Source: EURLEX
Language: en
Format: md

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| EVALUATION ROADMAP | |
| Roadmaps aim to inform citizens and stakeholders about the Commission's work to allow them to provide feedback and to participate effectively in future consultation activities. Citizens and stakeholders are in particular invited to provide views on the Commission's understanding of the problem and possible solutions and to share any relevant information that they may have. | |
| Title of the evaluation | EU-China Customs Agreement |
| Lead DG – responsible unit | TAXUD E5 |
| Indicative Planning  (planned start date and completion date) | Q1 2020 – Q3 2020 |
| Additional Information | https://ec.europa.eu/taxation\_customs/business/international-affairs/international-customs-cooperation-mutual-administrative-assistance-agreements/china\_en |
| The Roadmap is provided for information purposes only. It does not prejudge the final decision of the Commission on whether this initiative will be pursued or on its final content. All elements of the initiative described by the document, including its timing, are subject to change. | |

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| A. Context, purpose and scope of the evaluation |
| Context |
| The mission of the EU's customs authorities is set out in the Union Customs Code and includes putting in place measures aimed at (a) protecting the financial interests of the Union and its Member States, (b) protecting the Union from unfair and illegal trade while supporting legitimate business activity, (c) ensuring the security and safety of the Union and its residents, and the protection of the environment, where appropriate in close cooperation with other authorities, and (d) maintaining a proper balance between customs controls and facilitation of legitimate trade.  As part of its common commercial policy, the EU also pursues those objectives by developing international cooperation in customs matters. This happens in multilateral organisations like the World Customs Organisation and through bilateral agreements with individual third countries or regions, so-called Customs Cooperation and Mutual Administrative Assistance Agreements or Free Trade Agreements.  Cooperation in customs matters between the EU and China is based on the Customs Cooperation and Mutual Administrative Assistance Agreement (CCMAA) [1](#footnote2) , which entered into force in April 2005. The cooperation priorities were further defined and rendered operational in the EU-China Strategic Framework for Customs Cooperation 2014 – 2017, further renewed and enhanced for the period 2018 – 2020. These priorities are: (1) enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), (2) Smart and Secure Trade Lanes (SSTL), (3) Authorised Economic Operators, (4) Waste, (5) Fight against Fraud and (6) Statistics.  The CCMAA has been in force for 14 years, a time in which the customs environment and, more generally, international trade have undergone radical change. The 2018 – 2020 Strategic Framework foresees a review of the CCMAA, so as to render it a better tool to achieve the objective of strengthening the effectiveness of controls coupled with facilitation for legitimate trade. Before such a review could be considered, the functioning of the CCMAA should be evaluated. |
| Purpose and scope |
| As the Strategic Framework foreseeing a review of the CCMAA is valid until 2020, this is an appropriate time to carry out the evaluation mentioned above. The objective of this initiative is thus to evaluate how the CCMAA has been working in practice, and in particular the extent of its relevance in helping EU customs authorities accomplish their mission of facilitating legitimate trade combined with efficient controls to ensure safety and security and prevent illicit trade, as well as fighting fraud. The evaluation will cover both the CCMAA and the Strategic Framework, and include an external study.  The following areas should notably be covered:  -Intellectual Property Rights,  -Security of the supply chain,  -Trade facilitation,  -Fighting fraud, Mutual Administrative Assistance in particular,  -Statistics.  The results of the evaluation will serve as evidence base for a possible future review of the CCMAA.  The criteria to be covered by the evaluation are effectiveness, efficiency, relevance, coherence and EU added value.  The evaluation will cover the period 2005 – 2018. |
| B. Better regulation |
| Consultation of citizens and stakeholders |
| The aim of the consultation is to compile the views of stakeholders and other interested parties on the implementation of the CCMAA and its usefulness in helping customs authorities accomplish their mission as described in the previous points.  A 12-week Internet-based public consultation will be carried out in Q1 2020. The questionnaire will be available in all EU official languages with the possibility to reply in any of them.  The following targeted consultations of key stakeholders are also envisaged:  ·Member States' customs administrations and any other relevant national competent authorities;  ·The business community through the Trade Contact Group, the EU Chamber of Commerce in China and any other appropriate channels;  ·Relevant international partners, in particular the General Administration of China Customs.  The specific methods, tools and techniques of the various stakeholder consultations will be decided in the course of the supporting study (see below). Consultation results will be published on the consultation page once all consultation activities are closed. |
| Data collection and methodology |
| The evaluation is set up in accordance with the Better Regulation Guidelines and will cover the key evaluation criteria of effectiveness, efficiency, relevance, coherence and EU added value. The anchoring point of the evaluation will be the reconstructed evaluation logic behind the CCMAA and the detailed evaluation matrix framing the evaluating questions.  Beyond the information directly available to the Commission services that have been involved in the implementation of the CCMAA, there is no other information or data on the subject of the evaluation that is readily available.  A study will be commissioned to an external contractor covering the areas of trade facilitation, supply chain security, prevention of illicit trade and fighting fraud in the context of EU-China trade. The study will involve a desk analysis, statistical analysis and fieldwork with the relevant stakeholders, including interviews. The contractor will be in charge of carrying out the consultation activities described in the preceding point. To the extent possible, the evaluation will quantify the main benefits and regulatory costs of application of the CCMAA and Strategic Framework for the EU and the wide range of EU businesses. Findings and conclusions of the analysis should lead to evidence-based recommendations for future improvements of the cooperation framework with China.  The evaluation will be assisted by an Inter-Service Steering Group composed of relevant Commission services (TAXUD, OLAF, Secretariat-General, Legal Service, ENV, TRADE, JUST, HOME), which will actively participate in the management of the study. The study is expected to be completed by the 3rd quarter of 2020.  The final results will be presented in an evaluation Staff Working Document (SWD) summarising the final results of the evaluation and assessing the robustness of the process and findings.The SWD, which is expected to be finalised by the end of 2020, will also include a synopsis report summarising and evaluating all consultation activities, participation, results and the use that was made of these contributions. |

:   [(1)](#footnoteref2)
     OJ L 375, 23.12.2004, p. 20.

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