Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/1064 of 28 June 2021 amending Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/520 with regard to the configuration of the animal identification code for the traceability of certain kept terrestrial animals for the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland (Text with EEA relevance)

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

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

Having regard to Regulation (EU) 2016/429 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 2016 on transmissible animal diseases and amending and repealing certain acts in the area of animal health (‘Animal Health Law’) ¹, and in particular Article 120(1) and Article 120(2), points (c), (d) and (f), thereof,

Whereas:

• (1) Regulation (EU) 2016/429 lays down rules for the prevention and control of animal diseases that are transmissible to animals or humans. Part IV, Title I, Chapters 1 and 2 of that Regulation provide the rules for establishments keeping terrestrial animals and hatcheries, and for the traceability of certain kept terrestrial animals and hatching eggs within the Union. Regulation (EU) 2016/429 also empowers the Commission to adopt rules to supplement certain non-essential elements of that Regulation by means of delegated acts.

• (2) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/2035 ² supplements Regulation (EU) 2016/429 by providing the rules for registered and approved establishments for kept terrestrial animals and hatching eggs, and for the traceability of certain kept terrestrial animals and hatching eggs. Part III of that Delegated Regulation includes rules for the traceability of kept terrestrial animals, and more specifically Part III, Titles I and II , lay down rules for the traceability of kept bovine, ovine and caprine animals.

• (3) To ensure the uniform application in the Union of the traceability rules laid down in Regulation (EU) 2016/429 and Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/2035, implementing rules on the traceability of certain kept terrestrial animals are laid down in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/520 ³.

• (4) In accordance with the Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community (‘Withdrawal Agreement’), and in particular Article 5(4) of the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland in conjunction with Annex 2 to that Protocol, Regulation (EU) 2016/429, as well as the Commission acts based on it, apply to and in the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland after the end of the transition period provided for in the Withdrawal Agreement. Consequently, the rules laid down in Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/520 apply in the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland. For the sake of clarity, it is appropriate to refer to the Withdrawal Agreement in Article 1 of that Implementing Regulation.

• (5) In addition, Article 12, point (a) of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/520 lays down rules for the configuration of the identification code of kept bovine, ovine, caprine, camelid and cervid animals. The first element of the identification code is the country code of the Member State where the means of identification was first applied to the animals, in the format of either the two-letter code in accordance with International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standard 3166-1 alpha-2, except for Greece, for which the two-letter code ‘EL’ is to be used, or the three-digit country code in accordance with ISO standard 3166-1 numeric. Since there are no subdivisions for the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland in the ISO standards referred to in Article 12 of Regulation (EU) 2021/520, that Regulation should be amended so as to lay down which country code should be the first element of the identification code of kept bovine, ovine, caprine, camelid and cervid animals identified in that region of the United Kingdom.

• (6) Annex I to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1470 ⁴ sets out the nomenclature of countries and territories for the European Statistics on international trade in goods, and it lays down that ‘XI’ is the two-letter code to be used if the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland needs to be distinguished according to the conditions laid down in the relevant Union provisions. That code should therefore be referred to in Article 12(a)(i) of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/520 for the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland.

• (7) Furthermore, a corresponding three-digit code has not been defined for use when the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland needs to be distinguished. The three-digit code ‘899’ is not assigned in the ISO standard 3166-1 numeric. That code should therefore be referred to in Article 12(a)(ii) of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/520 for the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland.

• (8) Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/520 should therefore be amended accordingly.

• (9) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/520 is amended as follows:

• (1) in Article 1, the introductory phrase is replaced by the following:

‘This Regulation lays down rules for Member States[^ntr*1-L_2021229EN.01000801-E0005] concerning:

[^ntr*1-L_2021229EN.01000801-E0005]: In accordance with the Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, and in particular Article 5(4) of the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland in conjunction with Annex 2 to that Protocol, for the purposes of this Regulation, references to Member States or to the Union include the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland.’;"

• (2) in Article 12, point (a) is replaced by the following:

• ‘(a) the first element of the identification code shall be the country code of the Member State where the means of identification was first applied to the animals, in the format of either:

• (i) the two-letter code in accordance with ISO standard 3166-1 alpha-2, except for Greece, for which the two-letter code ‘EL’ shall be used, and for the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland, for which the two-letter code ‘XI’ shall be used; or

• (ii) the three-digit country code in accordance with ISO standard 3166-1 numeric, except for the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland, for which ‘899’ shall be used;’.

Article 2

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

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

Done at Brussels, 28 June 2021.

For the Commission

The President

Ursula VON DER LEYEN