Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/292 of 9 February 2026 establishing a derogation from Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 concerning the introduction into the Union territory of unrooted cuttings for planting of Calibrachoa spp., Petunia spp. and their hybrids from Costa Rica

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

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

Having regard to Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 October 2016 on protective measures against pests of plants, amending Regulations (EU) No 228/2013, (EU) No 652/2014 and (EU) No 1143/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Council Directives 69/464/EEC, 74/647/EEC, 93/85/EEC, 98/57/EC, 2000/29/EC, 2006/91/EC and 2007/33/EC [^ntr1-L_202600292EN.000101-E0001], and in particular Articles 30(1) and 42a(1) thereof,

Whereas:

• (1) Article 7 in conjunction with point 18 of Annex VI to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 [^ntr2-L_202600292EN.000101-E0002] prohibits the introduction into the Union of plants for planting from the family Solanaceae from certain third countries.

• (2) Several Member States have expressed their interest in importing unrooted cuttings for planting of Calibrachoa spp. and Petunia spp. and their hybrids (‘the specified plants’) from Costa Rica, from where trade is currently prohibited. Those Member States have submitted a technical dossier including the procedures for the production of the specified plants.

• (3) In September 2024, the European Food Safety Authority (‘the Authority’) adopted, and in October 2025 amended, a scientific opinion regarding the risk assessment of unrooted Petunia spp. and Calibrachoa spp. plants from Costa Rica [^ntr3-L_202600292EN.000101-E0003].

• (4) The Authority identified Aleurodicus dispersus Russell, Beet curly top virus, Bemisia tabaci Genn. (non-European population), Chloridea virescens Fabricius, Eotetranychus lewisi (McGregor), Epitrix cucumeris (Harris), Epitrix tuberis Gentner, Euphorbia mosaic virus, Helicoverpa zea (Boddie), Liriomyza huidobrensis (Blanchard), Liriomyza sativae (Blanchard), Liriomyza trifolii (Burgess), Pepper golden mosaic virus, Potato leafroll virus (non-EU isolates), Potato spindle tuber viroid, Potato virus S (non-EU isolates), Potato virus X (non-EU isolates), Ralstonia pseudosolanacearum Safni et al., Ralstonia solanacearum (Smith) Yabuuchi et al. Emend. Safni et al., Spodoptera ornithogalli Guenée, Squash leaf curl virus, Thrips palmi Karny, Tomato golden mosaic virus, Tomato leaf curl Sinaloa virus, Tomato spotted wilt virus, Tomato yellow leaf curl virus as pests relevant for the specified plants.

• (5) The Authority evaluated the risk mitigation measures described in the dossier for the identified pests and estimated the likelihood of freedom of the specified plants from those pests.

• (6) On the basis of that opinion, the measures necessary to address the risk of those pests should be adopted as phytosanitary import requirements, in order to ensure that the phytosanitary risk from the introduction of the specified plants into the Union is reduced to an acceptable level.

• (7) Beet curly top virus, Bemisia tabaci Genn. (non-European population), Eotetranychus lewisi (McGregor), Euphorbia mosaic virus, Helicoverpa zea (Boddie), Liriomyza sativae (Blanchard), Pepper golden mosaic virus, Potato leafroll virus (non-EU isolates), Potato virus S (non-EU isolates), Potato virus X (non-EU isolates), Ralstonia pseudosolanacearum Safni et al., Ralstonia solanacearum (Smith) Yabuuchi et al. Emend. Safni et al., Squash leaf curl virus, Thrips palmi Karny, Tomato golden mosaic virus and Tomato leaf curl Sinaloa virus are listed as Union quarantine pests in Annex II to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072. Liriomyza huidobrensis (Blanchard) and Liriomyza trifolii (Burgess) are listed as protected zone quarantine pests in Annex III to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072. Epitrix cucumeris (Harris) and Epitrix tuberis Gentner are subject to the measures laid down in Commission Implementing Decision 2012/270/EU [^ntr4-L_202600292EN.000101-E0004] and Chloridea virescens Fabricius and Spodoptera ornithogalli Guenée are subject to the measures laid down in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/1941 [^ntr5-L_202600292EN.000101-E0005]. Since the specified plants are currently prohibited from entering the Union territory, they are not subject to the special requirements of Annex VII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072.

• (8) Potato spindle tuber viroid, Tomato spotted wilt virus and Tomato yellow leaf curl virus are listed in Annex IV to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 as Union regulated non-quarantine pests for commodities other than plants of Petunia spp. and Calibrachoa spp. As these pests have not been identified as pests causing an economic impact on the production of Petunia spp. and Calibrachoa spp. in the Union territory, they should not be considered as specified pests for the purposes of this Regulation.

• (9) Aleurodicus dispersus Russell is not listed as a Union quarantine pest. Following the opinion of the Authority, this pest is relevant for the specified plants. Therefore, the Commission concludes that it fulfils the criteria of Subsection 2, Section 3 of Annex I to Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 and should thus be subject to the measures referred to in Article 30(1) of that Regulation.

• (10) In order to ensure that the introduction of the specified plants will not present a risk of introduction of the specified pests in the Union territory, the plants should be grown from plants originating in the Union territory to prevent the presence of pests in the starting material.

• (11) The production of the specified plants should take place in production sites that are approved by the National Plant Protection Organisation (‘the NPPO’) of Costa Rica for the production of the specified plants for export to the Union and are identified with a unique traceability code to allow the competent authorities to identify, in case of a finding of a specified pest on a specified plant in the Union territory, the production site from which that specified plant originates.

• (12) Moreover, to ensure the specified plants are free from the specified pests, they should be grown under physical protection and be inspected prior to export.

• (13) As symptoms of the presence of the specified pests may not yet be visible on the unrooted cuttings imported into the Union, after import into the Union territory the specified plants should be planted and rooted at the premises of professional operators specifically authorised to issue plant passports for these plants originating in Costa Rica, or professional operators for whom the competent authorities issue plant passports, as they are subject to regular official inspections. Professional operators that are to grow or root the specified plants should inform the competent authorities prior to receiving the specified plants in order for the latter to timely plan the official inspections.

• (14) To prevent that the specified plants are moved for the first time to the premises of professional operators who are not authorised to issue plant passports for the specified plants, the importer should present a document issued by the competent authority confirming that the plants are to be moved to the premises of professional operators that, pursuant to Article 89(1) of Regulation (EU) 2016/2031, are specifically authorised to issue plant passports for plants rooted or grown from the specified plants, or to the premises of professional operators for whom the competent authority issues plant passports for the specified plants.

• (15) As no introduction of the specified plants into the Union territory has taken place up to date and there is no experience with this trade yet, the specified plants present a phytosanitary risk which is not yet fully assessed. Therefore, the requirements this Regulation provides should be of a temporary nature pursuant to Article 42a(1) of Regulation (EU) 2016/2031.

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

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Definitions

For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions apply:

• (1) ‘specified pests’ means Aleurodicus dispersus Russell, Beet curly top virus, Bemisia tabaci Genn. (non-European population), Chloridea virescens Fabricius, Eotetranychus lewisi (McGregor), Epitrix cucumeris (Harris), Epitrix tuberis Gentner, Euphorbia mosaic virus, Helicoverpa zea (Boddie), Liriomyza huidobrensis (Blanchard), Liriomyza sativae (Blanchard), Liriomyza trifolii (Burgess), Pepper golden mosaic virus, Potato leafroll virus (non-EU isolates), Potato virus S (non-EU isolates), Potato virus X (non-EU isolates), Ralstonia pseudosolanacearum Safni et al., Ralstonia solanacearum (Smith) Yabuuchi et al. Emend. Safni et al., Spodoptera ornithogalli Guenée, Squash leaf curl virus, Thrips palmi Karny, Tomato golden mosaic virus, Tomato leaf curl Sinaloa virus;

• (2) ‘specified plants’ means unrooted cuttings intended for planting of Calibrachoa spp. and Petunia spp. and their hybrids, grown in Costa Rica and derived in direct line from mother plants imported from the Union.

Article 2

Derogation from the prohibition to introduce the specified plants into the Union territory

By way of derogation from point 18 of Annex VI to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072, the introduction into the Union territory of the specified plants shall be allowed subject to compliance with the requirements set out in Article 3 of this Regulation.

Article 3

Requirements for the introduction of the specified plants into, and their movement within, the Union territory

• (a) prior to the start of trade, the National Plant Protection Organisation (NPPO) of Costa Rica has communicated in writing to the Commission the list of measures intended to ensure the fulfilment of the requirements set out in point 1 of Annex I;

• (b) the NPPO of Costa Rica submits to the Commission, by 31 December of each year, the list of production sites, with their respective traceability codes, that are approved for export of the specified plants to the Union the following calendar year, and immediately communicates any amendment to that list;

• (c) the NPPO of Costa Rica submits to the Commission, by 31 March of each year, an annual report on the activities carried out the previous calendar year, containing all the elements set out in point 2 of Annex I.

• (a) the premises of professional operators that, pursuant to Article 89(1) of Regulation (EU) 2016/2031, are specifically authorised to issue plant passports for plants rooted or grown from the specified plants; or

• (b) the premises of the professional operator for whom the competent authorities issue the plant passports for the specified plants.

Prior to receiving the specified plants, the professional operators referred to in the first subparagraph shall inform the competent authorities of the expected date of arrival of those plants and shall keep the traceability code referred to in point 1(c) (iii) of Annex I.

In case of findings of specified pests on plants rooted or grown from the specified plants, at least all the plants rooted or grown from the same lot of specified plants shall be immediately destroyed, and if appropriate, the respective premises shall be cleaned and disinfected.

Where the NPPO of Costa Rica is informed of the presence of a specified pest on specified plants or on plants rooted or grown from the specified plants, the production site where those plants originate from shall no longer be approved for export to the Union and the NPPO of Costa Rica shall remove immediately that production site from the list of approved production sites referred to in paragraph 1, point (b), until it has been demonstrated that pest freedom has been restored.

Article 4

Amendment to Annex VI to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072

Annex VI to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 is amended as set out in Annex II to this Regulation.

Article 5

Entry into force and application

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

It shall apply until 31 December 2028.

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

Done at Brussels, 9 February 2026.

For the Commission

The President

Ursula VON DER LEYEN

[^ntr1-L_202600292EN.000101-E0001]: OJ L 317, 23.11.2016, p. 4, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2016/2031/oj.

[^ntr2-L_202600292EN.000101-E0002]: Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 of 28 November 2019 establishing uniform conditions for the implementation of Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 of the European Parliament and the Council, as regards protective measures against pests of plants, and repealing Commission Regulation (EC) No 690/2008 and amending Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/2019 (OJ L 319, 10.12.2019, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2019/2072/oj).

[^ntr3-L_202600292EN.000101-E0003]: EFSA PLH Panel (EFSA Panel on Plant Health), 2024, Commodity risk assessment of Petunia spp. and Calibrachoa spp. unrooted cuttings from Costa Rica, EFSA Journal 2024; 22:e9064 (https://doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2024.9064).

[^ntr4-L_202600292EN.000101-E0004]: Commission Implementing Decision 2012/270/EU of 16 May 2012 as regards emergency measures to prevent the introduction into and the spread within the Union of Epitrix cucumeris (Harris), Epitrix similaris (Gentner), Epitrix subcrinita (Lec.) and Epitrix tuberis (Gentner) (OJ L 132, 23.5.2012, p. 18, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2012/270/oj).

[^ntr5-L_202600292EN.000101-E0005]: Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/1941 of 13 October 2022 on the prohibition of introduction, movement, holding, multiplication or release of certain pests pursuant to Article 30(1) of Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 268, 14.10.2022, p. 13, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2022/1941/oj).

ANNEX I

Requirements referred to in Article 3 for the introduction of the specified plants into the Union territory

1.

The specified plants may only be introduced into the Union territory if they fulfil all of the following requirements:

• (a) they have been produced in production sites which:

• (i) are included by the NPPO of Costa Rica in a list of approved production sites recognised as free from the specified pests and allowed to export the specified plants to the Union;

• (ii) are identified by a unique traceability code that appears on the list referred to in point (i);

• (iii) are physically isolated against insects, with double doors, where the second door only opens after the first door has been completely closed, and have a system in place to ensure hygiene and disinfection procedures for the staff, equipment and all production processes;

• (iv) have a system to supply pest-free irrigation water, which is subject to at least two annual official inspections, including molecular testing, to ensure absence of Ralstonia pseudosolanacearum Safni et al. and Ralstonia solanacearum (Smith) Yabuuchi et al. Emend. Safni et al.;

• (v) are entirely dedicated to the production of the specified plants, or other plants fulfilling requirements of Union legislation on plant health, and are subject to a complete cleaning and disinfection before the introduction of new specified plants;

• (vi) have shelves to keep the pots at least 50 cm above the ground;

• (vii) have a system in place to keep record of all processes, including the lots produced and the procedures to control the specified pests during each production cycle;

• (viii) in case of findings of a specified pest, are removed from the list of production sites referred to in point (i) until the pest-free situation has been restored and are only then re-approved for the production and export of this material;

• (b) they have been:

• (i) grown in Costa Rica and derived in direct line from mother plants imported from the Union;

• (ii) produced using growing media and pots that are either new or subject to treatments to ensure freedom from soil-borne organisms and any specified pests before being used in the production process;

• (iii) monitored with traps for the presence of insects by trained staff;

• (iv) subject to visual examinations to ensure the absence of the specified pests or their symptoms by trained staff on a weekly basis;

• (v) subject, when appropriate, to treatments against pests;

• (vi) subject to molecular testing for the detection of Beet curly top virus, Euphorbia mosaic virus, Pepper golden mosaic virus, Potato leafroll virus (non-EU isolates), Potato virus S (non-EU isolates), Potato virus X (non-EU isolates), Squash leaf curl virus, Tomato golden mosaic virus and Tomato leaf curl Sinaloa virus at least once before the first lot of unrooted cuttings is exported to the Union during that production cycle or more frequently when Bemisia tabaci Genn., Thrips palmi Karny or insects known to transmit viruses are found in the production site;

• (c) prior to export, each lot of specified plants from each production site has been:

• (i) subject to an official inspection for the presence of the specified pests, by means of a sampling method allowing to detect at least a level of infestation of 1 %, with a level of confidence of 99 % in accordance with the International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures ISPM 31, including molecular testing for Beet curly top virus, Euphorbia mosaic virus, Pepper golden mosaic virus, Potato leafroll virus (non-EU isolates), Potato virus S (non-EU isolates), Potato virus X (non-EU isolates), Squash leaf curl virus, Tomato golden mosaic virus and Tomato leaf curl Sinaloa virus in case of suspicion of infection;

• (ii) transported from the production site to the storage, cooling or packaging facilities in the places of production, in such a way as to prevent contamination with the specified pests;

• (iii) packed in boxes, where each box includes a label with the traceability code of the production site;

• (d) they are accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate issued by the NPPO of Costa Rica, which certifies compliance with the requirements of this Regulation and includes, under the rubric Additional Declaration:

• (i) the name(s) of the approved production site(s) from which the plants originate;

• (ii) the traceability code(s) of the production site(s) from which the plants originate;

• (iii) the statement ‘This consignment meets the requirements laid down in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/292’.

2.

The annual report on the activities of the previous calendar year shall include for each production site:

• (a) the number of specified plants exported to the Union;

• (b) the overview of the official inspections carried out prior to export;

• (c) the findings of the presence of the specified pests;

• (d) the number of plants destroyed because of a suspicion of infestation or infestation with the specified pests; and

• (e) the actions taken to restore pest freedom of the production site and prevent recurrence of the specified pests.

ANNEX II

Amendment of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072

In point 18 of Annex VI to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072, the text of the column ‘Description’ is replaced by the following:

‘Plants for planting of Solanaceae other than seeds and the plants covered by entries 15, 16 or 17[^ntr*1-L_202600292EN.000801-E0001]

[^ntr*1-L_202600292EN.000801-E0001]: Except the following plants:’

• — unrooted cuttings intended for planting of Calibrachoa and Petunia and their hybrids from Costa Rica, which may be introduced into the Union subject to the requirements set out in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/292 of 9 February 2026 establishing a derogation from Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 concerning the introduction into the Union territory of unrooted cuttings for planting of Calibrachoa spp., Petunia spp. and their hybrids from Costa Rica (OJ L, 2026/292, 10.2.2026, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/ reg_impl/2026/292/oj).

• — unrooted cuttings intended for planting of Calibrachoa and Petunia and their hybrids from Guatemala, which may be introduced into the Union subject to the requirements set out in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1078 of 2 June 2025 establishing a derogation from Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 concerning the introduction into the Union territory of unrooted cuttings for planting of Calibrachoa spp., Petunia spp. and their hybrids from Guatemala (OJ L, 2025/1078, 3.6.2025, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2025/1078/oj);

• — unrooted cuttings intended for planting of Calibrachoa and Petunia and their hybrids from Kenya, which may be introduced into the Union subject to the requirements set out in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1082 of 2 June 2025 establishing a derogation from Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 concerning the introduction into the Union territory of unrooted cuttings for planting of Calibrachoa spp., Petunia spp. and their hybrids from Kenya (OJ L, 2025/1082, 3.6.2025, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2025/1082/oj).’.

ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2026/292/oj

ISSN 1977-0677 (electronic edition)