Every year in August the CRL submit a work plan for conducting the function in the following year. Before the submission the plans are presented for the national reference laboratories at the Annual Meetings in order to receive comments, ideas for new or alternative tasks and for approval. The plans are submitted end of August, budgets and work plans are usually approved for contract signing end of December. The work plans follows the frame of the function and duties of Community reference laboratories given in
Council Directive 2006/88/EC (Annex VI. part I)