2013/800/EU: Commission Implementing Decision of 18 December 2013 on a Union financial contribution for 2013 to cover expenditure incurred by Germany, Spain, France, the Netherlands and Portugal for the purposes of combating organisms harmful to plants or plant products (notified under document C(2013) 8999)

1 On the basis of the requests submitted by the Member States and analysed by the Commission, the allocation of a Union financial contribution for 2013 to cover expenditure incurred by Germany, Spain, France, The Netherlands and Portugal relating to necessary measures as specified in Article 23(2)(a), (b) and (c) of Directive 2000/29/EC and taken for the purpose of combating the organisms concerned by the requests listed in Annex I, is hereby approved.

2 On the basis of the requests submitted by Spain and Portugal, and analysed by the Commission, the allocation of a Union financial contribution for 2013 to cover expenditure incurred by those Member States and relating to further actions, as specified in Article 23(6), to control Bursaphelenchus xylophilus in the requests listed in Annex II, is hereby approved.

The total amount of the Union financial contribution referred to in Article 1(1) and (2) is EUR 7713355,31. The maximum amounts of the Union financial contribution for each of the requests shall be as indicated in Annex I or II respectively.

The Union financial contribution as set out in Annexes I and II shall be paid on the following conditions: (a) evidence of the measures taken has been submitted by the Member State concerned in accordance with the provisions laid down in Regulation (EC) No 1040/2002; (b) a request for payment has been submitted by the Member State concerned to the Commission, in accordance with Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No 1040/2002. The payment of the financial contribution is without prejudice to the verifications by the Commission under Article 23(8) 2nd paragraph, Article 23(10) and Article 24 of Directive 2000/29/EC. No payment of the Union financial contribution will occur if the request of payment mentioned under point (b) is submitted later than 31 October 2014. Exceptionally, for the measures taken at a later stage in 2014 by Portugal in the buffer zone with Spain, the deadline of submission of that request shall be 31 October 2015.

This Decision is addressed to the Federal Republic of Germany, the Kingdom of Spain, the French Republic, the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Portuguese Republic.