Regulation 2004/796 - Detailed rules for the implementation of cross-compliance, modulation and the integrated administration and control system provided for in of Council Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003 establishing common rules for direct support schemes under the common agricultural policy and establishing certain support schemes for farmers - Main contents

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 141/18

Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003 introduced the single payment scheme as well as certain other direct payment schemes. At the same time it merged several existing direct payment schemes. Moreover, it establishes a principle according to which direct payments to a farmer who does not comply with certain conditions in the areas of public, animal and plant health, environment and animal welfare (‘cross-compliance’) shall be subject to reductions or exclusions.

The direct payment schemes first introduced as a result of the reform of the common agricultural policy in 1992 and further developed under the Agenda 2000 measures have been subjected to an integrated administration and control system (hereinafter referred to as ‘integrated system’). That system has proven to be an effective and efficient means for the implementation of direct payment schemes. Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003 builds upon the basis of that integrated system and submits to it the management and control both of the direct payment schemes set up by it and the adherence to the cross-compliance obligations.

It is therefore appropriate to repeal Commission Regulation (EC) No 2419/2001 of 11 December 2001 laying down detailed rules for applying the integrated administration and control system for certain Community aid schemes established by Council Regulation (EEC) No 3508/92 (2) and to base this Regulation on the principles as established by Regulation (EC) No 2419/2001.

For reasons of clarity, it is appropriate to provide for certain definitions.

Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003 provides, as part of the cross-compliance conditions, for certain obligations of the Member States on the one hand and individual farmers on the other hand, as regards the maintenance of permanent pasture. It is necessary to lay down the details for the determination of the ratio of permanent pasture and agricultural land that has to be maintained and to provide for the individual obligations at the level of farmers to be respected where it is established that that proportion is decreasing to the detriment of land under permanent pasture.

For the sake of effective control and to prevent the submission of multiple aid applications to different Paying Agencies within one Member State, the Member States should provide for a single system to record the identity of farmers submitting aid applications subject to the integrated system.

Detailed rules are needed with regard to the system for the identification of agricultural parcels to be operated by the Member States in accordance with Article 20 of Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003. According to that provision use...