WT/GC/W/777/Rev.5  
 
20 February  2020 
(20-1330) Page: 1/3 
General Council  
3-4 March 2020   Original: English  
 
  
PROCEDURAL GUIDELINE S FOR WTO COUNCILS A ND COMMITTEES  
ADDRESSING TRADE CON CERNS  
DRAFT GENERAL COUNCI L DECISION  
Communication from Albania; Australia; Canada;  China;  European Union; Hong Kong, China; 
Iceland; Republic of Korea; Republic of Moldova; New  Zealand; North Macedonia; Norway; 
Panama; Qatar; Singapore; Switzerland; the Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, 
Kinmen and Matsu;  Thailand; Turkey; and Ukraine  
Revision  
The following communication, dated 20 February  2020, is being c irculated at the request of the 
delegations of Albania; Australia; Canada; China; European Union; Hong Kong, China; Iceland; 
Republic of Korea; Republic of Moldova; New Zealand; North Macedonia; Norway; Panama; Qatar; 
Singapore; Switzerland; the Separate C ustoms Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu; 
Thailand; Turkey and Ukraine.  
 
_______________  
 
 
The General Council,  
 
Having regard  to Article IV:2 of the Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization  ("the 
Agreement "); 
 
Recognizing  that the role of regular WTO council and committee s is to oversee the functioning of 
their respective agreements, and that their  meetings offer Memb ers a forum  to discuss concerns 
with trade -related measures of other Members;  
 
Desiring  to strengthen the ability of regular WTO councils and committees to facilitate the effective 
consideration  of such trade concerns by equipping them with horizontal proc edural guidelines , 
which should complement specific rules , procedures  and existing practices of individual councils 
and committees, as well as streamlined meeting arrangements ; 
 
Seeking  to encourage the effective  resolution of trade concerns among Members through dialogue;  
 
Decides  as follows:  
 
Meeting arrangements  
 
1. All documents to be considered at a formal meeting of a WTO body, including convening 
notices which shall indicate the items proposed for the agenda, shall be made available to 
Members at least 15 calendar days before the meeting . This shall not apply to annotated 
agendas, which may be circulated closer to the meeting, and room documents, which may 
be circulated at any time . The Secretariat shall remind Members of the closing dat es for 
proposing items to be included on  the agendas.  WT/GC/W/777/Rev.5  
 
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  2. Convening notices indicating the items proposed for the agenda of a WTO body shall indicate 
which trade concerns are raised for the first time in that body and which have been 
previously raised as well as how many times . Convening notices shall be unrestricted1 and 
made publicly available on the WTO website.  
3. The minutes of a meeting of a WTO body shall normally be circulated within three weeks 
after the meeting and not later than 30 calendar days before the next regularly scheduled 
meeting of that body.2 
4. At the end of the calendar year, the Secretariat shall circulate an indicative schedule of 
meetings for the coming year for each WTO body  that is  consistent with the Guidelines on 
the Arrangements for Sch eduling of Meetings of WTO Bodies .3 
5. To the extent that the meeting arrangements set out in paragraphs 1 to 4 are in 
contradiction with rules set by individual councils and committees, the present decision shall 
prevail . This includes where councils and committees apply mutatis mutandis the Rules of 
Procedure for Meetings of the General Council .4 
Consideration of trade concerns in WTO bodies  
 
6. Members requesting the inclusion of a trade concern in the agenda of a formal meeting for 
the first time should infor m the respondent Member(s) concerned and the Secretariat at 
least 20  calendar days prior to the meeting . They should provide the respondent Member(s) 
with a description of the concern so as to enable them to prepare a substantive reply . 
Respondent Members shall endeavour to address the substance of the concerns raised from 
the first meeting where the concern is included on the agenda.  
7. Members raising a trade concern are encouraged to submit written questions to the 
respondent Member(s) . If a Member receives written questions on a trade concern, that 
Member should normally  respond in writing within 30 calendar days of circulation of the 
written questions . Written questions and written replies on trade concerns shall be 
unrestricted, unless the Member raising or responding to the trade concern requests 
otherwise.  
8. The Secretariat will establish and manage a database on trade concerns in which all WTO 
documents pertaining to trade concerns are recorded, including written questions and 
replies, relevant minutes of meetings and relevant notifications . The database will contain a 
search facility to make all documents related to a particular trade concern easily accessible . 
The database shall not affect the restriction level of individual documents.  
9. If concerns over the same measure are raised in different WTO bodies, the Chairperson , 
assisted by the Secretariat and in consultation with the Members concerned, shall, when the 
agenda item is taken up, give a brief overview of the relevant discussions t hat took place in 
other WTO bodies . This overview shall include , as far as possible,  information on which 
bodies have addressed trade concerns over the same measure and how often as well as a 
factual summary  of the discussions . 
10. The Members raising and resp onding to a trade concern are encouraged to consult with each 
other between formal meetings . As far as practicable and appropriate, they should give a 
brief oral report about the outcome of their consultations at the next formal meeting if the 
trade concer n is maintained on the agenda.  
 
1 Convening notices shall be deemed to be official WTO documents which are unrestricted pursuant to 
paragraph 2(b) of the Procedures for the Circulation and Derestriction of WTO Documents of 14  May 2002, as 
contained in WT/L/452.  
2 Paragraph 3 concerning th e circulation of the minutes of a meeting of a WTO body shall replace the 
first sentence of footnote 3 of the Procedures for the Circulation and Derestriction of WTO Documents of 
14 May 2002.  
3 WT/L/106 . 
4 WT/L/161.  WT/GC/W/777/Rev.5  
 
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  11. When a trade concern is repeatedly raised at a WTO body, Members taking the floor under 
the agenda item are encouraged, in order to make the best use of time and to the extent 
possible, to focus on new developments on the mat ter since the last time the trade concern 
was discussed in that body . 
Informal resolution of trade concerns  
 
12. If a trade concern has remained on the agenda for three or more consecutive meetings 
without resolution, the Member raising or responding to a trad e concern may request the 
Chairperson to invite them to participate, on a voluntary basis, in an informal meeting with 
the objective of finding a way forward . The Secretariat should  normally participate, unless 
one of the Members raising or responding to a  trade concern disagrees . The Member raising 
or responding to a trade concern and the Chairperson may request the Secretariat to 
provide technical input . The Chairperson may invite other interested Members to the 
informal meeting if the Members raising and responding to a trade concern so agree.  
13. Members are encouraged to involve  capital -based experts in the informal meeting as 
necessary and may request the Secretariat to facilitate the participation  of capital -based 
experts , including by means su ch as videoconferencing . If the Members raising and 
responding to a trade concern agree, technical experts from organizations that have 
observer status in the body concerned may participate at the informal  meeting and may 
provide technical input upon reque st. 
14. The Chairperson shall give a brief oral report about the outcome of the informal meeting at 
the next formal meeting, unless the Member raising or responding to a trade concern 
disagree . The oral report shall include a factual summary of views expressed  and any way 
forward agreed by the Members concerned.  The oral report shall not be relied upon in 
dispute settlement procedures pursuant to Annex 2 to the Agreement.  
Assistance and review  
 
15. Developing country Member s, in particular Least  Developed Countries,  encountering 
difficulties to respond to a trade concern or to implement these Procedural Guidelines are 
encouraged to request technical assistance from the WTO Secretariat.  
16. In the light of the experience gained from the operation of the Procedur al Guidelines, the 
General Council will, at an appropriate time, review and if necessary modify them.  
Scope and entry into force  
 
17. The Procedural Guidelines shall apply to the bodies set up pursuant to, and referred to by, 
Article IV of the Agreement, with the exception of the Ministerial Conference and the General 
Council, including when it convenes and acts as the Dispute Settlement Body and the Trade 
Policy Review Body . They shall also apply to the Committee of Participants on the Expansion 
of Trade in In formation Technology Products, which was established pursuant to the 
provisions of the Ministerial Declaration on Trade in Information Technology Products5 and 
the Implementation of the Ministerial Declaration on Trade in Information Technology 
Products .6 
18. The present decision shall enter into force three months after the date of its adoption.  
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5 WT/MIN(96)/16 . 
6 G/L/160 .