1.When the Commission considers that expenditure was not in compliance with Union and national rules, it shall notify its findings to the Member State concerned, specifying the corrective measures needed in order to ensure future compliance, and indicating the level of financial correction it considers to correspond to its findings.
That notification shall be made in accordance with Article 47(5) of Regulation (EU) No 514/2014 and make a reference to this Article.
2.The Member State shall reply within two months of receipt of the notification. In its reply the Member State shall have the opportunity, in particular, to:
(a)demonstrate to the Commission that the project(s) is(are) eligible;
(b)demonstrate to the Commission that the extent of the non-compliance or the risk for the Union contribution to the national programme is less than what was indicated by the Commission;
(c)inform the Commission of the corrective measures it has undertaken to ensure compliance with Union and national rules and the effective date of their implementation; and
(d)inform the Commission whether a bilateral meeting would be considered useful.
In justified cases, the Commission may, upon reasoned request of the Member State, authorise an extension of the two month-period by a maximum of two months. The request shall be addressed to the Commission before the expiry of the initial two months.
3.The Commission shall formally communicate its findings to the Member State on the basis of the information received in the framework of the conformity clearance procedure.
4.After having communicated its findings to the Member State, the Commission shall adopt, where appropriate, one or more decisions under Article 47 of Regulation (EU) No 514/2014 in order to exclude from Union financing any expenditure affected by the non-compliance with Union rules.
The Commission may pursue consecutive conformity clearance procedures until the Member State has implemented the corrective measures.