WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/L/590
12 November 2002
(02-6229)
REPORT (2002) OF THE COMMITTEE ON CUSTOMS VALUATION
TO THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN GOODS
BACKGROUND
1. The Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and
Trade 1994 (the Agreement) entered into force on 1 January 1995.  This report covers the year 2002.  It
addresses the work undertaken by the Committee on Customs Valuation (the Committee) in respect of
the objectives of the Agreement, which are: to  provide greater uniformity and certainty in the
implementation of the provisions of Article VII of  the GATT 1994;  to establish a fair, uniform and
neutral system for the valuation of goods for cust oms purposes that precludes the use of arbitrary of
fictitious customs values;  to ensure that the basi s for valuation of goods for customs purposes should, to
the greatest extent possible, be the transaction value of the goods being valued;  and to secure additional
benefits for the international trade of developing countries.
2. During the period under consideration, the Committee has held seven formal meetings, on
26  February (G/VAL/M/25) and 27 Marc h (G/VAL/M/26) under the Chairship of
Mr. K. J. Weerasinghe (Sri Lanka);  and on 6-7 May (G/VAL/M/27 and Corr.1, G/VAL/M/28);
26 June (G/VAL/M/29);  3  and 26 July (G/VAL/M /30 and Corr.1 and Add.1);  30 September-1 October
(G/VAL/M/31);  and 4-5 November (G/VAL/M/32 to  be issued) under the Chairship of Mr. Raimundas
Karoblis (Lithuania).  At the 27 March meeting, the Committee elected Mr.  Raimundas Karoblis
(Lithuania) as Chairperson for 2002.  The Committee is also scheduled to meet on 29 November 2002.
However the proceedings of that meeting will not be reflected in this report.
3. Participation in the Committee is open to all WTO Members.  In addition, Governments granted
observer status by the WTO General Council attended Committee meetings as observers.  At the
April 1997 meeting, the Committee granted observer status to those organizations which had had
observer status on an ad hoc  basis, namely UNCTAD and the WCO, as well as to the ACP and the
IADB.   The Committee took note of the fact that the World Bank and the IMF had observer status by
virtue of the Agreements between  these organizations and the WTO.
4. The Committee's rules of procedure, which were approved by the Council for Trade in Goods,
are contained in G/L/146.
IMPLEMENTATION OF THE AGREEMENT
5. During the period under review, no developi ng country Members maintained delayed
application of the provisions of the Agreement in accordance with the provisions of Article 20.1 of the
Agreement.  At circulation of this report, 1 Member  (Sri Lanka) maintains an extension of the delay
period in accordance with the provisions of paragra ph 1, Annex III.  Three re quests for extensions are
still pending agreement by Members.  Understanding  has been reached in the Committee that the texts
of the national legislation of these developing country Members will be supplied to the Committee
before the developing country Members begin appl ying the provisions of the Agreement (G/VAL/5,
para. B.2(ii)).  In addition, at circulation of the report, six Members maintain reservations which have
been granted under paragraph 2, Annex III for minimum values  (Colombia, Gabon, Guatemala,
Honduras, Nicaragua, and Jamaica).G/L/590
Page 2
6. To date, 73 Members have notified their nationa l legislation on customs valuation (this figure
includes the 14 Members which have submitted communica tions indicating that their legislation notified
under the Tokyo Round Customs Valuation Agreement remained valid under the WTO Customs
Valuation Agreement and does not include individual EEC Members).  56 Members, (of which 1 has an
Article IX waiver from its obligations under the Agreement and 3 have requested extensions of the
Article 20.1 delays) have not yet made any notification  (See Annex).
ACTIVITIES OF THE COMMITTEE
7. At the meeting in February 2002:
• the Committee adopted a schedule of meetings fo r 2002 contained in G/VAL/44.  It heard a re-
introduction by India of the five implementation-related proposals that the Committee is mandated
to address this year (pursuant to paragraph 12 of  WT/MIN(01)/DEC/1 and Job(01)/152/Rev.1).
8. At the meeting in March 2002:
• the Committee had an exchange of views on the im plementation-related proposals as well as on the
Decision in paragraph 8.3 of WT/MIN(01)/17;
• the Committee examined the draft programme for the Seminar on Technical Assistance;
• the Committee elected Mr. Raiumndas Karo blis (Lithuania) as Chairman for 2002.
9. At the meeting in May 2002;
• The Committee concluded the examination of the implementing legislation of Brunei Darussalam,
Croatia, Georgia, Kenya, Korea, Lithuania, Moldova, Tunisia, and Venezuela.  It was agreed to
revert to that of Peru at the next meeting;
• The  Committee took note of the information in  document G/VAL/2/Rev.12 which contained a list
of Members having invoked the special and diffe rential provisions of the Customs Valuation
Agreement.  It also took note of documen t G/VAL/W/76/Add.1 which contained an updated
inventory of notification requirements pursuan t to extension decisions and minimum value
reservations, and the notifications that had b een made under the Decisions concerning delay
extensions and minimum value reservations;
• The Committee took note of the four documen ts containing the Annual Reviews, namely
G/VAL/W/29, G/VAL/W/ 43, G/VAL/W/77, and G/VAL/ W/88 and agreed that the incoming Chair
would take up the matter through consultations among the interested Members;
• The Committee held an extensive discussion on the draft programme for a Seminar on Technical
Assistance;
• The Committee agreed to revert to the item of India's questions about certain valuation policies of
the European Communities at its next meeting;
• No clear guidance was given on the question of holding another review of the Agreement on
Preshipment Inspection;  it was agreed to revert to this matter at the next meeting;
• The Committee noted that it was obliged to report to the General Council at the end of the year
under the China Transitional Review Mechanism and authorized the Chairman to carry out
informal consultations on how to organize the work of the Committee on this point;
• The Committee continued its discussion of the implementation-related issues (five proposals plus
paragraph 8.3) referred to it by Ministers at Doha and took note of the questions posed to India indocuments G/VAL/W/98 and Adds.1-5.
• The Committee took note of the report on the wo rk of the Technical Committee of the World
Customs Organization (WCO).G/L/590
Page 3
10. At the meeting in June 2002:
• The Committee agreed to grant Sri Lanka an extension of its delay period for applying the
Agreement on Customs Valuation, in accordance with paragraph 1, Annex III of the Agreement
(G/VAL/46).
11. At the meeting in July 2002:
• The Committee had an exchange of views on the implementation-related proposals as well as on the
Decision in paragraph 8.3;
• The Committee adopted the draft programme for th e Seminar on Technical Assistance (G/VAL/47);
• The Committee agreed that China's Transitional Re view Mechanism would take place at its meeting
of 4-5 November 2002.
12. At the meeting in September-October 2002:
• The Committee continued the exchange of views on the implementation-related issues in
paragraph 8.3 of WT/MIN(01)/17 and those under paragraph 12 of WT/MIN(01)/DEC/1 on the
basis of India's responses (G/VAL/W/101) to the questions posed and India's submission on
paragraph 8.3 (G/VAL/W/102), and discussed the fu ture work leading to the end-of-year reports
to the Trade Negotiating Committee and the General Council on these matters
• The Committee took note of a report from the WCO on its work on the exchange of information
among customs administrations.
13. At the meeting of 4-5 November 2002:
• The  Committee took note of the information in  document G/VAL/2/Rev.13 which contained a list
of Members having invoked the special and diffe rential provisions of the Customs Valuation
Agreement, and in document G/VAL/W/76/Add.2 on the notification requirements pursuant to
extension decisions and minimum value reservati ons, and the notifications that had been made
under the Decisions concerning delay extensions and minimum value reservations;
• The Committee took note of the five documen ts containing the Annual Reviews, namely
G/VAL/W/29, G/VAL/W/ 43, G/VAL/W/77, G/VAL/ W/88, and G/VAL/W/108 and agreed to
revert to this matter at the next meeting;
• The Committee took note of the programme for the Seminar on Technical Assistance
(G/VAL/47/Rev.2);
• The Committee agreed to revert to the item of India's questions about certain valuation policies of
the European Communities at its next meeting;
• The Committee adopted its annual report to the Council for Trade in Goods;
• No clear guidance was given on the question of holding another review of the Agreement on
Preshipment Inspection;  it was agreed to revert to this matter at the next meeting;
• The Committee completed China's Transitional Review in accordance with paragraph 18 of the
Protocol of the Accession of the People's Republic of China;
• The Committee heard questions from Guatemal a on certain valuation policies of Mexico
(G/VAL/W/114);
• The Committee continued discussion of the five implementation-related tirets and adopted its
report to the Trade Negotiations Committee (G/VAL/49);  it would continue its work onparagraph 8.3, including its report to the General Council, at the 29 November meeting;
• The Committee took note of the report on the work of the WCO Technical Committee.
14. The Seminar on Technical Assistance on Customs Valuation, as foreseen in the Committee's
Technical Assistance Work Programme (G/VAL/W/ 82/Rev.2), was held at the WTO Headquarters on
6-7 November 2002.G/L/590
Page 4
ANNEX1
Notifications
Members Members who have
indicated their
legislation remains valid
under the WTO
Committee
(G/VAL/M/1)Members who have
submitted their legislation or
amendments under Articles
22.1 and 22.2 of the
AgreementMembers who have
submitted their replies to the
Checklist of Issues
(G/VAL/5)Members who are
delaying
application of the
Agreement under
Article 20.1 or para.
1, Annex III of the
Agreement or
Article IX of the
WTO Agreement
Albania N/A G/VAL/N/1/ALB/1
Angola N/A
Antigua & Barbuda N/A
Argentina G/VAL/N/1/ARG/1 VAL/1/Add.22 + Suppl. 1-4
+Suppl. 2/Rev.1VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.4
Australia G/VAL/N/1/AUS/1 VAL/1/Add.14 + Suppl. 1-4 VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.12 +
Suppl.1
Bahrain N/A
Bangladesh N/A
Barbados N/A
Belize N/A
Benin N/A
Bolivia N/A G/VAL/N/1/BOL/1
Botswana VAL/1/Add.16
Brazil G/VAL/N/1/BRA/1 VAL/1/Add.20 + Suppl.1
G/VAL/N/1/BRA/2 and 3VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.3
Brunei Darussalam N/A G/VAL/N/1/BRN/1 G/VAL/N/2/BRN/2
Bulgaria N/A G/VAL/N/1/BGR/1 G/VAL/N/2/BGR/1
Burkina Faso N/A G/VAL/N/1/BFA/1
Burundi N/A
Cameroon N/A
Canada G/VAL/N/1/CAN/1 VAL/1/Add.17 + Suppl.1-3
G/VAL/N/1/CAN/2VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.14
G/VAL/N/2/CAN/1
Central African Rep. N/A
Chad N/A
Chile N/A
China N/A G/VAL/N/1/CHN/1 G/VAL/N/2/CHN/1
Colombia N/A G/VAL/N/1/COL/1 G/VAL/N/2/COL/1
Congo N/A
Costa Rica N/A G/VAL/N/1/CRI/1 G/VAL/N/2/CRI/1
Côte d'Ivoire N/A G/VAL/N/1/CVI/1
Croatia N/A G/VAL/N/1/HRV/1 G/VAL/N/2/HRV/1
Cuba N/A G/VAL/N/1/CUB/1 G/VAL/N/2/CUB/1
Cyprus N/A VAL/1/Add.26
G/VAL/N/1/CYP/2VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.7
Czech Republic N/A VAL/1/Add.18 +
Suppl.1/Corr.1 – 2G/VAL/N/1/CZE/1,2 and 3VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.15 +
Suppl.1G/VAL/N/2/CZE/1
Dem Rep. of Congo N/A
Djibouti N/A
Dominica N/A G/VAL/N/1/DMA/1
Dominican Rep. N/A G/VAL/N/1/DOM/1
Ecuador N/A
Egypt N/A
El Salvador N/A
                                                     
1 Documents that begin with the code "VAL" are Tokyo Round documents.  The table reflects the
situation as of the date of circulation of this report.G/L/590
Page 5
Members Members who have
indicated their
legislation remains valid
under the WTO
Committee
(G/VAL/M/1)Members who have
submitted their legislation or
amendments under Articles
22.1 and 22.2 of the
AgreementMembers who have
submitted their replies to the
Checklist of Issues
(G/VAL/5)Members who are
delaying
application of the
Agreement under
Article 20.1 or para.
1, Annex III of the
Agreement or
Article IX of the
WTO Agreement
Estonia N/A G/VAL/N/1/EST/1 G/VAL/N/2/EST/1
EuropeanCommunitiesG/VAL/N/1/EEC/1 VAL/1/Add.2 + Suppl.1-13 +
Suppl.1
G/VAL/N/1/EEC/1/Rev.1VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.6
Fiji N/A G/VAL/N/1/FJI/1 G/VAL/N/2/FJI/1
Gabon N/A G/VAL/N/1/GAB/1
Gambia N/A
Georgia N/A G/VAL/N/1/GEO/1
Ghana N/A
Grenada N/A
Guatemala N/A
Guinea Bissau N/A
Guinea, Rep. of N/A
Guyana N/A
Haiti N/A WT/L/439
Honduras N/A
Hong Kong, China G/VAL/N/1/HKG/1 VAL/1/Add.9 N/A
Hungary G/VAL/N/1/HUN/1 VAL/1/Add.6 VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.4
Iceland N/A G/VAL/N/1/ISL/1 G/VAL/N/2/ISL/1
India G/VAL/N/1/IND/1 VAL/1/Add.24 + Suppl.1
G/VAL/N/1/IND/2-3VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.6
Indonesia N/A G/VAL/N/1/IDN/1 G/VAL/N/2/IDN/1 + Corr.1
Israel N/A G/VAL/N/1/ISR/1  + Corr.1 G/VAL/N/2/ISR/1
Jamaica N/A G/VAL/N/1/JAM/1 G/VAL/N/2/JAM/1
Japan G/VAL/N/1/JPN/1 VAL/1/Add.7 VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.8
G/VAL/N/2/JPN/1
Jordan N/A G/VAL/N/1/JOR/1 G/VAL/N/2/JOR/1
Kenya N/A G/VAL/N/1KEN/1 G/VAL/N/2/KEN/1
Korea G/VAL/N/1/KOR/1 VAL/1/Add.19
+ Suppl. 1-4
+ Suppl.3/Corr.1G/VAL/N/1/KOR/2VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.1
+ Suppl.1
Kuwait N/A
Kyrgyz Republic N/A G/VAL/N/1/KGZ/1 G/VAL/N/2/KGZ/1
Latvia N/A G/VAL/N/1/LVA/1 G/VAL/N/2/LVA/1
Lesotho VAL/1/Add.21 + Suppl.1 VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.2
Liechtenstein N/A G/VAL/N/1/LIE/1 N/A
Lithuania N/A G/VAL/N/1/LTU/1 G/VAL/N/2/LTU/1
Macao, China N/A G/VAL/N/1/MAC/1 N/A
Madagascar N/A G/VAL/N/1/MDG/1
Malawi G/VAL/N/1/MWI/1 VAL/1/Add.27
Malaysia N/A G/VAL/N/1/MYS/1 G/VAL/N/2/MYS/1
Maldives N/A
Mali N/A
Malta N/A G/VAL/N/1/MLT/1 G/VAL/N/2/MLT/1
Mauritania N/A
Mauritius N/A G/VAL/N/1/MUS/1 G/VAL/N/2/MUS/1
Mexico VAL/1/Add.25 + Suppl. 1-3
+ Suppl.1/Rev.1VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.10
VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.8
Moldova N/A G/VAL/N/1/MDA/1 G/VAL/N/2/MDA/1
Mongolia N/AG/L/590
Page 6
Members Members who have
indicated their
legislation remains valid
under the WTO
Committee
(G/VAL/M/1)Members who have
submitted their legislation or
amendments under Articles
22.1 and 22.2 of the
AgreementMembers who have
submitted their replies to the
Checklist of Issues
(G/VAL/5)Members who are
delaying
application of the
Agreement under
Article 20.1 or para.
1, Annex III of the
Agreement or
Article IX of the
WTO Agreement
Morocco N/A G/VAL/N/1/MAR/1
G/VAL/N/1/MAR/1/Rev.1 +Corr.1G/VAL/N/2/MAR/1
G/VAL/N/2/MAR/2
Mozambique N/A
Myanmar N/A
Namibia N/A G/VAL/N/1/NAM/1
New Zealand G/VAL/N/1/NZL/1 VAL/1/Add.12 + Suppl.1 VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.10
Nicaragua N/A
Niger N/A
Nigeria N/A
Norway G/VAL/N/1/NOR/1 VAL/1/Add.11 + Corr.1
+ Suppl. 1-2VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.7
Oman N/A G/VAL/N/1/OMN/1 G/VAL/N/2/OMN/1
Pakistan N/A G/VAL/N/1/PAK/1
Panama N/A G/VAL/N/1/PAN/1 G/VAL/N/2/PAN/1
Papua New Guinea N/A
Paraguay N/A
Peru N/A
Philippines N/A G/VAL/N/1/PHL/1
Poland N/A VAL/1/Add.28
G/VAL/N/1/POL/1 and 2G/VAL/N/2/POL/1
Qatar N/A
Romania N/A VAL/1/Add.8 + Suppl. 1-2
G/VAL/N/1/ROM/1 and 2VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.9
Rwanda N/A G/VAL/W/842
St. Kitts & Nevis N/A
St. Lucia N/A
St. Vincent &
GrenadinesN/A
Senegal N/A G/VAL/N/1/SEN/1
Separate Customs
Territory of Taiwan,Penghu, Kinmen and
Matsu (Chinese
Taipei)N/A G/VAL/N/1/TPKM/1 G/VAL/N/2/TPKM/1-2
Sierra Leone N/A
Singapore N/A G/VAL/N/1/SGP/1 G/VAL/N/2/SGP/1
Slovak Republic G/VAL/N/1/SVK/1 VAL/1/Add.18
+ Suppl.1/Corr.1-2
G/VAL/N/1/SVK/2VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.15
+ Suppl.1
Slovenia N/A G/VAL/N/1/SVN/1 and 2 G/VAL/N/2/SVN/1
Solomon Islands N/A
South Africa N/A VAL/1/Add.15 + Corr.1
+ Suppl. 1-3G/VAL/N/1/ZAFVAL/2/Rev.1/Add.13
Sri Lanka N/A G/VAL/W/1052
Suriname N/A G/VAL/N/1/SUR/1
Swaziland N/A G/VAL/N/2/SWZ/1
Switzerland G/VAL/N/1/CHE/1 VAL/1/Add.5 N/A
Tanzania N/A
                                                     
2 This is a pending request for an extension of the delay period in accordance with paragraph 1,
 Annex III.G/L/590
Page 7
Members Members who have
indicated their
legislation remains valid
under the WTO
Committee
(G/VAL/M/1)Members who have
submitted their legislation or
amendments under Articles
22.1 and 22.2 of the
AgreementMembers who have
submitted their replies to the
Checklist of Issues
(G/VAL/5)Members who are
delaying
application of the
Agreement under
Article 20.1 or para.
1, Annex III of the
Agreement or
Article IX of the
WTO Agreement
Thailand N/A
Togo N/A
Trinidad & Tobago N/A G/VAL/N/1/TTO/1 G/VAL/N/2/TTO/1
Tunisia N/A G/VAL/N/1/TUN/1
Turkey G/VAL/N/1/TUR/1 VAL/1/Add.29
G/VAL/N/1/TUR/ 2G/VAL/N/2/TUR/1
Uganda N/A
United Arab
EmiratesN/A G/VAL/W/832
United States G/VAL/N/1/USA/1 VAL/1/Add.1 + Suppl.1-5 VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.1
Uruguay N/A G/VAL/N/1/URY/1 G/VAL/N/2/URY/1
Venezuela, The
Bolivaran Rep. ofN/A G/VAL/N/1/VEN/1 G/VAL/N/2/VEN/1
Zambia N/A G/VAL/N/1/ZMB/1
Zimbabwe G/VAL/N/1/ZWE/1 VAL/1/Add.23 VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.5
TOTAL NOTIFIED 73354
__________
                                                     
3 This total number includes notifications by Members who have indicated their legislation remains valid under
the WTO Committee (i.e. those in the first column of the table) and those made pursuant to Article 22 of the
Agreement and the Decision on Notifications (G/VAL/5).