F3Scientific experts or official laboratories, who are assisting the reference laboratory, are responsible for assisting the reference laboratory in the preparation of evaluation reports by sending comments to the reference laboratory within 20 days of the reception of the initial report.

F4A scientific expert or official laboratory, who, or which, is assisting the reference laboratory, must communicate to the reference laboratory by 30 January each year an estimate of the number of applications for which the F5scientific expert or official laboratory considers itself able to carry out the tasks for that year. The reference laboratory must make available annually to all the F6scientific experts or official laboratories a compilation of the estimates provided.