Community legislation on designations of origin is constituted by Council Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92 of 14 July 1992 on the protection of geographical indications and designations of origin for the purposes of the origin of the agricultural products and foodstuffs. In order to facilitate its application in national law, in particular with regard to the processing of applications for registration of designations of origin and geographical indications, it was considered necessary to provide for certain clarifications, What was published in Royal Decree 1643/1999 of 22 October 1999 regulating the procedure for the processing of applications for registration in the Community register of protected designations of origin and indications protected geographical areas, as referred to in Article 6.3 of Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92 Council. This royal decree lays down the procedure for the processing of applications and the way in which they exercise the transitional national protection provided for in Article 5 (5) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92. processing applications and exercising the transitional national protection of protected designations of origin and protected geographical indications, from their publication to date, in an orderly and effective manner. However, the need to regulate an internal opposition procedure has become apparent in this period, prior to the transmission of the application for registration to the European Commission. Prior to the transmission of the registration application to the European Commission, the competent authorities of the Member State should carefully examine the application. Any natural or legal person, legitimately interested, has the right to oppose the application for registration, in order to safeguard what it considers to be its legitimate right or interest. On the basis of the general rules of good administrative practice, Member States should have an internal opposition procedure. This is particularly important since the oppositions from the same Member State cannot be examined by the opposition procedure at Community level. This Community procedure refers to oppositions transmitted by a Member State to an application submitted by another Member State. It is therefore considered necessary and appropriate to regulate, in the context of the existing procedure, an incidental procedure for opposition to applications for registration in the Community Register of protected designations of origin and designations of origin. protected geographical indications, as well as requests for amendments to the specification of those already registered in the said register, prior to the transmission of such requests to the European Commission, a procedure which is shall be before the competent authority of the Autonomous Communities, except in the field The name is more than one autonomous community; in this case, it will be for the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. In addition, certain autonomous communities, by virtue of the exclusive competence conferred on them by their Autonomy Statute in respect of designations of origin, do not approve and publish regulations on designations of origin or indications protected geographical areas, which is why the current rules on transitional national protection are not applicable in such cases, and it has also been considered appropriate to amend the current regulation in order to open up the possibility of of the ratification to be carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food is restricted exclusively to the regulation of the name. In order to regulate both matters, it is considered the most appropriate, for the sake of clarity and consequent legal certainty, to issue a new royal decree incorporating the content of the former into the rules of the opposition procedure and provides for the possibility of ratifying documents other than the regulations, and repealing the current and cited Royal Decree 1643/1999 of 22 October. This royal decree has been submitted, in the project phase, to the autonomous communities and representative entities of the sector and is enacted under the State competence in the field of bases and coordination of the general planning of the economic activity referred to in Article 149.1.13. of the Constitution. In its virtue, on the proposal of the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, with the prior approval of the Minister of Public Administration, in agreement with the Council of State and after deliberation of the Council of Ministers at its meeting of the 25th of November 2005,

D I S P O N G O

Article 1. Scope of application.

This royal decree will apply to protected designations of origin and protected geographical indications as referred to in Article 2 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92 of 14 July 1992 (in forward, denominations).

Article 2. Applicants.

1. Producers or processors of an agricultural product or foodstuff, or their groupings and, in exceptional cases, a natural or legal person, in accordance with the provisions laid down in Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2037/93 of 27 July 1993, laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92 on the protection of geographical indications and designations of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs registration of a name in the Register of protected designations of origin and of protected geographical indications referred to in Article 6.3 of Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92, shall submit that application to the competent authority of the Autonomous Community or the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, territorial scope of the name is limited to a single autonomous community or more than one.

2. Applicants must establish professional, economic and territorial links with the products for which the registration is requested, as a result of their status as producers or processors engaged in the activity in the related territorial area. with the name.

Article 3. Documentation annexed to the application.

In the case of designations whose territorial scope extends to more than one autonomous community, the application shall be accompanied by the following documentation: (A) A supporting study of the application for registration, which shall contain, (a) The following paragraphs: (a) With regard to the name: 1. Accreditation of the use and notoriety of the geographical name in the marketing of the product.

2. The justification that the geographical name is sufficiently precise and related to the delimited geographical area. 3. A certification of the Central Mercantile Register, the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office and the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market on the existence or otherwise of social reasons or trademarks related to the name of the designation of origin or geographical indication.

b) Regarding products: 1. A description of the traditional geographical area of production and production of the product to be protected, with a particular impact on natural and human factors.

2. The indication of varieties, species or breeds and of traditional farming or breeding techniques. 3. The characteristics, conditions and methods of production or processing of the products. 4. A description of the products, expressing the physicochemical and organoleptic characteristics which, according to the preceding paragraphs, establish a qualitative differentiation in relation to those of the same nature. 5. Presentation and marketing modes, as well as main markets or other socio-economic elements or data that justify the visibility of the products.

B) A specification containing the elements specified in Article 4 of Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92.

C) The draft regulation of the name.

Article 4. Referral of applications to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.

1. The autonomous communities shall, after the checks provided for in Article 5.5 of Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92, send applications for registration in the Community Register to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food for their processing.

2. The autonomous communities shall, after the checks provided for in Article 9 of Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92, submit requests for amendments to the specification of the names already entered in the Register. to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food for processing. 3. When the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food advises the lack or insufficiency of any document or requirement necessary in the application, it shall inform the competent organ of the Autonomous Community in compliance with the duty of collaboration. between public administrations. 4. It is for the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, in coordination with the autonomous communities concerned, to carry out the checks referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 of the applications for registration or amendment of the contract of conditions for designations whose territorial scope covers the territory of more than one Autonomous Community.

Article 5. Publicity and deadline for the initiation of the opposition.

1. Once the application for registration in the Community register or the application for amendment of the specification has been received and verified, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food shall publish a notice of the applications for registration, as well as the summary form provided for in Commission Regulation (EC) No 383/2004 of 1 March 2004 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92, refers to the summary of the main elements of the specifications.

2. Within two months of the date of publication in the "Official Gazette of the State" of the applications for registration referred to in the preceding paragraph, any natural or legal person whose legitimate rights or interests he considers (a) may be opposed to the register sought by the relevant application for opposition to registration, addressed to the competent body of the autonomous community, or to the Director-General of Agri-Food and Food Industry of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when the territorial scope of the name covers the territory of more than one autonomous community.

Article 6. Causes of opposition.

After verification of the right or legitimate interest, without whose tender the procedure shall be terminated, the opposition to the registration shall be: (a) The failure to comply with the conditions referred to in Article 2 of the Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92, which must prove the opposite of the register.

b) on the existence of a total or partially homonymous denomination or mark, or on the possible existence of products which are legally on the market for at least the five years preceding the date of publication provided for in Article 5.1. (c) on the elements permitting the conclusion that the name whose registration is requested has a generic character.

Article 7. Access to the file and request for reports.

1. Under the procedure, both the specification and the application for registration and its annexed documentation shall be made available for examination by the opposing party and any legally interested natural or legal person. formal application to the competent authority of the autonomous community, or to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food where the territorial scope of the name covers the territory of more than one autonomous community.

2. The Directorate-General for Food and Food Industry shall, where appropriate, request a report from the autonomous communities concerned, which shall forward it within 15 working days from the receipt of the request for the report.

Article 8. Resolution and resources.

1. The resolution, which shall be reasoned, shall be adopted by the competent body of the autonomous community, or by the Director-General for Agri-Food and Food Industry, where the territorial scope of the name covers the territory of more than an autonomous community, and shall be notified to the applicant of the registration and to all those who have opposed it.

The Autonomous Communities shall communicate the judgment given to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food for the purposes of Article 10. 2. The decision to resolve the opposition proceedings may be brought under the law of the common administrative procedure.

Article 9. Maximum time limit for resolving the procedure and reporting the resolution.

The maximum period for resolving the opposition procedure, as well as for the notification of the decision, shall be six months from the request for opposition where the territorial scope of the name covers the territory of the territory of the from more than one autonomous community.

Article 10. Transmission of applications to the European Commission.

1. Once the checks provided for in Article 4.3 have been carried out and the opposition procedure has been resolved, the application for registration shall be forwarded to the European Commission where appropriate.

2. The implementation of such transmission shall be communicated immediately to the relevant autonomous community.

Article 11. Transitional national protection.

Once the application for registration has been transmitted to the European Commission, transitional national protection may be granted, as provided for in Article 5.5 of Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92, by publication in the 'Official State Gazette' of the Regulation, specifications or standard relating to the name referred to by the Autonomous Community.

To this end, such a regulation, specification or standard for the designation shall be ratified by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, provided that the protection granted is in accordance with the legal order in force.

Single repeal provision. Regulatory repeal.

All the rules of equal or lower rank are repealed in that they contradict or oppose the provisions of this royal decree and, expressly, the Royal Decree 1643/1999, of October 22, for which the procedure for the processing of applications for registration in the Community Register of protected designations of origin and protected geographical indications.

Final disposition first. Competence title.

This royal decree is dictated by the provisions of article 149.1.13. of the Constitution, which attributes to the State exclusive competence on the basis and coordination of the general planning of economic activity.

Final disposition second. Development and implementation faculty.

The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food is empowered to dictate, in the field of his competence, the precise measures for the development and fulfillment of this royal decree.

Final disposition third. Entry into force.

This royal decree will enter into force on the day following its publication in the "Official State Gazette".

Given in Madrid, on November 25, 2005.

JOHN CARLOS R.

The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, ELENA ESPINOSA MANGANA