Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/3164 of 18 December 2024 amending Council Regulation (EC) No 992/95 as regards Union tariff quotas for certain fish and fishery products originating in Norway

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

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

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 992/95 of 10 April 1995, opening and providing for the administration of Community tariff quotas for certain agricultural and fishery products originating in Norway (1), and in particular Article 5(1), point (b), thereof,

Whereas:

(1) In 2024, an Additional Protocol to the Agreement between the European Economic Community and the Kingdom of Norway was concluded concerning special provisions applicable to imports into the Union of certain fish and fishery products originating in Norway (2).

(2) The Annex to the Additional Protocol provides for duty-free tariff quotas for release for free circulation in the Union as set out in Regulation (EC) No 992/95.

(3) The Additional Protocol enters provisionally into force on 1 January 2025 as this is the first day of the third month after the last instrument of ratification has been deposited in accordance with its Article 5.2. This Regulation should therefore apply from the same date.

(4) The annual tariff quotas set out in the Additional Protocol cover the period from 1 May 2021 to 30 April 2028. The unused tariff quota volumes covering the period from 1 May 2021 until 31 December 2024 are to be proportionally allocated for the period 1 January 2025 to 30 April 2025 and after that annually from 1 May to 30 April each year until the end of the period.

(5) The Additional Protocol provides for the transfer of the unused accumulated quota volumes of such tariff quotas for a period of up to two years following the end of its application but no longer than the provisional application of any subsequent protocol establishing duty-free quotas for the same products.

(6) The tariff quotas are to be managed by the Commission on the basis of the chronological order of dates of acceptance of customs declarations for release for free circulation in accordance with the rules for the management of tariff quotas laid down in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/2447 (3).

(7) Regulation (EC) No 992/95 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(8) In order to ensure that the tariff quotas are available as of the date of the provisional entry into force of the Additional Protocol, the tariff quotas provided for in this Regulation should apply from 1 January 2025. This Regulation should therefore enter into force as a matter of urgency.

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

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Regulation (EC) No 992/95 is amended as follows:

(1) In Article 2, the following paragraph is added: ‘The tariff quotas with order numbers 09.0860 to 09.0871 shall cover the period from 1 May 2021 to 30 April 2028. In case these tariff quotas are not exhausted during this period and in case any subsequent protocol establishing duty-free tariff quotas for the same products is not provisionally applied, imports from Norway can be made for the remaining accumulated quota volume of those quotas for up to two years following the end of this application period but not longer than the provisional application of any subsequent protocol establishing duty-free tariff quotas for the same products.’;

(2) in Annex I after order number 09.0820, the text in the Annex to this Regulation is added.

Article 2

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 2025.

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

Done at Brussels, 18 December 2024.

For the Commission The President Ursula VON DER LEYEN

(1) OJ L 101, 4.5.1995, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/1995/992/oj.

(2) Additional Protocol to the Agreement between the European Economic Community and the Kingdom of Norway (OJ L, 2024/2600, 8.10.2024, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/prot/2024/2600/oj).

(3) 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, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2015/2447/oj).