Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/530 of 30 October 2024 amending Annexes I and III to Council Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005 following a Voluntary Partnership Agreement with the Republic of Ghana for a Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) licensing scheme for imports of timber into the European Union
Date: 2024-10-30
Institutions: Directorate-General for International Partnerships, European Commission
Subjects: Ghana, cooperation agreement (EU), forestry legislation, import (EU), import licence, originating product, surveillance concerning imports, wood product








L_202500530EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
L series













2025/530


20.3.2025







            COMMISSION DELEGATED REGULATION (EU) 2025/530
of 30 October 2024
         
amending Annexes I and III to Council Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005 following a Voluntary Partnership Agreement with the Republic of Ghana for a Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) licensing scheme for imports of timber into the European Union


THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,


Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005 of 20 December 2005 on the establishment of a FLEGT licensing scheme for imports of timber into the European Community (1) and in particular Article 10(1) and (3) thereof,

Whereas:







(1)


A Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) between the Union and the Republic of Ghana (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Agreement’) was ratified by the Parties and entered into force on 1 December 2009.












(2)


Article 12(2) and (3) of the Agreement provides that the Parties on the basis of the recommendations of the Joint Monitoring and Review Mechanism (JMRM) following an independent assessment of the Ghana Legality Assurance System using the criteria set out in Annex VII to the Agreement, are to agree on the date from which the Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (‘FLEGT’) licensing scheme should start full operation.












(3)


A joint independent assessment has concluded that the Ghana Legality Assurance System meets the criteria set out in Annex VII to the Agreement.












(4)


The two Parties are now in a position to agree on the start date of the FLEGT licensing scheme for Ghana.












(5)


With a view to start the FLEGT licensing scheme for Ghana, Annexes I and III to Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005 need first to be amended so as to include the Republic of Ghana and its Timber Industry Development Division under the list of ‘Partner countries and their designated licensing authorities’ contained in Annex I, and the list of products covered by the FLEGT licensing scheme in Annex III ‘Timber products to which the FLEGT licensing scheme applies only in relation to the corresponding partner countries’.












(6)


Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005 should therefore be amended accordingly,





HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:



Article 1
Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005 is amended as set out in the Annex to this Regulation.


Article 2
Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005 is amended as set out in the Annex to this Regulation.


Article 3
This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
It shall apply from 8 July 2025.




This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.
Done at Brussels, 30 October 2024.


For the Commission


The President

Ursula VON DER LEYEN
            





(1)  
            OJ L 347, 30.12.2005, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2005/2173/oj.




ANNEX
Annex I and Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005 are amended as follows:






(1)


In Annex I, the following table is inserted before the table concerning the Republic of Indonesia:






Partner country


Designated licensing authority




‘THE REPUBLIC OF GHANA


Timber Industry Development Division
Forestry Commission*

Forestry Commission
P. O. Box 783
Takoradi — Ghana
Tel. +233 312024100
Email: info.tidd@fcghana.org’














(2)


In Annex III, the following table is inserted before the table concerning the Republic of Indonesia:








Partner country


Heading


HS subheading


Description




‘THE REPUBLIC OF GHANA


CHAPTER 44 :


 


 




4403 


 


Wood in the rough, whether or not stripped of bark or sapwood, or roughly squared




 


 








–


Treated with paint, stains, creosote or other preservatives:








 


4403 11 








– –


Coniferous








 


4403 12 








– –


Non-coniferous








 


 








– –


Other, of tropical wood:








 


4403 49 








– –


Other








4406 


 


Railway or tramway sleepers (cross-ties) of wood




 


 








–


Not impregnated:








 


4406 11 








– –


Coniferous








 


4406 12 








– –


Non-coniferous








 


 








–


Other:








 


4406 91 








– –


Coniferous








 


4406 92 








– –


Non-coniferous








4407 


 


Wood sawn or chipped lengthwise, sliced or peeled, whether or not planed, sanded or end-jointed, of a thickness exceeding 6 mm




 


 








–


Coniferous:








 


4407 11 








– –


Of pine (Pinus spp.)








 


4407 19 








–


Other








 


 








–


Of tropical wood:








 


4407 21 








– –


Mahogany (Swietenia spp.)








 


4407 27 








– –


Sapelli








 


4407 28 








– –


Iroko








 


4407 29 








–


Other








 


 








–


Other








 


ex 4407 99 








– –


Other (not from bamboo or rattan)








4408 


 


Sheets for veneering (including those obtained by slicing laminated wood), for plywood or for similar laminated wood and other wood, sawn lengthwise, sliced or peeled, whether or not planed, sanded, spliced or end-jointed, of a thickness not exceeding 6 mm




 


4408 10 








–


Coniferous








 


 








–


Of tropical wood:








 


4408 39 








–


Other








 


ex 4408 90 








–


Other (not from bamboo or rattan)








4409 


 


Wood (including strips and friezes for parquet flooring, not assembled) continuously shaped (tongued, grooved, rebated, chamfered, V-jointed, beaded, moulded, rounded or the like) along any of its edges, ends or faces, whether or not planed, sanded or end-jointed




 


4409 10 








–


Coniferous








 


 








–


Non-coniferous:








 


4409 22 








– –


Of tropical wood








 


ex 4409 29 








– –


Other (not from rattan)








4412 


 


Plywood, veneered panels and similar laminated wood




 


 








–


Other plywood, consisting solely of sheets of wood (other than bamboo), each ply not exceeding 6 mm thickness:








 


4412 31 








– –


With at least one outer ply of tropical wood








 


4412 33 








– –


Other, with at least one outer ply of non-coniferous wood of the species alder (Alnus spp.) ash (Fraxinus spp.) beech (Fagus spp.), birch (Betula spp.), cherry (Prunus spp.), chestnut (Castanea spp.), elm (Ulmus spp.), eucalyptus (Eucalyptus spp.), hickory (Carya spp.), horse chestnut (Aesculus spp.), lime (Tilia spp.), maple (Acer spp.), oak (Quercus spp.), plane tree (Platanus spp.), poplar and aspen (Populus spp.), robinia (Robinia spp.), tulipwood (Liriodendron spp.) or walnut (Juglans spp.)








 


4412 34 








– –


Other, with at least one outer ply of non-coniferous wood not specified under subheading 4412 33 








 


4412 39 








– –


Other, with both outer piles of coniferous wood








 


 








–


Blockboard, laminboard and battenboard








 


ex 4412 51 








– –


With at least one outer ply of tropical wood (not from rattan)








 


ex 4412 52 








– –


Other, with at least one outer ply of non-coniferous wood (not from rattan)








 


ex 4412 59 








– –


Other, with both outer plies of coniferous wood (not from rattan)








 


 








–


Other








 


ex 4412 91 








– –


With at least one outer ply of tropical wood (not from rattan)








 


ex 4412 92 








– –


Other, with at least one outer ply of non-coniferous wood (not from rattan)








 


ex 4412 99 








– –


Other, with both outer plies of coniferous wood (not of rattan)








4418 


 


Builders’ joinery and carpentry of wood, including cellular wood panels, assembled flooring panels, shingles and shakes




 


 








–


Windows, French-windows and their frames








 


4418 11 








– –


Of tropical wood








 


ex 4418 19 








– –


Other (not from bamboo or rattan)








 


 








–


Doors and their frames and thresholds








 


4418 21 








– –


Of tropical wood








 


ex 4418 29 








– –


Other (not from bamboo or rattan)








 


ex 4418 40 








–


Shuttering for concrete constructional work (not from bamboo or rattan)








 


ex 4418 50 








—


Shingles and shakes (not from bamboo or rattan)








 


ex 4418 30 








–


Posts and beams other than products of subheadings 4418 81  to 4418 89  (not from bamboo or rattan)








 


 








–


Assembled flooring panels:








 


4418 74 








– –


Other, for mosaic floors








 


4418 75 








– –


Other, multilayer








 


ex 4418 79 








– –


Other (not from bamboo or rattan)








 


 








–


Engineered structural timber products








 


ex 4418 81 








– –


Glue-laminated timber (glulam) (not from bamboo or rattan)








 


ex 4418 82 








– –


Cross-laminated timber (CLT or X-lam) (not from bamboo or rattan)








 


ex 4418 83 








– –


I beams (not from bamboo or rattan)








 


ex 4418 89 








– –


Other (not from bamboo or rattan)








 


 








–


Other:








 


ex 4418 92 








– –


Cellular wood panels (not from rattan)








 


ex 4418 99 








– –


Other (not from rattan)








CHAPTER 94 :


 


 




9401 


 


Seats (other than those of heading 9402 ), whether or not convertible into beds, and parts thereof




 


 








–


Parts








 


ex 9401 91 








–


Of wood (not from bamboo or rattan)








9403 


 


Other furniture and parts thereof




 


9403 30 








–


Wooden furniture of a kind used in offices








 


9403 40 








–


Wooden furniture of a kind used in the kitchen








 


9403 50 








–


Wooden furniture of a kind used in the bedroom








 


9403 60 








–


Other wooden furniture








 


 








–


Parts








 


 


ex 9403 91 








– –


Of wood (not of bamboo or rattan)’















ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_del/2025/530/oj
ISSN 1977-0677 (electronic edition)