{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/eu-decision-2018-794/introduction",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/eu-decision-2018-794/introduction.json",
  "legislation": "eudn/2018/794",
  "legislation_title": "Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2018/794 of 28 May 2018 on the clearance of the accounts of the paying agencies of Member States concerning expenditure financed by the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) for financial year 2017 (notified under document C(2018) 3194)",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/eu-decision-2018-794",
  "path": "introduction",
  "kind": "introduction",
  "number": null,
  "heading": "Introductory text",
  "text": "Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2018/794\nof 28 May 2018\non the clearance of the accounts of the paying agencies of Member States concerning expenditure financed by the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) for financial year 2017\n(notified under document C(2018) 3194)\nTHE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,\nHaving regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,\nHaving regard to Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 on the financing, management and monitoring of the common agricultural policy and repealing Council Regulations (EEC) No 352/78, (EC) No 165/94, (EC) No 2799/98, (EC) No 814/2000, (EC) No 1290/2005 and (EC) No 485/2008, and in particular Article 51 thereof,\nAfter consulting the Committee on the Agricultural Funds,\nWhereas:\n(1)\nPursuant to Article 51 of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013, the Commission, on the basis of the annual accounts submitted by the Member States, accompanied by the information required for the clearance of accounts and an audit opinion regarding the completeness, accuracy and veracity of the accounts and the reports established by the certification bodies, has to clear the accounts of the paying agencies referred to in Article 7 of that Regulation.\n(2)\nIn accordance with Article 39 of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 the agricultural financial year begins on 16 October of year N – 1 and ends on 15 October of year N. When clearing the accounts for financial year 2017, account should be taken of expenditure incurred by the Member States between 16 October 2016 and 15 October 2017, as provided for in Article 11(1) of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 908/2014.\n(3)\nThe first subparagraph of Article 33(2) of Implementing Regulation (EU) No 908/2014 provides that the amounts that are recoverable from, or payable to, each Member State, in accordance with the accounts clearance decision referred to in Article 33(1) of that Regulation, are to be determined by deducting the monthly payments for the financial year in question, i.e. 2017, from expenditure recognised for that year in accordance with Article 33(1). The Commission is to deduct that amount from or add it to the monthly payment relating to the expenditure effected in the second month following the clearance of accounts decision.\n(4)\nThe Commission has checked the information submitted by the Member States and has communicated the results of its checks to the Member States before 30 April 2018, along with the necessary amendments.\n(5)\nFor certain paying agencies, the annual accounts and the accompanying documents permit the Commission to take a decision on the completeness, accuracy and veracity of the annual accounts submitted.\n(6)\nThe information submitted by certain other paying agencies requires additional inquiries and their accounts cannot therefore be cleared in this Decision.\n(7)\nIn accordance with Article 5(5) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 907/2014, any overrun of deadlines during August, September and October is to be taken into account in the clearance of accounts decision. Some of the expenditure declared by certain Member States during these months in 2017 was effected after the applicable deadlines. This Decision should therefore fix the relevant reductions.\n(8)\nPursuant to Article 41 of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013, the Commission has already reduced or suspended a number of monthly payments for financial year 2017 due to failure to comply with financial ceilings or payment deadlines, or due to control system deficiencies. In adopting this Decision, the Commission should take into account the amounts reduced or suspended in order to avoid making all inappropriate, or untimely, payments or reimbursing amounts which could later be subject to financial correction. The amounts in question may be further examined, where appropriate, under conformity clearance proceedings pursuant to Article 52 of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013.\n(9)\nPursuant to Article 54(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013, 50 % of the financial consequences of non-recovery of irregularities should be borne by the Member State concerned, if recovery has not taken place within four years from the date of the recovery request, or within eight years where the recovery is taken before the national courts. Article 54(4) of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 requires Member States to attach to the annual accounts that they have to submit to the Commission pursuant to Article 29 of Implementing Regulation (EU) No 908/2014 a certified table reflecting the amounts to be borne by them under Article 54(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013. Rules on the application of the Member States' obligation to report the amounts to be recovered are laid down in Implementing Regulation (EU) No 908/2014. Annex II to Implementing Regulation (EU) No 908/2014 sets out the model of the table that Member States have to use to provide information about amounts to be recovered. On the basis of the tables completed by the Member States, the Commission should decide on the financial consequences of non-recovery of irregularities older than four or eight years respectively.\n(10)\nPursuant to Article 54(3) of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013, on duly justified grounds, Member States may decide not to pursue recovery. Such a decision may be taken only if the costs already, and likely to be, incurred total more than the amount to be recovered or if the recovery proves impossible owing to the insolvency, recorded and recognised under national law, of the debtor or the persons legally responsible for the irregularity. If the decision has been taken within four years of the primary administrative or judicial finding or within eight years where the recovery is taken to the national courts, 100 % of the financial consequences of the non-recovery should be borne by the Union budget. The amounts for which the Member State decided not to pursue recovery and the grounds for the decision are shown in the summary report referred to in Article 54(4) in conjunction with point (c)(iv) of Article 102(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013. Therefore, such amounts should not be charged to the Member States concerned and are consequently borne by the Union budget.\n(11)\nReductions according to Article 54(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 presented in Annex I (column e) relate to the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF). The amounts to be charged to the Member States, as a result of the application of Article 54(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 in relation to the Temporary Rural Development Instrument (TRDI) funded by the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF) are presented in Annex III.\n(12)\nIn accordance with Article 51 of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013, this Decision is without prejudice to the decisions the Commission may take subsequently to exclude from Union financing expenditure not effected in accordance with Union rules,\nHAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:",
  "extent": "E+W+S+N.I.",
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f1",
      "text": "OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 549."
    },
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f2",
      "text": "Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 908/2014 of 6 August 2014 laying down rules for the application of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to paying agencies and other bodies, financial management, clearance of accounts, rules on checks, securities and transparency (OJ L 255, 28.8.2014, p. 59)."
    },
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f3",
      "text": "Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 907/2014 of 11 March 2014 supplementing Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to paying agencies and other bodies, financial management, clearance of accounts, securities and use of euro (OJ L 255, 28.8.2014, p. 18)."
    },
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f4",
      "text": "Commission Regulation (EC) No 27/2004 of 5 January 2004 laying down transitional detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999 as regards the financing by the EAGGF Guarantee Section of rural development measures in the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia (OJ L 5, 9.1.2004, p. 36)."
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/eudn/2018/794/introduction",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-11-01T15:13:06.213867+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}