Article 15

1.  The designation of an Examination Office or agency shall take effect by a written agreement between the Office and the Examination Office or agency, providing for the performance by the Examination Office or agency of the technical examination of plant varieties for certain genera and species and for the payment by the Office of the fee referred to in Article 58 of the basic Regulation. In the case of a sub-office referred to in Article 14(2) of this Regulation, the establishment shall be by internal rules on working methods issued by the Office.

2.  The effect of the written agreement referred to in paragraph 1 shall be such that acts performed after the signing of that agreement or to be performed by members of the staff of the Examination Office in accordance therewith shall be considered, as far as third parties are concerned, to be acts of the Office.

3.   Where the Examination Office intends to avail itself of the services of other technically qualified bodies in accordance with Article 56(3) of the basic Regulation, such bodies shall be named in the written agreement with the Office. Article 81(2) of the basic Regulation and Article 13(2) and (3) of this Regulation shall apply mutatis mutandis to the staff members concerned, who shall sign a written undertaking to observe confidentiality.

4.   The Office shall pay the Examination Office a fee for the conduct of the technical examination, on the basis of full recovery of costs incurred. The Administrative Council shall determine uniform methods for calculating the costs and the uniform constituents of the costs, which shall apply to all designated Examination Offices.

5.  An Examination Office shall periodically submit to the Office on request a breakdown of the costs of the technical examinations performed and of the maintenance of the necessary reference collections. In the circumstances set out in paragraph 3, a separate auditing report of the bodies shall be submitted to the Office by the Examination Office.

In the circumstances set out in paragraph 3, the Examination Office shall take into account costs incurred by such a body. The Office shall lay down the format of breakdown of the costs. If, after two requests from the Office, the Examination Office fails to provide the Office with the breakdown of the costs within the deadline established by the Office, the fee referred to in paragraph 4 may be reduced by 20 %.

6.  Any cancellation or amendment of the designation of an Examination Office or agency may not take effect prior to the day on which the revocation of the written agreement referred to in paragraph 1 takes effect.