18.4.2023
EN
Official Journal of the European Union
(ix)
Specimens are to be used for the purposes of law enforcement or judicial proceedings.
(x)
Parts and derivatives from captive-born and bred tigers are moved where:
C 135/7
— the specimen is part of a genuine exchange of cultural or artistic goods between reputable institutions (e.g., museums); or — the management authority of the Member State concerned is satisfied that the specimen is a recognised piece of art and is confident that its value makes it certain that it will not be used for other purposes; or — the specimen is intended for research or education aimed at the preservation or conservation of the species.
If there is any doubt or scientific uncertainty, in light of the precautionary principle and the objectives of the legislation, Member States may always use their discretionary power to refuse the issuance of a certificate.
Where provisions under the domestic law of an EU Member State do not allow its authorities exercise the discretion allowed under Article 8(3) of Regulation (EC) No 338/97 and to refuse applications for intra-EU certificates for commercial trade in live captive-born and bred tigers and their parts and derivatives when conditions under Article 8(3) of Regulation (EC) No 338/97 are met, and where specimens are traded for non-commercial purposes within the EU, the Member State’s CITES management authority should follow a risk-based approach and ensure maximum scrutiny in handling applications for intra-EU certificates.
Prior to an intra-EU certificate being issued, Article 66 of Commission Regulation (EC) No 865/2006 requires that the live specimen be individually marked.
It is recommended that the primary marking technique for live tigers be a microchip.
Member States should consider the use of a combination of two different identification or marking techniques, including individual DNA profiling, if appropriate.
The certificate should describe the live specimen and/or the relevant parts and derivatives with sufficient detail to ensure that it can only be used for that specific specimen and cannot be used to launder other specimens.
Certificates for intra-EU trade should only be issued on a transaction-specific basis – allowing one transaction only – to ensure that the certificate is only valid for the holder named in Box 1 of the certificate.
This recommendation is based on the second subparagraph of Article 11(3) of Regulation (EC) No 865/2006, allowing Member States to ‘issue transactionspecific certificates where it is considered that there are other factors, as described in Section 1 a) of this document, relating to the conservation of the species that militate against the issuance of a specimen-specific certificate’.
c) Additional recommendation to be considered by the Member States It is recommended that Member State CITES management authorities gather and maintain records of the numbers of tigers held in all captive facilities nationwide, including licensed zoological institutions, sanctuaries /rescue centres, circuses and travelling exhibitions, and where applicable other private facilities.
All facilities should be asked to submit details of any changes to their inventories so that authorities have up-to-date information.
To implement this measure, EU Member States should conduct regular inventories of all facilities that keep tigers in their country, and work with relevant organisations, such as the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria, for best practices in developing such inventories.
Management authorities should make this data available to all relevant authorities.