Solidarity and support measures in a situation of crisis
1. A Member State facing a situation of crisis may request the following types of contributions in the reasoned request referred to in Article 2:
(a)
relocations, to be conducted following the procedures set out in Articles 67 and 68 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351:
(i)
of applicants for international protection;
(ii)
where bilaterally agreed by the contributing and benefitting Member State concerned, of beneficiaries of international protection who have been granted international protection less than three years prior to the adoption of the Council implementing act establishing the Annual Solidarity Pool;
(b)
financial contributions aiming at actions that are relevant to address the situation of crisis in the Member State concerned or in relevant third countries, in full respect of human rights, to be provided by other Member States pursuant to Article 64 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351;
(c)
alternative solidarity measures as referred to in Article 56(2), point (c), of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351, specifically needed to address the situation of crisis and in accordance with Article 65(2) and (3) of that Regulation; such measures shall be counted as financial solidarity and their actual value shall be established based on objective criteria.
2. When implementing relocations referred to in paragraph 1, point (a), of this Article, Member States shall give primary consideration to the relocation of vulnerable persons in accordance with Article 60 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351.
Responsibility offsets
1. Where the additional relocation pledges set out in the Council implementing decision referred to in Article 4(3) and the pledges available in the Annual Solidarity Pool are below the relocation needs identified in that Council implementing decision:
(a)
the contributing Member States shall take responsibility, up to 100 % of the relocation needs identified in the Solidarity Response Plan established in the Council implementing decision, for applications for international protection for which the Member State facing a situation of crisis has been determined as responsible;
(b)
when applying point (a) of this subparagraph and where necessary, the contributing Member States shall take responsibility above their fair share by way of derogation from Article 63(7) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351;
(c)
when applying points (a) and (b) of this subparagraph, Article 63(6), (8) and (9) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351 shall apply mutatis mutandis .
Where Directive 2001/55/EC is activated in relation to the same situation as referred to in Article 1(4), point (a), and Member States agree at the moment of activation not to apply Article 11 of that Directive, mandatory offsets pursuant to this Article shall not apply. Where the Council implementing decision referred to in Article 4(3) authorises the Member State concerned to apply Article 13, mandatory offsets pursuant to this Article shall not apply.
2. Where the application of paragraph 1 of this Article is not sufficient to cover 100 % of the relocation needs identified in the Council implementing decision referred to in Article 4(3), the High-Level EU Solidarity Forum shall be reconvened as a matter of urgency, in accordance with Article 13(4) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351 and following the procedure set out in Article 57 of that Regulation.
3. A benefitting Member State may request the other Member States to take responsibility for examining applications for international protection for which the benefitting Member State has been determined as responsible instead of relocations in accordance with the procedure set out in Article 69 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351.
4. Where a contributing Member State has become responsible for applications above its fair share in accordance with paragraph 1, point (b), of this Article or Article 13, it shall be entitled to:
(a)
proportionally reduce from its fair share in relation to future solidarity contributions under the upcoming annual cycles of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351, with the corresponding number of applications for which that Member State contributed above its fair share over a period of five years;
(b)
reduce from its fair share in relation to future solidarity contributions set out in a Council implementing decision adopted pursuant to Article 4(3) with the corresponding number of applications for which that Member State contributed above its fair share; such reduction may only be claimed within five years from the date in which the Council implementing decision that led the Member State to go beyond its fair share is no longer in force.
5. Where a Member State intends to avail itself of the possibility provided for in paragraph 4, it shall notify the Commission accordingly. The notification shall contain the number of applications for which the Member State took responsibility above its fair share and the reduction it intends to apply under the upcoming annual cycles of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351 or during the implementation of a Council implementing decision adopted pursuant to Article 4(3).
If, on completing its examination of the notification referred to in the first subparagraph, the Commission confirms that the Member State concerned has contributed above its fair share, the Commission shall authorise, by means of an implementing act, the Member State concerned to reduce from its fair share the corresponding number of applications for which that Member State contributed above its fair share under the upcoming annual cycles of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351 or when implementing a Council implementing decision adopted pursuant to Article 4(3) within the period referred to in paragraph 4, point (b), of this Article to support another Member State or where responsibility offsets are required pursuant to paragraph 1, point (b), of this Article.
6. Where the solidarity needs of other Member States that are benefitting Member States pursuant to Article 58 or 59 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351 cannot be addressed as a result of the use made by the Member State facing a situation of crisis of the pledges available in the Annual Solidarity Pool pursuant to Article 4(5), point (b), of this Article, the High-Level EU Solidarity Forum shall be reconvened as a matter of urgency, in accordance with Article 13 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351 and following the procedure set out in Article 57 of that Regulation.
7. Where, as a result of the measures required to support the Member State facing a situation of crisis that are included in the Council implementing decision as referred to in Article 4(3), another Member State considers itself to be under migratory pressure or facing a significant migratory situation within the meaning of Article 2, points (24) and (25) respectively, of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351 or facing a situation of crisis, the Member State concerned may request solidarity measures, full or partial reductions of its solidarity contributions in accordance with that Regulation, or solidarity and support measures in accordance with this Regulation.
When assessing the Member State’s reasoned request as referred to in Article 2 of this Regulation, the Commission shall also take into account whether that Member State has taken responsibility for examining applications for international protection above its fair share, in addition to the information set out in Articles 9 and 10 of Regulation 2024/1351.
