CELEX: 51992PC0105
Language: en
Date: 1992-03-27
Title: Proposal for a COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) on the transfer of controls in the field of road and inland waterway transport to the Community' s external frontiers

I  COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
m
                                               C0M(92) 105 final
                                               Brussels, 27 March 1992
m
m
                              Proposal for a
                         COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC)
  on the transfer of controls in the field of road and inland waterway
             transport to the Community's external frontiers
                      (presented by the Commission)
 ---pagebreak---                                                                     z
                           EXPLANATORY  MEMORANDUM
 1. Article 8a of the EEC Treaty provides that the internal market
shall comprise an area without internal frontiers in which the free
movement    of goods, persons, services and capital         is ensured    in
accordance with the provisions of the Treaty. When internal frontiers
no longer exist, all controls at these frontiers will cease.
To this end the Council adopted, in December 1989, Regulation (EEC)
No 4060/89, 1 as amended by Regulation (EEC) No 3356/91, 2 abolishing
controls performed at the frontiers of Member States in the field of
road and inla; * waterway transport. The Regulation lays down that such
controls shoul no longer be carried out at internal frontiers but form
part of the normal controls applied in a non-discriminatory manner
throughout the territory of a Member State.
2.   If internal frontier controls are abolished, checks on means of
transport registered or put into circulation in a non-Community country
must also be scrapped. Controls will continue to be required for such
means of transport under a number of existing international agreements
between the Member States or the Community and non-Community countries
or    future   international   agreements    between  the   Community    and
non-Community countries. Once internal frontier controls have been
abolished, any checks will have to be performed at the Community's
external frontiers.
These controls will have to be carried out by the authorities of the
Member State whose border forms the Community's external           frontier.
They will have to cover any authorization required for the means of
transport in question to operate on Community territory right up to its
final    destination  and   will,   where  appropriate,   have   to   ensure
compliance with all the other terms of an international agreement.
1   OJ No L 390, 30.12.1989, p.18
2   OJ No L 318, 20.11.1991, p.1.
 ---pagebreak---                                                                              3
Proposal for a Council Regulation (EEC) on the transfer of controls in
the field of road and inland waterway transport to the Community's
                           externa I front iers
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having   regard   to the Treaty establishing      the  European    Economic
Community, and in particular Article 75 thereof,
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 Community has embarked upon the adoption of measures
leading to the progressive establishment of the internal market by
31 December 1992, which    will   comprise   an  area    without   internal
frontiers in which the free movement of goods, persons, services and
capital is ensured in accordance with the provisions of the Treaty;
Whereas the completion of the internal market will mean controls         and
formalities at internal frontiers relating to means of transport         and
the relevant documentation will have to be abolished;
Whereas, pursuant to existing Community and national legislation in the
field of road and inland waterway transport, Member States perform
checks,    verifications  and    inspections    relating     to   technical
characteristics, authorizations and other documentation that vehicles
and inland waterway vessels must comply with; whereas there will in
general continue to be a need for such checks, verifications and
inspections to prevent disruption of transport market organization and
to ensure road and inland waterway safety;
 ---pagebreak---                                                                               7
                                                          1
Whereas, pursuant     to Regulation (EEC) No 4060/89,        as amended by
Regulation (EEC) No 3356/91, 2 such checks shall no longer be performed
at   frontiers between Member States where          they concern means of
transport registered or put into circulation in a Member State;
Whereas, in the case of means of transport registered or put into
circulation in a non-Community country, checks may be carried out with
equal   efficiency   at   the  frontier    between   a Member State and a
non-Community country and throughout the territory of the Member States
concerned, whereas they should therefore be abolished in the same way
as controls at frontiers between Member States also in respect of these
means of trantoort;
Whereas checks will still have to be carried out on the means of
transport    of    non-Community     countries    under   certain    existing
international agreements between the Member States or the Community and
non-Community countries or future international agreements between the
Community and non-Community countries; whereas they must, however, be
undertaken at the Community's external frontier;
Whereas such checks must be performed by the authorities of the
Member State whose frontier forms the Community's external frontier at
this frontier; whereas in particular they must cover any authorization
required for the means of transport in question to operate on Community
territory right up to its final destination;
Whereas Member States must ensure that checks, verifications and
inspections can continue to be performed throughout their respective
territories as part of the normal control procedures,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION
                                  Art icle 1
This Regulation shall apply to controls performed by Member States in
respect of road and inland waterway transport operations effected by
means   of   transport    registered    or   put   into  circulation    in a
non-Community country.
                                  Art icle 2
For the purpose of this Regulation:
    "external frontier" means the first frontier between a Member State
    of the Community, including ports, and a non-Community country;
1   OJ No L 390, 30.12.1989, p.18
2   OJ No L 318, 20.11.1991, p.1.
 ---pagebreak---                                                                                     s
   "control" means any check, inspection, verification or formality
   performed at Member States' frontiers by national authorities which
   halt or hamper the free movement of the vehicles or vessels
   concerned;
   "international agreement" means any agreement between one or more
   Member States or the Community and one or more non-Community
   countr »es.
                                  Art icle 3
1. Controls performed pursuant to an international agreement            shall    be
   undertaken at the Community's external frontiers.
2. Such controls shall       be performed by the authorities of                 the
   Member State whose national frontier forms the Community's external
   front ier.
3. The authorities referred to in paragraph 2 shall refuse entry into
   Community territory to any means of transport which, under the
   terms of an       international    agreement, does not hold all              the
   authorizations it requires to operate on Community territory right
   up to its final destination or which does not comply with any other
   stipulation of an international agreement.
4. Notwithstanding the controls referred to in paragraph 1 national
   authorities may undertake checks as part of the controls they would
   normally carry out throughout their territory.
                                  Art icle 4
1. The controls at internal frontiers abolished by Regulation (EEC)
   No 4060/89, 1   as amended by Regulation          (EEC) No 3 3 5 6 / 9 1 , 2  in
   respect of means of transport registered or put into circulation in
   a Member State of the Community shall also be abolished in respect
   of means of transport registered or put into circulation in a
   non-Community country.
2. The controls referred to in paragraph 1 may be performed by the
   authorities    of    the   Member State     whose    frontier   forms        the
   Community's   external     frontier     at  this   frontier   and     by     the
   authorities of any Member State as part of the normal checks it
   undertakes throughout its territory.
                                  Ar t i cle 5
   Under   the   terms    of   an    international   agreement    and,        where
   appropriate,    the   Community     and Member States shall        take      the
   measures necessary    to inform non-Community countries of the control
   measures introduced    under this Regulation.
1  0J No L 390, 30.12.1989, p. 18
2  0J No L 318, 20.11.1991, p.1.
 ---pagebreak---     Member States shall keep each other informed about the controls
    which have to be undertaken by the competent authorities at the
    Community's external frontiers. They shall assist each other in
    implementing this Regulation and shall take steps to simplify as
    far as possible the control formalities provided for in Articles 3
    and 4.
                               Article 6
This Regulation shall enter into force on 1 January 1993.
This Regulation shall be binding       in  its  entirety, and directly
applicable in all Member States.
Done at Brussels,                      For the Council
                                       The President
 ---pagebreak---                                                                      ISSN 0254-1475
                                                              COM (92) 105 final
                                                      DOCUMENTS
EN                                                                              07
                                 Catalogue number: CB-CO-92-118-EN-C
                                                             ISBN 92-77-42151-7
Office for Official Publications of the European Communities
L-2985 Luxembourg