% of the quantitative limit set out in Annex II for that category in the Community as a whole of in any region or regions of the Community concerned. 7. Any limit modified in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 1 or 4 may in no case be lower than the level of imports of products in that category originating in Macao in 1980. 8. The provisions of the Article also apply where the level referred to in paragraph 1 is exceeded in any of the Community's regions. In such a case, the compensation referred to in paragraphs 1 and 4 will concern the region or regions of the Community indicated in the Community's request for consultations. 9. With a view to limiting recourse to paragraph 1 of this Article, Macao undertakes to inform the Community of any sharp and substantial increases in the issue of export licences for any category which is likely to lead to the fulfilment of the conditions required for the application of the present Article. SECTION II Administration of the Agreement Article 9 1. Macao undertakes to supply the Community with precise statistical information on all export licences issued by the Macao authorities for all categories of textile products subject to the quantitative limits established under this Agreement. The Community shall likewise transmit to the Macao authorities precise statistical information on import authorizations or documents issued by the Community authorities in respect of export licences and certificates issued by Macao. 2. The information referred to in paragraph 1 shall, for all categories of products, be transmitted before the end of the second month following the quarter to which the statistics relate. 3. Macao also undertakes to supply the Community with available statistical information on all textile exports by country of destination. The Community shall transmit to Macao import statistics for all products covered by the system of administrative control referred to in Article 8 (2) and for products covered by Article 6 (1). 4. The information referred to in paragraph 3 shall, for all categories of products, be transmitted before the end of the third month following the quarter to which the statistics relate. 5. 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 16 of this Agreement. 6. For the purpose of applying the provisions of Article 7 and Article 8, the Community undertakes to provide the Macao 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. Article 10 1. In case of divergent opinions between Macao and the competent Community authorities at the point of entry into the Community on the classification of products covered by the present Agreement, classification shall provisionally be based on indications provided by the Community, pending consultations in accordance with Article 16 with a view to reaching agreement on definitive classification of the product concerned. 2. If the above provisional classification results in provisional debit against a quantitative limit for a category of products other than the category indicated on the export documents issued by the competent Macao authorities, the Community shall inform Macao of such provisional debit within 30 days. 3. The authorities of Macao shall be informed of any amendment to the Common Customs Tariff or NIMEXE 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 amendment to the Common Customs Tariff or NIMEXE of any decision which results in a modification of the classification of products covered by this Agreement shall not have the effect of reducing any quantitative limit established under this Agreement. The procedures for the application of this paragraph are set out in Protocol A. Article 11 1. Macao and the Community agree to cooperate fully in preventing the circumvention of the present Agreement by transhipment, re-routeing or whatever other means. 2. Where information available to the Community as a result of the investigations carried out in accordance with the procedures set out in Protocol A constitutes evidence that products of Macao 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 16 (1) of this Agreement, with a view to reaching agreement on an equivalent adjustment of the corresponding quantitative limits established under the Agreement. 3. Pending the result of the consultations referred to in paragraph 2, Macao shall as a precautionary measure, if so requested by the Community, make the necessary arrangements to ensure that adjustments of quantitative limits liable to be agreed following the consultations referred to in paragraph 2, may be carried out for the quota year in which the request to open consultations in accordance with paragraph 2 was made, for the following year if the quota for the current year is exhausted, where clear evidence of circumvention is provided. 4. Should the parties be unable in the course of consultations to reach a satisfactory solution
origin referred to in Article 2 of this Protocol. 4. The results of the subsequent verifications carried out in accordance with paragraphs 1 and 2 above shall be communicated to the competent authorities of the Community within three months at the latest. The information communicated shall indicate whether the disputed certificate or licence or declaration applies to the goods actually exported and whether these goods are eligible for export in accordance with the arrangements established by this Agreement. The information shall also include, at the request of the Community, copies of all documentation necessary to determine the facts fully and in particular the true origin of the goods. Should such verifications reveal systematic irregularities in the use of declarations of origin, the Community may subject imports of the products in question to the provisions of Article 2 (1) of this Protocol. 5. For the purpose of subsequent verification of certificates of origin, copies of the certificates as well as any export documents referring to them shall be kept for at least a period of three years by the competent governmental authority in Macao. 6. Recourse to the random verification procedure specified in this Article must not constitute an obstacle to the release for home use of the products in question. Article 21 1. Where the verification procedure referred to in Article 20 or where information available to the Community or to Macao indicates or appears to indicate that the provisions of this Agreement are being contravened, both parties shall cooperate closely and with the appropriate urgency to prevent such contravention. 2. To this end, Macao shall, on its own initiative or at the request of the Community, carry out appropriate inquiries or arrange for such inquiries to be carried out concerning operations which are or appear to the Community to be in contravention of this Agreement. Macao shall communicate the results of these inquiries to the Community together with any other pertinent information enabling the true origin of the goods to be determined. 3. By agreement between the Community and Macao officials designated by the Community may be present at the inquiries referred to in paragraph 2. 4. Pursuant to the cooperation referred to in paragraph 1, Macao and the Community shall exchange any information considered by either partner to be of use in preventing the contravention of the provisions of this Agreement. Such information may include information on trade in products subject to this Agreement between Macao and other countries and information on production of such products in Macao. 5. Where it is established that the provisions of this Agreement have been contravened, Macao and the Community may agree to take such measures as are necessary to prevent a recurrence of such contravention. >PIC FILE= "T0036596"> >PIC FILE= "T0036597"> PROTOCOL B Under Article 7 (6) of the Agreement, a quantitative limit may be fixed on a regional basis where imports of a given product into any region of the Community in relation to the amounts determined in accordance with paragraph 2 of the said Article 7 exceed the following regional percentage: >PIC FILE= "T0036598"> PROTOCOL C The annual growth rate for the quantitative limits introduced under Article 7 of the Agreement shall be determined as follows: For products in categories falling within Group I, II and III, the growth rate shall be fixed by agreement between the parties in accordance with the consultation procedure established in Article 16 (1) of the Agreement. Such growth rate may in no case be lower than the highest rate applied to corresponding products under bilateral agreements concluded under the Geneva Arrangement between the Community and other third countries having a level of trade equal to or comparable with that of Macao. year in question. Article 131. If the competent Community authorities find that the total quantities covered by export certificates issued by Macao 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 6,13 and 14 of the Agreement, or any definitive or provisional limit established under Article 7 or 8 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 Macao and the special consultation procedure set out in Article 16 (1) of the Agreement shall be initiated forthwith. 2. Exports of Macao origin not covered by export licences issued in accordance with the provisions of this Protocol may be refused the issue of import authorizations or documents by the competent Community authorities. However, if the import of such products are allowed into the Community by the competent Community authorities, the quantities involved shall not be set off against the appropriate quantitative limits set out in Annex II or established as a result of the application of Articles 7 or 8 of the Agreement, without the express Agreement of Macao authorities save as provided for in Article 11 of the Agreement. TITLE IV FORM AND PRODUCTION OF EXPORT CERTIFICATES AND CERTIFICATES OF ORIGIN, AND COMMON PROVISIONS Article 14 1. The export licence and the certificate of origin may comprise additional copies duly indicated as such. They shall be made out in English or French. If they are completed by hand, entries must be in ink and in printscript. These documents shall measures 210 × 297 mm. The paper used must be white writing paper, sized, not containing mechanical pulp and weighing not less than 25 g/m2. Each part shall have a printed guilloche-pattern background making any falsification by mechanical or chemical means apparent to the eye. If the documents have several copies only the top copy which is the original shall be printed with the guilloche-pattern background. This copy shall be clearly maked as "original" and the other copies as "copy". Only the original shall be accepted by the competent authorities in the Community as being valid for the purposes of exports to the Community in accordance with the arrangements established by this Agreement. 2. Each document shall bear a standardized serial number, whether or not printed, by which it can be identified. This number shall be composed of the following elements: - two letters identifying Macao as follows : MO, - two letters identifying country of destination as follows: >PIC FILE= "T0036595"> - a single-digit number identifying quota year, corresponding to the last figure in year e.g. 3 for 1983, - a two-digit number running consecutively from 01 to 99 identifying the issuing office, - a five-digit number running consecutively from 00001 to 99999 allocated to the country of destination. Article 15 The export licence and certificate or origin may be issued after the shipment of the products to which they relate. In such cases they shall bear either the endorsement "delivrée a posteriori" or the endorsement "issued retrospectively". Article 16 1. In the event of theft, loss or destruction of an export licence or a certificate of origin, the exporter may apply to the competent governmental authority which issued the document for a duplicate to be made out on the basis of the export documents in his possession. The duplicate of any such certificate or licence so issued shall bear the endorsement "duplicata". 2. The duplicate must bear the date of the original export licence or certificate of origin. TITLE V ADMINISTRATIVE COOPERATION Article 17 The Community and Macao shall cooperate closely to implement the provisions of this Agreement. To this end, contacts and exchanges of views (including on technical matters) shall be facilitated by both parties. Article 18 In order to ensure the proper application of this Agreement, the Community and Macao shall assist each other in checking the authenticity and accuracy of export licences and certificates of origin issued or declaration made under this Protocol. Article 19 Macao shall send the Commission of the European Communities the names and addresses of the govermental authorities competent for the issue and verification of export licences and certificates of origin together with specimens of the stamps used by these authorities. Macao shall also notify the Commission of any change in this information. Article 20 1. Subsequent verification of certificates of origin or export licences shall be carried out at random, or whenever the competent Community authorities have reasonable doubt as to the authenticity of the certificate or licence or as to the accuracy of the information regarding the products in question. 2. Avis juridique important|21986A1016(05)Acordo entre a Comunidade Económica Europeia e Macau sobre o Comércio de Produtos Têxteis Jornal Oficial nº L 293 de 16/10/1986 p. 0186 the new groupings, their composition is set out below: >PIC FILE= "T0036570"> Note: Category 10 comprises former categories 10 and 11. Category 24 comprises former categories 24 and 25. Category 19 comprises former categories 19 and 89. Category 72 comprises former categories 72 and 79. GROUP I A >PIC FILE= "T0036571"> GROUP I B >PIC FILE= "T0036572"> GROUP II A >PIC FILE= "T0036573"> GROUP II B >PIC FILE= "T0036574"> >PIC FILE= "T0036575"> >PIC FILE= "T0036576"> >PIC FILE= "T0036577"> >PIC FILE= "T0036578"> GROUP III A >PIC FILE= "T0036579"> >PIC FILE= "T0036580"> >PIC FILE= "T0036581"> >PIC FILE= "T0036582"> >PIC FILE= "T0036583"> >PIC FILE= "T0036584"> GROUP III B >PIC FILE= "T0036585"> >PIC FILE= "T0036586"> >PIC FILE= "T0036587"> GROUP III C >PIC FILE= "T0036588"> >PIC FILE= "T0036589"> >PIC FILE= "T0036590"> ANNEX II For practical reasons the product descriptions used in Annex I are given in the present Annex in abbreviated form >PIC FILE= "T0036591"> >PIC FILE= "T0036592"> REGIONAL LIMITS >PIC FILE= "T0036593"> >PIC FILE= "T0036594"> PROTOCOL A TITLE I CLASSIFICATION Article 1 1. The competent authorities of the Community undertake to inform Macao of any changes in the Common Customs Tariff or NIMEXE before the date of their entry into effect in the Community. 2. The competent authorities of the Community undertake to inform Macao of any decisions relating to the classification of products subject to the present Agreement within one month of their adoption at the latest. Such communication shall include: (a) a description of the products concerned; (b) the relevant category, tariff position or sub-position and the NIMEXE code; (c) the reasons which have led to the decision. 3. Where a decision on classification results in a change of classification practice or a change of category of any product subject to the present Agreement, the competent authorities of the Community shall provide 30 days'notice, from the date of the Community's communication, before the decision enters into effect. Products shipped before the date of entry into effect of the decision shall remain subject to the earlier classification practice, provided that the goods in question are presented for importation into the Community within 60 days of that date. 4. Where a Community decision on classification resulting in a change of classification practice or a change of categorization of any product subject to the present Agreement affects a category subject to restraint, the Community undertakes to enter into consultations without delay in accordance with the procedures described in Article 16 (2) 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 II ORIGIN Article 2 1. Products originating in Macao for export to the Community in accordance with the arrangements established by this Agreement shall be accompanied by a certificate of Macao origin conforming to the model annexed to this Protocol. 2. The certificate of origin shall be issued by the competent governmental authorities of Macao 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. However, the products in Group III may be imported into the Community in accordance with the arrangements established by this Agreement on production of a declaration by the exporter on the invoice or other commercial document relating to the products to the effect that the products in question originate in Macao within the meaning of the relevant rules in force in the Community. 4. The certificate of origin referred to in paragraph 1 shall not be required for import of goods covered by a certificate of origin Form A or