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Secure procedures
1. Member States shall take the measures necessary to ensure that their authorisation procedures are secure, and that the authenticity of authorisation documents can be verified or validated. 2. Member States may also, where appropriate, ensure verification and validation by means of diplomatic channels.
Tasks of competent authorities
1. In order to ensure that this Regulation is applied properly, Member States shall take necessary and proportionate measures to enable their competent authorities to: (a) enforce, with any necessary measures, the application of this Regulation, including, where appropriate, the confiscation and sale or destruction of listed goods; (b) gather information on any order or transaction involving listed goods; and (c) establish that the obligations of a person under this Regulation are being properly fulfilled, which can, in particular, include the power to enter the premises of that person and other persons with an interest in the transaction concerned. 2. Upon request of a third country of export that is a State Party to the UN Firearms Protocol at the time of the export, the competent authority of the Member State issuing the import authorisation used for the export from the third country shall confirm the import or temporary storage of the listed goods concerned by the import authorisation.
Enforcement
1. Member States shall lay down the rules on penalties applicable to infringements of this Regulation and shall take all measures necessary to ensure that they are implemented. The penalties provided for shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive. Member States shall notify the Commission of those rules and of those measures and shall notify it of any subsequent amendment affecting them. 2. The whistle-blower-protection regime established by Directive (EU) 2019/1937 shall apply to persons who report breaches of this Regulation.
Coordination group
1. A Firearms Imports and Exports Coordination Group (the ‘Coordination Group’) chaired by a representative of the Commission shall be set up. It shall be composed of representatives of the competent authorities referred to in Article 40(2). 2. The Coordination Group shall examine any question on the application of this Regulation which may be raised either by the Chair or by a representative of the competent authorities referred to in Article 40(2). The processing and use of information in accordance with this paragraph shall comply with Regulation (EC) No 515/97 concerning its confidentiality. 3. The Chair of the Coordination Group, or the Coordination Group, shall, whenever necessary, consult any relevant stakeholders concerned by this Regulation.
Implementation tasks
1. Each Member State shall inform the Commission of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions adopted in implementation of this Regulation. 2. By 12 August 2025 each Member State shall designate and inform the other Member States and the Commission of the national authority or authorities competent for implementing this Regulation. 3. Based on the information received pursuant to paragraph 2, the Commission shall publish and update on its website a list of the authorities referred to in that paragraph as and when changes occur. 4. Upon request of the Coordination Group and in any event every 10 years, the Commission shall review the implementation of this Regulation and shall present a report to the European Parliament and the Council on its application, which may include proposals for its amendment. Member States shall provide the Commission with all appropriate information for the preparation of the report. The Commission shall publish a first interim application report by 12 February 2030.
Delegated acts
The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 42 to: (a) supplement this Regulation with the rules establishing a Union general import authorisation referred to in Article 9(2), point (c), of this Regulation for authorised economic operators for security and safety pursuant to Article 38(2), point (b), of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013, by specifying the format, use and geographical validity for that type of authorisation; (b) supplement this Regulation with the rules establishing a Union general export authorisation referred to in Article 19(3), point (d), of this Regulation for authorised economic operators for security and safety pursuant to Article 38(2), point (b), of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 by specifying the format, use and geographical validity for that type of authorisation; (c) to supplement this Regulation by determining the part of the ATA carnet in which the reference to authorisations granted by the competent authority or reference numbers provided by the competent authority are to be indicated by the declarant in accordance with Article 29(1); (d) amend Annex I to this Regulation on the basis of amendments to Annex I to Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87, and on the basis of amendments to Annex I to Directive (EU) 2021/555; (e) amend Annexes II, III and IV to this Regulation.
Exercise of the delegation
1. The power to adopt delegated acts is conferred on the Commission subject to the conditions laid down in this Article. 2. The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in Article 41 shall be conferred on the Commission for an indeterminate period of time. 3. The delegation of power referred to in Article 41 may be revoked at any time by the European Parliament or by the Council. A decision to revoke shall put an end to the delegation of the power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the validity of any delegated acts already in force. 4. Before adopting a delegated act, the Commission shall consult experts designated by each Member State in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making. 5. As soon as it adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to the European Parliament and to the Council. 6. A delegated act adopted pursuant to Article 41 shall enter into force only if no objection has been expressed either by the European Parliament or the Council within a period of 2 months of notification of that act to the European Parliament and the Council or if, before the expiry of that period, the European Parliament and the Council have both informed the Commission that they will not object. That period shall be extended by 2 months at the initiative of the European Parliament or of the Council.
Committee procedure
1. The Commission shall be assisted by a committee. That committee shall be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011. 2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 4 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply. 3. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.
Transitional period
1. Until 12 February 2029, for the implementation of Article 32(1), each Member State shall by 31 July each year submit to the Commission the following information: (a) the number of import and export authorisations it granted during the previous year; (b) the number of refusals of export authorisations during the previous year and the reasons therefor; and, (c) the number of infringements and penalties related to the enforcement of this Regulation during the previous year. 2. Authorisations for the import or export of listed goods, subject to Articles 9, 11, 19, and 23 and granted before 12 February 2029 shall remain valid for a maximum period of 12 months from that date. 3. Authorisations for the import or export of listed goods, requested before 12 February 2029 and pending on that date, shall be granted in accordance with the provisions applicable before that date. Those authorisations shall be valid for a maximum period of 12 months from that date. 4. Quantitative restrictions on imports of the listed goods referred to in Article 14, which are in force in the Member States on 11 February 2025, shall be notified to the Commission in accordance with the procedure set out in Articles 15, 16 and 17. Member States shall make that notification by 12 August 2028.
Repeal
Regulation (EU) No 258/2012 is repealed. References to the repealed Regulation shall be construed as references to this Regulation and shall be read in accordance with the correlation table set out in Annex V to this Regulation.
Entry into force and application
This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union . It shall apply from 12 February 2029. However, Article 2(2), Article 8(2), Article 9(1), Article 11(6), Articles 14 to 18, Article 30(8), Article 34, Article 35, Articles 38 to 44, and Article 46 shall apply from 11 February 2025.
Articles on this page are reproduced verbatim from official open data. See the attribution line.
Source: EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the EU), © European Union, reuse permitted under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.