
Article 1 

1. The competent authorities shall designate contact points for the communication under this Regulation and publish the information on their contact points on their websites.
2. The competent authorities shall send the information on their contact points to European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA). ESMA shall keep up to date a list of the contact points for the use of the competent authorities and shall publish it on its website.
Article 2 

1. The requesting competent authority shall submit the request for consultation in paper form, or by electronic means, to the contact point of the competent authority to be consulted.
2. The requesting competent authority shall submit its request for consultation by filling in the form set out in Annex I. The requesting competent authority may attach to the request for consultation any document or supporting material deemed necessary to support the request.
Article 3 
The competent authority receiving the request shall send an acknowledgement of receipt by filling in the form set out in Annex II, within five working days of receipt of the request for consultation, addressed to the contact point of the requesting competent authority.
Article 4 

1. The competent authority receiving the request shall reply to a request for consultation in paper form, or by electronic means. It shall be addressed to the contact point of requesting competent authority unless otherwise specified by that authority.
2. The competent authority receiving the request shall inform the requesting competent authority of any clarification it requires in relation to the information requested.
3. The competent authority receiving the request shall provide the requesting competent authority as soon as possible by filling in the form set out in Annex III, and within 60 working days of receipt of the request for consultation at the latest with the following information:
(a) the information requested in the request for consultation and any views or reservations in relation to the granting of the authorisation;
(b) any other essential information that could influence the granting of the authorisation.
4. Where the competent authority receiving the request considers it likely not to be able to meet the time-limit set out in paragraph 3, it shall promptly inform the requesting competent authority thereof, indicating the reasons for the delay and an estimated date of response. It shall also provide information regularly on the progress of preparation of its reply.
5. Where the competent authority receiving the request is not able to meet the time-limit set out in paragraph 3 of this Article, it shall provide the information in a manner which ensures that any necessary action may proceed expeditiously, whilst complying with the time-limit set out in Article 7(3) of Directive 2014/65/EU.
Article 5 

1. The competent authorities shall communicate in relation to the request for consultation and the response using the most expeditious means from among those set out in Articles 2(1) and 4(1), taking due account of confidentiality considerations, correspondence times, the volume of material to be communicated and the ease of access to the information by the requesting competent authority. In particular, the requesting competent authority shall respond promptly to any clarifications requested by the competent authority receiving the request.
2. If the information requested is or may be held by a competent authority of a Member State other than the competent authority of the same Member State receiving the request, the competent authority receiving the request shall collect the information promptly from the other competent authority and transmit it to the requesting competent authority in accordance with Article 4.
3. The competent authorities shall cooperate to resolve any difficulties that may arise in executing a request.
4. Where new information or a need for further information arises during the procedure for granting or refusing the authorisation, the competent authorities shall cooperate to ensure that all relevant information is exchanged. The forms set out in Annexes I and II shall be used for this purpose.
5. By way of derogation from Articles 2(1) and 4(1), where the requesting competent authority makes request for consultation during the period of the last 30 working days before the end of the assessment of the application for authorisation, it may make that request verbally, provided that subsequent confirmation of the request for consultation is made in writing, unless the competent authority receiving the request agrees otherwise.
Article 6 

1. If the information provided by the competent authority receiving the request is reproduced in the response of the requesting competent authority to the application for authorisation, the requesting competent authority shall inform the competent authority receiving the request prior to informing the applicant.
2. In the event of a demand to disclose information that a competent authority has received from another competent authority, the competent authority receiving the demand shall notify the other competent authority prior to disclosing the information and shall assert such appropriate legal exemptions or privileges with respect to that information as may be available.
Article 7 
This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
It shall apply from 3 January 2018.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.Done at Brussels, 7 June 2017.
For the Commission
The President
Jean-Claude JUNCKER
ANNEX I




ANNEX II



ANNEX III



