WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/L/589
8 November 2002
(02-6189)
REPORT (2002) OF THE COMMITTEE ON
TRADE-RELATED INVESTMENT MEASURES
I. GENERAL
1. This report is submitted pursuant to Article 7.3 of the Agreement on Trade-Related
Investment Measures, which requires the Committee on Trade-Related Investment Measures to reportannually to the Council for Trade in Goods.  The Report covers the period October 2001- October
2002.
1
2. The Committee met on 21 May 2002 under the chairmanship of Mr. Paul Bennett (Ireland),
and on 10 July and 14 October 2002 under the chairmanship of Mr. Vassili Notis (Greece).2 Minutes
of the meetings may be found in documents G/TRIMS/M/13, G/TRIMS/ M/14 and G/TRIMS/M/15
and G/TRIMS/M/15. Add.1, respectively.  The meetin gs were open to Members, governments with
observer status in the WTO and international intergovernmental organizations to which the
Committee has accorded regular observer status (IMF, OECD, UN, UNCTAD and World Bank).
Decisions on requests for observer status from several other international organizations are pending.
II. NOTIFICATIONS
3. Article 5.1 of the Agreement on Trade-Related Investment Measures requires Members to
notify any trade-related investment measure ("TRIM") inconsistent with the Agreement within
90 days after the entry into force of the WTO Agr eement.  Article 5.2 of the Agreement gives the
benefit of transition periods for the elimination of measures notified under Article 5.1 and which were
in existence at least 180 days preceding the entry into force of the WTO Agreement.  Pursuant to a
decision adopted by the General Council in April 1995, governments eligible to become original
WTO Members that accepted the WTO Agreement after 1 January 1995 had a period of 90 days afterthe date of their acceptance of the WTO Agreement to  make the notifications foreseen in Article 5.1,
with the period for the elimination of TRIMs notified under Article 5.1 being governed by reference
to the date of entry into force of the WTO Agreement itself.
3
4. Annex 1 contains a list of all notifications of measures under Article 5.1.4  In the case of some
Members, notifications have been submitted later than the 90-day period foreseen.
                                                     
1 The previous annual report is contained in document G/L/390 of 20 September 2000.
2 The meeting of 14 October was resumed on 4 November to allow the Committee to complete its
work.
3 WT/L/64.
4 Notifications under Article 5.1 circulated in 1995 have been derestricted since 28 May 1996.
Following the decision taken by the General Council on 14 May 2002 on derestriction and circulation of WTO
documents (WT/L/452), which abrogated the Decision of 18 July 1996, documents containing notifications
under Articles 5.1, 5.5 and 6.2 are issued unrestricted.G/L/589
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5. Some Members have notified the Committee that they do not apply any TRIM inconsistent
with the Agreement.  During the period under revi ew, such a notification was received from Chinese
Taipei.  Annex 2 lists all Members which have made such notifications.
6. Article 5.5 deals with the conditions under which, during the transition periods stipulated in
Article 5.2, Members may apply TRIMs notified under  Article 5.1 to new investments.  While a
standard format for the submission of notifications under this provision has been adopted by the
Committee (G/TRIMS/3), no such notifications have been made.
7. A number of Members have submitted notifications as required under Article 6.2, which
provides for notification to the Secretariat of publications in which information on TRIMs can be
found.  A list of these notifications has been circ ulated in G/TRIMS/N/2/Rev.9 and Addenda 1 to 10.
Annex 3 lists the Members which have submitted such notifications.
III. OUTSTANDING IMPLEMENTATION ISSUES
8. Pursuant to the decision of the Council for Trade in Goods (CTG) taken on 7 May 2002, the
TRIMs Committee was assigned the responsibility for conducting work on the outstanding
implementation issues related to the TRIMs Agreement as contained in tirets 37-40 of
JOB(01)/152/Rev.1, and for reporting regularly to the CTG on progress on these issues.  At its
meetings on 21 May, 10 July and 14 October, the TRIMs Committee discussed the relevant tirets.These were:
- Tiret 37:  Developing countries shall have another opportunity to notify existing TRIMs
measures which they would be then allowed to maintain till the end of the new transition
period.
- Tiret 38:  The provisions of Article 5.3 must be suitably amended and made mandatory.- Tiret 39:  Developing countries shall be exempted from the disciplines on the application of
domestic content requirement by providing for an enabling provision in Articles 2 and 4 tothis effect.
- Tiret 40:  Specific provisions shall be included in the Agreement to provide developing
countries the necessary flexibility to implement development policies (intended to address,
among others, social, regional, economic, and technological concerns) that may help reduce
the disparities they face vis-à-vis  developed countries.
9. The Committee had a useful exchange of views on these issues and more generally on the
implementation of the TRIMs Agreement. The Committee discussed a joint proposal by Brazil and
India under tiret 40, which was distributed in document G/TRIMS/W/25.  A full account of the
discussions is contained in the relevant sections of the minutes of the meetings of the TRIMs
Committee (G/TRIMS/M/13, G/TRIMS/M/14, G/TRIMS/M/15 and G/TRIMS/M/15.Add.1).
10. At its meeting on 21 May 2002, the Committee agreed that the Chairman would make a brief
oral report to the CTG after each meeting of the TRIMs Committee at which the outstanding
implementation issues were discussed. Accordingly, the Chairman of the TRIMs Committee reported
on the development of the discussions on this issue at the meetings of the CTG held on 13 June and
22-23 July 2002 in documents G/C/M/62 and G/C/M/64, respectively.G/L/589
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11. At its meeting on 14 October  2002, which was resumed on 4 November, the Committee
agreed on its report to the CTG on this issue.  The report was forwarded to the CTG in document
G/L/588.
IV. TRANSITIONAL REVIEW MECHANISM PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH 18 OF
THE PROTOCOL OF ACCESSION OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA
12.  Pursuant to paragraph 18 of China's Protoc ol of Accession, the TRIMs Committee undertook
the review China's implementation of its commitments under the TRIMs Agreement and related
provisions of the Protocol of Accession.  To that end, China was invited to provide relevant
information, as specified in Sections 3 and 8 of Anne x 1A of the Protocol, in advanced of the review.
Comments and questions in connection with Chin a's Transitional Review Mechanism were received
from Japan (G/TRIMS/W/20), the European Co mmunity (G/TRIMS/W/21), the United States
(G/TRIMS/W/22), and the Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu(G/TRIMS/W/24). In a communication dated 10 October 2002, China submitted information on
Annex 1A of its Protocol of Accession in th e context of the Transitional Review Mechanism
(G/TRIMS/W/26).
13. The  review took place at the meeting of 14 October 2002. The Committee had a useful
discussion on the basis of the above submissions. The statement made by the Chinese delegation atthe meeting was distributed in document G/TRIMS/W/27.   A full account of the discussions can be
found in the minutes of that meeting (G/TRIMS/M/15). The Chairman of the Committee submitted a
report on the review, on his own responsibility, to the Council for Trade in Goods, which is contained
in document G/L/586.  Some delegations reserved their rights to submit additional questions to China
in connection with the review.
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ANNEX 1
Members which have Submitted Notifications under Article 5.1
of the Agreement on Trade-Related Investment Measures
Member Document Symbol Date of Communication
Argentina G/TRIMS/N/1/ARG/1 30 March 1995
Argentina G/TRIMS/N/1/ARG/1/Add.1 21 March 1997Barbados G/TRIMS/N/1/ BRB/1 31 March 1995
Bolivia
5G/TRIMS/N/1/BO L/1 24 June 1998
Chile G/TRIMS/N/1/CHL/1 14 December 1995
Colombia G/TRIMS/N/1/COL/1 31 March 1995Colombia G/TRIMS/N/1/COL/1/Add.1 4 June 1995Colombia G/TRIMS/N/1/COL/2 31 July 1995Colombia G/TRIMS/N/1/COL/2/Corr.1 30 September 1996
Costa Rica
6G/TRIMS/N/1/CRI/1 30 March 1995
Cuba7G/TRIMS/N/1/CUB/1 18 July 1995
Cyprus8G/TRIMS/N/1/CYP/2 30 October 1995
Dominican Republic G/TRIMS/N/1/DOM/1 26 April 1995Ecuador G/TRIMS/N/1/ECU/1 20 March 1996Egypt G/TRIMS/N/1/EGY/1 29 September 1995
India G/TRIMS/N/1/IND/1 31 March 1995
India G/TRIMS/N/1/IND/1/Add.1 22 December 1995
                                                     
5 Bolivia subsequently submitted a notification indicating that it does not apply any trade-related
investment measures that are not in conformity with the Agreement (G/TRIMS/N/1/BOL/1/Add.1).
6 Costa Rica subsequently submitted a notification indicating that it intended to eliminate measures
notified under Article 5.1 in advance of the expiry  of the transition period (G/TRIMS/N/1/CRI/1/Add.1).
7 Cuba subsequently informed the Committee that th e measures notified by Cuba under Article 5.1 are
no longer in force (G/TRIMS/M/3, paragraph 5).
8 This notification superseded Cyprus' previous one (G/TRIMS/N/1/CYP/1) of 29 June 1995; Cyprus
subsequently submitted a notification indicating that it has eliminated measures notified under Article 5.1
(G/TRIMS/N/1/CYP/2/Add.1).G/L/589
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Member Document Symbol Date of Communication
India G/TRIMS/N/1/IND/1/Add.1/Corr.1 18 March 1996
India G/TRIMS/N/1/IND/1/Add.2 11 April 1996
Indonesia G/TRIMS/N/1/IDN/1 23 May 1995Indonesia G/TRIMS/N/1/IDN/1/Add.1 28 October 1996Malaysia G/TRIMS/N/1/MYS/1 31 March 1995Malaysia G/TRIMS/N/1/MYS/1/Rev.1 14 March 1996Mexico G/TRIMS/N/1/MEX/1 31 March 1995
Mexico G/TRIMS/N/1/MEX/1/Rev.1
931 March 1995
Nigeria10G/TRIMS/N/1/NGA/1 17 July 1996
Pakistan G/TRIMS/N/1/ PAK/1 30 March 1995
Peru G/TRIMS/N/1/PER/1 3 March 1995Philippines G/TRIMS/N/1/PHL/1 31 March 1995
Poland
11G/TRIMS/N/1/POL/1 28 September 1995
Romania G/TRIMS/N/1/ROM/1 31 March 1995South Africa G/TRIMS/N/ 1/ZAF/1 19 April 1995
Thailand G/TRIMS/N/1/THA/1 30  March 1995Uganda G/TRIMS/N/1/UGA/1 17 June 1997Uruguay G/TRIMS/N/1/URY/1 31 March 1995
Uruguay G/TRIMS/N/1/URY /1/Add.1 30 August 1995
Venezuela G/TRIMS/N/1/VEN/1 31 March 1995
                                                     
9 English only.
10 Nigeria subsequently submitted a notification indi cating that the Nigerian Enterprises Promotion Act
of 1989 has been repealed and replaced with the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission Decree 1995(G/TRIMS/N/1/NGA/1/Add.1).
11 Poland subsequently submitted a notification indicating that it has eliminated measures notified
under Article 5.1 (G/TRIMS/N/1/POL/1/Add.1).G/L/589
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ANNEX 2
Notifications Indicating that No TRIMs Inconsistent with the Agreement
on Trade-Related Investment Measures are Maintained
Member Document Symbol Date of Communication
Bolivia G/TRIMS/N/1/BOL/1/Add.1 4 March 1999
Costa Rica  G/TRIMS/N/1/ CRI/1/Add.11216 September 1999
Cyprus G/TRIMS/N/1/ CYP/2/Add.1 26 May 2000
Haiti G/TRIMS/N/1/HTI/1 27 February 1998Honduras G/TRIMS/N/1/HND/1 7 July 1995
Israel G/TRIMS/N/1/ISR/1 24 October 1996
Jamaica G/TRIMS/N/1/JAM/1 9 June 1998Jordan G/TRIMS/N/1/JOR/1 22 May 2000Maldives G/TRIMS/N/1/MLV/1 30 September 1999Mali G/TRIMS/N/1/MLI/1 27 May 1997
Mauritius G/TRIMS/N/1/MUS/1 27 March 1995
New Zealand G/TRIMS/N/1/NZL/1 20 May 1999Nicaragua G/TRIMS/N/ 1/NIC/1 18 July 1996
Oman G/TRIMS/N/1/OMN/1 20 December 2000Saint Lucia G/TRIMS/N/1/LCA/1 14 February 1996Singapore G/TRIMS/N/1/SGP/1 9 October 1996
Slovenia G/TRIMS/N/1/SVN/1 27 March 1995
Sri Lanka G/TRIMS/N/ 1/LKA/1 14 March 2000
Switzerland G/TRIMS/N/ 1/CHE/1 8 August 1995
Taipei, Chinese G/TRIMS/N/1/TPKM/1 27 May 2002Trinidad & Tobago G/TRIMS/N/1/TTO/1 1 April 1996
Zambia G/TRIMS/N/1/ZMB/1 13 April 1995
                                                     
12 A Corrigendum to the English version was issued in G/TRIMS/N/1/CRI/1/Add.1/Corr.1, dated
26 October 1999.G/L/589
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ANNEX 3
Members which have Submitted Notifications under Article 6.2 of
the Agreement on Trade-Related Investment Measures
Argentina
Australia
Brazil
Brunei Darussalam
Bolivia
BulgariaBurundi
Cameroon
Canada
Chad
ChileChina
Colombia
Costa Rica
Croatia
CubaCzech Republic
Dominica
Ecuador
Estonia
European Community (including the member States)Fiji Islands, Rep. of the
Gabon
Georgia
Ghana
Haiti
Hong Kong, China
IcelandIndia
Indonesia
Israel
Jamaica
JapanKorea
Kyrgyz Republic
Latvia
Liechtenstein
LithuaniaMacau, China
Madagascar
Maldives
Mali
MaltaMauritius
Moldova
Mongolia
NamibiaG/L/589
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New Zealand
Nicaragua
Norway
Panama
ParaguayPeru
Philippines
Poland
Qatar
Romania
Singapore
Slovak RepublicSlovenia
South Africa
Sri Lanka
Suriname
SwitzerlandTaipei, Chinese
Thailand
Trinidad and Tobago
Tunisia
UgandaUnited States
Uruguay
Venezuela, Bolivarian Rep. of
Zambia
Zimbabwe
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