MOVEMENT OF GOODS, EU COMMISSION GUIDELINES

By adopting, in March 2020, the ‘Long-Term Action Plan for better implementation and enforcement of single market rules’, the EU Commission committed itself to providing states and businesses with guidelines to improve compliance with the rules on the functioning of the internal market.

One year later, the European Commission has kept its promise by publishing three guidance documents on the free movement of goods in the internal market. The guide on mutual recognition of goods legally marketed in another Member State illustrates how the principle of mutual recognition operates, examining the conditions under which a Member State can restrict or deny market access to goods legally marketed in another Member State, the procedures to be followed for the adoption of the related decisions and the functioning of the dispute resolution system. The guide on quantitative restrictions and measures having equivalent effect in cross-border trade, updated with the most recent case law of the EU Court, identifies the measures falling under the prohibition, the derogations and the proportionality test for the assessment of admissible restrictions. The Guide on Market Surveillance and Product Compliance examines the new legislation applicable from next July 16, which also imposes documentary and conservation obligations on those operating online.