WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/VAL/W/29
4 November 1998
(98-4293)
Committee on Customs Valuation
FOURTH ANNUAL REVIEW OF THE IMPLEMENTATION AND
OPERATION OF THE AGREEMENT ON IMPLEMENTATION
OF ARTICLE VII OF THE GENERAL AGREEMENT
ON TARIFFS AND TRADE 1994
Background Working Document by the Secretariat
This working document is circulated by the Secretariat in preparation for the fourth annual
review of the implementation and operation of the Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (the Agreement), to be conducted at the forthcomingmeeting on 13 November 1998.  As indicated in the text below, this document will have to be updatedin light of the discussion at that meeting in order to give a full picture of the developments in theCommittee during the current year.
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Article 23 of the Agreement provides that "the Committee shall review annually the
implementation and operation of this Agreement taking into account the objectives thereof".
The main objectives of the Agreement are those listed in the General Introductory
Commentary.  The annual review of the Committ ee should cover the implem entation and operation of
the Agreement in the light of its objectives and specific obligations.G/VAL/W/29
Page 2
The contents of this document are as follows:
Page
I. Members, delayed applications, rese rvations and observ er status .......................   3
II. Officers of the WTO Committee on Customs Valu ation..................................   7
III. Meetings of th e Committee ....................................................................   7
IV. National legislati on presented..................................................................   7
V. Amendments, interpretations and rectificati ons of the.....................................
text of the Ag reement...........................................................................   9
VI. Other decisions take n by the Comm ittee.....................................................   9
VII. Technical as sistance.............................................................................   9
VIII. Report by the Technical Committ ee on Customs Valu ation .............................   9
IX. Consultation and di spute settle ment........................................................... 10
X. Annual report to the Counc il for Trade in Goods .......................................... 10G/VAL/W/29
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I. MEMBERS, DELAYED APPLICATIONS, RESERVATIONS AND OBSERVER STATUS
(a) WTO Members (132)
Angola
Antigua and BarbudaArgentinaAustraliaAustriaBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelgiumBelizeBeninBoliviaBotswanaBrazilBrunei DarussalamBulgariaBurkina FasoBurundiCameroonCanada
Central African Republic
ChadChileColombiaCongoCongo, Democratic Republic of theCosta RicaCôte d'IvoireCubaCyprusCzech RepublicDenmarkDjiboutiDominicaDominican RepublicECEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorFijiFinlandFranceGabonGambiaGermanyGhana
GreeceGrenadaGuatemalaGuinea BissauGuinea, Rep.ofGuyanaHaitiHondurasHong Kong, ChinaHungaryIcelandIndiaIndonesiaIrelandIsraelItalyJamaicaJapanKenya
Korea
KuwaitLesothoLiechtensteinLuxembourgMacauMadagascarMalawiMalaysiaMaldivesMaliMaltaMauritaniaMauritiusMexicoMongoliaMoroccoMozambiqueMyanmarNamibiaNetherlandsNew ZealandNicaraguaNigerNigeriaNorway
PakistanPanamaPapua New GuineaParaguayPeruPhilippinesPolandPortugalQatarRomaniaRwandaSaint Kitts and NevisSaint LuciaSaint Vincent & Gren.SenegalSierra LeoneSingaporeSlovak RepublicSlovenia
Solomon Islands
South AfricaSpainSri LankaSurinameSwazilandSwedenSwitzerlandTanzaniaThailandTogoTrinidad and TobagoTunisiaTurkeyUgandaUnited Arab EmiratesUnited KingdomUnited StatesUruguayVenezuelaZambiaZimbabweG/VAL/W/29
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(b) Delayed Application and Reservations
The provisions for special and differential treatment available for developing country
Members have been invoked as follows:
(i) Article 20.1 (delayed application of the provisions of the Agreement) (53)
Bahrain
BangladeshBeninBoliviaBrunei DarussalamBurkina FasoBurundiCameroonCentral African RepublicChadChileColombiaCosta RicaCôte d'IvoireCubaDjiboutiDominican Republic
Ecuador
EgyptEl SalvadorGabonGhanaGuatemalaGuyanaHaitiHondurasIndonesiaJamaica
KenyaKuwaitMadagascarMalaysiaMaliMaltaMauritaniaMauritiusMyanmarNicaraguaNigeriaPakistanParaguayPeru
1
PhilippinesSenegal
Sri Lanka
ThailandTogoTunisiaUgandaUnited Arab EmiratesUruguayVenezuelaZambia
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1The invocation of the special provisions available for developing country Members under the Customs Valuation
Agreement 1979 shall continue to apply under the WTO Customs Valuation Agreement for the developing country Memberconcerned (WT/L/38).G/VAL/W/29
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(ii) Article 20.2 (delayed application of the computed value method) (51)
Bahrain
BangladeshBoliviaBrunei DarussalamBurkina FasoBurundiCameroonChileColombiaCosta RicaCôte d'IvoireDjiboutiDominican RepublicEgyptEcuadorEl SalvadorGabonGuatemalaGuyanaHaitiHondurasIndonesiaIsrael
Jamaica
KenyaKuwaitMadagascar
MalaysiaMaliMaltaMauritaniaMexico
1
Morocco1
MyanmarNicaraguaNigeriaPakistanPeru
1
PhilippinesSénégalSingaporeSri LankaTanzaniaThailandTogoTunisiaTurkey
1
United Arab EmiratesUruguay
Venezuela
Zambia
(iii) Annex III, paragraph 2 (reservation concerning minimum values) (34)
Bahrain
BangladeshBurkina FasoChileColombiaCôte d'IvoireDjiboutiDominican RepublicGabonGuatemalaGuyanaHaiti
IndonesiaJamaicaKenyaMadagascarMalaysiaMaltaMauritaniaMoroccoMyanmarPakistanParaguay
Peru
1
PhilippinesSingaporeSri LankaThailandTogoTunisiaUgandaUruguayVenezuelaZambia
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1The invocation of the special provisions available for developing country Members under the Customs Valuation
Agreement 1979 shall continue to apply under the WTO Customs Valuation Agreement for the developing country Memberconcerned (WT/L/38).G/VAL/W/29
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(iv) Annex III, paragraph 3 (reservation concerning reversal of sequential order of
Articles 5 and 6) (49)
Argentina1
Bahrain
BangladeshBrazil
1
Brunei DarussalamBurkina FasoCameroonChileColombiaCosta RicaCôte d'IvoireDjiboutiDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorGabon
GuatemalaGuyanaHaitiHondurasIndia
1
IndonesiaIsraelJamaicaKenyaMadagascarMalawi
1
MalaysiaMaltaMexico
1
Morocco1MyanmarNicaraguaPakistanPeru
1
PhilippinesSingaporeSri LankaThailandTogoTunisiaTurkey
1
UgandaUnited Arab EmiratesUruguayVenezuelaZambiaZimbabwe
1
(v) Annex III, paragraph 4 (reservation concerning application of Article 5.2
whether or not the importer so requests) (47)
Argentina1
BahrainBangladeshBrazil
2
Brunei DarussalamBurkina FasoCameroonChileColombiaCosta RicaCôte d'IvoireDjiboutiDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorGabon
GuatemalaGuyanaHaitiHondurasIndia
1
IndonesiaIsraelJamaicaKenyaMadagascarMalaysiaMaltaMexico
1
Morocco1
MyanmarNicaragua
NigeriaPakistanPeru
1
PhilippinesSingaporeSri LankaThailandTogoTunisiaTurkey
1
UruguayVenezuelaZambiaZimbabwe
1
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1The invocation of the special provisions available for developing country Members under the Customs Valuation
Agreement 1979 shall continue to apply under the WTO Customs Valuation Agreement for the developing country Memberconcerned (WT/L/38).G/VAL/W/29
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(c) Observer Governments (36)
Albania
AlgeriaAndorraArmeniaAzerbaijanBelarusBhutanCambodiaCape VerdeChinaCroatiaEstoniaEthiopia
Former Yugoslav Rep. of MacedoniaGeorgiaHoly SeeJordanKazakhstanKyrgyz Rep.Laos, P.D.R. ofLatviaLithuaniaMoldovaNepal
OmanRussian FederationSaudi ArabiaSeychellesSudanTaipei, ChineseTongaUkraineUzbekistanVanuatuViet Nam
(d) Observer International Organizations (5)
1
World Customs Organization
IMFUNCTADACPIADB
II. OFFICERS OF THE WTO COMMITTEE ON CUSTOMS VALUATION
Chairperson: Mr. Mohamed Bentaja (Morocco)
Vice-Chairperson: Ms. Julia Nielson (Australia)
III. MEETINGS OF THE COMMITTEE
During the reporting period, the Committee has held three meetings on 8 May 1998, on 26,
30 June and on 2 July 1998, and on 13 November 1998.  The minutes of these meetings are contained
in documents G/VAL/M/7, G/VAL/M/8, [and G/VAL/M/9 (to be issued)], respectively.
IV. NATIONAL LEGISLATION PRESENTED
(i) Texts of national legislation
Article 22  of the Agreement requires each Memb er to inform the Committee of any changes
in its laws and regulations relevant to the Agreement and in the administration of such laws andregulations.  At its first meeting, the Committee agreed on procedures for the notification of nationallegislation (G/VAL/M/1, paragraphs 29-35, 71 and 72).
During the reporting period, the following communications and texts have been submitted:
Canada (G/VAL/N/1/CAN/2)
Cyprus (G/VAL/N/1/CYP/2)Iceland (G/VAL/N/1/ISL/1)
                                                     
     1These organizations now have  official observer status following Ag reement in the Committee (G/VAL/M/5) and
Agreements between the World Bank and the IMF with the WTO (WT/L/195).G/VAL/W/29
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Israel (G/VAL/N/1/ISR/1)
Morocco (G/VAL/N/1/MAR/1)Panama (G/VAL/N/1/PAN/1)
(ii) Checklist of issues
At its first meeting, the Committee agreed on procedures for the submission of a checklist of
issues (G/VAL/M/1, paragraphs 36-39).
During the reporting period, the following communications have been submitted:Panama (G/VAL/N/2/PAN/1)
Slovenia (G/VAL/N/2/SVN/1)
(iii) Examination of national legislation
At its meeting of 8 May 1998, the Comm ittee pursued its examination of various
communications and implementing legislations.  The Committee agreed to conclude the examinationof the legislations of Canada, India and Singapore .  It agreed to continue examination of the legislation
of Mexico (VAL/1/Add.25/Suppl.1, 2 and 3).  The Committee was informed that one Member,
Malawi (G/VAL/N/1/MWI/1), had submitted a communication indicating that their legislationnotified under the Tokyo Round Customs Valuation Agreement remained valid under the WTOCustoms Valuation Agreement.  The Committee took note of the communication from Slovenia
containing its responses to the Checklist of Issu es (G/VAL/N/2/SVN/1).  The Committee noted that
51 developing countries had evoked the delay period provided in Article 20.1, and that 27 of these
countries would have to apply the Agreement by 1 January 2000 and another 20 by the end of the year
2000.  It was noted that the tran sition period, during which devel oping countries s hould prepare for
implementation, was half over.
[At the meeting of 13 November 1998, the Committee continued ex amination of the
legislation of Mexico and initiated examination of  the legislations of Cyprus (G/VAL/N/1/CYP/2),
Iceland (G/VAL/N/1/ISL/1), Israel (G/VAL/N/1/ISR/1), Morocco (G/VAL/N/1/MAR/1) andPanama (G/VAL/N/1/PAN/1). The Committee took note of the communication from Panamacontaining its responses to the Checklist of Issu es (G/VAL/N/2/PAN/1).  The Committee again noted
the situation with regard to the developing countries which had evoked the delay period under Article20.1.  There were 53 countries in this situation, 28 of which would have to apply the Agreement by 1
January 2000].
(iv) Information on the application of the Committee Decisions
Information on the application of the Decision on the Treatment of Interest Charges in the
Customs Value of Imported Goods and of paragraph 2 of the Decision on the Valuation of CarrierMedia Bearing Software for Data Processing Equipment (G/VAL/5), made available by Members, issummarized in document G/VAL/W/5/Rev.5.G/VAL/W/29
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  V. AMENDMENTS, INTERPRETATIONS AND RECTIFICATIONS OF THE TEXT OF
THE AGREEMENT
At its first meeting on 12 May 1995, the Comm ittee adopted the decisions relating to the
interpretation of the Agreement,  which had previously been ad opted by the Toky o Round Committee
(G/VAL/M/1, paragraphs 66-67).  The decisions were reproduced in document G/VAL/5.  No newdecisions relating to the interpretation of the Agreement were adopted during the reporting period.
VI. OTHER DECISIONS TAKEN BY THE COMMITTEE
At its first meeting on 12 May 1995, the Co mmittee adopted other decisions which are
contained in document G/VAL/5.  The Committee also adopted decisions that were referred by theMinisters at Marrakesh to the Committee for adoption.  The texts of the decisions are contained indocument G/VAL/1.  During the reporting period, the Committee adopted the Decision on the Termsand Conditions of the Moroccan Reservation under Paragraph 2, Annex III of the Agreement onImplementation of Article VII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994, contained in
G/VAL/M/8.
VII. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
Technical assistance aimed at helping countries in their preparations for the application of the
Agreement has continued to be a matter of high priority to Members, to the Committee and to theTechnical Committee during the reporting period. At the May meeting, the Chairman reported on two
informal meetings which had been held on technica l assistance.  The Committee reviewed responses to
its request for information which were subsequently  circulated in G/VAL/W/ 24.  The WTO Secretariat
briefed the Committee on the progress and plans fo r its Technical Assistance Programme on Customs
Valuation.  It was agreed that Members would conti nue to respond to the request for information which
could help Members to design bilateral and regiona l technical assistance activities as well as feed into
the WTO Secretariat Programme.  It was also ag reed that the new Chairman would hold informal
consultations to review additional responses to the request, to hear progress on the Secretariat
Programme, and to discuss any Members' partic ular situation and/or new proposals on how the
Committee could further pursue its manda te under Article 20.3 of the Agreement.
[To be completed in light of the November 1998 meeting.]
Information on technical assistance activities is contained in working document
G/VAL/8/Add.3 and Add.4 which reproduces information contained in WCO documents 41.091 and41.719, as well as in G/ VAL/W/24 and G/VAL/W/25.
VIII. REPORTS BY THE TECHNICAL COMMITTEE ON CUSTOMS VALUATIONMeetings of the Technical Committee
The representative of the World Customs Organization (WCO) presented detailed oral reports
on the Sixth and [Seventh] Sessions of the Technical Committee on Customs Valuation, held on27 April - 1 May 1998 [and on 5 - 9 October 1998, respectively].
The Committee on Customs Valuation took note of these reports and expressed appreciation
for the continued valuable work of the Technical Committee.G/VAL/W/29
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IX. CONSULTATION AND DISPUTE SETTLEMENT
During the reporting period, the European Communities (WT/DS53/1), Norway
(WT/DS53/2) and Switzerland (WT/DS53/3) continued to consult with Mexico under Article 19 ofthe Agreement and pursuant to Article XXII:1 of the GATT 1994 and Article 4 of the Understandingon Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes, on the Mexican Customs Law and theResolution establishing the general rules governing the application of the customs provisions of theNorth American Free Trade Agreement.
X. ANNUAL REPORT TO THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN GOODS (G/VAL/W/21)
[The Committee adopted its annual report to the Council for Trade in Goods in accordance
with the requirements of Article 23 of the Agreement (G/VAL/W/28).]
[Document to be finalized in light of the discussion at the November 1998 meeting.]G/VAL/W/29
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ANNEX I
Information on National Legislation
Below are listed the references of the documents1 containing national laws, regulations etc.
and replies to the Checklist of Issues (VAL/2/Rev.1 and Rev.2) received from Signatories.
Member National legislation Replies to the
Checklist of Issues
Argentina VAL/1/Add.22 + Suppl. 1-4 VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.4
 + Suppl.2/Rev.1
G/VAL/N/1/ARG/1
Australia VAL/1/Add.14 + Suppl.1 -4 VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.12 + Suppl.1
G/VAL/N/1/AUS/1
Botswana VAL/1/Add.16 Not receivedBrazil VAL/1/Add.20 + Suppl.1            VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.3
G/VAL/N/1/BRZ/1
Bulgaria G/VAL/N/1/BGR/1Canada VAL/1/Add.17 + Suppl.1-3 VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.14
G/VAL/N/1/CAN/1G/VAL/N/1/CAN/2
Cyprus VAL/1/Add.26 VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.7
G/VAL/N/1/CYP/2
Czech Rep. VAL/1/Add.18 + Suppl.1/  VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.15                            Corr.1-2 + Suppl.1
G/VAL/N/1/CZE/1 G/VAL/N/1/CZE/2
EEC  VAL/1/Add.2 +  Suppl.1-13 VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.6 + Suppl.1
G/VAL/N/1/EEC/1/Rev.1
Fiji G/VAL/N/1/FJI/1 G/VAL/N/2/FJI/1Hong Kong, VAL/1/Add.9 Not applicable  China G/VAL/N/1/HKG/1Hungary VAL/1/Add.6 VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.4
G/VAL/N/1/HUN/1
Iceland G/VAL/N/1/ISL/1Israel G/VAL/N/1/ISR/1India VAL/1/Add.24 + Suppl.1 VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.6
G/VAL/N/1/IND/2
Japan VAL/1/Add.7 VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.8
G/VAL/N/1/JPN/1
Korea, Rep.of VAL/1/Add.19 + Suppl.1-4 VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.1
               + Suppl.2/Corr.1-2 + Suppl.1
+ Suppl.3/Corr.1
G/VAL/N/1/KOR/1
Lesotho VAL/1/Add.21 + Suppl.1 VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.2Liechtenstein G/VAL/N/1/LIE/1Macau G/VAL/N/1/MAC/1
                                                     
1 Documents beginning with "VAL" are documents issued under the Tokyo Round Committee on Customs ValuationG/VAL/W/29
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Malawi VAL/1/Add.27
G/VAL/N/1/MWI/1
Mexico VAL/1/Add.25 + Suppl.1-3 VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.8
+ Suppl.1/Rev.1
Morocco G/VAL/N/1/MAR/1New Zealand VAL/1/Add.12 + Suppl.1 VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.10
G/VAL/N/1/NZL/1
Norway VAL/1/Add.11 + Corr.1 VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.7
+ Suppl.1-2
G/VAL/N/1/NOR/1
Panama G/VAL/N/1/PAN/1 G/VAL/N/2/PAN/1Poland VAL/1/Add.28Romania VAL/1/Add.8 +  Suppl.1-2 VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.9
G/VAL/N/1/ROM/1
Slovak Rep. VAL/1/Add.18 + Suppl.1/  VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.15
Corr.1-2 + Suppl.1
G/VAL/N/1/SVK/1
Slovenia G/VAL/N/1/SVN/1 G/VAL/N/2/SVN/1Singapore G/VAL/N/1/SGP/1 G/VAL/N/2/SGP/1South Africa VAL/1/Add.15 + Corr.1             VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.13
+ Suppl.1-3
G/VAL/N/1/ZAF
Switzerland VAL/1/Add.5 Not applicable
G/VAL/N/1/CHE/1
Turkey VAL/1/Add.29
G/VAL/N/1/TUR/1
United States VAL/1/Add.1 +  Suppl.1-5 VAL/2/Rev.1/Add.1
G/VAL/N/1/USA/1
Zimbabwe VAL/1/Add.23 VAL/2/Rev.2/Add.5
G/VAL/N/1/ZWE/1
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