional
European System of Accounts

sector and sub-sector according to

Additional characteristics for enterprises belonging to an enterprise group:

Link with enterprise group

3.12

Identity number of the all-resident/truncated enterprise group (4.1), to
which the enterprise belongs

4. Enterprise group

Identification characteristics

4.1

4.2a

Identity number of the all-resident/truncated group

Name of the all-resident/truncated group

4.2b

Optional

Postal, electronic mail and web site addresses of the
resident/truncated head office

4.3

Part conditional

Identity number of the all-resident/truncated group
head (equals the identity number of the legal unit,
which is the resident group head).

If

Conditional
is a natural
the controlling unit
person, who is not an economic operator, recording
is subject to the availability of this information in
the administrative sources

4.4

Type of enterprise group:

1. all-resident group;
2. domestically controlled truncated group;
3. foreign controlled truncated group

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Official Journal of the European Union

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Demographic characteristics

4.5

4.6

Date of commencement of the all-resident/truncated
enterprise group

Date of cessation of the all-resident/truncated enter-
prise group

Economic/stratification
tics

characteris-

4.7

Principal activity code of the all-resident/truncated
group at NACE 2-digit level

4.8

4.9

Optional

Secondary activities of
group at NACE 2-digit level

the all-resident/truncated

Number of persons employed in the all-resident/
truncated group

4.10

Optional

Consolidated turnover

Additional characteristics for multinational enterprise groups (types 2 and 3 in 4.4):

The recording of variables 4.11 and 4.12a is optional until the transmission of information on multinational groups, as
provided for in Article 11, has been established.

Identification characteristics

4.11

4.12a

Identity number of the global group

Name of the global group

4.12b

Optional

Country of registration, postal, electronic mail and
web site addresses of the global head office

4.13a

if the
Identity number of the global group head,
group head is resident (equals the identity number
of the legal unit, which is the group head).

If the global group head is non-resident, its country
of registration.

4.13b

Optional

Global group head identity number or name and
address, if non-resident

4.14

4.15

4.16

4.17

Optional

Optional

Optional

Optional

Number of persons employed globally

Consolidated global turnover

Country of global decision-centre

Countries where enterprises or
located

local units are

Economic/ stratification characteris-
tics

C 193E/12

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Official Journal of the European Union

21.8.2007

STATEMENT OF THE COUNCIL'S REASON

I.

INTRODUCTION

1. The Commission adopted its proposal (1) on 5 April 2005 with the aim to modernise the existing
Business Registers Regulation (EEC) 2186/93 and to take account of additional statistical require-
ments which have progressively emerged. The proposal was examined and discussed in the Council's
preparatory bodies under successive Presidencies.

2. The European Parliament adopted its opinion at first reading on 1 June 2006.

3. The Council adopted its common position in accordance with Article 251 of the EC Treaty on

21st May 2007

II. OBJECTIVES

The main objectives of the draft Regulation are:

— to register on a mandatory basis, all the enterprises, their local units and the corresponding legal

units carrying out economic activities contributing to gross domestic product;

— to cover all financial links and enterprise groups and to exchange data on multinational groups and

their constituent units between Member States and the Commission (Eurostat).

In addition, the proposal aims at harmonisation between all Member States by adopting a common
methodology.

III. ANALYSIS OF THE COMMON POSITION

1. General context

An agreement at first reading was reached on this dossier in June 2006 (PE-CONS 3624/06).

On 17 July 2006,
the Council adopted Decision 2006/512/EC amending Council Decision
1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers
conferred on the Commission and introducing a new procedure named ‘regulatory procedure with
scrutiny’ (Article 5a).

The new Committee procedure has to be followed to adopt measures of general scope which seek to
amend non-essential elements of a basic instrument adopted in accordance with the procedure
referred to in Article 251 of the Treaty, inter alia, by deleting some of those elements or by supple-
menting the instrument by the addition of new non-essential elements.

2. Adaptations introduced by the Council

The draft Regulation refers to the Committee regulatory procedure when implementing powers are
conferred to the Commission and therefore has to be adapted, where appropriate, to the new
Committee regulatory procedure with scrutiny.

The Commission has accepted the common position agreed by the Council.

(1) COM(2005) 0112.