WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONS/C/N/192
21 June 2002
(02-3458)
Council for Trade in Services Original:  English
JOINT COMMUNICATION FROM THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES AND
THEIR MEMBER STATES AND UNITED MEXICAN STATES
Notification Pursuant to Article V:7(a) of the
General Agreement on Trade in Services
Pursuant to Article V paragraph 7(a) of the GATS, the European Communities and their
Member States, on the one part, and the United Mexi can States, on the other part, hereby notify the
decision No 2/2001 of the EU-Mexico Joint Council im plementing the objectives laid down in articles 6,
9, 12(2)(b) and 50 of the Economic Partnership, Po litical Coordination and Cooperation Agreement
(hereinafter “the Agreement”) between themselves, signed in Brussels on 8 December 1997 and entered
into force on 1 October 2000. The formal notification is made in accordance with the "standard format
for information on economic integration agreements on services” as taken note of by the Committee on
Regional Trade Agreements at its meeting on 2 May 1997.
To facilitate the examination by the Members, the relevant provisions on trade in services in this
decision have been identified in the no tification.  The full text of the Decision , where these provisions
can be found, in their original version, is available at the WTO Secretariat.  The Decision is published in
the Official Journal of the European Communitie s (L 70 of 12 March 2001, p. 7) and in the Mexican
Gazette:
• June 26, 2000, ”Decreto Promulgatorio del Acuerdo de Asociación Económica, Concertación
Política y Cooperación entre los Estados Unidos Mexicanos y la Comunidad Europea y sus
Estados Miembros, la Decisión del Consejo Conj unto de dicho Acuerdo; y la Decisión del
Consejo Conjunto del Acuerdo Interino sobre Comercio y Cuestiones Relacionadas con el
Comercio entre los Estados Unidos Mexicanos y la Comunidad Europea”.
• September 30, 2000, “Acuerdo por el que se da a conocer la entrada en vigor del Acuerdo de
Asociación Económica, Concertación Política y Cooperación entre los Estados Unidos
Mexicanos, por una parte, y la Comunidad Europea y sus Estados Miembros, por otra”.
• February 28, 2001, “Acuerdo por el que se da a conocer la entrada en vigor de la Decisión del
Consejo Conjunto del Acuerdo de Asociación Económica, Concertación Política yCooperación entre los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, por una parte, y las Comunidades Europeas
y sus Estados Miembros, por otra”.
I. BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON THE AGREEMENT
1. Membership and dates of signature, ratification and entry into force
The Decision No 1/2001 of the EU-Mexico Joint Council establishes the Rules of Procedure of
the EU-Mexico Joint Council and the Rules of Procedure of the EU-Mexico Joint Committee.The EU-Mexico Joint Council Deci sion implements the objectives set up in Articles 6, 9, 12
and 50 in conjunction with Article 47 of the Agreement between the European CommunitiesS/C/N/192
Page 2
and their Member States (15), acting within the framework of the European Union, on the one
part, and the United Mexican States, on the ot her part. The Decision entered into force on
1 March 2001. The Joint Council Decision was signed on 27 February 2001.
2. Type of agreement
The Decision is the legal instrument for the im plementation and arrangement of the objectives
laid down in the Agreement between the EU and Mexico for a progressive and reciprocal
liberalisation of trade in services in accordan ce with Article V of the General Agreement on
Trade in Services (hereinafter “GATS”) (Article 4 and 6 of the Agreement), the progressive
liberalisation of investment and related payments (Article 9), ensuring an adequate and effective
protection of intellectual properties rights (Ar ticle 12) and the establishment of a dispute
settlement mechanism (Article 50).
3. Scope
As regards the services sectors, the Decision cove rs in principle all services sectors with the
exception of audio-visual services, air services including domestic and international air
transportation services, and maritime cabotage, and all modes of delivery (see II.b below).
II. PROVISIONS AFFECTING TRADE IN SERVICES
1. (a) Provisions in the Decision which are relevant to the scope of the GATS:
- Title I - "General provisions": Article 1 – Scope of the Decision;
- Title II -Chapter 1 "General Provisions";  Chapter 2 "Maritime Transport",
Chapter 3 "Financial Services" and Chapter 4 "General Exceptions";
- Title III -  "Investment and Related Payments;
- Title VI - "Specific Duties of the Jo int Committee with respect to Trade and
other Trade Related Matters".
(b) These provisions of the Decision constitute  an agreement liberalising trade in services
between the European Communities and their Member States, on the one part, and the
United Mexican States, on the other part, in the sense of Article V, paragraph 1, given
that:
- it provides for universal sectoral coverage of all service activities, subject to
the exceptions under Article 2 para 2 (i.e. audio-visual, air services and
maritime cabotage), the specific exceptions to Financial Services under
Article 26 and the general exceptions under Article 27. These exclusions arefully consistent with the exceptions provided for under the GATS Articles II,
XIV and XIVbis and more in particular with the Annex on Air Transport
Services to the GATS, Article 1.3, and the Annex on Financial Services to
the GATS, Article 2(a);
- it provides for the liberalisation of trade through all modes of supply:  "cross
border" trade, "consumption abroad", "commercial presence" (with or without
movement of natural persons) as well as "presence of natural persons" (Article
2 para 1);S/C/N/192
Page 3
- it provides for the absence or elimination of substantially all discrimination
through elimination of existing discrimi natory measures and prohibition of new
or more discriminatory measures (see in particular Article 7 para 1);
- no later than 3 years following the entr y into force of this Decision, the Joint
Council shall adopt a decision providing for the elimination of the remaining
discrimination between Parties in the regulated sectors and modes of supplies;
that decision shall contain a list of commitments and a liberalisation calendar
for each party. A transition period of 10 years (see Articles 7, 10 para 5) is
foreseen.
(c) The European Communities and their Member States, on the one part, and the United
Mexican States, on the other part, have negotiated their Schedule of Specific
Commitments and list of MFN exemptions  during the Uruguay Round. The entry into
force of the Europe Agreement did not impl y any modification or amendment in these
lists. The Europe Agreement aims at f acilitating trade between the Parties. No
provisions of the Europe Agreement aim at raising the level of restrictions of trade inservices in respect of any other WTO Member.
2. Rules of origin
A “Community juridical person” or a “Mexican juridical person” shall mean a juridical person
set up in accordance with the laws of a Member State or of Mexico, respectively, and having itsregistered office, central administration or prin cipal place of business in the territory of the
Community or Mexico respectively. Howeve r, should the juridical person have only its
registered office or central administration in  the territory of the Community or Mexico
respectively, it shall not be considered to as a Community or a Mexican juridical person, unless
its operations possess a real and continuous link with the economy of the Community orMexico, respectively (Article 3(e)).
3. Standards/Recognition
Within three years following the entry into fo rce of this Decision, the Joint Council shall
establish the necessary steps for the negotiation of agreements providing for mutual
recognition of qualifications and other regulations for the purpose of the fulfilment of the
criteria applied for the authorisation, licensing, operation and certification of servicesuppliers, and, in particular, professional services (Art. 9).”
4. Safeguards
The Decision has provisions for balance-of-payments difficulties in the Community or in
Mexico (Article 31:1) and for strictly necessary safeguard measures taken by the Parties for amaximum period of six months, where, in ex ceptional circumstances, payments related to
investment between the parties cause, or threaten  to cause, serious difficulties for the operation
of the exchange rate policy or monetary policy (Article 30:1).
5. Maritime Transport/Financial Services
Chapters II and III of the Decision govern the Maritime Transport and the Financial Services,
respectively, unless otherwise specified (Articles 2 para 3, 10, 11-26)S/C/N/192
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6. Government procurement
Nothing provided in respect of the progressive liberalisation of the trade in services will be
construed to impose any obligation with respect to government procurement.
7. Subsidies
No provision in respect of the progressive liber alisation of the trade in services will apply to
subsidies granted by parties.
III. GENERAL PROVISIONS OF THE AGREEMENT
1. Exceptions and reservations
Exceptions are provided for under Articles 26 (s pecific for financial services) and 27 (general
exceptions).
2. Accession
The Decision does not contain any provisions allowing other countries to accede to the
Agreement. However, with necessary modifica tions, the agreement shall apply to any new
Member State of the European Communities.
3. Dispute settlement procedures
Each of the two parties may ask for the establis hment of an arbitration panel for any dispute
relating to the covered legal instruments accordin g to Article 37, if consultation was not fruitful
(Article 38). In any case, arbitration pro ceeding established under this Decision will not
consider issues relating to each party’s rights and obligations under the WTO and shall be
without prejudice to any possible acti on in the WTO framework (Article 43).
4. Institutional framework
The Joint Committee has to accomplish special duties and report annually to the Joint
Council.
IV. OTHER
The full text of the decision and of the agreement is available from:
- the WTO Secretariat;
- the European Commission;- the United Mexican States.
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