On Monday 29 July, the European Commission adopted a proposal for a temporary derogation from the 2021 rules on verifying consignments of organic products intended for import into the EU from third countries.
Regulation 2018/848 lays down rules enabling the Commission to recognise the control authorities and control bodies that are competent to carry out controls and issue organic certificates in third countries for operators and their products intended for export to the EU (compliance regime). This act is supplemented by Regulation 2021/1698 concerning the verification of consignments intended for import into the EU and the issue of certificates to operators (physical on-the-spot inspection).
These rules and procedural requirements came into force on 1 January 2022, three years before the scheduled expiry on 31 December 2024 of the recognition of control authorities and control bodies under the regime established by Regulation 834/2007 (equivalence regime).
However, only a limited number of applications for recognition were submitted to the Commission sufficiently in advance to enable the control authorities and control bodies to prepare properly for issuing certificates to operators in third countries (in accordance with the compliance regime).
To avoid unnecessary disruption to trade, the Commission is proposing, pending the issuance of certificates to operators, a temporary derogation for the verification of consignments intended for import into the EU and the issuance of inspection certificates (see EUROPE 12697/24).
Further details: https://aeur.eu/f/d60 (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)