Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/1201 of 12 June 2025 amending Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/530 as regards its date of application
Date: 2025-06-12
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_202501201EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
L series













2025/1201


11.7.2025







            COMMISSION DELEGATED REGULATION (EU) 2025/1201
of 12 June 2025
         
amending Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/530 as regards its date of application


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 between the European Community and the Republic of Ghana on forest law enforcement, governance and trade in timber products into the Community (2) (the ‘Agreement’) was ratified by the Parties and entered into force on 1 December 2009.












(2)


Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/530 (3) includes the Republic of Ghana and its Timber Industry Development Division in the list in Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005, and the list of products covered by the FLEGT licensing scheme in Annex III to that Regulation. Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/530 is to apply from 8 July 2025.












(3)


Ghana will start issuing FLEGT licences on 30 June 2025 at the earliest. Considering that standard shipping timelines between Ghana and the Union are between 2 and 8 weeks on average, there is a significant risk that timber shipments arriving in the Union as of 8 July 2025 may not be covered by a FLEGT licence as they may have been shipped before Ghana starts issuing FLEGT licences.












(4)


In the light of Article 12 of the Agreement and Article 4(1) of Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005, the date of the start of the FLEGT licensing scheme is to be set with the aim of accommodating the shipping timelines between Ghana and the Union. This is to ensure compliance with the Agreement and Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005 and to avoid disruption of the timber supply chains and possible deviations of timber trade to non-Union markets which would be detrimental to the Union supply. In addition, trade disruption would undermine the credibility of the Agreement as a trade facilitating instrument and negatively impact economic operators both in Ghana and the Union.












(5)


Therefore, the date from which Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/530 is to apply should be adapted, in order to allow sufficient time for shipments leaving Ghana before 30 June to reach the Union without the obligation to be covered by a FLEGT licence.












(6)


Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/530 should therefore be amended accordingly.












(7)


In order to limit trade disruption, this Regulation should enter into force on the day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union. For the same reason, it should apply from 8 July 2025,





HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:



Article 1
In Article 3 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/530, the second paragraph is replaced by the following:


                  ‘It shall apply from 8 October 2025.’
               



Article 2
This Regulation shall enter into force on the 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, 12 June 2025.


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.

(2)  Voluntary Partnership Agreement between the European Community and the Republic of Ghana on forest law enforcement, governance and trade in timber products into the Community (OJ L 70, 19.3.2010, p. 3).

(3)  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 (OJ L, 2025/530, 20.3.2025, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_del/2025/530/oj).


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_del/2025/1201/oj
ISSN 1977-0677 (electronic edition)