be stored for a maximum and minimum period and under conditions to be determined according to the procedure laid down in paragraph 2, under the supervision of the competent authority, in the customs area of the port or airport pending forwarding to another border inspection post by sea or air;

under arrangements to be defined by the Commission in accordance with the procedure referred to in paragraph 7, invalidate the veterinary certificates or documents accompanying the rejected products so that it is not possible to reintroduce the rejected products via another border inspection post;

The checks are to confirm that the consignment received conforms to that despatched from the border inspection post of introduction, and that it matches the information given in the certificate accompanying the consignment according to the model shown in Annex B to Commission Decision 93/13/EEC(3).

In the case of live fish, their eggs and gametes, the competent authority at the border inspection post in the Member State of arrival shall complete the document referred to in Annex of Commission Decision 92/527/EEC(10) with one of the statements laid down in Annex VI to this Decision as appropriate.

In order to obtain Community approval, border inspection posts must have:

Release of the animals mentioned above for free circulation shall be subject to presentation of the original of the health certificate, or of a copy certified correct by the Community border inspection post, provided that the issuing country is the same as that indicated in box 8 of the import licence.`

In the case of fish products of aquaculture origin, the competent authority at the border inspection post in the Member State of arrival shall complete the document referred to in Annex B to Commission Decision 93/13/EEC(11) with one of the statements laid down in Annex VI of this Decision as appropriate.

With regard to consignments imported or in transit, the competent authority shall carry out documentary checks at regular intervals, and at least twice a year, on the channelling chain from the border inspection posts of first entry to the approved technical plant in case of import, and to the border inspection post of exit in case of transit, for the purpose of reconciliation of the quantities of animal by-products imported, used and disposed of, ensuring compliance with this Regulation and with Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002.

For each consignment, the official veterinarian of the border inspection post shall provide to the person concerned an authenticated copy of the original veterinary certificate(s) or other original veterinary document(s) accompanying the consignment, together with the certificate as laid down in Decision 92/527/EEC.

In the circumstances referred to in Article 6.2 (b) of Directive 97/78/EC the reasonable time intervals for Member States to comply with the recommendations made pursuant to inspection reports, before the Commission withdraws the border inspection post from the list in full or in part, in the latter case with regard to the product categories and/or inspection centres concerned by the recommendations, will be as follows, taken from the date of receipt of the final report in the language of the Member State:

The use of commercial storage facilities close to the border inspection post and within the same port or customs area, is permitted under the control of the official veterinarian, and provided that the detained product is stored in a separate lockable room, chamber, or zone clearly fenced off from all other products.

Where a case of foot-and-mouth disease is confirmed in a slaughterhouse, a border inspection post established in accordance with Directive 91/496/EEC or in a means of transport, the competent authority shall ensure that the following measures are carried out in relation to the affected premises or means of transport:

The list of ANIMO units in Commission Decision 2002/459/EC(6), as amended by Decision 2002/986/EC which includes the ANIMO unit number for each border inspection post in the Community, must accordingly be updated to take account of any relevant changes and to maintain an identical list to that in Decision 2001/881/EC.

the certificate shall be available at arrival in the border inspection posts,

The animals shall arrive at a border inspection post of the Community within 10 days of the date of loading in the exporting third country and be accompanied by a veterinary certificate, drawn up in conformity with the corresponding model, completed and signed by an official veterinarian of the exporting third country.

Article 3(1) and (2) of Directive 97/78/EC require, respectively, that Member States shall ensure that no consignment from a third country is introduced into the Community without having been subjected to the appropriate veterinary checks, and that consignments are introduced into the Community via a border inspection post.

Where, on the basis of the checks carried out at the point where the animals are marketed, a competent authority of a Member State considers that this Directive is not being complied with at a border inspection post of another Member State, it shall contact the competent national authority of that Member State without delay.

The official veterinarian, or in the case of fishery products either the official veterinarian or the designated agent appointed by the competent authority, shall be responsible for seeing that the necessary checks are carried out at the border inspection post of exit on consignments exiting the Community under this provision.

COMMISSION DECISION of 16 December 1999 establishing the detailed rules for the application of Article 9 of Council Directive 97/78/EC concerning the transhipment of products at a Border Inspection Post where the consignments are intended for eventual import into the European Community, and amending Commission Decision 93/14/EEC

be sent under customs supervision, in accordance with the T1 procedure laid down in Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 to the point of exit from the Community, together with the document required under 2(a) and the certificate referred to in Article 5(1) certifying the border inspection post where the consignment will leave the Community,

The basic principle of the system is that each relevant authority (border inspection post; central authority of the Member State; Commission) will have random access to a computerized file of consignments of animals or products re-dispatched under Article 12 (1) (c) of Directive 91/496/EEC or Article 16 (1) (a) of Directive 90/675/EEC.

If proof is given to the competent authority of the border inspection post of entry, without prejudice to the provisions of Article 20, that the products declared as being intended for an approved establishment never arrived at their destination, the authority shall take appropriate measures vis-a-vis the person responsible for the load.

However, such border inspection posts shall be visited at least every three years.

by withdrawal of a border inspection post, where it is found not to be complying with the conditions laid down in Annex II, either during a check carried out by the competent authority or if, following the inspections provided for in Article 23, the Member State does not take account of the conclusions of this inspection within a reasonable time especially in cases where the inspections have resulted in a serious public or animal health risk.

Border inspection posts and inspection centres must have as a minimum the items noted below available at all times:

such transit has been previously authorized by the official veterinarian of the border inspection post of the Member State in the territory of which the animals must be presented in order to undergo there the checks provided for in Article 4 and, where appropriate, by the competent central authority of the Member State or Member States of transit;

However, where necessitated by geographical constraints (such as an unloading wharf or a pass), a border inspection post at a certain distance from the point of introduction may be tolerated in accordance with the procedure laid down in paragraph 2 and, in the case of rail transport, at the first station stop designated by the competent authority;

Should the official veterinarian of the border inspection post of entry not have been informed of the exit of the products from the Community within the period specified in the third indent of 2(c), he shall refer the matter to the competent custom authority, which shall investigate as necessary to determine the actual destination of the products.

A border inspection post consists of facilities dedicated to veterinary checks, placed under the responsibility of the official veterinarian, or in the case of fishery products either the official veterinarian or the official agent referred to in Commission Decision 93/352/EEC(3), and localised in a manner so that the facilities constitute one complete working unit.

Commission Decision 2000/25/EC of 16 December 1999 establishing the detailed rules for the application of Article 9 of Council Directive 97/78/EC concerning the transhipment of products at a Border Inspection Post where the consignments are intended for eventual import into the European Community, and amending Commission Decision 93/14/EEC (OJ L 9, 13.1.2000, p. 27).

an up-to-date list of approved border inspection posts giving all available details of these posts;

Commission Decision 2000/25/EC of 16 December 1999 establishing the detailed rules for the application of Article 9 of Council Directive 97/78/EC concerning the transhipment of products at a Border Inspection Post where the consignments are intended for eventual import into the European Community, and amending Commission Decision 93/14/EEC(5) is to be incorporated into the Agreement.

The official veterinarian at the border inspection post of entry must ensure the hygiene and security of non-conforming products transported to and from warehouses before approving the despatch, and in the case of movement to warehouses in another Member State that the competent authority of that Member State has authorised the warehouse of destination to accept this type of product.

Measures to be applied in slaughterhouses, border inspection posts and means of transportation

If the consignment complies with the import conditions, the official veterinarian shall provide the person concerned with an authenticated copy of the original certificates or documents and shall, in accordance with Article 5(1), issue a certificate declaring that the consignment complies with those conditions on the basis of the veterinary checks carried out at the border inspection post.

In accordance with Article 3 (3) of Directive 89/662/EEC, transhipment of consignments is permitted only through ports which have been approved under the procedure laid down in Article 18, provided that a bilateral agreement has been reached between Member States to allow checking of the consignments to be deferred until they reach the border inspection post of the Member State of final destination.

The list of border inspection posts is contained in point 39 in Part 1.2 of Chapter I of Annex I.

until 31 December 1996, in the case of the meat products referred to in the second subparagraph of (ii) below intended for the Hellenic Republic after transit through the territory of a third country, be approved by the competent authority of the border inspection post at which the transit formalities are carried out to certify that the meat products concerned meet the requirements of this Directive;

All border inspection posts must be approved by the Commission and listed in the Official Journal.

Where, on the basis of the checks carried out at the point where the products are marketed, a competent authority of a Member State considers that this Directive is not being complied with at a border inspection post, or in a customs warehouse, free zone or free warehouse referred to in Article 12, of another Member State, it shall contact the competent central authority of that Member State without delay.

Where animals of species for which import rules have been harmonized at Community level are not to be placed on the market in the territory of the Member State which carried out the checks referred to in Article 4, the official veterinarian of the border inspection post shall, without prejudice to the specific requirements applicable to equidae registered and accompanied by the identification document provided for by Directive 90/427/EEC (8):

Whereas the border inspection posts must satisfy the general requirements laid down by Directive 90/675/EEC;

Commission Decision 2002/349/EC(11) lays down the list of products to be examined at border inspection posts.

Each year the Commission shall send to the Member States a copy of the inspection report for all border inspection posts visited in the previous 12 months together with a report concerning the evolution of the general situation of the agreed border inspection posts.

Member States shall ensure that persons responsible for the load are obliged to forward information in advance by duly completing where applicable the certificate referred to in Article 5(1), or provide a detailed description in writing or in computerised form of the consignment referred to in paragraph 1, including the products referred to in Article 9 and Article 19(1), to the veterinary staff of the border inspection post to which the products are to be submitted.

Each consignment of products referred to in the first and third indents of paragraph 1 and destined for another Member State shall undergo the documentary, identity and physical checks laid down in Article 4(3) and (4) at the border inspection post situated in the territory of the Member State where the products are introduced, to verify in particular whether the products concerned comply with the Community rules applicable to the Member State or area of destination.

In the light of experience, it appears that the presentation to the border inspection post, pursuant to Article 7 of Directive 97/78/EC, of the original veterinary documents established in the exporting third country to fulfil the regulatory requirement of the third country of destination, is not sufficient to ensure that the animal health conditions required for the safe introduction into the territory of the Community of the products concerned are effectively satisfied;

However, by way of derogation from paragraphs 1 and 2, for animals entering a port or an airport in the territory defined in Annex I to Directive 90/675/EEC, the identity check and the physical check may be carried out at such port or airport of destination, provided that such port or airport has a border inspection post as referred to in Article 6, and that the animals continue their journey, as the case may be, by sea or by air in the same vessel or in the same aircraft.

Each will make this available to the other Member States, the Commission and all Community border inspection posts.

the official veterinarian at the place of destination or, in the cases provided for in Chapter 10 of Annex I to Directive 92/118/EEC, the official veterinarian responsible for an intermediate warehouse, shall be informed by the management of the establishment of destination or of the intermediate warehouse of the arrival of the product at its destination, and shall within 15 days notify the official veterinarian at the border inspection post who notified him of the shipment.