554 



1.2 Existing forms of international cooperation 



The case of CERN (Centre Europeen de Recherche Nucleaire - European 

 Nuclear Research Centre) in the field of High-Energy Physics and that 

 of JET (Joint European Torus) in the field of fusion provide 

 interesting examples with regard to trade in scientific and technical 

 equipment and instruments between several countries. 



The European ^conomic Community possesses a Community Regulation dated 

 28 March 1983^ relating to the duty-free admission of scientific 

 instruments or apparatus intended "for either public establishments 

 principally engaged in education or scientific research and those 

 departments of public establishments which are principally engaged in 

 education or scientific research" on condition that they have been 

 approved by the competent authorities of the Member States to receive 

 such articles duty-free and "to the extent that instruments or 

 apparatus of equivalent scientific value are not being manufactured in 

 the Community". The regulation requires the European Commission to 

 deal with applications within three months, but pending decision, the 

 competent authority may authorize importation of the instrument or 

 apparatus which is the subject of the application. It has to be noted, 

 however, that the Community regulations give very sophisticated 

 definitions of "a scientific instrument or apparatus" and that these 

 definitions are interpreted very restricti vely by the authorities, so 

 that the practical importance of this exception is at present not very 

 great in international HEP. 



Scientific equipments or apparatus imported in this way into the 

 Community from other countries are, as a general rule, subject to value 

 added tax; derogations from that rule may, however, be permitted on the 

 basis of bilateral agreement, each case being dealt with individually. 



At all events, scientific and technical equipment and instruments sent 

 as gifts, in token of friendship or goodwill "by an official body, 

 public authority or group carrying on an activity in the public 

 interest which is located in a country other than the Member State of 

 importation, to an official body, public authority or group carrying on 

 an activity in the public interest which is located in the Member State 

 of importation and approved by the competent authorities to receive 

 such goods exempt from tax" are exempt from VAT (Council Directive 

 83/181/EEC of 28 March 1983). Discussions are under way with a view to 

 extending this exemption to equipment and instruments benefitting from 

 the temporary admission system (see proposal for the 17th Council 

 Directive, in respect of which the European Parliament has already 

 expressed a favorable opinion). 



As regards CERN , it is exempt, as an intergovernmental organization, 

 from the payment of customs duties and taxes, and it benefits from 

 preferential customs procedures. It thus directly imports (into 

 Switzerland or France) equipment for its own use in accordance with the 

 rules governing its special status. This includes the experimental 

 equipment which remains the property of institutes that cooperate with 



2 O.J. L 105, April 4. 1983 83/918/EEC. 



