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1. This Article applies to vessels that, during the 5 years preceding the application for a fishing authorisation, have:

(a) left the Union fishing fleet register and been reflagged in a third country; and (b) subsequently returned to the Union fishing fleet register.

2. A flag Member State may only issue a fishing authorisation if it has verified that, during the period that the vessel referred to in paragraph 1 operated under a third-country flag, it did not:

(a) engage in IUU fishing;

(b) operate in waters of a third country identified as a country allowing non-sustainable fishing pursuant to point (a) of Article 4(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1026/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council ;

(c) operate in waters of a third country listed as non-cooperating pursuant to Article 33 of the IUU Regulation; and (d) operate in waters of a third country identified as non-cooperating in fighting IUU fishing pursuant to Article 31 of the IUU Regulation after a period of 6 weeks following the adoption of the decision of the Commission identifying that third country as such, except for any operations carried out in the event that the Council has rejected a proposal to designate that third country as non-cooperating pursuant to Article 33 of that Regulation.

3. To that end, an operator shall provide the following information related to the period during which the vessel operated under a third-country flag required by a flag Member State:

(a) a declaration of catches and fishing effort during the relevant period as required by the third-country flag state;

(b) a copy of any fishing authorisations permitting fishing operations during the relevant period;

(c) an official statement by the third country where the vessel was reflagged listing the sanctions the vessel or the operator had been subject to during the relevant period;

(d) complete flag history during the period when the vessel had left the Union fleet register.

4. A flag Member State shall not issue a fishing authorisation to a vessel that has been reflagged in a third country:

(a) listed as non-cooperating in fighting IUU fishing pursuant to Article 33 of the IUU Regulation;

(b) identified as non-cooperating in fighting IUU fishing pursuant to Article 31 of the IUU Regulation after a period of 6 weeks following the adoption of the decision of the Commission identifying that third country as such, except for any operations carried out in the event that the Council has rejected a proposal to designate that third country as non-cooperating pursuant to Article 33 of that Regulation; or (c) identified as allowing non-sustainable fishing pursuant to point (a) of Article 4(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1026/2012.

5. Paragraph 4 shall not apply if the flag Member State is satisfied that, as soon as the circumstances described in points (b) to (d) of paragraph 2 or points (a) to (c) of paragraph 4 became applicable, the operator:

(a) ceased fishing operations; and (b) immediately started the relevant administrative procedures to remove the vessel from the fishing fleet register of the third country.