CHAPTER 7

CONTRIBUTIONS AND REIMBURSEMENTS

Schedule for payment of contributions
Article 25
1
When the Council has adopted a reference amount for a Union military operation, the contributing Member States shall pay their contributions at the level of 30 % of the reference amount, unless the Council decides on a different percentage. The administrator shall call for contributions according to operational needs for the operation up to the agreed level.
2
The Special Committee, on the basis of a proposal by the administrator, may decide that additional contributions will be called before the adoption of an amending budget for the operation. The Special Committee may decide to refer the matter to the competent preparatory bodies at the Council.
3
When an amending budget has been adopted for a specific operation, the Member States shall pay the balance of the contributions which they owe for that operation in application of Article 24. However, when the operation is planned to last more than six months within a financial year, the balance of contributions shall be paid in two instalments. In such a case, the first instalment shall be paid within 60 days of the launching of the operation; the second instalment shall be paid by a deadline to be set by the Special Committee acting on a proposal from the administrator, taking into account operational needs. The Special Committee may depart from the provisions of this paragraph.
4
The administrator shall send the corresponding calls for contributions by letter to the national administrations whose details have been communicated to him or her when:
a
a draft budget for a financial year is approved by the Special Committee provided for in Article 19. The first call for contributions covers the operational needs for eight months. The second call for contributions covers the remaining balance of contributions, taking into account the balance of the previous year budget outturn if the Special Committee decided to enter this balance in the current budget after the audit opinion has been received;
b
a reference amount has been adopted as provided for in Article 25(1); or
c
an amending budget is approved as provided for in Article 20.
5
Without prejudice to the other provisions in this Decision, the contributions shall be paid within 30 days following despatch of the relevant call for contributions, with the exception of the first call for contributions for a new financial year's budget, where the deadline for payment shall be 40 days following dispatch of the relevant call for contributions.
6
Once the draft aggregated budget has been submitted to the Special Committee, for those Member States with budgetary and financial procedures not allowing payment of their contribution within the established deadlines the administrator may issue to the State concerned, an anticipated call for contributions before the end of the current financial year as a prepayment for the call for contributions for the following financial year's budget.
7
Each contributing State shall pay the bank charges relating to the payment of its own contribution.
8
The administrator shall acknowledge receipt of contributions.