Legal provisions of COM(2018)312 - Apportionment of tariff rate quotas included in the WTO schedule of the Union following the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the Union

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dossier COM(2018)312 - Apportionment of tariff rate quotas included in the WTO schedule of the Union following the withdrawal of the United Kingdom ...
document COM(2018)312 EN
date January 30, 2019

Contents

Article 1

1. The tariff rate quotas included in the schedule of concessions and commitments of the Union annexed to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (GATT 1994) shall be apportioned between the Union and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (the ‘United Kingdom’) in line with the following methodology:

(a)the Union’s usage share of imports in percentages, for each individual tariff rate quota is established, over a recent representative three-year period;

(b)the Union’s usage share of imports, in percentages, is applied to the entire scheduled tariff rate quota volume to arrive at its share in volume of a given tariff rate quota;

(c)for individual tariff rate quotas for which no trade can be observed during the representative period as laid down in point (a), the Union’s portion is instead established by following the procedure laid down in point (b) on the basis of the Union’s usage share of imports, in percentages, of another tariff rate quota with the exact same product definition, or in the corresponding tariff lines outside of the tariff rate quota.

2. The Union’s portion of the tariff rate quotas referred to in paragraph 1 resulting from the application of the methodology referred to in that paragraph shall be as follows:

(a)as regards tariff rate quotas for agricultural products, as set out in Part A of the Annex;

(b)as regards tariff rate quotas for fisheries products, industrial products and certain processed agricultural products, as set out in Parts B and C of the Annex.

Article 2

While ensuring consistency with the methodology referred to in Article 1(1) and in particular ensuring that the market access into the Union as composed after the withdrawal of the United Kingdom does not exceed that which is reflected in the share of trade flows during a representative period, the Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 3 to amend Parts A and C of the Annex in order to take account of the following:

(a)any international agreement concluded by the Union under Article XXVIII of GATT 1994 concerning the tariff rate quotas referred to in those parts of the Annex; and

(b)pertinent information that it may receive either in the context of negotiations under Article XXVIII of GATT 1994 or from other sources with an interest in a specific tariff rate quota.

Article 3

1. The power to adopt delegated acts is conferred on the Commission subject to the conditions laid down in this Article.

2. The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in Article 2 shall be conferred on the Commission for a period of five years from 9 February 2019. The Commission shall draw up a report in respect of the delegation of power not later than nine months before the end of the five-year period. The delegation of power shall be tacitly extended for periods of an identical duration, unless the European Parliament or the Council opposes such extension not later than three months before the end of each period.

3. The delegation of power referred to in Article 2 may be revoked at any time by the European Parliament or by the Council. A decision to revoke shall put an end to the delegation of the power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the validity of any delegated acts already in force.

4. Before adopting a delegated act, the Commission shall consult experts designated by each Member State in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making (8).

5. As soon as it adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to the European Parliament and to the Council.

6. A delegated act adopted pursuant to Article 2 shall enter into force only if no objection has been expressed either by the European Parliament or by the Council within a period of two months of notification of that act to the European Parliament and the Council or if, before the expiry of that period, the European Parliament and the Council have both informed the Commission that they will not object. That period shall be extended by two months at the initiative of the European Parliament or of the Council.

Article 4

The Commission shall adopt implementing acts in order to adjust, in line with Part C of the Annex to this Regulation, the volumes of the tariff rate quotas opened and managed by Regulation (EC) No 847/2006. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 5(2).

Article 5

1. The Commission shall be assisted by the Customs Code Committee established by Article 285(1) of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (9). That committee shall be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011.

2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.

Article 6

Regulation (EC) No 32/2000 is amended as follows:

(1)The following Articles are inserted:

‘Article 10a

For the purpose of apportioning tariff rate quotas included in the schedule of concessions and commitments of the Union following the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the Union and while ensuring consistency with the methodology referred to in Article 1(1) of Regulation (EU) 2019/216 of the European Parliament and of the Council (*1) and, in particular, ensuring that the market access into the Union as composed after the withdrawal of the United Kingdom does not exceed that which is reflected in the share of trade flows during a representative period, the Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 10b to amend Annex I to this Regulation in order to take account of the following:

(a)any international agreement concluded by the Union under Article XXVIII of GATT 1994, concerning the tariff rate quotas referred to in Annex I to this Regulation; and

(b)pertinent information that it may receive either in the context of negotiations under Article XXVIII of GATT 1994, or from other sources with an interest in a specific tariff rate quota.

Article 10b

1. The power to adopt delegated acts is conferred on the Commission subject to the conditions laid down in this Article.

2. The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in Article 10a shall be conferred on the Commission for a period of five years from 9 February 2019. The Commission shall draw up a report in respect of the delegation of power not later than nine months before the end of the five-year period. The delegation of power shall be tacitly extended for periods of an identical duration, unless the European Parliament or the Council opposes such extension not later than three months before the end of each period.

3. The delegation of powers referred to in Article 10a may be revoked at any time by the European Parliament or by the Council. A decision to revoke shall put an end to the delegation of the power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the validity of any delegated acts already in force.

4. Before adopting a delegated act, the Commission shall consult experts designated by each Member State in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making (*2).

5. As soon as it adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to the European Parliament and to the Council.

6. A delegated act adopted pursuant to Article 10a shall enter into force only if no objection has been expressed either by the European Parliament or by the Council within a period of two months of notification of that act to the European Parliament and the Council or if, before the expiry of that period, the European Parliament and the Council have both informed the Commission that they will not object. That period shall be extended by two months at the initiative of the European Parliament or of the Council.

(*1)  Regulation (EU) 2019/216 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 January 2019 on the apportionment of tariff rate quotas included in the WTO schedule of the Union following the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the Union, and amending Council Regulation (EC) No 32/2000 (OJ 38, 8.2.2019, p. 1)."

(*2)  OJ L 123, 12.5.2016, p. 1.’"

(2)Annex I is replaced by the text in Part B of the Annex to this Regulation.

Article 7

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

2. Articles 1(2) and 6(2) shall apply from the day following that on which Regulation (EC) No 32/2000 ceases to apply to and in the United Kingdom.

3. Articles other than those referred to in paragraph 2 shall apply as from the day of entry into force of this Regulation.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.