Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/134 of 20 January 2026 amending Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 as regards rules for surveillance and disease-free status from infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis

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’) [^ntr1-L_202600134EN.000101-E0001], and in particular Article 29, Article 39, Article 41(3) and Article 42(6) thereof,

Whereas:

• (1) Regulation (EU) 2016/429 lays down rules for the prevention and control of animal diseases which are transmissible to animals or humans, including rules for surveillance, Union surveillance programmes, approval of disease-free status by the Commission and for the maintenance of disease-free status.

• (2) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 [^ntr2-L_202600134EN.000101-E0002] supplements the rules on surveillance, eradication programmes and disease-free status for certain listed diseases and emerging diseases of terrestrial, aquatic and other animals laid down in Regulation (EU) 2016/429.

• (3) Infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis is listed in the Annex to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/1882 [^ntr3-L_202600134EN.000101-E0003] as a disease of relevance to some Member States and for which measures are needed to prevent it from spreading to parts of the Union that are officially disease-free or that have eradication programmes for the disease concerned.

• (4) Union rules for the control of infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis in dogs had been laid down in Regulation (EU) No 576/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council [^ntr4-L_202600134EN.000101-E0004] and Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2018/772 [^ntr5-L_202600134EN.000101-E0005].

• (5) Regulation (EU) No 576/2013 was repealed by Article 270(2) of Regulation (EU) 2016/429 as from 21 April 2021. However, Article 277 of Regulation (EU) 2016/429 provides that notwithstanding that repeal, Regulation (EU) No 576/2013 is to continue to apply until 21 April 2026 in respect of non-commercial movements of pet animals, in place of Part VI of Regulation (EU) 2016/429.

• (6) The rules on surveillance, including diagnostic methods, the disease specific requirements for disease-free status and the specific criteria for maintenance of disease-free status for Echinococcus multilocularis laid down in Regulation (EU) No 576/2013 and Delegated Regulation (EU) 2018/772 have proven to be effective in controlling infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis. Accordingly, the main provisions of those rules should be maintained in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689, as amended by this Regulation but updated to take account of the practical experience acquired through the application of those Regulations. Therefore, Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 should be amended to provide detailed rules on surveillance, including diagnostic methods, the disease specific requirements for disease-free status and the specific criteria for maintenance of disease-free status for Echinococcus multilocularis.

• (7) As certain Member States have been recognised officially free from infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis and have been listed accordingly in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/878 [^ntr6-L_202600134EN.000101-E0006], it should also be ensured that the Member States and zones thereof with an approved disease-free status before the date of application of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 are deemed to have an approved disease-free status in accordance with that Regulation.

• (8) As the transitional period related to the repeal of Regulation (EU) No 576/2013 is to cease to apply after 21 April 2026 and in order to prevent infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis from spreading to parts of the Union that are officially disease-free, this Regulation should enter into force as a matter of urgency and apply from 22 April 2026,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Amendments to Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689

Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 is amended as follows:

• (1) in Article 6(2), the following point (fa) is inserted after point (f):

• ‘(fa) Section 7 of Annex III for infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis;’;

• (2) in Article 72, the following point (ja) is inserted after point (j):

• ‘(ja) Section 2 of Part V of Annex V for status free from infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis;’;

• (3) in Article 81(3), the following point (ja) is inserted after point (j):

• ‘(ja) Section 3 of Part V of Annex V for status free from infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis;’;

• (4) in Article 84(1), the following point (n) is added:

• ‘(n) free from infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis, when Echinococcus multilocularis-free status was granted in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 576/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council[^ntr*1-L_202600134EN.000101-E0007].

[^ntr*1-L_202600134EN.000101-E0007]: Regulation (EU) No 576/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 June 2013 on the non-commercial movement of pet animals and repealing Regulation (EC) N0 998/2003 (OJ L 178, 28.6.2013, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2013/576/oj).’;"

• (5) Annexes III and V to Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 are amended in accordance with the Annex to this Regulation.

Article 2

Entry into force and application

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 22 April 2026.

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

Done at Brussels, 20 January 2026.

For the Commission

The President

Ursula VON DER LEYEN

[^ntr1-L_202600134EN.000101-E0001]: OJ L 84, 31.3.2016, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2016/429/oj.

[^ntr2-L_202600134EN.000101-E0002]: Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 of 17 December 2019 supplementing Regulation (EU) 2016/429 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards rules for surveillance, eradication programmes, and disease-free status for certain listed and emerging diseases (OJ L 174, 3.6.2020, p. 211, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_del/2020/689/oj).

[^ntr3-L_202600134EN.000101-E0003]: Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/1882 of 3 December 2018 on the application of certain disease prevention and control rules to categories of listed diseases and establishing a list of species and groups of species posing a considerable risk for the spread of those listed diseases (OJ L 308, 4.12.2018, p. 21, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2018/1882/oj).

[^ntr4-L_202600134EN.000101-E0004]: Regulation (EU) No 576/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 June 2013 on the non-commercial movement of pet animals and repealing Regulation (EC) No 998/2003 (OJ L 178, 28.6.2013, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2013/576/oj).

[^ntr5-L_202600134EN.000101-E0005]: Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2018/772 of 21 November 2017 supplementing Regulation (EU) No 576/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to preventive health measures for the control of Echinococcus multilocularis infection in dogs, and repealing Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1152/2011 (OJ L 130, 28.5.2018, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_del/2018/772/oj).

[^ntr6-L_202600134EN.000101-E0006]: Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/878 of 18 June 2018 adopting the list of Member States, or parts of the territory of Member States, that comply with the rules for categorisation laid down in Article 2(2) and (3) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2018/772 concerning the application of preventive health measures for the control of Echinococcus multilocularis infection in dogs (OJ L 155, 19.6.2018, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2018/878/oj).

ANNEX

Annexes III and V to Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 are amended as follows:

• (1) in Annex III, the following Section 7 is added:

‘ Section 7

Infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis

	1.	Sedimentation and counting technique (SCT), or a technique of equivalent sensitivity and specificity, for the detection of the Echinococcus multilocularis parasite on intestinal contents.

	2.	Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methods, or a technique of equivalent sensitivity and specificity, for the detection of species-specific deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) from tissue or eggs of the Echinococcus multilocularis parasite on intestinal contents or faeces.’;

• (2) in Annex V, the following Part V is added:

‘PART V

INFESTATION WITH ECHINOCOCCUS MULTILOCULARIS

Section 1

Surveillance to demonstrate the absence of infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis in the wild definitive host population

The surveillance to demonstrate the absence of infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis in the wild definitive host population must:

• 1. describe the target wild definitive host Canidae population and include the density, age structure, geographical and gender distribution, taking into account the relative risks of infestation with the Echinococcus multilocularis in different species and subpopulations of the target wild definitive host Canidae population;

• 1. consist in the ongoing collection, during each 12-month surveillance period, of samples from wild definitive host Canidae tested negative with one of the methods referred to in Section 7 of Annex III;

• 1. be designed to allow, on an appropriate risk-based or representative sample of wild definitive host Canidae, the detection of the Echinococcus multilocularis parasite, if present in any epidemiologically relevant geographical unit in the Member State or zone thereof in the wild definitive host population at a prevalence of not more than 1 % at a confidence level of at least 95 %.

Section 2

Granting of the status to a Member State or zone as free from infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis

The status free from infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis may only be granted to a Member State or a zone thereof if:

• 1. for the past three consecutive 12-month periods, the Member State has implemented an annual surveillance, which has demonstrated that, in accordance with Article 67, the infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis has not been established because of the absence of red foxes, as wild definitive host animals, in its entire territory;

• 1. in the presence of wild definitive host Canidae populations and provided that there has been no confirmed case of infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis in those animals, one of the following requirements is fulfilled:

• (a) there has been no confirmed case of infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis in wild definitive host Canidae during the past 25 years in accordance with Article 70(1), point (a) and for the past 10 years, the requirements set out in Article 70(2), points (b) and (d) have been met;

• (b) for the past three consecutive 12-month periods, an annual surveillance programme, which complies with the requirements set out in Section 1, has demonstrated the absence of infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis in wild definitive host Canidae.

Section 3

Maintenance of the status of a Member State or zone free from infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis

The status free from infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis granted to a Member State or a zone thereof may only be maintained if:

• 1. for a Member State or zone thereof which has been granted a status free from infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis in accordance with point 1 of Section 2, the competent authority:

• (a) maintains an annual surveillance to detect the presence of wild red foxes on its territory;

• (b) immediately notifies the Commission and the other Member States of the detection of the presence of wild red foxes;

• 1. for a Member State or zone thereof which has been granted a status free from infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis in accordance with point 2 of Section 2, the competent authority maintains an annual surveillance that:

• (a) demonstrates the absence of infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis in wild definitive host Canidae in accordance with the requirements set out in Section 1;

• (b) enables the early detection of infestation with Echinococcus multilocularis in wild definitive host Canidae.’.

ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_del/2026/134/oj

ISSN 1977-0677 (electronic edition)