CELEX: 51978PC0465
Language: en
Date: 1978-09-22
Title: Proposal for a COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) on the abolition of postal charges for the presentation to customs of consignments of goods from another Member State which are relieved of internal taxes payable at importation (submitted to the Council by the Commission)

ARCHIVES HISTORIQUES
DE LA COMMISSION
COLLECTION RELIEE DES
DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM (78) 465
Vol. 1978/0172
 ---pagebreak--- Disclaimer
Conformément au règlement (CEE, Euratom) n° 354/83 du Conseil du 1er février 1983
concernant l'ouverture au public des archives historiques de la Communauté économique
européenne et de la Communauté européenne de l'énergie atomique (JO L 43 du 15.2.1983,
p. 1), tel que modifié par le règlement (CE, Euratom) n° 1700/2003 du 22 septembre 2003
(JO L 243 du 27.9.2003, p. 1), ce dossier est ouvert au public. Le cas échéant, les documents
classifiés présents dans ce dossier ont été déclassifiés conformément à l'article 5 dudit
règlement.
In accordance with Council Regulation (EEC, Euratom) No 354/83 of 1 February 1983
concerning the opening to the public of the historical archives of the European Economic
Community and the European Atomic Energy Community (OJ L 43, 15.2.1983, p. 1), as
amended by Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1700/2003 of 22 September 2003 (OJ L 243,
27.9.2003, p. 1), this file is open to the public. Where necessary, classified documents in this
file have been declassified in conformity with Article 5 of the aforementioned regulation.
In Übereinstimmung mit der Verordnung (EWG, Euratom) Nr. 354/83 des Rates vom 1.
Februar 1983 über die Freigabe der historischen Archive der Europäischen
Wirtschaftsgemeinschaft und der Europäischen Atomgemeinschaft (ABI. L 43 vom 15.2.1983,
S. 1), geändert durch die Verordnung (EG, Euratom) Nr. 1700/2003 vom 22. September 2003
(ABI. L 243 vom 27.9.2003, S. 1), ist diese Datei der Öffentlichkeit zugänglich. Soweit
erforderlich, wurden die Verschlusssachen in dieser Datei in Übereinstimmung mit Artikel 5
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 ---pagebreak--- COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                                 COM(78)465 final
                                                 Brussels , 22 September 1978
                            Proposal for a
                        COUNCIL REGULATION ( EEC )
     on the abolition of postal charges for the presentation to customs
     of consignments of goods from another Member State which are re­
     lieved of internal taxes payable at importation
              ( submitted to the Council by the Commission )
                              f
                                           - . »
                          .
C0M(78 ) 465 final
 ---pagebreak--- Explanatory Note
 Hie provisions of the Universal Postal Convention and the Postal Parcels
Agreement allow the postal administrations of the Member States to collect
a charge for presentation to customs on all packets and parcels submitted
to customs control . .    In some Member States this charge is collected even
when there are no customs duties or internal taxes payable .      The Commission
has received many oomplaints from private individuals in thje Community who
find that they are required to pay this charge on postal items sent from
another Member State and, in particular , on small packets and parcels which
are not subject to customs duty because they contain Community goods and
are relieved of VAT and other internal taxes because of their low value .
At a Council meeting on 15 December 1977 the Ministers of Posts and Tele­
communications expressed a favourable reaction to the idea of abolishing
the presentation charge on small consignments :      They also asked the
Commission to consider whether it wotild be necessary to introduce a system
for identifying the small packets in question .
After careful consideration of this problem , notably with experts from the
postal and customs administrations of the Member States , the Commission
takes the view that it should be possible to abolish the presentation
charge for the consignments in question without providing for additional
Community measures for their identification .      The Commission has con-  ,
sidered three possibilities in connection with its proposal *     i.e. that
the presentation charge should be abolished *
     1 ) for all intrar-Community consignments j       3
     2 ) for all intra-Community consignments on which no internal             \
         taxes are payable }
         and
     3) for all intra-Community consignments relieved of internal
         taxes because they are small consignments of a non-commercial
         character .
After taking into aocount all the relevant factors the Commission considers
that the time is not yet ripe to propose the first solution "but it prefers
the sebond possibility on the grounds of practicability.                 "
 ---pagebreak---                                     - 2 -   ■
                             1 '     1  >
Furthermore , given "that postal items must in' any case be sorted
into items liable to internal taxes and items which are exempt , if the
same criterion is used to decide Tfhether or not a presentation charge
should be levied , there should be no need for any identification measures
in addition to those already in use .     Moreover , it is known that this
criterion is already applied without difficulty in three of the Member
States which do not levy the presentation charge on such 'oo*nsignments .  '•
                                                                4
The faot that the Commission is making this proposal to abolish the
presentation charge for consignments where no duty or . tax is payable
should not be understood as prejudicing its position 'on the
compatibility of this charge with the Treaty of Rome .
                                                              \
Finally , the Commission attaches some importance to the speedy adoption
of its proposal so that it may be implemented with effect - from
1 December 1978 which would allow the European citizen to enjoy the
benefits of this reform in time for the Christmas and New Tear festivities .
                                                                              \
 ---pagebreak---                                        - 3 -
Proposal for a Council Regulation
on the abolition of postal charges
for the presentation to customs of
consignments of goods from another
Member State which are relieved of
internal taxes payable at importation
                                                                *             i t
TOE COUNCIL OP THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                                                  4
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community
                                               ι
and in particular Article 235 thereof ;
Having regard to the proposal of the Commission ;
Having regard to the Opinion of the European Parliament ( l );
Having regard to the Opinion of the Eoonomio and Social Committee ( 2)5
Whereas the postal administrations of the Member States are authorised
under the provisions of Article 35 ot the Universal Postal Convention signed
at Lausanne on 5 July 1974 and of Article 13 of the Postal Parcels Agreement
of the same date to collect a charge Known as the "presentation to customs"
 charge on all packets and parcels submitted to customs control ;
                   v.
 Whereas , however , packets and parcels containing Community goods sent from
 one Member State to another are not subject to customs duties and are
 frequently relieved of internal taxes payable at importation ,, notably
 under the provisions of Council Directive 74/651/EEC of 19 December' 1974 ( 3 )
 which provides for certain reliefs to be allowed on the importation of
 goods in small consignments of a non–commercial charaoter from another
 Member State ;                              ,
        Whereas the .benefit of this relief is diminished if the postal admini­
 strations continue to collect the presentation to customs charge on such
 consignments ;                                  J
  ( 1 ) OJ No
  ( 2 ) OJ No
  ( 3) OJ No L 354 of 3O.i2.i974. p. 57.
 ---pagebreak--- Whereas , -therefore , the postal administrations should cease to collect
suoh oharges for all consignments from another Member State which are
relieved of internal taxes payable at importation ,
 ---pagebreak---                                   - 5 -
                                                        *
                                                      V
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION!
Artiole 1
The postal administrations of the Member States shall cease to
oolleot any charges for presentation to customs in respect of
consignments of goods from another Member State which are relieved
from turnover taxes and excise duties payable at importation . «
Article 2
This Regulation shall enter into force .;,on 1 Deoember 1978 .
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly
applioable in all Member States *
 Done at Brussels-.
                                                 Por the Counoil
                                                 The President
                                                                 v