L 194/28 Official Journal of the European Communities 27.7.1999 COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 1638/1999 of 26 July 1999 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 1269/1999 and providing for the partial reimbursement of import duties levied on a quota of barley for malting THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1269/1999 of 14 June 1999 opening a Community tariff quota for barley for malting falling within CN code 1003 00 ('); and in particular Article 2 thereof, Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 176692 of 30 June 1992 on the common organisation of the market in cereals (?), as last amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 1523/1999 () and in particular Article 10(4) thereof, (1) Whereas the provisions governing the way imports of cereals into the Community are treated are laid down in Commission Regulation (EC) No 1249/96 of 28 June 1996 on rules of application (cereal sector import duties) for Council Regulation (EEC) No 1766/92 (%) as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 2519/98 (°); whereas Article 2(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1249/96 provides, under certain conditions, for a flat-rate reduc- tion in the import duty of EUR 8 per tonne on malting barley; (2)  Whereas; pursuant to Article 1 of Regulation (EC) No 1269/1999, a tariff quota has been opened for 1999 and 2000 for 50 000 tonnes of high-grade barley falling within CN code 1003 00 for the production of malt to be used in the manufacture of a type of beer aged in vats containing beechwood; whereas the rate of duty applic- able to such imports is 50 % of the full rate of duty in force on the day of import, without the flat-rate reduc- tion of EUR 8 per tonne in the import duty provided for in Regulation (EC) No 1249/96; whereas, as a conse- quence, the duties applied pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 1249/96 for up to 50 000 tonnes of malting barley covered by import licence applications submitted between 1 January 1999 and the date of entry into force of this Regulation, should be adjusted by reducing the rate of duty in force on the day of release for free circulation of the imported product by 50 %, the amount thereby obtained being increased by EUR 8 per tonne to take account of the flat-rate reduction in the import duty which may have been applied on release for free circulation; whereas the import duty on quantities covered by import licence applications submitted () O] L 151, 18.6.1999, p. 1. () O] L 181, 1.7.1992, p. 21. () O] L 160, 26.6.1999, p. 18. () O] L 161, 29.6.1996, p. 125. () O] L 315, 25.11.1998, p. 7. between the date of entry into force of this Regulation and 31 December 1999, within the limit of the remaining balance of the annual quota of 50000 tonnes, must be reduced by 50 %; (3)  Whereas the tariff quota opened by Regulation (EC) No 1269/1999 covers the periods 1 January to 31 December 1999 and 1 January to 31 December 2000; whereas notwithstanding Article 2 of that Regulation, no provisions applying retroactively can be laid down to guarantee the quality of barley already imported or to recognise documents guaranteeing that that quality of barley has been imported; (40  Whereas the implementation of this international commitment should be ensured by providing that opera- tors who have imported barley of a particular quality for malting during the period concerned may qualify, on application, for the reduction in the import duty, less any flat-rate reductions; whereas the Member States must accordingly be authorised to reimburse duties levied in excess to operators who can prove that the import duties they paid were reduced by EUR 8 per tonne as laid down for barley of brewery quality for the production of malt from I January 1999 to the date of entry into force of this Regulation; whereas, since the time limit laid down by Regulation (EC) No 1249/96 for processing barley into malt is six months from the date of release for free circulation and since 100 days is quite sufficient to manufacture the type of beer provided for under this quota, it is appropriate, in the interests of simplification, to maintain these time limits in the rules governing the quota; (5)  Whereas the measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Cereals, HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: Article 1 1. Pursuant to Article 1 of Regulation (EC) No 1269/1999, 50 % of the import duty in force for each consignment concerned on the date of release for free circulation, less EUR 8 per tonne, shall be reimbursed on quantities of malting barley to be used for the manufacture of beer aged in vats containing beechwood which qualified for a flat-rate reduction