Judgment of the Court (Sixth Chamber) of 16 December 2021 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Curtea de Apel Constanţa – Romania) – Euro Delta Danube SRL v Agenţia de Plăţi şi Intervenţie pentru Agricultură – Centrul Judeţean Tulcea
(Case C-225/20) 1
(Reference for a preliminary ruling – Agriculture – Common agricultural policy – Delegated Regulation (EU) No 640/2014 – Area-related aid scheme – Single area payment – Eligibility criteria – Concession agreement for agricultural land – Change of use of that land without the agreement of the grantor – Agricultural use of areas intended for aquaculture use – Difference between the area declared and the area determined – Over-declaration – Administrative penalties)
Language of the case: Romanian
Referring court
Curtea de Apel Constanţa
Parties to the main proceedings
Appellant: Euro Delta Danube SRL
Respondent: Agenţia de Plăţi şi Intervenţie pentru Agricultură – Centrul Judeţean Tulcea
Operative part of the judgment
Article 2(1)(23) and Article 19(1) and (2) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 640/2014 of 11 March 2014, supplementing Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to the integrated administration and control system and conditions for refusal or withdrawal of payments and administrative penalties applicable to direct payments, rural development support and cross compliance, as amended by Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1393 of 4 May 2016 must be interpreted as not providing for, in the context of the single area payment scheme, the imposition of administrative penalties for over-declaration on an applicant for agricultural aid, on the ground that he or she uses for agricultural purposes areas which have been granted to him or her for aquaculture use, without the agreement of the grantor to such a change of use of those areas, since that applicant enjoys a degree of autonomy with regard to that area sufficient for the carrying-out of his or her agricultural activity.
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1 OJ C 297, 7.9.2020.