year's total imports into the Community of products in that category, the following rates:- for categories of products in Group I:0,4 %,- for categories of products in Group II:2,0 %,- for categories of products in Group III:6,0 %.9. The Community further undertakes not to invoke the provisions of this Article on a regional basis before the level of export authorizations for textile products mentioned in paragraph 2 in any category exceeds the following regional percentages of the levels referred to in paragraph 8:Germany 25,5 %.Benelux 9,5 %.France 16,5 %.Italy 13,5 %.Denmark 2,7 %.Ireland 0,8 %.United Kingdom 21,0 %.Greece 1,5 %.Spain 7,5 %.Portugal 1,5 %.10. Up to the date of communication of the statistics referred to in Article 9 (6) the provisions of paragraph 2 as qualified by paragraphs 7 and 8 of this Article shall apply on the basis of the annual statistics previously communicated by the Community.11. In order to facilitate forecasts of Hong Kong's future export trends, Hong Kong undertakes to supply the Community with half-monthly statistical returns showing the quantities covered by the export authorizations mentioned in paragraph 1 which are issued under the system to Hong Kong exporters. Such data on export authorizations shall be provided by the Hong Kong authorities promptly in such detail and as frequently as the Community may reasonably request.12. In the implementation of the provisions of the Article, Hong Kong shall notify the Community immediately upon receipt of any application for an export authorization in an exceptionally large amount.13. The Hong Kong authorties undertake to notify the Community of any changes to the export authorization system having a direct effect on the implementation of this Agreement. Where necessary, consultations may be requested under Article 14 (1) of this Agreement.14. The provisions of this Agreement which concern exports of products subject to the quantitative limits established in Annex II shall also apply to products for which quantitative limits are introduced under this Article.Article 81. Hong Kong undertakes to supply the Community with precise statistical information on all export licences issued by the Hong Kong authorities for all categories of textile products subject to the quantitative limits established under this Agreement.Hong Kong shall set out in its periodical statistical reports the maximum export levels for each category subject to a quantitative limit and the rate of utilization of these levels.2. The Community shall likewise supply to the Hong Kong authorities precise statistical information on import documents issued by the Community authorities in respect of export licenses issued by Hong Kong.3. The information referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall, for all categories of products, be transmitted before the end of the second month following the quarter to which the statistics relate.4. For the purpose of applying provisions of Article 8, the Community may ask Bulgaria to transmit available statistical information on textiles exports of products covered by this Agreement by country of destination.The Community shall transmit to the Hong Kong authorities import statistics for all products covered by Article 7, and for products covered by Article 5 (1).5. The information referred to in paragraph 4 shall, for all categories of products, be transmitted before the end of the third month following the quarter to which the statistics relate.6. For the purpose of applying the provisions of Article 7, the Community undertakes to provide the Hong Kong authorities before 15 April of each year with the preceding year's statistics on imports of all textile products covered by this Agreement, broken down by supplying country and Community Member State.7. Should it be found on analysis of the information exchanged that there are significant discrepancies between the returns for exports and those for imports, consultations may be initiated in accordance with the procedure specified in Article 14 of this Agreement.Any such consultations shall be resolved on the basis of the agreed descriptions of the products contained in Annex I.8. Hong Kong also undertakes to supply the Community with statistical information on all textile exports by country of destination. This information shall be transmitted before the end of the third month following the quarter to which the statistics refer.Article 91. The authorities of Hong Kong shall be informed of any amendment to the Common Customs Tariff, the NIMEXE or the HS based nomenclatures of the Community or any decision, made in accordance with the procedures in force in the Community, relating to the classification of products covered by this Agreement.Any such amendment or any decision which results in a modification of the classification of products covered by this Agreement shall not have the effect of reducing Hong Kong's ability to use the quantitative limits established in Annex II.The procedures for the application of this paragraph are set out in Protocol A.2. In case of divergent opinions between Hong Kong and the competent Community authorities at the point of entry into the Community on the classification of products covered by the present Agreement, consultations in accordance withArticle 14 (1)
accordance with the procedures described in Article 14 (1) of this Agreement with a view to agreeing necessary adjustments to the appropriate quantitative limits established in Annex II and mitigating any disruptive effects which might arise from such a Community decision.TITLE IIORIGINArticle 21. Products originating in Hong Kong for export to the Community in accordance with the arrangements established by this Agreement shall be accompanied by a certificate of Hong Kong origin conforming to the model annexed to this Protocol.2. The certificate of Hong Kong origin shall be issued by the competent governmental authorities of Hong Kong if the products in question can be considered products originating in that country within the meaning of the relevant rules in force in the Community.3. Certificates of Hong Kong origin shall contain a full and detailed description of the goods. In particular, certificates of Hong Kong origin shall indicate:- in respect of clothing, shipments where the articles in question are incomplete or unfinished;- in respect of fabrics, including knitted or crocheted fabric and products of categories 95 and 96, shipments where the products in question are dyed, printed, impregnated or coated,- and in respect of products of categories 19, 20, 38B, 39, 40 and 84, shipments where the articles in question are embroidered.4. The certificate of Hong Kong origin referred to in paragraph 1 shall not be required for import of goods covered by a certificate of origin Form A completed in accordance with the relevant Community rules in order to qualify for generalized tariff preferences.Article 3The discovery of slight discrepancies between the statements made in the certificate of origin and those made in the documents produced to the customs office for the purpose of carrying out the formalities for importing the product shall not ipso facto cast doubt upon the statements in the certificate.TITLE IIIDOUBLE-CHECKING SYSTEM FOR CATEGORIES OFPRODUCTS WITH QUANTITATIVE LIMITSSection IExportationArticle 4The competent authorities of Hong Kong shall issue an export licence in respect of all consignments from Hong Kong of textile products referred to in Annex II, up to the relevant quantitative limits as may be modified by Articles 6, 12 and 14 of the Agreement and of textile products subject to any definitive or provisional quantitative limits established as a result of the application of Article 7 of the Agreement.Article 51. The export licence shall conform to the model annexed to this Protocol. It must certify, inter alia, that the quantity of the product in question has been set off against the quantitative limit prescribed for the category of the product in question.2. Each export licence shall only cover one of the categories of products listed in Annex II of the Agreement.Article 6The competent Community authorities must be notified forthwith of the withdrawal or alteration of any export licence already issued.Article 71. Exports shall be set off against the quantitative limits established for the year in which shipment of the goods has been effected, even if the export licence is isued after such shipment.2. For the purposes of applying paragraph 1, shipment of the goods is considered to have taken place on the date of their loading on to the exporting aircraft, vehicle or vessel.Article 8The presentation of an export licence, in application of Article 10 below, shall be effected not later than 31 March of the year following that in which the goods covered by the export licence have been shipped.Section IIImportation Article 9Importation into the Community of textile products subject to quantitative limits shall be subject to the presentation of an import authorization or document.Article 101. The competent Community authorities shall issue such import authorization or document automatically within five working days of the presentation by the importer of the original of the corresponding export licence.The import authorization or document shall be valid for six months.2. The competent Community authorities shall cancel the already issued import authorization or document if the corresponding export licence has been withdrawn.However, if the competent Community authorities have not been notified about the withdrawal or cancellation of the export licence until after the products have been imported into the Community, the quantities involved shall be set off against the quantitative limit for the category and the quota year in question and Hong Kong shall be informed as soon as possible.Article 111. If the competent Community authorities find that the total quantities covered by export licences issued by Hong Kong for a particular category in any Agreement year exceed the quantitative limit established in Annex II for that category, as may be modified by Articles 6, 12 and 14 of the Agreement, or any definitive or provisional limit established under Article 7 of the Agreement, the said authorities may suspend the further issue of import authorizations or documents. In this event, the competent Community authorities shall immediately inform the authorities of Hong Kong and the special consultation procedure set out in Article 14 (1) of the Agreement shall be initiated forthwith.2. Exports of Hong Kong origin not covered by Hong Kong export licences issued in accordance with the provisional of this Protocol may be refused the issue of import authorization or documents by the competent Community authorities.However if the import of such products is in Annex II.The procedures for the application of this paragraph are set out in Protocol A.2. In case of divergent opinions between Hong Kong and the competent Community authorities at the point of entry into the Community on the classification of products covered by the present Agreement, consultations in accordance withArticle 14 (1) shall be held with a view to reaching agreement on the appropriate classification of the products concerned and to resolving any difficulties arising therefrom.For this purpose, the authorities of Hong Kong shall be informed by the competent authorities of the Community as soon as a case of divergent opinions on the classification of products arises.Pending agreement on the appropriate classification and in order to avoid disruption to trade, the products in question shall be imported on the basis of the classification indicated by the competent Community authorities at the point of entry, in conformity with the provisions of this Agreement.Article 101. Hong Kong and the Community agree to cooperate fully in preventing the circumvention of the present Agreement by transhipment, re-routing or whatever other means.2. Where information available to the Community as a result of the investigation carried out in accordance with the procedures set out in Protocol A constitutes evidence that products of Hong Kong origin subject to quantitative limits established under this Agreement have been transhipped, re-routed or otherwise imported into the Community in circumvention of this Agreement, the Community may request the opening of consultations in accordance with the procedures described in Article 14 (1) of this Agreement, with a view to reaching agreement on an equivalent adjustment of the corresponding quantitative limits established under the Agreement.3. Should the parties be unable in the course of consultation to reach a satisfactory solution within the period specified in Article 14 (1) of the Agreement, the Community shall have the right, where clear evidence of circumvention has been provided, to deduct from the quantitative limits established under this Agreement amounts equivalent to the products of Hong Kong origin.Article 111. Hong Kong shall endeavour to ensure that exports of textile products subject to quantitative limits are spaced out as evenly as possible over an Agreement year, due account being taken, in particular, of seasonal factors.2. Export data shall be provided by the Hong Kong authorities promptly in such detail and as frequently as the Community may reasonably request. If, on the basis of such data, the Community has evidence that there is a sharp and substantial increase in the concentration of exports, other than a concentration attributable to normal seasonal factors, of particular products in any one category subject to quantitative limits established in Annex II, the Community may request consultations in accordance with the procedure specified in Article 14 of this Agreement with a view to remedying this situation.Article 121. For the purpose of the administration of this Agreement, the limits referred to in Article 3 are broken down into shares for each of the Community's regions as set out in Annex II.2. The Community undertakes to examine with care and reply within four weeks to any request by Hong Kong for a portion of any quantitative limit established in Annex II not used in one region of the Community to be re-allocated to another region.If, in the course of the application of the Agreement Hong Kong finds that the break-down of a limit established in Annex II causes particular difficulties, it may request the opening of consultations in accordance with the procedure specified in Article 14 with a view to reaching a mutually satisfactory solution.3. After the first of June of each year of application of the Agreement, Hong Kong may transfer, subject to prior notification to the Community, unused quantities within the regional quota-shares of a Community quantitative limit, set out in Annex II, to the quota-shares of the same limit of other regions of the Community provided that the regional quota-share from which the transfer is made is utilized by less than 80 %, and up to the amount of the following percentages of the quota-share to which the transfer is made:1 % in the first year of application of the Agreement.2 % in the second year of application of the Agreement,4 % in the third year of application of the Agreement,6 % in the fourth year of application of the Agreement.The percentage in the fifth year of the application of the Agreement shall be determined following consultations between the parties.4. Should it appear in any given region of the Community that additional supplies are required, the Community may, where measures taken pursuant to paragraph 1 above are inadequate to cover those requirements, authorize the importation of amounts greater than those stipulated in Annex II.Article 131. Hong Kong and the Community undertake to refrain from discrimination in the allocation of export licences and import documents respectively.Artikel 141. The special consultation procedures referred to in this Agreement shall be governed by the following rules:- any request for consultations shall be notified in writing to the other Party, together with a statement setting outthe reasons and circumstances which, in the opinion of the requesting Party, justify the submission of such a request,- the Parties shall enter into consultations within 15 days of notification of the request at the to complete the examination of the evidence adduced the parties may agree to extend that period.Declaration concerning Article 2 (3) of the AgreementThe Community declares that, if any amendment is made to the rules of origin referred to in Article 2 (3) of the Agreement, the Community shall, with the agreement of Hong Kong, take appropriatemeasures to avoid any possible consequent reduction of Hong Kong's ability to use the quantitative limits established in Annex II of the present Agreement.The Community further declares that any amendment made to the abovementioned rules shall continue to be based on criteria not requiring, in order to confer originating status, more extensive operations than those constituting a single complete process.Agreed MinuteWith reference to Article 12 (3) of the Agreement on trade in textiles between the European Economic Community and Hong Kong initialled on 2 October 1986, it is understood that the percentage for the fifth year of the application of the Agreement will be at least equal to the percentage applicable in the fourth year.Head of Delegation of Hong KongHead of Delegation of theEuropean Economic CommunityAgreed MinuteThe Community and Hong Kong agree that:- carryover to the quantitative limits for the year 1987 of quantities not used in 1986 is authorized up to 2 % on the corresponding quantitative limits for 1987 for Group I and up to 3 % for other Groups,- advance use of a portion of quantitative limits for 1987 is authorized for any quantitative limit for the year 1986 up to 2 % for Group I and up to 3 % for other Groups, subject to an agreement of the two Parties establishing the de facto-application of the new bilateral agreement.Head of Delegation of Hong KongHead of Delegation of theEuropean Economic CommunityExchange of notesThe Minister for Hong Kong Commercial Relations with the European Communities and the Member States presents his compliments to the Directorate-General for External Relations of the Commission of the European Communities and has the honour to refer to the Agreement in textile products negotiated between Hong Kong and the Community and initialled on 2 October 1986.The Ministers wishes to inform the Directorate-General that whilst awaiting the completion of the necessary procedures for the conclusion and the coming into force of the Agreement, the Governmentof Hong Kong is prepared to allow the provisions of the Agreement to apply de facto from 1 January 1987 if the Community is disposed to do likewise. This is on the understanding that either party may at any time terminate this de facto application of the Agreement provided that 120 days' notice is given.The Minister would be grateful if the Community would confirm its agreement to the foregoing.The Minister for Hong Kong Commercial Relations with the European Communities and the Member States avails himself of this opportunity to renew to the Directorate-General for External Relations the assurance of his highest consideration.Exchange of notesThe Directorate-General for External Relations of the Commission of the European Communities presents its compliments to the Minister for Hong Kong Commercial Relations with the European Communities and the Member States and has the honour to refer to the Minister's Note of regarding the Agreement in textile products negotiated between Hong Kong and the Community and initialled on 2 October 1986.The Directorate-General wishes to confirm to the Minister that whilst awaiting the completion of the necessary procedures for the conclusion and the coming into force of the Agreement, the Community is prepared to allow the provisions of the agreement to apply de facto from 1 January 1987. This is on the understanding that either party may at any time terminate this de facto application of the Agreement provided that 120 days' notice is given.The Directorate-General for External Relations avails itself of this opportunity to renew to the Minister of Hong Kong Commercial Relations with the European Communities and the Member States the assurance of its highest consideration. Avis juridique important|21988A0414(01)Acordo entre a Comunidade Económica Europeia e Hong Kong sobre o comércio internacional de têxteis Tradução não oficial Jornal Oficial nº L 097 de 14/04/1988 p. 0002 - 0040