WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/SG/Q1/TUR/4 
6 December 2004 
 
 (04-5311) 
Committee on Safeguards Original:   English 
  
 
NOTIFICATION OF LAWS AND REGULATIONS UNDER 
ARTICLE 12.6 OF THE AGREEMENT 
 
Replies to Questions Posed by the SEPARATE CUSTOMS TERRITORY OF
 
TAIWAN, PENGHU, KINMEN AND MATSU1 and the UNITED STATES2 
Regarding the Notification of TURKEY3 
  
 The following communication, dated 3 December 2004, is being circulated at the request of 
the Delegation of Turkey. 
 
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 Replies to Questions Posed by the SEPARA TE CUSTOMS TERRITORY OF TAIWAN, PENGHU, 
KINMEN AND MATSU  
 
Q1.  Articles 2(d) and 5 of the Decree  
  Article 6 of the WTO Agreement on Safeguards provides that "[A] Member may take a provisional safeguard measure... .  Such measures should take the form of tariff increases  to be 
promptly refunded..." (emphasis added).  Howev er, we note that Article 5 of the Decree on 
Safeguard Measures for Imports as notified by Turkey provides that "[p]rovisional safeguard 
measures can take the form of customs duties, additional financial charges, restrictions on 
quantity/value of imports, tariff quota  or a combination of these forms". 
 
Can the "additional financial charges, restrict ions on quantity/value of imports, tariff 
quota or a combination of these forms" be co nsidered tariff increases under Article 6 of the 
Safeguard Agreement?  What kinds of financial charges can be applied in a provisional safeguard measure?  How can a provisional meas ure that takes the form of restrictions on 
quantity/value or tariff quota be properly refun ded as required by the Safeguard Agreement 
when the increased imports were not found to have caused or threaten to cause serious injury to 
the domestic industry? 
We also note that Article 2(d) of the Decr ee stipulates that the definition of "tariff 
quota" is "[t]he quantity or value of imports, which is exempted from customs duties and/or 
other financial charges or subject to reduced cu stoms duties and/or other financial charges for a 
specified period".  What is the rationale for in cluding other financial charges in the definition? 
                                                     
 
1 G/SG/Q1/TUR/2 
2 G/SG/Q1/TUR/3 
3 G/SG/N/1/TUR/3 G/SG/Q1/TUR/4 
Page 2  
 
  Could Turkey give examples of the financia l charges referred to in Article 5 of the 
Decree?  In Article 2(d) of the Decree?  Is the sc ope of the financial charges in these two Articles 
the same? 
 
Reply
 
 The Turkish Safeguards Legislation covers the procedures and principles related to the 
implementation of safeguard measures against th e WTO and non-WTO member countries.  In this 
framework, the said legislation shall be applied not only to the WTO member countries but also non-WTO member countries.    
 Any provisional safeguard measure that Turkey may apply against the WTO member 
countries will be fully in conformity with Ar ticle 6 of the WTO Agreement on Safeguards. 
  The scope of other financial charges in Article 2(d) and Article 5 is the same.  In practice, 
other financial charges are alike customs duties in terms of their collection and refunding. 
 
 Goods imported into Turkey may be subject to five types of charges: customs tariffs, excise duties, the Mass Housing Fund (MHF) levy, the speci al consumption tax (SCT ), and the value-added 
tax (VAT).  For example, MHF levy applies to imports of fish and fishery products.   
Q2.  Article 7 of the Decree
 
 
 Could Turkey explain the rationale behind Ar ticle 7?  Is Turkey envisioning potential 
conflicts between this Decree and the applications of the appropriate laws relating to the items 
referred to in (a) through (d)?  If so, could Turkey exemplify a situation involving "(c) the 
obligations arising from the international agreements"? 
 
 What is the scope of the international agreem ents in Article 7(c) of the Decree?  If 
regional trade agreements are to be included, what  is the practical effect of Article 7(c) on 
Turkey's safeguard measures?  Will the applic ation be consistent with the Article 2.2 
requirements of applying the safeguard measures irrespective of the sources of subject imports? 
 Reply
 
 Turkey is not envisioning potential conflicts betw een this Decree and the applications of the 
appropriate laws relating to the ite ms referred to in Article 7 para graph (a) through paragraph (d). 
  Article 7 of the Decree states that the provisions of the Decree do not rule out the provisions 
of other legislation relating to the imports.  An y safeguard measures to be taken under this Decree 
shall not prevent the implementation of the provisi ons of other legislation stated in Article 7 
paragraph (a) through paragraph (d).   Regarding the international agreements in Ar ticle 7, the expression of “the international 
agreements” refers any kind of in ternational conventions and/or agreements –including free trade 
agreements-  to which Turkey is a signatory. 
  In general, provisions of FTAs with regard to safeguards refer to the WTO Agreement on 
Safeguards.  In this regard, application of a safeguard measure under FTAs is consistent with 
Article 2.2 of the Agreement on Safeguards. 
 
   G/SG/Q1/TUR/4 
 Page 3 
 
 
 Replies to Questions posed by the UNITED STATES  
 
Q1.  In Article 2(d) of Turkey’s decree, listing  definitions, Turkey defines the term "tariff 
quota" to mean the quantity or value of imports that is exempted "from customs duties and/or 
other financial charges or subject to reduced cu stoms duties and/or other financial charges for a 
specified period".  Under the decree, how woul d Turkey go about determining the appropriate 
quota amount under the tariff quota?  Would the decree require that any safeguard measures in 
the form of increases in customs duties or other import charges be only on over quota imports 
of the good, and thus prohibit Turkey from in creasing duties and oth er financial charges on 
goods that enter within quota amount?   
Reply  
 
 Under the Decree, tariff quotas shall be based on the volume of imports during a recent period.  The tariff quotas shall therefore be based on the average volume imported in the most recent 
representative three-year period for which import sta tistics are available.  In excess of tariff quotas 
additional customs duties or other financia l charges shall be required to be paid. 
 
Q2.  As noted above Article 2(d) of the decree also refers to "financial charges", and implies 
that such charges are something other than custom s duties.  Please describe the types of "other 
financial charges" that Turkey might apply in the form of a safeguard measure and how such charges differ from customs duties.  Please also explain the authority in the WTO Safeguards 
Agreement that would authorize a member to appl y "charges" in the form other than a customs 
duty.  
Reply
 
 
 Other financial charges are alike customs duti es in terms of their collection and refunding. 
Goods imported into Turkey may be subject to five types of charges: custom s tariffs, excise duties, 
the Mass Housing Fund (MHF) levy, the special co nsumption tax (SCT), and the value-added tax 
(VAT).  For example, MHF levy applies to imports of fish and fishery products.  
Q3.  Article 2(e) of the decree refers to the t erm "domestic producers" and defines the term 
in a manner similar to the term "domestic industry" in Article 4.1(c) of the WTO Safeguards 
Agreement.  Use of this term, together with the de finition, could be read to indicate that Turkey 
could apply a safeguard measure if it finds that petitioning domestic producers alone (a) collectively account for a "major portion" of do mestic production and (b) are seriously injured 
or threatened with serious injury.  Please ex plain why Turkey uses the term "domestic 
producers" instead of the term "domestic industr y".  Please explain why Turkey’s use of the 
term "domestic producers" would be consistent  with Article 4.1(c) of the WTO Safeguards 
Agreement.  
Reply
 
 
 The term  "the domestic producers..." under the De cree is to be interpre ted as meaning the same 
as "domestic industry".   
Q4.  Article 7(a) of the regulation indicates that Turkey, in examining whether imports have 
increased, will consider whether there has been an increase "either in absolute terms or relative 
to domestic production or consumption".  Please explain how this provision is consistent with G/SG/Q1/TUR/4 
Page 4  
 
 Article 2.1 of the WTO Safeguards Agreement, which defines increased imports in terms of an 
increase that is "absolute or relative to domestic  production", and whether Turkey believes that 
an increase in imports relative to domestic co nsumption alone is sufficient to satisfy the 
requirement of Article 2.1.  
 
Reply
 
 
The Turkish Safeguards Legislation covers th e procedures and principles related to the 
implementation of safeguard measures against th e WTO and non-WTO member countries.  In this 
framework, the said legislation shall be applied not only to the WTO member countries but also non-
WTO member countries.   
 Application of the provision of Article 7 (a ) of the Regulation against the WTO member 
countries will be fully in conformity with Ar ticle 2.1 of the WTO Agreement on Safeguards. 
 
Q5.  Article 7(b) of the regulation lists the "p rice of imports", including "significant price 
undercutting", as one of three factors to be considered in determining whether increased 
imports are causing serious injury.  Price is not one of the factors listed in the WTO Safeguards 
Agreement, such as in the list of factors in Article 4.2(a).  Please describe the kind of analysis that Turkey would undertake in considering the price of imports and price undercutting in a 
safeguard investigation.  Please indicate whethe r this analysis would differ from the analysis 
Turkey would use in an anti-dumping or counter vailing duty investigation, and, if so, how it 
would differ. 
Reply
 
 
 Price is not expressly listed in Article 4.2(a) of the WTO Agreement on Safeguards as a relevant factor.  However, as is stated in the releva nt Panel Reports this is not to say that 'price' may 
not be a relevant factor in a given case.  An im ported product can compete with a domestic product in 
various ways in the market of the importing country.  Clearly, the relative price of the imported product is one of these ways, but it is certainly no t the only way, and it may be irrelevant or only 
marginally relevant in a given case.   
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