Section III

For any undue payment following the occurrence of irregularity or negligence, Member States shall request recovery from the beneficiary within 18 months after the approval and, where applicable, reception, by the paying agency or body responsible for the recovery, of a control report or similar document, stating that an irregularity has taken place. The corresponding amounts shall be recorded at the time of the recovery request in the debtors' ledger of the paying agency. If recovery has not taken place within four years from the date of the recovery request, or within eight years where recovery is taken in the national courts, 50 % of the financial consequences of the non-recovery shall be borne by the Member State concerned and 50 % by the Union's budget, without prejudice to the requirement that the Member State concerned must pursue recovery procedures in compliance with Article 58. Where, in the context of the recovery procedure, the absence of any irregularity is recorded by an administrative or legal instrument of a final nature, the Member State concerned shall declare as expenditure to the Funds the financial burden borne by it under the first subparagraph. However, if for reasons not attributable to the Member State concerned, it is not possible for recovery to take place within the time limit specified in the first subparagraph, and the amount to be recovered exceeds EUR 1 million, the Commission may, at the request of the Member State, extend the time-limit by a period of up to half of the original period. On duly justified grounds, Member States may decide not to pursue recovery. A decision to this effect may be taken only in the following cases: where the costs already and likely to be effected total more than the amount to be recovered, which condition shall be considered to have been met if: the amount to be recovered from the beneficiary in the context of an individual payment for an aid scheme or support measure, not including interest, does not exceed EUR 100; or the amount to be recovered from the beneficiary in the context of an individual payment for an aid scheme or support measure, not including interest, falls between EUR 100 and EUR 150 and the Member State concerned applies a threshold equal to or higher than the amount to be recovered under its national law for not pursuing national debts. where recovery proves impossible owing to the insolvency, recorded and recognised under national law, of the debtor or the persons legally responsible for the irregularity. Where the decision referred to in the first subparagraph of this paragraph is taken before the outstanding amount has been subject to the rules referred to in paragraph 2, the financial consequence of non-recovery shall be borne by the Union's budget. Member States shall enter in the annual accounts to be sent to the Commission under point (c)(iv) of Article 102(1) the amounts to be borne by them under paragraph 2 of this Article. The Commission shall check that this has been done and make any adjustments needed in the implementing act referred to in Article 51. The Commission may, provided that the procedure laid down in Article 52(3) has been followed, adopt, implementing acts, excluding from Union financing sums charged to the Union's budget in the following cases: if the Member State has not respected the time limits referred to in paragraph 1; if it considers that the decision not to pursue recovery taken by a Member State pursuant to paragraph 3 is not justified; if it considers that an irregularity or lack of recovery is the outcome of irregularity or negligence attributable to the administrative authorities or another official body of the Member State. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the advisory procedure referred to in Article 116(2). Sums recovered following the occurrence of irregularity or negligence and the interest thereon shall be made over to the paying agency and booked by it as revenue assigned to the EAGF in the month in which the money is actually received. When the Union's budget is credited as referred to in the first paragraph, the Member State may retain 20 % of the corresponding amounts as flat rate recovery costs, except in cases of irregularity or negligence attributable to its administrative authorities or other official bodies. Where irregularities or negligence are detected in rural development operations or programmes, Member States shall make financial adjustments by totally or partially cancelling the Union financing concerned. Member States shall take into consideration the nature and gravity of the irregularities detected and the level of the financial loss to the EAFRD. Amounts of the Union financing under the EAFRD which are cancelled and amounts recovered, as well as the interest thereon, shall be reallocated to the programme concerned. However, the cancelled or recovered Union funds may be reused by Member States only for an operation under the same rural development programme and provided the funds are not reallocated to operations which have been the subject of a financial adjustment. After the closure of a rural development programme, the Member State shall refund the sums recovered to the Union's budget. In order to ensure correct and efficient application of the provisions relating to the conditions for the recovery of undue payments and interest thereon, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 115 concerning specific obligations to be complied with by the Member States. The Commission shall adopt implementing acts laying down rules on: the procedures for the recovery of undue payments and interest as set out in this Section and for keeping the Commission apprised of pending recoveries; the forms of notification and communication to be made by the Member States to the Commission in relation to the obligations set out in this Section. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 116(3).

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-11-08 · Text as adopted (Official Journal); later amendments are not incorporated in this text.