Commission Regulation (EC) No 883/2005Dangos y teitl llawn

Commission Regulation (EC) No 883/2005

of 10 June 2005

amending Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 laying down provisions for the implementation of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 establishing the Community Customs Code

(Text with EEA relevance)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 of 12 October 1992 establishing the Community Customs Code(1), and in particular Article 247 thereof,

Whereas:

(1) The Customs Convention on the international transport of goods under cover of TIR carnets (TIR Convention) of 14 November 1975 was approved on behalf of the Community by Council Regulation (EEC) No 2112/78(2) and entered into force in the Community on 20 June 1983(3). Given the importance of international trade for the Community it is necessary to modernise the customs formalities concerning the TIR procedure. Article 49 of the TIR Convention envisages the application of greater facilities for the benefit of economic operators provided such facilities do not impede the application of the provisions of the Convention. Currently the Community rules concerning the TIR procedure do not provide for the status of authorised consignee. In order to meet the needs of economic operators and to facilitate international trade it is desirable to develop provisions, based on the existing Community/common transit rules, allowing the status of authorised consignee to be used in conjunction with the TIR procedure.

(2) The Convention on Temporary Admission of 26 June 1990 (the Istanbul Convention) and the Annexes thereto were approved by the European Community by Council Decision 93/329/EEC(4). Annex A to the Istanbul Convention replaces the Customs Convention on the ATA carnet for the temporary admission of goods of 6 December 1961 (the ATA Convention) with regard to relations between countries which have accepted the Istanbul Convention and its Annex A. It is therefore necessary to amend the provisions relating to the ATA procedure to include references to the Istanbul Convention. However, in order to facilitate international trade between the Community and those countries that have not accepted Annex A to the Istanbul Convention, it is appropriate to maintain the references to the ATA Convention.

(3) In the framework of the outward processing procedure, Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93(5) has, since 2001, permitted partial relief from import duty after outward processing to be calculated on the basis of the costs of the processing operation, in accordance with the ‘value-added method’. However, this method is not allowed if the temporary export goods which are not of Community origin have been released for free circulation at a zero duty rate. Those restrictive conditions for goods which are not of Community origin should be modified in order to promote the use of the value-added method.

(4) However, in order to avoid an abuse of the system it is desirable to provide that this method of duty relief may be refused if it is established that the sole object of the release for free circulation of the temporary export goods had been to benefit from this relief.

(5) The identity and nationality of means of transport at departure is regarded as mandatory information that has to be entered in box 18 of a transit declaration. At container terminals that have high levels of traffic it may occur that the details of the road means of transport to be used are unknown at the time when the transit formalities are carried out. Nevertheless, the identification of the container in which the goods subject to transit declaration will be carried is available and is already indicated in box 31 of the transit declaration. Given that the goods can be controlled on this basis, it is appropriate to allow box 18 of the transit declaration to be left blank, provided that it can be ensured that the proper details will be subsequently entered in the relevant box.

(6) Annex 37c and Annex 38 to Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 both contain lists of packaging codes based on Annex V to Recommendation No 21 of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, Rev. 1, of August 1994, hereinafter ‘the UN/ECE Recommendation’. Annex V to the UN/ECE Recommendation, which contains the list of codes, has been revised several times since its introduction in order to adapt it to practice in commerce and transport, the last time being in May 2002 (Revision 4). To enable traders to use the most widely accepted standard and thus to harmonise commercial and administrative practice within the Community as far as possible, it is necessary to provide that the packaging codes used in customs declarations are to reflect the latest version of Annex V to the UN/ECE Recommendation.

(7) In the interests of clarity and rationality, the list of packaging codes should be published solely in Annex 38, to which reference should be made when the list is mentioned in other customs legislation.

(8) The packaging codes are closely linked to the provisions applicable to transit operations as referred to in Articles 367 to 371 and to the new rules on the single administrative document, or form part of them. The new provisions must therefore be applicable for all customs procedures.

(9) A list of the numerical codes used in connection with the transit guarantee, for use on the single administrative document forms, was established by Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93. It is necessary to complete that list, in order to take into account all the situations relating to the guarantee waivers.

(10) As a consequence of the modification of the numerical codes of the transit guarantees, it is also necessary to adapt the corresponding data concerning the New Computerised Transit System.

(11) Given that the Convention of 20 May 1987 on a common transit procedure provides that the numerical codes of the transit guarantees are to apply from 1 May 2004, the new codes should apply with effect from that date.

(12) In view of the foregoing, Annexes 37 and 38 to Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93, as amended by Regulation (EC) No 2286/2003, should be amended. It is necessary, however, to make similar amendments also to Annex 37 to Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93, as amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 444/2002(6), and Annex 38 to Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93, as amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 881/2003(7), since they both remain in force until 1 January 2006.

(13) Article 531 of Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 defines the usual forms of handling which are allowed under the customs warehousing procedure. The framework of the permitted activities is established by Article 109(1) of Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92. The usual forms of handling which non-Community goods may undergo are exhaustively listed in Annex 72 to Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93. However, the restrictive scope of this Annex has led to certain problems in practice. Therefore, it is desirable to provide for more flexibility.

(14) Some endorsements on customs documents expressed in the language of certain new Member States are not consistent with the terminology relating to customs matters already used in the languages concerned and adjustments are therefore necessary.

(15) Since the 2003 Act of Accession took effect on 1 May 2004, those endorsements should be applicable on the same date.

(16) Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(17) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Customs Code Committee,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

(1)

OJ L 302, 19.10.1992, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by the 2003 Act of Accession.

(2)

OJ L 252, 14.9.1978, p. 1.

(3)

OJ L 31, 2.2.1983, p. 13.

(4)

OJ L 130, 27.5.1993, p. 1.

(5)

OJ L 253, 11.10.1993, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 2286/2003 (OJ L 343, 31.12.2003, p. 1).

(6)

OJ L 68, 12.3.2002, p. 11.

(7)

OJ L 134, 29.5.2003, p. 1.