Q. The last paragraph of the EC´s note contains the following sentence: “In an exceptional situation where the MA or the Commission, despite all possible measures taken, cannot recover the unduly paid funds, neither from the lead beneficiary nor from the concerned beneficiary, the unrecovered funds will unfortunately be lost from the programme”. Could the EC specify what is meant as “all possible measures” that the Managing Authority shall take in order to try to recover the unduly paid funds? For example, is going to court against the beneficiary considered as the measure that must be taken?

A. As an overarching principle, the MAs shall demonstrate the effort taken in every step of the recovery process. The documents saved as the recovery file will serve as an evidence when submitted to the EC. According to the article 31.3 of the ENI CBC IR, in case of pending legal proceedings (initiated by any relevant body – national, anti-fraud body, OLAF, etc.) the EC shall be informed. In principle, undertaking legal action is not a condition sine qua non in order to demonstrate the due diligence of the Managing Authority. Nevertheless, Managing Authorities are expected to undertake actions which are in line with the amounts involved. In this context, legal action may be a need in case the amounts are high. More details in this respect will be provided to the programmes as early as possible.