Regulation (EU) 2021/840 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2021 establishing an exchange, assistance and training programme for the protection of the euro against counterfeiting for the period 2021-2027 (the ‘Pericles IV’ programme), and repealing Regulation (EU) No 331/2014

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 133 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Central Bank (1),

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure (2),

Whereas:

(1) The Union and Member States have set themselves the objective of laying down the measures necessary for the use of the euro as a single currency. Those measures include protecting the euro against counterfeiting and related fraud to ensure the effectiveness of the Union’s economy and secure the sustainability of public finances.

(2) Council Regulation (EC) No 1338/2001 (3) provides for exchanges of information, cooperation and mutual assistance, thereby establishing a harmonised framework for the protection of the euro. The effects of that Regulation were extended by Council Regulation (EC) No 1339/2001 (4) to those Member States which have not adopted the euro as their single currency, so as to provide an equivalent level of protection for the euro throughout the Union.

(3) Actions with the aim of promoting exchanges of information and staff, technical and scientific assistance and specialised training help significantly to protect the Union’s single currency against counterfeiting and related fraud and therefore to attain a high and equivalent level of protection across the Union, whilst demonstrating the Union’s ability to tackle serious organised crime. Such actions could also help addressing the common challenges to combat organised crime, including money laundering.

(4) A programme for the protection of the euro against counterfeiting contributes to raising the awareness of Union citizens, increasing their confidence in that currency and improving the protection of the euro, especially through the constant dissemination of results of actions supported by that programme.

(5) Sound protection of the euro against counterfeiting is a key component of a secure and competitive Union economy, and directly linked to the Union objective of improving the efficient functioning of the economic and monetary union.

(6) Past support for such actions, through Council Decisions 2001/923/EC (5) and 2001/924/EC (6), which were subsequently amended and extended by Council Decisions 2006/75/EC (7), 2006/76/EC (8), 2006/849/EC (9) and 2006/850/EC (10) and Regulation (EU) No 331/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council (11), has made it possible to enhance the actions of the Union and the Member States in the field of the protection of the euro against counterfeiting. The objectives of the programme for the protection of the euro against counterfeiting for the preceding periods have been successfully achieved.

(7) In 2017, the Commission carried out a mid-term evaluation of the multiannual action programme established by Regulation (EU) No 331/2014 (the ‘Pericles 2020’ programme), supported by an independent report. The report was generally positive about the Pericles 2020 programme but it expressed concerns about the limited number of competent authorities applying for the implementation of actions under the Pericles 2020 programme and the quality of the key performance indicators used for measuring the results of the Pericles 2020 programme. In its Communication to the European Parliament and to the Council on the mid-term evaluation of the Pericles 2020 programme and its ex ante evaluation in the form of a Staff Working Document accompanying its proposal, the Commission concluded, taking into consideration the conclusions and recommendations of the mid-term evaluation, that the continuation of the Pericles 2020 programme beyond 2020 should be supported, given its Union added value, its long-term impact and the sustainability of its actions as well as its contribution to combating organised crime.

(8) The advice contained in the mid-term evaluation was that actions financed under the Pericles 2020 programme should be continued, while addressing the need to simplify the submission of applications, to encourage differentiation of beneficiaries and the participation of a maximum number of competent authorities from various countries in the activities of the Pericles 2020 programme, to continue focusing on emerging and recurrent counterfeiting threats, and to streamline the key performance indicators.

(9) Counterfeiting hotspots have been detected in third countries and counterfeiting of the euro is acquiring a growing international dimension. Capacity building and training activities involving the competent authorities of third countries should therefore be considered essential to achieve the effective protection of the euro and should be further encouraged in the context of the continuation of the Pericles 2020 programme.

(10) A new programme for the period 2021-2027 (the ‘Pericles IV’ programme) should be adopted. It should be ensured that the Pericles IV programme is consistent with, and complementary to, other relevant programmes and actions. The Commission should therefore carry out all the necessary consultations with regard to evaluating needs for the protection of the euro with the principal parties involved, in particular the competent national authorities designated by Member States, the European Central Bank (ECB) and Europol, within the committee referred to in Regulation (EC) No 1338/2001, particularly as regards exchanges, assistance and training, for the purpose of the application of the Pericles IV programme. Moreover, the Commission should draw on the vast experience of the ECB in relation to the conduct of training and the provision of information on counterfeit euro banknotes when implementing the Pericles IV programme.

(11) Horizontal financial rules adopted by the European Parliament and the Council on the basis of Article 322 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) apply to this Regulation. Those rules are laid down in Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046 of the European Parliament and of the Council (12) (the ‘Financial Regulation’) and determine in particular the procedure for establishing and implementing the budget through grants, procurement, prizes, indirect implementation, and provide for checks on the responsibility of financial actors. Rules adopted on the basis of Article 322 TFEU also include a general regime of conditionality for the protection of the Union’s budget.

(12) Since the objectives of this Regulation, namely to facilitate cooperation among Member States and between the Commission and Member States in order to protect the euro against counterfeiting, without impinging on Member States’ responsibilities, and using resources more efficiently than could be done at national level, to assist Member States in collectively protecting the euro and to encourage the use of common Union structures to increase cooperation and the timely and comprehensive exchange of information between competent authorities, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States, but can rather be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union. In accordance with the principle of proportionality as set out in that Article, this Regulation does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives.

(13) The Pericles IV programme should be implemented in accordance with the multiannual financial framework laid down in Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2093 (13).

(14) In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of the Pericles IV programme, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission. The Commission should adopt annual work programmes setting out the priorities, the budget breakdown and the evaluation criteria for the grants for actions. The exceptional and duly justified cases, in which an increase in the co-financing rate is necessary in order to give the Member States greater economic flexibility, thus enabling them to carry out and complete projects to protect and safeguard the euro in a satisfactory manner, should be part of the annual work programmes.

(15) This Regulation lays down a financial envelope for the Pericles IV programme which is to constitute the prime reference amount, within the meaning of Point 18 of the Interinstitutional Agreement of 16 December 2020 (14), for the European Parliament and for the Council during the annual budgetary procedure.

(16) To ensure the effective assessment of progress of the Pericles IV programme towards the achievement of its objectives, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission in respect of amending the Annex with regard to the indicators where considered necessary for the purposes of evaluation, as well as to supplement this Regulation with provisions on the establishment of a monitoring and evaluation framework. It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making (15). In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States’ experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts.

(17) In accordance with the Financial Regulation, Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (16) and Council Regulations (EC, Euratom) No 2988/95 (17), (Euratom, EC) No 2185/96 (18) and (EU) 2017/1939 (19), the financial interests of the Union are to be protected by means of proportionate measures, including measures relating to the prevention, detection, correction and investigation of irregularities, including fraud, the recovery of funds lost, wrongly paid or incorrectly used, and, where appropriate, the imposition of administrative penalties. In particular, in accordance with Regulations (Euratom, EC) No 2185/96 and (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013, the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) has the power to carry out administrative investigations, including on-the-spot checks and inspections, with a view to establishing whether there has been fraud, corruption or any other illegal activity affecting the financial interests of the Union. The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) is empowered, in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/1939, to investigate and prosecute criminal offences affecting the financial interests of the Union, as provided for in Directive (EU) 2017/1371 of the European Parliament and of the Council (20). In accordance with the Financial Regulation, any person or entity receiving Union funds is to fully cooperate in the protection of the financial interests of the Union, grant the necessary rights and access to the Commission, OLAF, the Court of Auditors and, in respect of those Member States participating in enhanced cooperation pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2017/1939, EPPO, and ensure that any third parties involved in the implementation of Union funds grant equivalent rights.

(18) The Commission should present to the European Parliament and to the Council a mid-term evaluation report on the implementation of the Pericles IV programme and a final evaluation report on the achievement of its objectives. Pursuant to paragraphs 22 and 23 of the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making, the Pericles IV programme should be evaluated on the basis of information collected in accordance with specific monitoring requirements, while avoiding an administrative burden, in particular on Member States, and overregulation. Those requirements, where appropriate, should include measurable indicators as a basis for evaluating the effects of the Pericles IV programme on the ground.

(19) Regulation (EU) No 331/2014 should therefore be repealed.

(20) In order to ensure continuity in providing support in the relevant policy area and to allow implementation to start from the beginning of the multi-annual financial framework 2021-2027, this Regulation should enter into force as a matter of urgency and should apply, with retroactive effect, from 1 January 2021,

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

CHAPTER I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1

Subject matter

This Regulation establishes an exchange, assistance and training programme for the protection of the euro against counterfeiting (the ‘Pericles IV’ programme), for the period from 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2027.

It lays down the objectives of the Pericles IV programme, the budget for the period 2021-2027, the forms of Union funding and the rules for providing such funding.

Article 2

Programme objectives

Article 3

Budget

Article 4

Implementation and forms of Union funding

Article 5

Joint actions

(a) the national central banks and the ECB;

(b) the National Analysis Centres and the Coin National Analysis Centres;

(c) the European Technical and Scientific Centre and the mints;

(d) Europol, Eurojust and Interpol;

(e) the national central anti-counterfeiting offices provided for in Article 12 of the International Convention for the Suppression of Counterfeiting Currency signed at Geneva on 20 April 1929 (21) and other agencies specialising in prevention, detection and law-enforcement in connection with counterfeiting;

(f) specialist bodies concerned in the field of duplication and certification technologies, printers and engravers;

(g) bodies other than those referred to in points (a) to (f) offering specific expertise, including, where appropriate, such bodies from third countries and in particular from acceding States and candidate countries; and

(h) private entities that have developed and provided evidence of technical knowledge and teams specialising in detecting counterfeit banknotes and coins.

CHAPTER II

ELIGIBILITY

Article 6

Eligible actions

(c) the purchase of equipment to be used by specialised anti-counterfeiting authorities of third countries for protecting the euro against counterfeiting, in compliance with Article 7(2).

(a) staff of agencies engaged in detecting and combating counterfeiting, in particular police forces, customs and financial administrations, depending on their specific functions at national level;

(b) intelligence personnel;

(c) representatives of the national central banks, the mints, commercial banks and other financial intermediaries, in particular as regards the obligations of financial institutions;

(d) judicial officers, specialist lawyers and members of the judiciary in this field;