Regulations, 2020

L.N. 195 of 2020

NATIONAL INTEREST (ENABLING POWERS) ACT

(CAP. 365)

Military Equipment (Export Control) (Amendment)

Regulations, 2020

IN EXERCISE of the powers conferred by article 3(3) of the

National Interest (Enabling Powers) Act, the Prime Minister, has made

the following regulations:-

(1) The title of these regulations is the Military Citation and

Equipment (Export Control) (Amendment) Regulations, 2020 and they scope.

shall be read and construed as one with the Military Equipment S.L. 365.13.

(Export Control) Regulations, hereinafter referred to as "the principal

regulations".

(2) The scope of these regulations is to transpose the relevant

provisions of the Directive (EU) 2017/853 of the European Parliament

and of the Council of 17 May 2017 amending Council Directive 91/

477/EEC on control of the acquisition and possession of weapons.

Regulation 2 of the principal regulations, shall be amended Amends

regulation 2 of

as follows

the principal

regulations.

(a) in sub-regulation (1) thereof, immediately after the

definition "Director" there shall be added the following new

definition

" "essential component" means the barrel, the frame,

the receiver, including both upper and lower receivers,

where applicable the slide, the cylinder, the bolt or the

breech block, which, being separate objects, are included in

the category of the firearms on which they are or are

intended to be mounted;"; and

(b) in sub-regulation (1) thereof, immediately after the

definition "exporter" there shall be added the following new

definition

" "firearm" means any portable barrelled weapon that

expels, is designed to expel or may be converted to expel a

shot, bullet or projectile by the action of a combustible

propellant, unless it is excluded from that definition for one

(1) of the reasons listed in Part III of Annex I of Council

Directive 91/447/EEC of 18 June 1991 on control of the

acquisition and possession of weapons. Firearms are

classified in Part II of Annex I.

An object shall be considered to be capable of being

converted to expel a shot, bullet or projectile by the action

of a combustible propellant if

(a)

it has the appearance of a firearm; and

(b) as a result of its construction or the

material from which it is made, it can be so

converted;".

In regulation 4 of the principal regulations, there shall be

added the following new sub-regulation (3)

"(3) Exporters shall without undue delay and by not later

than two (2) weeks from the date of the export, report to the

Director through the submission of a delivery receipt, depicting

that the export authorised in terms of regulation 3, has been

effected.".

Regulation 4A of the principal regulations, shall be

substituted by the following

(1) Prior to engaging in any brokering

activities relating to the transfer of any item listed in

the Manual, brokers shall submit a written application

to the Director for the issue of a licence to act as a

broker, therein providing all the relevant information

requested by the Director.

(2) On receipt of an application for the issue of

a licence to act as a broker, the Director shall perform

background checks and shall submit the relevant

information to the Commissioner of Police so that a

criminal record check is carried out with regard to the

applicant

Provided that in the case of a legal person,

the check shall be both on the legal person and on the

natural person or persons directing the undertaking

Provided further that apart from carrying

out background checks through the Commissioner of

Police, the Director may also request information from

other entities in order to establish the private and

professional integrity and the relevant abilities of the

applicant concerned.

(3) The Director shall not issue a licence to act

as a broker if it results that the applicant has been

convicted of a criminal offence which in the opinion

the Director may impinge on the applicant’s private

and professional integrity and, or the applicant’s

relevant abilities

Provided that in the case of a legal person,

this shall also apply if it results that the natural person

or persons directing the undertaking have been

convicted of such a criminal offence.

(4) The Director shall also not issue a licence to

act as a broker if from the information given to the

Director it results that the applicant has pending

criminal proceedings relating to a criminal offence

which in the opinion the Director may impinge on the

applicant’s private and professional integrity and, or

the applicant’s relevant abilities

Provided that in the case of a legal person,

this shall also apply if it results that the natural person

or persons directing the undertaking has pending

criminal proceedings relating to such a criminal

offence.".

Immediately after regulation 4A of the principal Adds new

regulations to

regulations, there shall be added the following new regulations

the principal

regulations.

4B. (1) No person shall engage himself in

any brokering activities relating to the transfer from

any country, including Malta, to any other country of

any item listed in the First Schedule to these

regulations unless

(a) he is in possession of a licence issued

by the Director to act as a broker; and

(b) an authorisation is granted by the

Director for the transfer of such item.

(2) Brokers may refuse to complete any

transaction for the acquisition of complete rounds of

ammunition, or components of ammunition, which they

reasonably consider to be suspicious owing to its nature

or scale, and shall report any such attempted transaction

to the Director.

(3) Brokers shall without undue delay and by

not later than two (2) weeks from the date of the

transfer, report to the Director through the submission

of a delivery receipt, that the transfer authorised in

terms of sub-regulation (1) has been effected.

4C. (1) In relation to brokering activities, the

Director shall keep a data filing system which shall

record all information relating to firearms which is

needed in order to trace and identify those firearms,

including

(a) the type, make, model, calibre and

serial number of each firearm and the mark

applied to its frame or receiver as a unique

marking in accordance with sub-regulation (1),

which shall serve as the unique identifier of each

firearm;

(b) the serial number or unique marker

applied to the essential components, where that

differs from the marking on the frame or receiver

of each firearm;

(c) the names and addresses of the

suppliers and of the persons acquiring or

possessing the firearm, together with the relevant

date or dates; and

(d) any conversions or modifications to a

firearm leading to a change in its category or

subcategory, including its certified deactivation or

destruction and the relevant date or dates.

(2) The Director shall ensure that the record of

firearms and the essential components, including the

related personal data, is retained in the data filing

systems for a period of thirty (30) years after the

destruction of the firearms or essential components in

question.

The records of firearms and essential components

referred to in sub-regulation (1) and the related personal

data shall be made available and be capable of being

accessed

(a) by the Director or by the national

authorities competent for customs proceedings for

a period of ten (10) years after the destruction of

the firearm or the essential components in

question; and

(b) by the national authorities competent

for the prevention, investigation, detection or

prosecution of criminal offences or the execution

of criminal penalties, for a period of thirty (30)

years after the destruction of the firearm or the

essential components in question.

(3) The Director shall ensure that the personal

data is deleted from the data-filing systems upon expiry

of the periods specified in sub-regulation (2). This is

without prejudice to cases in which specific personal

data have been transferred to a national authority

competent for the prevention, investigation, detection

or prosecution of criminal offences or the execution of

criminal penalties and are used in that specific context,

or to other national authorities competent for a

compatible purpose. In those cases, the processing of

such data shall be regulated by the Data Protection

Act.".

The marginal note of regulation 9 of the principal Amends

regulation 9 of

regulations, shall be substituted by the following

the principal

regulations.

"Record keeping and inspection in relation to exporters.".

Immediately after regulation 9 of the principal regulations, Adds new

regulation 9A to

there shall be added the following new regulation 9A

the principal

regulations.

(1) Throughout their period of activity,

relation to brokers. brokers shall maintain a register in which each firearm

and each essential component that is received or

disposed of by them shall be recorded, together with

particulars enabling the firearm or essential component

concerned to be identified and traced, in particular the

type, make, model, calibre and serial number thereof

and the names and addresses of the suppliers and of the

persons acquiring it.

(2) Upon cessation of their activities, brokers

shall deliver that register to the Director.".

8. The First Schedule to the principal regulations, shall be Substitutes the

First Schedule

substituted by the following

to the principal

regulations.

"FIRST SCHEDULE

(Regulations 2, 3, 4 and 4B)

The Common Military List of the European Union, adopted by

the Council on 18 February 2019 (equipment covered by Council

Common Position 2008/944/CFSP defining common rules governing

the control of exports of military technology and equipment) (updating

and replacing the Common Military Lists of the European Union

adopted by the Council on 26 February 2018) shall be applicable in its

entirety as the First Schedule to these regulations.".

€0.54