Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/860 of 25 April 2023 amending and correcting Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/128 as regards transparency, the management declaration, the coordinating body, the certification body, and certain provisions for EAGF and EAFRD

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

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

Having regard to Regulation (EU) 2021/2116 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 2 December 2021 on the financing, management and monitoring of the common agricultural policy and repealing Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 (1), and in particular Article 11(2), first subparagraph, points (b) and (c), Article 12(4), Article 53(2), Article 55(7), Article 82, Article 92 and Article 100 thereof,

Whereas:

(1) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/128 (2) lays down rules for the application of Regulation (EU) 2021/2116 as regards the publication of information about the beneficiaries of the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) (‘transparency’).

(2) In order to facilitate access by the general public and increase access to published information about the beneficiaries of the EAGF and the EAFRD, the information published by the Member States on their websites should also be available in at least one of the three working languages of the Commission.

(3) Article 44 of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/128 provides that Member States are to collect from beneficiaries information necessary for their identification, including, where applicable, the identification of the group. It should be clarified that only the name and VAT or tax identification number of the parent entity should be published ex-post by the Member State. Therefore, that Article should be corrected accordingly.

(4) To reduce the administrative burden for the Member States, it should be clarified that for all payments, including those paid for the entire financial year 2023 on the basis of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (3), one common form should be used for the publication of information about the beneficiaries of the EAGF and the EAFRD as of 2024.

(5) Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/128 repealed Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 908/2014 (4) with effect from 1 January 2023. However, it did not take into account that certain provisions need to continue to apply in relation to the expenditure incurred and payments made for support schemes under Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (5) up to and including the calendar year 2022, to measures implemented under Regulations of the European Parliament and of the Council (EU) No 228/2013 (6), (EU) No 229/2013 (7), (EU) No 1308/2013 (8) and (EU) No 1144/2014 (9) until 31 December 2022, in relation to expenditure incurred and payments made for operations implemented pursuant to Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 after 31 December 2022 and until the end of those aid schemes, and as regards the implementation of rural development programmes pursuant to Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (10). This created a legal gap.

(6) While maintaining Article 59 of Implementing Regulation (EU) No 908/2014 applicable to payments made for financial years 2021, 2022 and 2023, Chapter VI of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/128, related to transparency only applies to payments made from the financial year 2024 onwards. Consequently, Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/128 did not take the transitional provisions of Article 104 of Regulation (EU) 2021/2116 sufficiently into account and created a legal gap for the financial year 2023.

(7) The scope and the date of application of the concerned provisions of Implementing Regulations (EU) 2022/128 and (EU) No 908/2014 need to be corrected. While the provisions related to the information to be published by 31 May 2023 continue to be those laid down in Article 111 of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 and in Article 57 of Implementing Regulation (EU) No 908/2014, the new publication requirements apply for the publication obligations as of 31 May 2024, and therefore for the financial year 2023.

(8) In order to enhance legal clarity on the information to be communicated to the beneficiaries, Article 61 of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/128 needs to be corrected.

(9) It should also be clarified that the information on payments for new measures or types of interventions that might be possible on the basis of future legislation in the field of agricultural policy should also be published by Member States even if the measure or type of intervention is not yet included in the list set out in Annex IX to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/128.

(10) To take into account the need for the continuous application of certain provisions in relation to the expenditure incurred and payments made for support schemes under Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013, to facilitate the transmission of information between the Member States and the Commission, and to ensure coherence in the transition to the current legislative framework applicable from 1 January 2023, only one management declaration, covering the expenditure under Regulation (EU) 2021/2116, as well as under Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013, should be submitted by the Member States. Therefore, Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/128 needs to be corrected.

(11) Certain corrections should be done in Annexes VIII and IX to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/128 to ensure a uniform wording throughout the act.

(12) Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/128 should therefore be amended and corrected accordingly.

(13) As this Regulation provides for corrections of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/128 that applies as of 1 January 2023, the corrections should apply retroactively from 1 January 2023.

(14) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee on the Agricultural Funds,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

In Article 58 of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/128, paragraph 4 is replaced by the following:

‘4.   The information referred to in paragraph 1 shall be provided in the official language or languages of the Member State and in one of the three working languages of the Commission.’

Article 2

Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/128 is corrected as follows:

(1) in Article 44, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following: ‘2.   The information on the identification of groups as referred in paragraph 1, first subparagraph, point (c), of this Article shall be published ex-post by the Member State, in accordance with Article 98 of Regulation (EU) 2021/2116.’

(2) in Article 58, paragraph 1 is replaced by the following: ‘1.   The information referred to in Article 98 of Regulation (EU) 2021/2116 in connection to Article 49(3), first subparagraph, points (a), (b), (d) and (f) to (l), of Regulation (EU) 2021/1060 and the information referred to in Article 111 of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 for the measures referred to in Article 104(1), second subparagraph, points (a)(i) to (iv), of Regulation (EU) 2021/2116 shall be published in open, machine-readable formats, such as CSV or XLXS, and shall contain the information specified in Annex VIII to this Regulation, including, the code of the operation and measures indicated in Annex IX to this Regulation.’

(3) Article 61 is replaced by the following: ‘Article 61 Information to the beneficiary The information to the beneficiaries referred to in Article 99 of Regulation (EU) 2021/2116 shall be provided by including it in the application forms for receiving support from the EAGF or the EAFRD, or otherwise at the time when the data are collected.’

(6) Annexes I, VIII and IX are replaced by the text in the Annex to this Regulation.

Article 3

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

Article 2 shall apply from 1 January 2023.

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

Done at Brussels, 25 April 2023.

For the Commission The President Ursula VON DER LEYEN

(1) OJ L 435, 6.12.2021, p. 187.

(2) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/128 of 21 December 2021 laying down rules for the application of Regulation (EU) 2021/2116 of the European Parliament and of the Council on paying agencies and other bodies, financial management, clearance of accounts, checks, securities and transparency (OJ L 20, 31.1.2022, p. 131).

(3) Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 on the financing, management and monitoring of the common agricultural policy and repealing Council Regulations (EEC) No 352/78, (EC) No 165/94, (EC) No 2799/98, (EC) No 814/2000, (EC) No 1290/2005 and (EC) No 485/2008 (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 549).

(4) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 908/2014 of 6 August 2014 laying down rules for the application of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to paying agencies and other bodies, financial management, clearance of accounts, rules on checks, securities and transparency (OJ L 255, 28.8.2014, p. 59).

(5) Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 establishing rules for direct payments to farmers under support schemes within the framework of the common agricultural policy and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 637/2008 and Council Regulation (EC) No 73/2009 (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 608).

(6) Regulation (EU) No 228/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 March 2013 laying down specific measures for agriculture in the outermost regions of the Union and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 247/2006 (OJ L 78, 20.3.2013, p. 23).

(7) Regulation (EU) No 229/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 March 2013 laying down specific measures for agriculture in favour of the smaller Aegean islands and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1405/2006 (OJ L 78, 20.3.2013, p. 41).

(8) Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 establishing a common organisation of the markets in agricultural products and repealing Council Regulations (EEC) No 922/72, (EEC) No 234/79, (EC) No 1037/2001 and (EC) No 1234/2007 (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 671).

(9) Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2014 on information provision and promotion measures concerning agricultural products implemented in the internal market and in third countries and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 3/2008 (OJ L 317, 4.11.2014, p. 56).

(10) Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 on support for rural development by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 487).