Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2023/2494 of 15 November 2023 excluding - 17th November 2023 - European Commission

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Official Journal EN of the European Union L series 2023/2494 17.11.2023 COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING DECISION (EU) 2023/2494 of 15 November 2023 excluding from European Union financing certain expenditure incurred by the Member States under the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) and under the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) (notified under document C(2023) 7605) (Only the Bulgarian, Croatian, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Polish, Romanian, Spanish and Swedish texts are authentic) THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION, Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, Having regard to Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013on 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(1), and in particular Article 52 thereof, After consulting the Committee on the Agricultural Funds,

Whereas:

(1) In accordance with Article 52 of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013, the Commission is to carry out the necessary verifications, communicate to the Member States the results of those verifications, take note of the comments of the Member States, initiate a bilateral discussion so that an agreement may be reached with the Member States in question and formally communicate its conclusions to them.

(2) The Member States have had an opportunity to request the launch of a conciliation procedure. That opportunity has been used in some cases and the reports issued on the outcome have been examined by the Commission.

(3) In accordance with Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013, only agricultural expenditure, which has been incurred in a way that has not infringed Union law may be financed.

(4) In the light of the verifications carried out, the outcome of the bilateral discussions and the conciliation procedures, part of the expenditure declared by the Member States does not fulfil this requirement and cannot therefore be financed under the EAGF and the EAFRD.

(5) The amounts that are not recognised as being chargeable to the EAGF and the EAFRD should be indicated. Those amounts do not relate to expenditure incurred more than twenty-four months before the Commission’s written

notification of the results of the verifications to the Member States.

(6) The amounts excluded from Union financing by the present Decision should also take into account any reductions or suspensions in accordance with Article 41 of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 due to the fact that such reductions or suspensions are of a provisional nature and without prejudice to decisions taken pursuant to Articles 51 or 52 of that Regulation.

(7) As regards the cases covered by this decision, the assessment of the amounts to be excluded on grounds of non- compliance with Union law was notified by the Commission to the Member States in the summary report on the subject(2).

(8) This Decision is without prejudice to any financial conclusions that the Commission may draw from the judgments of the Court of Justice of the European Union in cases pending on 17 August 2023,

(1) OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 549.

(2) Ares(2023)6488249.

ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2023/2494/oj 1/44EN OJ L, 17.11.2023

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1 The amounts set out in the Annex and related to expenditure incurred by the Member States’ accredited paying agencies and declared under the EAGF or the EAFRD shall be excluded from Union financing.

Article 2 This Decision is addressed to the Republic of Bulgaria, the Federal Republic of Germany, the Republic of Estonia, the Hellenic Republic, the Kingdom of Spain, the French Republic, the Republic of Croatia, the Italian Republic, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, Hungary, the Republic of Poland, Romania, the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden.

Done at Brussels, 15 November 2023.

For the Commission Janusz WOJCIECHOWSKI Member of the Commission 2/44 ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2023/2494/ojELI:

http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2023/2494/oj 3/44 ANNEX Financial Corrections EAGF Financial corrections - excluding cross-compliance

Budget Item: 6200 Member Measure FY Reason Type Correction % Currency Gross Amount Deductions Net Decided State BG EU School Scheme 2018 Absence in key control - FLAT RATE 10,00% EUR – 49 956,26 0,00 – 49 956,26 school scheme - fruit - FY 2018 -19 EU School Scheme 2019 Absence in key control - FLAT RATE 10,00% EUR – 180 836,47 0,00 – 180 836,47 school scheme - fruit - FY 2018 -19 EU School Scheme 2018 Deficiencies kc school FLAT RATE 5,00% EUR – 25 413,74 0,00 – 25 413,74 scheme - milk products EU School Scheme 2019 Deficiencies kc school FLAT RATE 5,00% EUR – 52 909,89 0,00 – 52 909,89 scheme - milk products EU School Scheme 2020 Deficiencies kc school FLAT RATE 5,00% EUR – 55 603,87 0,00 – 55 603,87 scheme - milk products EU School Scheme 2020 Deficiency in key control - FLAT RATE 5,00% EUR – 128 159,32 0,00 – 128 159,32 school scheme - fruit - FY 2020 Irregularities 2022 EAGF: deficiencies in debt ONE OFF EUR – 1 703 118,35 0,00 – 1 703 118,35 management Wine - 2019 known errors in wine ONE OFF EUR – 670 419,54 – 27 616,27 – 642 803,27 Restructuring and restructuring detected by conversion of the CB in FY 2019 vineyards

Total BG: EUR – 2 866 417,44 – 27 616,27 – 2 838 801,17 OJ L,

17.11.2023 EN4/44

ELI:

http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2023/2494/oj Member Measure FY Reason Type Correction % Currency Gross Amount Deductions Net Decided State CY Clearance of 2020 Debt management + error ONE OFF EUR – 405 278,00 0,00 – 405 278,00 Accounts - Financial in EAFRD Clearance

Total CY: EUR – 405 278,00 0,00 – 405 278,00 Member Measure FY Reason Type Correction % Currency Gross Amount Deductions Net Decided State DE Decoupled Direct 2021 1.1 EAGF ONE OFF EUR – 483,94 0,00 – 483,94 Aids CEB/2021/009/DE IACS Fruit and Vegetables 2020 1.1 EAGF ONE OFF EUR – 235 178,14 0,00 – 235 178,14 - Operational CEB/2021/009/DE Non- programmes incl IACS withdrawals Wine - 2019 1.3 Deficiencies in key FLAT RATE 5,00% EUR – 124 238,93 0,00 – 124 238,93 Restructuring and controls conversion of CEB/2021/009/DE vineyards Wine - 2020 1.3 Deficiencies in key FLAT RATE 5,00% EUR – 114 358,76 0,00 – 114 358,76 Restructuring and controls conversion of CEB/2021/009/DE vineyards Wine - 2021 1.3 Deficiencies in key FLAT RATE 5,00% EUR – 49 489,54 0,00 – 49 489,54 Restructuring and controls conversion of CEB/2021/009/DE vineyards Wine - 2022 FY2022 FLAT RATE 5,00% EUR – 4 379,39 0,00 – 4 379,39 Restructuring and conversion of vineyards

Total DE: EUR – 528 128,70 0,00 – 528 128,70 EN OJ L,

17.11.2023ELI:

http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2023/2494/oj 5/44 Member Measure FY Reason Type Correction % Currency Gross Amount Deductions Net Decided State ES Promotion 2022 Deficiency in key control ONE OFF EUR – 53 961,25 0,00 – 53 961,25 Measures "Correct calculation of the aid including administrative reductions and penalties".

Scope of correction: 1 promotion programme.

FY 2022 Promotion 2020 Deficiency in key control ONE OFF EUR – 17 534,84 0,00 – 17 534,84 Measures "Correct calculation of the aid including administrative reductions and penalties".

Scope of correction: 5 promotion programmes.

FYs 2017-2021 Promotion 2021 Deficiency in key control ONE OFF EUR – 68 692,75 0,00 – 68 692,75 Measures "Correct calculation of the aid including administrative reductions and penalties".

Scope of correction: 5 promotion programmes.

FYs 2017-2021 Promotion 2017 Deficiency in key control FLAT RATE 5,00% EUR – 76 842,04 0,00 – 76 842,04 Measures "Performance of on-the- spot checks of sufficient quality".