CELEX: 31987R2658
Language: en
Date: 1987-07-23 00:00:00
Title: Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 of 23 July 1987 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and on the Common Customs Tariff

Avis juridique important

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31987R2658

Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 of 23 July 1987 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and on the Common Customs Tariff  

Official Journal L 256 , 07/09/1987 P. 0001 - 0675 Finnish special edition: Chapter 11 Volume 13 P. 0022  Swedish special edition: Chapter 11 Volume 13 P. 0022 

I (Acts  whose publication is obligatory) COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) No  2658/87 of 23  July 1987 on the tariff  and statistical nomenclature and on the Common Customs TariffTHE COUNCIL OF THE  EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community and  in particular Articles 28, 43, 113 and 235 thereof, Having regard to the Act of Accession of Spain  and Portugal, Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1), Having regard to the opinion  of the European Parliament  (2), Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee   (3), Whereas the European Economic Community is based on a customs union involving the use of a  common customs tariff; Whereas the collection and exchange of data on the statistics of external  trade of the Community can best be achieved through the use of a combined nomenclature replacing  the existing Common Customs Tariff and Nimexe nomenclatures, in order to meet tariff and  statistical requirements simultaneously; Whereas the Community is a signatory to the International  Convention on the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System, known as the 'harmonized  system', which is intended to replace the Convention of 15  December 1950 on Nomenclature for the  Classification of Goods in Customs Tariffs; whereas, as a consequence, the said combined  nomenclature must be established on the basis of the harmonized system; Whereas it is appropriate  to allow Member States to create national statistical subdivisions; Whereas certain specific  Community measures cannot be dealt with in the framework of the combined nomenclature; whereas it  is therefore necessary to create additional Community subdivisions and to include them in an  integrated tariff of the European Communities (Taric); whereas the efficient management of the  Taric requires a system for immediate updating; whereas it is therefore necessary that the  Commission should be empowered to manage the Taric; Whereas Spain and Portugal will not be able to  use the Taric layout in the same manner as the other Member States because of the transitional  tariff arrangements provided for in the Act of Accession; whereas it is appropriate that these two  Member States should be authorized not to apply the Taric for the periods during which the  transitional arangements apply; Whereas it appears appropriate that Member States should be able to  insert further subdivisions after the Taric subheadings in order to meet additional national  requirements; whereas these subdivisions should be identified by appropriate code numbers in  accordance with the provisions of Commission Regulation (EEC) No  2793/86 of 22  July 1986 laying  down the codes to be used in the forms laid down in Regulations (EEC) No  678/85, (EEC) No  1900/85  and (EEC) No  222/77  (X); Whereas it is essential that the combined nomenclature and any other  nomenclature wholly or partly based on it, or which adds subdivisions to it, should be applied in a  uniform manner by all the Member States; whereas provisions to this effect must be able to be  adopted at Community level; whereas, furthermore, the Community provisions ensuring uniform  application of the nomenclature of the Common Customs Tariff contained in Decision 86/98/ECSC (1)  are applicable to products falling within the province of the Treaty establishing the European Coal  and Steel Community; Whereas the preparation and application of these provisions requires close  cooperation between the Member States and the Commission; whereas the implementation of these  provisions must be carried out rapidly in view of the serious economic consequences that any delay  might entail; Whereas, in order to ensure uniform application of the combined nomenclature, it is  necessary for the Commission to be assisted by a committee responsible for all questions relating  to the combined nomenclature, to the Taric and to all other nomenclatures based on the combined  nomenclature; whereas this Committee must be operational as soon as possible prior to the date of  application of the combined nomenclature; Whereas, in order to define the scope of the combined  nomenclature, it is desirable to lay down preliminary provisions, additional section and chapter  notes and suitable footnotes; Whereas the Common Customs Tariff consists not only of the  conventional and autonomous duties and other relevant charges fixed in Annex  I to this Regulation  on the basis of the combined nomenclature, but also of the tariff measures contained in the Taric  and other Community legislation; Whereas in fixing the conventional rates of duty it is appropriate  to take account of GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) negotiations; Whereas the  transition from the former nomenclature to the combined nomenclature may involve difficulties with  the application of origin rules in respect of certain preference systems, in particular where the  third country involved has not adopted the harmonized system; whereas it is appropriate in these  circumstances to provide for suitable measures intended to remedy these difficulties; Whereas,  although the nomenclature and the rates of customs duties relating to products covered by the  Treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community do not form part of the Common Customs  Tariff, it is nevertheless appropriate to include the conventional rates for these products for  information in this Regulation; Whereas, following the setting_up of the combined nomenclature,  numerous Community acts in particular in the field of the common agricultural policy must be  adapted to take into account the use of this nomenclature; whereas these adaptations do not as a  general rule call for any amendment of substance; whereas for purposes of simplification it is  appropriate to enable the Commission to adopt the necessary technical amendments to the acts in  question; Whereas the entry into force of this Regulation involves the repeal of Council Regulation  (EEC) No  950/68 of 28  June 1968 on the Common Customs Tariff  (2) and of Council Regulation (EEC)  No  97/69 of 16  Januar y 1969 on measures to be taken for the uniform application of the  nomenclature of the Common Customs Tariff  (3), as la st amended by Regulation (EEC) No  2055/84  (X),  HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION  : Article  1 1. A goods nomenclature, hereinafter  called the 'combined nomenclature', or in abbreviated form 'CN', is hereby established to meet, at  one and the same time, the requirements both of the Common Customs Tariff and of the external trade  statistics of the Community. 2. The combined nomenclature shall comprise  : (a) the harmonized  system nomenclature; (b)Community subdivisions to that nomenclature, referred to as 'CN  subheadings' in those cases where a corresponding rate of duty is specified; (c)preliminary  provisions, additional section or chapter notes and footnotes relating to CN subheadings. 3. The  combined nomenclature is reproduced in Annex  I. The autonomous and conventional rates of duty of  the Common Customs Tariff and the supplementary statistical units, as well as other necessary  information, are laid down in the said Annex. Article  2 The Commission shall establish an  integrated tariff, of the European Communities, hereinafter referred to as the 'Taric', based on  the combined nomenclature. It shall comprise  : (a) additional Community subdivisions, referred to  as 'Taric' subheadings', which are needed for the description of goods subject to the specific  Community measures listed in Annex  II; (b)the rates of customs duty and other charges applicable;  (c)the code numbers mentioned in Article  3 (3) and (4); (d) any other information necessary for the  implementation or management of the Community measures involved. Article  3 1. Each CN subheading  shall have an eight digit code number  : (a) the first six digits shall be the code numbers relating  to the headings and subheadings of the harmonized system nomenclature; (b) the seventh and eighth  digits shall identify the CN subheadings. When a heading or subheading of the harmonized system is  not further subdivided for Community purposes, the seventh and eighth digits shall be '00'. 2. The  ninth digit shall be reserved for the use of the Member States for national statistical  subdivisions, to be inserted in accordance with Article  5  (3). 3. The Taric subheadings shall be  identified by the 10th and 11th digits which, together with the code numbers referred to in  paragraph  1, form the Taric code numbers. In the absence of a Community subdivision, the 10th and  11th digits shall be '00'. 4. Exceptionally, an additional Taric code of four digits may be used  for the application of specific Community measures which are not coded, or not entirely coded, at  the 10th and 11th digit level.  Article  4 1. The combined nomenclature, together with the rates of  duty and other relevant charges, and the tariff measures included in the Taric or in other  Community arrangements shall constitute the common customs tariff referred to in Article 9 of the  Treaty, which shall be applied on the importation of goods into the Community. 2. The combined  nomenclature, including its code numbers and, where appropriate, the supplementary statistical  units relating to it, shall be applied by the Community and by the Member States to the statistics  relating to the external trade of the Community. Article 5 1. The Taric shall be used by the  Commission and the Member States for the application of Community measures concerning imports and,  where necessary, exports and trade between Member States. 2. The Taric code numbers shall be  applied to all importations of goods covered by the corresponding subheadings. They shall, where  necessary, be applied to exports and to trade between Member States. 3. Member States may insert  subdivisions after the CN subheadings for national statistical purposes, and after the Taric  subheadings for other national purposes. Identifying code numbers shall be assigned to such  subdivisions in accordance with Regulation (EEC) No  2793/86. 4. Member States which adopt  subdivisions for national purposes other than statistics, may, on informing the Commission, defer  the use of Taric subheadings and the corresponding 10th and 11th digits until 31  December 1989 at  the latest. Article 6 The Commission shall be responsible for the management and publication of the  Taric. It shall, in particular, take the steps necessary to  : (a) integrate the measures listed in  Annex  II into the Taric; (b)attribute Taric code numbers;  (c) update the Taric; (d)inform Member  States immediately of changes to Taric subheadings and numeric codes. Article 7 1. The Commission  shall be assisted by a Committee on Tariff and Statistical Nomenclature, called the 'Nomenclature  Committee' and hereinafter referred to as the 'committee', composed of the representatives of the  Member States and chaired by the representatives of the Commission. 2. The committee shall adopt  its own rules of procedure. Article 8 The committee may examine any matter referred to it by its  chairman, either on his own initiative or at the request of a representative of a Member State  :  (a) concerning the combined nomenclature; (b)concerning the Taric nomenclature and any other  nomenclature which is wholly or partly based on the combined nomenclature or which adds any  subdivisions to it, and which is established by specific Community provisions with a view to the  application of tariff or other measures relating to trade in goods. Article 9 1. Measures relating  to the matters set out below shall be adopted in accordance with the procedure defined in  Article  10  : (a) application of the combined nomenclature and the Taric concerning in particular  :  - the classification of goods in the nomenclatures referred to in Article  8, -explanatory notes;  (b)amendments to the combined nomenclature to take account of changes in requirements relating to  statistics or to commercial policy; (c)amendments to Annex  II; (d)amendments to the combined  nomenclature and adjustments to duties in accordance with decisions adopted by the Council or the  Commission; (e)amendments to the combined nomenclature intended to adapt it to take account of  technological or commercial developments or aimed at the alignment or clarification of texts;   (f)amendments to the combined nomenclature resulting from changes to the harmonized system  nomenclature; (g)questions relating to the application, functioning and management of the  harmonized system to be discussed within the Customs Cooperation Council. 2. The provisions adopted  under paragraph  1 shall not amend  : - the rates of customs duties, -agricultural levies, refunds or  other amounts applicable within the framework of the common agricultural policy or within that of  specific schemes applicable to certain goods resulting from the processing of agricultural  products, -quantitative restrictions laid down under Community provisions, -nomenclatures adopted  within the framework of the common agricultural policy. 3. If necessary, amendments to CN  subheadings shall be immediately included as Taric subheadings. They shall only be included in the  CN under the conditions referred to in Article  12. Article 10 1. The representative of the  Commission shall submit to the committee a draft of the measures to be adopted. The committee shall  deliver its opinion on the draft within a time limit which the chairman may lay down according to  the urgency of the matter. The opinion shall be delivered by the majority laid down in Article 148  (2) of the Treaty in the case of decisions which the Council is required to adopt on a proposal  from the Commission. The votes of the representatives of the Member States within the committee  shall be weighted in the manner set out in that Article. The chairman shall not vote. 2. The  Commission shall adopt the measures, which shall apply immediately. However, if those measures are  not in accordance with the opinion of the committee, they shall be communicated by the Commission  to the Council forthwith. In that event the Commission shall defer application of the measures  which it has decided upon for three months from the date of such communication. 3. The Council,  acting by qualified majority, may take a different decision within the period referred to in  paragraph  2.  Article 11 1. Where Community provisions prescribe conditions concerning the  eligibility of goods for a favourable tariff arrangement upon importation, having regard to their  nature or end use, those conditions may be fixed according to the procedures laid down in  Article  10. 2. For the purposes of paragraph  1, 'favourable tariff arrangement' means any reduction  or suspension, even under a tariff quota, of a customs duty or charge having equivalent effect or  of an agricultural levy or other import charge provided for under the common agricultural policy or  under the specific arrangements applicable to certain goods resulting form the processing of  agricultural products. Article 12 The Commission shall adopt each year by means of a Regulation a  complete version of the combined nomenclature together with the corresponding autonomous and  conventional rates of duty of the Common Customs Tariff, as it results from measures adopted by the  Council or by the Commission. The said Regulation shall be published not later than 31  October in  the Official Journal of the European Communities and it shall apply from 1  January of the following  year. Article 13 The Kingdom of Spain and the Portuguese Republic are hereby authorized not to  apply the Taric for the periods during which the transitional arrangements pertaining to tariff  matters provided for in the Act of Accession to the Community apply. Article 14 Where a tariff  preference is granted on the basis or rules of origin derived from the nomenclature of the Customs  Cooperation Council in force on 31  December 1987, those rules shall remain applicable in accordance  with the Community acts in force on that date. Article 15 1. The codes and the descriptions of  goods established on the basis of the combined nomenclature shall replace those established on the  basis of the nomenclatures of the Common Customs Tariff and the Nimexe, without prejudice to  international agreements concluded by the Community before the entry into force of this Regulation,  and to acts taken in implementation thereof, which refer to the said nomenclatures. Community acts  which include the tariff or statistical nomenclature shall be amended accordingly by the  Commission. 2. References to the Nimexe in the various Community acts in force shall be deemed to  refer to the combined nomenclature. Article 16 Regulations (EEC) No  950/68 and (EEC) No  97/69 are  hereby repealed. Article 17 This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day followings its  publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities. Articles 1 to 5 and 12 to 16 shall  not apply until 1  January 1988.  This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety  and directly applicable in all Member States. Done at Brussels, 23  July 1987. For the Council The  President K.E.  TYGESEN    (1) OJ No C 154, 12. 6. 1987, p.  6.  (2) OJ No C 190, 20. 7. 1987.  (3) Opinion delivered on 1  July 1987 (not yet published in the Official Journal).  (X) OJ No L 263, 15. 9. 1986, p.  74.  (1) OJ No L 81, 26. 3. 1986, p.  29.  (2) OJ No L 172, 22. 7. 1968, p.  1.  (3) OJ No L 14, 21. 1. 1969, p.  1.  (X) OJ No L 191, 19. 7. 1984, p.  1.