The European Commission has formally asked Bulgaria to scrap certain duty and tax relief provisions contained in a bilateral agreement with the United States on technical assistance.
Prior to its accession to the EU, Bulgaria had concluded a bilateral agreement with the United States, which provides for duty and tax-free import of goods financed by United States and for goods and services purchased on the Bulgarian market with the funds of the technical assistance program.
None of the exemptions set out in EU legislation justifies the duty and tax relief applied by Bulgaria under this bilateral agreement, the Commission said on Thursday. Once it joined the EU, Bulgaria should have adjusted the terms of the agreement in question or, that was not possible, should have withdrawn from this agreement, it added.
The request takes the form of a Reasoned Opinion (the second stage of an infringement procedure). The Commission has made it clear that if the legislation is not brought into compliance within two months, it will refer the matter to the European Court of Justice.
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