Applications filed within the framework of this special procedure will be processed as follows:

• Admissibility of the file (completeness of information provided),
• Assessment of the variety’s Value for Cultivation, Use and Sustainability (for agricultural plants) on the basis of data that has been previously acquired and provided by the applicant,
• Take-over of DUS examination results previously obtained from registration in the UK catalogue.

The variety denomination will be the same as validated by the British authorities when the variety was registered in the UK catalogue.

For agricultural species concerned by Value for Cultivation, Use and Sustainability testing (species listed in Directive 2002/53), an evaluation will be conducted by an ad-hoc committee for each of the broad species groups (cereals, maize and sorghum/oil-seed and protein crops/forage and grass). The committees will base their decision on the data provided by the applicant.

The following data is required for this evaluation:

• VCUS data obtained when the variety was registered in the UK catalogue,
• Data from the post-registration assessment carried out in the UK,
• Variety assessment data from a French Agricultural Technical Institute,
• Breeder data obtained through the breeder’s facilities or an evaluation network for commercial indexing in France,
• Data on the variety’s processing capability (value for use) is also required for certain species. In addition to the data sources previously cited, this data can be provided by industrial pilot plants or approved producer organisations in France.

Data provided should be as comprehensive as possible, in order for the ad-hoc committee to correctly assess the admissibility of the application with regard to the objective of this special procedure. Applicants are also asked to choose comparison varieties from the French market where possible, and to specify the experimental facility where the results were obtained.

For agricultural species concerned by categories related to specific transformation capacity, if the technological data provided by the applicant is insufficient to access these categories, a proposal for registration will be made for the general category. An assessment of the value for use, at the request and expense of the applicant, can then be envisaged to assess if the variety could be included in the corresponding category.

In addition, the applicant must give reasons for their application request with this special procedure, in free text form. For example, the applicant could explain the variety’s target market, how important it is to register that variety in the Official French Catalogue, the estimated French or EU market share, or the multiplication surface area.

For agricultural species with compulsory VCUS testing, each VCUS application will be prepared for processing by the coordinator of the “Brexit” experts committee, then submitted to the committee by mail and discussed at a meeting of the committee. On the basis of the elements provided by the applicant, the variety’s suitability with regard to the Technical Regulation for registration will be evaluated by the ad-hoc committee. The committee’s opinion will be communicated to the applicant and the CTPS Section for that species. At the plenary meetings scheduled between October 2018 and January 2019, the CTPS Section will formally decide if the variety is eligible for registration in List A of the Official French Catalogue.

For vegetable species concerned by Directive 2002/55, their cases will be directly referred to the catalogue committee, before the final decision by the CTPS Vegetables Section at its plenary reunion in December 2018.

After the relevant CTPS Section meeting, a decision will be sent to the applicant by email and/or postal mail, informing them of the proposals made by the Section regarding the variety. If the proposal for registration is made by the Section and accepted by the applicant, the variety will be proposed for registration in the Official French Catalogue. The final decision will be taken by the Ministry of Agriculture. Registration in the Official French Catalogue must be carried out before 29/03/2019. The European Commission will then be notified, in order for the variety to be included in the EU catalogue.

The following examination costs are payable by the applicant to GEVES:

• €500 when filing the application
• For agricultural species, €320 for each variety (and for each of the parent constituents of agricultural hybrids) if the VCUS assessment is favourable

The maintainer of the variety registered in the Official French Catalogue must pay an annual fee to maintain their variety in the catalogue, as set out in the CTPS Price List. They must also provide GEVES with a reference sample for each variety in accordance with GEVES’s recommendations.

Registration in the French catalogue is valid for 10 years and then renewable for 5 years at a time.