Legal provisions of COM(2013)184 - Denominations and technical specifications of euro coins intended for circulation (recast)

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dossier COM(2013)184 - Denominations and technical specifications of euro coins intended for circulation (recast).
document COM(2013)184 EN
date June 24, 2014

Contents

Article 1

The series of euro coins shall include eight denominations in the range from 1 cent to 2 euro which shall meet the technical specifications set out in Annex I.

Article 2

For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions shall apply:

(1)‘circulation coins’ means euro coins intended for circulation, the denominations and technical specifications of which are referred to in Article 1;

(2)‘regular coins’ means circulation coins excluding commemorative coins;

(3)‘commemorative coins’ means circulation coins which are intended to commemorate a specific subject as specified in Article 9.

Article 3

Circulation coins shall have a common European side and a distinctive national side.

Article 4

1. The national side of circulation coins shall not repeat any indication of the denomination, or any parts thereof, of the coin. It shall not repeat the name of the single currency or of its subdivision, unless such indication stems from the use of a different alphabet.

2. By way of derogation from paragraph 1, the edge lettering of the 2-euro coin may include an indication of the denomination, provided that only the figure ‘2’ or the term ‘euro’ in the relevant alphabet, or both, are used.

Article 5

The national side of all denominations of circulation coins shall bear an indication of the issuing Member State by means of the Member State's name, or an abbreviation of it.

Article 6

1. The national side of circulation coins shall bear a circle of 12 stars that shall fully surround the national design, including the year mark and the indication of the issuing Member State's name. This shall not prevent some design elements from extending into the circle of stars, provided that the stars are all clearly and fully visible. The 12 stars shall be depicted as on the Union flag.

2. The designs for the national side of circulation coins shall be chosen taking into account that euro coins circulate in all Member States whose currency is the euro.

Article 7

1. Changes to the designs used for the national sides of regular coins may only be made once every 15 years, without prejudice to changes necessary to prevent counterfeiting of the currency.

2. Without prejudice to paragraph 1, changes to the designs used for the national sides of regular coins may be made where the Head of State referred to on a coin changes. However, a temporary vacancy or the provisional occupation of the function of the Head of State shall not give any additional right to such a change.

Article 8

Issuing Member States shall update their national sides of regular coins in order to fully comply with this Regulation by 20 June 2062.

Article 9

1. Commemorative coins shall bear a different national design from that of the regular coins and shall only commemorate subjects of major national or European relevance. Commemorative coins issued collectively by all Member States whose currency is the euro shall only commemorate subjects of the highest European relevance and their design shall be without prejudice to the possible constitutional requirements of those Member States.

2. The edge lettering on commemorative coins shall be the same as on regular coins.

3. Commemorative coins may only have a face value of 2 euro.

Article 10

1. Member States shall inform each other of the draft designs of new national sides of circulation coins, including the edge lettering, and, for commemorative coins, of the estimated volume of issuance, before the formal approval of those designs.

2. The power to approve designs for new or modified national sides of circulation coins shall be conferred on the Council acting by qualified majority in accordance with the procedure set out in paragraphs 3 to 7.

When taking the decisions referred to in this Article, the voting rights of the Member States whose currency is not the euro shall be suspended.

3. For the purpose of paragraph 1, draft designs of circulation coins shall be submitted by the issuing Member State to the Council, to the Commission and to the other Member States whose currency is the euro, in principle at least three months before the planned issue date.

4. Within seven days following the submission referred to in paragraph 3, any Member State whose currency is the euro may, in a reasoned opinion addressed to the Council and to the Commission, raise an objection to the draft design proposed by the issuing Member State if that draft design is likely to create adverse reactions among its citizens.

5. Where the Commission considers that the draft design does not respect the technical requirements set out by this Regulation, it shall, within seven days following the submission referred to in paragraph 3, submit a negative assessment to the Council.

6. If no reasoned opinion or negative assessment has been submitted to the Council within the time limit referred to in paragraphs 4 and 5 respectively, the decision approving the design shall be deemed to be adopted by the Council on the day following the expiry of the time limit referred to in paragraph 5.

7. In all other cases, the Council shall decide without delay on the approval of the draft design, unless, within seven days following the submission of a reasoned opinion or of a negative assessment, the issuing Member State withdraws its submission and informs the Council of its intention to submit a new draft design.

8. All relevant information on new national circulation coin designs shall be published by the Commission in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Article 11

Articles 4, 5 and 6 and Article 9(2):

(a)shall not apply to circulation coins which have been issued or produced prior to 19 June 2012;

(b)shall, during a transitional period ending on 20 June 2062, not apply to the designs that were already legally in use on circulation coins on 19 June 2012.

Circulation coins that have been issued or produced during the transitional period may remain legal tender without limit in time.

Article 12

Regulation (EC) No 975/98 is repealed.

References to the repealed Regulation shall be construed as references to this Regulation and shall be read in accordance with the correlation table in Annex III.

Article 13

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in the Member States, in accordance with the Treaties.