RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONS/C/W/139
8 May 2000
(00-1962)
Council for Trade in Services Original:  Spanish
COMMUNICATION FROM MEXICO
Review of Article II Exemptions
Questionnaire on the List of MFN Exemptions
The attached paper has been received from the delegation of Mexico with the request that it
be circulated to Members of the Council for Trade in Services.S/C/W/139
Page 2
ANNEX A
Could Members of the Council for Trade in Services maintaining Article II exemptions under
the General Agreement on Trade in Services please reply to the questions listed below:
Conditions giving rise to the exemption
1. From the list drawn up by the Secretariat, please clarify or state precisely the conditions
which gave rise to the establishment of each of the exemptions that you continue to hold.
2. Further to the above, please explain and give a detailed description of whether the conditions
which gave rise to the establishment of your exemptions still prevail.
(a) If this is the case:
(i) Please clarify and describe whether these conditions were created by domestic
or external considerations.  Please justify and give reasons for your answer.
(ii) Furthermore, please describe and explain whether the measure was
established by an act of legislation or by a statutory, administrative ordiscretionary instrument, and if the same procedure must be followed for your
exemptions to be phased out.
(b) If the answer to question two is negativ e, please explain and describe the new
conditions, substantiating and giving reasons why such new conditions justify
maintaining a measure that is inconsistent with Article II of the General Agreementon Trade in Services;  and
Need for the exemption
3. According to the needs stated in column five of your list, you continue to hold exemptions of
general application (i.e. applying to an entire sector).  The establishment of an exemption is usually inresponse to concrete and specific needs in certain service trade activities (i.e. in response to the needs
of a given activity and not of the whole sector).  If in the answer to question one you did not describe
the link between the conditions which gave rise to the exemption and the need to establish a general
exemption, please explain this step, furnishing appropriate grounds and justification.
4. In any case, have you considered the possibility of limiting the scope of your exemption, in
view of the fact that it is a measure inconsistent w ith the multilateral trading system?  Please justify
and give reasons for your position.
5. It appears from the review and analysis of your list that you have established exemptions
pertaining to investment agreements;  the movement of natural persons;  taxation;  recognition,
practice, certification and licences; etc. Assuming that the conditions which gave rise to theseexemptions still prevail and that the need for them is fully justified, please explain, giving your
reasons and full justification, why you think that you would not be able to meet your needs by
implementing various provisions of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (i.e. Article V;
Article V- bis;   Article VII;  etc.)?S/C/W/139
Page 3
Duration of the exemption
6. According to paragraphs 5 and 6 of the Annex on Article II exemptions under the General
Agreement on Trade in Services, an exemption "terminates on the date provided for in the exemption"
(paragraph 5) and "in principle, such exemptions should not exceed a period of ten years."
(paragraph 6).  In other words, unless a precise date was indicated in accordance with paragraph 5,exemptions should last for a maximum of ten years.
7. It appears from the review of the list of your exemptions that in some cases you stated that the
duration of an exemption was "indefinite" (and/or indeterminate).  Could you confirm that in
accordance with paragraphs 5 and 6 of the Annex on Article II exemptions under the General
Agreement on Trade in Services, those exemptions for which you did not indicate the precise date ofexpiry shall be phased out in a period not exceeding ten years?  If not, please justify and give reasons
for your answer.
8. Finally, taking into account that your exemptions should be temporary and that they constitute
measures inconsistent with the multilateral trading system, please describe in detail any plans that youhave considered for progressively phasing them out.
__________