Voluntary use of ELAN
Article 21a
1. From 15 July 2025, licence issuing authorities of Member States may start issuing or transmitting licences in ELAN (acceptance environment). 2. Documents made available in ELAN (acceptance environment) shall count as tests performed by Member States and shall not have legal value. 3. ELAN (acceptance environment) shall remain available for Member States throughout the whole duration of the transitional period laid down in Article 6 of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1272, with the sole scope of allowing all users of ELAN to test the functioning of the system. 4. From the date laid down in paragraph 1, Member States may issue import and export licences in electronic or paper format using either: (a) the templates laid down in Annex I; or (b) the ELAN1L-AGRIM and ELAN1L-AGREX data models laid down in Annex I.1. The documents referred to in the first subparagraph, points (a) and (b), may, in addition, be issued in ELAN (acceptance environment) or transmitted to that system. 5. From 19 January 2026, Member States may start issuing imports and export licences in ELAN or transmit them to that system. Documents issued in ELAN or transmitted to that system in accordance with this paragraph shall have legal value and may be used for the release for free circulation or export of agricultural products. Licence issuing authorities of Member States may issue licences in ELAN (acceptance environment) for testing purposes after the date laid down in the first subparagraph, provided that documents issued in that system shall not have legal value.