Article 6 Time limit for submission

An operational F2programme shall be submitted for approval by a producer organisation to the F3appropriate authority of the constituent nation in which the producer organisation has its F4head office, by 15 September of the year preceding that in which the programme is to be implemented. However, F5nothing in this Regulation prevents the appropriate authority from setting a date later than 15 September.

An operational programme is to be submitted for approval by a producer organisation which has its head office in Scotland to the appropriate authority by 15 September in any applicable year.

When a legal entity or clearly defined part of a legal entity, including F6... a producer group referred to in Article 27 of Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013, submits an application for recognition as a producer organisation it may, at the same time, submit for approval the operational programme referred to in paragraph 1. Approval of the operational programme shall be subject to recognition being granted no later than on the final date laid down in Article 33(2) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/891.

An appropriate authority may only approve an operational programme if the producer organisation submitting it has notified the appropriate authority by 1 March, or such later date as may be set by the appropriate authority in accordance with Article 26(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/891, in the year preceding the applicable year of the estimated amount of financial assistance of its members and of the producer organisation or association itself, to the operational funds for the period for which the programme is to be implemented.

For the purposes of this Article, the “applicable year” means 2025 and every third year thereafter (so 2028, 2031, 2034 and so on).