Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/966 of 11 June 2021 granting Cabo Verde a temporary derogation from the rules on preferential origin laid down in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, in respect of prepared or preserved tuna fillets, prepared or preserved mackerel fillets and prepared or preserved frigate tuna or frigate mackerel fillets

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 October 2013 laying down the Union Customs Code (1), and in particular Article 64(6) and Article 66, point (b), thereof,

Whereas:

(1) Cabo Verde is a country benefiting from the special incentive arrangement for sustainable development and good governance provided under Article 1(2), point (b), of Regulation (EU) No 978/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council (2), referred to as the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP+). The rules on preferential origin for the purposes of the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP), other than procedural rules, are laid down in Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 (3).

(2) By letter dated 18 March 2020, Cabo Verde submitted a request for a prolongation of the temporary derogations from the rules on preferential origin laid down in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, which had been granted by Commission Implementing Regulations (EU) 2019/561 (4) and (EU) 2019/620 (5). The request concerned an annual volume of 5 000 tonnes of prepared or preserved tuna fillets, 3 000 tonnes of prepared or preserved mackerel fillets and 1 000 tonnes of prepared or preserved frigate tuna or frigate mackerel fillets. Under the requested derogation, those products would be considered as originating in Cabo Verde even if they were produced from non-originating fish.

(3) Cabo Verde supported its request for a prolongation of those derogations by relying on the arguments put forward in previous requests, which they allege to be still relevant, namely, low quantities of tuna and mackerel caught in its territorial waters, scarce fishing opportunities outside its territorial waters and a limited duration of the fishing season. Another element highlighted in the request is that Cabo Verde has recently developed its port infrastructure. As a result, larger quantities of fish can be handled to provide supply to the local fish processing industry to maintain its production capacities. Lastly, the request emphasised the difficulties that Cabo Verde faces as a result of delays in the entry into application of the Economic Partnership Agreement between the European Union and West Africa. Cabo Verde develops an argumentation to emphasise its need for a derogation from the GSP rules on preferential origin in order to compensate for the fact that it is not yet possible to rely on the origin quotas or cumulation rules under the Economic Partnership Agreement which is not yet provisionally applied.

(4) The derogation provided for in Article 64(6) of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 (Union Customs Code) is of temporary nature and subject to improved compliance with the rules of origin for products concerned and with the requirement regarding the administrative cooperation. In order to be able to manage such a derogation from the rules on preferential origin, the requesting country has to comply with the rules of origin for the products concerned and with the procedures related thereto and has to ensure good administrative cooperation.

(5) In this respect, the monitoring actions performed by the European Commission over the past few years in the context of the derogation granted pursuant to Article 64(6) of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 have revealed certain shortcomings regarding Cabo Verde’s administrative cooperation with the customs authorities of the Members States in the verification of proofs of origin. Such shortcomings may have resulted on a refusal of the requested derogation on the grounds put forward by Cabo Verde. However, after the submission of that request, Cabo Verde and in particular its fishery industry, had to face a deep crisis due to loss of income caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Commission is entitled by Article 64(6) of the code to take into account this new situation, to decide about granting a derogation on its own initiative.

(6) Cabo Verde should therefore be granted a temporary derogation from the requirement under the rules on preferential origin that the products are considered as originating in the beneficiary country only where incorporating materials of Chapters 3 and 16 of the Combined Nomenclature are wholly obtained in that country. In the first year of its application, the derogation should be granted for an annual volume of 5 000 tonnes prepared or preserved tuna fillets, 3 000 tonnes of prepared or preserved mackerel fillets and for an annual volume of 1 000 tonnes of prepared or preserved frigate tuna or frigate mackerel fillets. In order to take into account the commercial interests of the European Union and to maintain a fair competition between its domestic fisheries industry and the one of third countries, the annual volume should decrease in the following years according to the volumes provided for in Annexes I and II, except for prepared or preserved frigate tuna or frigate mackerel fillets. The duration of the derogation should be limited to a period of three years in order to allow Cabo Verde to recover from the COVID-19 crisis and to endeavour to complete necessary structural adjustments in the fishery sector, with a view to complying with the rules of origin for the products concerned. However, the derogation should be granted on the condition that the customs authorities of Cabo Verde carry out quantitative checks on exports of the products subject to derogation and that they communicate to the Commission a statement of the quantities in respect of which statements on origin have been issued pursuant to this Regulation and serial numbers of those statements.

(7) Moreover, Cabo Verde should benefit from a derogation provided under the GSP preferential rules of origin for tuna and mackerel on the condition that it reports regularly to the competent services of the Commission on the measures it has taken in order to improve compliance with the rules concerning the origin of the products and with the related procedures and to provide administrative cooperation as required for the implementation of the preferential arrangements under the GSP referred to in Article 1(2) of Regulation (EU) No 978/2012. Those reports should be submitted following a precise time schedule, whereby any delays in meeting the set deadlines should lead to the suspension of the derogation to be notified to the competent authorities of Cabo Verde following a reminder and an invitation to submit the reports within ten working days. Any such suspension shall not prolong the time period provided for in the Regulation and its Annexes I and II. The elements to be included in those reports should be listed in an Annex to this Regulation.

(8) The quantities set out in the Annexes to this Regulation should be managed in accordance with Articles 49 to 54 of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/2447 (6) which govern the management of tariff quotas.

(9) The measures provided for in this Regulation should enter into force on the day following that of its publication and be applied retroactively as from 1 January 2021, in order to take into account the difficult situation of Cabo Verde and to allow that country to apply the derogation to products imported in the EU since that date.

(10) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Customs Code Committee,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

By way of derogation from Article 41, point (b), and Article 45 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, products referred to in Annexes I and II, produced in Cabo Verde from non-originating fish shall be regarded as originating in Cabo Verde in accordance with Articles 2, 3 and 4 of this Regulation.

Article 2

Article 3

The quantities set out in Annexes I and II to this Regulation shall be managed in accordance with Articles 49 to 54 of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/2447, which govern the management of tariff quotas.

Article 4

The derogation is granted on the following conditions:

(1) The customs authorities of Cabo Verde shall take the necessary steps to carry out quantitative checks on exports of the products referred to in Article 1.

(2) The following mention shall be entered on the statements on origin made out by the registered exporters: ‘Derogation – Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/966’.

(3) The competent authorities of Cabo Verde shall communicate to the Commission a statement of the quantities in respect of which statements on origin have been made out pursuant to this Regulation and the copies of those proofs. Those reports shall be communicated to the Commission 6 months, 18 months and 30 months after the entry into force of this Regulation.

The required information to be reported by the competent authorities of Cabo Verde is listed in Annex III.

Article 5

If the competent authorities fail to fulfil their reporting obligation laid down in Article 4(3) and (4), within the time-limits set therein, the Commission shall send a reminder to the competent authorities of Cabo Verde, requesting them to submit the required information within 10 working days. If the competent authorities of Cabo Verde do not respond to that request within the set deadline, the Commission may suspend the derogation provided for in this Regulation. Any such suspension shall not prolong the time period provided for in this Regulation and its Annex I and Annex II. That suspension shall be notified to the competent authorities of Cabo Verde and published in the Official Journal, C series.

Article 6

This Regulation shall enter into force on the day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

It shall apply from 1 January 2021.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels, 11 June 2021.

For the Commission The President Ursula VON DER LEYEN

(1) OJ L 269, 10.10.2013, p. 1.

(2) Regulation (EU) No 978/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 applying a scheme of generalised tariff preferences and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 732/2008 (OJ L 303, 31.10.2012, p. 1).

(3) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 of 28 July 2015 supplementing Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards detailed rules concerning certain provisions of the Union Customs Code (OJ L 343, 29.12.2015, p. 1).

(4) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/561 of 8 April 2019 granting Cape Verde a temporary derogation from the rules on preferential origin laid down in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, in respect of prepared or preserved fillets of tuna (OJ L 98, 9.4.2019, p. 13).

(5) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/620 of 17 April 2019 granting Cape Verde a temporary derogation from the rules on preferential origin laid down in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446, in respect of prepared or preserved mackerel fillets and prepared or preserved frigate tuna or frigate mackerel fillets (OJ L 108, 23.4.2019, p. 1).

(6) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/2447 of 24 November 2015 laying down detailed rules for implementing certain provisions of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down the Union Customs Code (OJ L 343, 29.12.2015, p. 558).