22.7. 87 Official Journal of the European Communities No L 201/15§ COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) No 2144/87 of 13 July 1987 on customs debt THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, and in particular Articles 43 and 235 thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the Commission ('), Having regard to the opinion of the European Parli- ament (), Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee (%), ‘Whereas Council Directive 79/623/EEC of 25 June 1979 on the harmonization of provisions laid down by law, regulation or administrative action relating to customs debt (*) defined the various situations giving rise to a customs debt on importation or exportation ; whereas that Directive also determined the moment to be taken into consideration for the determination of the amount of customs debt and its liability for payment, as well as specifying the circumstances in which a customs debt is extinguished ; Whereas the rules governing the incurrence of a customs debt, the determination of its amount, when it becomes due and its extinction are so important for the proper functioning of the customs union that it is essential to ensure that such rules are implemented as uniformly as possible in the Community; whereas, to this end, the present provisions of Directive 79/623/EEC should be- embodied in a Regulation; whereas this will lead to greater legal certainty for individuals ; Whereas all the principles embodied in Directive 79/623/EEC should be incorporated in this Regulation, together with further principles based on experience gained since the Directive was adopted ; whereas provi- sion should be made, in particular, that the de facto inte- gration into the Community economy of goods the importation of which is subject to measures of prohibition or restriction of whatever kind, but excluding narcotic drugs, causes a customs debt to be incurred; Whereas, indeed, the economic and financial effect on the Community economy of such de facto integration is identical to that which would result from an importation carried out lawfully pursuant to an authorization granted by the competent authorities permitting a derogation from the import, prohibition or restriction measure involved ; whereas, moreover, the Common Customs Tariff makes no distinction, as regards application of the rates of duty set out therein, between goods which are o C 261, 29. 9. 1984, p. 4 o C 122, 20. 5. 1985, p. 158. o C 44, 15. 2. 1985, p. 8 N N N . 8. No L 179, 17. 7. 1979, p. 31. integrated into the Community economy lawfully and those which are not; Whereas provision should also be made that a customs debt on exportation is incurred even if it concerns goods the exportation of which is subject to measures of prohi- bition of whatever kind, where, as a result of an unlawful act, those goods actually leave the customs terntory of the Community ; Whereas it is justifiable to provide that the customs debt on importation is extinguished in respect of goods where they are seized by the customs authorities and confis- cated ; Whereas account should also be taken, when determining the situation in which a customs debt is incurred, of the provisions of Council Regulation (EEC) No 3599/82 of 21 . December 1982 on temporary importation arrangements (%), as last amended by the Act of Accession of Spain and Portugal, which provide, in certain cases, for the use of such customs arrangements only with partial rehef from import duties ; Whereas the provisions of Article 10 of Directive 79/623/EEC, which concern trade between Member States, should be supplemented by drawing up specific rules on the compensatory levy collected in certain circumstances on the dispatch from one Member State to another Member State of goods obtained under the inward processing procedure; whereas account should also be taken on the provisions applicable to trade between the Community and the non-member countries ~ which constitute the European Free Trade Association ; whereas the agreements concluded with those non- member countries provide for the application of preferen- tial tariff treatment for goods originating in Member States ; whereas, where compensating "products obtained or produced in the Community under the inward proce- sing arrangements are concerned, such preferential tariff treatment is conditional on payment of the import duties payable on goods from non-member countries contained in the said compensating products ; : Whereas it is deemed more appropriate to include the rules on liability for payment of the customs debt, which are currently set out in Article 8 of Directive 79/623/EEC, among the provisions concerning entry in the accounts and the terms of payment of customs debts; Whereas it is necessary to safeguard the uniform imple- mentation of the provisions of this Regulation and to provide to that end for a Community procedure enabling the rules for their implementation to be adopted within an appropriate period; whereas the Committee on () OJ No L 376, 31. 12. 1982, p. 1.