The abolition of border controls between the countries of the European Community requires the adoption of a number of measures necessary for the best and most harmonious functioning of the internal market.

One of these measures is that provided for in Directive 89 /662/EEC, which provides for controls to be carried out on products covered by the veterinary field, which until now have been carried out at the borders, to ensure the protection of public and animal health.

Since the ultimate objective is to limit veterinary checks to the place of departure, the essential requirements of the checks, which must be carried out at the place of origin, must be harmonised during transport (as provided for in the Directive 92/67/EEC, which is also transposed), as well as to organise the checks which may be carried out at the place of destination, progressively abandoning the possibility of carrying out checks at the internal frontiers of the Community and applying the the principle of mutual trust in veterinary checks carried out by the State of issue.

For all of this, we must provide for the measures to be taken to unify these controls and to act in the event of non-compliance, both of the documentary requirements and of the conditions of the products, and this not only in respect of the causes which may constitute a danger to animals or to human health, but also to the characteristics of the product, for reasons other than those mentioned above.

This Royal Decree is hereby issued, pursuant to Article 149.1.10. and 16. of the Spanish Constitution, and in accordance with the provisions of Article 40.2 of Law 14/1986 of 25 April, General of Health.

In its virtue, on the proposal of the Ministers of Health and Consumer Affairs, Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Economy and Finance and Industry, Commerce and Tourism, with a mandatory report of the Inter-Ministerial Commission for the Food, hearing the sectors concerned, in agreement with the Council of State and after deliberation by the Council of Ministers at its meeting on 15 January 1993,

D I S P O N G O:

Chapter I

Scope and definitions

Article 1.

Veterinary checks on products of animal origin, subject to the provisions listed in Annex A and products of animal origin listed in Annex B, which are intended for intra-Community trade, are not shall carry out at the borders, without prejudice to the provisions of Article 6, but shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of this Royal Decree.

Article 2.

For the purposes of this Royal Decree, the following definitions shall

:

1. Veterinary inspection: any physical checks and/or administrative formalities relating to the products referred to in Article 1, intended directly or indirectly to ensure the protection of public or animal health.

2. Trade: changes in goods between Member States in accordance with Article 9 (2) of the Treaty of Rome.

3. Establishment: any undertaking authorised for the production, storage or processing of the products referred to in Article 1.

4. Competent authority: the Ministries of Health and Consumer Affairs and Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, in respect of trade with third countries, and the competent bodies of the Autonomous Communities to carry out veterinary checks, with respect to the single market.

5. Official veterinarian: the veterinarian designated by the competent authority.

Chapter II

Controls at source

Article 3.

1. Only the products referred to in Article 1 which have been obtained, checked, marked and labelled in accordance with the rules corresponding to those products and which are accompanied, up to the final consignee, shall be used for trade. expressly mentioned, the veterinary inspection certificate, the health certificate or any other document laid down in the specific national or Community legislation.

Source establishments shall ensure, by means of permanent self-control, that the products listed above satisfy the requirements of the preceding paragraph.

Without prejudice to the control tasks assigned to the official veterinarian, the competent authority shall carry out regular checks on the establishments in order to ensure that the products intended for trade are to the requirements of its specific rules or, in the case of the products referred to in Annex B, to the requirements of the Member State of destination.

Where there are reasonable grounds for believing that the above requirements are not met, the competent authority shall carry out the necessary verifications and, in the event of confirmation of the suspicions, take appropriate measures. may be suspended until the establishment is suspended.

2. Where the transport comprises several places of destination, the products shall be grouped in as many lots as places of destination. Each lot shall be accompanied by the documentation referred to in the first subparagraph of the previous paragraph.

Where the products referred to in Article 1 are to be exported to a third country, the transport shall remain under official control until the place of departure from the Community territory.

3. In order to import optional imports from certain third countries, the General Administration of the State shall inform the Commission and the other Member States of the existence of such imports.

Where products not authorised in national territory are introduced for optional imports, to another Member State which, if authorised, shall be subject to checks on their origin and destination documents, compliance with the provisions of the rules on veterinary checks applicable to products entering the Community from third countries.

The reissue of products subject to optional imports is prohibited unless they are intended for another Member State making use of the same power.

Article 4.

1. The competent authorities shall ensure that economic operators ensure that health conditions are met at all stages of the production, storage, placing on the market and transport of the products referred to in the Article 1.

They will also ensure that:

(a) Products obtained in accordance with the regulations referred to in Annex A are controlled in the same way, from a health point of view, whether they are intended for another Member State or the national market.

(b) The products listed in Annex B are not dispatched to another Member State, if they cannot be placed on the market in the national territory for reasons justified by Article 36 of the Treaty of Rome (danger to health public).

2. The competent authorities, without prejudice to specific Community rules on infringements and penalties, shall apply the provisions laid down in Chapter VI of Title I of Law 14/1986 of 25 April 1986, General of Health, and in the Royal Decree 1945/1983 of 22 June 1983 of infringements and penalties in respect of the defence of the consumer and of agri-food production, as well as any other specific rules of the Autonomous Communities, in order to penalise any infringement committed against health legislation by natural or legal persons, in the case of cases of action by infringements of health legislation and in particular where it is found that the documentation established does not correspond to the actual state of the products or that the health mark has been affixed to products which do not comply with those rules.

Chapter III

Controls on target

Article 5.

1. The competent authorities shall apply the following control measures to goods from another Member State: they shall verify at the place of destination of the goods, by means of veterinary checks, by random checks and by discrimination, compliance with the requirements of Article 3; sampling may also be carried out.

In addition, when information elements are available to enable an infringement to be committed, checks shall be carried out during the carriage of the goods, including the conformity of the means of transport, even if the goods are destined for another Member State.

Where the products referred to in Article 1 and originating in another Member State are intended for:

(a) An establishment under the responsibility of an official veterinarian shall ensure that only products satisfying the requirements laid down in Article 3 (1) are admitted to such establishment. relating to marking, labelling and accompanying documents or, in the case of the products referred to in Annex B, comply with the specific national rules.

(b) An authorised intermediary which proceeds to split the lots or to a commercial undertaking with multiple branches or to any establishment where the permanent presence of an official veterinarian is not available, shall be required to verify, prior to any fractionation or marketing, the presence of the marks and documents referred to in the preceding paragraph and to report any non-compliance or anomaly to the competent authority.

(c) Other recipients, in particular in the case of partial unloading during transport, the lot shall be accompanied, in accordance with Article 3 (1), of the original of the document referred to in subparagraph (a).

The guarantees to be provided by the addressees referred to in paragraphs (a) and (b) shall be determined by a commitment, to be signed with the competent authority, on the occasion of the prior registration provided for in the paragraph 3. The competent authority shall verify, by means of survey checks, compliance with such safeguards.

2. Without prejudice to Article 4, products not covered by Community legislation, and in particular those referred to in Annex B, must come from establishments which comply with the rules in force in national law. Spanish. The Member State of origin shall ensure that those products conform to those requirements.

3. Economic operators who receive deliveries of products from another Member State or who are responsible for splitting a batch of such products:

(a) They shall be subject to prior registration, subject to the conditions laid down by the competent authority.

(b) They shall bear a record in which they shall record such deliveries.

(c) They shall be obliged, at the request of the competent authority, to indicate the arrival of the products of another Member State to the extent necessary to carry out the checks provided for in paragraph 1.

(d) Keep, for a minimum of 12 months, the accompanying documentation referred to in Article 3, in order to submit it to the competent authority, at the request of the competent authority.

Article 6.

1. In the case of checks carried out at places where products from a third country may be introduced into the territory of the Community, such as ports, airports and border posts with third countries situated in the territory of the Community. national, the following measures shall be taken:

a) A documentary check of the origin of the products will be carried out.

(b) The control rules laid down in Article 5 shall apply to products of Community origin.

(c) Products from third countries shall be subject to the rules laying down the veterinary checks applicable to products entering the Community from third countries.

2. However, by way of derogation from paragraph 1, all products transported by means of a regular and direct link, two geographical points of the Community, shall be subject to the control rules laid down in the Article. 5.

Article 7.

If, when performing a control at the place of destination of the shipment or during transport, the competent authority checks:

1. The presence of disease-causing agents referred to in Annex I to Royal Decree 959/1986 of 25 April 1986 and in Commission Decision 89 /162/EEC and their amendments to a zoonosis or disease or any cause which may be constitute a serious danger to animals or to humans, or that the products come from a region affected by an epizootic disease, shall order the destruction of the lot or any other use covered by national legislation, except for with regard to animal health aspects, in the case of products subject to one of the treatments provided for in Articles 4 and 5 of Royal Decree 1066/1990 of 27 July 1990.

The costs arising from the destruction of the lot shall be borne by the consignor or his representative.

The competent bodies of the Autonomous Communities shall immediately communicate to the General Administration of the State the verifications made, the decisions taken and the reasons for such decisions and the latter, in turn, communicate to the other Member States and to the Commission these circumstances.

The safeguard measures provided for in Article 9 shall apply.

2. That the goods do not meet the conditions required by national or Community legislation, and if the health or animal health conditions permit it, it shall allow the consignor or his representative to opt for:

a) The destruction of the goods, or

(b) Their use for other purposes, including their re-issue with the authorisation of the competent authority of the country of establishment of origin.

However, in the event that non-compliance is observed in the accompanying documentation, a deadline may be granted to the consignor for regularisation, before resorting to the latter possibility.

Article 8.

1. In the cases provided for in Article 7, the General Administration of the State shall request the competent authorities of the Member State of dispatch to report on the measures taken, in particular the nature of the checks carried out. decisions taken and the reasons for them.

If repeated non-compliances are found, the General Administration of the State shall inform the Commission and the veterinary services of the other Member States, without prejudice to the Commission's request for the implementation of the measures provided for in Article 8 (1) of Council Directive 89 /662/EEC.

2. This Royal Decree shall not affect the remedies provided for by Law No 30/1992 of 26 November 1992 on the Legal Regime of Public Administrations and the Common Administrative Procedure against decisions of the competent authority, and the process to give to them.

However, in the event of a conflict, if the two parties agree, they may, within a maximum period of one month, subject the dispute to the assessment of an expert on a list of Community experts to be drawn up by the Commission. The parties shall be subject to the opinion which shall be delivered within a maximum of seventy-two hours, in compliance with Community veterinary legislation.

3. The costs relating to the forwarding of the consignment, the storage of the goods, their use for other purposes or their destruction shall be borne by the consignee.

Chapter IV

Common Provisions

Article 9.

The General Administration of the State shall immediately notify the other Member States and the Commission of the occurrence, on national territory, of the diseases referred to in Royal Decree 959/1986, of 25 April, or of any zoonosis, disease or cause which may present a serious danger to animals or to human health. The competent authorities in the geographical area where such diseases appear shall apply the measures of control or prevention provided for in the rules in force and, in particular, the determination of protection zones, taking any other measure that you consider relevant.

If, on the occasion of a check made at destination or in transit, in accordance with Article 5, the existence of one of the diseases or causes referred to in the first subparagraph is verified, the competent authorities shall adopt the prevention measures referred to in the legislation in force, without prejudice to the fact that the General Administration of the State may request the Commission to implement the measures provided for in Article 9 (2) and (3) of the Directive 89 /662/EEC.

The competent authorities may, for serious reasons for the protection of public health or animal health, take precautionary measures with regard to the establishments of origin concerned or, in the case of epizootic diseases, with for the protection zone referred to in the specific legislation; the measures taken shall be notified immediately to the General Administration of the State, which shall without delay communicate them to the Commission and the other Member States.

Article 10.

The competent authorities shall designate the veterinary services responsible for carrying out the checks provided for in this Royal Decree.

The Directorates General de Salud Pública, of the Ministry of Health and Consumer Affairs, and of Health of Agricultural Production, of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, in coordination with the Autonomous Communities, will adopt the measures necessary to ensure collaboration with the Control Services of the other Member States.

Article 11.

The competent authorities shall ensure that the official veterinarians, in collaboration with the staff of other services authorised for that purpose, may in particular:

(a) Carry out inspections of premises, offices, laboratories, facilities, means of transport, equipment and equipment, cleaning and maintenance products, procedures used for the production or processing of such products as marking, labelling and presentation of such products.

(b) Carry out checks on compliance by staff with the requirements set out in the rules set out in Annex A.

(c) Take samples of existing products, intended for storage or sale, put into circulation or transported.

(d) Examine the documentary or computer material necessary for the checks resulting from the measures taken in accordance with the provisions of Article 3 (1

.

To do so, it will collect from the controlled establishments the collaboration necessary for the exercise of its mission.

Additional disposition first.

In addition, as Article 4a of the Technical-Health Regulations on the exchange of fresh poultry meat for intra-Community trade, and imports from third countries, approved by the Royal Decree 644/1989 of 19 May, as point 5 of Article 3 of Royal Decree 110/1990 of 26 January 1990 on animal health conditions to be collected by fresh meat intended for intra-Community trade and imported from third countries, and, as a point Article 3 of Royal Decree 1066/1990 of 27 July 1990 on animal health requirements the meat products intended for intra-Community trade and imported from third countries must be assembled, the following text:

" The rules provided for by the Royal Decree on veterinary checks applicable in intra-Community trade in products of animal origin and in particular with regard to controls in the field of veterinary medicinal products shall apply. the origin, organisation and course of the checks to be carried out by the competent authority, as well as the safeguard measures to be applied. '

Additional provision second.

This Royal Decree is dictated by the jurisdiction conferred on the State by Article 149.1.10. and 16. of the Spanish Constitution, and pursuant to Article 40.2 of Law 14/1986, of 25 April, General of Health.

Single repeal provision.

Articles 7, 8 and 9 of Royal Decree 110/1990 of 26 January 1990 and Articles 9 and 10 of Royal Decree 1066/1990 of 27 July 1990, as well as any provision of equal or lower status, are hereby repealed. as set out in this Royal Decree.

First disposition first.

The Ministers for Health and Consumer Affairs and Agriculture, Fisheries and Food are empowered to make, within their respective powers, the necessary provisions for the development of the provisions of this Royal Decree and, in particular, to adapt and update its annexes.

Final disposition second.

This Royal Decree shall enter into force on the day following that of its publication in the "Official Gazette of the State".

Given in Madrid on January 15, 1993.

JOHN CARLOS R.

The Minister of Relations with the Courts

and the Government Secretariat,

VIRGILIO ZAPATERO GOMEZ

ANNEX A

Healthcare legislation

1. Royal Decree 1728/1987 of 23 December 1987 laying down technical and health rules governing the requirements for intra-Community trade in and imports from third countries of fresh meat and those to be collected slaughterhouses, cutting plants and cold stores authorised for such trade.

2. Royal Decree 644/1989 of 19 May 1989 on the approval of technical and health regulations concerning the trade in fresh meat of birds for intra-Community trade and imports from third countries and the rules they make relationship to slaughterhouses, cutting plants and cold stores authorised for such trade.

3. Royal Decree 110/1990 of 26 January laying down the animal health conditions to be met by fresh meat intended for intra-Community trade and imported from third countries.

4. Royal Decree 1473/1989 of 1 December 1989 adopting the Technical-Health Regulations governing the conditions for intra-Community trade in meat products intended for human consumption and those to be collected the meat industries authorised for such trade.

5. Royal Decree 1066/1990 of 27 July 1990 laying down the animal health requirements to be met by meat products intended for intra-Community trade and imported from third countries.

6. Royal Decree 362/1992 of 10 April 1992 laying down the rules of health and animal health law relating to heat-treated milk, which are to be required for intra-Community trade.

7. Royal Decree 1348/92 of 6 November 1992 approving the Technical-Health Regulations governing the production and marketing of egg products.

8. Royal Decree 1436/1992 of 27 November 1992 establishing the Technical-Health Regulation laying down the requirements for the production and trade in intra-Community trade in minced meat of meat in pieces of 100 grams and preparations of meat intended for direct human consumption or for industry.

9. Royal Decree 1437/1992 of 27 November 1992 laying down health rules for the production and marketing of fishery and aquaculture products.

10. Directive 91 /495/EEC of 27 November 1990 on health and animal health problems relating to the production and placing on the market of rabbit meat and farmed game meat.

11. Directive 91 /492/EEC of 15 July 1991 laying down the health rules for the production and placing on the market of live bivalve molluscs.

12. Directive 92/5/EEC of 10 February 1992 amending and updating Directive 77 /99/EEC on health problems affecting the production and placing on the market of meat products and certain other products of origin animal.

13. Directive 92/45/EEC of 16 June 1992 on health and animal health problems relating to the hunting of wild animals and the placing on the market of wild game meat.

14. Directive 92/46/EEC of 16 June 1992 laying down the health rules for the production and placing on the market of raw milk, heat-treated milk and milk products.

ANNEX B

Products not subject to Community harmonisation, but whose trade would be subject to the controls provided for by this Royal Decree.

Products of animal origin covered by Annex II to the Treaty and in particular:

a) Honey.

(b) Caracols intended for human consumption.

c) Frog Ancas for human consumption.

Other products of animal origin not listed in Annex A to this Royal Decree, or in Annex A or in Part B of Annex B to Royal Decree 1316/1992 of 30 October 1992 establishing the veterinary and zootechnical checks applicable in intra-Community trade in certain live animals and products with a view to the completion of the internal market.