WORLD TRADE G/TMB/N/269
22July1997
ORGANIZATION(97-2991)
Original: English Textiles Monitoring Body
AGREEMENT ONTEXTILES AND CLOTHING
Notification under Article 2.17
UNITED STATES
Administrative Arrangements withEgypt
TheTextiles Monitoring Body hasreceived anotification fromtheUnited States pursuant to
paragraph 17ofArticle 2.TheTMB iscirculating thisnotification toWTO Members fortheir
information.G/TMB/N/269
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Executive Office ofthePresident
Office oftheUnited States Trade Representative
Geneva
21March 1996
TheHonourable
Ambassador András Szepesi
Chairman, Textiles Monitoring Body
World Trade Organization
RuedeLausanne 154
1211 Geneva
Dear Ambassador Szepesi,
AttachedyouwillfindmyGovernment'snotificationofAdministrativeArrangementsforEgypt,1
Guatemala, theDominican Republic andTurkey made pursuant toArticle 2.17oftheAgreement on
Textiles andClothing.
Sincerely,
(Signed) William Tagliani
Attache
1ThisdocumentcontainstheAdministrativeArrangementswithEgypt.AdministrativeArrangementsconcluded
withtheother Members mentioned above willbecirculated asseparate documents.
Note: Annex Breferred tointhetextcontains thelistofrestrictions notified bytheUnited States pursuant to
Article 2.1andassuch itisnotpartoftheAdministrative Arrangements.G/TMB/N/269
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EGYPT
Thefollowing provisions aredrawn fromtheUnited States -Egypt bilateral textile andapparel
agreement of7March and4May1995, andhavebeenagreed bytheUnited States andEgypt tobe
necessary fortheproper implementation ofrestrictions notified totheTextiles Monitoring Body under
Article 2.1oftheAgreement onTextiles andClothing.
Classification
3. (A) Textiles andtextile products subject tothisAgreement arethose setforthinAnnex A.
Tops, yarns, piece goods, made-up articles, garments andother textile manufactured
products, allbeing products which derive theirchiefcharacteristics fromtheirtextile
components ofcotton, wool, man-made fibre, orblends thereof, inwhich anyorall
ofthose fibres incombination represent thechief weight oftheproduct, aresubject
tothisAgreement. Components ofanarticle which arenotconsidered relevant tothe
classification under thegeneral rulesofinterpretation ofthelegalnotes ofSection XI
oftheHarmonized System arelikewise tobedisregarded here.
(B) Forthepurposes ofthisAgreement, textile products covered bysub-paragraph (A)
above shallbeclassified as:
(I) Cotton textiles ifnotcovered by(B)(II)andiftheproduct isinchiefweight
ofcotton, unless theproduct isawoven fabric inwhich woolequals orexceeds
thirty-six (36)percentbyweight ofallfibres, inwhich casetheproduct shall
beawool textile.
(II) Man-made fibretextiles, iftheproduct isinchief weight man-made fibres,
unless:
(a) theproduct isknitted orcrocheted apparel inwhich wool equals or
exceeds twenty-three (23)percentbyweight ofallfibres, inwhich casethe
product shallbeawool textile;
(b) theproduct isapparel, notknitted orcrocheted, inwhich woolequals
orexceeds thirty-six (36)percentbyweight ofallfibres, inwhich casethe
product shallbeawool textile; or
(c) theproduct isawoven fabric inwhich woolequals orexceeds thirty-six
(36)percentbyweight ofallfibres, inwhich casetheproduct shallbeawool
textile.
(III) Wool textiles ifneither oftheforegoing applies, andtheproduct isinchief
weight ofwool.
(IV) Silkornon-cotton vegetable fibretextiles, ifnoneoftheforegoing applies and
theproduct isinchief weight ofsilkornon-cotton vegetable fibre, unless:
(a) cotton withwool and/or man-made fibres intheaggregate equal or
exceed fifty(50)percentbyweight ofthecomponent fibres thereof andthe
cotton component equals orexceeds theweight ofeachofthetotalwooland/or
man-made fibrecomponent, inwhich casetheproduct shallbeacotton textile;G/TMB/N/269
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(b) ifnotcovered by(IV)(a) andwool exceeds seventeen (17)percent
byweight ofallcomponent fibres inwhich casetheproduct shallbeconsidered
awool textile;
(c) ifnotcovered by(IV)(a) or(b)andman-made fibres incombination
withcotton and/or wool intheaggregate equal orexceed fifty(50)percent
byweight ofthecomponent fibres thereof andtheman-made fibrecomponent
exceeds theweight ofthetotalwooland/or totalcotton component, inwhich
casetheproduct shallbeconsidered aman-made fibretextile.
(V) Notwithstanding theabove, garments which contain seventy (70)percentor
more byweight silk(unless theyalsocontain overseventeen (17)percentby
weight wool), andproducts other thangarments which contain eighty-five
(85)percentormore byweight silkarenotsubject tothisAgreement. Silk
and"non-cottonvegetablefibre"sweaters,asdeterminedabove,shallbedivided
into"silk" sweaters and"non-cotton vegetable fibre" sweaters. Forthepurpose
ofthisdivision, sweaters shallbeclassified as"silk" ifthesilkcomponent
exceeds byweight thenon-cotton vegetable fibrecomponent (ifany). Sweaters
notclassified as"silk" sweaters inaccordance withtheforegoing shall be
classifiedas"non-cottonvegetablefibre"sweaters.Garmentscontainingseventy
(70)percentormorebyweight silkandoverseventeen (17)percentbyweight
wool shallbeclassified aswool textiles, under sub-paragraph (B)(IV)(b).
(C) Coverage under thisparagraph isintended tobeidentical withtheterms ofArticle 12
oftheArrangement Regarding International Trade inTextiles andinconformance with
paragraph 24ofthe31July1986 Protocol ofExtension. Intheevent ofaquestion
regarding whether aproduct iscovered bythisAgreement byvirtue ofbeing inchief
weight ofcotton, wool, man-made fibres, silk,ornon-cotton vegetable fibre, thechief
value ofthefibres maybeconsidered.
Merged Categories andConversion Factors
4. Forthepurposes ofthisAgreement, thecategories listed below aremerged andtreated assingle
categories asindicated:
Categories MergedDesignation in
Agreement Sub-Category Conversion Factor
300,301 300/301 301 8.5
338,339 338/339 --- 6.0
340,640 340/640 --- 20.1
Flexibility Adjustments
Swing
5. (A)(I) TheGroup andSpecific Limits setoutinAnnex Bdonotinclude anyadjustments
permitted under paragraph 5.G/TMB/N/269
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(A)(II) During anyagreement period, theGroup andSpecific Limits setoutinAnnex Bmay
beincreasedbynotmorethan6percentswingprovidedthatacorrespondingreduction
insquare metres equivalent ismade inoneormore oftheGroup orSpecific Limits
during thesame agreement year. With respect tomerged categories (e.g.300/301)
anyswing adjustment willincrease ordecrease thesub-limits within themerged limit
bythesame proportion asthemerged limit.
(A)(III) Notwithstanding theprovisions ofparagraph 5(A)(II), theSpecific Limit for
category 340/640 maybeincreased bynotmore than7percentswing.
(A)(IV) Noswing isavailable among categories within amerged category.
(A)(V) Sub-limits within thefabric group (218-326) maybeincreased bynotmore thansix
(6)percentswing,providedthatacorrespondingreductioninsquaremetresequivalent
ismade inoneormore other limits orsub-limits during thesame agreement year.
Adjustments toanyofthesub-limits shallincrease ordecrease theGroup Limit in
square metres equivalent.
(A)(VI) NoSpecific Limit maybedecreased pursuant toparagraph 5(A)(I) toalevelwhich
isbelow thelevelofexports charged against thatcategory 'slimitforthatagreement
year.
(A)(VII) TheGovernment oftheArab Republic ofEgypt shallindicate totheGovernment
oftheUnited States theSpecific Limits orsub-limits itwould likeincreased andthose
which itwould likedecreased bycommensurate quantities insquare metres equivalent.
Special Shift
(B)(I) Upto10percentspecial shiftcalculated insquare metres equivalent (SME) from
category 338/339 intocategory 340/640.
(B)(II) Upto5percentspecial shiftfromcategory 314(with acommensurate reduction in
thefabric group) intocategory 340/640.
Swing andspecial shifts arecalculated against thebaselimitofthereceiving category.
Carryover andCarry Forward
(C)(I) Theextent towhich anyGroup orSpecific Limit setoutinAnnex Bmaybeincreased
inanyagreement period bycarry forward (borrowing aportion ofthecorresponding
Group orSpecific Limit from thesucceeding agreement period) and/or carryover
(theuseofanyunused meterage (shortfall) ofthecorresponding Group orSpecific
Limit fortheprevious agreement period) is11percent,ofwhich carry forward shall
notconstitute more than6percent.
(C)(II) Nocarryover shallbeavailable forapplication inthefirstagreement period. No
carry forward shall beavailable forapplication inthefinal agreement period.
carryover shallbeavailable between theyears 1991/1992, 1992/1993, 1993/1994
and1994/1995.
(D) Forthepurposes oftheAgreement, ashortfall occurs when exports oftextiles or
textile products oftheArab Republic ofEgypt totheUnited States during anyG/TMB/N/269
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agreement period arebelow anyspecific limitassetoutinAnnex B(or,inthecase
ofanylimitdecreased pursuant toparagraph 5,when suchexports arebelow thelimit
asdecreased).
(E) TheGovernment oftheArab Republic ofEgypt shallnotify theGovernment ofthe
United States when itwishes touseunused yardage (shortfall) available incategories
forcarryover, orforusebyother categories forswing, subject totheprovisions set
outabove. However, theGovernment oftheUnited States maysupply adjustments
under thisSection toanySpecific Limit whenever thatadjustment appears appropriate
tofacilitate theflowoftrade andthesound administration oftheAgreement. To
theextent thatsuchadjustments areactually utilized, theywillbeimplemented by
means ofcarryover andcarry forward, inthatorder. Anyunused carry forward will
bere-credited tothefollowing period 'slimit. Thisprocedure willnotprejudice the
outcome ofanyconsultations thatmaybeheldbetween ourGovernments concerning
theamounts ofavailable carryover andcarry forward.
Overshipment Charges
7. (A) Products oftheArab Republic ofEgypt shipped inexcess ofauthorized limits inany
agreementperiodmaybedeniedentryintotheUnitedStates.Anysuchshipmentdenied
entry maybepermitted intotheUnited States andcharged totheapplicable limitin
thesucceeding agreement period.
(B) Products oftheArab Republic ofEgypt shipped inexcess ofapplicable limits inany
agreement period shall, ifallowed entry intotheUnited States during thatagreement
period, becharged totheapplicable limitinthesucceeding agreement period.
(C) Anyaction taken pursuant tosub-paragraph 7(A)and7(B)above, willnotprejudice
therights oftheother sideregarding consultations.
Spacing Provisions
8. TheGovernment oftheArab Republic ofEgypt shalluseitsbestefforts tospace exports of
itsproducts totheUnited States within eachcategory, sub-category orpartcategory evenly throughout
eachagreement period, taking intoconsideration normal seasonal factors.
USAssistance intheImplementation oftheLimitation Provisions
9. TheGovernment oftheArabRepublic ofEgypt shalladminister itsexport control system under
theAgreement. TheGovernment oftheUnited States mayassist theGovernment oftheArabRepublic
ofEgypt inimplementing thelimitation provisions ofthisAgreement bycontrolling, bythedateof
export, imports oftextiles andtextile products covered bythisAgreement.
Commercial Samples andPersonal Shipments
10. Properly marked commercial samples, valued atUS$250orless,regardless ofvalue, and
items forthepersonal useoftheimporter andnotforresale, neednotbeaccompanied byanexport
visaorcertification andshallnotbesubject tothelimits established under thisAgreement.G/TMB/N/269
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Exchange ofInformation
11. Subject todomestic laws, attherequest oftheother government, eachgovernment agrees to
supply anyinformation within itspossession reasonably believed tobenecessary fortheenforcement
ofthisAgreement.
Exchange ofData
12. (A) TheGovernment oftheUnited States shallpromptly supply theGovernment ofthe
ArabRepublic ofEgypt withdataonmonthly imports ofcotton andcertain man-made
fibretextiles andtextile products oftheArabRepublic ofEgypt intotheUnited States.
(B) TheGovernment oftheArabRepublic ofEgypt shallpromptly supply theGovernment
oftheUnited States withdataonmonthly exports ofcotton, man-made fibre, wool,
silkblend andnon-cotton vegetable fibre textiles andtextile products oftheArab
Republic ofEgypt totheUnited States.
Cooperation inthePrevention ofCircumvention
13. (A) Consistent withdomestic laws, regulations andprocedures, theGovernment ofthe
UnitedStatesandtheGovernmentofEgyptagreetotakemeasuresnecessarytoaddress,
toinvestigate and,where appropriate, totakelegal and/or administrative action to
prevent circumvention ofthisAgreement bytransshipment, rerouting, falsedeclaration
concerning country oforigin, falsification ofofficial documents oranyother means.
(B) Both parties agree tocooperate fully ininstances ofcircumvention oralleged
circumvention oftheAgreement toaddress problems arising fromcircumvention and
toestablish therelevant factsintheplaces ofimport, export and,where applicable,
transshipment. Such cooperation, totheextent consistent withdomestic lawsand
procedures, willinclude investigation ofcircumvention practices; exchange of
documents, correspondence, reports andother relevant information totheextent
available; andfacilitation ofimpromptu plant visits when appropriate andcontacts
byrepresentatives ofeither party, upon request andonacase-by-case basis.
(C) Ifeither party believes thatthisAgreement isbeing circumvented, itmayrequest
consultations toaddress thematter ormatters concerned withaview toseeking a
mutually satisfactory solution. Each party agrees toholdconsultations promptly,
beginning within 30daysofarequest byaparty andconcluding within 90days, unless
extended bymutual agreement. Atthetimeofitsrequest, theparty requesting
consultations shall provide theother party information regarding thealleged
circumvention subject oftheproposed consultations. During theconsultations, the
parties agree tocooperate fullyinterms oftheelements setoutinparagraph (B)above,
including where possible andinaccordance withdomestic lawsandprocedures, the
provision oforiginal documents andother materials necessary tofacilitate legalactions
byaparty.
(D) Should theparties beunable toreach asatisfactory solution inthecourse ofthe
consultations called forunder paragraph C,thentheGovernments ofEgypt andthe
United States agree thatincases where sound evidence regarding circumvention has
been provided, theUnited States maydeduct from thequantitative limits forthat
agreement period amounts atleastequivalent totheamount transshipped ofEgyptian
origin. Theamounts transshipped shallbetheamounts sodetermined byUSCustoms.G/TMB/N/269
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Thecountry oforigin shallbethecountry oforigin sodetermined byUSCustoms
inaccordance withestablished USrules oforigin. TheGovernments ofEgypt and
theUnited States agree thatdeductions fromthequantitative limits established under
thisAgreement maybemade inthose instances inwhich: (a)theUSpossesses sound
evidence showing thatcircumvention hasoccurred; (b)theUShasrequested from
theGovernment ofEgypt cooperation orinformation relevant tothepossible
circumvention thatisofatypethatisavailable toorcould reasonably beobtained by
theGovernment ofEgypt; and(c)theGovernment ofEgypt hasdeliberately withheld
information orhasnotprovided suchinformation orcooperation within theperiod for
consultations outlined inparagraph (C)oranyother reasonable time-frame asmay
bemutually agreed. Anysuchaction shallbenotified totheTSBwithfulljustification.
(E) Should theUnited States choose toexercise itsrights under paragraph (D)todeduct
anamount oramounts fromthequantitative limits ofacountry where repeated instances
ofcircumvention havebeendemonstrated within thecurrent orimmediately preceding
agreement year,thentheUnited States maydeduct fromthequantitative limitamounts
uptothreetimestheamountstransshipped,providedthatsuchdeductionsaredistributed
equally ineachofthethree following years.
(F) Where thereissound evidence showing thatgoods originating inanother country have
beenshipped through Egypt totheUnited States falsely identified asproducts ofEgypt,
thetwoGovernments shallcooperate, aslongasitiswithin theirpowers, toaddress
theproblem andappropriate administrative measures should betaken. Ifno,or
inadequate measures arebeing applied toaddress theproblem, and/or noaction isbeing
taken against suchcircumvention, thentheGovernment ofEgypt andtheGovernment
oftheUnited States agree thatrestraints maybeintroduced intherelevant category
orcategories ordeductions maybeapplied tothequantitative limits established under
thisAgreement inamounts equivalent totheamount ofgoods soshipped. Anysuch
actions, together withtheirtiming andscope, maybetaken afterconsultations held
withaviewtoarriving atamutually satisfactory solution andshallbenotified tothe
TSBwithfulljustifications. Such consultations should beheldpromptly, beginning
within 30daysofarequest ofaparty andconcluding within 90days, unless extended
bymutual agreement. Should theparties beunable toreach asatisfactory solution,
thentheGovernment oftheUnited States maytakeaction asoutlined above without
prejudice totherights oftheGovernment ofEgypt toreferthematter totheTSB.
(G) Theparties agree tocollaborate inregard toinstances offalsedeclarations regarding
thequantity andtypeoftextile products presented forimport bytheexchange of
available information anddocuments inaccordance withthenational lawsconcerned,
withaviewtoestablishing therelevant factsandenabling thegovernment concerned
totakeappropriate action under national lawsandprocedures.
(H) Theparties notethatsome cases ofcircumvention mayinvolve shipments transiting
through countries orplaces withnochanges oralterations made tothegoods contained
insuchshipments intheplaces oftransit. They notethatitmaynotbegenerally
practicable forsuchplaces oftransit toexercise control oversuchshipments.
Mutually Satisfactory Administrative Arrangements
14. Mutually satisfactory administrative arrangements oradjustments maybemade toresolve minor
problems arising intheimplementation ofthisAgreement, including differences inpoints ofprocedure
oroperation.G/TMB/N/269
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Consultation onImplementation Questions
15. TheGovernment oftheUnited States andtheGovernment oftheArabRepublic ofEgypt each
agree toconsult upon therequest oftheother onanyquestion arising intheimplementation ofthis
Agreement.G/TMB/N/269
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ANNEX A
Categories numbered inthe:
200series areofcotton and/or man-made fibre
300series areofcotton
400series areofwool
600series areofman-made fibre
Category Description UnitConversion factor
toSquare metre
Yarn
200 Yarns putupforretail sale,andsewing thread kg. 6.60
201 Speciality yarns kg. 6.50
300 Carded cotton yarn kg. 8.50
301 Combed cotton yarn kg. 8.50
400 Wool yarn kg. 3.70
600 Textured filament yarn kg. 6.50
603 Yarn containing 85%ormore byweight artificial staple
fibrekg. 6.30
604 Yarn containing 85%ormore byweight synthetic staple
fibrekg. 7.60
606 Non-textured filament yarn kg. 20.10
607 Other staple fibreyarn kg. 6.50
Fabric
218 Ofyarns ofdifferent colours M21.00
219 Duck M21.00
220 Fabric ofspecial weave M21.00
222 Knitfabric kg. 12.30
223 Non-woven fabric kg. 14.00
224 Pileandtufted fabric M21.00
225 Bluedenim M21.00
226 Cheesecloth, batiste, lawn, voile M21.00
227 Oxford cloth M21.00
229 Special purpose fabric kg. 13.60
313 Sheeting M21.00
314 Poplin andbroadcloth M21.00
315 Printcloth M21.00
317 Twills M21.00
326 Sateens M21.00
410 Woven fabric M21.00
414 Other wool fabric kg. 2.80
611 Woven fabric containing 85%ormore byweight
artificial stapleM21.00
613 Sheeting M21.00
614 Poplin andbroadcloth M21.00
615 Printcloth M21.00
617 Twills andsateens M21.00
618 Woven artificial filament fabric M21.00
619 Polyester filament fabric M21.00
620 Other synthetic filament fabric M21.00
621 Impression fabric kg. 14.40
622 Glass fibrefabric M21.00G/TMB/N/269
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Category Description UnitConversion factor
toSquare metre
624 MMF fabric, woven, containing more than15%butless
than36%woolM21.00
625 Poplin andbroadcloth ofstaple/filament fibre
combinationsM21.00
626 Printcloth ofstaple/filament fibrecombination M21.00
627 Sheeting ofstaple/filament fibrecombinations M21.00
628 Twills andsateens ofstaple/filament fibrecombinations M21.00
629 Other fabrics ofstaple/filament fibrecombinations M21.00
Apparel
237 Playsuits, sunsuits, etc. Doz. 19.20
239 Babies 'garments andclothing accessories kg. 6.30
330 Handkerchiefs Doz. 1.40
331 Gloves andmittens Dpr. 2.90
332 Hosiery Dpr. 3.80
333 M&B suit-type coats Doz. 30.30
334 Other M&B coats Doz. 34.50
335 W&G coats Doz. 34.50
336 Dresses Doz. 37.90
338 M&B knitshirts Doz. 6.00
339 W&G knitshirts andblouses Doz. 6.00
340 M&B shirts, notknit Doz. 20.10
341 W&G shirts andblouses, notknit Doz. 12.10
342 Skirts Doz. 14.90
345 Sweaters Doz. 30.80
347 M&B trousers, breeches andshorts Doz. 14.90
348 W&G trousers, breeches andshorts Doz. 14.90
349 Brassieres &other body supporting garments Doz. 4.00
350 Robes, dressing gowns, etc. Doz. 42.60
351 Nightwear andpyjamas Doz. 43.50
352 Underwear Doz. 9.20
353 M&B down-filled coats Doz. 34.50
354 W&G down-filled coats Doz. 34.50
359 Other cotton apparel kg. 8.50
431 Gloves andmittens Dpr. 1.80
432 Hosiery Dpr. 2.30
433 M&B suit-type coats Doz. 30.10
434 Other M&B coats Doz. 45.10
435 W&G coats Doz. 45.10
436 Dresses Doz. 41.10
438 Knitshirts &blouses Doz. 12.50
439 Babies 'garments andclothing accessories kg. 6.30
440 Shirts andblouses, notknit Doz. 20.10
442 Skirts Doz. 15.00
443 M&B suits Nos. 3.76
444 W&G suits Nos. 3.76
445 M&B sweaters Doz. 12.40
446 W&G sweaters Doz. 12.40
447 M&B trousers, breeches andshorts Doz. 15.00
448 W&G trousers, breeches andshorts Doz. 15.00
459 Other wool apparel kg. 3.70G/TMB/N/269
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Category Description UnitConversion factor
toSquare metre
630 Handkerchiefs Doz. 1.40
631 Gloves andmittens Dpr. 2.90
632 Hosiery Doz. 3.80
633 M&B suit-type coats Doz. 30.30
634 Other M&B coats Doz. 34.50
635 W&G coats Doz. 34.50
636 Dresses Doz. 37.90
638 M&B knitshirts Doz. 15.00
639 W&G knitshirts andblouses Doz. 12.50
640 M&B shirts, notknit Doz. 20.10
641 W&G shirts andblouses, notknit Doz. 12.10
642 Skirts Doz. 14.90
643 M&B suits Nos. 3.76
644 W&G suits Nos. 3.76
645 M&B sweaters Doz. 30.80
646 W&G sweaters Doz. 30.80
647 M&B trousers, breeches &shorts Doz. 14.90
648 W&G trousers, breeches &shorts Doz. 14.90
649 Brassieres &other body-supporting garments Doz. 4.00
650 Robes, dressing gowns, etc. Doz. 42.60
651 Nightwear andpyjamas Doz. 43.50
652 Underwear Doz. 13.40
653 M&B down-filled coats Doz. 34.50
654 W&G down-filled coats Doz. 34.50
659 Other man-made fibreapparel kg. 14.40
Made-up andmiscellaneous
textiles
360 Pillowcases Nos. 0.90
361 Sheets Nos. 5.20
362 Bedspreads andquilts Nos. 5.80
363 Terry andother piletowels Nos. 0.40
369 Other cotton manufactures kg. 8.50
464 Blankets kg. 2.40
465 Floor coverings M21.00
469 Other wool manufactures kg. 3.70
665 Floor coverings M21.00
666 Other man-made fibrefurnishings kg. 14.40
669 Other man-made fibremanufactures kg. 14.40
670 Flatgoods, handbags, andluggage kg. 3.70