1.7.2014 EN Official Journal of the European Union L 192/53 COUNCIL DECISION of 24 June 2014 on the arrangements for the implementation by the Union of the solidarity clause (2014/415/EU) THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular the first sentence of Article 222(3) thereof, Having regard to the joint proposal of the European Commission and of the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Whereas: (1) This Decision concerns the implementation by the Union of Article 222 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) (‘the solidarity clause’). It does not concern the implementation by Member States of the solidarity clause pursuant to Article 222(2) TFEU. According to Declaration (No 37) on Article 222 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, a Member State can choose the most appropriate means to comply with its own solidarity obligation towards another Member State. (2) Pursuant to Article 222(1) TFEU, the Union and the Member States are to act jointly in a spirit of solidarity if a Member State is the object of a terrorist attack or the victim of a natural or man-made disaster. Coherence and complementarity of Union and Member States' action should be sought, to the benefit of any Member State invoking the solidarity clause and to avoid duplication of efforts. Given that Member States are to coordinate between themselves in the Council in order to comply with their own solidarity obligations pursuant to Article 222(2) TFEU, it is appropriate to have arrangements for coordination in the Council in respect of the implementation by the Union of the solidarity clause. (3) Arrangements for coordination in the Council should rely on the EU Integrated Political Crisis Response (IPCR) Arrangements, approved by the Council on 25 June 2013, which state that the IPCR is also to support the arrangements for the implementation of the solidarity clause. It is appropriate that the Council adapts the IPCR arrangements, in particular in the case of a review. (4) The implementation of the solidarity clause by the Union should rely on existing instruments to the extent possible, should increase effectiveness by enhancing coordination and avoiding duplication, should function on the basis of no additional resources, should provide a simple and clear interface at Union level to Member States, and should respect the competences conferred upon each Union institution and service. (5) The solidarity clause calls for the Union to mobilise all the instruments at its disposal. Relevant instruments include the European Union Internal Security Strategy, the European Union Civil Protection Mechanism established by Decision No 1313/2013/EU of the European Parliament and the Council (1) (‘the Union Mechanism’), Decision No 1082/2013/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (2) and the structures developed in the framework of the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). (6) The scope of the arrangements for the implementation by the Union of the solidarity clause should be clearly defined. (7) As regards the fight against terrorism, the strategic framework for Union action is the European Union Counter-Terrorism Strategy. Various instruments are in place, such as instruments strengthening the protection of critical infrastructures in energy and transport (3). Actions have also been taken following the Commission's Communication entitled ‘The EU Counter-Terrorism Policy: main achievements and future challenges’, for instance actions enhancing the cooperation between law enforcement authorities, reinforcing the prevention of radicalisation, in particular through the setting up of the Radicalisation Awareness Network, and limiting the access of terrorists to funds as well as to explosives (4) and chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear materials, as well as actions enhancing the security of explosives. (8) An invocation mechanism and a phasing-out mechanism for the arrangements under this Decision should be defined at Union level, based on a high-level political request from the Member State concerned and supported by a single entry point at Union level. (9) Response arrangements at Union level should improve effectiveness through strengthened coordination, building on existing instruments. (10) The Union Mechanism aims to strengthen cooperation between the Member States and the Union and to facilitate coordination in the field of civil protection. Decision No 1313/2013/EU established the Emergency Response Coordination Centre (the ‘ERCC’) that is to ensure 24/7 operational capacity and serve the Member States and the Commission in pursuit of the objectives of the Union Mechanism. (11) The European External Action Service (EEAS) has at its disposal structures with intelligence and military expertise, as well as the network of Delegations that may also contribute in the response to threats or disasters in the territory of Member States or to crises having an external dimension. Depending on the crisis, other structures and Union agencies in the field of Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) including the CSDP should provide, as appropriate, contributions in line with relevant provisions of Union law. (12) Where necessary and practicable in view of urgency, the response arrangements at Union level should be complemented by the adoption of legal acts or the amendment of existing acts in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Treaties. (13) This Decision will have no defence implications. In the event that a crisis requires CFSP or CSDP action, a decision should be taken by the Council in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Treaties. (14) This Decision is without prejudice to Article 42(7) of the Treaty on European Union. (15) The Commission Communication entitled ‘EU Internal Security Strategy in Action: Five steps towards a more secure Europe’ set the objective of increasing the Union's resilience to crises and disasters through a number of actions, including by making full use of the solidarity clause. As recalled by the Council in its Conclusions of 24 and 25 February 2011, increasing Europe's resilience to crises and disasters is crucial in further strengthening freedom, security and justice in the Union. (16) The European Council is to regularly assess the threats facing the Union in order to enable the Union and its Member States to take effective action. Upon request from the European Council, reports on specified threats should be produced. (17) In accordance with point (a) of Article 346(1) TFEU, no Member State is to be obliged to supply information the disclosure of which it considers contrary to the essential interests of its security. (18) On 22 November 2012, the European Parliament adopted resolution 2012/2223, entitled ‘EU's mutual defence and solidarity clauses: political and operational dimensions’. (19) This Decision respects the fundamental rights and observes the principles recognised by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, and it should be applied in accordance with those rights and principles. (20) Since the objective of this Decision, namely implementation by the Union of the solidarity clause, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States but can rather, by reason of the scale and effects of the action, be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union. In accordance with the principle of proportionality as set out in that Article, this Decision does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve that objective, HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION: Article 1 General objective and subject matter 1. This Decision lays down rules and procedures for the implementation by the Union of Article 222 TFEU (‘the solidarity clause’). 2. In order to ensure coherence and complementarity of Union and Member State action, coordination at political level of the response to the invocation of the solidarity clause shall be carried out by the Council, using the IPCR arrangements. Support to the operation of the IPCR arrangements shall be provided by the General Secretariat of the Council (GSC), the Commission and the EEAS. 3. Arrangements at Union level shall be based upon existing mechanisms in the Council, the Commission, the EEAS and Union agencies to provide information and support. Where relevant, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (HR) and the EEAS shall contribute by taking initiatives and providing relevant information and support within the HR's area of competence. 4. Relevant Union instruments and the IPCR arrangements shall follow their own procedures and may be active before the invocation and after the phasing out of the response under this Decision. 5. The arrangements pursuant to this Decision shall improve efficiency through enhanced coordination between Union and Member State responses. Article 2 Scope 1. In the event of a terrorist attack or a natural or man-made disaster, irrespective of whether it originates inside or outside the territory of the Member States, this Decision shall apply: (a) within the territory of Member States to which the Treaties apply, meaning land area, internal waters, territorial sea and airspace; (b) when affecting infrastructure (such as off-shore oil and gas installations) situated in the territorial sea, the exclusive economic zone or the continental shelf of a Member State. When having recourse to the arrangements under this Decision, and notably when mobilising the instruments at its disposal, the Union shall be bound by international law and shall not encroach upon the rights of non-Member States. 2. This Decision has no defence implications. Article 3 Definitions For the purposes of this Decision, the following definitions apply: (a) ‘disaster’ means any situation which has or may have a severe impact on people, the environment or property, including cultural heritage; (b) ‘terrorist attack’ means a terrorist offence as defined in Council Framework Decision 2002/475/JHA (5); (c) ‘crisis’ means a disaster or terrorist attack of such a wide-ranging impact or political significance that it requires timely policy coordination and response at Union political level; (d) ‘response’ means any action taken in the event of a disaster or a terrorist attack to address its immediate adverse consequences. Article 4 Invocation of the solidarity clause 1. In the event of a disaster or terrorist attack, the affected Member State may invoke the solidarity clause if, after having exploited the possibilities offered by existing means and tools at national and Union level, it considers that the crisis clearly overwhelms the response capabilities available to it. 2. The political authorities of the affected Member State shall address their invocation to the Presidency of the Council. The invocation shall also be addressed to the President of the European Commission through the ERCC. Article 5 Response arrangements at Union level 1. Once the solidarity clause has been invoked, the Council shall ensure the political and strategic direction of the Union response to the invocation of the solidarity clause, taking full account of the Commission's and the HR's competences. To that end, the Presidency of the Council shall activate the IPCR arrangements immediately if not already in use, and thus inform all Member States of the solidarity clause invocation. 2. At the same time, and in accordance with Article 1(3), the Commission and the HR shall: (a) identify all relevant Union instruments that can best contribute to the response to the crisis, including sector-specific, operational, policy or financial instruments and structures and take all necessary measures provided under those instruments; (b) identify military capabilities that can best contribute to the response to the crisis with the support of the EU Military Staff; (c) identify and propose the use of instruments and resources falling within the remit of Union agencies that can best contribute to the response to the crisis; (d) advise the Council on whether existing instruments are sufficient means to assist the affected Member State following the invocation of the solidarity clause; (e) produce regular integrated situational awareness and analysis reports to inform and support the coordination and decision-making at political level in the Council, in accordance with Article 6 of this Decision. 3. Where appropriate, and in accordance with Article 1(3), the Commission and the HR shall submit proposals to the Council, in particular concerning: (a) decisions on exceptional measures not foreseen by existing instruments; (b) requests for military capabilities going beyond the existing arrangements on civil protection; or (c) measures in support of a swift response by Member States. 4. Making use of the IPCR arrangements, the Presidency of the Council shall ensure coherence of the handling in the Council and of the overall response at Union political level, including as concerns the development and update of proposals for action, while respecting the right of initiative of the Commission and HR within their areas of competence. In doing so, the Presidency shall be supported and advised by the GSC, the Commission and the EEAS, and, in the event of terrorist attacks, by the EU Counter Terrorism Coordinator. Depending on the crisis, structures and Union agencies in the field of CFSP/CSDP shall provide, as appropriate, contributions in line with the relevant provisions of Union law. 5. The Presidency of the Council will inform the President of the European Council and the President of the European Parliament of the invocation of the solidarity clause and of any major developments. 6. Upon invocation of the solidarity clause, the ERCC shall act as the central 24/7 contact point at Union level with Member States' competent authorities and other stakeholders, without prejudice to existing responsibilities within the Commission and the HR and to existing information networks. The ERCC will facilitate the production of Integrated Situational Awareness and Analysis (ISAA) reports, in collaboration with the EU Situation Room and other Union crisis centres, in accordance with Article 6 of this Decision. Article 6 Integrated Situational Awareness and Analysis reports ISAA reports shall be tailored to the needs of the Union political level as defined by the Presidency of the Council, and shall allow for a strategic overview of the situation within the Council, in accordance with the IPCR arrangements. Such reports shall bring together validated contributions voluntarily made available by Member States, the Commission, the EEAS and by the relevant Union agencies, as well as by relevant international organisations. In the event of an invocation regarding a terrorist attack, intelligence assessments and briefings shall be handled separately through existing channels. Article 7 Phasing out The phasing out of the response under this Decision shall follow the same procedure as that provided for in Article 4(2). The Member State having invoked the solidarity clause shall indicate as soon as it considers that there is no longer a need for the invocation to remain active. Article 8 Threat assessment at Union level 1. In order to regularly assess the threats facing the Union, the European Council may request the Commission, the HR and Union agencies, where relevant, to produce reports on specified threats. 2. Unless otherwise stipulated by the European Council, any such reports shall be based solely on available assessments of threats compiled by relevant Union institutions, bodies and agencies under existing arrangements, and on information provided voluntarily by the Member States, while avoiding duplication of efforts. The EU Counter Terrorism Coordinator shall be associated with the preparation of such reports where relevant. In accordance with point (a) of Article 346(1) TFEU, no Member State shall be obliged to supply information the disclosure of which it considers contrary to the essential interests of its security. Article 9 Review 1. The arrangements under this Decision shall be reviewed periodically according to identified needs, and in any event within 12 months following the termination of the invocation to ensure that relevant lessons are identified and addressed. This review shall be carried out in the Council on the basis of a joint report prepared by the Commission and the HR. 2. Where appropriate, this Decision may be revised. In such cases, and in accordance with Article 222(3) TFEU, the Council shall be assisted by the Political and Security Committee and the Standing Committee on Operational Cooperation on Internal Security. 3. Where appropriate, the Council may adapt the IPCR arrangements, in particular to address needs identified by the Council in the context of a review or following a revision of this Decision. Article 10 Financial Implications Any financial resources necessary for the implementation of this Decision shall be mobilised within the agreed annual expenditure limits and in accordance with the scope of existing Union instruments, while respecting the yearly multiannual financial framework ceilings. Article 11 Entry into force This Decision shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union. Done at Luxembourg, 24 June 2014. For the Council The President E. VENIZELOS (1) Decision No 1313/2013/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 on a Union Civil Protection Mechanism (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 924). (2) Decision No 1082/2013/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2013 on serious cross-border threats to health and repealing Decision No 2119/98/EC (OJ L 293, 5.11.2013, p. 1). (3) As identified in Council Directive 2008/114/EC of 8 December 2008 on the identification and designation of European critical infrastructures and the assessment of the need to improve their protection (OJ L 345, 23.12.2008, p. 75). (4) Regulation (EU) No 98/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 January 2013 on the marketing and use of explosives precursors (OJ L 39, 9.2.2013, p. 1). (5) Council Framework Decision 2002/475/JHA of 13 June 2002 on combating terrorism (OJ L 164, 22.6.2002, p. 3).

Summary: Putting the EU's solidarity clause into practice Putting the EU's solidarity clause into practice Council Decision 2014/415/EU on the EU's implementation of the solidarity clause ACT Council Decision 2014/415/EU of 24 June 2014 on the arrangements for the implementation by the Union of the solidarity clause SUMMARY The solidarity clause enables the European Union (EU) and EU countries to act jointly in assisting another EU country being the object of a terrorist attack or the victim of a natural or man-made disaster. WHAT DOES THIS DECISION DO? The decision lays down the rules and procedures for the operation of the solidarity clause. It ensures that all the parties concerned at national and at EU level work together to respond quickly, effectively and consistently in the event of terrorist attacks or natural or man-made disasters. KEY POINTS The clause applies: — to disasters and terrorist attacks within the EU territory, whether on land, sea or in the air; — to the protection of infrastructure (such as offshore gas and oil rigs) in EU countries' territorial waters; — irrespective of whether the crisis originates inside or outside the EU. Invoking the solidarity clause The EU country affected may invoke the solidarity clause if it considers that its own response capacities are overwhelmed. It must address its request to the Presidency of the Council and to the President of the European Commission by means of the Commission's Emergency Response Centre (ERCC). EU reaction mechanism Once the solidarity clause has been invoked, the EU mobilises all sector-specific, operational, policy or financial instruments and structures at its disposal, such as, for example, the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, the instruments under the EU Internal Security Strategy and the structures developed in the context of the EU's Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). The Council ensures the political and strategic direction of the response, taking full account of the Commission's and the High Representative's competences. It immediately activates the Integrated Political Crisis Response arrangements (IPCR) to ensure a consistent reaction at EU level. In parallel, the Commission and the EU's High Representative: — identify all the instruments and capabilities that can best help to respond to the crisis; — make proposals to the Council for exceptional measures or measures in support of EU countries' rapid reaction. WHEN DOES THE DECISION APPLY? The decision applies from 20 July 2014. BACKGROUND The EU's solidarity clause implements Article 222 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). REFERENCES Act Entry into force Deadline for transposition in the Member States Official Journal Decision 2014/415/EU 21.7.2014 - OJ L 192, 1.7.2014, p 53-58 Corrigendum - - OJ L 221, 25.7.2014,p. 26 Corrigendum - - OJ L 275, 17.9.2014, p.7 last update 21.09.2015


7.6.2014 EN Official Journal of the European Union L 168/39 COUNCIL REGULATION (EU, Euratom) No 609/2014 of 26 May 2014 on the methods and procedure for making available the traditional, VAT and GNI-based own resources and on the measures to meet cash requirements (Recast) THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 322(2) thereof, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community, and in particular Article 106a thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments, Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament, Having regard to the opinion of the European Court of Auditors (1), Whereas: (1) Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1150/2000 (2) has been substantially amended several times. Since further amendments are to be made, it should be recast in the interests of clarity. (2) Certain provisions of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1150/2000 have been included in Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 608/2014 (3) and are not covered by this Regulation. Those provisions concern the calculation and budgeting of the balance, control and supervision of own resources and relevant reporting requirements, as well as the Advisory Committee on Own Resources (ACOR). (3) The Union must have the own resources referred to in Article 2 of Council Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom (4) available in the best possible conditions and accordingly rules should be laid down for the Member States to provide the Commission with those own resources. This Regulation takes over the rules on making available the traditional own resources referred to in Article 2(1)(a) of Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom, the own resources based on value added tax (VAT) referred to in Article 2(1)(b) of that Decision (‘VAT-based own resource’) and own resources based on gross national income (GNI) referred to in Article 2(1)(c) of that Decision (‘GNI-based own resource’), previously included in Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1150/2000. (4) The concept of establishment should be defined in respect of the own resources and detailed rules should be laid down for satisfying the obligation to establish the traditional own resources referred to in Article 2(1)(a) of Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom. (5) For own resources deriving from sugar levies, which need to be recovered in the budget year corresponding to the marketing year to which the expenditure relates, provision should be made for the Member States to make such levies available to the Commission during the budget year in which they are established. (6) The Member States should keep at the disposal of the Commission and, where necessary, forward to it the documents and information needed to allow it to exercise the power conferred upon it as regards the own resources of the Union. (7) The national authorities responsible for the collection of own resources should be able to produce to the Commission at all times the documents substantiating the own resources collected. (8) Separate accounts should be kept for entitlements which have not been recovered. These accounts and the submission of a quarterly statement of such accounts should enable the Commission to monitor more closely the action taken by Member States to collect own resources, and particularly those compromised by fraud or irregularities. (9) A time-limit should be laid down for relations between Member States and the Commission, given that new entitlements established by Member States in respect of earlier years are deemed to be establishments for the current year. (10) In order to ensure that the budget of the Union will be financed in all circumstances, a procedure should be laid down, as regards the VAT-based own resource and the GNI-based own resource created in accordance with Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1287/2003 (5), for Member States to make available to the Union, in the form of constant monthly twelfths, the own resources entered in the budget and subsequently to adjust the amounts made available in accordance with the actual base of the VAT-based own resource and the relevant changes to GNI as soon as they are fully known. (11) The impact of modifications in the GNI data made after the end of each financial year on the financing of gross reductions should be clarified. (12) The own resources must be made available in the form of an entry of the amounts due in an account opened for this purpose in the name of the Commission with the Treasury or with the body appointed by each Member State. In order to restrict the movements of funds to that which is necessary for the implementation of the budget, the Union must confine itself to drawing on those accounts solely to cover the Commission's cash requirements. (13) The Commission must have sufficient cash resources to comply with the regulatory requirements for payments concentrated in the opening months of the year, in particular for the specific needs of paying expenditure of the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) pursuant to Council Regulation (EC) No 73/2009 (6). (14) In accordance with the principle of sound financial management, care should be taken that the cost of recovery of interest due on own resources made available belatedly should not exceed the amount of the interest payable. (15) The reporting of write-off cases concerning established entitlements declared or deemed irrecoverable should be harmonised. (16) Close collaboration between Member States and the Commission will facilitate proper application of the financial rules relating to own resources. (17) In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this Regulation, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council (7). (18) The advisory procedure should be used for the adoption of implementing acts in order to establish detailed rules for the monthly statements of the accounts for the entitlements to traditional own resources and the quarterly statements of the separate accounts, as well as for the cases concerning irrecoverable amounts exceeding EUR 50 000, given the technical nature of those acts required for reporting purposes. (19) Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1150/2000 should be repealed. (20) For reasons of consistency and taking account of Article 11 of Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom, this Regulation should enter into force on the same day as that Decision and should apply from 1 January 2014, HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: CHAPTER I GENERAL PROVISIONS Article 1 Subject matter This Regulation lays down rules on making available to the Commission the own resources of the Union referred to in Article 2(1)(a), (b) and (c) of Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom. Article 2 Date of establishment of traditional own resources 1. For the purpose of applying this Regulation, the Union's entitlement to the traditional own resources referred to in Article 2(1)(a) of Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom shall be established as soon as the conditions provided for by the customs regulations have been met concerning the entry of the entitlement in the accounts and the notification of the debtor. 2. The date of the establishment referred to in paragraph 1 shall be the date of entry in the accounting ledgers provided for by the customs regulations. As regards the levies and other charges connected with the common organisation of the sugar market, the date of the establishment referred to in paragraph 1 shall be the date of notification under the sugar regulations. Where that notification is not explicitly provided for, the date shall be the date of establishment by the Member States of the amounts due by the debtors, where necessary by way of advance payment or payment of balance. 3. In disputed cases, the competent administrative authorities shall be deemed, for the purposes of the establishment referred to in paragraph 1, to be in a position to calculate the amount of the entitlement not later than when the first administrative decision is taken notifying the debtor of the debt or when judicial proceedings are brought if this occurs first. The date of the establishment referred to in paragraph 1 shall be the date of the decision or of the calculation to be made following the initiation of those judicial proceedings. 4. Paragraph 1 shall apply when a notification must be corrected. Article 3 Conservation of supporting documents Member States shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that the supporting documents concerning the establishment and making available of own resources are kept for at least three calendar years, counting from the end of the year to which these supporting documents refer. The supporting documents relating to the statistical procedures and bases referred to in Article 3 of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1287/2003 shall be kept by the Member States until 30 September of the fourth year following the financial year in question. The supporting documents relating to the VAT-based own resource base shall be kept for the same period. If verification pursuant to Article 2(3) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 608/2014 or Article 11 of Council Regulation (EEC, Euratom) No 1553/89 (8) of the supporting documents referred to in the first and second paragraphs shows that a correction is required, they shall be kept beyond the time limit provided for in the first paragraph for a sufficient period to permit the correction to be made and monitored. Where a dispute between a Member State and the Commission concerning the obligation to make available a certain amount of own resources is settled by mutual agreement or by a decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union, the Member State shall transmit the supporting documents necessary for the financial follow-up to the Commission within two months after that settlement. Article 4 Administrative cooperation 1. Each Member State shall inform the Commission of the following: (a) the names of the departments or agencies responsible for establishing, collecting, making available and controlling own resources and the basic provisions relating to the role and operation of those departments and agencies; (b) the general provisions laid down by law, regulation or administrative action and those relating to accounting procedure concerning the establishment, collection, making available and control by the Commission of own resources; (c) the precise title of all administrative and accounting records in which are entered the established entitlements as specified in Article 2, in particular those used for drawing up the accounts provided for in Article 6. The Commission shall be informed immediately of any change in these names or provisions. 2. The Commission shall, at the request of a Member State, transmit to all Member States the information referred to in paragraph 1. Article 5 Applicable rates The uniform rate referred to in Article 2(1)(c) of Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom shall be set in the course of the budgetary procedure and shall be calculated as a percentage of the sum of the forecast of the gross national income (GNI) of the Member States in such a manner that it fully covers that part of the budget not financed from the revenue referred to in Article 2(1)(a) and (b) of Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom, from financial contributions to supplementary research and technological development programmes and other revenue. That rate shall be expressed in the budget by a figure containing as many decimal places as is necessary to fully divide the GNI-based own resource among the Member States. CHAPTER II ACCOUNTS FOR OWN RESOURCES Article 6 Entry in the accounts and reporting 1. Accounts for own resources shall be kept by the Treasury of each Member State or by the body appointed by each Member State and broken down by type of resources. 2. For own-resources accounting purposes, the month shall end no earlier than 1 p.m. on the last working day of the month during which establishment took place. 3. Entitlements established in accordance with Article 2 shall, subject to the second subparagraph of this paragraph, be entered in the accounts at the latest on the first working day after the nineteenth day of the second month following the month during which the entitlement was established. Established entitlements not entered in the accounts referred to in the first subparagraph, because they have not yet been recovered and no security has been provided, shall be shown in separate accounts within the period laid down in the first subparagraph. Member States may adopt this procedure where established entitlements for which security has been provided have been challenged and might, upon settlement of the disputes which have arisen, be subject to change. The VAT-based own resource and the GNI-based own resource, taking into account the effect on these resources of the correction granted to the United Kingdom for budgetary imbalances and the gross reduction granted to Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria and Sweden, shall, however, be recorded in the accounts as specified in the first subparagraph as follows: — the twelfths referred to in Article 10(3) shall be recorded on the first working day of each month, — the balances referred to in Article 10(4) and (6) and the adjustments referred to in Article 10(5) and (7) shall be recorded annually, except for the particular adjustments referred to in the first indent of Article 10(5), which shall be recorded in the accounts on the first working day of the month following agreement between the Member State concerned and the Commission. Established entitlements relating to levies and other charges connected with the common organisation of the sugar market shall be entered in the accounts referred to in the first subparagraph. If those entitlements are not then recovered within the time-limits set, the Member States may correct the entry and, by way of exception, enter the entitlements in the separate accounts. 4. Each Member State shall send the Commission, within the time limits specified in paragraph 3: (a) a monthly statement of its accounts for the entitlements referred to in the first subparagraph of paragraph 3; (b) a quarterly statement of the separate accounts referred to in the second subparagraph of paragraph 3. Together with those monthly statements the Member States concerned shall provide details or statements of deductions from own resources based on provisions relating to special-status territories. Together with the final quarterly statement for a given year, Member States shall forward an estimate of the total amount of entitlements contained in the separate account at 31 December of that year for which recovery has become unlikely. The Commission shall adopt implementing acts establishing detailed rules for the monthly and quarterly statements. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the advisory procedure referred to in paragraph 2 of Article 16. Article 7 Accounting corrections After 31 December of the third year following a given year, no further corrections shall be made to the sum of the monthly statements communicated by Member States under the first subparagraph of Article 6(4) for the year in question, except on points notified before this date either by the Commission or by the Member State concerned. Article 8 Corrections of establishments Corrections carried out under Article 2(4) shall be added to or subtracted from the total amount of established entitlements. They shall be recorded in the accounts referred to in the first and second subparagraph of Article 6(3) and in the statements referred to in Article 6(4) in accordance with the date of those corrections. CHAPTER III MAKING AVAILABLE OWN RESOURCES Article 9 Treasury and accounting arrangements 1. In accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 10, each Member State shall credit own resources to the account opened in the name of the Commission with its Treasury or the body it has appointed. This account shall be kept in national currency and is free of charge. 2. Member States or the bodies appointed by them shall transmit to the Commission, by electronic means: (a) on the working day on which the own resources are credited to the account of the Commission, a statement of account or a credit advice showing the entry of the own resources; (b) without prejudice to point (a), at the latest on the second working day following the crediting of the account, a statement of account showing the entry of the own resources. 3. The amounts credited shall be accounted for in euro in accordance with Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council (9) (‘Financial Regulation’) and Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1268/2012 (10). Article 10 Determining amounts, timing for making available, adjustments 1. After deduction of collection costs in accordance with Article 2(3) and Article 10(3) of Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom, entry of the traditional own resources referred to in Article 2(1)(a) of that Decision shall be made at the latest on the first working day following the nineteenth day of the second month following the month during which the entitlement was established in accordance with Article 2 of this Regulation. However, for entitlements shown in separate accounts under the second subparagraph of Article 6(3) of this Regulation, the entry must be made at the latest on the first working day following the nineteenth day of the second month following the month in which the entitlements were recovered. 2. If necessary, Member States may be invited by the Commission to bring forward by one month the entry of resources other than the VAT-based own resource and the GNI-based own resource on the basis of the information available to them on the fifteenth of the same month. Each entry brought forward shall be adjusted the following month when the entry mentioned in paragraph 1 is made. This adjustment shall entail the negative entry of an amount equal to that given in the entry brought forward. 3. The VAT-based own resource and the GNI-based own resource, taking into account the effect on these resources of the correction granted to the United Kingdom for budgetary imbalances and of the gross reduction granted to Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria and Sweden, shall be credited on the first working day of each month, the amounts being one-twelfth of the relevant totals in the budget, converted into national currencies at the rates of exchange of the last day of quotation of the calendar year preceding the budget year, as published in the Official Journal of the European Union, C Series. For the specific needs of paying expenditure of the EAGF pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 73/2009, and depending on the Union's cash position, Member States may be invited by the Commission to bring forward by one or two months in the first quarter of the financial year the entry of one-twelfth or a fraction of one-twelfth of the amounts in the budget for the VAT-based own resource and the GNI-based own resource, taking into account the effect on these resources of the correction granted to the United Kingdom for budgetary imbalances and of the gross reduction granted to Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria and Sweden. After the first quarter, the monthly entry requested may not exceed one-twelfth of the VAT and GNI-based own resources, while remaining within the limit of the amounts entered in the budget for that purpose. The Commission shall notify the Member States thereof in advance, no later than two weeks before the entry requested. The eighth subparagraph concerning the amount to be entered in January each year and the ninth subparagraph applicable if the budget has not been finally adopted before the beginning of the financial year shall apply to these advance entries. Any change in the uniform rate of the VAT-based own resource, in the rate of the GNI-based own resource, in the correction granted to the United Kingdom for budgetary imbalances and in its financing referred to in Article 4 and 5 of Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom, and in the financing of the gross reduction granted to Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria and Sweden shall require the final adoption of an amending budget and shall give rise to readjustments of the twelfths which have been entered since the beginning of the financial year. These readjustments shall be carried out when the first entry is made following the final adoption of the amending budget if it is adopted before the sixteenth of the month. Otherwise they shall be carried out when the second entry following final adoption is made. By way of derogation from Article 11 of the Financial Regulation, these readjustments shall be entered in the accounts in respect of the financial year of the amending budget in question. Calculation of the twelfths for January of each financial year shall be based on the amounts provided for in the draft budget, referred to in Article 314(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of European Union (TFEU) and converted into national currencies at the rates of exchange of the first day of quotation following 15 December of the calendar year preceding the budget year; the adjustment shall be made with the entry for the following month. If the budget has not been finally adopted at the latest two weeks before the entry for January of the following financial year, the Member States shall enter on the first working day of each month, including January, one-twelfth of the amount of the VAT-based own resource, and the GNI-based own resource, taking into account the effect on these resources of the correction granted to the United Kingdom for budgetary imbalances and of the gross reduction granted to Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria and Sweden, entered in the last budget finally adopted; the adjustment shall be made on the first due date following final adoption of the budget if it is adopted before the sixteenth of the month. Otherwise, the adjustment shall be made on the second due date following final adoption of the budget. 4. Each Member State shall, on the basis of the annual statement on the VAT-based own resource base provided for in Article 7(1) of Regulation (EEC, Euratom) No 1553/89, be debited with an amount calculated from the information contained in that statement by applying the uniform rate adopted for the previous financial year and credited with the 12 payments made during that financial year. However, each Member State's VAT-based own resource base to which that rate is applied may not exceed the percentage determined by Article 2(1)(b) of Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom of its GNI, as referred to in the first subparagraph of Article 2(7) of that Decision. The Commission shall calculate the balance and shall inform the Member States in time for them to enter it in the account referred to in Article 9(1) of this Regulation on the first working day of December of the same year. 5. Any corrections to the VAT-based own resource base under Article 9(1) of Regulation (EEC, Euratom) No 1553/89 shall give rise for each Member State concerned whose base, allowing for those corrections, does not exceed the percentages determined by Articles 2(1)(b) and 10(2) of Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom to the following adjustments to the balance referred to in paragraph 4 of this Article: — the corrections under the first subparagraph of Article 9(1) of Regulation (EEC, Euratom) No 1553/89 made by 31 July shall give rise to a general adjustment to be entered in the account referred to in Article 9(1) of this Regulation on the first working day of December of the same year. However, a particular adjustment may be entered before that date if the Member State concerned and the Commission are in agreement; — where the measures which the Commission takes under the second subparagraph of Article 9(1) of Regulation (EEC, Euratom) No 1553/89 to correct the base lead to an adjustment of the entries in the account referred to in Article 9(1) of this Regulation, that adjustment shall be made on the date specified by the Commission pursuant to those measures. The changes to GNI referred to in paragraph 7 of this Article shall also give rise to an adjustment of the balance of any Member State whose base, allowing for the corrections referred to in the first subparagraph of this paragraph, is capped at the percentages determined by Articles 2(1)(b) and 10(2) of Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom. The Commission shall inform the Member States of these adjustments in time for them to enter them in the account referred to in Article 9(1) on the first working day of December of the same year. However, a particular adjustment may be entered at any time if the Member State concerned and the Commission are in agreement. 6. On the basis of figures for aggregate GNI at market prices and its components from the preceding year, supplied by the Member States in accordance with Article 2(2) of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1287/2003, each Member State shall be debited with an amount calculated by applying to GNI the rate adopted for the previous financial year and credited with the payments made during that previous financial year. The Commission shall work out the balance and shall inform the Member States in time for them to enter it in the account referred to in Article 9(1) of this Regulation on the first working day of December of the same year. 7. Any changes to the GNI of previous financial years pursuant to Article 2(2) of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1287/2003, subject to Article 5 thereof, shall give rise for each Member State concerned to an adjustment to the balance established pursuant to paragraph 6 of this Article. This adjustment shall be established in the manner laid down in the first subparagraph of paragraph 5 of this Article. The Commission shall inform the Member States of these adjustments so that they can enter them in the account referred to in Article 9(1) of this Regulation on the first working day of December of the same year. After 30 September of the fourth year following a given financial year, any changes to GNI shall no longer be taken into account, except on points notified within this time limit either by the Commission or by the Member State. 8. The operations referred to in paragraphs 4 to 7 constitute modifications to revenue in respect of the financial year in which they occur. The amount of revenue set out in the budget for the current financial year may be increased or reduced, by means of an amending budget, by the amount resulting from those operations in accordance with Article 1(2) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 608/2014. 9. There shall be no subsequent revision of the financing of the gross reductions granted to Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria and Sweden in the event of modifications of the GNI data pursuant to Article 2(2) of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1287/2003. Article 11 Opt-out adjustment 1. Where, pursuant to the TFEU and its Protocols 21 and 22, a Member State does not take part in the financing of a specific Union action or policy, it shall be entitled to an adjustment, calculated in accordance with paragraph 2 of this Article, of the amount it has paid in own resources in respect of each year in which it has not taken part. 2. The Commission shall calculate the adjustment during the year following the financial year concerned, at the same time as it determines the GNI balances provided for in Article 10 of this Regulation. The calculation shall be made on the basis of the figures relating to the relevant financial year: (a) aggregate GNI at market prices and its components, (b) the budgetary outturn of operational expenditure corresponding to the measure or policy in question. The adjustment shall be equal to the product of multiplying the total amount of the expenditure in question, with the exception of that financed by participating third countries, by the percentage that the GNI of the Member State entitled to the adjustment represents of the GNI of all Member States. The adjustment shall be financed by the participating Member States according to a scale determined by dividing their respective GNI by the GNI of all the participating Member States. For the purposes of calculating the adjustment, amounts shall be converted between the national currency and the euro at the exchange rate on the last day of quotation of the calendar year preceding the budget year concerned. The adjustment for each relevant year shall be made only once and it shall be final in the event of subsequent modification of the GNI figure. 3. The Commission shall inform the Member States in good time of the amount of the adjustment so that they can credit it to the account referred to in Article 9(1) of this Regulation on the first working day of December. Article 12 Interest on amounts made available belatedly 1. Any delay in making the entry in the account referred to in Article 9(1) shall give rise to the payment of interest by the Member State concerned. However, recovery of amounts of interest below EUR 500 shall be waived. 2. In the case of Member States belonging to the Economic and Monetary Union, the interest rate shall be equal to the rate as published in the Official Journal of the European Union, C series which the European Central Bank applied to its main refinancing operations, on the first day of the month in which the due date fell, increased by two percentage points. This rate shall be increased by 0,25 of a percentage point for each month of delay. The increased rate shall be applied to the entire period of delay. 3. In the case of Member States not belonging to the Economic and Monetary Union, the rate shall be equal to the rate applied on the first day of the month in question by the Central Banks for their main refinancing operations, increased by two percentage points, or, for the Member States for which the Central Bank rate is not available, the most equivalent rate applied on the first day of the month in question on the Member State's money market, increased by two percentage points. This rate shall be increased by 0,25 of a percentage point for each month of delay. The increased rate shall be applied to the entire period of delay. 4. For the payment of interest referred to in paragraph 1, Article 9(2) and (3) shall apply mutatis mutandis. Article 13 Irrecoverable amounts 1. Member States shall take all requisite measures to ensure that the amounts corresponding to the entitlements established under Article 2 are made available to the Commission as specified in this Regulation. 2. Member States shall be released from the obligation to place at the disposal of the Commission the amounts corresponding to entitlements established under Article 2 which prove irrecoverable for either of the following reasons: (a) for reasons of force majeure; (b) for other reasons which cannot be attributed to them. Amounts of established entitlements shall be declared irrecoverable by a decision of the competent administrative authority finding that they cannot be recovered. Amounts of established entitlements shall be deemed irrecoverable, at the latest, after a period of five years from the date on which the amount has been established in accordance with Article 2 or, in the event of an administrative or judicial appeal, the final decision has been given, notified or published. If part payment or payments have been received, the period of five years at maximum shall start from the date of the last payment made, where this does not clear the debt. Amounts declared or deemed irrecoverable shall be definitively removed from the separate accounts referred to in the second subparagraph of Article 6(3). They shall be shown in an annex to the quarterly statement referred to in the first subparagraph of Article 6(4) and, where applicable, in the quarterly descriptions referred to in Article 5 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 608/2014. 3. Within three months of the administrative decision mentioned in paragraph 2 of this Article or in accordance with the time limits referred to in that paragraph, Member States shall provide a report to the Commission with information on those cases where paragraph 2 of this Article has been applied provided the established entitlements involved exceed EUR 50 000. That report shall include all the facts necessary for a full examination of the reasons referred to in paragraph 2(a) and (b) of this Article, which prevented the Member State concerned from making available the amounts in question, and the recovery measures the Member State took in the case or cases in question. That report shall be made on a form established by the Commission. For that purpose the Commission shall adopt implementing acts. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the advisory procedure referred to in paragraph 2 of Article 16. 4. The Commission shall, within six months from the receipt of the report provided for in paragraph 3, communicate its comments to the Member State concerned. Where the Commission finds it necessary to request additional information, the six-month time-limit shall run from the date of receipt of the requested supplementary information. CHAPTER IV MANAGEMENT OF CASH RESOURCES Article 14 Requirements on management of cash resources 1. The Commission shall draw on the sums credited to the accounts referred to in Article 9(1) to the extent necessary to cover its cash resource requirements arising out of the implementation of the budget. 2. If the cash resource requirements are in excess of the assets of the accounts, the Commission may draw in excess of the total of these assets subject to the availability of appropriations in the budget and within the limit of the own resources entered in the budget. In this event, it shall inform the Member States in advance of any foreseeable excess requirements. 3. In the sole case of default under a loan contracted or guaranteed pursuant to Council regulations and decisions, in circumstances in which the Commission cannot activate other measures provided for by the financial arrangements applying to these loans in time to ensure compliance with the Union's legal obligations to the lenders, paragraphs 2 and 4 may provisionally be applied, irrespective of the conditions in paragraph 2, in order to service the Union's debts. 4. The difference between the overall assets and the cash resource requirements shall be divided among the Member States, as far as possible, in proportion to the estimated budget revenue from each of them. Article 15 Execution of payment orders 1. The Member States, or the bodies appointed by them, shall execute the Commission's payment orders following the Commission's instructions and within not more than three working days of receipt. However, in the case of cash movement transaction, the Member States shall execute the orders within the period requested by the Commission. 2. The Member States, or the bodies appointed by them, shall send to the Commission, by electronic means and on the second working day following the completion of each transaction at the latest, a statement of account showing the related movements. CHAPTER V FINAL PROVISIONS Article 16 Committee procedure 1. The Commission shall be assisted by the Advisory Committee on Own Resources referred to in Article 7 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 608/2014. That committee shall be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011. 2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 4 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply. Article 17 Transitional provision on interest rate The rate provided for in Article 11 of Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1150/2000 in its version before the entry into force of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2028/2004 (11) shall continue to apply for the calculation of interest for late payment where the due date falls before 1 December 2004. Article 18 Repeal 1. Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1150/2000 is repealed. 2. References to the repealed Regulation shall be construed as references to this Regulation and shall be read in accordance with the correlation table in Annex II. Article 19 Entry into force This Regulation shall enter into force on the day of entry into force of Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom. It shall apply from 1 January 2014. This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. Done at Brussels, 26 May 2014. For the Council The President Ch. VASILAKOS (1) Opinion No 2/2012 of 20 March 2012 (OJ C 112, 18.4.2012, p. 1). (2) Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1150/2000 of 22 May 2000 implementing Decision 2007/436/EC, Euratom on the system of the European Communities own resources (OJ L 130, 31.5.2000, p. 1). (3) Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 608/2014 of 26 May 2014 laying down implementing measures for the system of own resources of the European Union (see page 29 of this Official Journal). (4) Council Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom of 26 May 2014 on the system of own resources of the European Union (see page 105 of this Official Journal). (5) Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1287/2003 of 15 July 2003 on the harmonisation of gross national income at market prices (OJ L 181, 19.7.2003, p. 1). (6) Council Regulation (EC) No 73/2009 of 19 January 2009 establishing common rules for direct support schemes for farmers under the common agricultural policy and establishing certain support schemes for farmers, amending Regulations (EC) No 1290/2005, (EC) No 247/2006, (EC) No 378/2007 and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003 (OJ L 30, 31.1.2009, p. 16). (7) Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 laying down the rules and general principles concerning mechanisms for control by Member States of the Commission's exercise of implementing powers (OJ L 55, 28.2.2011, p. 13). (8) Council Regulation (EEC, Euratom) No 1553/89 of 29 May 1989 on the definitive uniform arrangements for the collection of own resources accruing from value added tax (OJ L 155, 7.6.1989, p. 9). (9) Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union (OJ L 298, 26.10.2012, p. 1). (10) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1268/2012 of 29 October 2012 on the rules of application of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union (OJ L 362, 31.12.2012, p. 1). (11) Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2028/2004 of 16 November 2004 amending Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1150/2000 implementing Decision 94/728/EC, Euratom on the system of the Communities' own resources (OJ L 352, 27.11.2004, p. 1). ANNEX I REPEALED REGULATION WITH LIST OF ITS SUCCESSIVE AMENDMENTS Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1150/2000 (OJ L 130, 31.5.2000, p. 1). Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2028/2004 (OJ L 352, 27.11.2004, p. 1). Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 105/2009 (OJ L 36, 5.2.2009, p. 1). ANNEX II CORRELATION TABLE Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1150/2000 This Regulation Article 1 — — Article 1 Article 2 Article 2 Article 3, first, second and third paragraph Article 3, first, second and third paragraph — Article 3, fourth paragraph Article 4 Article 4 Article 5 Article 5 Article 6(1) and (2) Article 6(1) and (2) Article 6(3)(a) Article 6(3), first subparagraph Article 6(3)(b) Article 6(3), second subparagraph Article 6(3)(c) Article 6(3), third subparagraph Article 6(3)(d) Article 6(3), fourth subparagraph Article 6(4), first subparagraph, point (a), first sentence Article 6(4), first subparagraph, point (a) Article 6(4), first subparagraph, point (a), second sentence Article 6(4), second subparagraph Article 6(4), first subparagraph, point (b), first sentence Article 6(4), first subparagraph, point (b) Article 6(4), first subparagraph, point (b), second sentence Article 6(4), third subparagraph Article 6(4), second subparagraph Article 6(4), fourth subparagraph Article 6(5) — Article 7 Article 7 Article 8, first paragraph Article 8 Article 8, second paragraph — Article 9(1) Article 9(1) Article 9(1a) Article 9(2) Article 9(2) Article 9(3) Article 10(1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (6) and (7) Article 10(1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (6) and (7) Article 10(8) Article 10(8), first subparagraph Article 10(9) Article 10(9) Article 10(10) — Article 10a Article 11 Article 11(1) Article 12(1), first subparagraph — Article 12(1), second subparagraph Article 11(2), (3) and (4) Article 12(2), (3) and (4) Article 12(1), (2), (3) and (4) Article 14 Article 12(5), first subparagraph Article 15(1) Article 12(5), second subparagraph Article 15(2) Article 15 — Article 16, first and second paragraph — Article 16, third paragraph Article 10(8), second subparagraph Article 17(1) and (2) Article 13(1) and (2) Article 17(3), first subparagraph Article 13(3), first subparagraph Article 17(3), second subparagraph — Article 17(3), third subparagraph Article 13(3), second subparagraph — Article 13(3), third subparagraph Article 17(4) Article 13(4) Article 17(5) — Article 18 — Article 19 — Article 20 — Article 21 — — Article 16 Article 21a Article 17 Article 22 — Article 23 — — Article 18 — Article 19 Annex Annex I — Annex II

Summary: EU countries' contributions to the EU's budget EU countries' contributions to the EU's budget The European Union has adopted rules on methods and procedures to be followed by EU countries in regard to their contributions to the EU’s budget, which are known as the EU’s own resources. ACT Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 609/2014 of 26 May 2014 on the methods and procedure for making available the traditional, VAT and GNI-based own resources and on the measures to meet cash requirements (Recast) SUMMARY The European Union has adopted rules on methods and procedures to be followed by EU countries in regard to their contributions to the EU’s budget, which are known as the EU’s own resources. WHAT DOES THIS REGULATION DO? — It lays down the rules setting the methods and procedures by which EU countries make available to the European Commission the EU’s own resources. Own resources constitute the vast majority of income that finances the EU’s budget and comprise: — duties charged on imports from outside the EU and taxes on sugar production within the EU, — revenue based on a share of the value-added tax (VAT) collected by EU countries, — revenue based on each EU country’s gross national income* (GNI). — It also defines the measures to meet, where appropriate, cash requirements (i.e. cash flow needs). KEY POINTS — The own resources need to be available to the European Commission so that it can make the necessary payments agreed in the budget. — EU countries have to keep accounts and documentation regarding the own resources that they collect and to be able to produce these for the Commission at all times. — Each EU country must credit own resources to the account opened in the name of the Commission with its Treasury or the body it has appointed. — EU countries have to keep separate accounts for entitlements which have not been recovered. They must provide details about these accounts and submit quarterly statements to the Commission. This enables the Commission to monitor the action taken by EU countries to collect own resources, particularly those compromised by fraud or irregularities. — To ensure that the EU’s budget can be financed in all circumstances, EU countries must make available to the EU, in the form of constant monthly twelfths, the own resources entered in the budget. They may subsequently adjust the amounts made available in accordance with the actual base of the VAT-based own resource and the relevant changes to GNI as soon as they are fully known. — The impact of modifications in the GNI data made after the end of each financial year on the financing of gross reductions (the reductions in certain EU countries’ GNI-related contributions) should be clarified. WHEN DOES THIS REGULATION APPLY? From 1 January 2014. BACKGROUND Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 609/2014 is one of 3 legal acts making up what is known as the ‘own resources’ package linked to the EU's multiannual financial framework - the EU's budget for the 2014-2020 period. The 2 other acts in the package are: — Council Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom on the system of own resources of the European Union, — Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 608/2014 of 26 May 2014 laying down implementing measures for the system of own resources of the European Union. For more information, see ‘The EU's own resources’on the European Commission's website. KEY TERMS * Gross national income (GNI) - the sum of incomes of residents of an economy in a given period. REFERENCES Act Entry into force Date of application Deadline for transposition in the Member States Official Journal Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 609/2014 Together with Council Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom 1.1.2014 - OJ L 168, 7.6.2014, pp. 39-52. RELATED ACTS Council Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom of 26 May 2014 on the system of own resources of the European Union (OJ L 168, 7.6.2014, pp. 105-111). Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 608/2014 of 26 May 2014 laying down implementing measures for the system of own resources of the European Union (OJ L 168, 7.6.2014, pp. 29-38). last update 16.09.2015


7.6.2014 EN Official Journal of the European Union L 168/105 COUNCIL DECISION of 26 May 2014 on the system of own resources of the European Union (2014/335/EU, Euratom) THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular the third paragraph of Article 311 thereof, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community, and in particular Article 106a thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national Parliaments, Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament, Acting in accordance with a special legislative procedure, Whereas: (1) The own resources system of the Union must ensure adequate resources for the orderly development of the policies of the Union, subject to the need for strict budgetary discipline. The development of the own resources system can and should also contribute to wider budgetary consolidation efforts undertaken in Member States and participate, to the greatest extent possible, in the development of the policies of the Union. (2) This Decision should enter into force only once it has been approved by all Member States in accordance with their respective constitutional requirements, thus fully respecting national sovereignty. (3) The European Council of 7 and 8 February 2013 concluded, inter alia, that the own resources arrangements should be guided by the overall objectives of simplicity, transparency and equity. Those arrangements should therefore ensure, in line with the relevant conclusions of the 1984 Fontainebleau European Council, that no Member State sustain a budgetary burden which is excessive in relation to its relative prosperity. It is therefore appropriate to introduce provisions covering specific Member States. (4) The European Council of 7 and 8 February 2013 concluded that Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden are to benefit from reduced call rates for the own resource based on value added tax (VAT) for the period 2014-2020 only. It also concluded that Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden are to benefit from gross reductions in their annual contributions based on gross national income (GNI) for the period 2014-2020 only and that Austria is to benefit from gross reductions in its annual GNI-based contributions for the period 2014-2016 only. The European Council of 7 and 8 February 2013 concluded that the existing correction mechanism in favour of the United Kingdom is to continue to apply. (5) The European Council of 7 and 8 February 2013 concluded that the system for collection of traditional own resources is to remain unchanged. However, from 1 January 2014, Member States are to retain, by way of collection costs, 20 % of the amounts collected by them. (6) In order to ensure strict budgetary discipline, and taking into account the Commission Communication of 16 April 2010 on the adaptation of the ceiling of own resources and of the ceiling for appropriations for commitments following the decision to apply FISIM for own resources purposes, the ceiling of own resources should be equal to 1,23 % of the sum of the Member States' GNIs at market prices for appropriations for payments and the ceiling of 1,29 % of the sum of the Member States' GNIs should be set for appropriations for commitments. Those ceilings are based on ESA 95 including financial intermediation services indirectly measured (FISIM) as the data based on the revised European System of Accounts set up by Regulation (EU) No 549/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (1) (‘ESA 2010’) has not been available at the time of the adoption of this Decision. In order to maintain unchanged the amount of financial resources put at the disposal of the Union, it is appropriate to adapt these ceilings expressed in percentages of GNI. Those ceilings should be adapted as soon as all Member States have transmitted their data on the basis of ESA 2010. In the event that there are any amendments to ESA 2010 which entail a significant change in the level of GNI, the ceilings for own resources and for commitment appropriations should be adapted again. (7) The European Council of 7 and 8 February 2013 called upon the Council to continue working on the proposal of the Commission for a new own resource based on VAT to make it as simple and transparent as possible, to strengthen the link with EU VAT policy and actual VAT receipts, and to ensure equal treatment of taxpayers in all Member States. The European Council concluded that the new VAT own resource could replace the existing own resource based on VAT. The European Council also noted that on 22 January 2013 the Council adopted the Council Decision authorising enhanced cooperation in the area of financial transaction tax (2). It invited the participating Member States to examine if it could become the base for a new own resource for the EU budget. It concluded that this would not impact non-participating Member States and would not impact the calculation of the United Kingdom correction. (8) The European Council of 7 and 8 February 2013 concluded that a Council regulation laying down implementing measures for the Union's own resources system will be established, as set out under the fourth paragraph of Article 311 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). Accordingly, provisions of a general nature, applicable to all types of own resources and for which appropriate parliamentary oversight, as set out in the Treaties, is required, should be included in that regulation, such as, in particular, the procedure for calculating and budgeting the annual budgetary balance and aspects of control and supervision of revenues. (9) For reasons of coherence, continuity and legal certainty, provisions should be laid down to cover the transition from the system introduced by Council Decision 2007/436/EC, Euratom (3) to that arising from this Decision. (10) Decision 2007/436/EC, Euratom should be repealed. (11) For the purposes of this Decision, all monetary amounts should be expressed in euros. (12) The European Court of Auditors and the European Economic and Social Committee were consulted and have adopted opinions (4). (13) In order to ensure transition to the revised system of own resources and to coincide with the financial year, this Decision should apply from 1 January 2014, HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION: Article 1 Subject matter This Decision lays down rules on the allocation of own resources of the Union in order to ensure, pursuant to Article 311 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), the financing of the Union's annual budget. Article 2 Categories of own resources and specific methods for their calculation 1. Revenue from the following shall constitute own resources entered in the budget of the Union: (a) traditional own resources consisting of levies, premiums, additional or compensatory amounts, additional amounts or factors, Common Customs Tariff duties and other duties established or to be established by the institutions of the Union in respect of trade with third countries, customs duties on products under the expired Treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community, as well as contributions and other duties provided for within the framework of the common organisation of the markets in sugar; (b) without prejudice to the second subparagraph of paragraph 4, the application of a uniform rate valid for all Member States to the harmonised VAT assessment bases determined in accordance with Union rules. For each Member State the assessment base to be taken into account for this purpose shall not exceed 50 % of gross national income (GNI), as defined in paragraph 7; (c) without prejudice to the second subparagraph of paragraph 5, the application of a uniform rate, to be determined pursuant to the budgetary procedure in the light of the total of all other revenue, to the sum of GNI of all the Member States. 2. Revenue deriving from any new charges introduced within the framework of a common policy, in accordance with the TFEU, provided that the procedure laid down in Article 311 TFEU has been followed, shall also constitute own resources entered in the budget of the Union. 3. Member States shall retain, by way of collection costs, 20 % of the amounts referred to in point (a) of paragraph 1. 4. The uniform rate referred to in paragraph 1(b) shall be fixed at 0,30 %. For the period 2014-2020 only, the rate of call of the VAT-based own resource for Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden shall be fixed at 0,15 %. 5. The uniform rate referred to in paragraph 1(c) shall apply to the GNI of each Member State. For the period 2014-2020 only, Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden shall benefit from gross reductions in their annual GNI-based contribution of EUR 130 million, EUR 695 million and EUR 185 million respectively. Austria shall benefit from a gross reduction in its annual GNI-based contribution of EUR 30 million in 2014, EUR 20 million in 2015 and EUR 10 million in 2016. All these amounts shall be measured in 2011 prices and adjusted to current prices by applying the most recent GDP deflator for the EU expressed in euro, as provided by the Commission, which is available when the draft budget is drawn up. These gross reductions shall be granted after the calculation of the correction in favour of the United Kingdom and its financing referred to in Articles 4 and 5 of this Decision and shall have no impact thereon. These gross reductions shall be financed by all Member States. 6. If, at the beginning of the financial year, the budget has not been adopted, the existing VAT and GNI rates of call shall remain applicable until the entry into force of the new rates. 7. GNI referred to in paragraph 1(c) shall mean an annual GNI at market price, as provided by the Commission in application of Regulation (EU) No 549/2013 (‘ESA 2010’). Should amendments to ESA 2010 result in significant changes in the GNI referred to in paragraph 1(c), the Council, acting unanimously on a proposal of the Commission and after consulting the European Parliament, shall decide whether these amendments are to apply for the purposes of this Decision. Article 3 Own resources ceiling 1. The total amount of own resources allocated to the Union to cover annual appropriations for payments shall not exceed 1,23 % of the sum of all the Member States' GNIs. 2. The total annual amount of appropriations for commitments entered in the Union's budget shall not exceed 1,29 % of the sum of all the Member States' GNIs. An orderly ratio between appropriations for commitments and appropriations for payments shall be maintained to guarantee their compatibility and to enable the ceiling pursuant to paragraph 1 to be respected in subsequent years. 3. For the purposes of this Decision, as soon as all Member States have transmitted their data on the basis of ESA 2010, the Commission shall recalculate the ceilings set out in paragraphs 1 and 2 on the basis of the following formula: In that formula, ‘t’ is the latest full year for which the data for the calculation of GNI are available. 4. Where amendments to ESA 2010 result in significant changes in the level of GNI, the Commission shall recalculate the ceilings set out in paragraphs 1 and 2, as recalculated in accordance with paragraph 3, on the basis of the following formula: In that formula, ‘t’ is the latest full year for which the data for the calculation of GNI are available. In that formula, ‘x’ and ‘y’ respectively are the ceilings as recalculated according to paragraph 3. Article 4 Correction mechanism in favour of the United Kingdom The United Kingdom shall be granted a correction in respect of budgetary imbalances. This correction shall be established by: (a) calculating the difference, in the preceding financial year, between: — the percentage share of the United Kingdom in the sum of uncapped VAT assessment bases, and — the percentage share of the United Kingdom in total allocated expenditure; (b) multiplying the difference thus obtained by total allocated expenditure; (c) multiplying the result under point (b) by 0,66; (d) subtracting from the result under point (c) the effects arising for the United Kingdom from the transition to capped VAT and the payments referred to in Article 2(1)(c), namely the difference between: — what the United Kingdom would have had to pay for the amounts financed by the resources referred to in Article 2(1)(b) and (c), if the uniform rate had been applied to non-capped VAT bases, and — the payments of the United Kingdom pursuant to Article 2(1)(b) and (c); (e) subtracting from the result under point (d) the net gains of the United Kingdom resulting from the increase in the percentage of resources referred to in Article 2(1)(a) retained by Member States to cover collection and related costs; (f) adjusting the calculation, by reducing total allocated expenditure by total allocated expenditure in Member States that have acceded to the Union after 30 April 2004, except for agricultural direct payments and market-related expenditure as well as that part of rural development expenditure originating from the EAGGF, Guarantee Section. Article 5 Financing the correction mechanism in favour of the United Kingdom 1. The cost of the correction set out in Article 4 shall be borne by the Member States other than the United Kingdom in accordance with the following arrangements: (a) the distribution of the cost shall first be calculated by reference to each Member State's share of the payments referred to in Article 2(1)(c), the United Kingdom being excluded and without taking account of the gross reductions in the GNI-based contributions of Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria and Sweden referred to in Article 2(5); (b) it shall then be adjusted in such a way as to restrict the financing share of Germany, the Netherlands, Austria and Sweden to one fourth of their normal share resulting from this calculation. 2. The correction shall be granted to the United Kingdom by a reduction in its payments resulting from the application of Article 2(1)(c). The costs borne by the other Member States shall be added to their payments resulting from the application for each Member State of Article 2(1)(c). 3. The Commission shall perform the calculations required for the application of Article 2(5), Article 4 and this Article. 4. If, at the beginning of the financial year, the budget has not been adopted, the correction granted to the United Kingdom and the costs borne by the other Member States as entered in the last budget finally adopted shall remain applicable. Article 6 Universality principle The revenue referred to in Article 2 shall be used without distinction to finance all expenditure entered in the Union's annual budget. Article 7 Surplus carry-over Any surplus of the Union's revenue over total actual expenditure during a financial year shall be carried over to the following financial year. Article 8 Collecting own resources and making them available to the Commission 1. The Union's own resources referred to in Article 2(1)(a) shall be collected by the Member States in accordance with the national provisions imposed by law, regulation or administrative action, which shall, where appropriate, be adapted to meet the requirements of Union rules. The Commission shall examine the relevant national provisions communicated to it by Member States, transmit to Member States the adjustments it deems necessary in order to ensure that they comply with Union rules and report, if necessary, to the budgetary authority. 2. Member States shall make the resources provided for in Article 2(1)(a), (b) and (c) available to the Commission, in accordance with regulations adopted under Article 322(2) TFEU. Article 9 Implementing measures The Council shall, in accordance with the procedure set out in the fourth paragraph of Article 311 TFEU, lay down implementing measures as regards the following elements of the own resources system: (a) the procedure for calculating and budgeting the annual budgetary balance as set out in Article 7; (b) the provisions and arrangements necessary for controlling and supervising the revenue referred to in Article 2, including any relevant reporting requirements. Article 10 Final and transitional provisions 1. Subject to paragraph 2, Decision 2007/436/EC, Euratom is repealed. Any references to the Council Decision 70/243/ECSC, EEC, Euratom (5), to Council Decision 85/257/EEC, Euratom (6), to Council Decision 88/376/EEC, Euratom (7), to Council Decision 94/728/EC, Euratom (8), to Council Decision 2000/597/EC, Euratom (9) or to Decision 2007/436/EC, Euratom shall be construed as references to this Decision and shall be read in accordance with the correlation table set out in the Annex to this Decision. 2. Articles 2, 4 and 5 of Decisions 94/728/EC, Euratom, 2000/597/EC, Euratom and 2007/436/EC, Euratom shall continue to apply to the calculation and adjustment of revenue accruing from the application of a rate of call to the VAT base determined in a uniform manner and limited between 50 % and 55 % of the GNP or GNI of each Member State, depending on the relevant year, and to the calculation of the correction of budgetary imbalances granted to the United Kingdom for the years 1995 to 2013. 3. Member States shall continue to retain, by way of collection costs, 10 % of the amounts referred to in Article 2(1)(a) which should have been made available by the Member States before 28 February 2001 in accordance with the applicable Union rules. Member States shall continue to retain, by way of collection costs, 25 % of the amounts referred to in Article 2(1)(a) which should have been made available by the Member States between 1 March 2001 and 28 February 2014 in accordance with the applicable Union rules. 4. For the purposes of this Decision, all monetary amounts shall be expressed in euros. Article 11 Entry into force Member States shall be notified of this Decision by the Secretary-General of the Council. Member States shall notify the Secretary-General of the Council without delay of the completion of the procedures for the adoption of this Decision in accordance with their respective constitutional requirements. This Decision shall enter into force on the first day of the month following receipt of the last of the notifications referred to in the second paragraph. It shall apply from 1 January 2014. Article 12 Publication This Decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union. Done at Brussels, 26 May 2014. For the Council The President Ch. VASILAKOS (1) Regulation (EU) No 549/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 May 2013 on the European system of national and regional accounts in the European Union (OJ L 174, 26.6.2013, p. 1). (2) OJ L 22, 25.1.2013, p. 11. (3) Council Decision 2007/436/EC, Euratom of 7 June 2007 on the system of the European Communities' own resources (OJ L 163, 23.6.2007, p. 17). (4) Opinion No 2/2012 of the European Court of Auditors of 20 March 2012 (OJ C 112, 18.4.2012, p. 1) and Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 29 March 2012 (OJ C 181, 21.6.2012, p. 45). (5) Council Decision 70/243/ECSC, EEC, Euratom of 21 April 1970 on the replacement of financial contributions from Member States by the Communities' own resources (OJ L 94, 28.4.1970, p. 19). (6) Council Decision 85/257/EEC, Euratom of 7 May 1985 on the Communities' system of own resources (OJ L 128, 14.5.1985, p. 15). (7) Council Decision 88/376/EEC, Euratom of 24 June 1988 on the system of the Communities' own resources (OJ L 185, 15.7.1988, p. 24). (8) Council Decision 94/728/EC, Euratom of 31 October 1994 on the system of the Communities' own resources (OJ L 293, 12.11.1994, p. 9). (9) Council Decision 2000/597/EC, Euratom of 29 September 2000 on the system of the Communities' own resources (OJ L 253, 7.10.2000, p. 42). ANNEX CORRELATION TABLE Decision 2007/436/EC, Euratom This Decision Article 1 Article 1 Article 2 Article 2 Article 3(1) Article 3(1) Article 3(2) Article 3(2) — Article 3(3) Article 3(3) Article 3(4) Article 4(1), first subparagraph Article 4, first paragraph Article 4(1), second subparagraph, point (a) to (e) Article 4, second paragraph, point (a) to (e) Article 4(1), second subparagraph, point (f) — Article 4(1), second subparagraph, point (g) Article 4, second paragraph, point (f) Article 4(2) — Article 5 Article 5 Article 6 Article 6 Article 7 Article 7 Article 8(1), first and second subparagraph Article 8(1) Article 8(1), third subparagraph Article 8(2) Article 8(2) — — Article 9 Article 9 — Article 10 — — Article 10 Article 11 — — Article 11 Article 12 Article 12

Summary: EU's own resources EU's own resources The European Union has adopted rules on the allocation of what are known as its ‘own resources’ , i.e. its revenue. The EU operates on the basis of a balanced budget. EU expenditure must therefore be funded entirely from its own resources. ACT Council Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom of 26 May 2014 on the system of own resources of the European Union SUMMARY The European Union has adopted rules on the allocation of what are known as its ‘own resources’ , i.e. its revenue. The EU operates on the basis of a balanced budget. EU expenditure must therefore be funded entirely from its own resources. WHAT DOES THIS DECISION DO? It defines ‘own resources’ . These comprise duties charged on imports from outside the EU and taxes on sugar production within the EU (known as ‘traditional’ own resources), revenue based on a share of the value-added tax (VAT), a tax on consumption collected by EU countries, revenue based on each EU country’s gross national income* (GNI). KEY POINTS There is an overall ceiling of own resources assigned to cover the EU’s annual appropriations for payments (i.e. allocations of payments to be made from the EU’s budget) which may not exceed 1.23 % of the sum of the GNI of all the EU countries. This is to ensure strict budgetary discipline. For traditional own resources, EU countries can retain 20 % of the amounts that they collect, by way of collection costs (i.e. the costs of collecting duties or taxes). For VAT, a standard rate is levied on the harmonised VAT base of each EU country. The assessment base to be taken into account for this purpose cannot exceed 50 % of a country’s GNI. As consumption (and thus VAT) in less prosperous countries amounts to a higher share of GNI than in rich countries, this ensures that the former do not pay a disproportionately high amount. As regards the GNI-based own resource, a uniform percentage is levied on each EU country’s GNI. This own resource is the largest source of revenue for the EU budget and serves to fund that part of the budget that is not covered by the other sources of income. A correction mechanism is applied in the case of certain countries which are considered to paying more towards the EU budget than they should be, taking into account their relative prosperity. Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, Sweden and the United Kingdom (1) fall into this category and pay reduced contributions. BACKGROUND Council Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom is one of 3 legal acts making up what is known as the ‘own resources’ package linked to the EU's multiannual financial framework - the EU's spending plan for the 2014-2020 period. The 2 other acts in the package are: Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 609/2014 on the methods and procedure for making available the traditional, VAT and GNI-based own resources and on the measures to meet cash requirements, Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 608/2014 of 26 May 2014 laying down implementing measures for the system of own resources of the European Union. WHEN DOES THE DECISION APPLY? From 1 January 2014. For more information, see ‘Where does the money come from?’on the European Commission's website. KEY TERMS * Gross national income (GNI) - the sum of incomes of residents of an economy in a given period. REFERENCES Act Entry into force Date of application Deadline for transposition in the Member States Official Journal Council Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom The first day of the month following the completion of the ratification by all Member States 1.1.2014 - OJ L 168, 7.6.2014, pp. 105-111 RELATED ACTS Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 608/2014 of 26 May 2014 laying down implementing measures for the system of own resources of the European Union (OJ L 168, 7.6.2014, pp. 29-38) Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 609/2014 of 26 May 2014 on the methods and procedure for making available the traditional, VAT and GNI-based own resources and on the measures to meet cash requirements (Recast) (OJ L 168, 7.6.2014, pp. 39-52) last update 23.08.2015(1) The United Kingdom withdraws from the European Union and becomes a third country (non-EU country) as of 1 February 2020.