Article 1 Definitions
For the purposes of this Regulation: (a) ‘tariff treatment’ means the customs duties and treatment applied to goods originating in Ecuador as provided for by Article 2; (b) ‘Common Customs Tariff duties’ means the duties specified in Part II of Annex I to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 ( 7 ) , except those duties established as part of tariff quotas; (c) ‘goods originating in Ecuador’ means product(s) that conform(s) to the origin requirements under Title II, Chapter 2 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 ( 8 ) and, depending on the tariff treatment sought pursuant to Article 2 of this Regulation, Title IV, Chapter 1 or Title IV, Chapter 2, Section 1 of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 ( 9 ) .
Article 2 Tariff treatment
1. Customs duties applied to goods originating in Ecuador on 12 December 2014 shall not be increased and no new customs duties introduced after that date shall be applied to those goods. 2. The tariff treatment provided for in paragraph 1 shall be applied without prejudice to any measures taken under Regulations (EC) No 260/2009, (EC) No 597/2009 or (EC) No 1225/2009.
Article 3 Conditions for entitlement to the tariff treatment
Entitlement to benefit from the tariff treatment set out in Article 2 shall be subject to: (a) Ecuador complying with the rules of origin referred to in Article 1(c) and the procedures related thereto, including, as appropriate, the effective administrative cooperation provisions applicable on 12 December 2014; (b) Ecuador abstaining from introducing new duties or charges having equivalent effect and new quantitative restrictions or measures having equivalent effect for imports from the Union, or from increasing existing levels of duties or charges or from introducing any other restrictions from 12 December 2014; (c) maintaining the ratification and ensuring effective implementation on the part of Ecuador of the covenants, conventions and protocols listed in the Annex, and accepting without reservation the reporting requirements, regular monitoring and review of Ecuador’s implementation record in accordance with the provisions of the covenants, conventions and protocols it has ratified; (d) Ecuador cooperating with the Commission and providing all information necessary to assess Ecuador’s compliance with the requirements in point (c); (e) Ecuador conducting continuous efforts to sign and ratify the Protocol of Accession.
Article 4 Temporary suspension
Where the Commission finds that there is sufficient evidence of a failure to comply with the conditions set out in Article 3, the Commission may adopt implementing acts in order to suspend the tariff treatment temporarily, in respect of all or certain goods originating in Ecuador. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 6(2).
Article 5 Safeguard clause
Where goods originating in Ecuador are imported in volumes and/or at prices which cause, or threaten to cause, serious difficulties to Union producers of like or directly competing products, the Commission may reintroduce the Common Customs Tariff duties for those goods following the procedural rules laid down in Regulation (EU) No 19/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 10 ) , mutatis mutandis .
Article 6 Committee procedure
1. For the implementation of Article 4 of this Regulation, the Commission shall be assisted by the Customs Code Committee established by Article 248a of Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92. That committee shall be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011. 2. Where a reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.
Article 7 Entry into force, application and expiry
This Regulation shall enter into force on the day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union . It shall apply from 1 January 2015.