RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/ACC/807/17/Rev.4
11 September 2002
(02-4774)
Working Party on the Accession of the
Former Yugoslav Republic of MacedoniaOriginal:  English
ACCESSION OF THE FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA
Communication from the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
Plan of Legislation Activities
Revision
The Government of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia has submitted the following
revised Plan of Legislation Activities.
_______________WT/ACC/807/17/Rev.4
Page 2Subject Legislation Agency In Charge Status
Economic, monetary and fiscal
policyNew
Law on Foreign Exchange Operations
Liberalization of capital transactions, simplification of the
foreign investments registration procedure, and unimpededtransfer of capital.Ministry of Finance
National Bank of RMEnacted by the Parliament in
April 2001and subsequently
amended in June 2001.
Original text and amendments
published in Official Gazette 34/01and 49/01.
English translation submitted to the
Working Party.
NewLaw on Payment Transactions
Reforms in the domestic payments system to permit
commercial banks to conduct direct transfers of funds for all
legal entities (at the present time such transfers must be made
through a specialized Paym ent Operations Office).Ministry of Finance Enacted by the Parliament in
April 2001and subsequentlyamended in June 2001.
Original text and amendments
published in Official Gazette 32/01
and 50/01.
AmendmentsLaw on Excise Taxes (Official Gazette 32/01, 50/01)
Action plan for equalization of excise taxes for domestic and
imported tobacco products.Ministry of Finance Enacted in June 2002.
Amendments published in Official
Gazette 45/02.
English translation submitted to the
Secretariat on 6 September 2002.
AmendmentsLaw on Excise Taxes (Official Gazette 32/01, 50/01, 45/02)
Equalization of excise taxes on wines made of grapes and
wines made of other fruit.Ministry of Finance Amendment approved by the
Government on 27 August 2002.
Excerpt of the Government session
Minutes submitted to the Secretariat
on 6 September 2002.
Amendment intended to be enacted
by the Parliament prior toaccession.WT/ACC/807/17/Rev.4
Page 3Subject Legislation Agency In Charge Status
Property ownership and leasing;
contractsNew
Law on Construction Land
Long-term (99 years) land  leases for the building
construction  by foreigners.Ministry of Transport and
CommunicationsEnacted by the Parliament in
July 2001.
Published in Official Gazette 53/01.
New
Law on Ownership
Establishment of a contemporary system of ownership rights.Ministry of Justice Enacted by the Parliament in
February 2001.
Published in Official Gazette 18/01.
New
Law on Obligations
Establishment of a contemporary system of contracts.Ministry of Justice Enacted by the Parliament in
February 2001.
Published in Official Gazette 18/01.
Registration requirements New
Law on Trade Companies
Simplification of registration procedures for business entities.Ministry of Economy
Ministry of JusticeEnacted by the Parliament in
July 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 58/02.
National tariff Amendments
Customs Tariff Law (Official Gazette 38/96, 45/97, 54/97,
61/97, 26/98, 15/01)
Full harmonization. of the Macedonian customs tariff with the
WCO customs tariff on a six-digit level.Ministry of Finance Enacted by the Parliament in
December 2001.
Published in Official Gazette
104/01.
Other duties and chargesCustoms valuationRules of originAmendments
Law on Customs (Official Gazette 21/98, 26/98, 63/98,25/00)
Article 8 of the amendments provides for the abolition of the
1% customs services fee starting 1 January 2002.Ministry of Finance Enacted by the Parliament in
December 2000.
Published  in Official Gazette
109/00.
English translation submitted to the
Working Party.
AmendmentsLaw on Customs (Official Gazette 21/98, 26/98, 63/98, 25/00,109/00,  31/01)
Compliance with the Agreement on Implementation of
Article VII of GATT 1994 and the Agreement on Rules ofOrigin.Ministry of Finance Enacted by the Parliament on
4 July 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 55/02.
English translation submitted to the
Secretariat on 6 September 2002.WT/ACC/807/17/Rev.4
Page 4Subject Legislation Agency In Charge Status
Amendments
Law on Customs (Official Gazette 21/98, 26/98, 63/98, 25/00,
109/00, 31/01)
Reform of tariff rate quota system (Article 24a).Ministry of Finance Enacted by the Parliament on 4
July 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 55/02.
English translation submitted to the
Secretariat on 6 September 2002.
AmendmentsRegulation on Customs Valuation (Official Gazette 17/00)
Compliance with the Agreement on Implementation of
Article VII of GATT 1994.Ministry of Finance Approved by the Government on
9 July 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 60/02.
English translation submitted to the
Secretariat on 6 September 2002.
NewRegulation Governing the Amount of the Fees for Customs
Services Rendered.Ministry of Finance Approved by the Government on
20 August 2002.
Published in the Official Gazette
69/02.
English translation submitted to the
Secretariat on 6 September 2002.
Import licensing procedures New
Law on Foreign Trade
Repeal of the existing Law on Foreign Trade.Abolition of  the 0.1% export promotion charge.
Regulate anti-dumping, safeguards and countervailing
measures regimes in a WTO consistent manner.Ministry of Economy Enacted by the Parliament in
June 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 45/02.English translation submitted to the
Secretariat on 6 September 2002.WT/ACC/807/17/Rev.4
Page 5Subject Legislation Agency In Charge Status
TBT Agreement New
Law on Standardization
This law lays down the objectives and principles for the
Macedonian national standardization system, the status of theMacedonian national standards body, its responsibilities,membership and funding, and regulates the preparation,,adoption and application of Macedonian national standards.Ministry of Economy
Bureau for Standardization and
MetrologyEnacted by the Parliament on
4 July 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 54/02.
English translation submitted to the
Secretariat on 6 September 2002.
NewLaw on Metrology
Regulation of the metrological system of the Republic of
Macedonia.Ministry of Economy
Bureau for Standardization andMetrologyEnacted by the Parliament on
4 July 2002.
Published in the Official Gazette
55/02.
English translation submitted to the
Secretariat on 6 September 2002.
NewLaw on Accreditation
This law establishes a national accreditation service;
determines its structure, powers and obligations and specific
areas in which  the accredita tion procedure shall apply.Ministry of Economy
Bureau for Standardization andMetrologyEnacted by the Parliament on
4 July 2002.
Published in the Official Gazette
54/02.
English translation submitted to the
Secretariat on 6 September 2002.
NewLaw on Technical Requirements of Products and ConformityAssessment
Technical requirements products should meet before placed
on the market and  procedures for conformity assessment ofproductMinistry of Economy
Bureau for Standardization andMetrologyEnacted by the Parliament on
4 July 2002.
Published in the Official Gazette
55/02.
English translation submitted to the
Secretariat on 6 September 2002.WT/ACC/807/17/Rev.4
Page 6Subject Legislation Agency In Charge Status
SPS Agreement New
Law on Food Safety
Complete harmonization of food safety legislation with the
SPS Agreement (Codex Alimentarius standards)Ministry of Health Enacted by the Parliament on
4 July 2002.
Published in the Official Gazette
54/02.
English translation submitted to the
Secretariat on 6 September 2002.
Amendments
Law on Veterinary Health (Official Gazette 28/98)
International harmonization of existing legislation.Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry
and Water EconomyBeing drafted.
Intended to be enacted by the
Parliament by December 2002.
NewRegulations for implementation of the Law on VeterinaryHealthMinistry of Agriculture, Forestry
and Water EconomyBeing drafted.
Intended to be completed by
December 2002.
New
Law on Plant Protection
Harmonization of plant protection legislation with IPPC and
EU directives.Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry
and Water EconomyIntended to be enacted by the
Parliament by December 2003.
New
Regulations for implementation of the Law on PlantProtectionMinistry of Agriculture, Forestry
and Water EconomyPreparation of regulations will
follow the enactment of the Law onPlant Protection.
NewLaw on Ratification of the International Plant Protection
Convention
IPPC ratificationMinistry of Agriculture, Forestry
and Water EconomyIntended to be enacted by the
Parliament by December 2002.WT/ACC/807/17/Rev.4
Page 7Subject Legislation Agency In Charge Status
Agreement on Agriculture New
Law on Support of Agriculture
The aim of this law is to resolve critical issues in the
agricultural sector of Macedonia and to alleviate theconditions of Macedonian agricultural producers.Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry
and Water EconomyIntended to be enacted by the
Parliament by December 2002.
NewLaw on Agricultural Fund
This law will establish an agricultural fund and will
introduce procedures for its appropriation sources andapplication.Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry
and Water EconomyEnacted by the Parliament in
February 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 11/02.
English translation submitted to the
Working Party(WT/ACC/807/24/Add.1).
NewLaw on Agricultural Activity
Definition of the agricultural activity, who and under which
conditions can perform it, registration requirements.Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry
and Water EconomyEnacted by the Parliament in
February 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 11/02.
English translation submitted to the
Working Party(WT/ACC/807/24/Add.1).
State trading New
Law on Stock ReservesMinistry of Economy
Ministry of FinanceDraft in existence.
Being approved by the
Government.
Free economic zones Amendments
Law on Free Economic Zones
Abolition of the export performance requirement.Ministry of Economy Enacted by the Parliament in
January 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 6/02.
English translation submitted to the
Working Party.WT/ACC/807/17/Rev.4
Page 8Subject Legislation Agency In Charge Status
Agreement on Trade-Related
Aspects of Intellectual Property
Rights -TRIPSAmendments
Law on Copyrights and Related Rights (Official Gazette
47/96, 3/98)
Extension of the period for retroactive protection of the rights
of performers  and phonogram producers to 50 years, incompliance with Article 14.5 of TRIPS.Further harmonization of the copyright legislation with
international requirements.Ministry of Culture Approved by the Government in
August 2002.
Scheduled for enactment by the
Parliament by 31 January 2003.
English translation of the draft
submitted to the Working Party.
Interim Conclusion on TRIPS
compliance passed by theGovernment on 20 August 2002.English translation submitted to theSecretariat on 6 September 2002.
New
Law on Industrial Property
Modernization of the regimes for patents, trademarks,
industrial designs and appellation of origin and theirharmonization with international requirements.(Replaces theplanned Law on Patents, Law on Trademarks, Law on
Industrial Design and Law on Geographical Indications and
Appellations of Origin).Ministry of Economy
Industrial Property Protection
OfficeEnacted by the Parliament in
June 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 47/02.English translation submitted to the
Working Party
(WT/ACC/807/24/Add.2).WT/ACC/807/17/Rev.4
Page 9Subject Legislation Agency In Charge Status
General Agreement on Trade in
Services – GATSNew
Law on BarMinistry of Justice Enacted by the Parliament in
July 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 59/02.
Amendments
Law on Accounting (Official Gazette 42/93, 48/93, 6/95,3/96, 32/98, 39/99)
Introduction of modern concepts in accounting services.Ministry of Finance Enacted by the Parliament in
August 2001.
Published  in Official Gazette
70/01.
NewLaw on Postal Services
The establishment of new criteria  for postal and courier
services.
Access for foreign courier service suppliers
(commercial presence)Ministry of Transport and
CommunicationsEnacted by the Parliament on
4 July 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 55/02.
Amendments
Law on Telecommunications (Official Gazette 33/96, 17/98,22/98,28/00)
These amendments will introduce the necessary adjustments
resulting  from the privatization of the incumbent operator.Ministry of Transport and
CommunicationsBeing drafted.
No definite date for enactment.
Amendments
Law on Broadcasting (Official Gazette 20/97)
Harmonization of existing legislation with EU
requirementsMinistry of Transport and
CommunicationsPlanning stage.
No definite date for enactment.
New
Law on Insurance SupervisionMinistry of Finance Enacted by the Parliament in
April 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 27/02.English translation submitted to the
Working Party
(WT/ACC/807/24/Add.1).
NewLaw on Health Protection
New approach in regulating the health sector.Ministry of Health Being drafted.
No definite date for enactment.WT/ACC/807/17/Rev.4
Page 10Subject Legislation Agency In Charge Status
Amendments
Law on  Road Transport (Official Gazette 63/95, 15/97,
29/98, 7/99, 34/00)
Harmonization of the legislation with European countries.Ministry of Transport and
CommunicationsEnglish translation of the draft
submitted to the Working Party.
AmendmentsLaw on Spatial and Urban Planning
Access for foreign suppliers of architectonic, engineering and
integrated engineering services (commercial presence).Ministry of Environment and
Spatial PlanningEnacted by the Parliament in
June 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 45/02.
Amendments
Law on the Environment
Access for foreign suppliers of environmental services
(commercial presence).Ministry of Environment and
Spatial PlanningEnacted by the Parliament in
June 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 45/02.
Amendments
Law on Movement and Residence of Foreigners
Extension of the temporary stay of intra-corporate transferees
to three years with an additional extension of  two years.Ministry of Internal Affairs Enacted by the Parliament in
June 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 45/02.
Amendments
Law on Communal Services
Access for foreign suppliers of communal services
(commercial presence).Ministry of Environment and
Spatial PlanningEnacted by the Parliament in
June 2002.
Published in Official Gazette 45/02.
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