4. Where the staff member was awarded a total remuneration of EUR 1 000 000 or more in or for the preceding financial year, the competent authority shall only give its prior approval under paragraph 3 in exceptional circumstances. In order to ensure the consistent application of this paragraph, the competent authority shall inform the EBA before giving its approval in respect of such a staff member.
The existence of exceptional circumstances shall be demonstrated by the institution and assessed by the competent authority. Exceptional circumstances shall be situations that are unusual and very infrequent or far beyond what is usual. The exceptional circumstances shall be related to the staff member.