Transmission of Authorities

Transmission of Authorities

PURPOSE

This document describes the actions related to the Transmission of Authorities (ToA) by Member States (MS) to the European Commission via the SFC2021 platform.

Currently, MS provide their list of Authorities and information about them in Section 7.1 of their CAP Strategic Plan (CSP) and manually submit similar information (plus contact information) via email to AGRI Audit Units. The ToA module in SFC2021 aims to improve this process by enabling MS to transmit some of the relevant authorities information (Competent Authorities, Paying Agencies, Coordinating Bodies, Certification Authorities, and Permanent Representation) — beyond those required solely for the CSP — to EC, at any time, rather than only when submitting a CSP amendment.

Key objectives of the new Authorities process include:

• Ensure that the new system minimizes errors commonly associated with manual exchanges via email. Incorporate features to validate and verify information to maintain data integrity

• Streamline the process by replacing the need for detailed reviews of strategic plans with a simpler, more efficient mechanism

• Ensure that the system complies with relevant regulations and standards, particularly concerning data protection and privacy.

• Ensure that the new functionality integrates seamlessly with existing systems and processes to provide a cohesive user experience.

• Enhance transparency by providing clear records of submissions and exchanges, thereby fostering accountability.

• Ensuring integration of reviewed authorities (especially Paying Agencies and Coordinating Bodies) into other SFC2021 modules such as EAFRD Declaration of Expenditure, Annual Accounts, and Certification Body Reports.

REGULATIONS

More details regarding the regulation of the Transmission of Authorities can be found in the "About SFC2021" section of the portal.

ROLES

Roles involved in the Transmission of Authorities are:

FUNDS

Workflow

This section shows the lifecycle to create and manage a Transmission of Authorities.

Click here to see the Transmission of Authorities workflow diagram in high resolution.

Create a Transmission of Authorities

1. To create a Transmission of Authorities, go to Audit > Authorities for Audit purposes menu and select the Transmission of Authorities option:

2. In the search screen click on the Create button to create a new Transmission of Authorities record:

You are redirected to the Transmission of Authorities Creation Wizard:

3. Enter or select the following information:

(1) Select the CCI.

The CCI list contains all allocated CCI for which the country is equal to country of the user node. The list returns the CCI, the CCI Title in English.

(2) Enter the National reference if applicable.

(3) Enter Comments if needed.

(4) Select the Source language.

(5) Click on Create.

The status of the Transmission of Authorities is Open.

Record/Edit the Transmission of Authorities

General

Version Information

Click on the Edit button to edit the Version information if needed:

The Edit details pop-up window appears:

1. Enter or modify the following information if needed:

(1) The National reference.

(2) The Source language (mandatory).

(3) The Comments.

(4) Click on Save.

Officials in Charge

• Click on the Add button to add a new official in charge.

• Clicking on the Edit icon of a row will allow you to modify the information of this official.

• Clicking on the Delete icon of a row will allow you to delete the official in charge selected.

1. Click on the Add button to add a new Official in Charge:

The Edit details pop-up window appears:

2. Enter or select the following information:

(1) Enter the Name.

(2) Enter the Email.

The format of the Email address will be validated by the system and should be unique.

(3) Enter the Phone number.

(4) Select the Language.

(5) Enter the Valid from and Valid until dates.

The Valid until date should be greater than the Valid from date.

(6) Click on Save.

History

This section shows all the actions that have been taken on the Transmission of Authorities since it was created, for example:

Documents

The following documents will be foreseen:

(1) Document can be sent at any time

(2) Document will be automatically sent when the Object is sent

(3) Document automatically created by the system

(4) Document required in the system before a next action can be executed

(5) Once the ToA released, the MS should not be able to send Accreditation Acts from their CSP anymore

Upload & Send Documents

Multiple documents can be uploaded in the Transmission of Authorities.

• Clicking on the Add button will open a pop-up window allowing you to add a new document type with attachments.

• Selecting a document row and clicking on the View icon will allow you to view the document information.

• Selecting a document row and clicking on the Edit icon will allow you to modify the document information. If a document of type 'Other Member State Document' must be sent, you can select the edit icon in order to send the document.

• Selecting a document row and clicking on the Delete icon will allow you to delete the document and all attachements.

1. Click on the Add button to add a new document:

The Edit document details pop-up window appears:

2. Enter or select the following information:

(1) Enter a Document Title for your Document.

(2) Select a Document Type.

(3) Enter a Document Date.

The system automatically fills the field with todays date, but this can be modified.

(4) Enter a Local reference.

(5) Click on the Add button to add a new attachment:

• You can add multiple attachments by clicking on the Add button.

• You can remove unwanted attachments by selecting the attachment and clicking on the Remove button.

The Attached files window becomes editable:

3. Enter or select the following information:

(1) Enter a Title for your attachment.

(2) Select the Type of the document.

It is possible to select from these 4 types: Annex, Cover Letter, Main or Translation.

(3) Select the Language of the document.

(4) Click on Browse to select the file that you want to add as an attachment.

(5) After the attachments are uploaded click on Save or Save & Send.

Send an unsent non-integral document

1. Once the document and attachment(s) have been uploaded click on the Send icon in the row containing the unsent document:

2. Click on Confirm to send the document to the Commission. For completing this action, the User will be redirected to the EU Login signature page:

Delete an unsent document

1. In the row of a previously uploaded unsent document click on the Delete icont to delete the document and associated attachments:

A confirmation window appears:

2. Click on OK to confirm deletion. Click on Cancel to return to the document section.

Observations

1. Click on the Add button to add an observation:

The Add new observation screen appears:

2. Enter the following:

(1) Enter an observation.

(2) Click on Add to save the information.

Authorities for Audit purposes

Add a new authority

1. Click on the Add new authority button to add a new Authority:

The Add details pop-up window appears:

2. Enter or select the following:

(1) Select an Authority Type between Certification Body, Competent Authority and Paying Agency.

(2) Enter the Authority/Institution Name.

(3) Enter an Abbreviation if needed.

(4) Select an Authority Status.

‘Accredited’; ‘Under Probation’; ‘Withdrawn’ are shown only when the Authority Type is Paying Agency.

(5) Select the Fund(s).

The Start and End Date are enabled only when the Authority Type is Paying Agency.

(6) Select the Related Competent Authority.

(7) Select the Related Certification Authority.

(8) Enter a Website.

(9) Enter the Responsible Name (as in CSP chapter 7.1. For contact information please use the Contact section).

(10) Enter the Address (as in CSP chapter 7.1. For contact information please use the Contact section) .

(11) Enter the Email (as in CSP chapter 7.1. For contact information please use the Contact section).

(12) Click on Save.

Modify an existing authority

1. Click on the Select existing authority/ies for modification button to select an Authority or several in a list to modify them:

The Edit details pop-up window appears:

2. Enter or select the following:

(1) Select the valid authorities from the list with the help of the arrows.

(2) Click on Save.

3. From the main table, several options are possible:

(1) View details.

(2) Edit the row.

(3) View Contact details.

(4) Delete the row.

Add a Contact

1. Click on the Contacts icon and then on the Add button to add a new Contact:

The Add details pop-up window appears:

2. Enter the following:

(1) Enter the values for the new Contact.

(2) Click on Save.

Edit a Contact

1. Click on the Contacts icon and then on the Edit button to edit an existing Contact:

The Edit details pop-up window appears:

2. Enter the following:

(1) Edit the values that need to be added or modified.

(2) Click on Save.

Delete a Contact

Click on the Contacts icon, then on the Delete button and click on OK to confirm the deletion:

Validate the Transmission of Authorities

Click on the Validate button to validate the Transmission of Authorities:

The system validates the following information:

An example of a validation window:

You can check the list of validation results at any time throughout the Transmission of Authorities:

To see the last validation results:

(1) Click on one of the 4 categories: All results, Passed, Warning, Error.

(2) The list of latest validation results for the chosen category is displayed.

After all errors have been resolved the status of the Transmission of Authorities becomes Validated.

Prepare Transmission of Authorities for send to EC

1. Click on the Prepare for send to EC button to prepare to send the Transmission of Authorities to the Commission:

The system will ask you to confirm the send action:

2. Click on Confirm to confirm.

The status of the Transmission of Authorities is set to Ready to Send.

Send the Transmission of Authorities

1. Click on the Send button to send the Transmission of Authorities to the Commission or to an upper Node:

The system will ask you to confirm the send action:

2. Click on Confirm to confirm. For completing this action, the User will be redirected to the EU Login signature page.

On success, the Transmission of Authorities version has been sent to the Commission or to an upper Node. When sent, the status is set to Sent.

Request for Revised Transmission of Authorities by MS

Follow the steps to request for revised Transmission of Authorities by MS:

1. Select the following:

(1) Select the icon with 3 vertical dots.

(2) Click on the Request revision button to request revision from the lower Node.

The system will ask you to confirm the request for revision:

1. Enter the following:

(1) Enter the Reason in the text box provided.

(2) Click on Confirm to save the information.

On success, the status of the Transmission of Authorities will be changed to Revision requested by MS and the sender is notified of the action and its reason.

Delete the Transmission of Authorities

Follow the steps to remove the Transmission of Authorities from the system:

1. Select the following:

(1) Select the icon with 3 vertical dots.

(2) Click on the Delete button to remove the Transmission of Authorities from the system.

The system will ask you to confirm the delete action:

2. Click on Confirm to confirm or click on Cancel to return to the Transmission of Authorities.

Cancel the Transmission of Authorities

Follow the steps to cancel the Transmission of Authorities from the system:

1. Select the following:

(1) Select the icon with 3 vertical dots.

(2) Click on the Cancel button to cancel the Transmission of Authorities from the system.

The system will ask you to confirm the cancel action:

2. Click on Confirm to confirm or click on Cancel to return to the Transmission of Authorities.

On success, the status of the Transmission of Authorities will be changed to Cancelled.

Create New Version of the Transmission of Authorities

1. Click on the Create button to create a new version of the Transmission of Authorities:

The system will ask you to confirm the creation of a new version:

2. Click on Confirm to confirm. Click on Cancel to return to the Transmission of Authorities.

On success, the new version of the Transmission of Authorities created is empty. In this new ToA version the MS can only submit modifications for authorities for which EC requested a revised version. MS cannot add new authorities or modify other authorities (for this case, the MS will have to create a new major version 2.x, 3.x, etc…). Its status is set to Open.