Considerations on COM(2020)834 - Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION pursuant to Article 218 (9) TFEU on the Union position concerning the draft Joint Committee Decision on the determination of goods not at risk

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dossier COM(2020)834 - Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION pursuant to Article 218 (9) TFEU on the Union position concerning the draft Joint Committee ...
document COM(2020)834 EN
date January 27, 2021
 
(1) The Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community (‘the Withdrawal Agreement’) was concluded by the Union by Council Decision (EU) 2020/135 1  of 30 January 2020 and entered into force on 1 February 2020.

(2) Article 166 of the Withdrawal Agreement empowers the Joint Committee to adopt decisions in respect of all matters for which the Agreement so provides. The Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland to the Withdrawal Agreement (‘the Protocol’) forms an integral part of that Agreement.

(3) Article 5 (1) of the Protocol provides for the application of customs duties applicable in Union law for goods brought into Northern Ireland which are considered at risk of subsequently being moved into the Union. Goods not at risk are subject to either no customs duties or those customs duties applicable in the United Kingdom.

(4) According to Article 5 (2) all goods brought into Northern Ireland are to be considered as being at risk of subsequently being moved into the Union. In order to be considered as “not at risk” in this sense, goods brought into Northern Ireland must not be subject to commercial processing there or fulfil the criteria set out in a Joint Committee Decision.

(5) The criteria for goods not being subject to commercial processing should also respect the fact that, according to Article 6 of the Protocol, Northern Ireland forms part of the United Kingdom’s customs territory, and it should reflect the commitment of Parties to the Protocol that its implementation should impact as little as possible on everyday life of communities in both Ireland and Northern Ireland.

(6) Goods brought into Northern Ireland may be considered as not at risk of subsequently being moved into the Union where the tariff differential is zero, or where it is otherwise ensured that there is no incentive for economic operators to ship goods into Northern Ireland solely as a choice of the applicable customs tariff.

(7) It is therefore appropriate to establish the position to be taken on the Union's behalf in the Joint Committee.