LAW No. 266 from 23rd of May 2002 - regarding the production, processing, quality control and certification, marketing of seeds and propagating material, as well as the registration of plant varieties - REISSUE

CHAPTER IGeneral Provisions

Art. 1(1) The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development ensures the organizational framework and the compliance with the legal provisions regarding the production, processing, the quality control and certification, the marketing of seeds and propagating material, as well as the registration of plants varieties.(2) The plant species to which the provisions of this law apply shall be established by order of the minister of agriculture and rural development.(3) Within the content of this law, by seed is meant also propagating material and by plants are meant agricultural and horticultural plants.

Art. 2Within the field of activity provided by art.1, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, by the official designated authorities, National Inspection of Seed’s Quality, hereinafter named I.N.C.S., and State Institute for Variety Testing and Registration, hereinafter named I.S.T.I.S., has the following main duties and responsibilities:a) elaborates and approves the training methodology, attestation, registration of the economic operators professionally involved, irrespective of their ownership status, which are producing with a view to marketing, processing and/or marketing seeds of plant species; (provided by art.1)b) ensures the organizational frame for the control and certification of the seeds from the point of view of the varietal purity and the quality standards, including the phyto-sanitary status with respect to the marketing of the seeds;c) monitors, coordinates and controls the application by the registered economic operators of technical guidelines for production, processing, control, certification and marketing of seeds and propagating material ;d) elaborates and approves the national guidelines for production, processing and marketing of seed, as well as those respecting the economic aid, according to the European Community regulations and procedures;e) supports the development of domestic research for creating plant varieties of economic interest and establishes measures for the protection of agricultural producers, natural and legal persons, against the risk of use inadequate seed, bringing under regulation the use at sowing of certified seed witch fulfill the quality standards, or accepted varieties according the present law;f) co-operates with the organizations and professional associations in seeds sector, with seed companies, with the economic operators registered and involved in production, processing and marketing of seeds and propagating material, in order to comply with the E.U. and national legal requirements and puts at their disposal the available relevant information;g) monitors the application of the provisions of this Law, as well as the provisions resulting from international conventions and agreements in which Romania is a part of, in the field of seed production, processing, quality control and marketing and the protection of new varieties;h) establishes measures for eliminating the possibilities of seeds market disturbance, for ensuring the conservation of plant genetic resources and for protecting the environment and human and animal health according to the Community provisions and procedures;i) ensures the legal framework for testing and registration of the varieties in the Register of registered plant varieties, hereinafter named Register of varieties, and in the Official Catalogue of Plant Varieties from Romania, hereinafter named Official Catalogue;j) approves the annual or periodic publication of the Official Catalogue and of the list with the recommended varieties for the Romanian cultivators.

Art. 3The definition of the specific terms used in this Law are included in the annex hereto, and which can be modified and completed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in accordance with the evolution of the technical knowledge in this field and with the regulations of European Community or of other competent international bodies, in which Romania takes part.

CHAPTER II - The Production, Processing and/or Marketing of Seeds

Art. 4(1) The production intended for marketing, processing and/or marketing of seeds is carried out by: a) economic operators with headquarter on Romanian territory, natural or legal persons, registered for this purpose and having a authorization issued by official designated authority;b) other economic operators with headquarter on the territory of other member states of E.U, registered for this purpose in a member state, but which provide services in Romania, as the case may be.(2) The natural or legal persons stipulated in paragraph (1) lit.a) can be registered, on request, if they prove to have the required technical-material means, and personnel with appropriate knowledge for the requested activity, according to the legislations in force, included those related to phyto-sanitary quarantine, as the case may be. (3) The methodology for registration and authorization issuing forseen at paragraph (1) lit.a) shall be approved by order of the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, according to the European Community provisions.

Art. 5The economic operators registered for the production, processing and/or marketing of seeds, have the following obligations:a) to comply with the rules and norms in force regarding the production, processing and marketing of seeds, including those concerning phyto-sanitary quarantine, as the case may be, and to comply with the technical and economic control performed by the competent control authorities, in accordance with law;b) to keep to date records of seeds production, transactions and stocks in a register of ins-and-outs in accordance with the model established by order of minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, which shall be available to competent control authorities at their request;c) to comply with the legal provisions regarding plant variety rights;d) to notify, within the time limits set by the official competent authority, about the seed production areas and the proposed quantities for certification;e) to ensure the use of appropriate propagating methods, self-control of quality, and quality requirements and to guarantee the quality during the validity period of the delivered seeds to the beneficiaries;

Art. 6(1) The authorization granted subsequent to the registration of economic operators for the production, processing and/or marketing of seeds, as the case may be, may be withdrawn by the authority that issued it, temporarily or permanently, if it is assessed that the obligations set out in art.5 have been infriged.(2) The official competent authority may apply the provisions forseen at paragraph (1) for any other infrigement of the rules or norms provided by this law.

Art. 7(1) The registered seed producers may conclude written conventions or agreements with the neighbouring agricultural producers, natural or legal persons, regarding the respect of isolation distances from neighboring crops intended for seed production, according to the established technical norms.(2) In order to ensure the quality of seeds, the Ministry Agriculture and Rural Development, can setttle by regulation, for some species, varieties or kind of seeds, closed zones for multiplication, as a condition for recognition.

Art. 8Variety breeders or maintainers shall support the registered economic operators which multiply these varieties in applying the specific technologies for seed production, under the contractual provisions, the multipication agreement for the protected varieties and the description af the morphological characters, according to the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants, hereinafter named U.P.O.V, in accordance with law.

Art. 9The production of seeds of biological categories pre-basic and basic seed can be made or fall under the responsibility of natural and legal persons denominated as maintainer, or their legal agent, specified in the Register of varieties, and published in the Official Catalogue of Varieties and Hybrids Crop Plants in Romania, for the respective year, or in the Common Catalogue of European Community , in the catalogues of the member states or in the list of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, hereinafter named O.E.C.D., or other economic operators, if they have a contract with the mantainer of the variety, as the case may be.

Art. 10Economic operators registered for the production, processing and/or marketing of seeds, shall be responsible for the seed quality and identity and shall bear the damages caused to beneficiaries due to the marketing of improper seeds, in accordance with law.

Art. 11Economic operators registered for the production, processing and/or marketing of seeds, are obliged to store, handle, treate and transport the seeds by lots, species, varieties and biological categories in appropriate packages, labeled in accordance with the legislation in force.

Art. 12(1) The technical rules and norms regarding the production intended for marketing, processing, quality control and certification and/or marketing of seeds, as well as the procedure of the registration, supervision, monitoring and accreditation of the activities of suppliers, are approved by order of minister of Agriculture and Rural Development*), in compliance with the provisions of the present law, of regulations of European Community , O.E.C.D., International Seeds Testing, hereinafter named I.S.T.A., U.P.O.V., Community Plant Variety Office, hereinafter named C.P.V.O, or any other international bodies in which Romania takes part, as the case may be.(2) The technical rules and norms regarding the testing, registration and protection of vatieties, are approved by order of minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, in compliance with the provisions of the present law, of regulations of European Community, O.E.C.D., U.P.O.V., or any other international bodies in which Romania takes part, as the case may be.*) See Ministerial Order no. 564/2003, published in M.O., part I, no.654/16th of September 2003

Art. 13(1) Seeds are marketed in specific packages closed and, labeled, and the mentions marked on the label must reflect and attest their identity and quality, according to the norms in force, including phyto-sanitary status. Re-packing and re-labeling, are allowed only official or under official supervision, in compliance with the European Community and national regulations, only by the economic operators, registered to this purpose.(2) The seed which identity is officialy attested, can be marketed in view of processing, only in compliance with the provisions of the contract concluded between the producer and the maintainer of the variety.

Art. 14(1) Seeds of plant species, domestically produced or imported, established by European Community directives, can be produced in Romania or any other member state, in view of marketing and can be marketed only if the variety is registered in the Official Catalogue or in the Catalogues of the European Community or in the catalogues of any member state, in compliance with European Community provisions.

(2) The seeds of varieties from non-member states, hereinafter named third countries, may be produced and marketed if they comply with the European Community and national regulations and the variety is registered in the Official Catalogue or in the Catalogues of the European Community or in the catalogues of any member state .(3) The varieties that are not registered according to paragraph (1) can be marketed as follows: a) seeds imported from third countries and intended for multiplication, according to the rugulations of O.E.C.D. or on contractual basis in, view to their total export;b) the quantity of seed for tests or experimental trials, provided they belong to varieties for which a testing application for registration in the Romanian Official Catalogue or in the catalogue of any other member state, has been submitted. In case of a genetically modified variety, shall respect the legal provisions for preventing the risks to human health or to environment;c) seed by genera and species of plant, other that those provided at paragraph a) and b), established by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in accordance with European Community regulations.(4) The species and varieties that are not registered according to paragraph (1), can be imported from third countries, with the approval of the competent authorities, as follows:a) seeds intended for scientific or selection purposes;b) seeds intended for testing in view of registration;c) seeds intended for demonstration lots;d) seeds for advertising, promotion and exhibitions;

Art. 15For preserving the plant genetic resources, by order of the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development can be established specific conditions regarding the testing and registration of varieties, the production, quality control and marketing of seeds from these plants, according to European Community regulations.

Art. 16By order of the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, special conditions can be established to regulate the marketing of certain categories of seeds, other than those of art. 13-15.

Art. 17(1) The economic operators registered for the marketing of seeds can import and export seeds from and to third countries, in accordance with the regulations of E.U., O.E.C.D. and domestic norms, as the case may be.

(2) The import from third countries is allowed with prior approval of the competent authority of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, in accordance with the technical regulations in force and European Community procedures.

(3) The import of seeds from third countries, which producing, control or certification requests are equivalent, is admitted in compliance with art.14. The equivalence is established by the competent authority, in accordance with the European Community procedures.(4) The importers shall communicate the carrying out of the import to the specialized territorial authorities of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, which will check the compliance of the import and placing on the market conditions.

(5) The importing economic operators will record the quantities of imported seeds in their own ins-and-outs register.

Art. 18The imported seeds cannot circulate on the domestic market unless they are in their original packages and with original labels. Re-packing and re-labeling are allowed only under the control of the official control and certification authority and only by economic operators registered to this end.

Art. 19The seed export is allowed on contractual basis, provided that domestic and international regulations regarding the circulation of seeds intended for international trade, European Community regulations, or, as the case may be, the conditions required by the importer, are observed.

CHAPTER III – Seed Quality Control and Certification

Art. 20(1) The control, certification of identity and quality of seeds, the registration, supervision, monitoring and accreditation of economic operators supplying seeds, through all the phases of production, processing and marketing, are carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development through I.N.C.S., and his territorial inspectorates for the quality of seeds and propagating material, hereinafter named I.T.C.S.M.S., and The Central Laboratory for the Quality of Seeds and Propagating Material, hereinafter named L.C.C.S.M.S., and according to technical rules and norms and with international regulations in force.(2) The Central Laboratory for the Quality of Seeds and Propagating Material is being set up through the reorganization of the Central Laboratory for the Control of Seed Quality. In a term of 60 days after the present law is in force, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall submitt to the Government for the adoption the reorganization and functioning rules of The Central Laboratory for the Quality of Seeds and Propagating Material. (3) I.T.C.S.M.S. and L.C.C.S.M.S operate as units with legal status, subordinated to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, financed from extra-budgetary sources and from alocation granted from state budget.(4) The issue of international certificates for seeds from agricultural and horticultural species is carried out by L.C.C.S.M.S. Bucuresti, which is the official laboratory, as well as by other laboratories belonging of seed companies, accredited by I.S.T.A.(5) I.T.C.S.M.S. and L.C.C.S.M.S are responsible for the official documents. The official documents respecting the certification of seed quality, according to the legislation in force, can be issued only by authorized laboratories, in compliance with the procedures established by Ministerial Order of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Art. 21(1) I.N.C.S. as national official authority, has the following duties:a) attests, registers, issues and withdraws the authorizations of operation for the economic operators that carry out the production, processing and/or marketing of seeds, as the case may be; with respect of provisions art. 4-6, through the territorial official authorities;b) issues and submits for approval to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development legislation drafts concerning seeds and plant varieties quality;c) organizes, coordinates and controls the activity I.T.C.S.M.S. and L.C.C.S.M.S.;d) issues rules, norms and instructions for the registration, production, control, certification, accreditation and marketing in accordance with international and european regulations in the field of seeds, in which Romania takes part, registers the annual applications for the multiplication of seeds and follows their application;e) ensures and performs the control for maintaining the quality of seeds of all biological categories, through pre-control and post-control, through adequate scientific schemes and techniques;f) ensures the connection with specialized bodies form E.U. and other international organizations specialized in the field of seeds and plant varieties and represents Romania in these relations;g) accredits natural and legal persons which meet the conditions established by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to carry out field inspection, to sampling and test seed quality, as well as the laboratories which perform the testing of the quality of seeds, issue documents and perform other specific activities under its supervision;h) may withdraw the authorization, cancel the issued documents or measures taken by the accredited natural and legal persons, if to ascertain that their obligations have been broken, in accordance with the the accreditation norms and contract of accreditation;i) ensures the training and attesting of official specialized persons, as well as the personnel of the economic operators, authorized for the specific activities;

j) monitors the activities carried out by the economic operators, through the territorial official authorities, in order to check the fulfillment of the provisions of art.5;k) solves the technical litigations, in its field of activity.(2) For the control, certification, registration, supervision, monitoring and accreditation, as well as for quality tests, the applicant shall pay the value of services once the application has been approved, in accordance to the tariffs established by order of the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. The obtained amounts shall represent extra-budgetary means and shall be used by I.T.C.S.M.S. and L.C.C.S.M.S.

Art. 22(1) The biological categories of seeds which are controlled and for which official certificates can be issued for attesting their identity and quality, based on this law, are:a) pre-basic seedsb) basic seedsc) certified seedsd) commercial seeds from oil and fodder plants.(2) The standard category of seed is submitted to an official control in post-control in order to verify the identity and the purity.(3) The production, control, certification and marketing technical rules and norms, issued by the official authority, could also foresee other seed categories or their subdivisions, characteristics of different species, in accordance with the regulations of E.U. and the international bodies in this areas to which Romania takes part. Art. 23The genera, species and varieties established by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development are accepted for official control and/or certification or under official supervision, on the basis of this Law, in accordance with the regulations of of E.U. and international bodies in which Romania takes part.

Art. 24(1) The marketing of seeds which do not comply with the requirements of the rules and norms in force, including those concerning packing, sealing and labeling, provided by Law, shall be forbidden.(2) It is forbidden to impose restrictions for the marketing of seeds, regarding their characteristics, the examining, labeling and sealing conditions other than the ones forseen by this Law or by other specific legislation in force. (3) For certain species and in compliance with the rules established by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, according to the procedures of E.U., small non-professional producers are allowed to market on the local market, directly to the non-professional final user, seed which do not comply with the general requirements regarding packing, sealing and labeling system, without to harm of phyto-sanitary quarantine regulations and with guarantee of seeds quality.

Art. 25In case of temporary difficulties in the general supply of certified seed or standard seed on the territory of E.U., the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development may permit, for a specified period, the marketing of seeds from a category subject to less stringent requirements than those foreseen by the general rules and norms or belonging to varieties other than those accepted according to the Law, as well as seeds from varieties which are included nor in the European Common Catalogue, neither in any catalogue of a member state.

CHAPTER IV - The Seed Market

Art. 26(1) Economic operators, natural or legal persons, registered for the production of seeds, shall benefit from financial aid for the production of seeds obtaining on a multiplication contract or a declaration basis registered to the designated authority, according to the legislation.

(2) The Community provisions regarding seeds and planting material established by directives and decisions are transposed for implementation, in national normative documents.

CHAPTER V – Testing, Registration and Protection of Plant Varieties

Art. 27 (1) The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development ensures the organizational frame for testing and registration of plant varieties in the Register of Varieties and in the Official catalogue, as well as in the National Register of Patents for Varieties.(2) The varieties from the species registered in the Common catalogue of E.U. or in the national catalogue of a member state, are equivalent to the varieties registered in the Official catalogue, in compliance with the Community provisions.(3) The testing and registration of new plant varieties in the Ofiicial catalogue, in view of cultivation or marketing, the grant of patents for ensuring the protection of new plant varieties, in compliance with the Law no.255/1998, regarding the protection of new plant varieties, reissued, are performed by the State Institute for Variety Testing and Registration, national official authority, public institution, subordinated to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, in compliance with the international regulations in force.

Art. 28The seeds from the varieties deleted from the Oficicial catalogue, as foressen at art.33, can be certificated and traded for a period till the 30 of June of the third year after the deletion.

Art. 29(1) The registration of a variety in the Register of Varieties and its publishing in the Official Catalogue is done by order of the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, after it has been established that, as it resulted from the technical examination performed by the State Institute for Variety Testing and Registration, it satisfies the requirements of distinctness, uniformity and stability and that, for species established by Community regulations, the variety has a satisfactory value for cultivation and use.(2) The test for distinctness, uniformity and stability, performed by a similar institution from a member state, are officially admitted.(3) The varieties which fulfill the conditions for granting the protection, are registered in the National Register of Patents for Varieties.

Art. 30In order to be registered in the Register of varieties, each variety has to be individualized by an accepted denomination, which make possible its identification, in compliance with the procedures of the European Community.

Art. 31The registration of varieties with a view to examination is effected based on an application of the breeder or its representative having a legal mandate, accompanied by the technical questionnaire U.P.O.V., C.P.V.O. or national guide and by supplying with sufficient quantities of seeds needed for examination.

Art. 32For a local variety, from a well determined region, or in the case the breeder no longer exists, registration and extension of registration may be done ex officio by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, through the State Institute for Variety Testing and Registration, which shall

also establishes the maintainer of the respective variety, in compliance with the regulations of the European Community.

Art. 33 A variety may be deleted from the Official Catalogue through order of the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development in the following cases:

a) proves to be unsuitable from distinctness, uniformity and stability point of view, characteristics on the basis of which it was registered into the Register of Varieties, published in the Official Catalogue or in the National Register of Patents for Varieties.b) new characteristics have appeared which would have prevented its registration, characteristics unknown at the moment of registration;c) at the request of the breeder, breeders’ representative or variety maintainer, as the case may be, as well as when the maintainer does not meet the condition to present at any moment the seed necessary for reproduction of the variety in conformity with the initial characteristics existing at the moment of registration, and to allow the State Institute for Variety Testing and Registration to perform periodical checks;d) a person to maintain the registered variety does no longer exist;e) it is proved that the same variety is registered under another name;f) the owner of the variety registration certificate does not pay the charges for maintaining in the list, in compliance with the legislation in force, as well as for variety checking during the period in which the variety is registered;g) after 10 years from the variety registration, if renewal of registration is not requested or not approved anymore;h) if the legislation, regulations or provisions of the Community directives are not respected.

Art. 34(1) The State Institute for Variety Testing and Registration, hereinafter named I.S.T.I.S., operates as a specialized body subordinated to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, financed from his own revenues and from alocation granted from state budget.(2) I.S.T.I.S. has the following duties:a) issues the methodology for the technical examination and presentation of new varieties in view of registration in the Register of Plant Varieties and publication in the Official Catalogue and in the National Register of Patents for Varieties, taking into account the internal and international regulations in force;b) examines the varieties for which registration and/or protection is requested, by carrying out the tests of distinctness, uniformity and stability (D.U.S.), as well as tests for the value for cultivation and use (V.C.U.), depending on specie.c) issues the methodology regarding the protection of new plant varieties;d) performs the annual checking of varietal purity of multiplied seeds, ordered by the control and certification authority;e) prevents the alienation of the biological material under examination and ensures the confidentiality of the information obtained, at breeder request;f) ensures the storage of the seed samples of registered varieties;g) issues, at request, lists of recommended varieties;h) is the keeper of the Register of Varieties, issues and publishes annually the Official Catalogue and the National Register of Patents for Varieties;i) manages the reference collections for the species for which the D.U.S. test is performed;j) organizes and carries out the tests for the varieties for which the registration is required, in its own testing centers, hereinafter named C.T.S., or in similar institutions from a memeber state, under its supervision;k) examines, at request, the registred varieties from an agronomical point of view, in order to list them in the lists of recommended varieties;l) ensures the link with international bodies and organizations in the field of variety testing, registration and protection;

m) co-operates with the similar institutions from the member states, concludes bilateral agreements with the member states or third countries, in the field of testing, registration and protection of varieties;n) performs tests for herbicide resistance, pests and diseases, for the varieties which have induced this resistance; the applicant will pay the amount foreseen in the tariffs established by order of the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development;o) takes part in research projects from the national research program in co-operation with other agricultural research institutions or univeristies, as well as in international research projects.(3) I.S.T.I.S. has subordinated the C.T.S., sub-units without legal personality, located in different ecological conditions all over the country, which form the official variety testing network.(4) the Regulation of organization and functioning of I.S.T.I.S. is aproved by order by order of the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Art. 35The Technical Council for Plant Varieties and Seeds is organized as consultative body of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Its members and their tasks shall be established by order of the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Art. 36(1) For the technical examination of varieties, the applicant or the owner of the registration certificate shall pay, once approval is given for the examination or for testing or for undertaking the checking tests for the control of maintaining the varietal purity of the registered variety, the amount foreseen in the tariffs established by order of the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. (2) The obtained amount shall constitute extra-budgetary income for I.S.T.I.S.(3) For the technical examination of varieties, the check of mainenance and their annual publishing in the Official catalogue and for other services, the applicant shall pay along with admission of the application, the amount foreseen in the tariffs established by order of the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development; the obtained amount shall constitue own revenues.(4) The income obtained from the capitalization of the agricultural production, as well as other income as donations, sponsorships, shall constitute own revenues, in compliance with the law in force.(5) For the agricultural jobs, I.S.T.I.S. can use seasonal labor, with employment contract for a definite period.

Art. 37Varieties that fulfill the conditions set out in art.29 and 30 shall be considered registered shall be entered in the Register of Varieties and shall be published in the Official catalogue, and the breeder shall receive from I.S.T.I.S., a variety registration certificate. At the request of the breeder, the parental forms used to obtain commercial hybrids can also be registered.

Art. 38(1) The protection of plant varieties is ensured by I.S.T.I.S., from 1st of July 2011, in accordance with Law no.255/1998, republished. (2) The breeder’s rights over the new plant varieties belonging to any genera and species shall be recognized and protected by granting of a variety patent under the provisions of Law no.255/1998, republished.(3) The invention patent granted in accordance with the Law 64/1991, republished, gives the breeder same rights.(4) The right to produce and/or market the seed of a protected variety, can be contractually transferred to any natural or legal person registered according to art.4, which commits itself to pay the owner of the patent a royalty fee mutually agreed.(5) Failure to respect the provisions of paragraph (4), lead to the payment of a 5 times increased royalty fee and the payment of other damages resulting from this, as well as to the withdrawal of the authorization of seeds production and marketing.(6) The owner of the variety patent has the right to monitor compliance with contractual provisions by technical and financial expertise or by any other legal way, including all the cases stipulated by the Law.no 255/1998, republished.

Art. 39The variety registration certificate gives the owner the right to produce and market seeds of all the biological categories of the respective variety and to benefit of the rights derived from this, according to the legislation in force.

Art. 40I.S.T.I.S. is designated as depository institution for the reproductible material of the varieties registered in the Register of Varieties.

Art. 41I.S.T.I.S. is mandated to perform the examinations and checks for the control of the maintenance of the varietal purity of the varieties registered in the Register of Varieties and published in the Official Catalogue.

Art. 42After obtaining the variety registration certificate, the owner has the obligation to make available to I.S.T.I.S. a control-sample of seeds or plants which shall be conserved and shall represent the standard-sample for verification varietal purity and authenticity.

Art. 43(1) The owner of the variety registration certificate shall pay for the examination and verification for the control of the maintenance of varietal purity during the entire period in which it is listed in the Register of Varieties and published in the Official Catalogue, according to art.36.(2) The annual check of the varietal purity of the multiplied varieties in Romania, is carried out according to the methodology and tariffs set by order of the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.

CHAPTER VI – Sanctions

Art. 44(1) I.N.C.S., through its subordinated official authorities, can order on withholding any quantity of seeds ready to be marketed, during or after its marketing, which was found without documents of quality or phyto-sanitary status or with documents non-complying with the legislation in force, until the situation is clarified, as the case may be.(2) In case the seeds do not meet the legal requirements in force, the authority forseen at paragraph (1) can prohibit the sale and decide for them to be returned, to be used for other purposes, to be seized and/or destroyed on the owner’s expense.

Art. 45The following facts are considered contravention to the norms regarding the production, processing, quality control and marketing of seeds: a) the marketing of uncertified seeds or from lots coming from economic operators not registered, in compliane with the legal provisions in force;b) the production, processing and/or marketing of seeds without the authorization issued by the I.N.C.S., through the control and certification territorial autorities, excepting those foreseen by article 24, paragraph 3;c) not taking the appropriate measures for maintaining quality and identity on the harvesting, processing or conditioning of seeds for sale;d) seed storage and transport without the documents attesting their quality and identity, as well as non-ensuring the measures for protecting of their quality and authenticity;e) the absence of the ins-and-outs register foreseen at art. 5 letter b), the inappropriate keeping of the records regarding seed production, ins, outs and stocks;f) the refusal to show the documents regarding the quality of seeds, as well as the records provided for at letter e), at the request of the control authorities empowered by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;g) the writing of erronated data in the documents attesting the quality of seeds;

h) the marketing of seeds without the documents attesting the quality and the phyto-sanitary status appropriate for sowing;i) the marketing of seeds which do not comply with the norms in force.j) infringement of the rules and regulations in force in any stage of production, processing and marketing of seeds;k) introduction and marketing in Romania, of seeds from third countries without approval of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development or non-compliant with current regulations

Art. 46The facts foreseen at art.45 constitute a contravention, if they are not subject of Penal code.

Art. 47(1) The contraventions foreseen at art.45, shall be sanctioned by penalty applied to natural or as the case may be legal persons, as follows:a) those of point d) with a fine of 2.000 to 3.000 lei;b) those of point c), e), h) with a fine of 3.001 to 5.000 lei;c) those of point a), b), i) with a fine of 5.001 to 8.000 lei;d) those of point f), g), j), k) with a fine of 8.001 to 12.000 lei;(2) The value of the penalties shall be periodically updated by Government Decision, according to the inflation rate.

Art. 48(1) The ascertaining of contraventions and the application of penalties provided for in art.45 and 47, is carried out by the authorized persons of I.N.C.S. and by farm rooms, by order of the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. The minister of Agriculture and Rural Development can also mandate other persons to ascertain contraventions and to apply penalties.(2) The dispozitions of the Government Ordinance nr. 2/2001 regarding the legal contravention rules, approved with modification and completions by the Law no.180/2002, are applicable to the contraventions foreseen at art.45.(3) The personnel of the central and local public administration institutions shall support the authorities of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development as regards the cases of violation of the provisions of this Law.

CHAPTER VII - Final and transitional clauses

Art. 49The provisions of the present law are applied also to the varieties listed in the Register of Varieties and, respectively, in the Official Catalogue at the enforcement date of present Law. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall take such measures as to ensure that by the date of entry into force of this law, it has issued variety registration certificates and has established the maintainer right of institutes, agricultural research stations, universities as well as of other breeders or economic operators, at their request.

Art. 50At the enforcement date of present Law the law nr. 75/1995, re-published in the Official Gazette of Romania, Part I, nr. 362 from December 17th 1997, with the subsequent modification shall be repealed, excepting those forseen by art. 28 paragraph (1), first thesis, as well as any other provisions contrary to this law.

AnnexDefinitions of the specialty terms used in the Law

1. Seed means any reproduction material: seed, fruit, propagating material, produces by any multiplication method, intended for the multiplication or production for the purpose of food consumption or industrial purposes.2. Variety means a group of plants belonging to the lowest rank botanical taxon known, which:a) is cleary differentiated from those already known by at least a distinctive, precise and very little fluctuant character which can be defined and described, or by several characters the combination of which gives to it a novelty quality (distinctiveness);b) is uniform with regard to the characters considered by the regulations in force concerning varieties uniformity, with the exception of a very limited number of off-types, taking into account the reproduction particularities (uniformity);c) it is stable in its essential characters, meaning that after reproduction or succesive multiplication, or at the end of each reproduction cycle, its essential characters remain as they have been initially described (stability);d) it is also considered a variety the hybrid with its parental forms.3. Protected variety means a newly created variety for which a variety patent has been issued.4. Plants means agricultural and horticultural plants.5. Breeder means:a) a natural or legal person that has created or discovered and developed a new variety;b) a person that employed the person foreseen in point a) or who ordered to this person the creation or discovery of new varieties, if the contract foresees that the breeder’s right belongs to the former;c) the succesor of the rights of the person foreseen in point a) or b), as the case may be.6. Maintainer means the natural or legal person mentioned in the Registry of Varieties as being responsible for the maintenance of the variety characteristics as they were at the date of registering into the Register of Varieties. The maintainer can be the variety breeder or the person to whom the breeder has transferred this right throught a legal transaction.7. Processing means at least one of the following operations: conditioning, including precleaning, drying, cleaning, sorting, dressing up, treatment, as the case may be; the lost forming, packaging and labelling; as well as and auxiliary operations: storing, keeping and transporting the seeds.8. Marketing means the sale, the holding with a view to sale, the offer for sale and any other disposal, suply or transfer aimed at commercial exploitation of seeds to third parties, whether or not for considerantion.The following shall not be regarded as marketing:

a) the supply of seeds to official testing and inspections bodies;b) the supply of seeds to providers of services for processing of packaging, as long as the

provider of services does not aquire any rights on the seeds thus supplied;c) the supply of seeds as grown, under certain conditions, to providers of services for the

production of certain agricultural raw materials intended for industrial purposes or seeds multiplied for this purpose, (processing) shall not be regarded as marketing, as long as the provider of services does not acquire any rights on either the supplied seeds or the product of the harvest.

9. The biological categories of the seed production process are defined as follows:a) the breeder’s seed means the seed:- produced by or under the direct responsibility of the breeder or maintainer, using conservative selection or other specific scientific methods;- which is destined for the production of pre-basic seeds;- which satisfies the requirements of the regulations in force concerning varietal purity of pre-basic seeds.b) pre-basic seed means the seed of all biological links between the breeder’s seed and basic seed, which:- has been produced by or under the direct responsibility of the maintainer;- has been produced from the breeder’s seed or from pre-basic seed;- is destined for the production of pre-basic or basic seed;

- satisfies the requirements of the regulations in force concerning pre-basic seeds.c) basic seed means the seed:- produced by or under the direct responsibility of the maintainer;- which has been produced from the pre-basic seed;- which is destined for the production of certified seed;- which satisfies the requirements of the regulations in force concerning basic seeds.d) certified seed means:- in the case of hybrids, the seed produced in crossing fields from basic seed and which is destined for the production of harvest for human and animal consumption or for industrial processing;- in the case of varieties, the seed produced directly from basic seed for re-multiplications or for consumption and which satisfies the requirements of the regulations in force concerning certified seeds;- at the breeder’s or maintainer’s request, it can be produced from pre-basic seed.e) commercial seed means:- its identity as to a species;- satisfies the requirements of the regulations in force concerning commercial seeds;- satisfies, as determined by examination, the conditions of quality foreseen by norms in force.10. The registration of economic operators means the operation of admitting an activity which an economic operator, natural or legal person, desires to perform within the object of activity, if the preliminary technical and organizational conditions for that activity are fulfilled.11. Contract of multiplication means the contract of providing services which foresees the technical and financial conditions for achievement the multiplied seeds production, concluded under law conditions, between the owner of the seeds intended for multiplication or his/her representative, and the multiplying grower.12. Declaration of multiplication means the application for field inspection of natural or legal persons registered for the production of seeds, addressed to the authority in charge with the certification for the purpose of approval the seed crop intended for multiplication.13. Official supervision means the procedure whereby the official authority supervises and verifies the specific activity of a natural or legal person mandated by the aforementioned authority to carry out a certain activity on its behalf.

Published in the Official Gazette no.7, from 4th of January 2011