WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  RESTRICTED 
WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
4 May 2004 
 (04-1981) 
Working Party on the 
Accession of Tonga  
 
 
 
 
DRAFT REPORT OF THE WORKING PARTY  
ON THE ACCESSION OF THE KINGDOM OF TONGA  
TO THE WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION 
Revision 
  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page i 
 
 
TABLE OF CONTENTS 
I. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................. .. 1 
DOCUMENTATION PROVIDED ...................................................................................................... 1  
INTRODUCTORY STATEMENTS .................................................................................................... 1  
II. ECONOMIC POLICIES .......................................................................................................... 2  
- Monetary and Fiscal Policy .................................................................................................... .. 2 
- Foreign Exchange and Payments ............................................................................................ 3  
- Investment Regime.............................................................................................................. ...... 3  
- State Ownership and Privatization ......................................................................................... 6  
- Pricing Policies .............................................................................................................. ............ 8  
- Competitio n Policy ............................................................................................................ ........ 9  
III. FRAMEWORK FOR MAKING AND ENFORCING POLICIES ...................................... 9  
IV. POLICIES AFFECTING TRADE IN GOODS ................................................................... 12  
- Trading Rights ................................................................................................................ ........ 12  
A. IMPORT REGULATION ...................................................................................................... 13  
- Customs Tariff ................................................................................................................ ........ 13  
- Other duties and charges levied on imports but not on domestic production ................... 14  
- Tariff rate quotas, tariff exemptions ..................................................................................... 15  
- Fees and charges for services rendered ................................................................................. 16  
- Application of internal taxes ................................................................................................. . 17 
- Quantitative import restrictions, includi ng prohibitions, quotas and licensing 
systems ....................................................................................................................... .............. 19  
- Customs valuation ............................................................................................................. ...... 21  
- Rules of origin ............................................................................................................... .......... 23  
- Preshipment inspection ........................................................................................................ .. 24 
- Anti-dumping, countervailing duties, safeguard regimes ................................................... 25  
B. EXPORT REGULATION ...................................................................................................... 25  
- Customs tariffs, fees and charges for serv ices rendered, application of internal 
taxes to exports .............................................................................................................. .......... 25  
- Export restri ctions ........................................................................................................... ....... 26  
- Export subsidies .............................................................................................................. ........ 26  
C. INTERNAL POLICIES A FFECTING FOREIGN TRADE IN GOODS ......................... 29  
- Industrial policy, including subsidies .................................................................................... 29  
- Technical barriers to trade, sanita ry and phytosanitary measures ................................... 30  
- Standards and certification ................................................................................................... . 30 
- Trade-related investment measures ...................................................................................... 33  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page ii  
 
-
 State-tradin g entities ........................................................................................................ ....... 34  
- Free zones, special economic areas ........................................................................................ 34  
- Government procurement ...................................................................................................... 3 5 
- Agricultural policies.......................................................................................................... ...... 35  
- Trade in ci vil aircraft ....................................................................................................... ....... 36  
V. TRADE-RELATED INTELLECTUAL  PROPERTY REGIME ....................................... 37  
- General ....................................................................................................................... .............. 37  
- Participation in international intellectual property agreements ........................................ 38  
- Substantive Standards of Protection, Including Procedures for the Acquisition 
and Maintenance of Intellectual Property Rights ................................................................ 38  
- Copyright and related rights ..................................................................................................  38 
- Trademarks, including service marks ................................................................................... 38  
- Geographical indications, including appellations of origin ................................................. 39  
- Industrial designs ............................................................................................................ ........ 39  
- Patents ....................................................................................................................... ............... 39  
- Plant variety protection ...................................................................................................... .... 40  
- Layout designs of integrated circuits .................................................................................... 40  
- Requirements of undisclosed information, in cluding trade secrets and test data ............. 40  
- Measures to Control Abuse of Intellectual Property Rights ............................................... 40  
- Enforcement ................................................................................................................... ......... 40  
VI. POLICIES AFFECTING TRADE IN SERVICES .............................................................. 44  
- Publication of information on trade ...................................................................................... 46  
- Notifications ................................................................................................................. ............ 47  
VII. TRADE AGREEMENTS ....................................................................................................... 47  
CONCLUSIONS ................................................................................................................... ............... 48  
ATTACHMENTS ................................................................................................................... ............. 50  
 
  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
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 I. INTRODUCTION  
1. The Government of the Kingdom of Tonga applied for accession to the World Trade 
Organization in June 1995.  At its meeting on 15 November 1995, the General Council established a 
Working Party to examine the application of the Government of Tonga to accede to the World Trade 
Organization under Article XII of the Marrakesh Agreement establishing the WTO.  The terms of 
reference and the membership of the Working Party are reproduced in document 
WT/ACC/TON/2/[Rev.6]. 
2. The Working Party met on 26 April 2001; and ………………... under the Chairmanship of 
H.E. Mr. S. Harbinson (Hong Kong, China). 
DOCUMENTATION PROVIDED 
3. The Working Party had before it, to serve as a basis for its discussions, a Memorandum on the 
Foreign Trade Regime of Tonga (document WT/A CC/TON/3), the questions submitted by Members 
on the foreign trade regime of Tonga, together with the replies thereto, and other information provided 
by the authorities of Tonga (WT/ACC/TON/4; WT/ACC/TON/5; and WT/ACC/TON/9), including the legislative texts and other documentation listed in Annex I. 
INTRODUCTORY STATEMENTS 
4. The representative of Tonga said that the Kingdom  of Tonga was a small island nation with 
limited human and financial resources and a fragile ecosystem, highly vulnerable to natural disasters 
and adverse external changes.  Rising sea levels repr esented a direct threat to his country.  Tonga's 
economy relied heavily on imported goods and a few ex ternal financial sources.  The trade balance 
deficit was largely financed by remittances from Tongans living abroad.  The main industry, the 
fishing industry, had witnessed significant improve ments over the past decade, but its performance 
was undermined by weather disturbances and high transportation costs.  These factors made it difficult for the country to attract foreign investment.   
5. In Tonga, accession to the WTO was seen as a powerful instrument  to enhance trade security, 
create new trade and investment opportunities, and strengthen multilateral cooperation.  It was 
considered important to foster competitiveness and development and help Tonga better integrate into 
the world trading system.  His Government had put in place a national mechanism to coordinate 
accession to the WTO, and had taken a number of measu res to bring Tonga's trade regime in line with 
WTO requirements.  Tonga had established a Nati onal Codex Alimentarius Committee.  Tonga had WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
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 also become Member of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in July 2001, and new 
legislation had been drafted to ensure  compliance with WTO TRIPS regulations. 
6. Members of the WTO welcomed the applicati on from the Kingdom of Tonga to join the 
Organisation.  Members were impressed by the effo rts undertaken by Tonga so far, but noted that 
further work would be required, particularly in the area of legislation, for Tonga to be in compliance 
with WTO requirements.  WTO Membership was seen by some Members as a powerful tool for 
Tonga to achieve its developmen t objectives and reduce the business costs for local enterprises.  
Members looked forward to a rapid and smooth accessi on process, resulting in terms that would strike 
an appropriate balance between the rules and requirements of the WTO and Tonga's level of 
development.   
7. The Working Party reviewed the economic polic ies and foreign trade regime of Tonga and 
the possible terms of a draft Protocol of Accession to the WTO.  The views expressed by members of 
the Working Party on the various aspects of Tonga 's foreign trade regime, and on the terms and 
conditions of Tonga's accession to the WTO are summarized below in paragraphs 8 to [180]. 
II. ECONOMIC POLICIES  
- Monetary and Fiscal Policy 
8. The representative of Tonga said that the central bank, the National Reserve Bank of Tonga, 
was responsible for the formulati on and implementation of Tonga's monetary policy in coordination 
with the Ministry of Finance.  The main objectiv es of Tonga's monetary policy were to ensure a 
sufficient level of foreign exchange reserves to meet  import requirements, maintain a stable exchange 
rate for the national currency - the Pa'anga (TOP),  and to slow the increase in bank lending to the 
private sector.  Instruments used to this end in r ecent times included adjustments of interest rates and 
increases in mandatory reserve requirements for the commercial banks.   
9. Fiscal policy aimed primarily at balancing th e budget (an objective wh ich had been achieved 
in recent years); increasing the efficiency of government services; promoting private sector 
development through the application of stricter economic, financial, and e nvironmental criteria for 
borrowing together with improved debt recordi ng and reporting systems; improving public debt 
management;  and strengthening the monitoring  and management of public enterprises.   
10. A tax reform programme was under considerati on with a view to moving emphasis from trade 
to internal taxes and enhancing the effectiveness of  the tax administration.  Under this programme, 
individual and corporate income taxes would be modifi ed to ensure greater fairness.  The details and  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 3 
 
 
 timing of the programme, which would have to be carefully planned to avoid any loss of revenue, 
would depend on the terms of Tonga's accession to the WTO.   
- Foreign Exchange and Payments 
11. The representative of Tonga said that the value of the currency of Tonga - the Pa'anga - was 
determined on the basis of a weighted basket of  currencies comprising the U.S. dollar, the New 
Zealand dollar, the Australian dollar, and the Japanes e yen.  The exchange rate of the Pa'anga against 
the U.S. dollar, which was the intervention currenc y, was determined daily by the National Reserve 
Bank of Tonga (NRBT), while the rates for the other currencies, for transactions of the Reserve Bank, 
were determined based on the cross rates provided by the Bank of England.  The NRBT was allowed 
to vary the value of the Pa'anga relative to the bask et, at its own discretion, by 5 per cent per month.  
In January 2004, one Pa'anga bought approximately US$ 0.50. 
12. The NRBT had delegated to authorized dealers approval authority for payments and transfers 
for current international transactions up to TOP 50, 000, and reserved the right to approve payments 
and transfers for current international transactions  exceeding TOP 50,000.  Capital transactions were 
also subject to NRBT approval, which was genera lly granted provided that official international 
reserves remained at adequate levels.  Transactions  such as capital transfers; acquisition/disposal of 
financial assets; direct investment, including e quity capital; and portfolio investment required 
approval irrespective of the amount involved.  [A re patriation requirement was not being monitored.]  
In reply to questions, the representative of Tong a said that Tonga had no plans to change these 
requirements, but was ready to confor m to any relevant WTO provisions.     
13. He added that Tonga had accepted the obligations under Article VIII,  Sections 2, 3, and 4 of 
the Articles of Agreement of the IMF on 22 March 1 991, and maintained an exchange system free of 
restrictions on the making of payments and transfer s for current international transactions.  Tonga's 
official international reserves had amounted to US $ 13 million as of end September 2002.  In January 
2003, the National Reserve Bank of Tonga had aut horized the writing of forward contracts for 
bona fide importers and exporters  by commercial banks for an amount up to US$ 2 million.   
- Investment Regime 
14. The representative of Tonga said that his Govern ment encouraged foreign investment.  The 
1978 Industrial Development Incentives Act, Cap. 114 (the IDI Act) aimed at fostering the 
establishment of manufacturing, processing, and assembling industries;  tourism projects, including accommodation, vessels, sport facilities and tourist sites;  service-oriented repair activities;  and WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 4  
 
 agricultural and fishery enterprises.  Incentives were  provided through a system of tax exemptions.  
Potential benefits included (i) income tax holid ays including, for non-resident investors, on the 
withholding tax for up to five years; (ii) accelerated depreciation of assets; (iii) exemption from 
customs duties on imported capital goods for up to two years; (iv) duty drawback on imported raw 
materials and components; (v) a 50 per cent exemption from Port and Services Ta x;  and (vi) the right 
for non-resident companies and shareholders to re patriate profits and capita l gains.  Any person, 
irrespective of nationality, wishing to benefit fro m these incentives had to apply for a Development 
Licence to the Minister of Labour, Commerce and Indus try.  Benefits granted depended on the nature 
of the project and were listed in the Development Licence .   
15. Applicants for Development Licenses were re quired to complete a form and provide 
information on the nature of the project, its cost a nd financing;  employment requirements, including 
the employment of expatriate staff;  potentia l markets for the products;  details on the incentives 
sought;  information on the experience and financial background of the applicant and all shareholders;  
and needs for electricity and water.  In addition,  applicants were request ed to submit financial 
statements or bank references indicating their fi nancial strength, and a business plan including 
information on proposed production, market prosp ects, financial matters, personal arrangements, 
office and land lease, and cash flow projections for the first three years of activity.  In the case of tourism prime facility projects, a construction plan  duly approved by the Ministry of Health and 
Ministry of Work was required.  A TOP 200.00 (US$ 100) fee was charged for each application for a 
Development Licence.   
16. Applications were examined by a Standing  Advisory Committee established within the 
Ministry of Labour, Commerce, and Industry.  The Committee included the Minister and Secretary of 
Labour, Commerce and Industry;  the Secretary of Finance;  the Managing Director of the Tonga Development Bank;  the General Mana ger of the Bank of Tonga;  the Director of the Central Planning 
Department;  and ad hoc members as required.   The Committee made recommendations to the 
Minister.  Applicants were informed in writing of th e decision and, in case of approval, of the terms of 
the licence.  The licence could be used to obtain a work permit – or Temporary Residence Visa – from the immigration authorities.  Licence holders had to  register their company with the Registrar of 
Companies as provided for in the Companies Act, Ca p. 27.  Registration was subject to the approval 
of the Privy Council.  Although not specifically stated  in the Act, in case of rejection the refusal to 
deliver a licence could be appealed to the Ministry of Labour, Commerce, and Industry.  In 1998, 68 projects involving a total investment of TOP 14 million (US$ 7 million) had been approved, 
mainly in manufacturing and agriculture.  By 1998, 1,104 licenses had been de livered, leading to the 
creation of 1,072 businesses, of wh ich 860 were still active.    WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
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 17. Domestic and foreign investors were entitled to  the same benefits and subject to the same 
procedures.  However, in the case of foreign inv estment the Committee would study the extent to 
which the project provided substantial and continui ng benefits to the people and economy of Tonga 
and include these considerations in the recommenda tion to the Minister.  The Committee examined 
whether the project (i) involved the processing of lo cal resources; (ii) substantially contributed to 
local added value; (iii) was labour intensive; (i v) had export potential; (v) contributed to import 
substitution; (vi) had a reasonable level of local pa rticipation; (vii) would have a multiplier effect 
leading to the creation of ancillary enterprises; (viii) was likely to complement other domestic 
manufactures; (ix) and satisfied any other criteria the Committee might consider relevant.   
18. Several Members were seriously concerned a bout the discretionary powers exercised in 
investment approval decisions in Tonga and some of  the criteria used in deciding whether to grant a 
licence for foreign investment.  These Members obser ved that the benefits provided under the IDI Act 
would seem, in law or in fact, to be contingent  upon export performance, im port substitution, or local 
content requirements.  The concerns raised by Me mbers are discussed below in further detail in the 
sections "Industrial policy, including subsidies" a nd "Trade-Related Investment Measures (TRIMs)". 
19. The representative of Tonga replied that the criteria causing concern to Members had never 
been applied in practice.  He could therefore conf irm that no benefits under the IDI Act had been or 
would be made contingent upo n export performance, import substitution or local content 
requirements.  Tonga was prepared to accept a protoc ol commitment to make quite clear that the IDI 
Act itself and its implementation would be broug ht into conformity with WTO provisions.   
20. He noted that Parliament had recently passed a new law - the Foreign Investment Act 2002 - 
with a view to bringing Tonga's legislation in to line with WTO provisions.  The new Law would 
become effective upon completion of the implemen ting regulations.  The Foreign Investment Act 
detailed the regulations for foreign investment in to Tonga, the registration requirements for foreign 
investors and the duration of registration certificates ; listed the activities classified as reserved or 
restricted and the relevant conditions for foreign i nvestment into such activities; detailed the terms for 
transfer of registration, cancellation of registra tion and the means for appeal if registration was 
refused; and set out transitional arrangements for fo reign investors already operating in Tonga at the 
time of the legislation being implemented.  No bene fits or incentives were offered or provided under 
the Foreign Investment Act.  Regulations specifying th e conditions for a foreign investor to invest in a 
restricted activity were being drafted.  Unless an  activity was designated as restricted, reserved, or 
prohibited, there would be no foreign participatio n limitations, in law or in practice, for foreign WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 6  
 
 investors wishing to invest into Tonga.  A copy of the regulations would be forwarded to Working 
Party members once finalized.  
21. The representative of Tonga confirmed that no benefits under the Industrial Development 
Incentives Act had been or would be made continge nt, in law or in fact, on export performance, 
import substitution or local content requirements.   Such criteria contained in the Industrial 
Development Incentives Act had not been applied in  practice, and the Act would be amended to 
formally remove any of the criteria, e.g. (i) the processing of local resources; (ii) substantial 
contribution to local added value; (iv) export potential; and (v) import substitution that are inconsistent with WTO provisions, including the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing 
Measures and the Agreement on Trade-Related I nvestment Measures.  These amendments would 
come into force as from the date of accession.  He also confirmed that the Foreign Investment Act 
would provide no such benefits.  The Working Party took note of these commitments. 
22. The representative of Tonga stated that Tonga would also be prepared to enter Protocol 
commitments to abide by the relevant WTO provi sions, including Article 3 of the Agreement on 
Subsidies and Countervailing Measures and the Agre ement on Trade-Related Investment Measures, 
and to ensure that its laws implement these commit ments.  For the texts of these commitments, see the 
sections below dealing with these subjects. 
- State Ownership and Privatization 
23. The representative of Tonga said that a large number of services, infrastructure, and 
commercial activities had traditionally been government -funded.  In 1998, his Government retained a 
stake, either through equity or loans, in 26 enterprises, including public utilities.   
24. His Government aimed at rationalisation of public sector activities, including through 
privatization.  A Cabinet Sub-Committee had been es tablished to plan the restructuring of government 
commercial activities, and a Public Enterprise Unit to  develop a programme of privatization.  Since 
1998, his Government had corporatized the Port Authority and the Tonga Telecommunication 
Commission, and privatized the Royal Beer Co. Ltd ..  Postal services would be corporatized once the 
debts of Tonga Post have been paid off.  The G overnment Store, which used to supply the public and 
private sector with hardware and other products ha d ceased operations in 1999, except for the disposal 
of goods undergoing processing.  A list of ente rprises with State ownership as per 30 June 2002, 
including information on their activities and ma rket position, is provided in Table 1 and in 
paragraph 25 below.   He expected the privatizati on programme to be completed over a period of five  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 7 
 
 
 to ten years.  He confirmed that Tonga maintained  no restrictions on foreign participation in the 
privatisation programme. 
25. The representative of Tonga added that State- owned enterprises and enterprises with State 
participation at this time were services providers, and that his Government no longer owned shares in 
any manufacturing facility in Tonga.  Tonga Cor poration managed Tonga's landholdings in American 
Samoa and Hawaii.  Tonga Investments Ltd. was a holding company established in 1971 to manage 
businesses carried out by its subsidiaries - Frisco Hardware Ltd., Homegas Ltd. and Primary Produce 
Export Ltd.  Frisco sold hardware and constructi on materials - mostly imported goods - in competition 
with private enterprises.  Primary Produce Limite d was essentially a shell company established to 
collect debts, and would be wound up as soon as possible.  Tonga Timber Limited supplied 
coconut/timber milling and hardware.  Sea Star Fishing Co. Ltd. was one of a number of deep sea 
fishing operations in this market.  The Government of Tonga had been negotiating to sell its shares in 
this company.  Leiola Duty Free operated Tonga's duty free shops.  The Government had not granted 
a monopoly, but there were at present no competitors in the market.  Air Pacific Limited was Fiji's national airline, providing regional airline services in  competition with other suppliers in the market.  
Hawaiian Air was another regional airline.  Roya l Tonga Airlines was Tonga's national airline and 
competed with Air New Zealand, Polynesian Air lines and Air Pacific (the other main airlines 
servicing similar routes).  Pacific Forum Line Limi ted, a regional shipping company based in Fiji, 
provided regional freight and charter services, and Sh ipping Corporation of Polynesia Ltd. provided 
domestic and international passenger and cargo charte r services.  Westpac Bank of Tonga competed 
with three other banks currently present in Tonga, and the Tonga Development Bank provided 
development and business advisory banking services.  International Dateline Hotel was one of many 
such tourist hotels in Tonga's market.  While eith er fully or partially government-owned, with the 
exception of Leiola Duty Free, none of the enterpri ses listed above still in ope ration were granted any 
special rights or privileges nor a sanctioned monopoly in their line of business.  Generally, they 
competed with other suppliers in the market.   
26. Tonga's public utilities included the Tonga Wa ter Board, established under the 1978 Water 
Board Act, Cap. 92, and responsible for the supp ly of water in the main populated areas; and the 
Tonga Broadcasting Commission, established under the Broadcasting Commission Act, Cap. 100, 
which operated public radio services.  Private sector representatives participated in the Board of Directors of these enterprises.  Home Gas, a subsid iary of Tonga Investment Limited, was the sole 
distributor of cooking gas in Tonga.  Electricity was now provided by a private enterprise and the Government had corporatized its telecommunicati ons provider, which now competed with another 
supplier in the market. WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
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 - Pricing Policies 
27. The representative of Tonga said that Tonga a pplied price control on basic necessities to 
protect consumers, in particular low income fam ilies.  Maximum prices were set for these goods to 
prevent wholesale and retail suppliers from taking advantage of local monopoly conditions resulting 
from the small size of the economy.  Commodities cu rrently subject to price control are listed in 
Table 2.  None of these products, except for bread, were produced locally, and State-owned 
enterprises did not operate in the markets of price controlled goods.  Prices for services were 
determined freely by market forces.   
28. The legal basis for Tonga's price controls was the 1988 Price and Wage Control Act, 
Cap. 113.  Controls were enforced by the Comp etent Authority Committee, established within the 
Ministry of Labour, Commerce, and Industry, and chaired by the Minister.  Other members of the 
Committee included the Minister of Finance, Secr etary of Labour, Commerce and Industry, Deputy 
Secretary of Commerce, and three representatives  of the private sector.  The Committee met on a 
monthly basis and was responsible for setting ma ximum prices, monitoring minimum wages, and 
carrying out controls, including on-site inspections at traders' premises.  The Committee could request 
traders to submit oral or written information on prices, wages and working hours and, in case of 
violation, to prohibit the sale of the incrim inated goods until prices had been modified.   
29. Responding to specific questions, the representative of Tonga said that controls were carried 
out at the point of sale, and not at the border, as the primary purpose of the price controls was to 
protect the interests of consumers.  He confirme d that Tonga's price controls did not affect the 
valuation of goods for customs purposes.  Tonga's price control mechanisms  were enforced as 
maximum mark-up percentages, i.e. a percentage  over landed cost for the wholesale trade and a 
percentage over wholesale cost for retail trade in the goods concerned, except for standard size bread 
(454 grams) and petroleum products.  In the latte r cases, the Committee dete rmined the sales prices 
for these goods.  He provided detailed informati on on the mark-up calculations in Annex A of 
document WT/ACC/TON/5.  Price controls had recently been eliminated on motor vehicles, motorcycles and motor vehicle spare parts.  He a dded that his Government had no plans to reduce the 
number of goods subject to price control, although some discussions had taken place on this matter.  
He confirmed that all products within the listed categories were subject to  price control without 
exception.  The price controls in principle applied equally to both domestically-produced and imported goods, although at the present time the only product under price control that was produced 
in Tonga was bread.  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
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 30. In response to concerns of Members who noted that, according to Annex A of 
WT/ACC/TON/5, local agricultural and fish products were not subject to price control while imported 
products were covered by c ontrols, which would appear to be in consistent with the provisions of 
Article III of GATT 1994, the representative of Tong a said that Tonga intended to amend the Price 
and Wage Control Act 1998 to remove  the reference to local agricultu ral and fish products not subject 
to price control from the Mark-Up Schedule. 
31. The representative of Tonga confirmed that fro m the date of accession Tonga would apply its 
price control measures in a WTO-consistent fashion,  and take into account the interests of exporting 
WTO Members as provided for in Article III:9 of th e GATT 1994.  In this regard, the Price and Wage 
Control Act 1998 would be amended to remove the reference to local agricultural and fish products 
not subject to price control from the Mark-Up Sche dule, and any price controls applied to imports 
from the date of accession would also be applied to similar domestically-produced articles.   Tonga 
would also publish the list of any goods and services s ubject to price controls in its Official Gazette.  
The Working Party took no te of these commitments.  
- Competition Policy 
32. The representative of Tonga said that Tonga  had no specific legislation addressing 
competition issues, and had no plans to introduce such  legislation.  The Protection Against Unfair 
Competition Act 2002 did not establish a competition policy; it provided protection against deceptive industrial and commercial practices, including da maging another's goodwill or reputation, creating 
confusion, misleading the public, and unfai r competition in case of secret information. 
33. In response to questions, the representative of Tonga noted that there was no WTO 
requirement for competition policy to be applied.  Tonga understood the impli cations of restrictive 
business practices to which reference had been made, such as price fixing and anti-competitive 
mergers and business acquisitions.  However, give n the structure and size of Tonga's domestic 
market, these practices had not created problems that would warrant the utilization of Tonga's 
extremely limited resources.  
III. FRAMEWORK FOR MAKING AND ENFORCING POLICIES  
34. The representative of Tonga said that Tonga ha d become a sovereign and independent State 
within the British Commonwealth of Independent  States in 1970.  Tonga was a constitutional 
monarchy headed by His Majesty the King Taufa'ah au Tupou IV, who had acceded to the throne in 
1965.  The current Constitution had been promulga ted the same year.  The King chaired the Privy WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 10  
 
 Council - comprising the Prime Minister, Ministers of the Crown and the two Governors of Ha'apai 
and Vava'u, all appointed by His Majesty – which a dvised and assisted His Majesty in his functions.  
The Cabinet, the second branch of the executive, was composed of the Ministers of the Crown and the 
Governors.  Cabinet Ministers held office until their retirement.   
35. Legislative powers were exercised by the Legislative Assembly, made up of Privy 
Councillors and Cabinet Ministers, sitting as nobles;  nine representatives of the nobles, elected by the 
nobles;  and nine representatives of the people elected  every three years by universal suffrage.  The 
Assembly was the only organ empowered to adopt laws  (Clause 55 of the Constitution).  Bills had to 
be passed three times by the majority of the Assembly members before being presented to His Majesty for Royal Assent, and became law upon publi cation.  The Governors we re responsible for the 
implementation of laws within their district.   
36. Judicial power was exercised by the Magistrates' Court, the Court of Appeal, the Supreme 
Court and, for land-related matte rs, the Land Court.  Judges were appointed by His Majesty in 
Council.  The Magistrates' Court was the lowest court, dealing with criminal and civil cases for which the sanctions foreseen by the law would not exceed TO P 1,000 – or three years imprisonment in the 
case of criminal charges.  The Land Court was the supreme court in charge of land related cases, 
including hereditary estate taxes and town allotment mortgages.  Tonga's present judicial system did 
not provide for specialized administrative or comme rcial courts.  Administra tive decisions could be 
appealed under the Supreme Court Act, [Articles ... ].  He added that according to the [........] foreign 
and domestic importers had the right to appeal any administrative action relating to matters subject to 
WTO provisions, e.g. customs classification and valu ation, tariff application, licensing, TBT, SPS, 
and TRIPS to an independent body – the Commissione r for Public Complaints.  Decisions made by 
the Commissioner could be appealed to the Supreme Cour t.  He considered this situation to be in full 
conformity with relevant WTO obligations, including Article X:3(b) of the GATT 1994. 
37.   [The representative of Tonga confirmed that  from the date of its accession, Tonga's laws 
would give foreign and dom estic importers and exporters the ri ght to appeal administrative action 
relating to matters subject to WTO provisions to an independent body in full conformity with WTO 
obligations, including Article X:3(b) of the GATT 1994.  The Working Party took note of this 
commitment.] [The representative of Tonga confir med that from the date of accession to the WTO, 
Tonga would abide by the provisions of WTO relating to judicial and administrative decisions, including Article X:3 of the GATT 1994.  The Work ing Party took note of this commitment.][The 
representative of Tonga confirmed that from the da te of its accession, Tonga would establish or 
designate tribunals or procedures for the prompt re view of all administrative actions relating to the  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 11 
 
 
 implementation of laws, regulati ons, judicial decisions and administrative rulings of general 
application referred to in Article X:I of the GATT 1994 and Article VI of the GATS.  The tribunals or 
procedures would also include actions relating to the implementation of national treatment, 
conformity assessment, the regulation, control, s upply or promotion of a service, including the grant 
or denial of a license to provide a service and othe r matters.  The tribunals or procedures responsible 
for such reviews would be impart ial and independent of the agency  entrusted with administrative 
enforcement and shall not have any substantial interest in the outcome of the matter.  The review 
procedure would include the opportunity for appeal, without penalty, by individuals and enterprises 
affected by any administrative action subject to re view.  If the initial right of appeal is to an 
administrative body, there should be the opportunity to choose to appeal the decision to a judicial 
body.  Notice of the decision on appeal should be given to the appellant and the reasons for such a 
decision provided in writing.  The Working Party took note of this commitment.]    
38. Policies related to foreign trade were formulat ed and implemented by the Ministry of Labour, 
Commerce and Industry, in cooperation with the Mini stries of Finance; Police; Health; Agriculture 
and Forestry; and Fisheries.  His Government had established a Trade Coordination Committee 
chaired by the Minister of Labour, Commerce and I ndustry to coordinate the work of the various 
government entities.  Border control fell under the competence of the Minister  of Finance, who was 
also responsible for customs duties, and taxes a nd excises, as well as the issuance of import licenses 
for some products.  Import licenses for restricted pro ducts were issued by the Minister of Police and 
the Minister of Finance. The Minister of Foreign Affairs was in charge of immigration, and granted 
entry and resident permits.  The Minister of Agricu lture and Forestry, the Mi nister for Fisheries and 
the Minister for Health regulated matters of pub lic health, quarantine and phytosanitary measures 
related to importation and exporta tion.  The formulation and impl ementation of policies affecting 
trade in services involved the Tonga Visitors Bureau, Tonga Telecommunications Commission, 
Tonga Electric Power Board, the Ministries of Financ e, Civil Aviation, Education, Justice, and Ports 
and Marines.  While trading regulations were set out in laws and regulations, residual discretionary 
powers could also be exercised by the competent Minister when required.   
39. The private sector could influence the legisla tive process through consultations held with the 
Ministries through associations such as the Tong a Chamber of Commerce, the Small Business 
Association, the Tonga Tourist Association, the Society of Accountants, the Tonga Business and Professional Women's Federation Inc, and the Law Societ y.  In the reform of trade legislation, the 
Ministry of Labour, Commerce and Industry c onsulted with the private sector via its 
Government/Private Sector Consultative Committee.   WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 12  
 
 40. The representative of Tonga acknowledged that implementing legislati on would have to be 
adopted in a number of areas to ensure compliance with WTO regulations.  He presented an overview 
of legislative action resulting from the WTO accession process in document WT/ACC/TON/7, noting 
that adequate and timely technical assistance woul d be needed to help Tonga in implementing these 
measures.  He confirmed the readiness of his Govern ment to work with the Working Party to help 
identify any further legislative deficiencies.  In response to a specific question concerning the 
procedures to be followed for the ratification of Tonga's Protocol of Accession, he said that the 
Accession Package would have to be approved by the Privy Council.   
41. [The representative of Tonga stated that if laws or other acts of Tonga should be found to 
contradict international treaties or  agreements, the provisions of the international treaty or agreement, 
such as the WTO, would apply.  The representative of Tonga confirmed that sub-central entities had 
no autonomous authority over measures covered by WTO provisions.  He confirmed that the 
provisions of the WTO Agreement, including Tonga's Protocol, shall be applied uniformly throughout 
its customs territory and other territories under Tonga 's control, any special economic zones, and other 
areas where special regimes for tariffs, taxes and re gulations are established.  He added that when 
apprised of a situation where WTO provisions were  not being applied or were applied in a non-
uniform manner, central authorities would act to enforce WTO provisions without requiring affected parties to petition through the c ourts.  The Working Party took no te of these commitments.]  [The 
representative of Tonga stated that if any laws or  regulations of Tonga conflict with WTO provisions, 
the provisions of the WTO would apply.  He added that where WTO provisions were not being 
applied or were applied in a non-uniform manner in Tonga, the central authorities would act to 
enforce WTO provisions without requiring affected  parties to petition through the courts.  The 
Working Party took note of these commitments.]  
IV. POLICIES AFFECTING TRADE IN GOODS  
- Trading Rights 
42. The representative of Tonga said that the Licenses Act, Cap. 47, required any natural or legal 
person carrying on any business or calling specified in  a schedule to the Act to take out a licence and 
pay an annual fee.  The schedule covered a wide range of commercial activities, not necessarily linked 
to external trade.  The decision to  issue a licence was not discretionary  or subject to specific criteria, 
but rather a simple "pay-and-serve" process.   
43. He added that a new Business Licenses Bill would repeal the Licenses Act Cap. 47, and 
introduce a simple, transparent procedure for the issuance of business licenses.  The new legislation  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 13 
 
 
 aimed at bringing Tonga's rules in this area into lin e with best international practice and the rules of 
the WTO, i.e. Articles VIII:1(a), XI:1 and III: 2 and 4 of the GATT 1994.  The new Act required a 
licence to be issued provided the proposed activity was not prohibited; the applicant was 18 years of 
age or older; in case of partnerships, that all partne rs were at least 18 years of age; and - for foreign 
investors - possession of a valid foreign investment registration certificate.  Any holder of a valid business licence could engage in impor tation or exportation without r estriction.  Concerning business 
licence fees, regulations were being drafted that would stipulate that these fees would be no higher 
than the approximate cost of the services rendered.   
44. In response to the concern of a Member re garding the current absence of regulations 
implementing the Business Licence Act, which might po ssibly include disguised restrictions on trade, 
the representative of Tonga maintained that th e Business Licence Act provided for simple and 
transparent procedures, of a non-discriminatory nature  and therefore applied equally to nationals and 
foreigners, for the issuance of business licenses.  He  stressed that the implementing regulations would 
not include hidden trade restrictions.  [A copy of the regulations would be forwarded to the Working 
Party once finalized.]  The regulations, including fees  to be charged for issuance of licenses, were still 
in the drafting stages.  The Business Licensing Act would come into effect upon completion of these 
regulations, expected to be no later than 31 December 2004.  
45.  The representative of Tonga confirmed that fro m the date of accession, Tonga would ensure 
that its laws and regulations rela ting to the right to trade in goods and all fees, charges and taxes 
levied on such rights would be in full conform ity with its WTO obligations, including Articles 
VIII:1(a), XI:1 and III:2 and 4 of the GATT 1994 a nd that it would implement such laws and 
regulations in full conformity with these oblig ations.  The Working Party took note if this 
commitment. 
A. IMPORT REGULATION  
- Customs Tariff 
46. Noting that Tonga initially applied the Standa rd International Trade Classification (SITC), 
and that Tonga's Parliament had rejected proposed  changes to Tonga's classification system, some 
Members urged Tonga to implement a customs classi fication system in line with the international 
standard (the Harmonized System).  Trade tax es being an important component of government 
revenue, Tonga was also encouraged to take  steps to diversify its revenue base.   WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 14  
 
 47. The representative of Tonga replied that his G overnment understood the value of joining the 
HS Treaty, but would not be in a position to do so in the near future for technical reasons.  Tonga 
levied customs duties in accordance  with the Customs and Excise Act, Cap.67.  It accorded tariff 
preferences to members of the Pacific Island C ountries Trade Agreement (PICTA).  Imports from 
other countries were subject to a single set of tariff  rates.  Import duties were mostly in the 0-30 per 
cent range, but higher rates were applied on motor ve hicles, vans and trucks (45 per cent);  petroleum 
(35 per cent);  and beer, spirits, tobacco and cigarettes (rates ranging from 150 to 330 per cent 
ad valorem  or specific duty amounts, if higher).  Rates on tobacco had been increased recently for 
health reasons and now ranged betw een 187.5 per cent and 525 per cent ( ad valorem  or specific duty 
amount, whichever was higher).  The weighted aver age level of customs duties had amounted to 
18.5 per cent in 1995.   
48. He added that two studies had been commiss ioned on the subject of tax reform.  The 
proposals contained in these studies and their effect on the economy and government revenue would be reviewed carefully before any decision would be taken.  Changes in the tax system would have to 
take into account the implications of accession to the WTO.  These two processes were proceeding in 
parallel.  He expected Tonga to be  in a position to decide on a single rate customs tariff before the end 
of October 2004 and to introduce the reform packag e, including the single rate customs tariff as from 
1 April 2005.  In the event of delays to the introduc tion of the taxation reforms, he expected Tonga to 
introduce the single rate customs duty no later than 1 January 2006.  No exceptions to the single rate 
customs duty were foreseen, as exceptions would defy  the logic of introducing such a system.  The 
introduction of a single rate customs tariff woul d not only allow for more streamlined customs 
procedures and a more administratively feasible customs system, but should also improve duty collection and allow for far more accurate recording of imports into Tonga.             
- Other duties and charges levied on im ports but not on domestic production 
49. The representative of Tonga said that, in add ition to customs duties, Tonga levied a 
20 per cent ad valorem  Port and Services Tax in accordance with the Port and Services Tax Act 
(Cap.71).  The tax applied to all imported goods ex cept those fully or partially exempt under the 
Industrial Development Incentives Act.  Among the items  exempt from the Port and Services tax were 
essential goods such as educational, scientific and cu ltural books, documents and materials; fertilizers; 
insecticides, pesticides and fungicid es for agricultural use; agricultu ral machinery, implements and 
tools; timber milling machinery; and stock feed and seeds.     
50. Some Members stated that the Port and Services Tax did not appear to meet the requirement 
of Article VIII of the GATT 1994, and requested that  it be eliminated in the context of Tonga's  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 15 
 
 
 accession to the WTO.  Questions were also raised  about the WTO-consistency of Tonga's wharfage 
dues. 
51. The representative of Tonga acknowledged that  the Port and Services Tax should be 
considered an "other duty or ch arge" within the meaning of Article II of the GATT 1994, and recalled 
that Tonga had offered to bind its Other Duties a nd Charges at zero during the negotiations on market 
access for goods.  Accordingly, he expected Tonga to  bind the Port and Services Tax at zero in its 
Schedule of Concessions and Commitments on Goods, the binding to come into force no later than 
1 January 2006.   
52. The representative of Tonga considered the Port and Services Tax to be Tonga's only ODC, as 
wharfage dues, berthage fees and fees for the issuance of import licenses were fees for services rendered.  These fees and charges are examined in the relevant section below.    
53.  The representative of Tonga confirmed that from the date of accession other duties and 
charges within the meaning of Article II.1(b) of  the GATT 1994 would be applied in accordance with 
WTO provisions and would be bound at the cu rrently applied rates in accordance with the 
Understanding on the Interpretation of Article II: 1(b) of the GATT 1994 and that Tonga would not 
introduce any new other duties and charges.  He  further confirmed that by no later than 
1 January 2006 existing other duties and charges would be eliminated and bound at zero.  The 
Working Party took note of these commitments. 
- Tariff rate quotas, tariff exemptions 
54. The representative of Tonga said that Tonga di d not apply tariff rate quotas on any product, 
and had no intention to introduce such quotas. 
55. Tariff exemptions were granted according to th e Customs and Excise Act.  The coverage of 
the exemptions required a legal basis and could not be extended administratively.  Goods subject to 
duty exemption were goods for the use of the reig ning Sovereign, the Government of Tonga, or 
accredited diplomatic representatives and technical assistance officials; personal effects and 
accompanied luggage of passengers (within specified limits); ground equipment, fuel and lubricants 
for air services; educational, scientific and cultural articles; charitable gifts; marine life-saving equipment; patterns, samples, advertising ma tter and documents; religious goods; and trophies, 
medals and photographs.  A more detailed descripti on of such goods (mostly not by HS number) was 
provided in document WT/ACC/TON/4, pp. 22-25.  The coverage of the import duty exemptions and 
exemptions from Port and Services Tax were not iden tical.  The potential benefits provided for in the WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 16  
 
 Industrial Development Incentives (IDI) Act, de scribed under the heading "Investment Regime" 
above, included exemption from customs duties on im ported capital goods for up to two years as well 
as suspension of duty on imported raw materials and components.  These benefits would cease to have 
effect upon the introduction of Tonga's taxation reforms.     
56. The representative of Tonga confirmed that upon Tonga's accession to the WTO, any tariff 
quotas and tariff exemptions would only be implemented in confor mity with the relevant WTO 
provisions including Article I of the GATT 1994 and the TRIMs Agreement.  The Working Party took 
note of this commitment.   
- Fees and charges for services rendered 
57. Some Members reminded Tonga that GATT Article VIII provided that all fees and charges be 
limited to the approximate cost of the services rende red, and not to constitute  an additional fiscal tax 
on imports.  As Tonga's wharfage dues, based on length and/or internal space, did not appear directly 
related to the cost of any particular customs servi ce, Tonga was urged to bring its fee structure into 
conformity with the requirements of GATT Article VIII. 
58. The representative of Tonga said that, after careful  consideration of the issue in the light of 
comments made in the Working Party, Tonga had conc luded that its wharfage and berthage fees were 
- in WTO terms – fees and charges for services rendered covered by Artic le VIII of the GATT 1994 
which regulates "all fees and charges of whatever character (other than import and export duties and 
other than taxes within the purview of Article III) imposed by contracting parties on or in connection 
with importation or exportation."  The Port Author ity Act 1998 established the Port Authority as part 
of a reform package to put the management of the port on an efficient commercial basis.  The Port 
Authority administered the port at Tongatapu, and nearly 99 per cent of Tonga's trade in goods passed 
through this port.  Standing Order 1999 under the Ac t set the scale of fees charged by the Authority.  
These fees were set in relation to the cost of th e services that the Port Authority rendered, after 
consultation with the Port User Advisory Committee.   The scale of fees was also submitted to the 
Executive of the South Pacific Board of Ports, composed of members from the Pacific Island 
Countries, Australia and New Zealand.  This Sta nding Order set out the fees charged by the Port 
Authority itself (i.e. wharfage, bert hage, slipway, mooring, tug hire  and weighbridge fees) as well as 
the fees that could be charged by stevedoring companies operating on the wharf.  
59. In response to questions asked, the representa tive of Tonga said that fees based on length 
and/or internal space were directly related to th e wharf space occupied and to the amount of cargo 
unloaded and therefore to the cost of the service provi ded.  He also noted that fees for the issuance of  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 17 
 
 
 import licenses, dealt with in the section on import licensing procedures below, were fees for services 
rendered.  The protocol commitment in the following  paragraph would therefore apply to them.  He 
also provided detailed informati on on quarantine fees paid by e xporters of agricultural products, 
which is reproduced in Table 3 . 
60. The representative of Tonga confirmed that a ll fees and charges imposed by Tonga on or in 
connection with importation or exportation would be  operated in conformity  with the relevant 
provisions of the WTO Agreement, in particular Ar ticles VIII and X of GATT 1994.  From the date of 
accession, Tonga would not apply, introduce or re introduce any fees and charges for services rendered 
that were applied to imports on an ad valorem basis.  Information regarding the application and level 
of such fees and charges, revenues collected and their use, would be provided to WTO Members on 
request.  The Working Party took  note of these commitments.   
- Application of internal taxes 
61. The representative of Tonga said that imported and domestically-produced beer (HS number 
2203.0010) was subject to an excise ta x of TOP 0.75 per litre or 20 per cent ad valorem , whichever 
was higher.  Beer was, for the time being, the only product on which excise duty was levied.   
62. Value added tax (VAT) had not been introduced in Tonga, but a sales tax of 5 per cent was 
levied on most goods and services.  Exempt from sales tax were goods and services sold to the reigning Sovereign or to the Government; goods sold among vendors or businesses for the purpose of 
further retailing, manufacturing or processing before  being sold to the public; local agriculture, 
livestock and fisheries products sold at local market s and farm gates by individual sellers; goods sold 
by street vendors such as handicrafts, woodcarvings,  clothing and peanuts; tic kets for international 
travel sold to patients upon approval and certificati on by the Minister of Health; building materials 
used in residential construction (exemption certificate to be issued by the Minister), all of which were 
imported;  and goods destined for exportation. 
63. Some Members noted that Tonga's sales tax ex emption on local agriculture, livestock and 
fisheries products, and goods sold among vendors and businesses, involved elements that might 
discriminate against imports.  Tonga was invited to provide further clarification on how these 
exemptions would not conflict with the pr ovisions of Article III of the GATT 1994.   
64. The representative of Tonga replied that the sales tax exemption on local agriculture, 
livestock and fisheries products a pplied only to very small individual producers who sold their 
products locally.  Domestic products sold by larg e local firms were subject to sales tax.  Small WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 18  
 
 producers had been exempted due to difficulties in  tax collection and the disproportionate costs 
involved in collecting relatively small amounts of sales tax.  In this respect, Tonga's practice did not 
differ from that of many Members of the WTO.  As to goods sold among vendors and businesses, 
registration with the Inland Revenue Department wa s required for vendors or businesses to qualify for 
a sales tax exemption.  He did not consider this requirement an obstacle to trade as the only purpose 
of the registration procedure was to administer the collection of revenue.  No further registration was 
required.  Tonga's present sales tax regime woul d be terminated as part of the taxation reform 
programme. 
65. He added that a new taxation regime was being designed with the assistance of the Pacific 
Financial Technical Assistance Centre (PFTAC).  U nder the new system, taxes levied in Tonga would 
include a simplified individual income tax;  a single rate corporate income tax;  a single rate customs 
duty;  excise taxes on imports and local production of alcohol, tobacco, petroleum products and motor 
vehicles;  and a broad based consumption tax, th e Tongan Consumption Tax (TCT).  The TCT would 
replace the sales tax, fuel sales tax, and ports and services tax.  The expected date for introduction of 
the TCT and excise taxes on alcohol, tobacco, petroleum products, and motor vehicles was 
1 April 2005.  The proposed rates of TCT were 15 per cent and zero.  The 15 per cent rate would 
apply to most imports of goods and services supplied in  Tonga.  The main items to be zero rated were 
exports, international transport services, and basic provision of electricity and water for domestic 
consumption.  
66. In reply to questions raised by Members, the representative of Tonga stated that, subject to a 
limited number of exceptions, the TCT would apply to all imports and sales by registered TCT payers.  
The social exemptions to the TCT included medi cal, dental and nursing services; domestic public 
transport services; and education services, and the administrative exemptions included financial 
services; some property transactions; and a persona l baggage exemption for luggage accompanying 
passengers arriving by sea or air (limited to TOP 500 (US$ 250)).  The planned registration threshold 
for the TCT was TOP 100,000 (US$ 50,000).  Howeve r, businesses with an annual turnover below the 
threshold could register voluntarily if they so wished.    
67. The taxation reforms would introduce excise  duty with respect to imports and local 
production of alcohol products, to bacco products, petroleum products, and motor vehicles.  His 
Government would set the rates of duty.  Excise  duty on imports and on local production would be 
identical.     
68. The representative of Tonga confirmed that fro m the date of accession Tonga would apply its 
domestic taxes, including excise and consumption taxes, in full compliance with the relevant  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 19 
 
 
 provisions of the WTO, including Articles I and III of the GATT 1994, in a non-discriminatory 
manner to imports from all WTO Members and to do mestically-produced goods.  The Working Party 
took note of this commitment. 
- Quantitative import restrictions, including  prohibitions, quotas and licensing systems 
69. The representative of Tonga said that Tonga  prohibited imports of certain items, and 
importation of some goods was restricted and required  a special licence.  The items affected by these 
provisions are enumerated in Tables 4(a) and 4(b) , respectively.  He added that Tonga had not 
established specific import quotas for any product, and had no plans to introduce such quotas.   
70. Some Members requested more information on the rationale behind the import prohibition on 
fireworks, Tonga's definition of indecent articles a nd seditious matter, the justification for the current 
restrictions on imported motor vehicles, brandy, wh isky and rum, eggs, and cabin and ships biscuits, 
and any plans to modify or remove these import restrictions.   
71. The representative of Tonga replied that the importation of fireworks and indecent articles, 
including pornography, was regulated for safety reasons  and to protect public morals.  The Minister of 
Police could authorize importation of fireworks.  Tonga did not manufacture its own fireworks.  
Indecent articles and seditious matter were define d in accordance with the usual discretionary 
definition.  Motor vehicles had been included on the "r estricted list" solely to monitor imports for road 
safety reasons.  Most of Tonga's imports were second-hand vehicles which could represent a danger 
on the roads.  Tonga had no domestic production of mo tor vehicles, motorcycles or motor scooters, or 
parts thereof, and licenses were issued freely by th e Minister of Finance and the Minister of Police 
unless a vehicle was found to be obviously unsafe.  Importation of eggs was monitored and restricted to protect local poultry farms.  Tonga restricted imports of spirits for health reasons . 
72. The representative of Tonga confirmed that T onga would remove its licensing requirements 
for eggs, cabin and ships biscuits, brandy, whisky, an d rum from the date of its accession to the WTO.  
The Working Party took note of this commitment. 
73. The representative of Tonga added that any pers on or firm wishing to import goods into 
Tonga needed an import licence, covering each i ndividual consignment.  Mixed consignments 
required separate licenses.  The li censes were issued by the Licensing Unit at the Ministry of Labour, 
Commerce and Industries according to the Licenses Act,  Cap. 47.  Except for the restrictions noted 
above, the licensing system was liberal, and procedures were simple and straightforward.  Incomplete 
applications, or failure to abide by established proce dures, might lead to rejection of an application.  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 20  
 
 However, applications could be re-submitted and refusals could be appealed to the Minister for 
Labour, Commerce and Industries, or referred to the court system.   
74. Licenses were not transferable among importers, but  carried indefinite validity and no penalty 
applied to unused licenses.  The system had been revised to eliminate discriminatory treatment of 
foreigners, and import licenses were now granted au tomatically to Tongans and non-Tongans alike.  
A Trading Licence Screening Committee, which had been considering each application lodged by 
non-Tongans, had been abolished.  Although the licensing system facilitated the monitoring of 
imports and the collection of statistics, he acknowle dged that its principal purpose was to generate 
revenue for his Government.  In 1999, import li censes had raised more than TOP 200,000 (about 
US$ 100,000).  The licensing fees, differentiated by type of product, are enumerated in Table 5. 
75. Some Members reminded Tonga that Article 1:2 of the Agreement on Import Licensing 
Procedures stated that licensing procedures shoul d be administered in conformity with GATT 
provisions.  Article VIII of the GATT 1994 provided for all non-tariff import fees and charges to be 
limited in amount to the approximate cost of th e services rendered, and not to constitute a tax on 
imports or exports.  Moreover, the Agreemen t on Import Licensing Procedures required licensing 
systems to be operated in a transparent, predictabl e, fair and equitable manner, and it was noted that 
the private sector had expressed dissatisfaction with  Tonga's system of import (and export) licensing.  
Tonga was consequently urged to bring its licensing arrangements into conformity with the WTO.   
76. The representative of Tonga replied that his G overnment had reviewed the issues raised.  
Tonga needed to retain its import licensing procedur es for monitoring and statistical purposes.  Taking 
into account the views of WTO Members, his Govern ment was prepared to amend current procedures 
to ensure that, as from the date of accession, these would be in conformity with the relevant WTO 
provisions, in particular the provisions governing automatic licensing in the Agreement on Import 
Licensing Procedures and the provisions of Article VIII of the GATT 1994, providing that these fees 
shall be limited in amount to the approximate cost of the services rendered.  
77. The representative of Tonga confirmed that, from the date of accession, Tonga would not 
introduce, re-introduce or apply quantitative restrict ions on imports, or other non-tariff measures such 
as licensing, quotas, prohibitions, bans and other restri ctions having equivalent effect that cannot be 
justified under the provisions of the WTO Agreemen t.  The legal authority of the Government of 
Tonga to restrict or prohibit importation of goods  into Tonga would be applied from the date of 
accession in conformity with the relevant requirements of the WTO, in particular Articles XI, XII, XIII, XVIII, XIX, XX, and XXI of the GATT 1994, and the Agreements  on Agriculture, the  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 21 
 
 
 Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measure s, Import Licensing Procedures, Safeguards, and 
Technical Barriers to Trade.  The Working Party took note of these commitments.   
- Customs valuation 
78. The representative of Tonga said that Tonga was using the Brussels Definition of Value 
(BDV) system for the purposes of customs valuation.  The present system, set out in the Customs and 
Excise Act (in Part II, sections 15 and 16), was not based on transaction value as experience had 
shown that invoices presented to customs in Tonga in some cases did not reflect the price actually 
paid or payable.   
79. In order to assist Tonga in evaluating the key areas where additional legislation and 
institutions might be necessary, a Member remind ed Tonga that transaction value as defined in 
Article 1 of the Agreement on the Implementation of  Article VII of the GATT 1994 was the preferred 
method of appraisement, followed by the transacti on value of identical merchandise, the transaction 
value of similar merchandise, the deductive value, co mputed value, and finally the fallback method.  
Tonga's current legislation did not appear to provide for any of these methods of valuation.  Article 7 
of the Agreement prohibited appraisals based on (i) the selling price in the country of importation; 
(ii) a system providing for the acceptance for cu stoms purposes of the higher of two alternative 
values; (iii) the price of goods on the domestic market of the country of exportation; (iv) the cost of 
production other than computed values having been de termined for identical or similar goods; (v) the 
price of goods for export to a country other than the country of importation; (vi) minimum customs 
values; or (vii) arbitrary or fictitious values.  Tonga 's legislation would also have to provide adequate 
protection for the treatment of confidential info rmation in accordance with Article 10 of the 
Agreement;  transparency provisions ensuring the pub lication of laws, regulations, judicial decisions 
and administrative rulings regarding the valuati on of merchandise (Article 12); provisions granting 
importers the right to a written e xplanation of how judicial and administrative valuation decisions had 
been determined (Articles 11. 3 and 16); and bonded entry of me rchandise allowing importers to 
withdraw goods against sufficient surety or depos it to cover the ultimate payment of customs duties 
when the final determination of the cust oms value was being delayed (Article 13). 
80. The representative of Tonga recognised that T onga's present valuation rules did not conform 
to WTO requirements.  Tonga planned to introduce a new WTO-compatible system as soon as is 
practicable.  The Customs (Amendment) Bill 2003, addressing the changes necessary to the valuation 
system, had been passed by Tonga's Parliament in September 2003.  However, as a result of a review 
of Tonga's customs procedures, an entirely new Cust oms Act incorporating all the requirements of the 
WTO Customs Valuation Agreement was being drafted, to be submitted to Parliament in June 2004.   WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 22  
 
 81. The representative of Tonga indicated that  the implementation of the WTO Customs 
Valuation Agreement represented a major challenge fo r his Government.  It had originally believed 
that the major problem for Tonga, in complying with WTO requirements, would be to implement 
Articles 1-6 of the WTO Customs Valuation Agreem ent correctly (i.e., use of transaction value and 
the hierarchy of alternative methods of valuation) .  As Tonga had begun to move towards compliance 
with these requirements, it had realized that the provisions of the Agreement were interrelated and 
that effective implementation of the requirements as a whole would take some time.  To his end, 
Tonga requested a transition period in which to implement the Agreement on the Implementation of 
Article VII of the GATT 1994.  Tonga was prepared to  take a commitment to ensure that any changes 
made in its laws, regulations and practice during the transition period would not result in a lesser 
degree of consistency with the provisions of the Agreement on Customs Valuation than existed on the 
date of accession.  In this regard, the Government of Tonga requested that the Working Party grant it 
a transitional period of approximately two years from the date of its accession to allow it to obtain and 
utilize technical assistance to assist in the progr essive implementation of the obligations of the 
Agreement, which would be implemented in full starti ng from 1 January 2007, as detailed in Table 6.   
82. During this period, Tonga would ensure that its  regulations under current legislation in place 
and additional legislation implemented during the transition concerning customs valuation would be 
applied on a non-discriminatory basis to all imports.  Further, Tonga would ensure that any changes made in its laws, regulations and practice during the transition period would not result in a lesser 
degree of consistency with the provisions of the Agreement on Customs Valuation than existed on the 
date of accession.  Tonga would participate in th e work of the Committee on Customs Valuation.  He 
added that Tonga would seek out all available techni cal assistance to ensure that its capacity to fully 
implement the Agreement upon expiration of the tran sition period is assured.  The new legislation 
would be in full conformity with relevant WTO provisions.  A copy of the text of the proposed 
amendments had been submitted for review by the Working Party, and it was expected that these 
amendments would be passed by Parliament by the end of 2003.  In response to requests from delegations for more specificity, he proposed th at Tonga would proceed to conform its customs 
regime with the requirements of the Agreemen t on the Implementation of Article VII of the 
GATT 1994 in accordance with the action plan reproduced  in Table 6, setting out details of the steps 
that still remained to be taken in order to ach ieve this objective and a timetable for each step.  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 23 
 
 
 Table 6:  Action Plan for conformity with the  
Agreement on the Implementation of Article VII of the GATT 1994 
Action Deadline 
Working Party review of text and submission of legislation to the 
Parliament [Prior to accession] 
Parliamentary passage of legisla tion for WTO-consistent valuation 
rules [No later than 1 January 2005] 
Drafting of regulations for implem entation and enforcement of the 
amended Customs Act [No later than 1 January 2006] 
Appointment of staff - assessors, collectors, aud itors and inspectors [No later than 1 July 2006] 
Development of manuals and operating procedures [No later than 1 July 2006] 
Training for customs officials and officers [No later than 1 August 2006] 
Training for users [No later than 1 August 2006] 
Commencement of new Valuation System. 
Full implementation of the Agreement on the Implementation of 
Article VII of the GATT 1994. [No later than 1 January 2007] 
 
 
83. The representative of Tonga confirmed that le gislation on the valuation of imports for 
customs and taxation purposes conforming to th e requirements of the WTO Agreement on the 
Implementation of Article VII of  the GATT 1994 had been drafted and had been submitted to the 
Parliament for enactment.  Tonga would apply fu lly the Agreement no later than [1 January 2007] 
according to the action plan in Table 6.  During this period the scope of implementation of other 
aspects of the Agreement and other measures as describ ed in paragraphs [81 a nd 82] would be applied 
by Tonga.  The Working Party took note of this commitment.   
- Rules of origin 
84. The representative of Tonga said that importe rs were required to provide a combined 
certificate and invoice for imported goods, including details regarding the country of origin.  These 
details were required for st atistical purposes only.   
85. A Member stated that Tonga should implemen t the Agreement on Rules of Origin - under 
which Tonga would have certain obligations includ ing in regard to the transparency of laws, 
regulations and practices regarding rules of origin - from the date of accession.  Tonga should abide 
by the transitional disciplines of Article 2 of th e Agreement from the date of accession and Tonga's 
laws should be amended to incorporate the requireme nts of Article 2(h) and Annex II, paragraph 3(d), 
i.e. that for non-preferential and preferential rules of  origin, respectively, the customs authority will 
provide upon the request of an exporter, importer or  any person with a justif iable cause an assessment 
of the origin of the import and outline the terms unde r which it will be provided, and that any request 
for such an assessment would be accepted even be fore trade in the goods concerned began.  Upon WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 24  
 
 completion of the international work programme for the harmonisation of rules of origin, Article 3 of 
the Agreement would also apply to Tonga.   
86. A Member noted that Tonga had ratified the Pacific Island Countries Trade Agreement 
(PICTA), which established regional rules of origin .  A Rules of Origin Committee had been formed 
and would soon begin to implement the specific rule s of origin contained in PICTA, which complied 
with the WTO Agreement on Rules of Origin.  Th is Member consequently asked Tonga to confirm 
that its preferential and non-preferential rules of origin would comply with the WTO Agreement on 
Rules of Origin upon accession. 
87. In reply, the representative of Tonga conf irmed that the PICTA provisions were its only 
preferential rules of origin and that Tonga had no  non-preferential rules of origin.  He added that 
Tonga would incorporate the provisions of the WT O Agreement on Rules of Origin into the [.........] 
currently being drafted.  He expected Parliament to pass this legislation in mid-2004, and the new law 
would come into force by the end of the year.    
88. The representative of Tonga confirmed that, from the date of accession, Tonga's preferential 
and non-preferential rules of origin would comply fully with the WTO Agreement on Rules of Origin, 
including the provisions of Article 2(h) and Annex II , paragraph 3(d) of the Agreement, i.e., that for 
non-preferential and preferential rules of origin, respectively, the customs authority will accept 
requests from an exporter, importer or any person w ith a justifiable cause for an assessment of the 
origin of the import.  Tonga would also abide by  the relevant WTO provisions on transparency and 
the provision of information about its rules of orig in and their application.  The Working Party took 
note of this commitment.    
- Preshipment inspection 
89. The representative of Tonga said that that Tonga's legislation had no provision for pre-
shipment inspection.   
90. The representative of Tonga confirmed that if in the future Tonga engaged the services of a 
preshipment inspection enterprise or preshipment inspection requirements were introduced, it would 
be on a temporary basis and in conformity with the requirements of the Agreement on Preshipment 
Inspection.  Tonga would take full responsibility to ensure that such enterprises operating on its behalf 
complied with the provisions of WTO Agreements, including the Agreements on Customs Valuation, 
Import Licensing Procedures, and Technical Barriers to Trade.  [Provision would be made that decisions by such firms could be appealed by im porters in the same way as administrative decisions  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 25 
 
 
 taken by the Government of Tonga.][Provision would be made that decisions by such firms could be 
appealed as laid down in the relevant provi sions of the WTO, including the Agreement on 
Preshipment Inspection.]  Tonga would also give due consideration to the recommendations of the 
Working Party on Preshipment Inspection of 2 December 1997 and subsequent recommendations 
issued by that Working Party.  The Work ing Party took note of these commitments. 
- Anti-dumping, countervailing duties, safeguard regimes 
91. The representative of Tonga said that Tonga had no specific legislation providing for the 
imposition of anti-dumping, countervailing duty, or  safeguard measures, and had no plans to 
introduce such legislation.  In response to a Me mber's comment, he confirmed that Tonga did not 
intend to use tariff flexibility to address unfair or excessive imports.   
92. The representative of Tonga confirmed that  Tonga would not apply any anti-dumping, 
countervailing or safeguard measures until it had im plemented and notified appropriate laws in 
conformity with the provisions of the WTO Agreements on these matters.   Tonga would ensure the full conformity of any such legislation with th e relevant WTO provisions, including Article VI and 
XIX of the GATT 1994 and the Agreement on the Im plementation of Article VI, the Agreement on 
Subsidies and Countervailing Measures and the Agreem ent on Safeguards.  After such legislation was 
implemented [and notified], Tonga would only a pply any anti-dumping duties, countervailing duties 
and safeguard measures in full c onformity with the relevant WTO provisions.  The Working Party 
took note of these commitments.    
B. EXPORT REGULATION  
- Customs tariffs, fees and charges for services rendered, application of internal taxes to 
exports 
93. The representative of Tonga said that the require ments applicable to exportation were broadly 
similar to those affecting imports.  Thus, a pr ospective exporter in possession of a valid business 
licence should proceed to obtain an export licence fo r each consignment to be sold abroad.  Export 
licenses were issued by the Ministry of Labour, Co mmerce and Industries against payment of a fee, 
differentiated according to the prod uct exported.  The fees applicable for export licenses are listed in 
Table 7.  Tonga did not levy export duty on any item.   
94. Some Members noted that GATT Article VIII al so covered export fees and charges, which 
accordingly should be limited to the approximate cost of the services rendered.  Tonga was WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 26  
 
 encouraged to bring its export licensing fee struct ure into conformity with the requirements of 
GATT Article VIII. 
95. The representative of Tonga replied that his Government was reviewing the export licensing 
fee structure in the light of the views of WTO Members. 
96. The representative of Tonga confirmed that from the date of accession, Tonga would ensure 
that its export licensing fee regime would be in fu ll conformity with its WTO obligations, including 
Articles VIII:1(a), XI:1 and III:2 and 4 of the GAT T 1994.  The Working Pa rty took note of this 
commitment. 
- Export restrictions 
97. The representative of Tonga said that Tonga prohi bited exportation of raw coral and specified 
Tongan cultural articles.  Certain other items were r estricted and needed speci al authorization to be 
exported.  Approval from the Director of Health was required for exportation of medical biological 
and organic products; chemicals; drugs including na rcotic and barbiturates;  poisons; and second-hand 
clothing.  The Director of Agriculture authorized exports of veterinary biological and organic products; animals, birds, fish and reptiles; insect s and gastropods; plants and fungi; seeds; and trees 
and timber.  No quantitative restrictions applied to exports from Tonga, but - as noted above - a 
general export licensing procedure, applied on a consignment basis, was being enforced for revenue 
purposes.   
98. Asked to explain the export restrictions on agricu ltural products, he added that exports of rare 
and indigenous species (plants and animals) were restricted for environmental reasons.  Size and 
maturity, as well as requirements established in the country of importation, were determining factors 
in the exportation of some agricultural products.  Tonga subjected medical, biological and organic 
products to quarantine to prevent the spread of diseases, and narcotics-related drugs and chemicals 
were restricted.  He cited health reasons to jus tify Tonga's export restriction on second-hand clothing.  
He confirmed that the application and approva l procedures were identical for Tongans and non-
Tongans. 
99.  The representative of Tonga stated that from th e date of accession, Tonga's applied laws and 
regulations regarding export restrictions would be in  conformity with the relevant provisions of the 
WTO, including Articles XI, XVII, XX and XXI of the GATT 1994.  The Working Party took note of 
this commitment. 
- Export subsidies  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 27 
 
 
 100. The representative of Tonga said that TongaTrad e had been established as a "search engine" 
for local producers exploring new potential mark ets overseas.  TongaTrade identified the markets 
through research and gap analysis, assisted and f acilitated the development of exporters' marketing 
skills, and facilitated the developmen t and implementation of market management plans for groups of 
products.     
101. Export financing was available from the normal commercial banking system or through the 
Tonga Development Bank (TDB).  The TDB provi ded facilities including term loans - on purely 
commercial terms - for the production of commodities such  as squash, vanilla and root crops;  loans to 
cover costs such as freight, inputs (e.g. fertilizer and chemicals) and marketing; as well as loans to 
companies purchasing export commodities, such as vanilla .  Together with the Ministry of Agriculture 
and Forestry, the TDB administered an export diversification fund whereby the TDB provided loans 
to companies or registered societies for all matters  pertaining to the export of produce.  The fund had 
assisted in the development of squash exports in th e early 1990s.  All credits extended under this fund, 
in all TOP 1.05 million (US$ 525,000), had been full y repaid.  In addition, a Venture Capital Fund 
had been established to provide equity capital support for the development of viable private sector 
projects.  Capital had only been pr ovided to successful co mpanies wishing to expand their activities.  
The facility had been available to any type of busin ess and not calculated in relation to exports, but 
priority had been given to projects promoting exports or import substitu tion, foreign exchange 
earnings, the creation of employment, training oppor tunities and the introduction of new skills.  The 
maximum amount invested in a single project had been TOP 50,000 (about US$ 25,000).  Only three 
projects had been financed over a period of three years, and the Venture Capital Fund had now been 
terminated.   
102. The Tonga Reserve Bank had established an export guarantee scheme to guarantee loans from 
overseas sources.  However, this scheme had never b een used.  The Government of Tonga had, on an 
ad hoc basis, provided support to growers of s quash pumpkin against losses caused by drought and 
other natural disasters.  Support provided to squ ash pumpkins growers would be detailed in Tonga's 
Domestic Support Tables.  He stressed these measures had never involved any export price or similar guarantee. 
103. The representative of Tonga added that Tonga  benefited from a number of export market 
development programmes and schem es administered elsewhere.  The Forum Secretariat's export 
market development programme financed marketi ng missions to Australia, New Zealand and Japan 
for companies in Tonga with export potential.  Th e programme was offered through the offices of the 
South Pacific Trade Commission in Sydney (Australia), Auckland (New Zealand) and Tokyo (Japan).  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 28  
 
 These offices also financed trade fairs and exhibitio ns to promote products from the Pacific Islands.  
The Forum Secretariat supported private sector deve lopment in Pacific Island Countries, and operated 
a marketing support fund directed towards export-orie nted industries.  In addition, the Commonwealth 
Secretariat had funded participation by Tongan comp anies in trade fairs and exhibitions and provided 
technical assistance to export-oriented industries in  Tonga.  The ACP-EU Centre for Development of 
Industry financed marketing studies and capital fo r joint ventures between European Communities' 
and Tongan enterprises, especially those with an  export orientation, and the European Commission, 
through the European Development Fund, had funded market studies for export-oriented industries in 
Tonga and assisted in the production of promotion and marketing material.   
104. Tonga's Industrial Development Incentives Ac t encouraged manufacturing (export or 
otherwise) by providing import duty exemptions for holders of a Development Licence in respect of 
imported semi-finished products a nd/or raw materials, including packaging materials used in the 
processing, manufacturing or assembly of products.  He recalled the discussion that had taken place in 
the Working Party on Tonga's investment regime and the commitment undertaken by Tonga to formally remove any of the criteria under the IDI Act that were inconsistent with relevant WTO 
provisions (paragraph 21).  He confirmed that the be nefits granted under the Act were not subject to 
national treatment or market access limitations.  Criteria for obtaining benefits under the Industrial 
Development Incentives Act are described in the section "Investment regime". 
105. Concerning the possibility of duty drawback, the representative of Tonga said that applicants 
seeking to obtain a Development Licence under the IDI Act would provide a list of goods to be 
imported and thereby qualify for duty exemption.  Providing the applicant was successful in obtaining 
a Development Licence, Customs would exempt th e licence holder from the relevant duties when 
goods entered Tonga.  As the exemption applied at th e wharf, there would be no duty paid and hence 
no duty payment to be refunded.   
106. [The representative of Tonga confirmed that his Government did not maintain subsidies 
which met the definition of a prohibited subsidy, with in the meaning of Article 3 of the Agreement on 
Subsidies and Countervailing Measures, and did not seek transitions to provide for the progressive elimination of such measures within a fixed period of  time.  He further stated that Tonga would not 
introduce such prohibited subsidies in the future , and would apply export promotion measures in 
conformity with WTO requirements.  The Working Party took note of these commitments.]  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 29 
 
 
 C. INTERNAL POLICIES AFFECTING FOREIGN TRADE IN GOODS 
- Industrial policy, including subsidies 107. The representative of Tonga said that his G overnment's industrial development policies 
included encouraging private sector development,  through the Industrial Development Incentive (IDI) 
Act;  improving efficiency through skills training ;  promoting export-oriented manufacturing;  
developing traditional and non-traditional agricultu ral products having poten tial for added value 
through processing, notably cassava, kava, vanilla  and pumpkins;  and establishing TongaTrade as a 
centralised agricultural and commodity export prom otion wing of the Ministry of Labour, Commerce 
and Industries.   
108. Some Members stated that some of the benef its granted to holders of Development Licenses 
issued in accordance with the Industrial Develo pment Incentives Act such as exemption from income 
tax for up to five years; exemption from withhol ding tax for the same period; accelerated depreciation 
of assets; customs duties exemptions on imported goods; and a 50 per cent exemption from the Port 
and Services Tax would - to the extent that these benefits were made  contingent on export 
performance or import substitution in law or in fa ct - appear to violate the WTO Agreement on 
Subsidies and Countervailing Measures.  Tonga was thus urged to amend the Industrial Development 
Incentives Act. 
109. The representative of Tonga recalled the discussi on that had taken place in the Working Party 
on Tonga's investment regime and in particular  the commitment made by Tonga to amend the 
Industrial Development Incentives Act to remove form ally any criteria inconsistent with relevant 
WTO provisions (paragraph 21).  He confirmed once again that the Foreign Investment Act did not provide benefits contingent on export performance,  import substitution or local content requirements. 
110. The representative of Tonga stated that his G overnment did not currently, and would not in 
the future, grant any subsidies, including export subsidies, which met a definition of a prohibited 
subsidy within the meaning of Article 3 of the Ag reement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures.  
The representative of Tonga further confirmed that  as from the date of accession Tonga's laws would 
implement these commitments and that any subsi dy programs provided by his Government after 
accession would be administered in conformity w ith the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing 
Measures and that all necessary information on notifiable programs woul d be notified to the 
Committee on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures according to Article 25 of the Agreement upon 
entry into force of Tonga's Protocol of A ccession.  The Working Party took note of these 
commitments. WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 30  
 
 - Technical barriers to trade, sani tary and phytosanitary measures 
- Standards and certification 111. Some Members stated that Tonga would need  to implement fully the WTO Agreement on 
Technical Barriers to Trade as of the date of WTO accession, and requested detailed information on Tonga's standards and inspection regime, includ ing participation in international standards 
organizations such as the Codex Alimentarius Commission or the Organization of International 
Epizootics, procedures for incorporation of interna tional standards into Tonga's standards regime, any 
deficiencies in the present regime, and the steps T onga would be taking to remedy these deficiencies 
prior to WTO accession.  Tonga was reminded that  the WTO TBT Agreement did not require Tonga 
to implement standards in any area, but any sta ndards and conformity assessment systems introduced 
in the future would need to be consistent with WTO requirements. 
112. The representative of Tonga said that Tonga had no specific Standardization Act or technical 
regulations in place.  The Public Health Act 1992, which empowered the Minister for Health to make 
regulations in relation to food standards, had so fa r not been used for this purpose.  Thus, Tonga had 
not adopted any technical regulations, standards or conformity assessment procedures to date, and had 
no plans to do so.  The Consumer Protection Act 2000 did refer to the implementation of approved 
standards, including labelling requirements, to protect consumers, but no standards had been 
established.  Foreign goods entering Tonga were acco rdingly not subject to any particular standards-
related procedures or requirements.  As to the est ablishment of a TBT Enquiry Point, the WTO Desk 
at the Ministry of Labour, Commerce and Industries would serve this function. 
113. In response to questions raised, the representative of Tonga restated that Tonga had not 
adopted any technical regulations, standards or  conformity assessment procedures to date, and 
currently had no plans to do so.  Tonga had already nominated an enquiry point, being the WTO Desk at the Ministry of Labour, Commerce and Industries.  Tonga was willing to accept a Protocol 
commitment that if, in the future, technical regulations or standards and conformity assessment 
procedures were to be introduced, Tonga would ne ither adopt nor implement these procedures until it 
had implemented and notified a ppropriate laws in conformity with the Agreement on Technical 
Barriers to Trade.  This legislation would specify the authority responsible for making notifications to 
the WTO, the publication to be used for the publica tion of proposed measures, the procedure to be 
used for taking comments into account, the governme nt body responsible for developing technical 
regulations, etc.   WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 31 
 
 
 114. The representative of Tonga said that the Quaran tine Division of the Ministry of Agriculture 
and Forestry and the Ministry of Health was re sponsible for Tonga's sanitary and phytosanitary 
measures relating to foreign trade in animals, pl ants and related products.  The principal pieces of 
SPS-related legislation were the Plant Quarantine Act (Cap 127) 1988 together with the Amendments 
to that Act and its associated Regulations 1995 a nd Fee Regulations 1997; the Animal Diseases Act 
(Cap 146) 1978; and the Public Health Act 1992 and the Amendments to that  Act.  The Quarantine 
Act Cap. 77, gave the Director of Health powers to  impose quarantine restrictions for the protection of 
public health.  Imports regulations  required a code of conduct for im ports and the release of imported 
goods, including initiation of pest risk analysis or pest risk assessment.  He confirmed that Tonga had 
the capability of doing its own risk assessments.  Tonga 's legislation did not refer specifically to 
scientific evidence, but regulations were, in fact, based on this principle.  Tonga had no measures 
establishing tolerances for the use of additives or contaminants. 
115. Asked to what extent Tonga's standards aligne d with relevant international standards, the 
representative of Tonga added that Tonga based its  SPS measures on international standards to the 
extent possible.  Tonga was a member of the OIE (International Office for Animal Diseases), the 
International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) an d the Codex Alimentarius Commission, and also 
received assistance from regional organisations, in particular the Secretariat of the Pacific Plant Protection Organisation (PPPO) and, on the animal side, the Secretariat of the Pacific Community.  The Plant Quarantine Act and its Amendments were a ligned with international standards such as those 
of the FAO (Food Agriculture Organisation) and the IPPC.  The Pacific Plant Protection Organisation 
operated actively to set standards fitting to Pacific requirements.  Such standards were submitted to 
the member countries (Forum Island Countries incl uding New Zealand and Australia) for funding and 
implementation.  In addition, the PPPO reviewed an d drafted standards regulations of any member.  
The PPPO met every three years and was chaired by  Tonga.  Tonga used FAO and OIE standards as a 
basis for its own standards relating to animals a nd animal products.  Regarding the principle of 
equivalence, Tonga recognized different measures ach ieving the same level of protection, and based 
its regulations in this respect on those of Austra lia and New Zealand.  Importation was only prohibited 
when necessary to protect human, animal or plant life and health.  A list of products prohibited in 
accordance with the Plant Qu arantine Act and in the Animal Diseases Act is reproduced in Table 8. 
116. Some Members requested more detailed informati on and specific legislative references to be 
able to evaluate Tonga's SPS regime and its cons istency with the WTO Agreement on the Application 
of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures.  For releva nt legislation or administrative procedures not yet 
in place, Tonga was asked to indicate when these laws  or procedures would be developed.  A Member 
noted that Tonga's regime did not appear to be consistent with the SPS Agreement on the issue of WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 32  
 
 transparency.  Tonga would need to have notificatio n procedures in place so that its trading partners 
could be made aware of changes in Tonga's quarantine measures, for example, quarantine 
arrangements against foot and mouth disease. 
117. In reply, the representative of Tonga noted that three new Acts had been passed by the 
Legislative Assembly in 2002, namely the Anim al Diseases Bill (Amendment) Act, the Agricultural 
Commodities Export Act, and the Pesticides Act (2002).  FAO and South Pacific Commission 
consultants had assisted in the drafting of this legislation, which should be in conformity with 
international requirements.  Tonga did not yet have legislation making observation of the SPS 
Agreement mandatory.  Such legislation, together  with regulations containing the administrative 
procedures necessary to administer the SPS Agreement,  would come into force as from the date of 
Tonga's accession to the WTO.  The regulations w ould specify, for instance, the enquiry point, the 
authority responsible for making notifications to  the WTO, the publication to be used for the 
publication of proposed measures, the procedure to  be used for taking comments into account, the 
Government body responsible for de veloping regulations, conducting ri sk assessments and control, as 
well as inspection and approval procedures.   
118. He confirmed that Tonga had the technical infr astructure in place required to implement the 
SPS Agreement, including an operational SPS Enquiry Point.  He provided a note on the implementation and administration of the SPS Agreement, circulated in document WT/ACC/TON/9.  Tonga was ready to respond to all reasonable ques tions regarding its sanita ry and phytosanitary 
measures, which should be addressed to the Director of Agriculture at the Ministry of Agriculture and 
Forestry .  The Ministry was seeking financial assistan ce for the development of an SPS information 
web site, and would welcome any funding provided by WTO Members as part of their capacity building assistance to developing countries.  
119. Concerning quarantine measures against food and mouth disease, Tonga had taken 
precautionary measures by not allowing importation of animals or animal product from foot and 
mouth disease infected countries and regions.  Tonga watched high risk vessels coming from infected countries, and screened air passengers arriving from infected destinations.  He stressed that 
importation of the items listed in Table 8 was not prohibited per se , but that the pest risk analysis 
system used by Tonga required those applying for import permits to provide technical and biological 
data to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry indicating that the species were free of the regulated 
quarantine pest concern or, if an effective treatme nt was available, import permits would be issued 
with additional quarantine requirements.  In respon se to a Member who felt that it would be necessary 
to amend the relevant legislation to clarify the f act that "prohibited" products were actually only  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 33 
 
 
 subject to "restriction", i.e. import permits, the repr esentative of Tonga replied that, in his view, there 
was no need to revise the legislation as several s ections of the Plant Quarantine Act 1998 and Plant 
Quarantine Regulations 1995 provided an e xplanation of the term "prohibited".   
120. The representative of Tonga confirmed that Tonga would neither adopt nor implement 
technical regulations or standards and c onformity assessment procedures until Tonga had 
implemented and notified appropriate  laws in conformity with the provisions of the Agreement on 
Technical Barriers to Trade.  Tonga would ensure th e full conformity of any such legislation with the 
Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade.   The representative of Tonga also confirmed that Tonga would apply the Agreement on the Application of Sa nitary and Phytosanitary Measures from the date 
of accession without recourse to any transition peri od.  The Working Party took note of these 
commitments. 
- Trade-related investment measures 
121. The representative of Tonga said that, other than the measures set out in the Industrial 
Development Incentives Act (1978) in relation to  the Development Licence programme, Tonga had 
no specific measures related to investment in trad e-related businesses.  These measures were, in his 
view, not inconsistent with the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Investment Measures, and Tonga 
therefore did not intend to notify any measures under the Agreement. 
122. Having reviewed the Industrial Development Incen tives Act, some Members considered that 
the Act referred to import substitution, export pe rformance or local content criteria which would 
constitute trade-related investment measures.  It was noted that, even though these provisions did not 
appear to be applied in practice, the possibility to deny or revoke an industry's licence if export 
requirements were not met qualified as a TRIM.  Members sought a commitment that the Industrial 
Development Incentives Act would be amended, and th at the revised Act and associated practices and 
decision-making procedures would be consistent w ith the WTO, including the TRIMs Agreement. 
123. The representative of Tonga recalled the discussi on that had taken place in the Working Party 
on Tonga's investment regime and in particular  the commitment made by Tonga to amend the 
Industrial Development Incentives Act to remove form ally any criteria inconsistent with relevant 
WTO provisions (paragraph 21).  The Foreign Investment Act aimed at regulating foreign investment.  
The Act had been passed by Parliament and would enter into force upon finalization of the 
regulations.  The representative of Tonga stated th at, in his view, the Foreign Investment Act was 
consistent with trade-related i nvestment measures under the GATT 1994. WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 34  
 
 124.  The representative of Tonga said that Tonga w ould not maintain any measures inconsistent 
with the TRIMs Agreement, that Tonga's laws wo uld implement this commitment, and that Tonga 
would apply the TRIMs Agreement from the date  of accession without recourse to any transition 
period.  The Working Party took note of this commitment.   
- State-trading entities 
125. Noting that the Government of Tonga had ha d a stake in 26 enterprises in 1998, some 
Members requested Tonga to provide informati on on any state trading enterprises operating under 
exclusive or special privileges in relation to impor ts or exports.  Specific questions were raised 
concerning the activities of Tonga Investments Ltd., Frisco, Primary Produce Limited, Royal Beer Co. 
Ltd., Leiloa Duty Free Shops (Tonga) Ltd., Sea Star Fishing Co. Ltd, Tonga Timber Ltd., and the Government Supplies Department. 
126.  The representative of Tonga replied that a description of the status and operations of 
enterprises wholly and partially owned by the Govern ment of Tonga could be found in paragraphs [24 
to 26] of this report.  None of the enterprises lis ted enjoyed a government monopoly in their activities.  
A privatization paper had been endorsed by the Ca binet, identifying Leiola Duty Free as a candidate 
for privatization in 2003/04.  In his view, Tonga ma intained no State-trading enterprises as defined by 
GATT Article XVII and the Understanding on the In terpretation of Article XVII of the GATT 1994. 
127. The representative of Tonga confirmed that Tonga would apply its laws and regulations 
governing the trading activities of any State-owned and other enterprises with special or exclusive 
privileges and would act in full conformity with th e provisions of the WTO Agreement, in particular 
Article XVII of the GATT 1994 and th e Understanding on that Article and Article VIII of the GATS.  
Tonga would notify any enterprise falling within the scope of Article XVII.  The Working Party took 
note of these commitments. 
- Free zones, special economic areas 
128. The representative of Tonga said that Tonga had no designated free zones or free economic 
zones. 
129. The representative of Tonga said that any fr ee zones or special economic areas which it 
established would be fully subject to the coverage of  its commitments in its Protocol of Accession to 
the WTO Agreement and that Tonga would ensure en forcement of its WTO obligations in those zones 
or areas.  In addition, goods produced in any such  zones or areas under tax and tariff provisions that 
exempt imports and imported inputs  from tariffs and certain taxes w ould be subject to normal customs  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 35 
 
 
 formalities when entering the rest of Tonga, includ ing the application of tariffs and taxes.  The 
Working Party took note of these commitments. 
- Government procurement 
130. The representative of Tonga said that no specifi c procedures applied to goods and services 
purchased within Tonga.  He confirmed that local  suppliers did not benefit from any preferential 
margin in government procurement.  His govern ment had appointed agents in Australia and 
New Zealand to handle procurement of goods and services to be obtained outside Tonga. 
131. Procurement of supplies was organized through public tender, open to all local and overseas 
suppliers.  All bids were evaluated at the closi ng date of the Tender, and the lowest-price bidder 
would be awarded the contract or order.  A speci fic form ("Overseas Requisition") would be prepared 
for winning bids from overseas.  The form was endorsed by Treasury and approved by the Prime 
Minister before being sent to the Government Agen t in the country concerned.  The Overseas Agent 
would place the order with the supplier, arrange tran sportation, verify specification expedites etc., pay 
the supplier and bill the Government of Tonga.  
132. Asked whether Tonga intended to initiate negotiations for accession to the Agreement on 
Government Procurement, the representative of Tonga  noted that this plurilateral agreement had not 
been drawn up with the situation of very small deve loping countries, such as Tonga, in mind.  Few, if 
any, Tongan government contracts would be covere d due to the value thresholds applied under the 
Agreement.  Moreover, large contracts were of ten implemented in the context of economic aid 
programmes, which would be cove red by the procurement rules of the organisations concerned. 
- Agricultural policies 
133. The representative of Tonga said that the polic ies of his Government regarding trade in 
agricultural products did not differ significantly from  those applicable to trade in general.  The 
establishment of TongaTrade and the facilities offe red by the Tonga Development Bank were aimed 
at encouraging the development and diversificati on of agricultural and commodity exports.  He 
stressed that Tonga had not introduced any price support or export subsidy measures.  He confirmed 
that expenditures for infrastructural  facilities required for th e facilitation of export were limited to the 
provision or construction of capital works only, and di d not constitute subsidies to inputs or operating 
costs.  The fees paid by exporters for these types of facilities were commensurate to the costs of the 
services rendered.   WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 36  
 
 134. The policies of his Government were geared  towards diversifying the agricultural sector 
through strengthening and developing infrastructural  and support mechanisms such as the introduction 
of new crop varieties, market development, new quarantine and new me thods of treatment for 
produce, and to provide continuous assistance to farmers.   
135. The representative of Tonga provided informa tion on domestic support and export subsidies 
in agriculture for the period 1996/97 to 1998/99 in document WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/3 and Revision 1.  
He noted that all support recorded during this pe riod qualified as "Green Box" measures exempt from 
the reduction commitment.  His Government provide d a number of general service measures, mainly 
through the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, in part financed by donor countries and agencies.  The figures provided in the supporting tables incl uded external assistance provided through the 
government system. 
136. Tonga's commitments on agricultural tariffs a nd on domestic support and export subsidies for 
agricultural products are contained in the Sc hedule of Concessions and Commitments on Goods 
(document WT/ACC/TON/[  ]/Add.1) annexed to Tonga's Protocol of Accession to the WTO. 
- Trade in civil aircraft 
137. A member noted that Tonga exempted ground equipment and technical supplies required for 
use at airports in connection with air services from customs duty, and asked whether Tonga would 
consider binding its customs duties and other revenue charges on civil ai rcraft and parts at zero in its 
Schedule of Concessions and Commitments on Goods. 
138. The representative of Tonga confirmed that ground equipment and technical supplies for use 
at airports in connection with air services were exempt from customs duties, but not from the 20 per cent Port and Services Tax, which was an ODC.  In the market access negotiations, Tonga had 
already offered to bind its ODCs at zero and wa s negotiating tariff bindings at levels that would 
permit it to maintain a single tariff rate on all produc ts.  This was a major re form and it was important 
to Tonga not to depart from the single rate.  The tariff on aircraft and parts would not have a 
protective effect as Tonga had no domestic production of these goods.    WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 37 
 
 
 V. TRADE-RELATED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY REGIME 
- General 139. The representative of Tonga provided information on the implementation of the WTO 
Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intell ectual Property Rights (TRIPS) in document 
WT/ACC/TON/6. 
- Intellectual Property Authorities 
140. Authorities responsible for policy formulation and implementation included the Intellectual 
Property and Company Registration (IPCR) Office, a ccountable for the implementation of intellectual 
property legislation;  the Hon. Minister of Labour , Commerce and Industries, the Minister responsible 
for the Industrial Property Act 1994, the Copyright Act 2002, the Protection of Geographical Indications Act 2002, the Protection of Layout-Designs  (Topographies) of Integrated Circuits Act 
2001, and the Unfair Competition Act 2002; and the Supreme Court, responsible for settling 
intellectual property disputes.  All intellectual propert y regulations had to be approved by the Cabinet. 
- Intellectual property legislation 
141. The representative of Tonga said Tonga would amend its intellectual property legislation to 
ensure consistency with WTO intellectual property ru les and obligations.  The main pieces of Tonga's 
current intellectual property regime were the Industrial Property Act 1994, the Protection of 
Geographical Indications Act 2001, the Protection of  Layout-Designs (Topographies) of Integrated 
Circuit Act 2001, the Copyright Act 2002, and the Protection of Unfair Competition Act 2002.  The 
Industrial Property Act had been implemented since 1 February 2000, the Copyright Act was awaiting 
approval by His Majesty, and regulations implem enting the Protection of Geographical Indications 
Act, the Protection of Layout-Designs (Topographies) of Integrated Circuits Act, and the Unfair 
Competition Act were in preparation.  
142. Some Members were concerned that several TRIPS requirements, in particular the most-
favoured nation and national treatment provisions of the TRIPS Agreement, had not been included in 
Tonga's legislation.  The representative of Tonga  acknowledged that Tonga's current intellectual 
property regime did not conform fully to WTO requirements.  Further work would be needed to bring its legislation into conformity w ith WTO rules and obligations.  He accordingly requested that Tonga 
be granted a transitional period permitting Tonga to  complete this process after its accession to the 
WTO.  Technical assistance would be required to help  introduce the necessary legislative changes.     WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 38  
 
 - Participation in international intellectual property agreements 
143. The representative of Tonga said that Tonga ha d become member of the World Intellectual 
Property Organisation on 14 June 2001, and had been a party to the Paris Convention for the 
Protection of Industrial Property and the Berne Conv ention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic 
Works as of the same date.  These two conventions were self-executing under Tonga's legal regime.  
His Government was also considering membership  in the Patent Cooperation Treaty, the Madrid 
Protocol and Agreements, and the Hague Agreem ent, and was seeking more information on the 
Geneva Phonogram Convention and th e WIPO Copyright Treaty.  Tonga would examine the Geneva 
Phonogram Convention and the WIPO Copyright Treati es in terms of its national interest and explore 
the possibility of joining them in the future, as appropriate. 
- Substantive Standards of Protection, Incl uding Procedures for the Acquisition and 
Maintenance of Intellectual Property Rights 
 - Copyright and related rights 
144. The representative of Tonga said that the Copyright Act of 1985, revised in 1987 and 1988, 
had provided some protection to literary and dramat ic works.  However, the Act was not entirely 
compliant with the TRIPS Agreement, and its entr y into force had been delayed due to lack of 
implementing copyright regulations.  The Act requi red revision to provide protection for computer 
programmes as literary works under the Berne Conventi on 1971; databases by copyright; rental rights 
for owners of rights in films, sound recordings, phonograms and computer programmes; protection to 
broadcasting organizations to control the use of th e broadcast signals for a minimum of 20 years; and 
to protect performers from unauthorized reco rding and broadcasting of live performances. 
145. He added that Parliament had passed a ne w law - the Copyright Act 2002 - which would 
repeal the existing copyright legislation.  This Ac t addressed most of the deficiencies of the existing 
copyright legislation with respect to compliance with WTO requirements.  However, it would need 
some amendment to ensure full conformity w ith the requirements of the TRIPS Agreement. 
- Trademarks, including service marks 
146. The representative of Tonga said that tradem arks were protected in accordance with the 
Industrial Property Act 1994, Part V and VI.  Prot ection for well known trademarks or service marks  
was provided for in Part V, Section 26 (2) (e) of the Act.  He noted that some  provisions of the TRIPS 
Agreement, notably Articles 15.4 (nature of the go ods and services), 17 (exceptions) and 20 (special 
requirements), had not been included in Tonga's exis ting legislation, but would be covered in the new  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 39 
 
 
 legislation and regulations that would be introduced to ensure full conformity with the requirements 
of the WTO TRIPS Agreement.  
- Geographical indications, including appellations of origin 
147. The representative of Tonga said that geogra phical indications were protected under the 
Protection of Geographical Indications Act 2001.  Th e Act, was in his view, in full compliance with 
the requirements of the TRIPS Agreement.  
- Industrial designs 
148. The representative of Tonga said that industr ial designs, including textile designs, were 
protected under the Industrial Property Act 1994 (Par t IV) and the Intellectual Property Regulations 
1998.  The relevant provisions of the Act and regula tions were, in his view, in full compliance with 
the requirements of the TRIPS Agreement. 
- Patents 
149. The representative of Tonga said that the scope of patentability, the rights conferred by a 
patent and the criteria under which non-voluntary licenses were granted, were laid down in the 
Industrial Property Act 1994 and in the Industrial Property Regulations  1998.  The Act had been in 
force since 1 February 2000.  The relevant provision s of the Act and regulations were, in his view, in 
compliance with the requirements of the TRIPS Agreement.  Tonga was not yet a party to the Patent Cooperation Treaty, but was considering membership. 
150. The Intellectual Property and Company Registra tion (IPCR) Office acted as Tonga's Patent 
Office.  Patent holders from third countries coul d apply for registration in accordance with the 
Industrial Property Act 1994.  The Law afforded patent protection for any invention, whether a 
product or process, in any field of technology if it was new, involved an inventive step, and was industrially applicable.  Applications for patents we re to be made using Form 1, prescribed in the 
Industrial Property Act 1994, and submitted to the IP CR Office.  Tonga had an agreement with IP 
Australia for it to conduct technical examinations of inventions and to provide search reports as to the 
patentability of inventions.  Patent terms of up to  20 years from the filing date were available. 
151. The representative of Tonga confirmed that the terms of its accession did not preclude access 
of Tonga to the benefits under the Doha Declar ation on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health 
(WT/MIN/(03)/SR/4).  [The Working Party took note of this commitment.] WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 40  
 
 - Plant variety protection 
152. The representative of Tonga said that plant vari eties were currently not protected under any 
legislation in Tonga.   
- Layout designs of integrated circuits 
153. The representative of Tonga said that layout designs  of integrated circuits were protected in 
accordance with the Protection of Layout-Designs (T opographies) of Integrated Circuit Act 2001.  
The relevant provisions of the Act and regulations were, in his view, in full compliance with the 
requirements of the TRIPS Agreement. 
- Requirements of undisclosed information,  including trade secrets and test data 
154. The representative of Tonga said that Tonga had no specific legislation addressing this 
subject-matter.  However, section 3 of the Tonga Ci vil Law Act stipulated that the Court should apply 
the common law of England and the rules of equity  where there was no applicable law in place in 
Tonga.  He added that Tonga would need to pass new legislation to protect against unfair commercial 
use of undisclosed test or other data. 
- Measures to Control Abuse of Intellectual Property Rights 
155. The representative of Tonga said that measures to  control the abuse of intellectual property 
rights were included in the Industrial Property Ac t 1994 and the Protection of Unfair Competition Act 
2002.  However, Tonga's legislation would need to be  amended to ensure that such measures were in 
line with TRIPS requirements.  His Government  had launched a limited scale public awareness 
programme on intellectual property regulations and the IPCR Office was organizing training for 
customs officials.  Further training would include police forces. 
156. Complaints concerning intellectual property matte rs could be lodged with the IPCR Office.  
Decisions of the IPCR could be appealed to a court. 
- Enforcement 
157. The representative of Tonga indicated that Tonga would need technical assistance to complete 
the necessary legislative changes to implement the TRIPS Agreement and to ensure that the 
Agreement's provisions were being observed, includi ng the introduction of provisions addressing civil 
judicial procedures and remedies, provisional m easures, administrative procedures and remedies, 
special border measures, and criminal procedures,  as well as to carry out additional steps to  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 41 
 
 
 implement and enforce the TRIPS Agreement, e.g. the training of personnel and the development of 
infrastructure.  In answer to questions raised, he stated that pirated goods were sold in Tonga although 
the majority of the public did not recognize them as such.  His Government was introducing 
programmes to raise the awareness of intellectual property rights. 
158. The representative of Tonga said that Tonga had enacted new legislation in recent years that 
provided for WTO-consistent rules for the protection of intellectual property in several areas, 
including the Protection of Geographical Indicati ons Act 2001 and the Protection of Layout Designs 
(Topographies) of Integrated Circuit Act 2001.  The new Copyright Act 2002 would need to be amended to ensure full conformity with require ments of the TRIPS Agreement.  Regulations 
implementing this legislation was in development.   He acknowledged that further work would be 
needed in other areas to implement new legislation to bring Tonga's intellectual property regime into 
conformity with the WTO Agreement on TRIPS.  Existing legislation and regulations, covering 
Patents, Industrial Property, Trademarks and servi ces marks would need amendment.  New legislation 
providing for protection of undisclosed information and general enforcement of intellectual property 
protection would also be needed.  [These were in  development, and would be circulated to the 
Working Party for review prior to the conclusion of the negotiations.  The Government of Tonga 
intended to enact these laws and implement th e relevant additional regulations prior to 
1 January 2005.]   
159. All complaints regarding intellectual propert y infringements should be lodged with the 
Supreme Court, except in the case of opposition to th e registration of marks, which should be lodged 
with the IPCR Office.  Responding to questions, he reminded the Working Party of the extreme 
smallness of Tonga's economy, which limited the ga ins of rightholders in upholding their rights, and 
thus their inclination to pursue violations of their rights in Tonga.   
160.  At present key Ministries lacked expertise about the obligations created under the TRIPS 
Agreement.  Tonga recognized that cooperation with other Forum Group countries in the area of 
intellectual property protec tion would be useful, and membership of the Geneva, Brussels, UPOV and 
WIPO Conventions, the Patent Cooperation Treat y, and the Madrid Protocol would facilitate 
compliance with the TRIPS Agreement.  [T onga intended to accede to these treaties by 
1 January 2006.]   Tonga was a party to both the Paris and Bern e Conventions.  Care had been taken to 
ensure that all intellectual property legislation w as in line with the provisions of these Conventions.  
The provisions, particularly those relating to nationa l treatment, priority and protected properties were 
fully enforced. WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 42  
 
 161. The representative of Tonga thanked the Working Party for its recognition that technical 
assistance would be required and the governments con cerned for the technical assistance that they had 
already provided.  For the reasons given above, the Government of Tonga requested that the Working 
Party grant a transitional period to [1 January 2007 ], approximately three years from the date of its 
accession, to obtain technical assistance and equip th e Government to fully implement the obligations 
of the TRIPS Agreement.  He confirmed that, if su ch a transitional period were granted, Articles 3, 4 
and 5 of the Agreement, providing for, inter alia , national treatment and MFN treatment under current 
legislation in place would apply, and Tonga woul d ensure that any changes made in its laws, 
regulations and practice in this period would not result in a lesser degree of consistency with the 
provisions of the TRIPS Agreement that existed on the date of accession.  In addition, Tonga would 
not grant patents, trademarks, or copyrights, or ma rketing approvals for pharmaceutical or agricultural 
chemicals inconsistent with the prov isions of the TRIPS Agreement.   
162. The representative of Tonga also stated that, should a transition be granted, existing rates of 
infringement would not in his view increase signi ficantly over this transition period and that any 
infringement of intellectual property rights would be addressed immediately in cooperation and with 
assistance from affected right holders.  Tonga would protect against unfair commercial use of 
undisclosed test or other data submitted in supp ort of applications for marketing approval of 
pharmaceutical or of agricultural chemical products which utilize new chemical entities, by providing 
that no person other than the pers on that submitted such data may, w ithout the permission of the latter 
person, rely on such data in support of an applica tion for product approval for a period of at least five 
years from the date on which Tonga granted marketing approval to the person that produced the data.  
Prior to issuance of marketing approval of any pharmaceutical and agricultural chemicals products, 
the relevant Ministries in Tonga would determine the existence of a patent covering a product for 
which an application for marketing approval had been  filed by a party other than the patentee, and 
must not approve such application for marketing approval until the date of the expiration of such 
patent.  He added that Tonga would seek out all available technical assistan ce to ensure that its 
capacity to enforce fully its TRIPS-consistent lega l regime upon expiration of the transition period is 
assured.  In response to requests from delegations for more specificity, the representative of Tonga 
presented an Action Plan setting out details of the step s that still remained to be taken in order to 
achieve this objective and a timetable for each step (Table 9).    WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 43 
 
 
 Table 9:  Action Plan for conformity with the TRIPS Agreement 
Action Deadline 
Drafting of new legislations, covering: 
- protection of undisclosed information and trade secrets; 
- plant variety protection; 
- general and enforcement obligations under the TRIPS 
Agreement. [No later than 1 July 2004] 
Drafting of amendments to existing le gislations to address deficiencies 
vis-à-vis the WTO Agreement on TRI PS as identified in response to 
WT/ACC/9, specifically: 
- Industrial Property Act 1994; 
- Copyright Act 2002. [No later than 1 July 2004] 
Circulation of draft legislation addressing remaining deficiencies vis-à-
vis the WTO TRIPS Agreement in Tonga's intellectual property rights 
regime. [July 2004] 
Parliamentary passage of new legislations and amendments to existing 
legislations. [No later than 1 January 2005] 
Drafting of implementing regulations for Intellectual Property 
legislations, specifically: 
- Copyright Act 2002; 
- Geographical Indications Act 2001; 
- Protection of Layout Designs (Topographies) of Integrated 
Circuits Act 2001; 
- new legislations required, as detailed above. [No later than 1 July 2005] 
Development of manuals and operating procedures [No later than 1 January 2006] 
Appointment of staff [No later than 1 January 2006] 
Training of key IP personnel [No later than 1 July 2006] 
Training for users (development of information brochure and training 
program) [No later than 1 January 2007] 
Full implementation of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of 
Intellectual Property Rights. [No later than 1 January 2007] 
 
163. [The representative of Tonga confirmed that, if a transitional period were granted, Articles 3, 
4 and 5 of the Agreement, providing for, inter alia, national treatment and MFN treatment under 
current legislation in place would apply, and Tonga would ensure that  any changes made in its laws, 
regulations and practice in this period would not result in a lesser degree of consistency with the 
provisions of the TRIPS Agreement that existed on the date of accession.  In addition, Tonga would 
not grant patents, trademarks, or copyrights, or ma rketing approvals for pharmaceutical or agricultural 
chemicals inconsistent with the provisions of the TRIPS Agreement.  The Working Party took note of 
this commitment.] 
[The representative of Tonga stated that legisl ation on copyright and re lated rights, patents, 
trademarks, industrial designs, geographical indicati ons, layout designs of integrated circuits, and 
protection of undisclosed information (trade secr ets) conforming to the requirements of the 
Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights would be enacted by the date of 
Tonga's accession to the WTO.  Tonga would a pply the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 44  
 
 Intellectual Property Rights no later than 1 January 2 007 according to the action plan in Table 9, with 
the understanding that during this period protection for intellectual property ri ghts listed in paragraphs 
[161 and 162] would be applied in Tonga.  The Working Party took note of this commitment.]   
VI. POLICIES AFFECTING TRADE IN SERVICES 
164. The representative of Tonga said that services account ed for more than 50 per cent of Tonga's 
GDP.  While the Ministry of Labour, Commerce and Industry – which would serve as Tonga's 
services enquiry point - was responsible for formulating polici es related to services sectors, there was 
no comprehensive policy and individual services sector s were regulated independently.  Overall, the 
regulatory structure was very simple.  The Licen sing Act, Cap 47, which covered most services, 
required services providers to hold a licence obtained against payment of an annual fee (detailed information on the fee structure was provided in  document WT/ACC/TON/3, pages 29-31).  Tonga's 
legislation contained no specific provisions regula ting monopolies, safeguard measures, international 
payments, or government procurement of services.  A 25 per cent local participation requirement for 
access to foreign service suppliers in retail, constr uction, and tourism services needing no special 
equipment and skills, which had been implemente d for economic development purposes, had been 
abolished. 
165. He added that Tonga applied fully the most-fa voured-nation principle to trade in services, 
including in the recognition of professional qualif ications.  He considered Tonga's laws and 
regulations on certification for foreign qualification in compliance with the provisions of the General 
Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS).  Tonga ha d no national qualification standards of its own, 
but applied those of other countries when necessary.  In the case of medical practitioners, the Director 
of Health applied the standards of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, th e United Kingdom, and the 
United States, in accordance with the Medical Regist ration Act, Cap 75.  Requests were dealt with 
case-by-case when recognition of foreign professional qualifications involved countries not explicitly 
mentioned in the relevant legislation. 
166. Legal services were regulated by the 1989 Law Practitioners Ac t.  The Act required any legal 
practitioner to be included in the Roll of Law Practit ioners held by the Supreme Court, to possess a 
practising certificate, and be a member of the T onga Law Society.  Membership in the Tonga Law 
Society required documented professional knowledge and experience in common law jurisdiction, 
minimum three character references, and an expressed intent to practice law in Tonga.  However, the 
legal practitioner did not need to reside in To nga.  Appearance before Tonga's Supreme Court 
required a diploma in law from the University of South Pacific or at least a Bachelor's degree in law from a recognised university.  Foreign lawyers were  subject to the same rules as domestic legal  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 45 
 
 
 practitioners.  The representative of Tonga confir med that foreign legal firms and lawyers were 
allowedto provide consultations on legislati on other than that of their home state.  
167. Financial services were regulated by the 1991 Fi nancial Institutions Ac t and regulations, the 
National Reserve Bank Act, the Tonga Development Bank Act, the Westpac Bank of Tonga Act, the 
Foreign Exchange Control Act and regulations, and the Money Laundering and Proceeds of Crime 
Act.  Licenses were delivered by the Ministry of  Finance based on inquiries by the National Reserve 
Bank of Tonga, which supervised the activities of banks, and approval of the Privy Council.  The 
annual licence fee amounted to TOP 3,000.  Financial services licenses were not subject to numerical or geographical limitations.  In 1998, three commerc ial banks were operating in Tonga in addition to 
the Tonga Development Bank, providing banking services such as deposits, loans, and local and 
international money transfer.  He confirmed that  financial institutions were allowed to provide 
financial information and advisory services.  Tonga allowed the establishment of new foreign 
commercial banks, merchant banks a nd other financial services companies both in the form of wholly-
owned subsidiaries or direct branches.  In additio n, Tonga permitted the establishment of new foreign 
life and non-life insurance companies, insurance brokers and agencies, and insurance underwriting 
and management companies servicing the domestic mark et.  Financial services could also be provided 
by authorized foreign exchange dealers.  
168. Tonga's telecommunications market had been  opened up following the adoption of the 
Communications Act 2000.  The Tonga Communicat ions Corporation (TCC), a government-owned 
entity, was an integrated provider of networ k infrastructure and comm unications services but 
competed with a second full service provider.  Both  companies provided domestic and international 
calling services, as well at internet services.   
169. Under the 2000 Communication Act, any person or  company wishing to deliver domestic or 
international communication services, including televisi on, radio, internet, and mobile phone services, 
could apply for a licence.  Licenses were delivered by the Privy Council under conditions set out by 
the Council, including (i) the approval by the Tonga Telecommunication Commission of the technical operating details of the service, (ii) sufficient f unds to establish and maintain such a service, and 
(iii) payment of an annual licence fee (TOP 5,000 in 2000).  In addition, with a view to monitoring 
developments in the telecommunication sector and en suring fair competition, approval by the Cabinet 
was also required.  A licence was granted for five years and could be renewed every two years thereafter.  The transfer of a licence was subject to the approval of the Privy Council.  Licenses could 
be revoked in case of non-payment of the licence f ee, and lapsed after 12 months of non-use.  The 
licence holder was expected to exercise "self-censo rship" in respect of cultural sensitivities.   WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 46  
 
 170. As to accountancy services, licenses were deliv ered by the Ministry of Labour, Commerce 
and Industry.  Approval from the Tonga Society of Accountants was not needed, and no market 
access restrictions were imposed on foreign accountan ts and foreign accounting firms to practice in 
Tonga.  Education services had been opened to fore ign providers, and several  religious institutions 
had established secondary schools.  Other academic in stitutions, such as the University of the South 
Pacific Extension Centre, provided degree-level courses.   
171. Specific regulations applied to  shipping and electricity-related services.  Shipping licenses 
had to be endorsed by the Ministry of Marine and Ports, and the Tonga Electric Power Boards verified 
qualifications and services to be provided before i ssuing licenses for electricity-related services.  The 
representative of Tonga confirmed that no specific requirements applied to practice engineering, 
computing and architectural services in Tonga,  except possession of a licence delivered by the 
Ministry of Labour, Commerce and Industry.   
[to be completed in the light of the result s of the negotiations on Services commitments] 
- Publication of information on trade 
172. The representative of Tonga said that all laws and regulations affecting trade were published 
in the Tongan Government Gazette.  Copies of specifi c laws and regulations could be purchased from 
the Government Printing Department.  Information on laws and regulations relating to trade was also 
available, free of charge, from the Trade Policy Unit at the Ministry of Labour, Commerce and 
Industries.  Tonga intended to establish an offi cial website dedicated to the publication of all 
regulations and other measures pertaining to or affecting trade in goods, services and TRIPS, where 
possible prior to enactment.  This website would be updated on a regular basis and will be readily 
available to WTO Members, individuals and enterpri ses.  Tonga intended, where possible, to provide 
a reasonable period, e.g. no less than 15 days, fo r comment to the appropriate authorities of Tonga 
before the regulations and other measures pertai ning to or affecting trade in goods, services and 
TRIPS were implemented, except for those laws, regulations and other measures involving national 
emergency or security, or for which the publication would impede law enforc ement.  Tonga intended 
to implement this facility as soon as possible.  Ho wever, Tonga would not be in a position to do so 
effectively without adequate technical assistance. 
173. The representative of Tonga confirmed that, from the date of Tonga's accession, Tonga would 
fulfil the transparency requireme nts set out in Article X of the GATT 1994, Article III of the GATS 
and other WTO Agreements.  Tonga confirmed that  all laws, regulations, rulings, decrees or other 
measures related to trade in goods would be published in the Offi cial Gazette, and that no law,  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 47 
 
 
 regulation, etc. relating to trade in goods, servic es and TRIPS would become effective prior to such 
publication.  The publication of such laws, regulat ions and other measures of general application 
would include the effective date of these measure s and list, where appropriate and possible, the 
products and services affected by the particular  measure, identified for customs purposes by 
appropriate tariff line and classification.  The Wo rking Party took note of these commitments.   
- Notifications 
174. The representative of Tonga said that at the lat est upon entry into force of the Protocol of 
Accession, Tonga would submit all initial notifica tions required by any Agreement constituting part 
of the WTO Agreement.  As new legislation im plementing the provisions of WTO Agreements was 
enacted, revised notifications would be provided.  Any regulations subsequently enacted by Tonga 
which gave effect to the laws enacted to impl ement any Agreement constituting part of the WTO 
Agreement would also conform to the requirements of that Agreement.  The Working Party took note 
of these commitments. 
VII. TRADE AGREEMENTS 
175. The representative of Tonga said that Tonga was a member of the South Pacific Forum, a 
political grouping of independent and self-governing States in the South Pacific.  The South Pacific 
Forum had been established in 1971 to develop a co llective response to regional issues.  Tonga was 
also a party to the South Pacific Regiona l Trade and Economic Co-operation Agreement 
(SPARTECA), signed in July 1980.  The SPARTECA Agreement was a preferential non-reciprocal 
trade agreement whereby Australia and New Ze aland extended duty free and unrestricted or 
concessional access for virtually all products origin ating in the Forum Island members, i.e. Cook 
Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Papua New 
Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Western Samoa.  The Agreement included 
provisions for general economic, commercial and technical co-ope ration and safeguard provisions 
against product dumping.  He confirmed that To nga did not provide any duty-free or concessional 
access to products originating in Australia and New Zealand under this Agreement.   
176. He added that Tonga granted preferences to members of the Pacific Island Countries Trade 
Agreement (PICTA), ratified by Tonga in 2001.  The PICTA provided for progressive phasing out of 
tariffs between Forum Island countries by 2010, as pa rt of the establishment of a Pacific regional free 
trade area in goods.  The first tariff cut took place upon entry into force of the Agreement in April 2003.  Tonga also participated in the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations 
(PACER), which had entered in to force on 3 October 2002.  Members of the PACER included WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 48  
 
 Pacific Forum Island Countries, Australia, and New Zealand.  Although the PACER was not a free 
trade agreement, it set a timetable for regional free trade negotiations with Australia and New 
Zealand.   
177. Tonga and Fiji had signed a bilateral trade agre ement in 1995, aimed at facilitating the free 
flow of agricultural products.  The Agreement wa s non-reciprocal, having been formulated shortly 
after a bilateral quarantine protocol had been estab lished for 20 agricultural items imported into Fiji 
from Tonga.  A joint committee met bi-annually to discuss matters of mutual trade interest.   
178. He added that Tonga had participated in th e Regional Long-Term Sugar Agreement, running 
from 1995-1998.  Under this Agreement, Fiji had s upplied agreed quantities of sugar to Kiribati, 
Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Western Samoa at pre-determined prices.  The Agreement had 
been administered by the Forum S ecretariat, located in Suva (Fiji) .  Tonga's entitlement had been 
allocated among private firms based on their requests without any form of price subsidy.   
179. Tonga had also signed and ratified the Cotonou Agreement between the European 
Communities (EC) and 70 countries in Africa, the Ca ribbean and the Pacific (ACP), whereby the EC 
extended non-reciprocal trade preferences to the AC P States.  Preliminary negotiations with the EU 
on the establishment of an economic pa rtnership agreement had commenced.  
180. The representative of Tonga stated that his Gove rnment would observe the provisions of the 
WTO, including Article XXIV of the GATT 1994 and Article V of the GATS in its trade agreements.  The Working Party took note of this commitment.   
CONCLUSIONS 
181. The Working Party took note of the explanati ons and statements of Tonga concerning its 
foreign trade regime, as reflected in this Report.  The Working Party took note of the commitments 
given by Tonga in relation to certain specific matte rs which are reproduced in paragraphs 21, 31, [37], 
[41], 45, 53, 56, 60, 68, 72, 77, 83, 88, [90], [92], 96, 99, [106], 110, 120, 124, 127, 129, [151], [163], 
173, 174 and 180 of this Report.  The Working Pa rty took note that these commitments had been 
incorporated in paragraph 2 of the Protocol of Accession of Tonga to the WTO. 
182. Having carried out the examination of the foreign trade regime of Tonga and in the light of 
the explanations, commitments and concessions ma de by the representative of Tonga, the Working 
Party reached the conclusion that Tonga be invited to accede to the Marrakesh Agreement 
Establishing the WTO under the provisions of Article  XII.  For this purpose, the Working Party has 
prepared the draft Decision and Protocol of Accessi on reproduced in the Appendix to this Report, and  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 49 
 
 
 takes note of Tonga's Schedule of Concessions and Commitments on Goods (document 
WT/ACC/TON/../Add.1) and its Schedule of Sp ecific Commitments on Services (document 
WT/ACC/TON/../Add.2) that are annexed to the draft Protocol.  It is proposed that these texts be 
adopted by the General Council when it adopts th e Report.  When the Decision is adopted, the 
Protocol of Accession would be open for acceptance by Tonga which would become a Member thirty 
days after it accepts the said Protocol.  The Working Party agreed, therefore, that it had completed its 
work concerning the negotiations for the acce ssion of Tonga to the Marrakesh Agreement 
Establishing the WTO.   WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 50  
 
 ATTACHMENTS 
Table 1:  Enterprises with government ownership in mid-2002 
Organization Activity/Market Position Approximate 
share of the 
domestic market 
(%) Percentage of 
Government 
Ownership 
Air Pacific Limited Fiji's national airline; provides regional 
airline services; competes with the other 
market suppliers. 11 <5 
Westpac Bank of Tonga Commercial bank; competes with 3 other 
banks in Tonga. 32 4 
Export Produce 
Treatment Services Ltd. Manages the hot air treatment plant at the 
airport. 100 20 
Hawaiian Air Hawaii's national airline. Ceased 
operations in 
Tonga <5 
International Dateline 
Hotel Holds 49% of the shares of the company 
that owns Tonga's biggest hotel;  competes 
with other accommodation facilities in Tonga. N/A 
 51 
Leiola Duty Free Operates Tonga's duty free shops;  has a 
monopoly position;  likely to be privatised 
in 2003-2004. 100 60 
Pacific Forum Line 
Limited Regional shipping company based in Fiji;  
provides regional freight and charter 
services. 20 
 Approx. 5 
Royal Tongan Airlines Tonga's national airline;  competes with 
Air New Zealand, Polynesian Airlines and Air Pacific (other main airlines that 
service similar routes). 38 
 99 
Sea Star Fishing Co. 
Ltd Deep sea fishing company;  competes with 
many other firms;  Tonga's Government is considering divesting itself from this 
company. 30 
 70 
Shipping Corporation 
of Polynesia Ltd Provides domestic and international  
passenger and cargo charter services;  
many domestic competitors in this market. 20 100 
Tonga Development 
Bank Provides development and business 
advisory banking services. 32 100 
Tonga Investment Ltd Holding/investment company set up in 
1991 to manage the activities of its 
subsidiaries (Frisco, Home Gas, and 
Primary Produce Limited);  likely to be privatised in 2003-2004. 
 
Frisco:  Hardware and building materials supplier;  mainly sells imported products;  
no exclusive or special rights or privileges;  
competes with other private firms.  
Home Gas:  Sole distributor of cooking 
and heating gas in Tonga;  no exclusive or special rights or privileges. 
  
 
 
  
 
20 
 
 
  
100 
  
 99  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 51 
 
 
 Organization Activity/Market Position Approximate 
share of the 
domestic market 
(%) Percentage of 
Government 
Ownership 
Primary Produce Ltd. :  No longer in 
operation;  should be wound up. N/A 
Tonga 
Telecommunications 
International Ltd Provides both local and international 
telecommunications services;  competes 
with private enterprises;   no special rights 
or privileges. 70 100 
Tonga Timber Limited Coconut/timber milling and hardware 
supplier;  competes with other suppliers;  
no exclusive or special rights or privileges. 20 99 
Tonga Corporation Manages Tonga's landholdings in 
America, Samoa and Hawaii. N/A 100 
 
 WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 52  
 
 Table 2:  Products subject to price control 
Tariff Line Item Commodity 
11.02 Flour 
1701.0000 Sugar 
0405.0000 Butter 
15.17 Margarine 
0402.1000 Baby Milk 
0902.0000 Tea 
1006.0000 Rice 
0901.0000 Coffee 
1801.0000 Cocoa 
15.01 – 1516.0000 Edible Oils of all types 
15.01 Cheese and Dripping 
2501.0000 Salt 
19.01 Infant Food Preparations 
2710.0020 White Benzene 
2710.0070 All Lubricant Oils 
3808.1000 Insecticides 
3808.3000 Herbicides 
3808.2000 Fungicides 
3101.0000 – 3105.0000 All chemicals and fertilisers for agricultural use 
27.10 Liquid petroleum products  
2710.0010 Motor Spirit 
2710.0040 Kerosene 
not available Diesel 
1905.1010 Bread of standard size 
  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 53 
 
 
 Table 3:  Quarantine fees levied on exports of agricultural goods 
FUMIGATION 
Small Chamber  (1.1 m3) $10.00 
All other fumigation chambers including sheet 
fumigation. $7.75 per m3 or part thereof 
(maximum of $130.00 per container and/or 
chamber). 
HEAT STERILISATION 
Sterilisation of goods by heat in an oven $7.75 per 0.2m3 or part thereof 
(maximum of $130.00 per container and /or 
chamber) 
WASTE DISPOSAL 
Disposal/incineration of quarantineable material e.g. war 
ships  $0.40 per hour or part thereof. 
STEAM CLEANING 
Per consignment $15.00 per hour or part thereof. 
COLD STORAGE 
Cool room/refrigerator $0.02 per kg per 24 hours or part thereof 
Freezer $0.04 per kg for the first 24 hours and 
$0.02 per kg per 24 hours or part thereof, 
thereafter. 
INSPECTION AND CLEARANCE: 
EXAMINATION FOR IMPORT OR EXPORT 
Documentation (Certificates and permits) $4.00 
Examination of a container system unit $2.00 
Examination of motor vehicle $4.00 
Examination of goods at airports for issuing of a 
Phytosanitary Certificate (Max. 15 mins) $2.00 
Examination of goods, other than at an airport for the 
issuing of a Phytosanitary Certificate (Max. 30 mins) $4.00 
AIRCRAFT CLEARANCE 
Light Aircraft $50.00 
Narrow-bodied aircraft (untreated) $80.00 
Narrow-bodied aircraft (treated) $50.00 
Wide-bodied aircraft (untreated) $120.00 
Wide-bodied aircraft (treated) $60.00 
SHIP CLEARANCE 
Vessel of more than 25 metres in length $50.00 
Vessel of 25 metres or less in length $20.00 
POST-ENTRY QUARANTINE 
Bench space per month (per 0.5 m3 or part thereof) $7.75 
Potting Material, chemicals and ot her related expenses At cost 
OVERTIME 
For aircraft and passenger cl earance at Airports;   
       Weekdays $4.00 per hour 
       Weekends & Public Holidays $5.00 per hour 
Other than aircraft and passenger clearance at Airports $2.00 per hour 
MISCELLANEOUS FEES 
Hire of forklift and driver $25.00 per hour 
Any other activity not specified in these Regulations $4.00 per officer per half hour  
or part thereof including travelling time 
Note:  All fees are  stated in Tongan Pa'anga.  
Source: Adapted from Tonga Government's Gazette Supplement Extraordinary, No.7, 24 Friday 1997, "The 
Plant Quarantine Fees Regulation 1997".  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 54  
 
 Table 4(a):  Goods prohibited to import into Tonga 
1.  Counterfeit coin, currency notes or stamps. 
2.  Indecent articles (obscene books, paintings, drawings, cards, lithographic or other engravings, 
photographs, prints, films or other indecent products  or articles except for pr ivate purposes) [Schedule 
II, Part 1 (Section 35) PROHIBITED AND RESTRICTED IMPORTS] 
3.  Goods bearing the royal Arms of the Kingdom of Tonga, unless importers holds his Majesty's 
authority. 
4.  Goods bearing any trade name or trade mark being or claiming to be the name or trade mark registered 
under the Registration of United Kingdom Trade Mark Act. 
5.  Fireworks, unless given permission by Minister of Police. 
6.  All books and any written or printed matter, soun ds and visual recordings of which import is 
prohibited by copyright law. 
7.  All books and any written or printed matter and sound and visual recordings which advocate violence, 
lawlessness or disorder. 
8.  All toxic or hazardous wastes. 
9.  Goods the importation of which is prohibited by any other law in force in the Kingdom. 
10.  Goods the importation of which is restricted by any other law in force in the Kingdom except in 
accordance with such law.   WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 55 
 
 
 Table 4(b):  Goods requiring a special import licence 
HS 
Number Description Permission required & Ministry involved Applicati
on Fee 
93.03 Firearms and ammunition  licence i ssued by the Minister of Police $10.00 
3602.000 Explosives of all kinds including 
fuses and detonators  licence issued by the Mi nister of Police Nil 
9304.0000 Noxious, stupefying or tear gas in 
any form and all weapons and 
instruments or appliances for firing 
or using such gas containers or cartridges for such weapons or other 
instruments or appliances  written permission of the Minister of Police Nil 
2208.3010 Brandy and whisky  certified to the satisfaction of the Collector 
of Customs that it has been matured in wood for three years* Nil  
2208.4010 Rum  certified to the satisfaction of the Collector 
of Customs that it has been matured in 
wood for two years* Nil  
87.04 
87.11 Motor vehicles, motor cycles and 
motor scooters  licence issued by the Minister of Finance 
and the Minister of Police (for public safety 
purposes and records keeping)   Nil 
87.04 Left hand drive motor vehicles  licen ce issued by the Minister of Police (for 
public safety purposes and records keeping)  Nil 
4007.0010 Eggs  licence issued by the Minister of Finance* Nil  
1905.9010 Cabin and ships biscuits  licence issued by the Minister of Finance * Nil 
 Goods the importation of which is 
restricted by any other law in force in 
the Kingdom except in accordance with such law.   
 *  Tonga is prepared to remove its licensing requirements for eggs, cabin and ships biscuits, brandy and 
whisky, and rum as at the date of its accession to the WTO. WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 56  
 
 Table 5:  Import licence fees levied on a consignment basis 
Nature of import Fee 
Importer of meat, fish or poultry 10.00 
Importer of eggs 10.00 
Importer of salted meat 10.00 
Importer of canned meat 10.00 
Importer of butter 10.00 
Importer of sugar, flour, salt, milk powder or rice 10.00 
Importer of tea, coffee, milo, etc. 10.00 
Importer of other grocery goods 10.00 
Importer of motor vehicles (right-drive) (per vehicle) 15.00 
Importer of motor cycl e (per cycle) 5.00 
Importer of motor vehicles (left-drive) (per vehicle) 15.00 
Importer of beer or ale 10.00 
Importer of spirituous liquor 30.00 
Importer of cigarettes and tobacco 30.00 
Importer of soap, soap powd er, detergents, etc. 30.00 
Importer of timber as building material 10.00 
Importer of other building materials 10.00 
Importer of light machinery and equipment (per unit/set) 20.00 
Importer of heavy machinery and equipment (per unit/set) 50.00 
Importer of chemicals, compounds and mixtures 10.00 
Importer of other dry products or items 10.00 
Importer of other products in liquid form 10.00 
Importer of fertilisers 10.00 
Importer of fungicides, insecticides or pesticides 10.00 
Importer of petroleum products including lubricants 20.00 
Importer of liquid paraffin gas 20.00 
Importer of  hardware goods 10.00 
Importer of computers, radios, televisions, electrical goods 10.00 
Importer of other electrical or  electronic components 10.00 
Importer of vehicle and machinery parts 10.00 
Importer of goods for privates sell 20.00 
Importer of other goods * 5.00 
* No licence is required for consignments under 200 kilograms (by ship) or 60 kilograms (by air).  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 57 
 
 
 Table 7:  Export licence fees 
Category of exporter Fee per consignment (T$) 
Exporter of frozen fish 20.00 
Exporter of  shellfish 10.00 
Exporter of live fish and molluscs 30.00 
Exporter of marine products for medical purposes 20.00 
Exporter of corals, shells, etc. 20.00 
Exporter of beche-de-mer 20.00 
Exporter of other marine products 20.00 
Exporter of meat and poultry 10.00 
Exporter of live birds 50.00 
Exporter of vanilla 10.00 
Exporter of bananas 10.00 
Exporter of coconuts products 10.00 
Exporter of  drinking coconut 10.00 
Exporter of squash 20.00 
Exporter of swamp taro 10.00 
Exporter of watermelon 10.00 
Exporter of vegetable produce 10.00 
Exporter of giant taro 10.00 
Exporter of ginger 10.00 
Exporter of coffee or cocoa 10.00 
Exporter of coffee or cocoa beans or cultivars 10.00 
Exporter of other agricultural produce 10.00 
Exporter of manufactured goods 10.00 
Exporter of processed goods 10.00 
Exporter of other produce and commodities 10.00 
Exporter of handicrafts 10.00 
Exporter of other goods 10.00 
* Licenses are required only for consignments exceeding 200 kilograms by ship and 60 kilograms by air. WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 58  
 
 Table 8:  Import prohibitions relating to  animals, plants and related products 
Plant 
Name Plants, including living plants and products of plants, 
prohibited 
Banana, Abaca, other Musaceae Heliconi aceae Plants, corns and cut flowers 
All Beans of the species Ph aseolus All except seed 
Cassava (Manihol esculenta Grantz) All except tissue cultures 
Citrus All except fruit and s eeds. Fruit from areas where 
citrus canker (Xanthomonas Campestris p.v. citri, (Has ee) Dye) Occurs.  All of 
Murraya spp. 
All palms including coconut All except seednuts and pollen from areas approved 
by the Minister 
Cacao and host plants of Cacao swollen shoot  All except seed from Asia Pacific Region 
Coffe (Coffea spp.) All propag ating material except seed 
Maize (Zea mays L) All except seed 
Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L) All except seed 
Potato (Solanum tuberosum L) All except  tubers, true seed and tissue cultures 
Sorghum (Sorghum spp) All except seed 
Rubber (Hevea spp) All 
Taro and edible aroids (Alocasia spp, Colocasia spp, 
Xanthosoma spp nd Cyrtosperma spp) All except propagating material, seed and tissue 
cultures 
Tomato  
(Lycopersicon esculenum Miller) All except fruit and seed 
Orchidaceae All except tissue cultures and seedlings in Sterile 
flasks. 
Animal 
Prohibition 
on 
importation or liberation 
of certain 
animals   (1)   No person shall import or introduce into the Kingdom without prior approval of 
His Majesty's Cabinet any animal or carcass of the species listed below:- 
  (a) any snake of any species whatever; 
  (b) any venomous reptile, or any living stage of any venomous amphibian, 
venomous fish or venomous invertebrate; 
  (c) any monkey of any species;    (d) any member of the squirrel species; 
  (e) any red fox or silver fox; 
  (f) any musquash (or muskrat);   (g) any hamster; 
  (h) any mongoose; 
  (i) any coypu (or nutria);   (j) any mink; 
  (k) any rabbit; 
  (l) any hare; 
  (m) any deer; 
  (n) any opossum;   (o) any other animal that is likely to  become a nuisance or to cause injury or 
damage. 
 (2) No person shall without prior approval of Cabinet import or introduce into the 
Kingdom the egg, semen or carcass of any animal specified in subsection (1) of 
this section. 
Source:  The Plant Quarantine Act and the Animal Diseases Act, Second Schedule, Regulation 31.  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 59 
 
 
 ANNEX 1 
Laws, Regulations and Other Information Provided to the Working Party by Tonga 
- Industrial Development Incentive Act 1978 (Cap. 48) and Amendments 1990, 1992; 
- Act No. 11 of 4 October 1982 To Amend th e Industrial Development Incentives Act 1978; 
- Foreign Investment Act 2001; 
- Foreign Investment Act 2002; 
- Act No. 3 of 8 September 1947 (as amended, 1950, 1956 and 1984) To Make Provision For 
Controlling the Prices of Goods and Services and Wage Rates; 
- Protection Against Unfair Competition Act, 2001; 
- Chapter 27 of the Companies Act of 1988; 
- The Registration of Business Names Bill 1995 - A rrangement of Sections and Registration of 
Business Names Act, 2001; 
- Act No. 20 of 2 November 1993 To Amend the Licenses Act; 
- Licence (Amendment) Act 1995 (Cap. 47); 
- Drafting Guidelines for Amendments to the Licenses Act Cap. 47; 
- Application for Licence to Import Goods; 
- Act No. 29 of 16 October 1987 To Amend the Intoxicating Liquor Act;  
- A Bill for An Act to Amend the Customs and Excise Act (The Customs and Excise 
(Amendment) Act 2003); 
- The Customs and Excise (Amendment) Act No. 25 of 10 November 1999 – Tonga 
Harmonized Customs Tariff and Excise Schedule; 
- Customs and Excise Act 1998 (Cap. 67) and Amendments; 
- Customs and Excise Act (1983) Part I:  Imports – Classification and Tariff; 
- Act No. 3 of 24 June 1992 to Amend the Customs Duty and Excise Act (Cap. 67); 
- Act No. 6 of 6 July 1927 (as amended, 1950, 1963, 1964, 1974, 1997 and 1988) To Impose 
Stamp Duties; 
- Port and Service Tax Act 1988 (Cap. 71); 
- Act No. 22 of 23 October 1990 To Ame nd the Port and Service Tax Act; 
- Act No. 11 of 1 September 1981 To Amend the Wharves Act; 
- Wharves Act 1992 (Cap. 138) and Amendments 1997, 1998; 
- List of Products subject to Wharfage Tax (conf erred by Sections 5 and 16 of the Wharves Act 
1992 (Cap. 138); 
- Schedule of Duty Free and Ports & Services Tax Free Goods; 
- Acts Nos. 6 of 3 November 1964 and 3 of 1985 To Impose a Tax Upon Fuel Imported into 
the Kingdom and Sold by the Importer; 
- Act No. 3 of 1 July 1986 To Impose a Tax Upon Retail Sales of All Goods and Services in the 
Kingdom of Tonga; 
- Information on Implementation and Administra tion of the Customs Valuation Agreement; 
- Agricultural Commodities Export Act of 2001, Section 4 – The Agricultural Commodities 
Export (General) Regulations 2001; 
- Draft Bill for an Agricultural Commodities Export Act; 
- Public Health Act 1992 and Amendments; 
- Animal Diseases Act of 1978, Section 13 – The Animals (Importation) Regulations 2001; 
- Animal Diseases Act 1988 (Cap 146); 
- Draft Bill for an Act to Amend the Animal Diseases Act 1978; 
- Pesticides Act of 2001, Section 22 – The Pesticides Regulations; 
- Pesticides – information and application form s for licenses, registration and user permits; 
- Draft Bill for a Pesticides Act; 
- Act No. 18 of 15 April 1928 (as amended, 1986 and 1988) Relating to Quarantine; 
- Plant Quarantine Act (Cap. 127) 1988; WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 60  
 
 - Information on State Trading; 
- Act No. 10 of 30 September 1987 to Amend the Copyright Act of 1985; 
- Copyright Act 1988 (Cap. 121) and Amendments; 
- Draft Law on Copyright and Related Rights; 
- Copyright Act 2001; 
- Copyright Act 2002;  
- Industrial Property Act 1994 (Cap. 19); 
- Industrial Property Regulation 1998; 
- Act No. 19 of 9 November 1994 To Provide For the Registration and Protection of Patents, 
Utility Model Certificates, Industr ial Designs and Trade Marks; 
- Protection of Geographical Indications Act 2001; 
- Protection of Layout Designs (Topographies) of Integrated Circuit Act 2001; 
- Act No. 21 of 18 October 1989 To Provide Fo r Law Practitioners;  For Their Professional 
Conduct and Discipline;  For The Establishment of the Tonga Law Society and For Connected Purposes; 
- Act No. 16 of 15 August 1991 To Require Th e Registration Before Practice of Medical, 
Dental, Nursing, Midwifery and Other Health Professions in Tonga; 
- Act No. 13 of 7 August 1984 To Amend the Tonga Telecommunications Act, 1983; 
- Act No. 15 of 21 September 1989 To Regulate Broadcasting and Matters Related Thereto; 
- Act No. 22 of 30 October 1991 To Regulate th e Licensing and Supervision of Financial 
Institutions in Tonga and For Purposes Connected Therewith; 
- Act No. 15 of 15 August 1991 To Provide For a Comprehensive Health Service For Tonga; 
- Act No. 29 of 2 November 1992 To Deal with Public Health Services in Tonga; 
- Act No. 9 of 24 October 1949 (as amended, 1950, 1951, 1956, 1957, 1960, 1962, 1974, 1975, 
1981, 1983 and 1988) To Provide For the Estab lishment of the Tonga Electric Power Board 
For the Production, Control and Distribution of Electric Power Throughout the Kingdom and 
For Related Purposes; 
- Water Board Act (Section 28) Water Suppl y (Amendment) Regulations 1992 (Tonga 
Government Gazette Supplement Extrao rdinary No. 5 of 5 June 1992;   
- Act No. 19 of 5 July 1977 (as amended, 19 79, 1980 and 1990) To Control and Regulate 
Tourism by the Establishment of an Advisory Board and by the Introduction of a System of Licensing of Tourist Facilities and Matters Relative Thereto;  and 
- Act No. 16 of 31 March 1970 To Make Better Provision For the Control of Immigration. 
 
_______________ 
 
  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 61 
 
 
 [Draft Decision 
ACCESSION OF THE KINGDOM OF TONGA 
Decision of […] 
 The General Council,  Having regard to  paragraph 2 of Article XII and paragr aph 1 of Article IX of the Marrakesh 
Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organizati on (the "WTO Agreement"), and the Decision-
Making Procedures under Articles IX and XII of th e Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World 
Trade Organization agreed by the General Council (WT/L/93); 
 Conducting  the functions of the Ministerial Confer ence in the interval between meetings 
pursuant to paragraph 2 of Article IV of the WTO Agreement; 
 Taking note  of the application of the Kingdom of Tonga for accession to the Marrakesh 
Agreement Establishing the World Trad e Organization dated 9 December 1994; 
 Noting  the results of the negotiations directed toward the establishment of the terms of 
accession of the Kingdom of Tonga to the WTO Agreement and having prepared a Draft Protocol on 
the Accession of the Kingdom of Tonga; 
 Decides  as follows: 
 The Kingdom of Tonga may accede to the WTO Agreement on the terms and conditions set 
out in the Draft Protocol annexed to this Decision. 
_______________ WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 62  
 
 DRAFT PROTOCOL 
ON THE ACCESSION OF THE KINGDOM OF TONGA 
Preamble 
 The World Trade Organization (hereinafter referred to as the "WTO"), pursuant to Article XII 
of the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization (hereinafter referred to as the "WTO Agreement"), and the Kingdom of Tonga,  
 Taking note of the Report of the Working Party on the Accession of the Kingdom of Tonga to 
the WTO Agreement reproduced in document WT/ACC/TON/[…], dated […] (hereinafter referred to as the "Working Party Report"), 
 Having regard to the results of  the negotiations on the accession of the Kingdom of Tonga to the 
WTO Agreement,  
 Agree as follows: 
PART I -  GENERAL 
1. Upon entry into force of this Protocol pursua nt to paragraph 8, the Kingdom of Tonga accedes 
to the WTO Agreement pursuant to  Article XII of that Agreement and thereby becomes a Member of 
the WTO.  
2. The WTO Agreement to which the Kingdom of Tonga accedes shall be the WTO Agreement, 
including the Explanatory Notes to that Agreement, as  rectified, amended or ot herwise modified by such 
legal instruments as may have entered into force before the date of entry into force of this Protocol.  This 
Protocol, which shall include the commitments referr ed to in paragraph [181] of the Working Party 
Report, shall be an integral part of the WTO Agreement. 
3. Except as otherwise provided for in para graph [181] of the Working Party Report, those 
obligations in the Multilateral Trade Agreements annexed to the WTO Agreement that are to be 
implemented over a period of time starting with the entry into force of that Agreement shall be 
implemented by the Kingdom of Tonga as if it had accepted that Agreement on the date of its entry into force. 
4. The Kingdom of Tonga may maintain a measure in consistent with paragr aph 1 of Article II of 
the GATS provided that such a measure was recorded in  the list of Article II Exemptions annexed to this 
Protocol and meets the conditions of the A nnex to the GATS on Article II Exemptions. 
PART II - SCHEDULES 
5. The Schedules reproduced in Annex I to th is Protocol shall become the Schedule of 
Concessions and Commitm ents annexed to the General Agr eement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 
(hereinafter referred to as the "GATT 1994") and the Schedule of Specific Co mmitments annexed to the 
General Agreement on Trade in Services (hereinafter referred to as "GATS") relating to the Kingdom of 
Tonga.  The staging of the concessi ons and commitments listed in th e Schedules shall be implemented 
as specified in the relevant pa rts of the respective Schedules.  WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
 Page 63 
 
 
 6. For the purpose of the reference in paragraph 6(a)  of Article II of the GATT 1994 to the date of 
that Agreement, the applicable date in respect of the Schedules of Conc essions and Commitments 
annexed to this Protocol shall be the date  of entry into force of this Protocol. 
PART III - FINAL PROVISIONS 
7. This Protocol shall be open for acceptance, by  signature or otherwise, by the Kingdom of Tonga 
until […]. 
8. This Protocol shall enter into force on the thirtieth day following the day upon which it shall 
have been accepted by the Kingdom of Tonga.  
9. This Protocol shall be deposited with the Director-General of the WTO.  The Director-General 
of the WTO shall promptly furnish a certified copy of this Protocol and a notification of acceptance by 
the Kingdom of Tonga thereto pursuant to paragrap h 9 to each Member of the WTO and to the 
Kingdom of Tonga.   
 This Protocol shall be registered in accordance with the provisions of Ar ticle 102 of the Charter 
of the United Nations.   
 Done at […] this […] day of […] in a single c opy in the English, French and Spanish languages, 
each text being authentic, except that a Schedule anne xed hereto may specify that it its authentic in only 
one of these languages. 
_______________ WT/ACC/SPEC/TON/4/Rev.2 
Page 64  
 
 ANNEX I 
SCHEDULE […] – KINGDOM OF TONGA 
Authentic only in the … language. 
(Circulated in document WT/ACC/TON/…/Add.1) 
_______________ 
SCHEDULE OF SPECIFIC COMMITMENTS ON SERVICES 
LIST OF ARTICLE II EXEMPTIONS 
Authentic only in the … language. 
(Circulated in document WT/ACC/TON/…/Add.2) ] 
 
__________