Council Regulation (EC) No 3285/94 of 22 December 1994 on the common rules for imports and repealing Regulation (EC) No 518/94
Modified by
Council Regulation (EC) No 139/96of 22 January 1996amending Regulations (EC) No 3285/94 and (EC) No 519/94 with respect to the uniform Community surveillance document, 31996R0139, January 27, 1996
Council Regulation (EC) No 2315/96of 25 November 1996establishing, pursuant to Article 1 (7) of Regulation (EEC) 3030/93, the list of textiles and clothing products to be integrated into GATT 1994 on 1 January 1998 and amending Annex X to Regulation (EEC) No 3030/93 and Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 3285/94, 31996R2315, December 4, 1996
Council Regulation (EC) No 1103/97of 17 June 1997on certain provisions relating to the introduction of the euro, 31997R1103, June 19, 1997
Council Regulation (EC) No 2474/2000of 9 November 2000establishing, pursuant to Article 1(7) of Regulation (EEC) No 3030/93, the list of textiles and clothing products to be integrated into GATT 1994 on 1 January 2002 and amending Annex X to Regulation (EEC) No 3030/93 and Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 3285/94, 32000R2474, November 11, 2000
Council Regulation (EC) No 2200/2004of 13 December 2004amending Council Regulations (EEC) No 3030/93 and (EC) No 3285/94 as regards the common rules for imports of certain textile products from third countries, 32004R2200, December 22, 2004
Council Regulation (EC) No 260/2009of 26 February 2009on the common rules for imports(Codified version), 32009R0260, March 31, 2009
Council Regulation (EC) No 3285/94of 22 December 1994on the common rules for imports and repealing Regulation (EC) No 518/94THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 113 thereof,Having regard to the instruments establishing the common organization of agricultural markets and the instruments concerning processed agricultural products, in particular in so far as they provide for derogation from the general principle that quantitative restrictions or measures having equivalent effect may be replaced solely by the measures provided for in the said instruments,Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament,Opinion delivered on 14 December 1994 (not yet published in the Official Journal).Whereas the common commercial policy should be based on uniform principles; whereas Council Regulation (EC) No 518/94 of 7 March 1994 on common rules for imports and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 288/82OJ No L 67, 10. 3. 1994, p. 77.is an important part of the policy;Whereas due account was taken when Regulation (EC) No 518/94 was adopted from the Community's international obligations, particularly those deriving from Article XIX of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT);Whereas the completion of the Uruguay Round has led to the foundation of the World Trade Organization (WTO); whereas Annex 1A to the Agreement establishing the WTO contains inter alia the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (GATT 1994) and an Agreement on Safeguards;Whereas the Agreement on Safeguard meets the need to clarify and reinforce the disciplines of GATT 1994, and specifically those of Article XIX; whereas that Agreement requires the elimination of safeguard measures which escape those rules, such as voluntary export restraints, orderly marketing arrangements and any other similar import or export arrangements;Whereas the Agreement on Safeguards also covers ECSC products; whereas the common rules for imports, especially as regards safeguard measures, therefore also applies to those products without prejudice to any possible measures to apply an agreement specifically concerning ECSC products;Whereas in the light of these new multilateral rules the common rules for imports should be made clearer and if necessary amended, particularly where the application of safeguard measures is concerned;Whereas the starting point for the common rules for imports is liberalization of imports, namely the absence of any quantitative restrictions;Whereas the Commission should be informed by the Member States of any danger created by trends in imports which might call for Community surveillance or the application of safeguard measures;Whereas in such instances the Commission should examine the terms and conditions under which imports occur, the trend in imports, the various aspects of the economic and trade situations and, where appropriate, the measures to be applied;Whereas if Community surveillance is applied, release for free circulation of the products concerned should be made subject to presentation of an import document meeting uniform criteria; whereas that document should, on simple application by the importer, be endorsed by the authorities of the Member States within a certain period but without the importer thereby acquiring any right to import; whereas the document should therefore be valid only during such period as the import rules remain unchanged;Whereas the Member States and the Commission should exchange the information resulting from Community surveillance as fully as possible;Whereas it falls to the Commission and the Council to adopt the safeguard measures required by the interests of the Community; whereas those interests should be considered as a whole and should in particular encompass the interest of Community producers, users and consumers;Whereas safeguard measures against a Member of the WTO may be considered only if the product in question is imported into the Community in such greatly increased quantities and on such terms or conditions as to cause, or threaten to cause, serious injury to Community producers of like or directly competing products, unless international obligations permit derogation from this rule;Whereas the terms "serious injury", "threat of serious injury" and "Community producers" should be defined and more precise criteria for determining injury be established;Whereas an investigation must precede the application of any safeguard measure, subject to the reservation that the Commission be allowed in urgent cases to apply provisional measures;Whereas there should be more detailed provisions on the opening of investigations, the checks and inspections required, access by exporter countries and interested parties to the information gathered, hearings for the parties involved and the opportunities for those parties to submit their views;Whereas the provisions on investigations introduced by this Regulation are without prejudice to Community or national rules concerning professional secrecy;Whereas it is also necessary to set time limits for the initiation of investigations and for determinations as to whether or not measures are appropriate, with a view to ensuring that such determinations are made quickly, in order to increase legal certainty for the economic operators concerned;Whereas in cases in which safeguard measures take the form of a quota the level of the latter should be set in principle no lower than the average level of imports over a representative period of at least three years;Whereas in cases in which a quota is allocated among supplier countries each country's quota may be determined by agreement with the countries themselves or by taking as a reference the level of imports over a representative period; whereas derogations from these rules should nevertheless be possible where there is serious injury and a disproportionate increase in imports, provided that due consultation under the auspices of the WTO Committee on Safeguards takes place;Whereas the maximum duration of safeguard measures should be determined and specific provisions regarding extension, progressive liberalization and reviews of such measures be laid down;Whereas the circumstances in which products originating in a developing country Member of the WTO should be exempt from safeguard measures should be established;Whereas surveillance or safeguard measures confined to one or more regions of the Community may prove more suitable than measures applying to the whole Community; whereas, however, such measures should be authorized only exceptionally and where no alternative exists; whereas it is necessary to ensure that such measures are temporary and cause the minimum of disruption to the operation of the internal market;Whereas in the interests of uniformity in rules for imports, the formalities to be carried out by importers should be simplified and made identical regardless of the place where the goods clear customs; whereas it is therefore desirable to provide that any formalities should be carried out using forms corresponding to the specimen annexed to the Regulation;Whereas import documents issued in connection with Community surveillance measures should be valid throughout the Community irrespective of the Member State of issue;Whereas the textile products covered by Council Regulation (EC) No 517/94 of 7 March 1994 on common rules for imports of textile products from certain third countries not covered by bilateral agreements, protocols or other arrangements, or by other specific Community import rulesOJ No L 67, 10. 3. 1994, p. 1.are subject to special treatment at Community and international level, except for the products listed in Annex II which are integrated into GATT 1994; whereas they should therefore be excluded from the scope of this Regulation;Whereas the provisions of this Regulation are applicable without prejudice to Articles 77, 81, 244, 249 and 280 of the Act of Accession of Spain and Portugal;Whereas national restrictions with respect to products falling under the ECSC Treaty will be progressively dismantled in accordance with the provisions of the WTO;Whereas Regulation (EC) No 518/94 should consequently be repealed,HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION