The F1expert committee shall give its opinion on files referred to in Article 5(1) of this Regulation within nine months from the date of receipt of a valid file. The F1expert committee shall assess the validity of the file within 30 days from receipt of the file.

The F1expert committee may request the food business operator or interested party to supplement the data or information submitted in a file within a specified time limit. When the F1expert committee seeks supplementary information from the food business operator or any other interested party, the time limit referred to in paragraph 1 shall be extended only once by up to three months and shall include the time needed by the food business operator or any interested party to provide this supplementary information. The food business operator or interested party shall submit the requested information within 15 days from the date of receipt of the F2expert committee's request.