CELEX: 22005A0121(01)
Language: en
Date: 2004-12-07 00:00:00
Title: Agreement between the European Community and the Principality of Monaco providing for measures equivalent to those laid down in Council Directive 2003/48/EC

21.1.2005              EN                              Official Journal of the European Union                                             L 19/55
                                                                    AGREEMENT
               between the European Community and the Principality of Monaco providing for measures
                                      equivalent to those laid down in Council Directive 2003/48/EC
               THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY
               and
               THE PRINCIPALITY OF MONACO,
               hereinafter referred to as ‘Contracting Party’ or ‘Contracting Parties’, where applicable,
               with a view to introducing measures equivalent to those laid down in Council Directive 2003/48/EC of 3 June 2003 on
               taxation of savings income in the form of interest payments, hereinafter referred to as ‘the Directive’,
               HAVE DECIDED TO CONCLUDE THIS AGREEMENT:
                                Article 1                                              UCITS established on the territory of the Principality of
                                                                                       Monaco for the purpose of investing savings;
                                  Aim
1.     To enable savings income in the form of interest
                                                                                 (c) he acts on behalf of another individual who is the beneficial
payments made in territory of the Principality of Monaco to
                                                                                       owner and discloses to the paying agent the identity of that
beneficial owners within the meaning of Article 2 who are
                                                                                       beneficial owner in accordance with Article 3(2).
individuals resident in a Member State of the European
Community to be taken into account for being made subject
to effective taxation in accordance with the laws of the latter
Member State, a withholding tax shall be levied by paying                        2.      Where a paying agent has information suggesting that the
agents established on the territory of the Principality of                       individual who receives an interest payment or for whom an
Monaco on the amount of such interest payments under the                         interest payment is secured may not be the beneficial owner,
conditions laid down in Articles 7 and 8 of this Agreement,                      and where neither paragraph 1(a) nor 1(b) applies to that indi-
subject to the voluntary disclosure measures provided for in                     vidual, that paying agent shall take reasonable steps to establish
Article 9 of this Agreement.                                                     the identity of the beneficial owner in accordance with Article
                                                                                 3(2). If the paying agent is unable to identify the beneficial
                                                                                 owner, it shall treat the individual who receives the interest
2.     The Principality of Monaco shall take the measures                        payment or for whom the interest payment is secured as the
required to ensure that the tasks necessary for the implemen-                    beneficial owner.
tation of this Agreement are carried out by paying agents estab-
lished within its territory, irrespective of the place of estab-
lishment of the debtor of the debt-claim producing the interest.                                               Article 3
                                                                                      Identity and place of residence of beneficial owners
                                Article 2                                        1.      The Principality of Monaco shall adopt and ensure the
                                                                                 application of the procedures necessary to allow the paying
                 Definition of beneficial owner
                                                                                 agent to identify the beneficial owners and their residence for
1.     For the purposes of this Agreement, ‘beneficial owner’                    the purposes of this Agreement.
means any individual who receives an interest payment or
any individual for whom an interest payment is secured,
unless he provides evidence that it was not received or                          2.      Such procedures shall include the following requirements:
secured for his own benefit, that is to say that:
                                                                                 (a) in the case of contractual relations established before 1
(a) he acts as a paying agent within the meaning of Article 4;                         January 2004, the paying agent shall establish the identity
                                                                                       of the beneficial owner within the meaning of Article 2 and
                                                                                       his place of residence on the basis of the information
(b) he acts on behalf of a legal person, an entity which is taxed                      available to it, as obtained from the official identity
     on its profits under Ordonnance Souveraine No 3162 of                             document or any other documentary proof of identity
     19 March 1964, an undertaking for collective investment in                        presented by the beneficial owner, namely an official
     transferable securities (UCITS) or a body equivalent to a                         document bearing a photograph of the beneficial owner;
 ---pagebreak--- L 19/56                EN                           Official Journal of the European Union                                           21.1.2005
(b) in the case of contractual relations established after                  (b) interest accrued or capitalised at the sale, refund or
    1 January 2004 or transactions conducted on a non-                          redemption of the debt-claims referred to in (a);
    contractual basis, the identity of the beneficial owner
    within the meaning of Article 2 and his place of
    residence shall be established on the basis of the passport,            (c) income deriving from interest payments either directly or
    the official identity card or any other documentary proof of                through an entity referred to in Article 4(2) of the Directive
    identity presented by the beneficial owner. For individuals                 established in a Member State of the European Community,
    presenting a passport or official identity card issued by a                 distributed by:
    Member State of the European Community who declare
    themselves to be resident in a State outside the European
    Community and the Principality of Monaco, residence shall
    be established by means of a tax residence certificate issued               (i) an undertaking for collective investment established in
    by the competent authority of the State in which the indi-                        a Member State of the European Community or the
    vidual claims to be resident. Failing the presentation of such                    Principality of Monaco;
    a certificate, the State of residence shall be considered to be
    the Member State of the European Community which issued
    the passport or other relevant official identity document.                  (ii) entities established in a Member State of the European
                                                                                      Community which avail themselves of the option under
                                                                                      Article 4(3) of the Directive and notify the paying agent
                                                                                      thereof, and
                               Article 4
                    Definition of paying agent                                  (iii) undertakings for collective investment established
                                                                                      outside the territory referred to in Article 19;
For the purposes of this Agreement, ‘paying agent’ means any
bank, individual, legal person, partnership or subsidiary of an
international company in the Principality of Monaco which, in
the course of its business, accepts, holds, invests or transfers            (d) income realised upon the sale, refund or redemption of
assets belonging to third parties and, even occasionally, pays                  shares or units in the following undertakings and entities,
interest to, or secures the payment of, interest for the                        if they invest directly or indirectly, via other undertakings
immediate benefit of the beneficial owner.                                      for collective investment or entities referred to below, more
                                                                                than 40 % of their assets in debt claims as referred to in (a):
                               Article 5                                        (i) an undertaking for collective investment established in
                                                                                      a Member State of the European Community or the
               Definition of competent authority                                      Principality of Monaco;
For the purposes of this Agreement, the Contracting Parties’
‘competent authorities’ are those listed in Annex 1.
                                                                                (ii) entities established in a Member State of the European
                                                                                      Community which avail themselves of the option under
                                                                                      Article 4(3) of the Directive and notify the paying agent
For third States, the ‘competent authority’ is the authority                          thereof, and
competent to issue certificates of residence for tax purposes.
                                                                                (iii) undertakings for collective investment established
                                                                                      outside the territory referred to in Article 19.
                               Article 6
                 Definition of interest payment                             2.     As regards paragraph 1(c), when a paying agent has no
                                                                            information concerning the proportion of the income deriving
1.    For the purposes of this Agreement, ‘interest payment’
                                                                            from interest payments, the total amount of the income shall be
means:
                                                                            considered to be an interest payment.
(a) interest paid or credited to an account, relating to debt               3.     As regards paragraph 1(d), when a paying agent has no
    claims or client deposits, whether or not secured by                    information concerning the percentage of the assets invested in
    mortgage and whether or not carrying a right to participate             debt claims or in shares or units as defined in that paragraph,
    in the debtor's profits, and, in particular, income from                that percentage shall be considered to be above 40 %.
    government securities and income from bonds or
    debentures, including premiums and prizes attaching to
    such securities, bonds or debentures. Penalty charges for               Where the paying agent cannot determine the amount of
    late payment shall not be regarded as interest payments.                income realised by the beneficial owner, the income shall be
    Interest from loans between private individuals not acting              deemed to correspond to the proceeds of the sale, refund or
    in the course of their business shall, however, be excluded;            redemption of the shares or units.
 ---pagebreak--- 21.1.2005              EN                          Official Journal of the European Union                                           L 19/57
4.     Income from undertakings or entities that have invested             5.     The levying of withholding tax by a paying agent estab-
no more than 15 % of their assets in the debt claims referred to           lished in the Principality of Monaco shall not preclude the
in paragraph 1(a) shall not be considered an interest payment              Member State of the European Community where the beneficial
within the meaning of paragraph 1(c) and (d).                              owner is resident for tax purposes from taxing the income in
                                                                           accordance with its national law. Where a taxpayer declares
                                                                           income from interest paid by a paying agent established in
5.     After 31 December 2010 the percentage referred to in                the Principality of Monaco to the tax authorities of the
paragraph 1(d) and paragraph 3 shall be 25 %.                              Member State of the European Community where he resides,
                                                                           this income shall be taxed at the same rate and under the same
                                                                           general conditions as interest earned within that Member State.
6.     The percentage referred to in paragraph 1(d) and in
paragraph 5 shall be determined by reference to the investment
policy laid down in the fund rules or instruments of incor-                                             Article 8
poration of the undertakings or entities concerned or, failing
that, by reference to the actual composition of the assets of the                              Sharing withholding tax
undertakings or entities concerned.
                                                                           1.     The Principality of Monaco shall retain 25 % of the
                                                                           revenue generated by the withholding tax levied in accordance
                                                                           with Article 7 and transfer 75 % to the Member State of the
                               Article 7                                   European Community in which the beneficial owner of the
                                                                           interest is resident in accordance with Article 3(2)(b).
                          Withholding tax
1.     Where the beneficial owner is resident in a Member State
of the European Community, the Principality of Monaco shall                2.     Such transfers shall take place for each year in one
levy a withholding tax at a rate of 15 % for the first three years         instalment per Member State at the latest within six months
from the date specified in Article 17, subject to the application          of the end of the tax year of the Principality of Monaco.
of Article 14(2), a rate of 20 % for the subsequent three years
and a rate of 35 % thereafter.
                                                                           3.     The Principality of Monaco shall take the measures
                                                                           necessary to ensure the proper functioning of the revenue-
2.     The paying agent shall levy withholding tax as follows:             sharing system.
(a) in the case of an interest payment within the meaning of
                                                                           To that end, the Principality of Monaco shall transfer revenue
     Article 6(1)(a): on the amount of interest paid or credited;
                                                                           accruing to the Member State of the European Community
                                                                           concerned to the competent authority designated in Annex 1
                                                                           to this Agreement.
(b) in the case of an interest payment within the meaning of
     Article 6(1)(b) or (d): on the amount of interest or income
     referred to in those paragraphs or by a levy of equivalent
     effect to be borne by the beneficial owner on the full                                             Article 9
     amount of the proceeds of the sale, redemption or refund;
                                                                                                  Voluntary disclosure
                                                                           1.     The Principality of Monaco shall lay down a procedure
(c) in the case of an interest payment within the meaning of               allowing a beneficial owner within the meaning of Article 2 to
     Article 6(1)(c): on the amount of income referred to in that          avoid the withholding tax provided for in Article 7 by expressly
     paragraph.                                                            authorising his paying agent established in the Principality of
                                                                           Monaco to disclose interest payments to the competent
                                                                           authority of the Principality of Monaco. The authorisation
3.     For the purposes of points (a), (b) and (c) of paragraph 2,         shall cover all interest payments made to the beneficial owner
withholding tax shall be levied pro rata for the period during             by that paying agent.
which the beneficial owner held the debt claim, shares or units
that generated the income. When the paying agent is unable to
determine the period of holding on the basis of information in             2.     The information to be disclosed by the paying agent in
its possession, it shall treat the beneficial owner as having held         the event of express authorisation from the beneficial owner
the debt claim, shares or units throughout their period of                 shall include at least:
existence unless the beneficial owner provides evidence of the
date of acquisition.
                                                                           (a) the identity and residence of the beneficial owner, estab-
                                                                               lished in accordance with Article 3;
4.     Taxes and retentions levied on an interest payment, other
than the withholding tax provided for under this Agreement,
shall be deducted from the withholding tax calculated on that
interest payment in accordance with this Article.                          (b) the name and address of the paying agent;
 ---pagebreak--- L 19/58                EN                          Official Journal of the European Union                                           21.1.2005
(c) the account number of the beneficial owner or the identi-                                           Article 11
    fication of the debt claim giving rise to the payment of
    interest;                                                                                 Negotiable debt securities
                                                                           1.    From the date specified in Article 17, subject to Article
                                                                           14(2) and for as long as the Principality of Monaco levies the
                                                                           withholding tax referred to in Article 7 and at least one Member
(d) the amount of the interest payment, established in                     State of the European Community applies similar provisions,
    accordance with Article 6.                                             until 31 December 2010 at the latest, domestic and interna-
                                                                           tional bonds and other negotiable debt securities first issued
                                                                           before 1 March 2001, or for which the original issuing
                                                                           prospectuses were approved before that date by the authorities
3.    The competent authority of the Principality of Monaco                competent to do so, shall not be considered debt claims within
shall forward the information referred to in paragraph 2 to                the meaning of Article 6(1)(a), provided no further issues of
the competent authority of the Member State of the European                such negotiable debt securities are made on or after 1 March
Community where the beneficial owner is resident. This infor-              2002.
mation shall be provided at least once a year, within six months
of the end of the tax year of the Principality of Monaco, in
respect of all interest payments made in the year in question.             However, as long as at least one of the Member States of the
                                                                           European Community also applies similar measures, the
                                                                           provisions of this Article shall continue to apply beyond 31
                                                                           December 2010 in respect of such negotiable debt securities:
                             Article 10
    Elimination of double taxation and/or repayment of
                          withholding tax                                  — which contain gross-up and early redemption clauses, and
1.    The Member State of the European Community where the
beneficial owner is resident for tax purposes shall ensure the             — where the paying agent defined in Article 4 is established in
elimination of any double taxation which might result from the                 the Principality of Monaco, and
levying of the withholding tax referred to in Article 7, in
accordance with the provisions of paragraphs 2 and 3.
                                                                           — where the paying agent pays interest to, or secures the
                                                                               payment of interest for the immediate benefit of, a beneficial
                                                                               owner resident in a Member State of the European
2.    If a paying agent in the Principality of Monaco has levied
                                                                               Community.
the withholding tax referred to in Article 7 on interest received
by a beneficial owner, the Member State of the European
Community where the beneficial owner is resident for tax
purposes shall grant him a tax credit equal to the amount of               If and when all Member States of the European Community
that withholding tax. Where this amount exceeds the amount of              cease to apply provisions similar to those of Article 7, the
tax due in accordance with its national law on the total amount            provisions of this Article shall continue to apply solely in
of interest subject to withholding tax, the Member State of the            respect of negotiable debt securities:
European Community in which the beneficial owner is resident
for tax purposes shall, regardless of any of its standard tax-
credit mechanisms or divergent administrative practices, repay             — which contain gross-up and early redemption clauses, and
the excess amount of tax withheld to the beneficial owner.
                                                                           — where the paying agent of the issuer is established in the
                                                                               Principality of Monaco, and
3.    If, in addition to the withholding tax referred to in Article
7, interest payments received by a beneficial owner have been
subject to any other type of withholding tax and the Member
State of the European Community of residence for tax purposes              — where that paying agent pays interest to, or secures the
grants or would grant a tax credit for such withholding tax in                 payment of interest for the immediate benefit of, a beneficial
accordance with its national law or double taxation                            owner resident in a Member State of the European
conventions, such other withholding tax shall be credited                      Community.
before the procedure in paragraph 2 is applied.
                                                                           If a further issue is made on or after 1 March 2002 of an
                                                                           aforementioned negotiable debt security issued by a government
4.    The Member State of the European Community where the                 or a related entity acting as a public authority or whose role is
beneficial owner is resident for tax purposes may replace the              recognised by an international treaty, as defined in Annex 2, the
tax-credit mechanism referred to in paragraphs 2 and 3 by                  entire issue of such security, consisting of the original issue and
direct and full repayment of the withholding tax referred to               any further issue, shall be considered a debt claim within the
in Article 7.                                                              meaning of Article 6(1)(a).
 ---pagebreak--- 21.1.2005              EN                        Official Journal of the European Union                                            L 19/59
If a further issue is made on or after 1 March 2002 of an                Once the conditions laid down in Article 13(3) have been
aforementioned negotiable debt security issued by any other              effectively established, the principles for the exchange of infor-
issuer not covered by the previous subparagraph, such further            mation laid down in this Article shall apply to equivalent
issue shall be considered a debt claim within the meaning of             offences under the legislation of the requested State, comparable
Article 6(1)(a).                                                         in gravity to the tax fraud defined above.
                                                                         In response to a duly substantiated request in accordance with
2.    Nothing in this Article shall prevent Member States of the         paragraph 3, the requested State shall provide information on
European Community from taxing the income from the nego-                 cases in which the requesting State has initiated administrative,
tiable debt securities referred to in paragraph 1 in accordance          civil or criminal proceedings in respect of the above acts,
with their national law.                                                 confining that information to savings income taxable in the
                                                                         requesting State.
                             Article 12
                                                                         The information that may be forwarded is that referred to in
           Transmission of information on request                        Article 9(2).
1.    The competent authorities of the Principality of Monaco
and the Member States of the European Community shall
                                                                         2.     In order to determine whether information may be
exchange information on acts which constitute, under the
                                                                         provided in response to a request, the requested State shall
national laws of the requested State, an offence of tax fraud
                                                                         use the provisions concerning time-barring under the law of
with regard to the taxation of savings income in the form of
                                                                         the requesting State, not those of the requested State. No infor-
interest payments.
                                                                         mation whatsoever will be provided on offences committed
                                                                         before 1 July 2005.
When the requested State is the Principality of Monaco, the
following acts shall be considered as constituting tax fraud             3.     For the purposes of establishing the relevance of the
with regard to the taxation of savings income in the form of             request, the competent authority of the requesting Contracting
interest payments:                                                       Party shall provide the following information, which must be
                                                                         drafted in the official language of the requested State:
— the use of a false or falsified document or one which                  (a) the name of the authority submitting the request;
    contains inaccurate information with the intention of
    avoiding or attempting to avoid payment of some or all
    of the tax due on savings income in the form of interest
    payments, punishable by the fine provided for in Article             (b) the identity of the individual concerned by the request for
    26(4) of the Monaco Criminal Code, the amount of which                    information, evidence of that person's status as a tax
    may be up to four times the amount of tax evaded, and/or a                resident of the requesting State and any document,
    period of imprisonment from eight days to two years,                      statement by the individual concerned or other substan-
                                                                              tiated proof underpinning the request;
— fraudulent obtention of a refund of some or all of the tax             (c) the grounds for believing that the information requested is
    due on savings income, punishable by the fine provided for                held by the requested Contracting Party or is in the
    in Article 26(4) of the Monaco Criminal Code, the amount                  possession or control of a person within its jurisdiction;
    of which may be up to four times the amount of tax
    evaded, and/or a period of imprisonment from eight days
    to two months,                                                       (d) a statement that the request is in conformity with the law of
                                                                              the requesting Contracting Party, and in particular that it is
                                                                              not time barred;
— the act by anyone bound to collect tax on savings income,
    deliberately failing to collect some or all of the tax due,
    punishable by a fine of the amount provided for in                   (e) a statement that the requesting Contracting Party has
    Article 26(4) of the Monaco Criminal Code,                                pursued all means available in its own territory, and/or
                                                                              provided for by its legislation or regulations, to obtain the
                                                                              information, except those that would give rise to difficulties;
— the act by anyone bound to collect tax on savings income,
    deliberately misappropriating the amounts collected for his          (f) a statement that the facts already known to the requesting
    own benefit or that of a third party, punishable by a fine of             Contracting Party constitute, under its law, consistent
    the amount provided for in Article 26(4) of the Monaco                    circumstantial evidence that tax fraud or an equivalent
    Criminal Code.                                                            offence defined in paragraph 1 has been committed.
 ---pagebreak--- L 19/60               EN                         Official Journal of the European Union                                          21.1.2005
4.    The requested Contracting Party may refuse to provide the          tax fraud defined in that Article. The Principality of Monaco will
information requested if the request does not comply with the            initiate consultations with the European Commission to that
provisions of this Agreement.                                            end.
Any information exchanged in this way must be treated as                 4.     Consultations shall be held within one month of the
confidential and may be revealed only to persons or                      request or as soon as possible in urgent cases.
competent authorities of the other Contracting Party which
are responsible for the taxation of the interest payments
referred to in Article 1. These persons or authorities may
reveal the information received, in the requesting State only,           5.     For the purposes of the consultations referred to above,
in public hearings or judgments relating to such taxation.               the Contracting Parties shall inform each other of any devel-
                                                                         opments which could affect the proper functioning of this
                                                                         Agreement. This shall also include any relevant agreement
Information may be communicated to another person or                     between one of the Contracting Parties and a third country.
authority only with the prior written agreement of the
competent authority of the Contracting Party providing the
information.
                                                                                                      Article 14
                                                                                    Application and suspension of application
                             Article 13                                  1.     Application of this Agreement is conditional on the
                    Consultation and review                              adoption and implementation by the dependent or associated
                                                                         territories of the Member States listed in the Report of the
1.    In the event of disagreement between the competent                 Council (Economic and Financial Affairs) to the European
authority of the Principality of Monaco and one or more                  Council of Santa Maria de Feira of 19 and 20 June 2000 and
competent authorities of the Member States of the European               by the United States of America, Andorra, Liechtenstein, Swit-
Community within the meaning of Article 5 on the interpre-               zerland and San Marino, respectively, of measures identical or
tation or application of this Agreement, they shall endeavour to         equivalent to those contained in Council Directive 2003/48/EC
resolve their differences amicably. They shall immediately notify        or in this Agreement, and providing for the same application
the European Commission and the competent authorities of the             dates.
other Member States of the European Community of the results
of their consultations.
                                                                         2.     The Contracting Parties shall decide, by common accord,
                                                                         at least six months before the date referred to in Article 17,
The European Commission may take part in consultations on                whether the conditions set out in paragraph 1 are met with
issues of interpretation at the request of any competent                 regard to the dates of entry into force of the relevant measures
authority.                                                               in the Member States of the European Community, the third
                                                                         countries and dependent or associated territories concerned. If
                                                                         the Contracting Parties do not decide that the conditions are
                                                                         met, they shall, by common accord, adopt a new date for the
2.    Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, the                 purposes of Article 17. To that end, the European Community
Contracting Parties shall consult each other at least once               shall notify the Principality of Monaco of the implementation
every three years or at the request of either Contracting Party          by the Member States of the European Community, the
with a view to examining and — if they consider it necessary —           dependent or associated territories and the third countries
improving the technical functioning of the Agreement.                    concerned of identical or equivalent measures.
At any rate the Contracting Parties recognise the importance of
international developments in the area covered by this                   3.     Notwithstanding its institutional arrangements and subject
Agreement and shall consult each other as necessary at the               to the above provisions, the Principality of Monaco shall
consultations provided for in this paragraph in order to                 implement this Agreement on the date referred to in Article
examine whether changes to the Agreement are necessary in                17 and notify this measure to the European Community.
the light of international developments.
                                                                         4.     Implementation of this Agreement or parts thereof may
3.    In view of the conclusion of bilateral agreements between          be suspended by either Contracting Party with immediate effect
the Member States and the third countries subject to the same            by means of notification to the other Contracting Party where
obligations as the Principality of Monaco in the matter of the           Council Directive 2003/48/EC or a corresponding part thereof
taxation of savings income in the form of interest payments, the         ceases to be applicable either temporarily or permanently in
Principality of Monaco will examine the scope and conditions             accordance with European Community law, or where one of
for the implementation of the principles laid down in Article 12         the Member States of the European Community suspends the
in the event of equivalent offences comparable in gravity to the         application of its implementing legislation.
 ---pagebreak--- 21.1.2005             EN                         Official Journal of the European Union                                            L 19/61
5.    Either Contracting Party may also suspend implementation                                        Article 18
of this Agreement by notifying the other if one of the five third
countries referred to above (United States of America, Monaco,                              Claims and final provisions
Liechtenstein, Switzerland or San Marino) or one of the
dependent or associated territories of the Member States of              1.     Termination or the total or partial suspension of this
the European Union referred to in paragraph 2 subsequently               Agreement shall not affect claims by third parties in accordance
ceases applying measures which are respectively equivalent or            with Article 10.
identical to those of Council Directive 2003/48/EC. Suspension
of implementation shall not come into effect until two months            2.     In such a case, the Principality of Monaco shall draw up a
after notification. Application of the Agreement shall resume as         final account before this Agreement ceases to apply and make a
soon as the measures are reinstated.                                     final payment to each of the Member States of the European
                                                                         Community.
                             Article 15                                                               Article 19
                   Other centres/Asian centres                                                 Territorial application
During the transitional period provided for in Council Directive         This Agreement shall apply, on the one hand, to the territories
2003/48/EC, the European Community shall initiate discussions            in which the Treaty establishing the European Community
with other major financial centres with a view to the adoption           applies and under the conditions laid down in that Treaty
and application by the relevant jurisdictions of measures                and, on the other hand, to the territory of the Principality of
equivalent to those to be applied in the Community.                      Monaco.
                                                                                                      Article 20
                             Article 16
                                                                                                       Annexes
          Signing, entry into force and termination
                                                                         1.     The two Annexes shall form part of this Agreement.
1.    This Agreement is concluded subject to its ratification or
approval by the Contracting Parties in accordance with their
internal procedures. The Contracting Parties shall notify each           2.     The list of the competent authorities in Annex 1 may be
other of the completion of these procedures. The present                 modified by a simple notification to the other Contracting Party
Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the                 by the Principality of Monaco as regards the authority
second month following the last notification.                            mentioned in point (a) of the said Annex and by the
                                                                         European Community as regards the other authorities.
2.    This Agreement shall remain in force until terminated by           The list of entities in Annex 2 may be modified by common
a Contracting Party.                                                     accord.
                                                                                                      Article 21
3.    Either Contracting Party may terminate this Agreement by
giving notice to the other. In that event, the Agreement shall                                       Languages
cease to have effect twelve months after the serving of notice.
                                                                         1.     This Agreement is drafted in duplicate in the following
                                                                         languages: Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish,
                                                                         French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian,
                             Article 17                                  Polish, Portuguese, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish and Swedish, the
                                                                         texts in each language being equally authentic.
                       Implementing rules
Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 14, the                   2.     The Maltese language version shall be authenticated by the
Contracting Parties shall implement the laws, regulations and            Contracting Parties on the basis of an Exchange of Letters. It
administrative provisions necessary to allow the application of          shall also be authentic, in the same way as for the languages
this Agreement from 1 July 2005.                                         referred to in paragraph 1.
 ---pagebreak--- L 19/62  EN                               Official Journal of the European Union                                    21.1.2005
        EN FE DE LO CUAL, los plenipotenciarios abajo firmantes suscriben el presente Acuerdo.
        NA DŮKAZ ČEHOŽ připojili níže podepsaní zplnomocnění zástupci k této smlouvě své podpisy.
        TIL BEKRÆFTELSE HERAF har undertegnede befuldmægtigede underskrevet denne aftale.
        ZU URKUND DESSEN haben die unterzeichneten Bevollmächtigten ihre Unterschriften unter dieses
        Abkommen gesetzt.
        SELLE KINNITUSEKS on täievolilised esindajad käesolevale lepingule alla kirjutanud.
        ΣΕ ΠΙΣΤΩΣΗ ΤΩΝ ΑΝΩΤΕΡΩ, οι υπογράφοντες πληρεξούσιοι έθεσαν την υπογραφή τους κάτω από την
        παρούσα συμφωνία.
        IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned Plenipotentiaries have signed the present Agreement.
        EN FOI DE QUOI, les plénipotentiaires soussignés ont apposé leurs signatures au bas du présent accord.
        IN FEDE DI CHE, i plenipotenziari sottoscritti hanno apposto la propria firma in calce al presente accordo.
        TO APLIECINOT, attiecīgi pilnvarotas personas ir parakstījušas šo nolīgumu.
        TAI PALIUDYDAMI, šį Susitarimą pasirašė toliau nurodyti įgaliotieji atstovai.
        A FENTIEK HITELÉÜL az alulírott meghatalmazottak e megállapodást alább kézjegyükkel látták el.
        B'XIEHDA TA' DAN, il-Plenipotenzjari hawn taħt iffirmati ffirmaw dan il-Ftehim.
        TEN BLIJKE WAARVAN de ondergetekende gevolmachtigden hun handtekening onder deze overeenkomst
        hebben geplaatst.
        NA DOWÓD CZEGO niżej podpisani pełnomocnicy podpisali niniejszą Umowę.
        EM FÉ DO QUE, os plenipotenciários abaixo assinados apuserem as suas assinaturas no final do presente
        Acordo.
        NA DÔKAZ ČOHO dolupodpísaní splnomocnení zástupcovia podpísali túto dohodu.
        V POTRDITEV TEGA so spodaj podpisani pooblaščenci podpisali ta sporazum.
        TÄMÄN VAKUUDEKSI allamainitut täysivaltaiset edustajat ovat allekirjoittaneet tämän sopimuksen.
        TILL BEVIS HÄRPÅ har undertecknade befullmäktigade undertecknat detta avtal.
        Hecho en Bruselas, el siete de diciembre del dos mil cuatro.
        V Bruselu dne sedmého prosince dva tisíce čtyři.
        Udfærdiget i Bruxelles, den syvende december to tusind og fire.
        Geschehen zu Brüssel am siebten Dezember zweitausendundvier.
        Kahe tuhande neljanda aasta detsembrikuu seitsmendal päeval Brüsselis.
        Έγινε στις Βρυξέλλες, στις εφτά Δεκεμβρίου δύο χιλιάδες τέσσερα.
        Done at Brussels on the seventh day of December in the year two thousand and four.
        Fait à Bruxelles, le sept décembre deux mille quatre.
        Fatto a Bruxelles, addì sette dicembre duemilaquattro.
        Briselē, divi tūkstoši ceturtā gada septītajā decembrī.
        Pasirašyta du tūkstančiai ketvirtų metų gruodžio septintą dieną Briuselyje.
        Kelt Brüsszelben, a kettőezer negyedik év december hetedik napján.
        Magħmul fi Brussel fis-seba' jum ta' Diċembru tas-sena elfejn u erbgħa.
        Gedaan te Brussel, de zevende december tweeduizendvier.
        Sporządzono w Brukseli dnia siódmego grudnia roku dwutysięcznego czwartego.
        Feito em Bruxelas, em sete de Dezembro de dois mil e quatro.
        V Bruseli siedmeho decembra dvetisícštyri.
        Podpisano v Bruslju, dne sedmega decembra leta dva tisoč štiri.
        Tehty Brysselissä seitsemäntenä päivänä joulukuuta vuonna kaksituhattaneljä.
        Som skedde i Bryssel den sjunde december tjugohundrafyra.
 ---pagebreak--- 21.1.2005  EN                           Official Journal of the European Union L 19/63
          Por la Comunidad Europea
          Za Evropské společenství
          For Det Europæiske Fællesskab
          Für die Europäische Gemeinschaft
          Euroopa Ühenduse nimel
          Για την Ευρωπαϊκή Κοινότητα
          For the European Community
          Pour la Communauté européenne
          Per la Comunità europea
          Eiropas Kopienas vārdā
          Europos bendrijos vardu
          az Európai Közösség részéről
          Għall-Komunità Ewropea
          Voor de Europese Gemeenschap
          W imieniu Wspólnoty Europejskiej
          Pela Comunidade Europeia
          Za Európske spoločenstvo
          za Evropsko skupnost
          Euroopan yhteisön puolesta
          På Europeiska gemenskapens vägnar
          Pour la Principauté de Monaco
 ---pagebreak--- L 19/64         EN                             Official Journal of the European Union                                           21.1.2005
                                                                ANNEX I
                            LIST OF COMPETENT AUTHORITIES OF THE CONTRACTING PARTIES
        The Contracting Parties' competent authorities for the purposes of this Agreement are:
        (a) in the Principality of Monaco: le Conseiller de Gouvernement pour les Finances et l'Economie or an authorised
            representative,
        (b) in the Kingdom of Belgium: De Minister van Financiën/Le Ministre des Finances or an authorised representative,
        (c) in the Czech Republic: Ministr financí or an authorised representative,
        (d) in the Kingdom of Denmark: Skatteministeren or an authorised representative,
        (e) in the Federal Republic of Germany: Der Bundesminister der Finanzen or an authorised representative,
        (f) in the Republic of Estonia: Rahandusminister or an authorised representative,
        (g) in the Hellenic Republic: Ο Υπουργός Οικονομίας και Οικονομικών or an authorised representative,
        (h) in the Kingdom of Spain: El Ministro de Economía y Hacienda or an authorised representative,
        (i) in the French Republic: Le Ministre chargé du budget or an authorised representative,
        (j) in Ireland: The Revenue Commissioners or their authorised representative,
        (k) in the Italian Republic: Il Capo del Dipartimento per le Politiche Fiscali or an authorised representative,
        (l) in the Republic of Cyprus: Υπουργός Οικονομικών or an authorised representative,
        (m) in the Republic of Latvia: Finanšu ministrs or an authorised representative,
        (n) in the Republic of Lithuania: Finansų ministras or an authorised representative,
        (o) in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg: Le Ministre des Finances or an authorised representative; however, for the
            purposes of Article 12, the competent authority shall be le Procureur Général d'Etat luxemburgeois,
        (p) in the Republic of Hungary: A pénzügyminiszter or an authorised representative,
        (q) in the Republic of Malta: Il-Ministru responsabbli għall-Finanzi or an authorised representative,
        (r) in the Kingdom of the Netherlands: De Minister van Financiën or an authorised representative,
        (s) in the Republic of Austria: Der Bundesminister für Finanzen or an authorised representative,
        (t) in the Republic of Poland: Minister Finansów or an authorised representative,
        (u) in the Portuguese Republic: O Ministro das Finanças or an authorised representative,
        (v) in the Republic of Slovenia: Minister za financií or an authorised representative,
        (w) in the Slovak Republic: Minister financií or an authorised representative,
        (x) in the Republic of Finland: Valtiovarainministeriö/Finansministeriet or an authorised representative,
        (y) in the Kingdom of Sweden: Chefen för Finansdepartementet or an authorised representative,
        (z) in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and in the European territories for whose external
            relations the United Kingdom is responsible: the Commissioners of Inland Revenue or their authorised representative
            and the competent authority in Gibraltar, which the United Kingdom will designate in accordance with the Agreed
            Arrangements relating to Gibraltar authorities in the context of European Union and European Community
            instruments and related Treaties notified to the Member States and institutions of the European Union of 19
            April 2000, a copy of which shall be notified to the Principality of Monaco by the Secretary-General of the
            Council of the European Union, and which shall apply to this Agreement.
 ---pagebreak--- 21.1.2005         EN                              Official Journal of the European Union                                                 L 19/65
                                                                  ANNEX II
                                                       LIST OF RELATED ENTITIES
          For the purposes of Article 11 of this Agreement, the following entities shall be considered to be ‘a related entity acting as
          a public authority or whose role is recognised by an international treaty’:
          ENTITIES WITHIN THE EUROPEAN UNION:
          Belgium
          — Vlaams Gewest
          — Région wallonne
          — Région de Bruxelles-Capitale (Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest)
          — Communauté française
          — Vlaamse Gemeenschap
          — Deutschsprachige Gemeinschaft
          Spain
          — Xunta de Galicia
          — Junta de Andalucía
          — Junta de Extremadura
          — Junta de Castilla-La Mancha
          — Junta de Castilla y León
          — Gobierno Foral de Navarra
          — Govern de les Illes Balears
          — Generalitat de Catalunya
          — Generalitat de València
          — Diputación General de Aragón
          — Gobierno de las Islas Canarias
          — Gobierno de Murcia
          — Gobierno de Madrid
          — Gobierno de la Comunidad Autónoma del País Vasco/Euzkadi
          — Diputación Foral de Guipúzcoa
          — Diputación Foral de Vizcaya/Bizkaia
          — Diputación Foral de Alava
          — Ayuntamiento de Madrid
          — Ayuntamiento de Barcelona
          — Cabildo Insular de Gran Canaria
          — Cabildo Insular de Tenerife
 ---pagebreak--- L 19/66        EN                           Official Journal of the European Union                                      21.1.2005
        — Instituto de Crédito Oficial
        — Instituto Catalán de Finanzas
        — Instituto Valenciano de Finanzas
        Greece
        — Оργανισμός Тηλεπικοινωνιών Ελλάδος (Greek Telecommunications Organisation)
        — Оργανισμός Σιδηροδρόμων Ελλάδος (Greek Railways Organisation)
        — Δημόσια Επιχείρηση Ηλεκτρισμού (Public Power Corporation)
        France
        — La Caisse d'amortissement de la dette sociale (CADES)
        — L'Agence française de développement (AFD)
        — Réseau Ferré de France (RFF)
        — Caisse Nationale des Autoroutes (CNA)
        — Assistance publique Hôpitaux de Paris (APHP)
        — Charbonnages de France (CDF)
        — Entreprise minière et chimique (EMC)
        Italy
        — Regions
        — Provinces
        — Municipalities
        — Cassa Depositi e Prestiti
        Latvia
        — Pašvaldības (local governments)
        Poland
        — gminy (communes)
        — powiaty (districts)
        — województwa (provinces)
        — związki gmin (associations of communes)
        — związki powiatów (associations of districts)
        — związki województw (associations of provinces)
        — miasto stołeczne Warszawa (capital city of Warsaw)
        — Agencja Restrukturyzacji i Modernizacji Rolnictwa (Agency for Restructuring and Modernisation of Agriculture)
        — Agencja Nieruchomości Rolnych (Agricultural Property Agency)
 ---pagebreak--- 21.1.2005          EN                               Official Journal of the European Union                                              L 19/67
          Portugal
          — Região Autónoma da Madeira (Autonomous Region of Madeira)
          — Região Autónoma dos Açores (Autonomous Region of the Azores)
          — Communes
          Slovakia
          — mestá a obce (municipalities)
          — Železnice Slovenskej republiky (Slovak Railway Company)
          — Štátny fond cestného hospodárstva (State Road Management Fund))
          — Slovenské elektrárne (Slovak Power Plants)
          — Vodohospodárska výstavba (Water Economy Building Company)
          INTERNATIONAL ENTITIES AND UNDERTAKINGS:
          — European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
          — European Investment Bank
          — Asian Development Bank
          — African Development Bank
          — World Bank/IBRD/IMF
          — International Finance Corporation
          — Interamerican Development Bank
          — Council of Europe Social Development Fund
          — Euratom
          — European Community
          — Andean Development Corporation (CAF)
          — Eurofima
          The provisions of Article 11 of the Agreement are without prejudice to any international obligations that the Contracting
          Parties may have entered into in respect of the abovementioned international entities.
          THIRD-COUNTRY ENTITIES:
          Entities satisfying the following criteria:
          1. the entity is considered to be a public entity according to national criteria;
          2. this public entity is a non-market producer which administers and finances a group of activities, principally providing
             non-market goods or services intended for the benefit of the community and which are effectively controlled by public
             administration;
          3. this public entity is a large and regular issuer of debt securities;
          4. the State concerned is able to guarantee that this public entity will not exercise early redemption in the event of gross-
             up clauses.
 ---pagebreak--- L 19/68         EN                          Official Journal of the European Union                                     21.1.2005
                                        MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
                          between the European Community and the Principality of Monaco
        When an Agreement providing for measures equivalent to those laid down in Council Directive 2003/48/EC
        of 3 June 2003 on taxation of savings income in the form of interest payments, hereinafter referred to as
        ‘the Directive’, was concluded, the European Community and the Principality of Monaco signed this
        Memorandum of Understanding supplementing the Agreement.
        If either Contracting Party finds that significant differences in the implementation of exchanges of infor-
        mation mean that the Agreement would not be applied in an evidently equitable manner, the Contracting
        Parties shall immediately hold consultations with a view to determining the arrangements necessary to
        establish equal treatment. The European Commission shall immediately report to the Council on these
        consultations and propose the measures necessary to restore equal treatment. In the interim, any new
        request for information under Article 12 of this Agreement which is of the same kind as that which
        gave rise to the application of this paragraph will be examined during the consultations.
        Should a significant difference be detected between the scope of Council Directive 2003/48/EC and that of
        this Agreement, in particular with regard to Articles 4 and 6 of the Agreement, the Contracting Parties shall
        immediately consult each other in accordance with Article 13(1) of the Agreement with a view to ensuring
        that the measures laid down by the Agreement remain equivalent.
        The signatories of this Memorandum of Understanding declare that they consider the Agreement referred to
        in the first paragraph and this Memorandum of Understanding to provide an acceptable and balanced
        arrangement that can be considered as safeguarding the interests of the Parties. They will therefore
        implement the agreed measures in good faith and will not act unilaterally in such a way as to
        undermine this arrangement without due cause.
        Once it has been established that the prudential rules and supervisory measures applicable to the Mone-
        gasque operators concerned are such as to guarantee the smooth operation of the Internal Market in the
        sectors in question, the European Community is prepared to examine with the Government of the Princi-
        pality of Monaco conditions conducive to the development of trade between Monaco and the Community
        in certain financial instruments and insurance services. Thus, and in accordance with the foreign policy
        position adopted by the Community with regard to similar requests in the past, any possible agreement
        would have to be based on the adoption and application by the Principality of Monaco of the present and
        future Community acquis in the sectors concerned. It is also likely that other rules, both present and future,
        relevant to the smooth operation of the Internal Market in the sectors in question, for instance competition
        and tax rules, would have to be applied by the Principality of Monaco.
        The signatories of this Memorandum of Understanding note that the definition of tax fraud, under the
        Agreement between the European Community and the Principality of Monaco providing for measures
        equivalent to those laid down in the Directive, is solely for the relevant purposes of taxation of savings.
        Drawn up at Brussels on 7 December 2004 in duplicate in the Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian,
        Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, Portuguese, Slovak,
        Slovenian, Spanish and Swedish languages, each of these languages being equally authentic.
        The Maltese language version shall be authenticated by the signatories on the basis of an Exchange of
        Letters. It shall also be authentic, in the same way as for the languages referred to in the preceding
        paragraph.
 ---pagebreak--- 21.1.2005         EN                        Official Journal of the European Union L 19/69
          Por la Comunidad Europea
          Za Evropské společenství
          For Det Europæiske Fællesskab
          Für die Europäische Gemeinschaft
          Euroopa Ühenduse nimel
          Για την Ευρωπαϊκή Κοινότητα
          For the European Community
          Pour la Communauté européenne
          Per la Comunità europea
          Eiropas Kopienas vārdā
          Europos bendrijos vardu
          az Európai Közösség részéről
          Għall-Komunità Ewropea
          Voor de Europese Gemeenschap
          W imieniu Wspólnoty Europejskiej
          Pela Comunidade Europeia
          Za Európske spoločenstvo
          za Evropsko skupnost
          Euroopan yhteisön puolesta
          På Europeiska gemenskapens vägnar
          Pour la Principauté de Monaco