RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/ACC/ALB/34/Rev.1
14 June 1999
(99-2384)
Working Party on the
Accession of AlbaniaOriginal:  English
ACCESSION OF ALBANIA
Memorandum on Restrictions and Pr ohibition for Exportable Products
Revision
The Ministry of Economic Co-operation and Trade of the Republic of Albania has submitted
the following Memorandum on Restrictions and Prohibition for Exportable Products, with the request
that it be circulated to members of the Working Party.
_______________WT/ACC/ALB/34/Rev.1
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Restrictions on Exportable Products, by type: Justification, Licensing and other Requirements
Article and description by harmonized code
and corresponding legislation or regulationJustification/rationale for the restriction Process to obtain a license
93.01 - 93.07 Arms and Munitions, Parts and
Accessories Thereof:  Military weapons,munitions such as bullets of all calibers, missiles,
grenades, mines, fireworks of 180 mm, etc.
36.01 - 36.06.90.90 Explosives, Pyrotechnic
Products, Matches, Pyrophoric Alloys: militaryexplosives and powders such as TNT, egzogyn,dynamite, ammonite, etc.; all kinds of firearmsRegulation for the "Licensing of Trade and Sale of
Armaments", dated 10.09.1994 approved by the
Prime Minister;Decision of the Council of Ministers: On theExtermination and Sales of Armaments andMunitions", Number 365, 6.6.1994Decision of the Council of Ministers: "For
Working with Explosive Materials", Number 257,
16.4.1996To adhere to international commitments related
to non-proliferation, mass destruction andproduction of technologies thereof.  To preventtrade of said products to hostile nations or
nations subjected to international bans (e.g.,
UN arms embargoes, etc.)  No phase-out periodis specified as a result of the above explanation.The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has defined the procedures for
obtaining export licenses for these products and is authorized toissue such licenses.There are two types of licenses, one for armaments and one for
explosive materials.  For armaments, the license is available for
juridical, public, private, Albanian, and foreigners.  The license isauthorized by the Order by the MOD, Number 402, dated 1998.The license is transferable and can be automatically renewed inpart or whole by the Minister.
The licensed enterprises or person(s) must have an Export
Authorization by the MOD.  The authorization is granted when thefollowing documents are supplied: legal registration of theenterprise or person, the right to excise the activity, and thecertificate of the end-user.For explosives, licenses are issued under Order Number 402 by a
commission in the MOD.  A license defines the purposes of the
activity, the date of issue, validity, the terms of renovation of thelicense and the registration number.  The license is issued toprofessionals and is non-transferable.  The license is for two yearsand is renewable.  Foreign companies or joint ventures arerequired to present the following documents to obtain a license: an
explanation of the proposed activity, a professional certificate
demonstrating expertise for their activity, their corporate status,registration in the court, a statement of the enterprise's financialcredibility, etc. Licenses can be revoked by the licensingcommission when the juridical nature of the enterprise changes.WT/ACC/ALB/34/Rev.1
Page 397.01 - 97.06 Modern works of art To protect cultural integrity and heritage of the
Republic.Licenses are obtain by an Order of the Minister of Culture, Youth
and Sports.  Any private person must present their request to the
Minister and present the following information: a customs
declaration (with the time, duration and document that certifiesthat the works of art are not prohibited), an invoice with the valuefor insurance purposes, and a certificate from the National Galleryof Art if the piece is registered with the Gallery.WT/ACC/ALB/34/Rev.1
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Prohibitions on Exportable Products, by type: Justification, and Phase-out Period
Article and description by harmonized code and
corresponding legislation or regulation1Justification/Rationale for the Prohibition Phase-out Period
I . 41.00 Raw hides and Skins (other than furskins) and Leather
41.01 Hides of cattle as fresh, dried, limed, salted,
stretched or otherwise treated but not tanned orpergaminated, prepared, and cleaned (these are forhides of cattle other than those of horses)During the transition period, Albania's leather
processing industry suffered serious disruptionsand losses in investment in this sector.  Leatherprocessing has traditionally been a sector inwhich Albania has had productive economicactivity in the past and is expected to be
competitive in the future.  The ban on hides is
an attempt to protect this industry which findsitself in its infancy.  The current ban allows themore than 10 existing domestic enterprises(those with or without foreign joint ventures) tohave access to the raw materials needed to
produce the intermediate and/or the final
products.The Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Trade in conjunction
with the Ministry of Finance has prepared a draft of the Decisionof the Council of Ministers to repeal the prohibitions on exports ofscraps of rawhide, skins and leather.  Approval from the Council isin progress and should be enforced by the end of September 1999.
41.02  Raw skins of sheep and lambs as fresh orsalted, pointed or otherwise treated, but not tannedor prepared (including skins with wool, stretchedor un-stretched)During the transition period, Albania's leather
processing industry suffered serious disruptionsand losses in investment in this sector.  Leatherprocessing has traditionally been a sector in
which Albania has had productive economic
activity in the past and is expected to becompetitive in the future.  The ban on hides isan attempt to protect this industry which findsitself in its infancy.  The current ban allows themore than 10 existing domestic enterprises
(those with or without foreign joint ventures) to
have access to the raw materials needed toproduce the intermediate and/or the finalproducts.The Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Trade in conjunction
with the Ministry of Finance has prepared a draft of the Decisionof the Council of Ministers to repeal the prohibitions on exports ofscraps of iron and steel.  Approval from the Council is in progress
and should be enforced at the time of accession.WT/ACC/ALB/34/Rev.1
Page 541.03  Other hides  and skins  as fresh or salted,
dried, limed in salted water or otherwise treated,
but not tanned and pergaminated or processed
further (including wool or hair and stretched orunstretched)During the transition period, Albania's leather
processing industry suffered serious disruptions
and losses in investment in this sector.  Leather
processing has traditionally been a sector inwhich Albania has had productive economicactivity in the past and is expected to becompetitive in the future.  The ban on hides isan attempt to protect this industry which finds
itself in its infancy.  The current ban allows the
more than 10 existing domestic enterprises(those with or without foreign joint ventures) tohave access to the raw materials needed toproduce the intermediate and/or the finalproducts.The Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Trade in conjunction
with the Ministry of Finance has prepared a draft of the Decision
of the Council of Ministers to repeal the prohibitions on exports of
other hides and skins.  Approval from the Council is in progressand should be enforced at the time of accession.
II . Wood and articles of wood; wood charcoal
44.01-44.01.22  Firewood as being in the form ofchunks, cudgels, branches or twigs or other similar
forms; chips of wood and saw-powder, being
agglomerated or not in the form of chumps, bricksor other similar form44.03.01-44.03.99  Unprocessed wood as strippedor not, either rounded or not (except the elementsof wood details)
44.07.10-44.07.99 Sawed wood and beams as bars
or sheets, planed and polished beams, spikedtogether with joints thinker than 6mm (exceptplaned or polished beams, and joined pieces whichare allowed to be exported)No longer prohibited. According to the Decision of the Council of Ministers on "The
Abrogation of Council of Ministers Decision Number 153
(26.3.1997) and Number 200 (2.5.1997) and Some Changes to the
Council of Ministers Decision Number 360", Number 98, dated4.2.1998 the export of processed and unprocessed wood is fullyliberalized.
III.  Iron and Steel: Primary materials, products in granular or powder form
72.04 Scraps of iron and steel, except scraps of
stainless steel and waste of iron remaining from
the buckets of furnacesSince the events of 1997 (i.e., domestic
instability), the export of scraps of these
products have been prohibited. People tookmachines or parts of machines from state-owned enterprises or assets for sale abroad fortheir own personal gain.  This reduced thevalue of the property of state-owned enterprises
or devalued the assets.The Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Trade in conjunction
with the Ministry of Finance has prepared a draft of the Decision
of the Council of Ministers to repeal the prohibitions on exports ofscraps of iron and steel.  Approval from the Council is in progressand should be enforced at the time of accession.WT/ACC/ALB/34/Rev.1
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IV.  Copper and Articles Thereof
74.01-74.19 Copper and copper articles, except
rust, electrolytic copper handicraft products whichare not produced from copper mouldsSince the events of 1997 (i.e., domestic
instability), the export of scraps of theseproducts have been prohibited. People tookmachines or parts of machines from state-owned enterprises or assets for sale abroad for
their own personal gain.  This reduced the
value of the property of state-owned enterprisesor devalued the assets.The Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Trade in conjunction
with the Ministry of Finance has prepared a draft of the Decisionof the Council of Ministers to repeal the prohibitions on exports ofcopper and copper articles.  Approval from the Council is in
progress and should be enforced at the time of accession.
V. Fish, Mollusks, crustaceans , etc.
16.04.11 - 16.05.90.90 Preparation of fish
products, crustaceans, mollusks, etc.
23.09.90 - 23.09.90.97 Residues and waste from
prepared animal foodThere is no ban or prohibition from the part of
the Government of Albania.  The GOA isawaiting the International Organization for
Epizootics to declare Albania a country free of
the diseases specified in the List A of the IOE.No specific date can be offered for the lifting of this ban.WT/ACC/ALB/34/Rev.1
Page 7VI.  Works of Art2
97.00 Works of art, collectors' pieces and antiques
(including state-owned, museum owned,
monumental centers, items of national
significance, works produced by ancient artistswhich have museum value  and honouredmembers of the Albanian National Gallery of Arts,etc)To protect the cultural integrity and heritage of
the Republic.No phase-out is foreseen for these products.
1 The Government of Albania is currently discussing with the IMF the process of liberalizing these few prohibited sectors in the  export regime.  The plan is to have
eliminated all export bans by the end of 1999 or sooner.  Until then, the following Decisions of the Council of Ministers defin e the export regime on prohibited product
(excluding works of art):Council of Ministers Decision: "On the Export-Import Regime from and in the Republic of Albania", Number 360, dated 10 July 199 5
Council of Ministers Decision: "For Changes to the Council of Minister Decision Number 360", Number 415, dated 7 August 1995Council of Ministers Decision: "For Changes to the Council of Minister Decision Number 360", Number 121, dated 12 February1996
Council of Ministers Decision: "For Changes to the Council of Minister Decision Number 360", Number 711, dated 20 October 1996
Council of Ministers Decision: "The Abrogation of Council of Ministers Decision Number 153 (26 March 1997) and Number 200 (2 Ma y 1997) and Some Changes to the
Council of Ministers Decision Number 360", Number 98, dated 4 February 1998Council of Ministers Decision: "For Some Changes to the Council of Ministers Decision Number 360", Number 321, 23 May 1998
2 For works of art, the Ministry of Culture, Youth, and Sports in cooperation with the Ministry of Finance is in the process of preparing legislation that will formally define
prohibited works and non-prohibited works and the process by which one can obtain a license to export the non-prohibited works.
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