24 Amendments of Dominique BILDE related to 2017/0158(COD)
Amendment 37 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 5
Recital 5
(5) Given the known potential of free zones (and so-called "free ports") for the purpose of storing cultural goods, the control measures to be put in place should have as broad a scope as possible in terms of customs procedures concerned. Those control measures should therefore not only concern goods released for free circulation but also goods placed under a special customs procedure. However, such a broad scope should not go against the principle of freedom of transit of goods nor go beyond the objective of preventing illicitly exported cultural goods from entering the customs territory of the Union. Accordingly, while encompassing special customs procedures under which goods entering the customs territory of the Union may be placed, control measures should exclude transitStrict rules should also be applied to free ports, and in particular a strict limit should be placed on the maximum period of time for which works of art in transit may be stored there.
Amendment 39 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 5
Recital 5
(5) Given the known potential of free zones (and so-called "free ports") for the purpose of storing cultural goods, the control measures to be put in place should have as broad a scope as possible in terms of customs procedures concerned. Those control measures should therefore not only concern goods released for free circulation but also goods placed under a special customs procedure. With regard to free zones, specific good practice should be put in place, consisting of a requirement to disclose the identity of the final beneficiary of the goods stored, in order to dispel any suspicion of money laundering linked to a terrorist organisation. However, such a broad scope should not go against the principle of freedom of transit of goods nor go beyond the objective of preventing illicitly exported cultural goods from entering the customs territory of the Union. Accordingly, while encompassing special customs procedures under which goods entering the customs territory of the Union may be placed, control measures should exclude transit.
Amendment 41 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 6
Recital 6
(6) The definitions based on those used in the UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property signed in Paris on 14 November 1970 and the UNIDROIT Convention on Stolen or Illegally Exported Cultural Objects signed in Rome on 24 June 1995, to which a signihas unfortunately been ratified by an insufficaient number of Member States are a partyStates, should be used in the Regulation, considering the familiarity of many third countries and most Member States with their provisions.
Amendment 44 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 7
Recital 7
(7) The legality of export should be examined based on the laws and regulations of the country where the cultural goods were discovered or created ('source country'). In order to avoid circumvention, when the cultural goods enter the Union from a different third country, the person who seeks to introduce them into the customs territory of the Union should demonstrate that they were exported from there legally, when the third country in question is a signatory State ofState that has ratified the 1970 UNESCO Convention and thus a country committed to fighting against illicit trafficking of cultural property. In other cases, the person should prove lawful export from the source country.
Amendment 55 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 10
Recital 10
(10) Since certain categories of cultural goods, namely archaeological objects, elements of monuments, rare manuscripts and incunabula are particularly vulnerable to pillage and destruction, it seems necessary to provide for a system of increased scrutiny before they may enter the customs territory of the Union. These categories of goods shall include archaeological objects, elements of monuments, rare manuscripts and incunabula that are of importance for the spiritual heritage of peoples, as these goods are particularly targeted in various types of trafficking. Such a system should require the presentation of a licence issued by the competent authority of the Member State of entry prior to the release for free circulation of those goods or their placement under a special customs procedure other than transit. Persons seeking to obtain such a licence should be able to prove licit export from the source country with the appropriate supportive documents and evidence, in particular, export certificates or licences issued by the third country of export, ownership titles, invoices, sales contracts, insurance documents, transport documents and experts appraisals. Based on complete and accurate applications, the competent authorities of the Member States should decide whether to issue a licence without undue delay. No exception to this process, based on the pretext of making the art and antiquities market more fluid, should be permitted.
Amendment 56 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 10
Recital 10
(10) Since certain categories of cultural goods, namely archaeological objects, elements of monuments, rare manuscripts and incunabula are particularly vulnerable to pillage and destruction, it seems necessary to provide for a system of increased scrutiny before they may enter the customs territory of the Union or, within the framework of the international community and in particular of the United Nations, to take measures to prohibit commercial trade in cultural goods originating from conflict zones, along the lines of the United Nations Resolutions of 2003 and 2015 concerning Syria and Iraq. Such a system should require the presentation of a licence issued by the competent authority of the Member State of entry prior to the release for free circulation of those goods or their placement under a special customs procedure other than transit. Persons seeking to obtain such a licence should be able to prove licit export from the source country with the appropriate supportive documents and evidence, in particular, export certificates or licences issued by the third country of export, ownership titles, invoices, sales contracts, insurance documents, transport documents and experts appraisals. Based on complete and accurate applications, the competent authorities of the Member States should decide whether to issue a licence without undue delay.
Amendment 62 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 11
Recital 11
(11) For other categories of cultural goods, including certain objects of importance for the spiritual heritage of peoples, the persons seeking to introduce them into the customs territory of the Union should, by means of a statement, certify and assume responsibility for their lawful export from the third country and should provide sufficient information for those goods to be identified by customs. In order to facilitate the procedure and for reasons of legal certainty, the information about the cultural good should be provided using a standardised document. The Object ID standard, recommended by UNESCO, should be used to describe the cultural goods. Customs should register the entry of those cultural goods, keep the originals and give a copy of the relevant documents to the declarant, in order to ensure traceability after the goods enter the internal market.
Amendment 63 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 11
Recital 11
(11) For other categories of cultural goods, the persons seeking to introduce them into the customs territory of the Union should, by means of a statement, certify and assume responsibility for their lawful export from the third country and should provide sufficient information for those goods to be identified by customs. In order to facilitate the procedure and for reasons of legal certainty, the information about the cultural good should be provided using a standardised document. The Object ID standard, recommended by UNESCO, should be used to describe the cultural goods. Customs should register the entry of those cultural goods, keep the originals and give a copy of the relevant documentsreceipt to the declarant, in order to ensure traceability after the goods enter the internal market.
Amendment 66 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 12
Recital 12
(12) Temporary admission of cultural goods for educational, scientific or academic research purposes should not be subject to the presentation of a licence or of a statement. With regard to loans and exchanges between museums, particularly when goods are intended for exhibition, current practice should not be made more burdensome or complex.
Amendment 69 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 12
Recital 12
(12) Temporary admission of cultural goods for educational, scientific or academic research purposes should not be subject to the presentation of a licence or of a statement.
Amendment 75 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 14
Recital 14
(14) In order to take account of experience with the implementation of this Regulation and of changing geopolitical and other circumstances which place cultural goods at risk, while not impeding trade with third countries disproportionally, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union should be delegated to the Commission in respect of modifications to the minimum age threshold criterion for the different categories of cultural goods. That delegation should also allow the Commissionorder to update the Annex following amendments to the Combined Nomenclature for a period of five years. It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement on Better Law-Making of 13 April 201627. In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States' experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts. __________________ 27 OJ L 123, 12.5.2016, p. 1. OJ L 123, 12.5.2016, p. 1.
Amendment 92 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) ‘cultural goods’ 'cultural goods' means anymeans any religious or secular object which is of importance for archaeology, prehistory, history, literature, art or science, science or the spiritual heritage of peoples and which belongs to the categories listed in the table in Annex and meets the minimum age threshold specified therein;
Amendment 125 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point a
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point a
(a) the temporary admission, within the meaning of Article 250 of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013, in the customs territory of the Union of cultural goods for educational, scientific and academic research purposes, or for cooperation, loans or exchanges for cultural exhibitions between museums or similar establishments, and private or public cultural institutions;
Amendment 131 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point b
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point b
Amendment 138 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 3
Article 3 – paragraph 3
3. The Commission may adopt, by means of implementing acts, the specific modalities for the temporary admission or storage of cultural goods referred to in paragraph 2. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 13. With regard to free ports, it is particularly important to place a strict limit on the legal duration of storage, so that it is not used to circumvent existing measures, particularly international ones, such as moratoriums or embargos on trade in certain works, especially to avoid controls on certain works of art.
Amendment 145 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 2
Article 4 – paragraph 2
2. The holder of the goods shall apply for an import licence to the competent authority of the Member State of entry. The application shall be accompanied by any supporting documents and information substantiating that the cultural goods in question have been exported from the source country in accordance with its laws and regulations. However, where the export country is a Conthas racting Party tofied the UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property signed in Paris on 14 November 1970 ('the 1970 UNESCO Convention'), the application shall be accompanied by any supporting documents and information substantiating that the cultural goods have been exported from that country in accordance with its laws and regulations.
Amendment 151 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 3
Article 4 – paragraph 3
3. The competent authority of the Member State of entry shall verify whether the application is complete and shall check that all the information and documents submitted are reliable and in order. It shall request any missing information or document from the applicant within 30 days of receipt of the application.
Amendment 155 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 4 – point a
Article 4 – paragraph 4 – point a
(a) where the export country ihas not a Contracting Party tofied the 1970 UNESCO Convention, it is not demonstrated that the cultural goods were exported from the source country in accordance with its laws and regulations;
Amendment 160 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 4 – point b
Article 4 – paragraph 4 – point b
(b) where the export country is a Conthas racting Party tofied the 1970 UNESCO Convention, it is not demonstrated that the cultural goods were exported from the export country in accordance with its laws and regulations;
Amendment 166 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 4 – point c a (new)
Article 4 – paragraph 4 – point c a (new)
(ca) or for any other public policy reason duly justified by the public authority.
Amendment 171 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 6
Article 4 – paragraph 6
6. The Commission may establish, by means of implementing acts, the template for the application for the import licence as well as the procedural rules on the submission and processing of such an application. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 13. Member States shall be free to draw up their own licence templates or to amend the templates proposed by the Commission in line with their needs. In that event, they shall send the Commission the above-mentioned templates and/or inform it of the changes made.
Amendment 184 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1
Article 5 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1
The importer statement shall contain a declaration signed by the holder of the goods that the goods have been exported from the source country in accordance with its laws and regulations. However, where the export country is a Conthas racting Party tofied the UNESCO Convention on Cultural Property, the importer statement shall contain a declaration signed by the holder of the goods that the goods have been exported from that country in accordance with its laws and regulations.
Amendment 192 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 3
Article 5 – paragraph 3
3. The Commission may adopt, by means of implementing acts, the template for the importer statement as well as the procedural rules on the submission and processing of the importer statement. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 13. Member States may draft their own import statements or may make amendments to the Commission’s documents or to the procedural rules. In that event, they shall notify the Commission accordingly.
Amendment 213 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 12 – paragraph 2
Article 12 – paragraph 2
2. The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in Article 2(2) shall be conferred on the Commission for an indeterminate period of timefive years from … [Publications Office is to fill in the date of entry into force of this Act].