Article 7 — Transitional provisions

1.         The following transitional provisions shall apply to ATM/ANS equipment holding EC declarations issued in accordance with Articles 5 or 6 of Regulation (EC)  No 552/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council ([21]) and that has been put into operation before the date of entry into force of this Regulation:

(a)       ATM/ANS equipment which falls within the category of ATM/ANS equipment that requires certification in accordance with Article 4 shall be deemed to have been issued with a certificate in accordance with Article 4 unless the Agency determines, following the evaluation referred to in paragraph 2, that such ATM/ANS equipment does not ensure a level of safety, security, performance and interoperability equivalent to that required by Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 and this Regulation;

(b)       ATM/ANS equipment which falls within the category of ATM/ANS equipment that is required to be declared in accordance with Article 5 shall be deemed to have been issued with a declaration of design compliance in accordance with Article 5 unless the Agency determines, following the evaluation referred to in paragraph 2, that such ATM/ANS equipment does not ensure a level of safety, security, performance and interoperability equivalent to that required by Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 and this Regulation;

(c)       as regards ATM/ANS equipment which is subject to a statement of compliance in accordance with Article 6, the EC declarations of verification of systems that have been issued or recognised in accordance with Article 6 of Regulation (EC) No 552/2004 shall continue to be valid for an unlimited duration and shall be deemed to have a statement of compliance pursuant to Article 6.

2.         The Agency shall evaluate the ATM/ANS equipment referred to in paragraph 1, points (a)and (b), within 5 years from the date of entry into force of this Regulation and shall publish the results of that evaluation. For that purpose, the competent authorities responsible for the certification and oversight of the ATM/ANS providers referred to in Article 4(1) of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/373 shall provide the Agency with the relevant information to facilitate this evaluation. The objective of that evaluation shall be to determine whether the relevant ATM/ANS equipment ensures a level of safety, security, performance and interoperability equivalent to that required by Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 and this Regulation. The result of the evaluation shall be published and any measure to change the ATM/ANS equipment identified by the evaluation shall be applied after 5 years from the date of entry into force of this Regulation, regardless of the actual date when the evaluation takes place, unless the evaluation reveals a deficiency that may have a detrimental effect on safety. In the case a deficiency that may have a detrimental effect is detected, any measure to change the ATM/ANS equipment revealed by the evaluation shall be applied immediately. After 5 years from the date of entry into force of this Regulation, the ATM/ANS equipment referred to in paragraph 1, points (a) to (b), shall be deemed to comply with the requirements of this Regulation.

3.         ATM/ANS equipment that is subject to certification in accordance with Article 4 or a declaration in accordance with Article 5 may be put into operation from the date of entry into force of this Regulation until 12 September 2028 on the basis of a statement of compliance made in accordance with Article 6. As from 13 September 2028, the following provisions shall apply to such ATM/ANS equipment:

(a)       ATM/ANS equipment which falls within the category of ATM/ANS equipment that requires certification in accordance with Article 4 and for which a statement of compliance was issued by the ATM/ANS provider shall be deemed to have been issued with a certificate in accordance with Article 4 unless the Agency determines, following the evaluation referred to in paragraph 4, that such ATM/ANS equipment does not ensure a level of safety, security, performance and interoperability equivalent to that required by Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 and this Regulation;

(b)       ATM/ANS equipment which falls within the category of ATM/ANS equipment that requires a declaration of design compliance in accordance with Article 5 and for which a statement of compliance was issued by the ATM/ANS provider shall be deemed to have been issued with a declaration of design compliance in accordance with Article 5 unless the Agency determines, following the evaluation referred to in paragraph 4 that such ATM/ANS equipment does not ensure a level of safety, security, performance and interoperability equivalent to that required by Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 and this Regulation.

4.         The Agency shall evaluate the ATM/ANS equipment referred to in paragraph 3 not later than 12 September 2030. For that purpose, the competent authorities responsible for the certification and oversight of the ATM/ANS providers referred to in Article 4(1) of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/373 shall provide the Agency with the relevant information to facilitate this evaluation. The objective of that evaluation shall be to determine whether the particular ATM/ANS equipment meets a level of safety, security, performance and interoperability equivalent to that required by Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 and this Regulation.