RESTRICTED  
  
WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev. 5 
 
6 September  2023 
(23-5988) Page: 1/83 
Working Party on the Accession of  
the Union of the Comoros   
  
ACCESSION OF THE UNION OF THE COMOROS  
DRAFT REPORT OF THE WORKING PARTY  
Revision  
_______________  
 
 
 
  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  TABLE OF CONTENTS  
I. INTRODUCTION  ................................ ................................ ................................ ....... 5 
DOCUMENTATION PROVIDED  ................................ ................................ ...........................  5 
INTRODUCTORY STATEMENTS  ................................ ................................ ..........................  5 
II. ECONOMIC POLICIES  ................................ ................................ ...............................  7 
- Monetary and Fiscal Policy  ................................ ................................ .........................  7 
- Foreign Exchange and Payments  ................................ ................................ ...............  10 
- Investment Regime  ................................ ................................ ................................ . 11 
- State Ownership and Privatization  ................................ ................................ .............  14 
- Pricing Policies  ................................ ................................ ................................ ....... 15 
- Competition Policy  ................................ ................................ ................................ .. 18 
III. FRAMEWORK FOR MAKING AND ENFORCING POLICIES  ................................ .........  19 
- Powers of Executive, Legislative and Judicial Branches of Government  ............................  19 
- Authority of Sub -Central Governments  ................................ ................................ ...... 23 
IV. POLICIES AFFECTING TRADE IN GOODS  ................................ ................................  24 
- Trading Rights  ................................ ................................ ................................ ........  24 
- Trade Facilitation  ................................ ................................ ................................ .... 28 
A. IMPORT REGULATIONS  ................................ ................................ ..........................  29 
- Ordinary customs duties  ................................ ................................ ..........................  29 
- Other duties and charges  ................................ ................................ .........................  29 
- Tariff rate quotas, tariff exemptions  ................................ ................................ ..........  31 
- Fees and charges for services rendered ................................ ................................ ...... 31 
- Application of internal taxes to imports  ................................ ................................ ...... 32 
- Quantitative import restrictions, including prohibitions, quotas and licensing systems  ....... 33 
- Customs valuation  ................................ ................................ ................................ .. 36 
- Rules of origin  ................................ ................................ ................................ ........  37 
- Other customs formalities  ................................ ................................ ........................  38 
- Preshipment inspection  ................................ ................................ ............................  39 
- Anti-dumping, countervailing duties, safeguard regimes  ................................ ...............  39 
B. EXPORT REGULATIONS  ................................ ................................ ..........................  41 
- Customs tariffs, fees and charges for services rendered, application of internal taxes to 
exports  ................................ ................................ ................................ .................  41 
- Export restrictions  ................................ ................................ ................................ .. 41 
- Export subsidies  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..... 42 
C. INTERNAL POLICIES AFFECTING FOREIGN TRADE IN GOODS  ...............................  42 
- Industrial policy, including subsidies  ................................ ................................ ..........  42 
- Technical barriers to trade, standards and certification  ................................ .................  43 
- Sanitary and phytosanitary measures  ................................ ................................ ........  46 
- Trade -related investment measures  ................................ ................................ ..........  50 
- State -trading entities  ................................ ................................ ..............................  50 
- Free zones, special economic areas  ................................ ................................ ...........  51 WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  - Government procurement  ................................ ................................ ........................  52 
- Transit  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..................  52 
- Agricultural policies  ................................ ................................ ................................ . 52 
(a) Imports  ................................ ................................ ................................ .................  52 
(b) Exports  ................................ ................................ ................................ .................  53 
(c) Internal policies  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...... 54 
- Trade in civil aircraft  ................................ ................................ ...............................  55 
V. TRADE -RELATED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY REGIME  ................................ .............  55 
- GENERAL  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...............  55 
- Intellectual property rights policy  ................................ ................................ ..............  55 
- Responsible agencies for policy formulation and implementation  ................................ .... 56 
- Participation in international intellectual property agreements  ................................ ....... 56 
- Application of national and MFN treatment to foreign nationals  ................................ ...... 57 
- Fees and taxes  ................................ ................................ ................................ ....... 58 
- SUBSTANTIVE STANDARDS OF PROTECTION, INCLUDING PROCEDURES FOR THE 
ACQUISITION AND MAINTENANCE OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS  ............  58 
- Copyright and related rights (including rights of performers, producers of phonograms and 
broadcasting organizations)  ................................ ................................ .....................  58 
- Trademarks, including service marks  ................................ ................................ .........  62 
- Geographical indications, including appellations of origin  ................................ ..............  62 
- Industrial designs  ................................ ................................ ................................ ... 63 
- Patents  ................................ ................................ ................................ .................  63 
- Plant variety protection  ................................ ................................ ...........................  63 
- Layout Designs of Integrated Circuits  ................................ ................................ ........  63 
- Requirements on undiscl osed information, including trade secrets and test data  ..............  64 
- All other categories of intellectua l property  ................................ ................................ . 64 
- MEASURES TO CONTROL ABUSE OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS  .................  64 
- ENFORCEMENT  ................................ ................................ ................................ ....... 64 
- Civil judicial procedures and remedies  ................................ ................................ ....... 64 
- Provisional measures  ................................ ................................ ..............................  65 
- Administrative procedures and remedies  ................................ ................................ .... 65 
- Special border measures  ................................ ................................ .........................  65 
- Criminal procedures  ................................ ................................ ................................  66 
VI. POLICIES AFFECTING TRADE IN SERVICES  ................................ ...........................  66 
VII.  TRANSPARENCY  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..... 68 
- Publication of information on trade  ................................ ................................ ............  68 
- Notifications  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...........  69 
VIII.  TRADE AGREEMENTS  ................................ ................................ .............................  69 
CONCLUSIONS  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................  70 
ANNEX 1  ................................ ................................ ................................ .........................  71 
ANNEX 2  ................................ ................................ ................................ .........................  76 WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  ANNEX 3  ................................ ................................ ................................ .........................  77 
ANNEX 4  ................................ ................................ ................................ .........................  78 
ANNEX 5  ................................ ................................ ................................ .........................  80 
APPENDIX  ................................ ................................ ................................ ......................  81 
  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  I. INTRODUCTION  
1. The Government of the Union of the Comoros (hereinafter: Comoros) applied for accession 
to the World Tr ade Organization (WTO) in February 2007.  At its meeting on 9 October 2007, the 
General Council established a Working Party to examine the application of the Government of the 
Union of the Comoros to accede to the WTO under Article XII of the Marrakesh Agre ement 
establishing the WTO.  The terms of reference and the membership of the Working Party are 
reproduced in document WT/ACC/COM/2.  
2. The Working Party met on 2 December 2016 , on 1 June 2017 , on 12 October 2017 , 
28 March  2018,  and 14 September 2020 under the Chairmanship of H.E. Mr. Luis Enrique Chávez 
Basagoitia (Peru) , and on 21 September 2021 , 19 May 2022 , 19 January 2023  and […] under the 
Chairmanship of H.E. Omar Zniber (Morocco) .  
DOCUMENTATION PROVIDED  
3. The Working Party h ad before it, to serve as a basis for its discussions, a Memorandum on 
the Foreign Trade Regime of the Union of the Comoros (WT/ACC/COM/3), the questions submitted 
by Members on the foreign trade regime of the Union of the Comoros, together with the replie s 
thereto, and other information provided by the authorities of the Union of the Comoros 
(WT/ACC/COM/5; WT/ACC/COM/6; WT/ACC/COM/7; WT/ACC/COM/8; WT/ACC/COM/9; 
WT/ACC/COM/10; WT/ACC/COM/11; WT/ACC/COM/14 ; WT/ACC/COM /17; WT/ACC/COM/21 ; 
WT/ACC/COM/22; WT/ACC /COM/23 ; WT/ACC/COM/27;  WT/ACC/COM/30; WT/ACC/COM/ 31; 
WT/ACC/COM/34 ; WT/ACC/COM/38 ; WT/ACC/COM/4 2; […]) including the legislative texts and other 
documentation listed in Annex 1 to this Report.  
INTRODUCTORY STATEMENTS  
4. The representative of Comoros said that trade was an indispensable lever for putting the 
Union of the Comoros  on the path of economic growth. He added that acceding to the WTO and 
undertaking the required commitments would allow  Comoros to modernise its ad ministration and 
economic and trade -related legislation , thereby creating an enabling environment for business and 
investment.  
5. He added that the Comorian economy was not very competitive and was characterized by 
low levels of investment and weak growth  largely driven by domestic demand  and dependent on 
remittance  flows, labour force  contributions , and support from development partners . While domestic 
revenue was relatively  stable, economic output  was stagnant  and factor costs were high. 
The econo my was also experienc ing a structural imbalance caused by the narrowing of the export  
base and the heavy dependence on development aid and transfers from the diaspora.  With a gross WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  national income (GNI) per capita of USD 1, 4211 the country had joined the ranks of low middle -
income countries.  Poverty affected 38% of the population  according to the IMF .  
6. The process of trade liberalization had begun in the 1980s and had accelerated in recent 
years as a result of the positive role played by trade as driver of the development of Comoros. 
The Comorian government's commitment to trade liberalization had manifested itself through the 
implementation of structural reforms and the conclusion of trade agreements with foreign partners.  
7. Comoros' long -term deve lopment plan, the Emerging Comoros Plan 2030  (Plan Comores 
Émergent, PCE ), had been introduced in 2019 and outlined the country's ambition to become an 
emerging country  by 2030 . Comoros' ambition was to break the cycles of low, volatile growth and 
create a  growth dynamic that would see an average growth rate of over 7.5% by 2030.  Trade was a 
priority in the implementation of the PCE.  The PCE was built around five pillars: (i) tourism and 
crafts; (ii) a blue economy; (iii) financial and logistical services h ub in the Indian Ocean; 
(iv) modernized agriculture for food security; and (v) industrial niches and economic diversification. 
In addition to these five pillars, the PCE identified five catalysts aimed at supporting and 
strengthening the pillars, namely (i ) reform of the political and institutional framework; 
(ii) infrastructure upgrade; (iii) human capital development; (iv) business environment reform for 
competitiveness; and (v) digital revolution. The country had initiated significant reforms at all leve ls 
with a view to making structural changes conducive to its emergence. An Interim Development Plan 
2020-2024 ( Plan de développement intérimaire ) had been derived from the PCE,  which  provided 
inter alia  for the implementation of VAT by 2024 .  
8. The representative of Comoros added that  WTO Membership was an integral part of Comoros' 
economic growth and poverty reduction strategy and that the Comorian Government  was determined 
to complete the accession  process as quickly as possible. He acknowledged th at while Comoros was 
fully committed to completing  the accession negotiations on a priority basis , it was  facing capacity 
constraints  and was thus in need of technical assistance.  A round table on technical assistance needs 
had been organized in January 20 22. As a follow -up, Comoros would establish a committee  on 
technical assistance needs  to liaise with potential partners. Comoros' technical assistance needs had 
been outlined  in a technical assistance plan submitted to the Working Party  (available through 
document WT/ACC/COM/ 33). 
9. Members welcomed the importance Comoros attached to the multilateral trading system and 
pledged to support and work constructively towards a rapid accession. They also welcomed the 
substantive work undertaken by Comoros thus far, w hile noting that some issues would require 
further work to bring Comoros'  foreign trade regime into full conformity with WTO rules and 
requirements. They underscored the importance of enacting legislation that implemented WTO rules 
and encouraged Comoros t o pursue technical assistance and to make its needs  known to Members 
and the WTO Secretariat.  
 
1 Atlas method. Source: World Bank, 2021.  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  10. The Working Party reviewed the economic policies and foreign trade regime of Comoros 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 Comoros' foreign trade regime and on the terms and 
conditions of Comoros' accession to the WTO are summarized below in paragraphs 12 to [...].   
11. This Report applies to the customs territory of the Union of the Comoros.  
II. ECONOMIC POLICIES   
- Monetary and Fiscal Policy  
12. The representative of Comoros said that the regulatory framework governing money, credit 
and bank supervision in the Union of the Comoros  was laid down in federal laws Nos. 80 -07 and 
80-08 of 26 June 1980 regulating banks and  financial establishments . These laws also defined the 
role of the Central Bank of Comoros ( Banque Centrale des Comores, BCC ), which was  to conduct  the 
monet ary policy of the Union of the Comoros by  maintaining price stability while regulating the 
money supply.   
13. The aim of monetary policy was to contribute to stabilizing the macroeconomic situation 
through monetary means and exchange rate policy , and to suppor t the exchange rate peg to the 
euro. The BCC's monetary instruments for control ling liquidity and achiev ing monetary targets 
included  refinancing ceilings, the discount rate , and mandatory reserves. The nominal interest rates 
on lending were set by financial establishments on the basis of  floor (7%) and ceiling (14%) rates 
announced by the Minister for Finance acting on a proposal from the BCC.  Inflation had been 
contained at below 3% over the last 20 years. The BCC's foreign currency reserves could cover  for 
over 7 months of imported goods and services.  
14. In reply to a specific question, the representative of Comoros said that there was no 
restriction on the opening of foreign banks or bank branches in Comoros, provided the conditions for 
granting app roval by the BCC were met . These conditions were stipulated in Law No.  13-003/AU 
regulating the activities of financial institutions . Requests for approval had to indicate, inter alia , the 
legal status, the registered capital, the location of the company's head office on national territory, 
the locations where it intended to open branches, agencies or offices in view of current or foreseeable 
needs in the regions concerned, the names and titles of the persons responsible for its administration, 
its direction or management, its financial soundness, the experience it had gained, the activities in 
which it intended to engage and the financial prospects.  The Central Bank would assess the capacity 
of the applicant to achieve its development objectives, t aking into account, inter alia , the impact of 
approval on the operation of the banking system and on the protection of depositors in accordance 
with the provisions of Title  III, Chapter 2, of Law No.  13-003/AU. The Central Bank could request 
any document d eemed useful to inform its decision. Approval could be subject to specific prudential 
requirements determined by the Central Bank. These requirements could be subsequently amended 
at the request of the Bank or the financial establishment seeking approval. The representative of 
Comoros acknowledged , however, that a foreign -owned branch, including a bank branch, had to be 
attached ("affiliated") to a company incorporated, or to be incorporated, under the law of an OHADA WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  State  Party within two years of establi shment, or the branch could be deregistered  (see "Trading 
Rights") .  
15. A Member stated that requiring a branch to be owned by a person of a specific country was 
a market access barrier , which  appear ed inconsistent with MFN treatment  and Comoros' 
commitments for branching in banking and insurance . This Member requested this barrier to be 
removed from Comoros' trade regime prior to the date of accession.  
16. Concerning fiscal policy, the representative of C omoros said that his Government was 
pursuing a medium -term budgetary strategy as part of  its cooperation with the IMF, which focused 
on improving revenue  collection , the supervision and efficient management of public expenditure, 
and the settlement of  dome stic payment arrears.  The strategy sought to expan d the tax base and 
strengthen the efficiency of the tax and customs administration s. In this context, the Government 
had created the General Tax and Property Administration ( Administration Générale d'Impôts  et des 
Domaines, AGID ) by means of Law No. 12 -004/AU of 21 June 2012. Other m easures already taken 
included (i) the introduction of a single taxpayer identification number system; (ii)  the 
implementation of  the Automated System For Customs Data ( ASYCUDA++ ) for customs revenue 
management; (iii) the completion of a census of major taxpayers and refocusing the activities of the 
Large Enterprise  Directorate  (Direction des Grandes Entreprises, DGE ); and (iv) reduc ing ad hoc 
customs and tax exemptions  granted by the Minister of Finance  for social, humanitarian and 
development reasons  to mosques , Koranic schools and orphanages, or as donations following natural 
disasters. In response to a specific question, the representative of Comoros said that the Large 
Enterprise Directorate  (previously the Business Taxation Service) was a technical directorate within 
the AGID responsible for the taxation of all enterprises with a turnover of more than KMF 80 million . 
The taxation of compan ies with a turnover between KMF  20 million and KMF 80  million was the 
responsibility of the Directorate of Small and Medium -Sized Enterprises ( Direction des Petites et 
Moyennes Entreprises, DPME ).  
17. The representative of Comoros added that t he major sources of government revenue were 
internal taxes, customs duties and taxes levied on imports and corporate tax.   
18. The corporate tax rate was fixed at  a general rate of  35%.  State -owned enterprises were 
subject to the same tax regime as private enterprises (Article 5 of the Tax Code).  For turnover s 
exceeding KMF  500 million, the tax rate was set at 50% fo r (i) public establishments of an industrial 
and commercial nature ; and (ii) industrial or commercial joint stock companies in which the Union 
of the Comoro s, the islands, the local authorit ies, or the public institutions held all the equity capital  
directly or indirectly . In reply to a specific question, the representative of Comoros said that p ublic 
institutions could in principle hold all the equity capita l of joint stock companies . Asked to provide 
more detail on the composition and responsibilities of local authorities, he said that local authorities 
were regulated under Law No. 11/005/AU of 7 April 2011 and had decision -making powers in all 
areas of comp etence conferred upon them by law. They consisted of deliberative (council) and 
executive (mayor) bodies.  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  19. The representative of Comoros noted that , given Comoros' weak public revenue,  fiscal space 
was limited. Since 2017, therefore, Comoros had been implementing a three -pronged policy to boost 
revenue and stabilize government expenditure , which sought: (i)  to improve domestic revenue 
collection by the AGID in preparation for its integra tion into the future revenue agency of Comoros; 
(ii) to help the Ministry of Finance  and the external audit bodies in improving the programming, 
implementation, monitoring and auditing of the budget, by ensuring that public resources were 
allocated and use d efficiently and effectively; and (iii)  to equip the financial administrations with 
skills in a sustainable manner and to support their improved performance, by providing for  initial and 
continuous training of the human resources responsible for managing public finances. 
While  structural challenges remained, th e implementation of this strategy had already resulted in a 
significant improvement in the fiscal balance.  
20. He added that reining in the wage bill had been an important element of expenditure policy. 
The Government had implemented a series of corrective measures targeting the public sector. 
In addition, it  was envisaged that, indirectly, the private sector would also contribute to moderating 
the wage bill. Rather than reviewing private sector wages, th e objective was to build production 
capacity  and expand exports , thereby generating additional income and creating more jobs . In turn, 
this would  reliev e pressure on the civil service , which was the country's principal employer. In this 
context, the Govern ment would promote the use of labour -intensive projects, based on the High 
Labour Intensity (HLI) approach aimed at generating large employment .  
21. The representative of Comoros said  that a new Tax Code had been in force since 2011 . 
There had been no reforms since then. He clarified that reining in the wage bill had not been the 
main purpose of the new Tax Code. 
22. He added that t he Government intended to replace  all currently applicable internal taxes by 
a new value added tax (VAT). A draft V AT law would be prepared with the support of the IMF.  
No other changes to the tax regime were planned at present.  
23. Noting that tax reform appeared to be very important to this accession process, including in 
the context of VAT introduction, a  Member asked C omoros to explain its strategy to improve the tax 
admini stration.  
24. The representative of Comoros replied that administrative im provements had been made 
through joint support provided by the African Development Bank and the IMF. These improvements 
included (i) the o perationalization of technical services and implementation of tax management 
software; (ii) training of AGID staff on various subjects including methodology related to taxation, 
control , and tax dispute  management methods ; (iii) running national awareness -raising campaigns 
on taxation; and (iv) implementation of a tax information and management system (SIGIT). 
The Interim Development Plan 2020-2024 (Plan de développement intérimaire ), which had been  
derived from the PCE, provide d for the implementation of VAT  by 2024. A study on VAT 
implementation would be financed through the  Financial Governance Support Project ( Projet d'appui 
à la gouvernance financière, PAGF ). WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  - Foreign Exchange and Payments  
25. The representative of Comoros said that the foreign exchange system in the Union of the 
Comoros was based on the legal and  regulatory framework provided under (i) Law No. 80 -08 of 
26 June 1980 on money and the role of  the Central Bank of Comoros (BCC) in the supervision of 
banks and financial establishments, credit and foreign exchange; (ii) Decree No. 87/005/PR of 
16 January 1987 regulating financial relations between Comoros  and other countries; and 
(iii) Decision No.  98/683/EC of  23 November  1998 of the Council of the European Union concerning 
the legal basis for relations in  exchange rate matters relating to the CFA franc and the Comorian 
franc (KMF).  
26. He noted that Law No.  80-08 of 26  June 1980 had fully liberalized the foreign exchange 
system. Under Decision No.  98/683/EC of the Council of the European Union of 23 November 1998, 
Comoros had entered into a commitment with the European Union on exchange rate matters, which 
established a fixed parity between the euro and the Comorian franc (BCC Circular No. 02 99 on the 
parity between the euro and the Comorian franc). The exchange rate was set at €1 = KMF 491.9677. 
He added that t he Comorian franc  was fully convertibl e and tha t there were no plans to change the 
pegged exchange rate regime.  
27. The representative of Comoros added that, under the provisions laid down in Decree 
87005/PR of 16 January 1987, financial transactions between Comoros and other countries had been 
liberalized  (Article 1). This Decree also provided the legal basis for a statutory obligation to surrender 
all foreign exchange proceeds from export transactions within 30 working days (calculated from the 
date of receipt of the foreign exchange ) to the exchange offi ce at the BCC. Foreign currency proceeds 
had to be converted into Comorian francs through an approved dealer . The conversion was done at 
market rates. This requirement was part of the measures designed to bring the balance of payments 
into equilibrium. As the Comorian franc was fully convertible, i n his view, importers  always had access 
to foreign exchange  for their imports  at market rates . Thus, exporte rs which had surrendered foreign 
exchange proceeds , could immediately convert t heir Comorian francs into foreign currency to pay for 
imports.  He held the view that there were no transaction costs involved in applying the surrender 
requirement. In 2015, the  current account had registered a surplus of KMF 1.6 billion.   
28. The representative of Comoros confirmed there were no requirements or restrictions on the 
acquisition of foreign exchange for the payment of foreign merchandise, services, or investments.  
The r epresentative of Comoros also confirmed that Comoros would not maintain any restrictions or 
requirements that would affect payments for imports, including by affecting importers' ability to seek 
foreign exchange to pay for imports or repatriation of profit s, such as, but not limited to, prior import 
deposits, a prior authorization requirement for acquiring foreign exchange to pay for imported 
merchandise, and taxes on the acquisition of foreign exchange.  The Working Party took note of these 
commitments . 
29. The representative of Comoros also stated that Comoros would implement its obligations 
with respect to foreign exchange matters in accordance with the provisions of the WTO Agreement WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  and related declarations and decisions of the WTO that concerned the IMF.  The representative of 
Comoros further recalled Comoros' acceptance in June 1996 of Article  VIII of the IMF's Articles of 
Agreement, which provides for freedom of current transfers. Specifically, Article VIII provides that 
"Subject to the provisions of Art icle VII, Section 3(b) and Article XIV, Section 2 no member shall, 
without the approval of the Fund, impose restrictions on the making of payments and transfers for 
current international transactions".  The Working Party took note of these commitments . 
- Investment Regime  
30. The representative of Comoros said that Comoros sought to sustainably improve the business 
environment through a package of structural reforms, which consisted of (i) the establishment of a 
task force responsible for emergency  reforms  that would put forward a reform plan every year, 
benefit from the support of the highest authorities , and mobilize all participating (public and private) 
stakeholders in the implementation of the plan; (ii) extensive computerization of procedures; and 
(iii) the  implementation of single windows. An in -depth reform agenda would be undertaken in 
parallel to the emergency reforms.  
31. Additional policy tools used to attract foreign direct investment included the ratification of 
the Convention Establishing the Multilater al Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA); and accession to 
the Common Investment Area of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (yet to be 
ratified).  
32. The Government would also work towards the implementation of a new independent 
structure to comba t corruption and illicit enrichment.  The competences of the previously existing 
anti-corruption body had been transferred to the division of the Supreme Court acting as the court 
of auditors, a division specializing in judicial matters relating to public a ccounts.  A number of 
measures had already been introduced to combat corruption, notably: (i) a requirement that all 
candidates appointed to a position of responsibility had to make an annual asset declaration; 
(ii) ratification of the United Convention Aga inst Corruption; (iii) enactment of the Government 
Procurement Code; (iv) entry into operation  of the Regulatory Authority for Government 
Procurement; (v) establishment of a national committee to prevent and combat corruption , which 
developed an anti -corruption strategy adopted in 2013; (vi) adoption of a public finance management 
reform strategy 2014 -2016, which had been renewed for 2016 -2020; (vii) signing of a memorandum 
of understanding with GIABA, a regional body combatting money laundering and the fin ancing of 
terrorism; (viii) establishment of a Financial Intelligence Unit; (ix) organization of various training 
courses on anti -corruption topics; and (x)  adoption of Decree No.  22-006/PR of 18 January 2022 
enacting Law No. 21 -015/AU of 29  June 2021 esta blishing the structure and operation of a judicial 
body for economic and financial matters.  
33. As a result of the Government's efforts  to improve the business environment , specific 
progress had been registered on four of the World Bank's "Doing Business" subindices (i) "starting a 
business"; (ii) "registering property"; (iii) "getting credit"; and (iv) "enforcing contracts". Actions had WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  also been carried out in other areas , in particular "getting electricity", "dealing with construction 
permits" and "trading across borders".  
34. The representative of Comoros added that t he National Investment Promotion Agency 
(Agence Nationale pour la Promotion des Investissements, ANPI ) had be en established as  the 
government body responsible for examining investment projects. Pursuant to Article 27.1 of the new 
Investment Code, the Agency was responsib le for promoting Comoros as an attractive investment 
destination. It also managed the Single W indow, which was the entry point for submitting requests 
to establish a business, obtain approvals and other administrative formalities. The Agency also 
developed Comoros' investment policy (in collaboration with the ministerial department in charge of 
investment ) and acted as a coordinat or for  the reform of the business climate. In addition, the ANPI 
provided administrative assist ance in obtain ing authorizations and approvals. In the absence of any 
foreign trade promotion structure, the ANPI also acted as the body responsible for promoting 
production and foreign trade. He noted, however, that n either the ANPI nor any other agency 
provide d subsidies to producers.  
35. The representative of Comoros said that a new Investment Code had been adopted on 
28 December 2 020, promulgated by a Decree o n 30 January 2021 (Law No. 20 -035/AU). This Code 
had replaced the 2007  Investment Code (Law No. 07 -10/AU) . The rights and guarantees foreseen 
under the new Investment Code included freedom of investment, equal treatment, property rights 
benefits, and the freedom to transfer capital and remuneration (Articles 6 to 12). The benefits 
provided for under the new Code included (i) customs incentives  – namely, suspension regimes fo r 
customs duties and taxes, and exemptions from import duties and taxes on approved goods  listed in 
an annex to the Code ; and (ii) tax incentives  – specifically, reduced  corporate tax rate to 15% or 
10% in accordance with four investment regimes (A, B, C, or D). Regime A – for investments between 
KMF 20 million and KMF 100 million – was reserved for Comorian nationals. Regime B applied to 
large companies and investments ranging between KMF 100 million and KMF 1 billion. Regime C 
concerned priority projects exceeding KMF 1 billion pre-tax, in priority sectors identified under the 
current national development plan. Regime D applied to large -scale investments of more than KMF 
10 billion, to be carried out as priorities under the current national development pla n.  
36. The representative of Comoros  noted that foreign investment was subject to the same 
requirements as domestic investment and had to fit within the Government's development policy , 
which targeted poverty reduction and the promotion of financial inclusion . As a rule, all economic 
sectors were open to investment. Certain activities, however, were excluded from the scope of 
application of the Investment Code, namely (i) the purchase and resale of goods ( "activité de 
négoce" ); (ii) activities eligible for spe cific sectoral codes, including telecommunications activities 
and oil exploration and  exploitation activities, where these activities already benefited, under specific 
sectoral codes, from investment protection clauses and/or tax and customs incentives; (i ii) activities 
of non -profit organizations; and (iv) banking, financial and insurance activities.  
37. He added that certain activities were regulated and were subject to approvals. There were 
two types of approval: (i) the relevant technical ministries issued  operating authorizations following WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  the examination of the file (e.g., the Ministry of Health issued all approvals related to the health 
sector); and (ii) the ANPI d etermined whether investment projects were prohibited, regulated or 
unregulated and issued economic approvals.  Natural or legal persons wishing to receive benefits 
under the Investment Code had to (i) submit an approval request to the ANPI, which verified the 
required documents by examining the admissibility and form of the request; and ( ii) undergo 
examination of the substance of the request by members of the technical approval committee, which 
resulted in approval or rejection. He acknowledged that some projects had been rejected on grounds 
of violation of domestic legislation or regulat ions, but affirmed that no project had been rejected on 
grounds of national security or protection of the environment or public health.  
38. He added that there were no provisions which discriminated against foreign companies in 
Comoros' legal and regulatory framework. Benefits under the new Investment Code were the same 
for both domestic and foreign investors. In particular, the Code eliminate d the possibility to enter 
into an establishment agreement (" convention d'établissement" ) with the Government which, in the 
past, had accorded guarantees and privileges beyond those established by the Investment Code. He 
confirmed that none of the benefits  under the current Investment Code  or any other authority were 
made contingent, in law or in fact, on export performance, import substitution, or local content 
requirements.  
39. Asked specifically about the turnover tax, the representative of Comor os said tha t there had 
been no turnover tax since the 1990s.  
40. Tourism and fisheries had been identified as strategic growth sectors where the Government 
aimed at attracting foreign direct investment. While a specific sectoral strategy for fisheries had not 
yet been a dopted, the outlines of such a strategy had been laid out in a note drawn up with the 
support of the World Bank.  
41. The representative of Comoros said that an initial plan to extend the ANPI's mandate to 
export promotion had been abandoned. The authorities e nvisaged a separate institution , the Office 
National des Importations et des Exportations , which would have both an export and import mandate. 
This new institution would promote Comorian exports, and provid e exporters with guidance, 
information and support. On the import side, it would keep import statistics, conduct studies and 
analyses, and provide guidance to importers. Asked to describe the types of support that would be 
provided, the representative of Co moros said that the plan to establish the Office National des 
Importations et des Exportations  had been put on hold . There we re no plans for this office to provide 
any financial support , but if such support  were to be provided , this would be done in compli ance with 
the WTO Agreements .  
42. Asked about Comoros' economic citizenship programme, the representative of Comoros said 
that foreigner s had been able to acquire the status o f economic partner by f ulfilling the requirements 
set out in the Law on Economic Cit izenship in the Union of the Comoros and  by invest ing a prescribed  
minimum sum.  The economic citizenship programme  had sough t to promote foreign direct 
investment and to increase State revenue. He noted, however, that while the Law on Economic WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  Citizenship was still in force, the Economic Citizenship Programme had been suspended since 
September 2016.  
- State Ownership and Privat ization  
43. The representative of Comoros said that the establishment of a stable political and 
institutional framework since 2001 had given new impetus to the process of economic restructuring. 
A decision had been taken to redefine the role of the State in th e economy and to prioritiz e the role 
of the private sector as a driver of development.  
44. The representative of Comoros noted that the share of GDP of State -owned enterprises 
(SOEs) amounted to less than 3%. The State -owned companies (public monopolies) in Comoros were 
(i) SCH - Société Comorienne des Hydrocarbures ( hydrocarbons ); (ii) MAMWE  (water and electricity) 
(iii) Comor es Télécom ; (iv) SNPSF  - Société Nationale de la Poste et des Services Financiers (postal 
services); (v)  COMAIR (groundhandling at airports);  (vi) ONICOR  (rice imports and  marketing) ; and 
(vii) SONELEC (national electricity company) . Comoros' SOEs, including ONICOR, acted in accor dance 
with commercial considerations. For example, these enterprises applied a reasonable profit margin 
after cost recovery. SONELEC was the only SOE to receive State subsidies so that consumer prices 
remained affordable. He added that t he State would part icipate as an equity shareholder in SOEs 
only in the framework of the OHADA Uniform Act relating to commercial law and commercial 
companies (Articles  664 and 665).  
45. Asked to provide information on the existence of cross -arrears between SOEs and Comoros' 
stated intention to align taxation of SOEs with that of privately -owned enterprises (as expressed in 
the context of an IMF Article IV Consultation Report), t he representative of Comoros said that, at 
present , there were no goods and services cross-arrears be tween SOEs . Concerning taxation, he said 
that SOEs were not taxed differently f rom privately -owned enterprises (Article 5 of the Tax Code).  
46. The representative of Comoros added that s everal SOEs had been privatized since the 1990s. 
In the tele communications  sector, a licence had been granted to a new private telecom munications  
service provider (Telma). In the commercial banking sector, two banks had become privately owned 
(Banque pour l'Industrie et le Commerce  and Banque  de Développement des C omore s). As for trade 
in ordinary rice (ONICOR) and hydrocarbons (SCH), distribution and sale had been privatized and 
only import operation s remained under the control of the  State -owned enterprises . He added that  
there had also been an  unsuccessful attemp t to privatize the national water and electricity company  
(MAMWE ). 
47. In his view, his Government had set up a transparent, pro -competitive institutional 
framework for economic liberalization by ensuring the active involvement of the private sector. 
The entities responsible for implementation were joint bodies comprising inter alia  private sector and 
civil society representatives. Privatization would be carried out by means of an international tender 
procedure.  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  48. In reply to a specific question, h e said that,  at present , there were no ongoing privatization 
programmes  and no privatization commi ssion in charge of privatization .  
49. The Representative of Comoros confirmed that Comoros would apply all laws and regulations 
governing the trading activities of State -owned and -controlled enterprises in an impartial manner.  
Further, it would apply all laws and regulations concerning such enterprises as well as enterprises 
with special or exclusive privileges, in full conformity with the provisions of the WTO  Agreement, 
including Article  XVII of the GATT 1994, the Understanding on Article  XVII of the GATT 1994, and 
Article  VIII of the GATS. The representative further confirmed that these enterprises would act in 
conformity with these and all other provisions of the  WTO Agreement.  Such enterprises would act in 
accordance with commercial considerations including making purchases of goods and services that 
were not intended for governmental use, as well as sales in international trade, in accordance with 
commercial con siderations (including with respect to price, quality, availability, marketability, and 
transportation). The representative further confirmed that such enterprises would not discriminate 
against the goods or services of another WTO Member and would afford enterprises of other WTO 
Members adequate opportunity to compete for purchases or sales. The representative also confirmed 
that, upon accession, Comoros would notify enterprises falling within the scope of the Understanding 
on Article  XVII of the GATT 1994 . The Working Party took note of these commitments.  
- Pricing Policies  
50. The representative of Comoros said that systemic price control s in Comoros had ceased to 
exist with the adoption of the 2013 Competition Law  (Law No. 13 -014/AU  of 26 December 2013 ), 
which applied uniformly on the entire territory of the Union of the Comoros.  As a result, p rices were, 
in principle , determined by market forces  (Article 5) . Nevertheless , under specific circumstances, 
exceptions were provided for un der Articles 4, 6 and 7 of the Law. In such cases, price controls could 
be introduced by the Government, following an opinion by the National Competition Commission, by 
order of the minister responsible for the economy (pursuant to Article  1 of Decree No. 22 -015/PR of 
4 February 2022 ). All modalities of application would be decided by the National Competition 
Commission.   
51. In particular , according to Article 4  of the Compe tition Law , specific rules could apply to 
certain sectors , including government procurement, energy, postal services and telecommunications, 
transport, water, finance and insurance, agriculture, fishing, tourism and alcohol . Pursuant to 
Article  6 of this L aw, the Government could also regulate the prices of goods and services when price 
competition was limited due to the existence of monopoly markets  or any other structural 
circumstances leading to lasting supply difficulties . In addition,  the Government reserved the right 
to temporarily regulate the price s of staple products  in exceptional circ umstances (Article 7 of the 
Competition Law) , such as in a crisis period, a situation of serious public concern, and during the 
month of Ramadan . Measures under Artic les 6 and 7 of the Competition Law would be taken after 
consultation with the National Competition Commission . Specifically, t he Commission would be 
responsible for issuing opinions on the measures under Articles  6 and 7 in accordance with the 
procedures set out in Title IV of the Competition Law. The Commission would also issue a separate WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  regulation to supplement these procedure s. The duration of the exceptional measures would not 
exceed six months, but could be extended as necessary depending on the economic situation 
(Article  2 of Decree No.  22-015/PR of 4  February  2022). A maximum period of temporary regulation 
had not been se t.  
52. The representative of Comoros  added that t he companies that produced the goods or services 
did not play a consultative role in regulating the prices of their products, but were informed by the 
competent authorities of the need to comply with the legal provisions in force during exceptional 
periods.  He stated that, under the Competition Law, no goods, whether domestic or imported, were 
subject to any approval procedure. In the case of measures taken  under Articles 4, 6 and 7, no 
distinction was made as t o the origin of the goods concerned.  
53. The representative of Comoros  added that t he eight categories of imported staple goods2 
concerned by the provisions of Article 7 of the Competition Law were defined by Order of the Minister 
of Finance No. 17 -065/MFB/CA B of 4  September 2017 (see Table 1). In his view, the measures taken 
under this Article were best described as "market price control" r ather than price regulation . The 
control measures  entailed  monitoring of prices to ensure that they were applied at a level consistent 
with the prices set by firms  during normal times . These  market price  control  measures  were usually 
carried out during the month of Ramadan, i.e., one month a year. Local and imported products were 
both monitored, but cont rols tended to be carried out mainly on imported products as i mporters 
tended to apply excessively high margins, which pushed up final consumer prices  in exceptional 
periods , such as  the month of Ramadan . There was no specific margin that would trigger the  use of 
market price control  measures . The benchmark used was the price applied prior to the exceptional 
period (in  practice, the month of Ramadan). The aim was to maintain the price levels that prevailed 
in "non -exceptional" periods. For example, in conne ction with the COVID -19 crisis, price support for 
staple goods had been put in place during the month of Ramadan after negotiation with private sector 
representatives. Other than during the month of Ramadan, market price control  could  also apply in 
the eve nt of exogenous shocks deemed likely to disrupt market rules. However, c ontrol  measures  
had not been used outside the month of Ramadan since 2016, but could be used in the future , on a 
temporary basis, pursuant to Article 6 and 7 of the Competition Law .  
Table 1: Staple goods in the Union of Comoros  
 HS CODE  PRODUCT  
1 02011000 to 02069090  Fresh or frozen meat and edible offal  
2 02076000  Meat and edible offal of poultry  
3 03011900 to 03089000  Fresh or frozen fish  
4 10061000 to 10062000  Ordinary rice 
5 11010010 to 11081990  Wheat, meslin or cereal flours  
6 17011210 to 17049090  Sugar  
7 30012000 to 30069200  Medicines  
8 04022110  First infant formula (for infants from 0 to 6 months) and follow -on 
formula (for infants from 6 to 12 months)  
Source:  Order of the Minister of Finance No. 17 -065/MFB/CAB of 4 September 2017.  
 
2 12 categories of staple goods had previously been subject to price approval pursuant to Decision 
No. 12-155/CFBECIPPIPE/CAM of 25 August 2012. These provisions, however, had been repealed with the 
introduction of the Competition Law.  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  54. A Member asked Comoros to specify the information that importers were required to submit 
to the National Competition Commission for the purpose of determining prices. This Member 
expressed concern that importers would be required to submit proprietary information to the 
government. In response, the representat ive of Comoros said that , according to Article 15 of the 
Competition Law, both domestic producers and  importers had to submit their cost data and other 
business information, as it was essential to have the necessary documents related to imports. Since 
the Competition Law did not specify the other business information to be provided, the Commission 
would determine such information as necessary, e.g., a certificate of origin.  
55. A Member expressed concerns about the fact that Comoros only allowed two state -owne d 
enterprises - ONICOR and SCH - to import ordinary rice and hydrocarbons, and that the government 
validated the administered price on the basis of proposals by the two public companies. This Member 
requested that Comoros eliminate, prior to accession, ONI COR's exclusive right to import rice as 
continuous supply, quality and stable prices did not require permitting only one enterprise to import 
a product. Comoros was also requested to eliminate the practice of ONICOR making proposals to the 
government on th e administered prices and to consider other forms of price regulation that would 
allow for greater competition in rice.  
56. The representative of Comoros replied that hydrocarbons (HS 2710 12 and 2710 19) were 
subject to administered prices  in order to stabilize consumer prices. This was an exception under 
Articles 4 and 6 of the Competition Law . The Ministries in charge of the economy and finance had 
the legal authority  to validate  prices on the basis of proposals made by SCH, which w as the public 
company in charge of importing hydrocarbons . In his view, the existence of this monopoly 
guaranteed continuous supply, product quality, and stable market prices. The administered price on 
hydrocarbons had been introduced in 1981 with the establishm ent of SCH (Law No. 80 -27 of 15 
January 1981). He added that the activities of this compan y only concerned importation. Distribution 
and marketing had been fully liberalized and were carried out by private enterprises. In reply to a 
specific question, he s aid that domestic hydrocarbon production was currently at the prospecting 
stage.  He added that Comoros would soon undertake a study on the reform of SCH.  
57. Concerning ordinary rice, the representative of Comoros said that the  administered price on 
ordinary rice (HS 1006 40 10 and 1006 40 90) had been introduced in 1982 with the establishment 
of ONICOR (Law No. 82 -01/AF of 13 August 1982). However, having comm issioned an impact 
assessment study from the Word Bank, Comoros had decided to end the State  monopoly on rice 
pursuant to Article 25 of Decree No. 23/60/PR "On the new statutes for ONICOR" of 30 June 2023. 
As a result, the importation and sale of ordinary rice had been liberalized. Accordingly, the practice 
of the government validating administered prices had been discontinued. In reply to a specific 
question, the representative of Comoros said that domestic rice cultivation was  currently at the 
experimenta l, artisanal  stage and that locally produced rice had never reached the market.   
58. The representative of Comoros confirmed that pricing policy in Comoros would be applied 
consistent with the provisions of Articles III:4 and XI:1 of the GATT 1994, Article  4 of the Agreement 
on Agriculture, and Article VIII of the General Agreement on Trade in Services.  He further stated WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  that in the application of price controls now or in the future, Comoros would apply such measures in 
a WTO -consistent fashion, and take accoun t of the interests of exporting WTO Members as provided 
for in Article III:9 of the GATT 1994.  Comoros would publish the list of goods and services subject to 
State price control and any changes to this list in its Official Journal and would continue to do  so after 
accession. The Working Party took note of these commitments.  
- Competition Policy  
59. The representative of Comoros said that competition policy in Comoros was regulated  under 
the provisions of the Competition Law (Law No. 13 -014/AU of 26 December 2013) , which had been 
developed with technical  assistance from UNCTAD . This Law  had been adopted in the context of 
structural reforms relating most notably to trade, and with a view to providing the country with a 
legal framework on competition an d a regulatory authority in this area. Specifically, the Law had 
been designed to promote the operation of market forces by controlling or eliminating any practice 
aimed at, or having the effect of, restricting competition in a manner detrimental to the de velopment 
of the national economy and to the interests of consumers (Article 1). Pursuant to Article 5 of this 
Law, the import and export prices of goods and services were determined by market forces.  
60. The representative of Comoros added that a National Competition Commission, in charge of 
implementing the Competition Law, had been established . The rules of procedure of the Commission 
had been adopted in February 2022  and a Chair had been appointed by th e President . 
The Commission would be authorized to make rulings on anti -competitive practices and on prices. 
The functions of the Commission were listed in Title III, section 2 of the Competition Law. Decree 
No. 17-080/PR of 10  July 2017 had establish ed the composition of the National Competition 
Commission .  
61. In accordance with Decree  No. 17 -080/PR of 10  July 2017, steps had been taken to ensure 
that Commission members would avoid conflict of interest. Specifically, any member of the 
Commission, with the exception of its president, could be recused.  In accordance with Article 35, 
paragraph 3 , of the Competition Law , the sittings of the Commission were not open to the public.  
The person filing an admissible petition could ask to be present at the Commission's deliberations to 
support his/her claims and the responding party and interested parties could be invited to t ake part 
in these deliberations. The specific circumstances determining whether or not the petitioner  and other 
interested parties could participate would be assessed by the National Competition Commission  in 
accordance with the rules of procedure o f the C ommission . Respondents or other interested parties 
would have full access to the information being considered by the Commission and there would be 
no limitations on access to  information . Measures to protect information from disclosure were laid 
down in Ar ticle 27 of the Competition Law.  A petitioner could raise claims with the Commission  
concerning : (i) limitation s on market access or free competition by other enterprises; (ii) the 
obstruction of market -based price determination ; (iii) limitation s or control s of production, 
opportunities, investments or technical progress; (iv) the sharing out of markets or supply sources; 
(v) sale and supply boycotts; and (vi) collusion  in the submission of tenders.   
 WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  62. The representative of Comoros  added that t he Competition Law did not prevent negotiated 
settlements. The parties could come to an understanding or resort to the Comoros Court of 
Arbitration (CACOM). Foreign  attorneys could participate in the proceedings on the conditions 
stipulated by the national cou rt system and could cross examine witnesses and rebut evidence.  
Article  27 of the Law foresaw the possibility of appeal. Appeals went to the courts  as the Commission 
was a quasi -juridical body.  There was no limitation on the number of appeals. Appeals coul d be 
introduced on the basis of the merits of the case, the procedure, or in respect of the financial penalty.  
63. Asked to describe the provisions on State aid or government support that Comoros envisaged 
introducing pursuant to Article 4 of the Competition L aw, the representative of Comoros said that 
Article 4 did not make any reference to direct State aid  and that no new provisions on State aid were 
envisaged under the Competition Law . He noted, however, that State support was provided on an 
ad hoc  basis in the event of market disruption. For instance, against the backdrop of Covid -19, the 
State had provided aid to vanilla exporters, the tourism sector , and the restaurant industry.    
64. In reply to a specific question, he said that the Competition Law provided for the control and 
review of mergers (Article  16).  
III. FRAMEWORK FOR MAKING AND ENFORCING POLICIES  
- Powers of Executive, Legislative and Judicial Branches of Government  
65. The representative of Comoros said that the Constitution of Comoros separa ted the 
executive, legislative and judicial powers of the State. The President of the Union of the Comoros 
was the President of the Republic, the Head of State and the Head of Government. The President 
was elected by popular suffrage to a five -year term, w ith a two -term limit on the presidency . 
The President appointed the members of the government. In each island, the executive power was 
exercised by a Governor elected for a five -year term.  
66. Legislative power was vested in the National Assembly. The National  Assembly consisted of 
33 members elected for five -year terms. Members of the National Assembly could run for re -election 
in their constituencies. The texts of law approved by the National Assembly were brought before the 
President of the Union who would e ither enact or return the texts to the Assembly for a second 
reading. The texts returned by the President had to be approved by the National Assembly by a  vote 
with a two -thirds majority for constitutional matters or by a simple majority for other matters before 
having the force of law. All laws, decrees and international agreements were published in the Official 
Journal of the Union of the Comoros three days after signature. Article  33 of the Constitution 
empowered the  National Assembly to call Ministers o r other members of the Government to account 
by addressing a petition , signed by at least one third of the Assembly members , to the President of 
the Union. A vote would then take place at least 48  hours after the petition was tabled . For the 
petition to be  adopted , a two thirds majority of the members of the Assembly was required. 
The President was under an obligation to terminate the functions of the Minister or Ministers or other 
members of the Government targeted by the petition and could not reappoint t hem to ministerial 
posts in the six  months following their dismissal . The Assembly could not vote on more than two WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
- 20 - 
 
  petitions per year, and no petition could be tabled in the course of an extraordinary session. Each of 
the three islands had a Council (islan d parliament). The procedure for drafting laws and regulations 
was as follows: (i) proposal of texts by the relevant ministry; (ii) technical validation by all 
stakeholders concerned; (iii) submission to the Council of Ministers; and (iv) submission to the  
National Assembly for adoption. All stakeholders were entitled to provide comments throughout the 
process. The regulatory agencies, such as the Chamber of Commerce, the ANPI and the Comorian 
Federation of Consumers (FCC), played a major role in the drafti ng of all regulations. These agencies 
were involved from the start to the technical validation stage, and in some cases, attended debates 
of the National Assembly's Law Commission.  
67. Judicial power in Comoros was exercised by a system of ordinary and specialised courts. 
According to Article 3 of Law No. 20 -020/AU of 12 December 2020 on the organization of the judiciary 
in the Union of Comoros, the judiciary consisted of the Supreme Court, comprising the Court of 
Cassation and an audit chamber; the cour ts of appeal; the courts of first instance; labour courts; 
commercial courts; administrative courts; economic and financial courts; criminal courts; Kadhi 
courts; juvenile courts; and a court specializing in the suppression of terrorist acts and of financi ng 
of terrorism. The Supreme Court was the highest court in judicial, administrative and auditing 
matters in the Union and the islands. Decisions by the Supreme Court could not be appealed and 
were binding on the executive, the legislature and all courts i n the territory of the Union. A court of 
first instance and a court of appeal was established on each island. A commercial court was 
established at the seat of each court of first instance, where all commercial proceedings would be 
heard.  The matters ruled  on by the courts of first instance could be appealed to the courts of appeal. 
Appeals on commercial matters which had been heard in the commercial tribunal in the courts of 
first instance, were heard in the commercial chamber of the courts of appeal. Interested parties were 
given written notice that an appeal had been filed and the reasons for the appeal. Other courts could 
be established by law. One such example was the Court of Arbitration ( Cour d'arbitrage des Comores, 
CACOM ), which had been operational since February  2013, and which provided a framework for the 
resolution of certain conflicts with a panel of mediators or arbiters as agreed by the parties.   
68. The representative of Comoros stated that under Comoros' constitutional structure and w ithin 
its legal system, the judiciary was a state institution whose decision -making processes were objective 
and impartial. The independence of the judiciary from the executive and the legislature was set out 
in Article  29 of the Constitution and guarantee d by the President of the Union. Judges were subject 
only to the authority of the law in the performance of their duties. Trial judges could not be removed. 
There was no limit on the term of office of judges. The  President of the Supreme Court of Justice w as 
appointed by the President of the Union among the Supreme Court judges, after consultation with 
the Judicial Service Commission. The State was represented by the Public Prosecutor.  
The representative of Comoros said that judicial decisions were recorded  in the Minutes of the Palais 
de Justice and could be consulted in the Registry . 
69. Asked to provide further information on the Court of Arbitration, the representative of 
Comoros said that CACOM had been established by a Regulation under the auspices of the Comoros 
Employers' Organization ( Organisation patronale des Comores, OPACO ) and the Union of the WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  Chambers of Commerce and Industry of the Comoros ( Union des chambres de commerce et 
d'industrie des Comores , UCCI), to which it was attached in accordance with  the Partnership 
Agreement of 18 January 2010 between OPACO and UCCI. Its primary mission was to organize and 
administer, pursuant to the Regulation, arbitration procedures referred to it under an arbitration 
agreement. CACOM had jurisdiction to arbitrate on contractual disputes involving parties as long as 
at least one of them was domiciled or had habitual residence in Comoros, or relating to a contract 
executed or to be executed wholly or partly on the territory.  
70. Judgements by the courts of first instance  and decisions by the courts of appeal that 
concerned OHADA harmonised law (the Uniform Acts) could be appealed to the Cassation Chamber 
at the Common Court of Justice and Arbitration (CCJA) of the Organization for the Harmonization of 
African Business Law  (OHADA). The CCJA was the highest commercial court and acted as a supreme 
court for all the commercial courts of the OHADA member countries. National and foreign citizens 
alike could appeal to the CCJA. Comoros had a law on commercial arbitration, the OHA DA Uniform 
Act on Arbitration, and procedural texts on the recognition and enforcement of Comorian and foreign 
arbitral awards. Under its advisory function, the CCJA was empowered to give Advisory Opinions, at 
the request of any State Party, the Council of  Ministers or a national court seized of and still 
deliberating on a dispute within the scope of the OHADA. Besides its duties as a court of cassation in 
respect of decisions on actions for annulment of arbitral awards, the CCJA also had an arbitral 
functi on in institutional arbitration in administering the procedures, and ruled as cassation court on 
appeals contesting the validity of an arbitration award.  
71. Asked to describe the scope of commercial matters that could be appealed to the CCJA, the 
representati ve of Comoros listed the following nine areas: general commercial law; commercial 
companies and economic interest groups; debt recovery and enforcement procedures; collateral; 
arbitration (institutional arbitration by the Arbitration Centre of the CCJA gov erned by a specific set 
of Regulations; and ad hoc  arbitration governed by the Uniform Act on Arbitration applicable in the 
17 OHADA countries); company accounting; cooperatives; collective proceedings (insolvency 
procedures); and the transport of goods by  road. The representative of Comoros said that the CCJA 
ensured common interpretation and application of the OHADA instruments. OHADA Decisions were 
taken by a majority vote of the judges present, in accordance with Article 22 of the CCJA Rules of 
Procedur e. 
72. The representative of Comoros said that appeals pertaining to customs procedures were 
governed by Articles 506 and 507 of the Customs Code. In particular, appeals concerning the nature, 
origin, or value of the goods had to be addressed to the Chairman o f the Customs Arbitration and 
Advisory Committee ( Commission de conciliation et d'expertise douanière ), within the prescribed 
time, accompanied by relevant documents and, where appropriate, necessary samples. 
The Chairman sent a copy of the application to the Director -General of Customs, who formulated 
observations and forwarded them to the Committee's secretariat, accompanied by documents and 
samples used in the contested classification or like treatment. The Committee ruled on appeals in 
accordance with t he conditions laid down in Article 512 of the Customs Code. The composition of the 
Customs Arbitration and Advisory Committee was set out in Article 510 of the Customs Code. WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  In addition to the Chairman, who was a commercial court judge, the Committee consi sted of three 
technical customs assessors and their alternates; an adviser from the administrative chamber of the 
court of first instance; a Chamber of Commerce representative; an economic operator 
representative; and a customs agent representative. The Co mmittee was assisted by a permanent 
secretariat composed of a customs representative and a representative of the private sector 
appointed by Order of the Minister for Finance and the Budget. This secretariat was responsible for 
receiving and registering ap peals and for publishing and circulating the Committee's decisions.   
73. The representative of Comoros added that, under the Emerging Comoros Plan 2030, the 
Comorian Government aimed to reform the justice system with a view to promoting its independence, 
integrity and efficacy, in accordance with international standards and commitments. The National 
Justice Sector Policy 2016 –2025 had established the following strategic objectives: (i) to promote 
the independence of the judiciary, the integrity of the court sys tem and the admissibility of the 
judicial function; (ii) to improve the efficiency of the judicial system, and competence, impartiality 
and diligence in the exercise of the judicial function; (iii)  to reform the prison system by bringing it 
into line with international standards and by promoting prisoner reintegration; and (iv) to guarantee 
equitable access to the law for citizens, equality of all before the courts, and the participation of civil 
society in the strengthening of the public justice service. F urther actions included the establishment 
of a Higher Judiciary Council, which would enable better access to the justice system and would 
strengthen its independence, and the creation of a national ombudsperson.  
74. The representative of Comoros said that the Ministry of Economy and Trade was responsible 
for trade policy and for coordination with other ministries responsible for trade -related matters. Cases 
of disagreements between ministries were submitted to the Council of Ministers. Strategic decisions 
such as the formulation of the Government's trade policy and its negotiating positions in regional 
and multilateral trade negotiations were taken by the Council of Ministers.  
75. The government had set up a National Forum on Trade Policy Development ( Forum National  
pour le Développement de la Politique Commerciale, FNDPC ), which had subsequently been replaced 
by the National Committee on Trade Negotiations ( Comité National des Négociations Commerciales, 
CNNC ). The CNNC advised the authorities in all trade negotiatio ns and was a forum for consultation. 
The CNNC comprised high -level officials from the Ministries of Finance and Budget; Agriculture, 
Transport, Tourism, Post and Telecommunications; Foreign Affairs, Justice; and Education and 
Culture (including focal point s on trade policy issues) and representatives of the principal economic 
sectors (through socio -professional organizations) and resident missions of development partners 
present in the capital. Representatives of the private sector and international institu tions based in 
Moroni were only involved in a consultative role; they did not have access to negotiating documents 
or other official documents. Within the CNNC, a specialist group had been established on WTO 
matters, the Enhanced Integrated Framework and t he Aid -for-Trade programme. This group 
formulated trade policy initiatives and recommendations on behalf of the CNNC to the Council of 
Ministers; and coordinated the implementation of trade policy decisions taken by the Council 
of Ministers. The government  also solicited the views of industry associations, the Chambers of 
Commerce, the private sector, civil society and local island communities on trade policy.   WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  76. Asked to describe the process of ratification of international treaties, the representative of 
Comoros said that the relevant ministry would present a descriptive note describing the draft law 
authorising the ratification of the treaty to the Council of Ministers. Once approved by the 
Government, the draft law would be submitted to the Office of the N ational Assembly for examination 
and for authorisation to the President of the Union to ratify the treaty or agreement in question. Once 
adopted by the National Assembly, a Presidential Decree of ratification would be published in the 
Official Journal, the reby giving the treaty power of law in the national legislation. He affirmed that 
international treaties prevailed over national laws, and that national laws could not be invoked to 
justify the non -application of international law. He confirmed that the Ac cession Package would be a 
treaty obligation that would supersede national law .  
77. The representative of Comoros confirmed that its laws and regulations provided the 
necessary institutional base for the prompt administrative and judicial review of the Govern ment's 
actions. He further confirmed that from the date of accession, Comoros' laws would provide for the 
right to appeal administrative rulings on matters subject to WTO provisions to the courts or other 
independent tribunals of superior jurisdiction, in conformity with WTO obligations, including those 
set out in Article X of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994, Article 23 of the WTO 
Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures, Article 11 of the WTO Agreement on 
Implementation of Article  VII of the GATT 1994, Article 62 of the WTO Agreement on Trade -Related 
Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, and Article VI of the General Agreement on Trade in Services. 
The courts or tribunals responsible for such review would be impartial and indepe ndent of the agency 
entrusted with administrative enforcement and would not have a substantial interest in the outcome 
of the matter. The review procedure would include the opportunity for appeal, without penalty, by 
individuals or enterprises affected by any administrative action subject to review. Notice of the 
decision by the court or other tribunal of superior jurisdiction on appeal, and the reasons for that 
decision, would be provided to the interested parties in writing. The Working Party took note of  these 
commitments.  
- Authority of Sub -Central Governments  
78. The representative of Comoros said that the central government had exclusive competence 
in political, legislative and administrative matters of  national scope and external relations including 
trade and international treaties; it exercised all sovereign powers and provided public services.  
The three islands, Anjouan (Ndzouani), Mohéli (Mwali) and Grande Comore (NGazidja), were 
autonomous regional authority units which governed themselves freely withi n the framework of the 
statutory laws adopted by them in conformity with the Constitution. The sub -central governments 
were obliged to act in accordance with the laws and regulations of the country and the treaties and 
agreements to which the country was p arty. The  areas which came under the responsibility of the 
islands were set out in Article 9 of the Constitution: "administration of local authorities; urban and 
rural police; fairs and markets; study allowances and island grants; road networks; developmen t of 
secondary routes; island land development; construction, equipment, maintenance and management 
of teaching and healthcare establishments and staff; small -scale fishing; and agriculture and 
livestock farming, excluding strategies and research". Island authorities consisted of a Governor WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  elected by universal suffrage by the citizens of the island and a directly elected deliberative Council 
(island parliament). The  Governor was assisted in his/her duties by an executive body of ministers 
(commissaires ). Island authorities had their own sub -authorities, which were regional and communal 
authorities. Island authorities were overseen by the Ministry of the Interior. A framework had been 
set up for regular consultations between the President of the Union, the G overnors of the three 
islands and the President of the National Assembly.  
79. Asked to describe the scope of authority of Anjouan, Grande Comore, and Mohéli related to 
agriculture and livestock farming, the representative of Comoros said that island authoritie s 
implemented the national policies on agriculture.  
80. The representative of Comoros said that the island authorities were not authorized to provide 
subsidies. Island authorities were empowered to levy and collect certain taxes – the trade tax 
contribution (" contribution des patentes " – see "Trading Rights") , vehicle tax - for their own revenue, 
and they could grant subsidies for the operation of certain public institutions, including schools and 
hospitals. The islands could introduce new taxes,  but these taxes could not be related to imports or 
exports. Tax legislation was adopted at the Union level via the Finance Law.  
81. The representative of Comoros confirmed that the central government had exclusive 
competence in regard to international treatie s and agreements, and that sub -central governments 
did not have the power to apply measures that could be incompatible with international treaties, 
including the WTO Agreement .  
82. The representative of Comoros confirmed that sub -central entities had no autonomous 
authority over issues of subsidies, taxation, trade policy or any other measures covered by WTO 
provisions. He confirmed that the provisions of the WTO  Agreement, including Comoros' Protocol of 
Accession, would be applied uniformly throughout it s customs territory , including special economic 
zones and other areas where special regimes for tariffs, taxes and regulations were 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 courts. The Working Party took note of these commitments.  
IV. POLICIES AFFECTING TRADE IN GOODS  
- Trading Rights  
83. The represe ntative of Comoros said that that the overall legal framework for conducting 
business in Comoros was provided by the OHADA Uniform Act  on Commercial Companies and 
Economic Interest Groups . To conduct business in Comoros, all natural and legal persons ( other than  
cooperatives) had to register in the Trade and Personal Property Credit Register ( Registre du 
Commerce et du credit mobilier, RCCM ). Cooperatives – defined as autonomous associations of 
persons united voluntarily to meet common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations 
through a jointly -owned and democratically -controlled enterprise – were registered in the Register 
of Cooperative Societies. While two different Registers  were in use, t he registration process was the WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  same . The RCCM was held by a commercial chamber of the court of first instance. Applications for 
registration were submitted to  this chamber. Applications were submitted to the Court Registry  
(a department of the commercial chamber) , or alternatively to the ANPI  Single Window , or to the 
Administrative Procedure Centre for Businesses ( Centre des formalités administratives des 
entreprises , CFAE). Applications consisted of (i) an application form; (ii) a copy of the identity 
documents of the associates and the manag ing director; (iii) a copy of the criminal records of the 
associates and the managing director, or a signed sworn statement; and (iv) a power of attorney 
with authentication of signature, if applicable. The registration fee was set at KMF 68,500 for a limi ted 
liability company (SARL) and KMF 162,000 for a public limited company (SA). The registration 
procedure was completed within two days. The registration procedure for a branch was the same as 
that for setting up and registering a company. Individuals cou ld register as sole entrepreneurs. 
The registration  process was automatic and a single registration was necessary to conduct business 
in the entire Union of Comoros.   
84. He added that with the launch of the CFAE in 2012, business start -up procedures had been 
streamlined within a single window, which had reduced the time required to set up a business down 
to 72 hours. The CFAEs operated under government supervision and had been set up at the ANPI 
and at the Chambers of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture. They  provided support with the drawing 
up and registration of property -related instruments, notary authentication, and registration with the 
RCCM. Furthermore, Comoros had also been improving its mechanism for enforcing  OHADA decisions  
by inter alia  establishing  a decision -enforcement body for OHADA decisions and a commercial court.   
85. Asked if importers of record could import without having to establish physical presence in 
Comoros, and without selling or distributing goods in Comoros, the representative of Comoros said 
that importers needed to be registered in the RCCM  and to be  inscribed on the list of importers  (the 
latter was a new measure envisaged in the Law on Foreign Trade) . In addition,  as a condition for 
implementing the OHADA Unif orm Act , importers had to have  a physical presence in the country, 
which entailed holding a residence permit. He confirmed that Comoros did not impose equity 
limitations or investment requirements on foreign firms wishing to be importers of record.  
86. A Membe r said that Comoros imposed burdensome restrictions on the right to trade, including 
the requirements for physical presence, securing a professional card and obtaining a tax identification 
number (" numéro d'identification fiscal", NIF ). This Member stated that Comoros' physical presence 
requirement was an onerous condition for importing that appeared to be beyond what was permitted 
under Article XI of the GATT and requested that Comoros remove this requirement. In addition, the 
NIF appeared to be redundant with the registration requirement and the professional card. Comoros 
was asked to consider further streamlining its procedures for business establishment with a view to 
making it easier and less costly to engage in trade activities.  
87. The representative of C omoros replied that all businesses, irrespective of their legal form or 
size, were required to register with the Large Enterprise Directorate of the General Tax and Property 
Administration (AGID) to obtain a NIF. The NIF was used when clearing goods throug h customs and 
allowed importers to pay 1% of the c.i.f. value of imported goods under the "import trade tax" WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  ("patente d'importation", PI ) instead of 10%, which was applicable to businesses without a NIF. A  NIF 
was issued within 48 hours, against a fee of KMF 25,000, as long as all supporting documents were 
complete. The NIF was simply a means of identifying taxpayers.  In reply to a specific question, the 
representative of Comoros said that only informal economy businesses operated without a NIF. He 
added t hat the previously existing requirement for commercial traders (" commerçant ") to hold a 
professional card issued by each island's Commissariat of Finance had been abolished  pursuant to 
Decision No. 22 -28/MMIIIE/SG of 18 October 2022 . 
88. In response to a speci fic question on the registration of branches of foreign companies, the 
representative of Comoros acknowledged that according to OHADA's Uniform Act (Article 120) , if 
within two years of its registration  the branch of a foreign company registered outside the OHADA 
area had not been attached (" affiliated ") to a company incorporated under the law of an OHADA 
State  Party, the branch could be removed from the RCCM  at the request of the Registry or any 
interested party. In Comoros, rulings in such cases were issued by the presiding judge of the court 
of first instance.  The minister in charge of trade could waive the "affiliation" obligation for an 
additional , non-renewable  period of two years. After the two - or four -year period, the br anch would 
have to be either (i) attached to a pre -existing or newly created company incorporated under national  
law (OHADA Article 120(1)) ; (ii) removed from the Registry  (OHADA Article 120(3)) ; or 
(iii) transformed into a commercial  company  by decision of the shareholders (OHADA Article 181) . 
A branch became  a commercial company  under national law in accordance with the provisions 
outlined in Article 256 of OHADA's Uniform Act, namely (i)  publication of the transformation decision ; 
(ii) deposit, at the registry of the commercial court, of two copies of the minutes of the meeting 
relevant to the transformation and of the decision to appoint the members of the new organs of the 
company ; and (iii)  registration of the amendments in the property r ights register . He added that, 
pursuant to an advisory opinion from the OHADA Court ( No. 002/2016 of 18  October  2016), foreign 
companies had been allowed to maintain a branch beyond the four -year limitation.  
89. A Member questioned how the affiliation requirem ent was consistent with MFN treatment and 
with Comoros' commitments in services. This Member requested that paragraph 1 of Article 120 of 
the OHADA Uniform Act be amended prior to Comoros' accession, along with any legal requirements 
of Comoros that were c onsistent with it, to eliminate the requirement discriminating against non -
OHADA member States. In response, the representative of Comoros said that the legal power to 
amend a part of the OHADA Uniform Act belonged to all of its member States.  He held the view that 
the affiliation requirement was consistent with MFN treatment.   
90. The representative of Comoros said that t he AGID levied a special activity licence fee on the 
importation of alcoholic beverages  pursuant to Order No.  14-069/VP -MFEBCEIP/CAB . In accordance 
with the Tax Code (Article 196) , the licence fee was set at KMF 4,000,000 for importers, KMF 500,000 
for distributors, and KMF 250,000 for sellers. Licences were due on 1  January of each year. 
Importers  could also be d istributors/wholesalers, however bar owners could not import alcohol. 
Retail  operators, i.e. , stores that sold alcoholic beverages, were considered to be distributors. 
A licensed importer of alcoholic beverages could make the imports available to downstrea m WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  distributors without paying a distributor's licence. Given that alcoholic beverages were not produced 
locally, in practice the licence fee applied only to imported products.  
91. The representative of Comoros added that a licence for the importation of tobacc o had been 
introduced under the Finance Law No.  08-43/AU. To obtain a licence , the importer had to pay a trade 
tax contribution (see below)  and be in possess ion of  a NIF.  He confirmed that Comoros did not 
currently cultivate tobacco and did not have a cigarette factory.  There was, however, a small cigarette 
packaging unit for the local brand "COELACANTHE", which used imported raw materials. Licensing 
requirements are listed in Annex  2. 
92. In reply to a specific question, the representative of Comoros said that non -automatic 
licences for alcohol and tobacco were applied for health reasons.  
93. In addition, for certain regulated activities, "operating approvals " were issued by the  
competent authority or  minist ry concerned , e.g., a fisher y enterprise  had to obtain an approval from 
the ministry responsible for fisheries . These approvals were issued in view of fulfilling the objective 
stipulated in Article 4 of the Investment Code  – namely,  the right to invest was conditional  on 
ensuring the protection of health  and public health, social protection , and public economic order.  The 
procedure for the grant of the operating approval was set out in Articles 159 and 160 of the Tax 
Code. Approvals were issued to commercial businesses and/or other natural or leg al persons for the 
purpose of carrying out their business. The operating approval was not specially required for 
importation.  Entities engaged in activity in a sector that did not require an operating approval could 
engage in importing without such an approval.  
94. The operating approvals described in the preceding paragraph corresponded to the trade tax 
contribution (" contribution des patentes ") stipulated in the General Tax Code  (Article 159) . All natural 
or legal persons engaged in a business, industry or profession not exempted under Article 164 of the 
Tax Code were subject to the trade tax contribution. The trade tax contributio n was payable to the 
AGID, for the whole year, by any person engaged in a taxable activity on 1 January of a given year 
and was due before 31 March of the year in question. This included importers and  importer -exporters. 
The trade tax was established by ap plying to the designated profession the corresponding rate listed 
in a schedule of rates annexed to the Code (Article 1 79). For importers and importer -exporters , the 
trade tax contribution amounted to KMF 250,000  plus a 1/10th proportional duty   
(i.e., 250,000 + 1/10* 250,000 = KMF  275,000). The fixed component of the trade tax contribution 
was determined according to the capacity of the activity and  importers as w ell as importer -exporters 
were engaged in activities of significant scale and high turnover. As soon as the trade tax contribution 
was paid, the corresponding operating approval was issued automatically by the relevant competent 
authority . The applicable t rade tax contribution rate was determined on the basis of the main activity 
of the company , even if the company was importing as part of its secondary activities . Exporters 
were not subject to the payment of a fixed duty as th is policy was aimed at encouraging exporters. 
Table 2 lists selected  trade tax rates stipulated in Article 179 the Tax Code. Activities exempt under 
Article  164 of the Tax Code are listed in Annex  3.  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  Table 2: Selected trade tax rates (Article 179 of the Tax Code)  
Taxab le activity  Fixed duty  Proportional duty  Comments  
Business agent  20,000  1/10th  NC 
Conglomerates (producer of)  100,000  1/10th   
Medical analysis (laboratory)  30,000  1/10th   
Electronic appliances:  
- seller  
- repairer   
150,000  
50,000   
1/10th  
1/10th   
Importer  250,000  1/10th   
Importer - Exporter  250,000  1/10th  In cases where an importer/exporter 
has several businesses, only one 
trade tax per year is levied (i.e. for 
the one with the highest fixed duty)  
95. A Member said that the need to secure an "operating approval" and requiring a trade tax 
contribution that appeared to discriminate against exporters and importers amounted to burdensome 
restrictions on the right to trade. The operating approval appeared to be redundant with the trade 
tax contribution. Comoros was also asked to eliminate the trade tax contribution applicable to 
importer -exporters prior to the date of accession.  
- Trade Facilitation  
96. The representative of Comoros said that Comoros undertook to implement the Trade 
Facilitati on Agreement (TFA). An evaluation based on the TFA had been carried out under the updated 
Diagnostic Trade Integration Study (DTIS). Comoros intended to approach the WTO and bilateral 
partners for assistance in implementing the Agreement during the accessi on process and over the 
period defined in the legislative action plan.  
97. The representative of Comoros added that Comoros had already implemented commitments 
under Section I of the TFA, namely (i) on publication and availability of information (Article 1); 
(ii) notifications for enhanced controls or inspection (Article 5.1); (iii) adoption or maintenance of a 
non-discriminatory and non -arbitrary system of risk management for customs control and focus on 
customs controls of high -risk consignments with rapid r elease of low -risk consignments (Article 7.4); 
(iv) adoption or maintenance of a mechanism to certify the conformity of the consignment after 
customs clearance (Article 7.5); (v) release of perishable goods within the shortest possible time, 
even outside w orking hours if circumstances so require (Article 7.9); (vi) establishment of 
cooperation between border agencies (Article 8); (vii) movement of goods intended for import under 
customs control (Article 9); (viii) formalities and documentation requirements;  acceptance of paper 
or electronic copies of supporting documents required; use of international standards; single window; 
preshipment inspection; use of customs brokers; common border procedures and uniform 
documentation requirements; a llowing the importe r the possibility of returning the goods to the 
exporter or forwarding them if they are rejected on the grounds of failure to comply with the SPS 
regulations or technical standards ; temporary admission of goods; and inward processing (Article 10 
with the e xception of the provisions relating to outward processing stipulated in Article 10.9.2); 
(ix) freedom of transit (Article 11); (x) customs cooperation (Article 12); and (xi) establishment 
and/or maintenance of a national committee or similar mechanism on t rade facilitation (Article 23).  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  98. The representative of Comoros took note of the Protocol Amending the Marrakesh Agreement 
Establishing the World Trade Organization done in Geneva on 27 November 2014 (WT/L/940) (TFA 
Protocol). This Protocol, which had entered into force on 22 February 2017 , had inserted the 
Agreement on Trade Facilitation into Annex 1A of the WTO  Agreement. He confirmed that Comoros 
would accept the TFA Protocol by virtue of accepting the Protocol of Accession. He further confirmed 
that Comoros would progressively implement  the WTO Agreement on Trade Facilitation from the date 
of accession, as a least developed country. Full implementation of the WTO Trade Facilitation 
Agreement would start from 31 December 2028 in accordance with the Action Plan provided for in 
Table […] wi thout recourse to any further transition period. The Working Party took note of this 
commitment.  
A. IMPORT REGULATIONS  
- Ordinary customs duties  
99. The representative of Comoros said that  Comoros'  national tariff followed the nomenclature 
of the Harmonized Sy stem. While negotiations on the implementation of the COMESA customs union 
were ongoing  (see "Trade Agreements") , Comoros had already adopted the COMESA categorization 
of goods, harmonized its Customs Code to that of COMESA, and incorporated  in full  the CO MESA 
Common Tariff Nomenclature. As part of the  COMESA FTA framework, Comoros had eliminated 
customs duties on all products originating in COMESA countries.  He added that Comoros had 
implemented the computerised customs management system ASYCUDA++ in 2008 with technical 
and financial su pport from COMESA and UNCTAD.  
100.  Comoros applied ad valorem  and specific duties. Ad valorem  duties  - i.e., the single import 
tax (Taxe Unique d'Importation, TUI ) - were currently applied in tariff bands of  0%, 5% and 20%. 
Specific duties applied to rice (four tariff lines), petroleum ( 2 tariff line s), and vehicles (32 tariff 
lines).  
101.  Recen t reforms had sought to bring customs duties progressively in line with the COMESA 
common external tariff  (CET) . By 2023 , 327 national tariff lines had been  aligned with the COMESA 
CET. As soon as the CET was operation al at the regional level, Comoros would be required to ensure 
its implementation. The COMESA CET  of the future customs union comprised four bands – 0% (raw 
materials); 0% (c apital goods); 10% (intermediate products); and 25% (finished products). 
Tariffs  would thus tend to increase with the adoption of the COMESA CET – e.g., tariffs at 5% would 
increase to 10% and those at 20% would increase to 25%.  
- Other duties and charges  
102.  The representative of Comoros said that the International Cooperation Fee (Redevance de 
Coopération Internationale, RCI)  was a 1% charge earmarked  for paying contributions to regional 
and international instituti ons (COMESA, IOC and the WTO).  This tax was levied at the customs  
border . In response to a specific question, he said that the contributions to these organisations  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  exhausted the RCI and that there had never been any residual amount. Specifically, the annual 
contribution to COMESA was estima ted at USD 90,000.  
103.  In addition, a  fee levied by the Chamber of Commerce  and Industry ( Redevance de la 
Chambre du Commerce et de l'Industrie, RCCI ) was  collected at customs at the rate of 1% on all 
products except ordinary rice and petroleum products.  This tax was levied for the maintenance of 
warehouses/depots for imported products.  The Chamber of Commerce  was independently managed 
but received  a State subsidy through the RCCI fee .  
104.  An "import trade tax" ( patente d'importation, PI ) was also collected at the border.  
For importers who had obtained a tax identification number (NIF), the PI was levied at the rate of 
1%. Importers without a NIF paid a PI of 10%. The revenue from this tax wen t to the regular 
government budget  (see also "Trading rights").  
105.  An advance tax payment ( acompte sur l'impôt, AI) was levied on imported goods  [at the rate 
of 1%]. Registered taxpayers could deduct the amount of the advanc e payment from the corporate 
tax at the end of the fiscal year. The AI was levied in order to combat taxpayer tax evasion and 
fraud.  
106.  A Single Administrative Charge ( Redevance Administrative Unique, RAU ) was levied at an ad 
valorem  rate of 5% of the c.i.f value of the goods. The RAU was paid to the Financial Administration 
Equipment Fund and was calculated on the basis of customs receipts. The RAU was used for covering 
inter alia  the cost of training, the electronic processing of clearance documents, the us e of operating 
software, the supply of customs forms, the purchase and maintenance of equipment, and 
compensation for the State financial services' staff – which were considered to be services rendered 
in connection with importation (customs clearance). The RAU was not used for fiscal purposes.  
107.  The representative of Comoros stated that his Government undertook to eliminate existing 
Other Duties and Charges (ODCs) - i.e., the AI, PI, RCI, RCCI and the RAU . Order No.  22-
013/MFBSB/CAB of 2 March 2022 stipulated the elimination of these ODCs. The specific timeline for 
their elimination was (i) elimination of the RCCI, AI, RCI and PI in the first quarter of 2024; and 
(ii) elimination of the RAU in the first quarter of 2025. Specific provisions would be introduced in the 
respective Finance Laws for 2024 and 2025.   
108.  A Member noted that the imposition of a 0.2% levy on selected imports was foreseen by the 
African Union and enquired whether Comoros intended to impose this levy. In response, the 
representative  of Comoros said that the modalities of the 0.2% levy had not yet been agreed by the 
African Union. Should such a levy be applied by the African Union, Comoros intended to implement 
it through domestic taxation.   
109.  The representative of Comoros confirmed tha t from the date of accession Comoros would not 
apply other duties and charges within the meaning of Article II:1(b) of the GATT 1994, except as 
provided with respect to the RCCI, AI, RCI, PI, and the RAU in the Action Plan on Fees and Charges 
in Table […].  He further stated that the [RCCI would be eliminated by 30 June 2023, the AI and RCI WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  by 31 March 2024, and the PI and RAU by 31 March 2025 ] [RCCI, AI, RCI and PI would be eliminated 
in the first quarter of 2024, and the RAU in the first quarter of 2025] , as described in paragraph 
[107] of this Report and consistent with the Action Plan. Accordingly, Comoros would come into full 
compliance with the WTO Agreement no later than 31 March 2025. The representative stated that 
Comoros has bound "other duties and charges " as defined in Article II:1(b) of the GATT 1994 at zero 
in Comoros ' Schedule of Concessions and Commitments on Goods.  The Working Party took note of 
these commitments.  
- Tariff rate quotas, tariff exemptions  
110.  The representative of Comoros said that Comoros did not have tariff rate quotas.  
111.  A Member asked Comoros to list all current tariff exemptions by tariff line and by recipient 
of the benefit, including information on any requir ements to receive these benefits.  
112.  The representative of Comoros repli ed that all raw materials and capital goods to be used in 
public investment schemes, such as major state projects (e.g., roads, stadiums, schools, hospitals), 
as well as in private investment projects eligible under the Investment Code, were exempt from 
customs duties following a decision to grant approval . Products imported for the diplomatic and 
consular corps were also exempted. Certain  exemptions from customs duties could be granted in 
other cases, such as for non -governmental organizations and cultural and religious associations. 
Exemptions could also be granted in the agriculture livestock, fisheries and energy sectors. 
Exemption from customs duties did not imply exemption from other duties and taxes applicable to  
imports. The tariff exemption application procedure comprised five stages: (i) establishment of the 
allocation base via ASYCUDA by an authorized customs agent; (ii) filing of an application for 
exemption; (iii) application processing by customs; (iv) comp letion of the application; and 
(v) verification of the preferential destination. Goods eligible for exemption are listed in Annex 4. 
113.  The representative of Comoros confirmed that any tariff rate quotas, if introduced in the 
future, would be applied and admi nistered in conformity with WTO rules, including MFN and national 
treatment provisions. He also confirmed that upon accession to the WTO, any tariff exemptions would 
be implemented in conformity with the relevant WTO provisions, including Article I of the General 
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 and the WTO Agreement on Trade -Related Investment 
Measures. The Working Party took note of these commitments.  
- Fees and charges for services rendered  
114.  The representative of Comoros said that the customs authoriti es intended to introduce  a new 
fee replacing the RAU (see "Other duties and charges") , which would  be based on  the cost of services 
rendered  and not on the value of the goods . A feasibility study, based on a case study of a West 
African country, was at a very advanced stage but would need to be completed before the new fee 
was introduced. The new fee would be calculated on the basis of the volume of goods.  The specific 
modality ch osen would depend on the specific service rendered for each container.  The 2024 Finance 
Law would set out the practical modalities for the collection of the new fee.  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  115.  A Member stressed that the new fee should be based on the cost of services rendered, not 
on the value of the imported goods.  
116.  In reply to a specific question, the representative of Comoros said that Comoros intended to  
publish information on fees and charges on the internet prior to  accession . He added that the 
Directorate -General of Customs alr eady had a website (www.douane.go.km) where almost all 
regulations, including those on fees and charges, were published.  Comoros would work towards 
upgrading the website to improve its user friendliness.  
117.  The representative of Comoros confirmed that Comoros would bring all of its fees and charges 
applied in connection with importation and exportation, including those described in paragraphs 
[102-106] and [114] of this Report, into compliance with Articles VIII and X of the General Agreement 
on Tariffs  and Trade 1994, with full compliance occurring no later than [31 March 2025] [the first 
trimester of 2025] in accordance with the Action Plan set -out in Table […]. To this end, laws and 
regulations implementing such fees during the transition period would  not be implemented in a 
manner that resulted in a lesser degree of consistency with Article VIII of the General Agreement on 
Tariffs and Trade 1994 than on the date of accession.  All fees and charges in connection with the 
importation and exportation, exc ept those listed in Table […], would be consistent with the General 
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994, upon accession. He further confirmed that, during this 
transition period, Comoros would ensure that its laws and regulations concerning fees and charge s 
for services rendered would be applied in a manner consistent with other provisions of the WTO 
Agreement, including on a non -discriminatory basis consistent with Articles I and III of the General 
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994. The representative of  Comoros also stated that, from the date 
of accession, Comoros would not introduce or reintroduce any fees and charges for services rendered 
that were applied to imports on an ad valorem basis. The Working Party took note of these 
commitments.  
- Applicatio n of internal taxes to imports  
118.  The representative of Comoros said that the  internal taxes collected at the customs border  
were the  consumption tax (taxe de consommation, TC ) and the excise tax ( droit d'accise, DAC ). 
The TC was levied at a general rate of 10% on the value of goods/services (Article s 140 and 152 of 
the Tax Code) . Exceptions applied to (i) the eight categories of staple goods listed in Table 1 (0%); 
(ii) tuition in private schools (1%); (iii) water and elect ricity supply and sale of tickets for domestic 
travel (3%); (iv)  telephone services, catering, banking , and the sale of tickets for travel abroad 
(5%); and (v) casino operations (25%). The DAC applied to (i) ordinary rice (40 KMF/kg ); (ii) luxury 
rice (150 KMF/kg ); (iii) petrol (a standard rate of KMF 230 /l and a reduced rate of KMF 211 /l) and 
diesel (a standard rate of KMF 115 /l and a reduced rate of KMF 95 /l); and (iv) alcohol and tobacco 
(10% of the sale price).  For domestic products, the internal taxes were collected at the point of sale.  
For imports, g iven the informal nature of the Comorian economy, internal taxes were collected at 
the border to secure revenue and prevent tax evasion. Comoros was , however , considering how to 
collect  these taxes internally by the General Tax and Property Administration ( AGID ).  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  119.  Specifically concerning luxury rice, he said that an internal tax had been introduced on its 
consumption as it was considered to be a luxury product. This  tax applied to all products for sale, 
whether of domestic or foreign origin ( Article 139 of the General Tax Code) . Given  that luxury rice 
was not produced locally, however, in practice the internal tax applied only to imported luxury rice.  
120.  A Member expres sed concerns with Comoros' internal taxes, given that taxes on imported 
products were levied at the border and that taxes were also levied at the point of sale. This raised 
the prospect of double taxation for imported products, unless only domestic product s were taxed at 
the point of sale.   
121.  The representative of Comoros replied that the consumption tax was levied provisionally at 
the border  on all imported goods at the rate of 10%. After the sale of the imported products on the 
domestic market the tax authorities calculated the total amount of consumption tax payable. The 
10% collected by the customs authorities was deducted from the total amou nt payable.  In the event 
that the imported goods were sold at a loss for justified reasons, these goods would  be exempt from 
the payment of the consumption tax. The AGID was in charge of conducting reviews and carrying 
out on -site inspections. The 10% tax levied at the border was not reimbursed but was deducted from 
other taxes due.  Consumption tax was not levied , therefore, at the point of sale for goods cleared 
through customs  and no internal tax applied to any imported good in excess of the internal tax 
applied to the like domestic product. Furthermore, in his opinion, there were currently no like 
domestic products for the products subject to excise duties. Specifically, neither rice nor tobacco 
were produced domestically . There was, however,  a small ciga rette packaging unit for the local brand 
"COELACANTHE" , which used imported raw materials.  He added  that excise tax would be levied in 
the same way to future domestic like products .  
122.  He added that the internal taxes would be replaced by a new value added tax (VAT). A draft 
VAT law would be prepared with the support  of the IMF . VAT implementation  was also  provided for 
in the Interim Development Plan 2020 -2024 ( Plan de développement intérim aire) and in an action 
plan by the Ministry of Finance.  VAT implementation was foreseen in  2026. 
- Quantitative import restrictions, including prohibitions, quotas and licensing 
systems  
123.  The representative of Comoros said that in 2017 Comoros had introduced  a ban on the 
production, importation, marketing and distribution of non -biodegradable plastic bags and wrapping 
(Law No. 17 -011/AU).  
124.  The representative of Comoros added that since the 1990s, Comoros had lifted all 
quantitative restrictions under the IMF structural adjustment programme. International trade was 
nevertheless subject to restrictions relating to the application of security laws and regulations; the 
control of arms, ammunition and other war equipment and military items; the protection of human,  
animal or plant health or life; protection of public morality; the transfer of gold, silver and precious 
and semiprecious stones; the protection of national artistic and cultural property; and the control of 
narcotics, hazardous and toxic waste, nuclear m aterials, radioactive products or any other materials WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  used in the development or exploitation of nuclear energy. These restrictions were applicable in 
accordance with the provisions of the relevant international conventions and organizations, including 
the WTO, WCO, UNESCO, FAO and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of 
Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). [The primary legal basis for currently applied prohibitions or 
quantitative restrictions was provided by Chapter VII (Articles 44 to 49) of the new Tax Code. ] 
The remaining provisions were contained in sectoral laws and regulations concerning areas such as 
the military, health, culture and the environment.  
125.  The representative of Comoros said that Decree No. 22 -009/PR promulgating Law 
No. 21-013/AU of 29 June 2021 on Foreign Trade (Law on Foreign Trade) established the new 
framework for import (and export) regulations, including import licensing. The implementing texts 
for the Law on Foreign Trade were currently being prepared.   
126.  Pursuant to Article  8 of the Law on Foreign Trade, products excluded from the free foreign 
trade regime would be imported or exported by means of import and export authorizations granted 
by the Ministry of Trade, following technical approval, if necessary,  by the administration concerned. 
The formalities for obtaining an import authorization would be set by the Ministry of Trade in 
collaboration with the relevant technical department. Conditions and procedures for obtaining 
authorizations would be establish ed in a regulation.  
127.  He further added that, under the structural adjustment programme, import licences had in 
principle been abolished under Order No. 99 -001/MECIA/CAB and replaced with statistical cards 
issued by the Directorate -General of the Economy and  Foreign Trade. These statistical cards were 
required for the collection of statistics on external trade flows and the data was only used for internal 
purposes by the Ministry of Trade. This  system consisted of obtaining an administrative record with 
the following information: (i) name and address of the importer; (ii) activity exercised; (iii) weight 
and value of the merchandise; (iv)  origin of the merchandise to be imported; and (v) bank 
identification details of the commercial transaction. Only informati on relating to the transaction was 
necessary but no banking information.  
128.  A Member expressed concerns about the statistical card system which, in addition to an 
operating approval, appeared to place a significant burden on commercial activity. In reply, th e 
representative of Comoros said that the statistical cards were needed only for transactions requiring 
banking domiciliation and therefore not required for all commercial transactions. As the data set 
collected through the statistical cards was not compre hensive, if used in publications, the statistics 
were supplemented with customs data.  
129.  He added that the import of certain goods was subject to non -automatic licensing 
(non-automatic authorizations). Specifically, special authorizations were issued by the r elevant 
administrative bodies for the import of (i) live animals and meat; (ii) fish and crustaceans; (iii) live 
trees and plants; (iv)  endangered species; and (v)  arms and explosives. These authorizations were 
renewable upon presentation of supporting doc umentation. The licences for the import of live animals 
and meat, fish and crustaceans, and live trees and plants were applied for sanitary and phytosanitary WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  reasons and could not be granted automatically as the requirements had to be met prior to import. 
He noted, however, that the list of products subject to import licensing would be updated with the 
adoption of implementing regulations to the new Law on Foreign Trade. Currently applicable licensing 
requirements are listed in Annex  2.  
130.  Asked to provide in formation about the import of luxury rice, the representative of Comoros 
said that luxury rice was defined as long grain white rice with a percentage of broken grains lower 
than 5%. Indian or Pakistani Basmati varieties and Thai fragrant rice were also inc luded in the 
definition. Suppliers of luxury rice were required to present quality certificates issued by an 
internationally recognized quality inspection body, such as Bureau Veritas or SGS. A second expert 
opinion on quality was provided by the state -owned ONICOR upon arrival. Samples were sent to 
LABORATORIZ in Arles, France. ONICOR's main concern was to ensure that the product placed on 
the Comorian market met international quality standards , contained less than 5% of broken grains,  
and had the required  phytosanitary guarantees.   
131.  A licence for the import of luxury rice required prior authorization by the Directorate -General 
of the Economy and Foreign Trade and cost KMF 500,000 (Article 199 of the Tax Code, as amended 
by Article 20 of the 2019 Finance Law ). Existing importers had to request licences at the latest by 
31 March of any given year. Licences were then valid for the entire year. New importers, who 
registered after 31 March, could begin importation at any time. This licence had been applied since 
2012 for fiscal rather than restrictive purposes and was not required for customs procedures. 
Therefore, in his view, this measure did not affect the import of luxury rice but rather ensured the 
quality control of this product and limited the marketing of fake products. He added that, as luxury 
rice was considered a luxury product, an internal tax had been introduced on its consumption (see 
"Application of Internal Taxes on Imports").  
132.  A Member noted that Comoros prohibited the import of Zea Mays  (corn) seed for planting 
and consumption and asked Comoros to further explain the basis for the prohibition. Contrary to the 
stated basis for prohibition, Peronosclerospora philippinensis , Sclerospora philippinensis , 
P. spontanea  and P. sacchari  were not known to occur on the territory of this Member. Furthermore, 
this Member held the view that Stewart's wilt ( Erwinia stewartii ) had a negligible risk of becoming 
established in Comoros. This Member asked Comoros to provide the scientific basis on which the 
restrictions were applied and enquired about Comoros' plan to eliminate the prohibition, noting that 
the elimination of the prohibition would need to occur prior to the date of accession.  
133.  The representative of Comoros replied that Order No.  21-113/MAPETA/C AB of 
26 November  2021 had repealed the order prohibiting imports of Zea Mays  corn. Furthermore, he  
confirmed that any sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measure would be based on scientific evidence 
and principles. He pointed to Comoros' need for technical and financial assistance in strengthening 
the relevant border services in the context of SPS capacity -building in the country .  
134.  The representative of Comoros confirmed that the administrative procedures Comoros 
maintains for the operation of its import lic ensing regime and their application would, from the date WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  of accession, be consistent with all relevant provisions of the WTO Agreement, including the WTO 
Agreement on Import Licensing Procedures.  The Working Party took note of these commitments.  
- Customs valuation  
135.  A Member expressed deep concerns regarding the use of reference prices by Comoros and 
noted that the use of reference or minimum prices was prohibited by Article 7 of the Agreement on 
Implementation of Article VII of the GATT 1994 (Customs Valuat ion Agreement). This Member 
enquired when and in which legislation did Comoros intend to eliminate reference or minimum prices. 
Comoros was also requested to provide a list of the imported goods for which Comoros applied a 
reference price and a minimum tax able price.  
136.  The representative of Comoros replied that Comoros used the Brussels Definition of Value as 
the basis for calculating customs duties and other customs charges. Comoros applied a reference 
price and a minimum taxable price for certain imported g oods as part of efforts to combat fraud and 
guarantee State revenue. Nevertheless, he confirmed that Comoros would discontinue the use of 
these practices prior to WTO accession. In this regard, he noted that the use of transaction value 
had been introduced  in the 2015 Customs Code (Law No. 15 -016/AU of 28 December 2015 , 
Article  35, as amended ) and that Comoros had become a signatory to the revised Kyoto Convention. 
A Decree on the determination of the customs value as well as other implementing texts of the  
Customs Code had been communicated to the Working Party. The purpose of these implementing 
texts was to improve the understanding of the application of the 2015 Customs Code. He added that, 
with the introduction of the transaction value concept in the new  Customs Code, the use of the 
Brussels Definition of Customs Value was being progressively substituted  on a product -by-product 
basis. Substitution was being carried out by accepting the values provided by the forwarders , which 
were based on the transaction  value . The African Regional Technical Assistance Centre (AFRITAC) 
was providing technical assistance in this regard.  Asked if Comoros would include in its implementing 
regulations a prohibition on the use of the Brussels Definition of Value, the represent ative of Comoros 
said that it was the transaction value that was legally recognized by Comoros' Customs Code.  
137.  In response to specific questions, the representative of Comoros acknowledged that the 
provisions of Articles 1, 2, 3, 5, 7 and 10 of the Customs Valuation Agreement had not been fully 
reflected in the 2015 Customs Code and in Order N o. 19-049/MFBSB/CAB on the determination of 
customs value. In addition, t he provisions of Article 9 (conversion of currency) had not been reflected 
in the new Customs Code nor in the Order on the determination of the customs value (see Annex 5 
for a correspondence table). An amendment correcting these omission s would be introduced in 
parliament in the se cond half of 2023.  
138.  Concerning the provisions contained in Article  11 of the Customs Valuation Agreement (right 
of appeal), he said that, pursuant to Article  35/3 of the Customs Code, an importer could file an 
appeal with the Reconciliation and Appraisal C ommission ( Commission de conciliation et d'expertise ). 
The importer could further appeal to the commercial court if they were not satisfied with the decision 
of the Reconciliation and Appraisal Commission. As for the provisions of Article  16 of the Customs  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  Valuation Agreement, whereby the importer had the right to an explanation in writing as to how the 
customs value of the importer's goods was determined, he said that this right was not limited to 
related party transactions and was available for all transa ctions. He added that Decision 4.1 on the 
Valuation of Carrier Media Bearing Software for Data Processing Equipment would be implemented 
in the second half of 2023 . 
139.  Asked about the implementation of the Interpretative Notes to the Customs Valuation 
Agreeme nt, the representative of Comoros said that Comoros would ensure that its legislation was 
in conformity with the Customs Valuation Agreement, including its annexes and the Interpretative 
Notes. The Customs Code would be amended accordingly.   
140.  The representa tive of Comoros said that Comoros was requesting a transition period for 
implementing the transaction value principle and would require technical assistance aimed at 
strengthening the capacities of the relevant services and stakeholders. Specifically, Como ros was 
requesting a transition period of two years after its WTO accession.  The additional transition time 
would be divided into two stages: (i) control and internal audit (on effective implementation); and 
(ii) diagnostic and assessment stage.  
141.  The representative from Comoros confirmed that, prior to accession, Comoros would 
eliminate the use of the Brussels Definition of Value to calculate customs duties and other customs 
charges. The representative further confirmed that legislation on the valu ation of imports for customs 
and taxation purposes conforming to the requirements of the WTO Agreement on Implementation of 
Article VII of the GATT 1994 and Annex I (Interpretative Notes) would be enacted prior to Comoros' 
accession to the WTO, but that so me provisions would not immediately enter into effect. Comoros 
would progressively implement the Agreement on Customs Valuation and Annex I (Interpretative 
Notes) in accordance with the Action Plan in Table […] and full implementation would accordingly be 
achieved by 1 July 2025. Comoros would also apply Decision 3.1 of the Committee on Customs 
Valuation (Treatment of Interest Charges in the Customs Value of Imported Goods) and paragraph  2 
of the Decision on Valuation of Carrier Media Bearing Software for D ata Processing Equipment 
(Decision 4.1). The Working Party took note of these commitments.  
- Rules of origin  
142.  The representative of Comoros said that importers were required to provide information 
about the origin of the goods when filling in a detailed import declaration. They were not required to 
submit a certificate of origin unless they benefitted from a prefe rential regime.  
143.  With respect to preferential trade in the context of the COMESA FTA, the rules of origin 
established by the COMESA Treaty were applied. With respect to the African Continental Free Trade 
Area (AfCFTA), the African Union's rules of origin w ere applied. Comoros had procedures in place to 
provide an assessment of the origin of the good if requested by the importer, exporter, or producer 
of the good before trade in the good began – after a verification of the production process, which 
was requi red for every assessment. Similarly, Comoros had procedures in place to provide an 
assessment for other customs matters, such as the tariff classification of a good, the application of WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  customs valuation criteria, or whether the good met the rules of origin  of preferential trade 
agreements. He confirmed that Comoros would provide such assessments upon request before trade 
began. He also confirmed that the assessments were only available for preferential trade; that they 
were available for those who did not r eside in Comoros; and that they were in conformity with 
Article  3 of the Trade Facilitation Agreement.  
144.  Concerning the rules of origin in the context of the COMESA FTA, goods were deemed to be 
of COMESA origin if they met one of the four criteria establishe d in Article 2 of the COMESA Protocol 
on rules of origin. The goods had to be (i) wholly produced in a member State; (ii) produced in 
member States and their value added had to account for at least 35% of the ex -factory cost of the 
goods; (iii)  produced in  member States and classified, after the production process, under a tariff 
heading other than the tariff heading for the foreign materials used in their production; or 
(iv) produced in member States, designated by the COMESA Council of Ministers as "goods  of 
particular importance to the economic development of the member States", and contained not less 
than 25% of value added.  
145.  The representative of Comoros added that non -preferential rules of origin reserved for goods 
originating in third countries that d id not benefit from preferential treatment were contained in 
Articles 28 to 30 of the Customs Code.  
146.  The representative of Comoros stated that from the date of accession, Comoros' preferential 
and non -preferential rules of origin would comply fully with th e WTO  Agreement on Rules of Origin. 
He further confirmed that Comoros' rules of origin would be notified to the WTO Committee on Rules 
of Origin by that time. The requirements of Article  2(h) and Annex  II, paragraph  3(d) of the 
Agreement which require prov ision upon request of an assessment of the origin of the import and 
outline the terms under which it will be provided, would fully be implemented from the date of 
accession. Any request for such an assessment would be accepted even before trade in the good s 
concerned began. The Working Party took note of these commitments.   
- Other customs formalities  
147.  The representative of Comoros said that the customs bonded warehouses regime allowed for 
the storage of goods in a specific location under customs control unt il payment of customs duties 
and taxes, and the storage of goods imported under special economic policy measures. The  Customs 
Code foresaw several categories of warehousing: (i) government warehousing; (ii) private 
warehousing; (iii) special commodity ware housing; and (iv) industrial warehousing where enterprises 
active in exports - or in both exports and the domestic market - could receive authorisation to release 
goods conditionally relieved from the payment of import duties and taxes. He noted that indus trial 
warehouses were not yet in place. He clarified  that there was no requirement for imported goods to 
be transferred to a warehouse before being cleared for circulation. He confirmed that perishable 
goods could be released pending the payment of duties and taxes under a bond or guarantee.  
148.  The representative of Comoros confirmed that Comoros did not maintain and did not plan to 
impose any requirements for notarization, authentication, legalization, or consularization of WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  commercial invoices, bills of ladi ng, certificates of origin, manifest, shipper export declaration, or any 
other customs documentation related to importation ("trade documents"). The representative of 
Comoros stated that Comoros would not impose any new requirements for notarization, 
authe ntication, legalization, or consularization of trade documents in the future. The Working Party 
took note of these commitments.  
- Preshipment inspection  
149.  The representative of Comoros said that Comoros did not conduct preshipment inspection  
and did not have any intention of implementing a preshipment inspection programme for as long as 
one was not justified by needs.   
150.  The representative of Comoros stated that if a preshipment inspection programme became 
necessary, the preshipment inspection requirements would be temporary and in conformity with the 
requirements of the WTO Agreement on Preshipment Inspection, Article 10. 5 of the Trade Facilitation 
Agreement, and other relevant WTO Agreements. Comoros would take full responsibility to ensure 
that any preshipment inspection entity operating on its behalf complied with the provisions of WTO 
Agreements including the WTO Agreements on Preshipment Inspection, Technical Barriers to Trade, 
the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, Import  Licensing Procedures, the 
Implementation of Article VII of the GATT 1994, Rules of Origin, the Implementation of Article VI of 
the GATT 1994, Subsidies and Countervailing Measures, Safeguards, and Agriculture. The 
establishment of charges and fees would b e consistent with Article  VIII of the General Agreement on 
Tariffs and Trade 1994 and Article 6 of the Trade Facilitation Agreement. From the date of accession, 
Comoros would ensure that the due process and transparency requirements of the WTO Agreements 
would be applied. Decisions by any preshipment inspection entity could be appealed by traders in 
the same way as administrative decisions taken by the Government of Comoros. The Working Party 
took note of these commitments.  
- Anti-dumping, countervailing du ties, safeguard regimes  
151.  The representative of Comoros said that Article 10 of the COMESA Treaty and the COMESA 
Regulation on Trade Remedy Measures bound COMESA members in the conduct of their trade remedy 
investigations. The COMESA Regulation established r ules for the conduct of trade remedy 
investigations and for the application of trade remedies. In Comoros,  trade defence measures had 
been taken into account in the provisions of the Law on Foreign Trade No. 21 -013/AU of 29 June  2021 
(Section 3, Articles  39 to 40) , which had been enacted on 18 January 2022. Relevant draft 
implementing regulations were being  prepared.  
152.  The representative of Comoros added that the Foreign Trade Directorate would be the agency 
responsible for conducting trade remedy a nd injury investigations. An Anti -dumping and Subsidies 
Committee had been established pursuant to Article 28(2) of the Law on Foreign Trade. He added 
that specific provisions detailing the activities of the Anti -dumping and Subsidies Committee would 
be introduced as soon as possible.   WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  153.  According to a draft Order by the Committee (Article 3), the Committee would be comprised 
by one representative each of the Directorate of Trade, Directorate of Economy, Directorate of 
Customs, Directorate of Industry, the Na tional Institute for Research in Agriculture, Fisheries and the 
Environment ( INRAPE ), the private sector, the Executive Directorate of Competition, and the 
Consumers Association.  In his view, the inclusion of private sector representa tives,  on an equal 
footing with other members, provided for credibility and transparency  and would not lead to a 
potential conflict of interest . Pursuant to the draft Order (Article 2), a s part of an investigation, the 
Committee would conduct on -site verifications of the produc tion sites or administrative offices of 
domestic producers and importers and could also visit the factories and offices of foreign producers. 
During such visits, the investigating agents would verify the consistency of data provided with 
accounting records  and documents, as well as the manufacturing processes relevant to the product 
under consideration and the like product. The Committee  could also visit public or private bodies 
holding data and information relevant to the investigation and consult third pa rties that had had 
business dealings with the domestic and foreign producers, importers and exporters involved in the 
investigation.  The Committee could request any type of information, data and documents, as well as 
other details that could be useful in c onnection with the investigation in progress.  The provisions of 
the draft Order (Article 9) and the Law on Foreign Trade (Articles 32.3. 32.4 and 35) provided for 
consultations and had taken into account the need to enable all interested parties to assert their 
interests during the investigation process. Opportunities for participating parties to review 
information provided by other parties or collected by the Minister or the Committee were set out in 
Article 31 (3) and (4) of the Law on Foreign Trade.  Parties had the opportunity to submit comments 
to the Committee during the preliminary phase of the injury investigation and thereafter  to the 
competent court. The Committee was accountable to the Minister of Trade. Anti -dumping duties or 
provisional and definitive countervailing duties would be imposed on a proposal from the Minister 
responsible for external trade (Article 21(3)).   
154.  He added that p ublic case files for anti -dumping, countervailing duty, and safeguard 
proceedings would be acc essible , in person or online , in an official  journal of legal notice s. Internal 
decisions or notes would specify how the files would be published.  In addition, the investigating 
authority would make available all non -confidential documents and information used as the basis for 
the investigating authority's findings and conclusions.  
155.  Asked about the inclusion of the provisions of Article 13.1 of the Agreement on Subsidies and 
Countervailing Measures (pre -initiation consultations for countervailing investigat ions), the 
representative of Comoros said that Comoros would incorporate these provisions in the draft Order. 
Asked about the maintenance of independent judicial or other review mechanisms for consideration 
of anti -dumping or countervailing duty determinat ions, and about the circumstances in which a party 
could seek judicial review of a final determination,  he said that relevant regulatory texts would be 
drafted.  
156.  The representative of Comoros confirmed that from the date of accession Comoros would 
use the a uthority in Section 3 of the Law on Foreign Trade No. 21 -013/AU of 29 June 2021 in 
conformity with WTO provisions. Comoros planned to introduce WTO -consistent implementing WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  measures, establish a national notification authority, and implement trade defence m easures in 
accordance to the Action Plan on Measures related to the Foreign Trade Regime in Table […]. He 
further confirmed that Comoros would apply anti -dumping, countervailing or safeguard measures 
only after notifying and implementing appropriate laws a nd regulations in conformity with WTO 
provisions, including Article VI and XIX of the GATT 1994, the Agreement on the Implementation of 
Article VI of the GATT 1994, the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures and the 
Agreement on Safeguards.  After such laws and regulations are implemented and notified, Comoros 
would apply anti -dumping duties, countervailing duties, and safeguard measures in full conformity 
with the relevant WTO provisions.  The Working Party took note of these commitments . 
B. EXPO RT REGULATIONS  
- Customs tariffs, fees and charges for services rendered, application of internal 
taxes to exports  
157.  The representative of Comoros said that exports were not subject to export customs tariffs .  
158.  Pursuant to Article 19 of Decree No. 16 -003/AU o f 29 December 2016, containing the 2017 
Finance Law, an excise tax was imposed on the production of vanilla, cloves and ylang -ylang oil, 
which was levied by the customs.  The rates of this tax had been updated in the 2018 Finance Law.  
The tax was set at 1%/kg (dry vanilla ); KMF 200/kg (dry cloves); and 1%/l (ylang -ylang oil).  All 
cash crops were exported.   
159.  The representative of Comoros confirmed that the taxes listed in th e preceding paragraph 
were internal taxes which applied to all domestic production of these goods, regardless of whether 
they were exported or sold domestically. He further noted that all domestic production of these goods 
was exported. He stated that if, in the future, some portion of the domestic production of these goods 
was not exported but sold domestically, these taxes would be levied on the goods sold domestically. 
The Working Party took note of this commitment . 
- Export restrictions  
160.  The representative of Comoros said that, with the introduction of trade liberalization 
measures in the 1990s, Comoros no longer applied quantitative export restrictions. Specifically, 
export transactions were not subject to any licen sing or prior authoriza tion requirements.  
161.  He added that, as a signatory to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered 
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), Comoros prohibited the export of endangered species of 
flora and fauna.   
162.  He confirmed that export s were not su bject to any bans or quotas, with the exception of the 
prohibition on the export of endangered species of flora and fauna.  
163.  The representative of Comoros confirmed  that, from the date of accession, Comoros would 
ensure that it applied its laws and regulatio ns governing export measures in conformity with the WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  relevant provisions of the WTO, including Articles I and XI of the GATT 1994.  The Working Party took 
note of this commitment.  
- Export subsidies  
164.  The representative of Comoros said that , at present,  Comoro s did not have a law on export 
incentive measures.  
165.  A Member  enquired  how Comoros' duty drawback system was consistent with Annex I (i) and 
Annex III of the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures and aske d how Comoros 
ensured that the drawback refunded did not exceed the original amount of tax/tariff . 
166.  The representative of Comoros replied that the concept of duty drawback had been referred 
to in Article 151 of the 1992 version of the Customs Code. The 2015  Customs Code did not contain 
provisions on duty drawback, but retained the concepts of repayment and remission (Article 314 to 
321).  Asked to explain the difference between "duty drawback" and "repayment and remission", the 
representative of Comoros said that these concept s were defined in Article 314 of the 2015 Customs 
Code. "Repayment " meant  the total o r partial refund of import duties  or export duties that had been 
paid. "Remission" meant either a decision to waive all or part of the amount of a cu stoms debt , or a 
decision to render void an entry in the accounts of all or part of an amount of import or export duty 
that had not been paid.  The rules governing repayment and remission were stipulated in Article 315 
of the Customs Code . Specifically, import duties or export duties would be repaid or remitted if the 
amounts paid or entered in the accounts were not legally owed or had been entered in the accounts 
contrary to Article 307, paragraph 2 of the Code. Interested parties had three years to s ubmit an 
application to the customs office (with a possibility of extension ). The customs authorities could repay 
or remit at their own initiative on the same grounds. Article 316 of the Customs Code  dealt with 
situations where a customs declaration was invalid ated. Repayment was made upon the request of 
the interested party and was not initiated by the customs authorities.  Article 316 also dealt with 
goods rejected by the importer on grounds of being defective or non -compliant and repayment and 
remission due to  equity considerations. Import duties or export duties could be repaid or remitted in 
situations other than those referred to in Articles 315, 316 and 317. These situations would be defined 
in an order issued by the Minister of Finance and the Budget. This  order was being finalized. In the 
absence of such an order, repayment occurred through the granting of a credit note of which the 
amount would be deducted at the time of a subsequent importation.  
C. INTERNAL POLICIES AFFECTING FOREIGN TRADE IN GOODS  
- Industrial policy, including subsidies  
167.  Asked about the means by which Comoros was promoting exports, the representative of 
Comoros said that the Government's export promotion strategy consisted of (i) setting up a National 
Investment Promotion Agency ( Agence Nationale pour la Promotion des Investissements, ANPI ); 
(ii) improving the competitiveness of vanilla, clove and ylang -ylang exports by strengthening the 
institutional and technical capacity of producers, traders and exporters to allow them to market WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  produ cts more effectively; (iii) setting up a privately -owned national fishing company for exporting 
fisheries products (which was not intended to be a State monopoly); (iv)  establishing a Fisheries 
Products Certification Office; (v) establishing a customs orig in bureau to authenticate and issue 
certificates of origin; and (vi) establishing a national SPS system aimed at supporting the country's 
agricultural export development strategies. He added that the national export promotion strategy 
did not include subsi dies.  
168.  A Member asked if, given Comoros' stated ambition of self -sufficiency in food, reinforced by 
the current context of shortages and soaring prices, Comoros would consider identifying certain 
priorities or niches within its industrial policy.  
169.  The repr esentative of Comoros replied that Comoros did not intend to identify priorities or 
niches, and any new priority or niche had to be aligned with the industrial strategy of Comoros, 
namely, food self -sufficiency, better access to international markets , and positioning Comoros  on the 
regional markets.  
170.  The representative of Comoros confirmed that government incentives were not contingent 
upon export and that, at present, Comoros did not have a law on export incentive measures. The 
representative of Comoros als o confirmed that the provision of any future subsidies would not be 
contingent upon the use of domestic over imported goods.  
171.  The representative of Comoros stated that any subsidy programmes would be administered 
in line with the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures and that any such programmes 
would be notified to the Committee on Subsidies and Countervailing Measu res upon Comoros' 
accession to the WTO. The Working Party took note of these commitments .  
- Technical barriers to trade, standards and certification  
172.  The representative of Comoros said that the relevant national legislation relating to the 
implementation a nd administration of technical barriers to trade (TBT) consisted of 
Law No. 12016/AU on Legal Metrology of 20  December  2012; Law No.  95009 of 20  June 1995 on the 
Creation, Organization and Operation of the National Institute for Research in Agriculture, Fi sheries 
and the Environment ( Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, la Pêche et l'Environnement, 
INRAPE ); Law No.  94018 of 22  June 1994 establishing the Framework Law on the Environment, as 
amended by Law No.  95007 of 19  June 1995; Decree No.  1505/PR establishing the National Fishery 
Product Quality Control and Certification Office ( Office National de Contrôle Qualité et de Certification 
des Produits Halieutiques  , ONCQCPH ); Decree No.  99087/CE; Order  Nos. 14/086/MPEEIA and 
12/089/MFEBICEP on th e adoption and application of the Codex Alimentarius sanitary and 
phytosanitary standards; Order No.  011/004  of 7 April 2011 designating the focal points for 
non-tariff barriers in the COMESAEACSADC Tripartite Free Trade Area; Order  No. 11/02/MRPECE of 
3 April 2011 establishing the National Follow -Up Committee on the non -tariff barrier removal 
process; Order No.  09013bis of 23  November  2009 establishing the National Codex Alimentarius 
Committee (CNCA); and Order No.  09010 of 2  Novembe r 2009 designating a national Codex focal WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  point.  In reply to a specific question, the representative of Comoros said that the Law on Foreign 
Trade did not contain any TBT -specific elements.  
173.  The representative of Comoros added that Comoros' National Quality  Policy ( Politique 
Nationale de la Qualité, PNQ ), approved in 2021, had become the country's core quality document, 
which envisaged the development of all components of the country's quality infrastructure. The PNQ  
called for the review and update of legis lation (e.g., Decree No. 99087/CE) , but had no legal effect . 
He added that Comoros required assistance with the implementation of the PNQ.  
174.  A Quality Directorate had been set up within the Directorate -General of Industry. 
The National Metrology Office (ONM)  and the National Quality Service (SNQ) were departments 
within the Quality Directorate. The SNQ would be the national standardization body.  In addition, the 
PNQ envisaged the establishment of a national quality committee with the following functions: 
(i) coordination and guidance; (ii) monitoring and evaluation of the PNQ; (iii) supporting efforts to 
promote quality; (iv) providing advice to the Government on all matters relevant to all aspects of 
quality (standardization); (v) technical regulations; (vi)  metrology, conformity assessment and 
quality promotion; and (vii) proposing measures to promote the development of the sector. Asked 
about the National Follow -Up Committee on the non -tariff barrier (NTB) removal process, he said 
that the functions of this Committee were (i)  coordination and steering of measures related to NTBs; 
(ii) defining priorities and a strategic roadmap; (iii) proposing a clear timetable for reducing and 
eliminating NTBs; (iv) identifying capacity -building needs; and (v) raising publi c awareness and 
providing training courses.   
175.  Comoros was a Member of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), the 
International Organization of Legal Metrology (OIML), the Standards and Metrology Institute for the 
Islamic Countries (SMIIC) , and the African Organization for Standardization (ARSO). Through its 
membership in  SADC, Comoros would be serviced by the SADC Accreditation Services (SADCAS), 
which was a full member of IAF and ILAC. Comoros also  planned to join the African Accreditatio n 
Cooperation (AFRAC).  
176.  The representative of Comoros said that the  technical regulations implemented in Comoros 
were set out in Articles 126 -136 of Law No.  17-005/AU on Food Legislation in the Union of the 
Comoros ("Food Law") and concerned inter alia  eggs, milk, sea and freshwater products. In addition, 
Comoros had implemented regulations banning the importation of plastic bags. He added that several 
provisions of the Food Law provided for the recognition of governmental and non -governmental 
bodies to asse ss the conformity of goods with technical regulations.  
177.  The representative of Comoros added that t he development of standards and technical 
regulations was open to all stakeholders. National standards had to be developed in accordance with 
the WTO Agreemen ts. Foreign stakeholders could participate at any stage of the standard 
development process, in accordance with national needs for expertise. There were no restrictions 
regarding the involvement of foreign stakeholders with proven expertise.  The standards adopted in WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  Comoros were all COMESA harmonized standards, which were based on international standards, 
namely Codex Alimentarius.  
178.  A Member asked how Comoros would ensure compliance with TBT Agreement obligations, 
including those under Articles 2, 3 and 4 on  the preparation, adoption and application of technical 
regulations and standards. Specifically, this Member enquired how Comoros would ensure that an 
"early information" approach was implemented by national and sub -national authorities for all new 
technic al regulations, substantial amendments to existing technical regulations, or draft technical 
regulations.  Comoros was also asked to explain how it would  ensure that WTO Members ha d the 
opportunity to review draft technical regulations, as required by Artic le 2.9 of the TBT Agreement . 
179.  The representative of Comoros replied that, to comply with the WTO Agreements, in 
particular Article 2 and 3 of the TBT Agreement, Comoros had set up a TBT enquiry point located in 
the Standardization and Quality Service in the  Industry Directorate of the Ministry of the Economy. 
The designated focal point was Mr. Boinali Mohamed, who had been appointed by Order of the 
Minister . A new Order would be required should there be a personnel change. A National TBT 
Committee had also been established. This Committee was responsible for coordinating the update 
of technical regulations  and for follow ing up on TBT -related matters . It comprised  representatives of 
all relevant government bodies. The National TBT Committee had to be inf ormed of new draft 
technical regulations and provided technical comments on the ir conformity  before their notification 
to the WTO and their approval.  The Foreign Trade Directorate, as the National Notification Authority, 
was responsible for notifications t o the WTO. In response to a specific question, the representative 
of Comoros said that the National TBT Committee was the government entity responsible for 
collecting and updating technical regulations .  
180.  Referring to a suggestion by a Member , the represent ative of Comoros said that linking the 
appointment of the TBT Enquiry Point focal point to a specific office, instead of a person,  would 
become possible with the establishment of the Comorian Bureau of Standards.   
181.  The representative of Comoros added that a ll official acts were published in the Official 
Journal and on its website.  The Official Journal Service of the Secretariat -General of the Government 
was responsible for the publication of technical regulations in the Official Journal.  While there was no 
strict deadline  by which to publish technical regulations, the Secretariat -General acted within 
reasonable time frames.  There had never been an instance when technical regulations were not 
published. When preparing and adopting technical regulations, the de partment concerned had to 
forward them to the Secretariat -General  for publication . The enquiry point, with the help and support 
of the national TBT Committee, reviewed all draft measures before publication. Comoros intended to 
allow a reasonable interval a fter publication to allow Members time to comment on draft technical 
regulations as per the provisions of Article 2.12 of the TBT Agreement. In addition, Comoros planned 
to develop guidance for authorities on minimum timeframes for public consultation on d raft technical 
regulations, particularly those that might affect trade and investment. All information related to 
technical regulations could be found on the Secretariat's website, [www.jocomores.km].  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  182.  The representative of Comoros confirmed that Comoros w ould progressively implement the 
WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade in accordance with the TBT Action Plan in 
Table  […]. He further stated that during the transition period, existing measures would be applied on 
a non -discriminatory basis, i.e., providing for national treatment and MFN treatment for all 
imports.  Measures in place at the time of accession and already consistent with provisions of the 
WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade would not be subject to transition.  Comoros 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 WTO Agreement on 
Technical Barriers to Trade than existed at the date of accession. F ull implementation of the WTO 
Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade would start from 1 January 2027 without recourse to any 
further transition period.  The Working Party took note of this commitment.  
- Sanitary and phytosanitary measures  
183.  The representative of Comoros said that the country's sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) 
regulatory framework would need to be revised to bring it into conformity with universally accepted 
standards and procedures.  To this end, Comoros had adopted Law No.  17-005/AU on Food Legislation 
in the Union of the Comoros ("Food Law") and Law No.  17-004/AU on Plant Protection in Comoros 
("Plant Protection Law"). These new laws repealed Law No.  12-018/AU of 25  December  2012 and 
Law No.  06-010/AU of 2  December  2006 and the A nimal Health Law of 1987. In his view, these two 
new laws were fully consistent with universally accepted standards and procedures based on Codex 
Alimentarius , World Organization for Animal Health  (WOAH) and International Plant Protection 
Convention  (IPPC) rules. A third law, concerning animal -related sanitary standards, was being 
envisaged within the framework of the WTO STDF technical assistance programme. A draft 
phytosanitary law had been prepared but had become obsolete with the adoption of the Plant 
Protection Law.  
184.  The representative of Comoros added that several other legislative texts were also relevant, 
namely Law No.  95009 of 20  June 1995 on the creation, organization and operation of the National 
Institute for Research in Agriculture, Fisheries a nd the Environment  (INRAPE) ; Decree No.  7019/PR 
establishing regulations on the production, marketing, and safety inspection of food products; 
Decree  No. 5050/PR implementing Law No.  07011/AU of 29  August  2007 on the Fisheries and 
Aquaculture Code; Decree No. 15051/PR establishing the National Fishery Product Quality Control 
and Certification Office ( Office National de Contrôle Qualité et de Certification des Produits 
Halieutiques, ONCQCPH ); Decree No.  5052/PR on ascertaining violations of the sanitary regu lations 
and administrative measures taken in respect of the sale and safety of fishery products; 
Decree  No. 4/081/PR enacting Law No.  14010/AU of 21  April 2014 on the Code regulating the 
marketing and distribution of breastmilk substitutes; Decree No.  87018/PR of 9  July 1987 on health 
protection regulations in the Republic of the Comoros; Decree No.  8709/PR of 9  July 1987 regulating 
the production, storage, marketing and safety inspection of food products; Order No.  3042/ of 
18 November  2013 on the establis hment, functions and organization of the national stockbreeding 
policy platform committee; and Order No.  09/13/VPMAPEEIA/CAB creating the National Codex WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  Alimentarius Committee. In addition, the Public Health Code contained provisions relating to 
phytosanit ary products and food hygiene.  
185.  The representative of Comoros noted that the national SPS system comprised several 
structures principally under the supervision of the Ministry responsible for agriculture, fisheries, the 
environment, energy, industry and cr afts - in particular, the Directorate -General of Fisheries 
Resources, the Directorate -General of Agriculture and Livestock, and the National Directorate of 
Veterinary Public Health. These  directorates contained departments and services involved in dealing 
with SPS matters, namely, the Agri -food Department ( Département Agro -alimentaire, DAA ), the 
Hygiene and Sanitation Service, the Livestock Directorate, and the Plant Protection Service. 
The Agri-food department was responsible for food supervision and was t he contact point for the 
National Codex Alimentarius Committee ( Comité National du Codex Alimentarius des Comores, 
CNCA ). The Hygiene and Sanitation Service provided secretariat services to the CNCA. The Livestock 
Directorate served as the point of contact  for engaging with the WOAH . The Plant Protection Service 
served as the contact point for the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC). It was also 
responsible for the National Institute for Research in Agriculture, Fisheries and the Environment 
(Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, la Pêche et l'Environnement, INRAPE ). INRAPE's 
main objective was to design and facilitate agricultural, fisheries -related and environmental 
programmes, research and studies. INRAPE centralized the quality analysis laboratories. It also 
performed functions relating to the control of imports of animals and products of animal origin, as 
well as veterinary services.  
186.  The representative of Comoros said that Comoros reserved the right to take certain measures 
in respect of imported products that could harm human and plant health. Specifically, under 
Article  13 of the Food Law, Comoros could adopt any measure justified by sanitary conditions 
provided that it did not constitute arbitrary or unjustifiable discriminat ion or a disguised restriction 
on international trade. In the event of a newly adopted sanitary measure, Comoros would notify the 
WTO and international organizations and would include information on the risk assessment used to 
determine the necessity of th e measure. Quality control was performed on domestic production and 
on imports (Article  6(a) and (d) of the Food Law). Pursuant to Articles 139 and 140 of the Food Law, 
the Ministry responsible for production undertook compliance monitoring and unscheduled  and/or 
mandatory inspections on food products to ensure consumer safety. The monitoring and checks were 
carried out on a case -by-case basis, depending on the situation.  The three inspection bodies in 
Comoros were INRAPE, the National Office for the Contro l of Fishery Products ( Office National du 
Contrôle des Produits Halieutiques, ONCPH ), and the National Public Works Laboratory.  
187.  Animals and food products identified in Articles 57, 59, and 61 to 67 of the Food Law required 
certificates issued by the recogn ized relevant services of the exporting government (Article  71 of the 
Food Law) , i.e., state institutions responsible for certifying animal or plant products that were 
recognized as the sole authority responsible for issuing veterinary and plant certificat es. These 
certificates had to contain information guaranteeing the hygiene  and sanitary safety of foodstuffs. In 
particular, they had to confirm that the goods originated from a disease -free country and met certain 
labelling requirements outlined in Articl e 44 of the Food Law. According to this Article, products had WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  to display (i) correct and accessible indications so as to allow operators to handle, present, store and 
prepare the product safely and correctly throughout; (ii) details identifying the batch; (iii) sufficient 
information on food hygiene for consumers to enable them to understand the importance of the 
indications displayed on the product; (iv) information needed to guarantee responsible choices 
adapted to the individual situation; and (v) reliab le information intended for professionals or traders, 
to be easily distinguished from information intended for consumers, and the absence of 
contamination, proliferation or survival of bacteria of food origin by ensuring proper conditions of 
storage, prepa ration and use. INRAPE was responsible for evaluating the certificates.  
188.  The representative of Comoros added that , in case of doubt,  samples could be taken  as part 
of the sanitary/phytosanitary checks . Currently, the sanitary/phytosanitary checks took place only 
at authorized entry points, which were the ports and the airports.  Samples could only be collected 
by the health inspectors. The officials relied on macroscopic and microscopic inspections . According 
to Arti cle 140 (iii) of the Food Law, the inspection procedures were governed by regulatory texts. 
Plants and plant products such as seeds, fruits, plants, flowers were also subject to controls to inspect 
for the presence of plant or animal organisms or pathogeni c agents that were harmful to plants 
and/or plant products in the national territory. Products subject to  controls  were identified on the 
basis of a phytosanitary alert issued by the competent national services, or on the basis of an 
international alert. R andom checks could also be carried out at the border to identify a potential risk. 
The level of risk was assessed by visual examination . A multi -functional laboratory would soon be 
operational. Before issuing results, the laboratory would be internationall y accredited. In his view, 
the procedures used to evaluate the specific level of risk complied with the International Standards 
for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPMs) and were consistent with the guidelines and recommendations 
of the IPPC.  
189.  In reply to a specif ic question, the representative of Comoros confirmed that Comoros would 
recognize the status of low -risk food products and that these products would be subject to sanitary 
and phytosanitary certification to the extent provided for by international regulati ons, notably the 
IPPC and the ISPMs. According to Article 3 of the Food Law, risk management had to be 
(i) undertaken in an independent, objective, and transparent manner, based on available scientific 
evidence; and (ii) adapted to the results of risk asse ssment and coordinated between the Comorian 
authorities and food sector professionals. The risk assessment methods would be stipulated in the 
implementing regulations expected to be signed in the third quarter of 202 4. 
190.  Asked to explain why the provisions o f the Food Law (Article 85) placed a particular emphasis 
on identifying the country of origin of seeds of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and how 
Comoros intended to use this identifying information, the representative of Comoros said that this 
information would allow for the verification of the true origin of the seeds and hence their reliability.  
191.  A Member asked whether any import permits or certificates issued by the government of 
Comoros were required prior to importation of agricultural products.   WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  192.  The representative of Comoros confirmed that Comoros did not envisage the introduction of 
an approved list of products for import. He also confirmed that there were no halal restrictions in 
Comoros' trade regime.  
193.  In response to a question by a Member re garding the recognition of compliance with pertinent 
international standards, the representative of Comoros said that Comoros recognized the pertinent 
international standards consistent with the SPS Agreement and the recommendations of the WOAH , 
the IPPC, and the Codex Alimentarius Commission. As Comoros had not adopted all the international 
standards adopted by the WOAH , IPPC and Codex Alimentarius, in the absence of domestic 
legislation, the international standards were applied. All  consumer food products  were subject to 
Codex Alimentarius standards. The maximum residue level (MRL) regime used in Comoros was that 
of Codex Alimentarius and Comoros accepted Codex MRLs for imported products. If a Codex MRL did 
not exist, Comoros provided for a process for req uesting import tolerances. In adopting the principles 
of the WOAH , Comoros was undertaking to apply the WOAH 's PVS tool. Relevant draft texts had been 
submitted to the Council of Ministers  and would be shared with the Working Party .  
194.  The representative of Comoros said that, to comply with international standards in 
establishing SPS measures, a project entitled "Strengthening the sanitary and phytosanitary system 
in Comoros" had been launched in 2013 with financing provided by the Standards and Trade 
Develop ment Facility (STDF). The overall aim of this project was to effectively enhance the safety 
and phytosanitary system covering food, livestock and plants in Comoros, and to improve access to 
foreign markets in order to benefit from international trade and e nvironmental protection. To  achieve 
this aim, the STDF project had adopted operational action plans based on the outcomes of sub -
sectoral diagnostic studies. The project also provided favourable conditions for the development, 
adoption and implementation o f national SPS strategies and related plans. The  national SPS strategy 
had been adopted and an action plan for its implementation had been finalized. A Codex project on 
food hygiene had also been set up. While the STDF project had ended in December 2017, t he 
representative of Comoros said that financing for a laboratory for the certification of fisheries 
products could be available through COMESA.  
195.  An SPS enquiry point had been designated with the responsibility for answering all questions 
and providing rele vant documents concerning (i) sanitary or phytosanitary regulations adopted or 
proposed within the country; and (ii) control and inspection procedures, production and quarantine 
treatment, pesticide tolerance and food additive approval procedures (Note No.  024 of 
6 February  2014). The designated focal point was Mr Hassani Assoumani, a senior official at the 
Ministry of Trade, who could be reached at:  
Tel.: (+269)334 60 65  
Email: assoumani_hassani@yahoo.fr  
A general box for enquiries was being set up.  
196.  A National Notification Authority  – the Foreign Trade Directorate – had been established  and 
would be responsible for notifications to the WTO . The notification procedure s were yet to be defined.  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  197.  All new legislation, including laws, regulations, decrees, judicial decisions and amendments 
to existing legislation, were published in the Officia l Journal. While the Official Journal was available 
for sale to the public, it could also be viewed, free of charge, at [www.jocomores.km] or at the Official 
Journal Service of the Secretariat -General of the Government, and at the National Documentation 
and Scientific Research Centre, which administered the national archives. Trade -related 
administrative rulings of general application could be viewed online at [http://www.comores -
commerce.org ]. Prior publication of draft SPS measures was not presently provi ded for in any official 
journal.  
198.  The representative of Comoros requested technical assistance and a 5 -year period to 
implement SPS measures aimed at regulating and implementing relevant SPS provisions, in 
particular the requirements governing the marketing  of imported and exported plant and animal 
products.  The requested implementation period took into account the need for capacity -building to: 
(i) finalize the SPS  regulatory framework; (ii) set up an analytical and quality control laboratory; 
and (iii) upg rade technical personnel .  
- Trade -related investment measures  
199.  A Member asked Comoros to identify any trade -related investment measures in force in 
Comoros that included (i) foreign exchange balancing requirements; (ii) trade balancing 
requirements; or (iii) local content or sourcing requirements. If such measures did not exist, this 
Member asked Comoros to indicate whether Comoros had any plans or intentions to introduce such 
measures.  
200.  The representative of Comoros replied that no such measures were in force and that Comoros 
had no intention of introducing them.   
201.  The representative of Comoros confirmed that from the date of accession, Comoros would 
apply its investment regime in compliance with the WTO Agreement, including the WTO Agreem ent 
on Trade -Related Investment Measures (TRIMs Agreement), and would apply the TRIMs Agreement 
from the date of accession without recourse to any transition period in a non -discriminatory manner 
- to imports from all WTO Members and to domestically  produc ed goods. The Working Party took 
note of this commitment.  
- State -trading entities  
202.  The representative of Comoros said that two State -trading enterprises were in operation in 
Comoros – the National Office for the Importation and Marketing of Ordinary Rice ( ONICOR) and the 
National Hydrocarbon Corporation (SCH). In his view, there were no other State enterprises subject 
to notification according to the provisions of Article XVII of the GATT 1994.  
203.  ONICOR had a monopoly on the import of ordinary rice , i.e., rice consisting of more than 5% 
broken rice  (Law No.  8217/AF of 13  August  1982). The purpose of this monopoly was to keep price s 
affordable  as this type of rice was a staple food for the population . Imported rice was sold to WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  wholesale traders and  marketing was entirely in the hands of the private sector.  Supply operations 
were c arried out  through an international call for bids. Tendering procedure s were conducted within 
the framework of the Comorian Government Procurement Code and were monitored by t he 
government procurement regulation authority.  He added that in special cases, such as a shortage of 
rice on the market, the government could issue import authorizations for ordinary rice to private 
operators. In his view, the monopoly was justified by th e need to secure regular access to this 
product, at affordable prices, to the greatest number of people. Nevertheless, Comoros was 
considering the possibility to liberalize the importation of rice and the World Bank had produced an 
impact assessment study on this issue. In response to a specific question , he said that there were 
no quotas allocated among approved beneficiaries.  
204.  Pursuant to the provision of Law No.  8027/AF of 30  December  1980, SCH held a State 
monopoly on the  import and distributi on/marketi ng of petroleum products  falling under HS codes 
2710 12 20, 2710  19 20 and 2710  19 10. Its main objective was to ensure a supply of petroleum 
products on the domestic market at an affordable price.  
205.  He added that, previously, the Autonomous National Pharma cy of the Comoros ( Pharmacie 
Nationale Autonome des Comores, PNAC ) had also been a State -trading enterprise within the 
meaning of Article XVII of the GATT 1994. This enterprise had been replaced by the Central 
Purchasing Office for Generic Medicines ( Centrale d'Achat des Médicaments Génériques de l'Union 
des Comores, CAMUC ), which had been a purchasing office and therefore an entity of a different 
nature . The CAMUC had subsequently been dissolved  and replaced, since 2017, by the National 
Agency for Medicines and Sanitary Evacuations  (Agence Nationale des Médicaments et des 
Evacuations Sanitaire s, ANAMEV ). The latter had been established by Decree No. 17 -011-PR as a 
public administrative establishment.   
- Free zones, special economic areas  
206.  The representative of Comoros said that the 2015 Customs Code provided for the 
establishment of free zones (Articles  268 to 273), but that no such zone had been established. 
Studies concerning  the possible establishment of a special economic zone , as part of a comprehensive 
strategy to attract investment , were currently ongoing but had not yet resulted in any regulatory 
framework or draft law .  
207.  The representative of Comoros confirmed  that any special economic zones which it 
established would be fully subject to the coverage of its commitments in its Protocol of Accession to 
the WTO Agreement and that Comoros would ensure enforcement of its WTO obligations in those 
zones. The represent ative of Comoros said that goods produced in a free zone and subsequently sold 
within the ordinary customs area would be subject to the duties and taxes normally levied on 
imported goods. The Working Party took note of this commitment.   WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  - Government procur ement  
208.  A Member enquired if Comoros had any plans to seek to join the WTO Government 
Procurement Agreement.  
209.  The representative of Comoros said that a  new Government Procurement Code had come 
into force since  2012 (Law No. 11 -027/AU of 29 December 2011) . The main pillars of this Code were 
transparency, economic  efficiency, accountability, equal treatment for all bidders (domestic and 
foreign ), the prevention of fraud and corruption, and the promotion o f local capacit y. The Code had  
been supplemented with manu als containing regulations on implementation and procedures. It  also 
provide d for the establishment of a Regulatory Authority for Government Procurement (PPRA/ARMP) 
attached to the Office of the President . This Authority was  already operational.  In his vie w, the Code 
adhered  to international good practice s, for example  (i) ad vertising and large -scale sales; (ii) public 
opening of bids;  (iii) prior distribution of all relevant information, with clear and transparent 
evaluation of the  bids and awarding of con tracts;  (iv) clearly defined responsibilities where decision -
making was concerned ; and (v) the right of bidders to make complaints. The representative of 
Comoros added that Comoros was yet to consider the possibility of  joining the WTO Government 
Procurement Agreement.  
- Transit   
210.  The representative of Comoros said that transit was a  suspensive customs regime under 
Article  188(a) of the Customs Code. Transit was defined as the customs procedure that allowed for 
transport of goods under customs control from one point in the customs territory to another, under 
the terms  stipulated  in Articles 194 to 203 of the Customs Code  and in Order No. 19-035/MFBSB/CAB 
of 8 October 2019 . In his view, t he Customs Code  included the basic W TO rules concerning the 
regulation of trade in transit , notably the provisions  of Article V of the GATT . 
211.  The representative of Comoros said that transit involving more than one customs territory, 
with goods coming and going by sea or air, was insignificant and limited to goods transiting between 
Moroni and Mutsamudu .  
- Agricultural policies  
(a) Imports  
212.  A Mem ber asked if Comoros would attempt to prohibit importation of agricultural products if 
importation would affect domestic production, and to provide examples of prohibitive actions 
Comoros had taken in the past in such cases.  
213.  The representative of Comoros r eplied that n o decision had been taken in the past to prohibit 
imports of any agricultural product, unless that product had posed public health problems or affected 
animal or plant health. Comoros reserved the right, however, to take certain measures with respect 
to imported products that could harm human and plant health. The import of agricultural products WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  was governed under the provisions of Article 63 of the Food Law and Article 44 of the Plant Protection 
Law. The provisions stipulating import bans were  set out in Articles  59, 60, 61 and 62 of the 
Food Law.  
214.  The representative of Comoros said that Comoros did not manage the importation of products 
on the basis of domestic production.  
215.  Some Members noted that Comoros' national trade policy, adopted in Feb ruary 2013, 
encouraged import substitution measures and asked Comoros to provide more specific information 
on these measures, and a timetable for their removal. Noting Comoros' intentions to introduce tariffs 
and quotas, a Member asked Comoros to explain h ow this would be consistent with Comoros' WTO 
commitments, in particular the bound rates in Comoros' WTO Goods Schedule.  
216.  The representative of Comoros replied that the development of the agri -food sector 
responded to the need to ensure food self -sufficienc y and poverty reduction. Large amounts of food 
crops and garden produce were being imported at present, as local production was insufficient to 
meet the needs of the population. In particular, there was a severe supply shortage in certain 
agricultural prod ucts, which were key components of the national diet – notably products falling 
under SITC groups 012, 016 and 017 (meat), 025 (eggs), 034 (fish), 041 (wheat), 042 (rice), 045 
and 048 (cereals and cereal preparation), 054 (vegetables), 057, 058, 059 (fruit  and fruit juices), 
075 (spices), 098 (edible products and preparations), 222 and 223 (oil -seeds), and 422 (vegetable 
fats and oils). As possible future public policy, Comoros had considered the possibility to provide 
incentives to local production in view  of ensuring self -sufficiency. In such a scenario, infant agri -food 
industries would have been protected for an initial period of five years. However, the policy of 
protecting the agri -food sector had been abandoned. Instead, the Emerging Comoros Plan 2030 ( Plan 
Comores Émergent, PCE ) had become the reference document in this area . The vision for agriculture 
laid out in this document was to prom ote the most productive agricultural systems that were resilient 
to climate change and were competitive and sustainable . It also sought to  consolidat e the rural 
communities' resilience and to build on agricultural processing units in accordance with value chains. 
Achieving these objectives would depend on the scale of support for agriculture and on the financial 
reforms necessary to ensure the sustainable financing of the sector. Other factors included the 
improvement and sustainable intensification of agri cultural production, the promotion of export 
crops, and the development of infrastructure and institutions to support the growth of the sector.  
(b) Exports  
217.  The representative of Comoros said that the Comorian authorities planned to support 
agricultural ex ports through tools such as export credits, export credit guarantees or insurance 
programmes. Such tool s, however, were not currently utilized. The government's focus was currently 
on production -based strategies, namely (i) promoting collaborative producti on systems; 
(ii) promoting the use of improved seeds; (iii) promoting agri -pastoral irrigation; (iv) promoting 
agri-food value chains; (v) reinforcing the quality management system; and (vi) developing and 
establishing durable and accessible mechanisms for  funding the sector.  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  218.  A Member asked Comoros to confirm whether it intended to retain the right to provide export 
subsidies under Article 9.4 of the Agreement on Agriculture. This Member requested Comoros to 
undertake a commitment to eliminate any export su bsidies prior to the date of accession consistent 
with paragraphs 6 -11 of the Ministerial Decision on Export Competition of 19 December 2015.  
219.  The representative of Comoros replied that Comoros did not grant export subsidies  and 
undertook to not apply any s ubsidy in accordance with paragraphs 6 -11 of the Ministerial Decision 
on Export Competition of 19 December 2015 . 
220.  The representative of Comoros  confirmed that, upon Comoros'  accession, his country would 
bind its agricultural export subsidies at zero in its Schedule of Concessions and Commitments on 
Goods, and not maintain or apply any export subsidies for agricultural products. The Working Party 
took note of these commitments . 
(c) Internal policies  
221.  The representative of Comoros said that, given that most of the Comorian population was 
rural (70%) and lived from agriculture, the development of the agri -food sector responded to the 
need to ensure food self -sufficiency and poverty reduction. Agriculture  accounted for approximately 
49% of GDP and 80% of employment. Three unprocessed and semi -processed agricultural products 
– vanilla, cloves and ylang -ylang oil – generated over 90% of export earnings.  
222.  A Member requested Comoros to provide information on d omestic support and export 
subsidies for the most recent three -year period for which data was available.  
223.  The representative of Comoros said that Comoros had provided information on domestic 
support and export subsidies in agriculture during 2020-2022 in do cument 
WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/3 /Rev.1 . In 2020-2022, Comoros had provided "green box" support in the form 
of decoupled income support for indebted farmers and support to vanilla producers in the form of 
crop insurance as relief from natural disasters (Cyclone Ken neth) . In addition, pursuant to Order 
No. 012-004/VP -MPEEIA/CAB, since 2012 exemptions from the payment of taxes and customs duties 
applied on the import of agricultural and fishing inputs. These benefits were granted by virtue of an 
Order of the Ministry of Production and Fisheries. These measures were meant to encourage and 
support agricultural development, in particular rural farmers. In his view, these measures were 
compatible with the provisions of Article  6.2 of the Agreement on Agriculture.  
224.  While the re had not been significant changes in the sector since 2014, plans and strategies 
had been put in place. One  example was the agricultural strategy for 2015 -2020, which aimed at 
developing environmentally intensive agriculture in order to achieve a sustain able increase in 
agricultural production, thereby contributing to food security and nutritional safety, creating jobs, 
distributing revenue to farmers, and creating export earnings for the State. From 2019 to 2020, 
Comoros had also been working on the esta blishment and entry into operation of the rural centres 
for economic Development (CRDE); on the establishment and entry into operation of professional WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  agricultural organizations (OPAs); and on the update of the 2015 -2020 agricultural strategy. No 
domestic support or export subsidies had been provided in agriculture since 2020.  
225.  The representative of Comoros  added that Comoros intended to establish a national agri -
food company, despite the earlier  announcement that the project had been abandoned. Obstacles 
towards the establishment of the company were being removed thanks to government initiatives and 
support from various development partners . Specific  agricultural projects under way  included : 
(i) access to areas with considerable agricultural potential through better connections; (ii) availability 
of high -yield seeds to boost production; (iii) agricultural mechanization to reduce human physical 
effort; (iv) water supply and crop pest control; (v) creation of a climate that supports the value chain 
in the agricultural sector (from  production to processing and marketing of agricultural products); and 
(vi) creation of a multifunctional quality -control laboratory for food products. The creation of the 
national agri -food company did not preclude foreign ownership. Furthermore, a policy was in place 
to promote cooperation in the area of trade, in accordance with the laws on food and on the foreign 
trade system. He added that initiatives were under way to m ake all agricultural inputs tax -exempt 
to boost the sector.  
- Trade in civil aircraft  
226.  The representative of Comoros confirmed that all duty rates on imports of civil aircrafts and 
parts would be bound at zero in the Schedule  of Concessions and Commitments on Goods .  
V. TRADE -RELATED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY REGIME  
- GENERAL  
- Intellectual property rights policy  
227.  The representative of Comoros said that the Government of Comoros was working on a 
national policy strategy aimed at recasting the legal framework for intellectual property (IP) 
protection. The goal of the Government was to protect Comorian creativity and inventiveness, and 
to stimulate and promote the creation and production of intellectual works in the areas of literature, 
the arts, and science. The Government had asked for the assistance of the World Intellectual Property 
Organization (WIPO) to implement  a national intellectual property development plan, including 
drafting a new copyright law. While the national IP strategy had not yet been drafted, Law 
No. 20-004/AU of 23 June 2020 on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights had been enacted by Decree 
No. 20 -093/PR of 2 July 2020. The  representative of Comoros provided assurance that the 
implementation of the plan would be consistent with international IP treaties, including the TRIPS 
Agreement.  
228.  The representative of Comoros added that Comoros had inherited the  Intellectual Property 
Code of the French colonial administration, which was not consistently enforced and was considered 
outdated by the Government. Only some laws in the Code had been reaffirmed in post -independence 
national law, namely Law No.  58-446 of  19 April 1957 on literary and artistic property; Law WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  No. 64-1360 of 31  December 1964 on Trademarks and Service Marks and its Implementing Decree 
No. 65-621 of 27  July 1965, setting out measures to prevent abuse of IP rights; and the Law of 
14 July 1909, o n Designs and Models, detailing the methods for enforcing IP rights and its 
Implementing Decree of 26  June 1911 on Industrial Designs and Models. Books II and III of the 
Intellectual Property Code on copyright, related rights and associated general provisi ons had not 
been reaffirmed in post -independence national law. Pending the enactment of new national IP 
legislation, Comoros was applying the Bangui Agreement as a member of the African Intellectual 
Property Organization (OAPI). The Bangui Agreement had be en transposed into national law by 
Decree  No. 18/002/PR of 3  January  2018 and had annulled and replaced all provisions of previous 
laws and decrees . 
- Responsible agencies for policy formulation and implementation  
229.  The representative of Comoros said that De cree No.  10-173/PR of 26  November 2010 had 
established the Comorian Intellectual Property Office (OCPI) and set out its operational modalities. 
The OCPI was attached to the Ministries of Culture and Industry, which jointly appointed members 
of its Executiv e Board. The Executive Board included representatives of ministries and of artists. 
The OCPI was the institution responsible for matters concerning intellectual property (e.g. patents, 
trademarks, industrial designs and models, trade names, copyright and r elated rights), including 
monitoring compliance with legislation on copyright and related rights. Inventors and creators could 
use the OCPI to register and protect patents, trademarks, industrial designs and models. The OCPI 
also acted as Comoros' focal po int in relation to WIPO . 
- Participation in international intellectual property agreements  
230.  Comoros had acceded to the OAPI on 23  May 2013 after ratifying the 1999 Bangui 
Agreement. Comoros was also a signatory to the 2015 Bangui Agreement, which had been r atified 
by Decree No.  18-002/PR of 3  January  2018 and had entered into force on 14 November 2020.  As an 
OAPI member, Comoros was obliged to apply the relevant provisions of the Bangui Agreement at the 
national level. Drafting of new legislation in the area  of intellectual property included transposing the 
content of the Bangui Agreement into the national legislation. The Bangui Agreement was a 
complement to and not a substitute for national IP legislation.  
231.  The representative of Comoros said that Comoros had  become a member of WIPO in 2005, 
and that it had acceded to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, the 
Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, the Patent Cooperation Treaty  (PCT) and 
the Protocol Relati ng to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks. 
Comoros had also ratified the Beijing Treaty by Decree No. 20 -538/PR of 8 December 2020; the 
WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) by Decree No. 20 -535/PR of 8  December  2020; the WIPO 
Performances and Phonograms Treaty (WPPT) by Decree No. 20 -534/PR of 8 December 2020; and 
the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who are Blind, Visually 
Impaired or Otherwise Print Disabled by Decree No. 20 -536/PR of 8 Decemb er 2020. His Government 
intended to accede to various other international intellectual property conventions including the Rome WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting 
Organizations, and the Universal Copyright Convention.  
232.   Asked if Comoros planned to ratify the Geneva Convention for the Protection of Producers 
of Phonograms Against Unauthorized Duplication of Their Phonograms, the representative of 
Comoros said that they currently had no plans to ratify this Con vention.  
233.  The representative of Comoros further noted that Comoros had received technical assistance 
from WIPO to set up its national IP office, the OCPI, and continued to receive technical assistance to 
develop new IP legislation following the diagnostic study on the current IP framework . 
- Application of national and MFN treatment to foreign nationals  
234.  The representative of Comoros said that Article  5, paragraph  3 of the Bangui Agreement 
provided for equal treatment to all persons, including nationals of n on-member states of the OAPI. 
He added that under Article  1 of the Decree implementing Law No.  64-1360 of 13  December 1964 
on Trademarks and Service Marks, Comoros had provided equal treatment to all persons subject to 
the sole legal condition of a registe red address in the territory of Comoros.  
235.  Asked for an explanation o f how Article  5, paragraph  4 of the Bangui Agreement guaranteed 
national treatment with respect to copyright rights for WTO Members, the representative of Comoros 
said that this provision s et out the relevant treatment applied to foreigners who were not nationals 
of a State party to an international convention to which the OAPI or any of its member States was 
party, or foreigners whose principal place of business or domicile was not located in such a State, 
subject to reciprocity.  
236.  Asked to clarify the meaning of the term "subject to reciprocity", the representative of 
Comoros referred to Article 2 of Decree No. 20 -093/PR implementing Law No. 20 -004/AU on 
Copyright and Neighbouring Rights of 2 3 June 2020, which stupilated  that performances, 
phonograms, audiovisual fixations or videograms, databases and broadcasts of audiovisual 
communication enterprises, which fell outside the categories referred to in subparagraph 3 of 
Article  2, would not be provided protection unless an equivalent protection was granted to Comorian 
nationals in the country in which the original holder of the related right was a national or a resident. 
The moral rights of performers could not, however, be affec ted. He added that Comoros would treat 
WTO Members in accordance with the national treatment principle upon joining the Organization.  He 
confirmed that databases would also be entitled to national treatment.  
237.  A Member asked whether all audiovisual fixations  and videograms were considered works 
under the Berne Convention and were entitled to national treatment under the Law on Copyright and 
Neighbouring Rights . WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  - Fees and taxes  
238.  The representative of Comoros said that fees and taxes related to the protection of industrial 
property (including patents, trademarks, trade names) were those applied by the OAPI.  
- SUBSTANTIVE STANDARDS OF PROTECTION, INCLUDING PROCEDURES FOR THE 
ACQUISITION AND MAINTENANCE OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS  
- Copyright and r elated rights (including rights of performers, producers of 
phonograms and broadcasting organizations)  
239.  The representative of Comoros said that copyright protection was covered by Articles 7, 8 
and 9 of Law No. 20 -004/AU on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights  of 23  June 2020. The new law 
had repealed and replaced all provisions of previous copyright laws and decrees, including the 1957 
Copyright Act, and had taken precedence over the Bangui Agreement. Copyright protection applied 
to "literary and artistic work s", hereinafter referred to as "works", which were original intellectual 
creations in the literary, artistic or scientific fields, such as: (i) works expressed in writing, including 
computer programs; (ii) lectures, addresses, sermons and other works compo sed of words and 
expressed orally; (iii) musical works, with or without words; (iv)  dramatic and dramatico -musical 
works; (v) choreographic works and entertainments in mime; (vi) audiovisual works; (vii) works of 
fine art: drawings, paintings, sculptures, engravings and lithographs; (viii) works of architecture; 
(ix) photographic works; (x) works of applied art; (xi)  illustrations, maps, plans, sketches and 
three -dimensional works relative to geography, topography, architecture or science; and 
(xii) traditi onal cultural expressions.  Protection was independent of the mode or form of expression, 
of the quality  and of the purpose of the work   
240.  Article  3 of Annex  VII provided that authors were not required to register their creations 
in order to be entitled to th eir exclusive rights. Pursuant to Article 26 of the Copyright Law, economic 
rights over a work were protected during the life of the author and 80 years after his/her death.  
Moral rights were perpetual. Once the term of protection of the economic rights ha d expired, the 
collective rights administration body was entitled to ensure compliance with the moral rights on 
behalf of the authors. Articles 27, 28 and 29 protected works of joint authorship, anonymous and 
pseudonymous works, and collective and audiovis ual works.  Works of applied arts were protected 
until the end of a period of 25  years from the making of such a work. The term of protection for 
performances was 50 years (Article  64) from (i) the end of the year of fixation for performances fixed 
on phono grams; and (ii) the year in which the performance took place for performances not fixed on 
phonograms.  Where the performance had been fixed on an audiovisual or videogram fixation, the 
term of protection was 50 years from the end of the year of fixation. T he term of protection for 
phonograms and audiovisual or videogram fixations was  50 years from the end of the year of fixation 
(Article 64). The term of protection for broadcasts under Article 64 was 25 years from the end of the 
year in which the broadcast took place. The provisions of the Copyright Law applied to phonograms 
or audiovisual or videogram fixations where the producer was a national of the Union of the Comoros 
or the first fixation of sounds was made in the Union of the Comoros.  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  241.  The representati ve of Comoros added that Comoros had updated Law No. 20 -004/AU of 
23 June 2020 on Copyright and Neighbouring Rights of 23  June 2020. This new version had taken 
into account international intellectual property agreements, including the Berne Convention and the 
TRIPS Agreement. Moral, economic and related rights were mentioned in Articles 7, 8 and 9 of the 
Copyright Law.  
242.  The Copyright Law also conferred rights on producers of phonograms (Article 56). Subject to 
the provisions of Articles 62 and 63, phonogram producers had the exclusive right to make or 
authorize (i) direct or indirect reproductions of their phonograms; (ii) the importat ion of copies of 
their phonograms for distribution to the public; (iii) the reproduction, direct or indirect, of their 
phonograms; (iv) the distribution to the public of copies of their phonograms by means of sale or by 
any other transfer of ownership or b y rental;  and (v) making their phonograms available to the 
public, by wire or wireless means, so that members of the public may access them from a place and 
at a time of their choosing . 
243.  A Member asked why Article 69 of the Copyright Law did not include a " making available 
right" for broadcasters to match Article 59 of the Bangui Agreement. In response, the representative 
of Comoros said that according to Article 59 of the Copyright Law (and subject to the provisions of 
Articles  62 and  63), broadcasting orga nizations broadcasting organizations had the right to carry out 
or authorize (i) the rebroadcasting of their broadcasts; (ii) the fixation of their broadcasts; (iii) the 
reproduction of fixations of their broadcasts; (iv) the public communication of their television 
broadcasts; and (v) making their broadcasts available to the public so that members of the public 
may access them from a place and at a time of their choosing . The provisions of the third paragraph 
of Article 1, which defined the concept of publ ic communication, ensured that the "making available" 
right was granted to broadcasting organizations. The "public communication" of a work, performance 
or fixation meant making them available to the public by any means, other than through the 
distribution  of copies. This also included the transmission, by wire or wireless means, of a work or 
object of related rights to make it available to persons outside the immediate family and closest 
social circle of the rights holder, who were in a place where the wor k or object of related rights could 
not be perceived without the transmission.  
244.  Asked to identify the relevant provisions for reinstatement of copyright in works for which 
the term had not expired in their home country, and how Comoros would protect works o f foreign 
authors for which the term had not expired in their home country, the representative of Comoros 
said that all works would be protected under the provisions of the national law if the work was 
protected in the Union of the Comoros. .  
245.  A Member poin ted out that copyright protection was lifetime plus 70  years in the 1999  Bangui 
Agreement, noting that the 2015  Bangui Agreement had a copyright term of life plus 50 years, and 
asked how Comoros would protect foreign works that had received protection for lifetime plus 
70 years before the change, and were protected for lifetime plus 70  years in their country of origin. 
This Member also asked what term Comoros would apply for works that were not registered 
anywhere.  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  246.  The representative of Comoros replied that only the provisions of the legislation in force , 
namely the Copyright Law , would apply : to works of which the author or for which the copyright 
holder was a national of Comoros, or had their habitual residence or headquarters there; to 
audiovisual works the producer of which was a national of Comoros, or had their habitual residence 
or headquarters there; to works published for the first time Comoros; to works of architecture erected 
in Comoros; to works of which a t least one of the co-authors  or any other copyright holder was a 
national of Comoros or had their habitual residence or headquarters in Comoros; to literary and 
artistic works which were entitled to protection under the international treaties to which Com oros 
was a party (Art icle 2.1). Works falling outside of the categories referred to in th is paragraph would 
be afforded protection under the Copyright Law only on condition that the original copyright holder 
was a resident or national of a country which gr anted equivalent protection to works by Comorian 
nationals. However, neither the integrity nor the authorship of those works would be affected 
(Article 2.2).  
247.  The representative of Comoros said that the Copyright Law provided for limitations on the 
economi c rights of the author (Articles 1 0-25). This included the authorization to exhibit or perform 
an author's work as part of the activities of an educational institution without his/her consent and 
without remuneration (Article 19.IV).  
248.  A Member asked whethe r the Copyright Law would need to be amended to provide producers 
of audiovisual fixations and videograms with the exclusive rights of broadcasting and communication 
to the public in line with the provisions in Articles 11bis, 14, and 14bis of the Berne Co nvention. 
In response, the representative of Comoros said that Article 57.2 of the Copyright Law granted 
producers of audiovisual or videogram fixations the exclusive public communication rights .  
249.  A Member noted that the Copyright Law provided explicit copyright protection for titles of 
works (Article 6). In this Member's view, since titles were often short phrases, it was quite common 
that different works would bear the same titles. This Member ask ed Comoros to explain the reasons 
for providing full copyright to titles of works. In response, the representative of Comoros said that 
Articles 4, 5 and 6 of the Copyright Law clearly defined which works were protected and which were 
excluded from protect ion. 
250.  The representative of Comoros said that Title III (Article 67) of the Copyright Law provided 
for common provisions on copyright and related rights including an optional provision on private 
copying remuneration. Authors and performers, for their works  or performances fixed on phonograms 
or on audiovisual or videogram fixations, as well as the producers of such phonograms and 
audiovisual or videogram fixations, were entitled to private copying remuneration for reproductions 
for strictly personal and pri vate use. Private copying remuneration would be paid by the manufacturer 
or the importer of the recording media or devices used for the private reproduction of works and 
performances fixed on phonograms or audiovisual or videogram fixations, when such medi a were 
put into circulation on national territory. Private copying remuneration would be collected on behalf 
of rights holders by the collective management organization duly authorized in accordance with 
national legislation. Private copying remuneration g ave rise to reimbursement or exemption where WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  the recording medium or storage device was acquired in a professional capacity for own use or 
production by  (i) broadcasting organizations; (ii) producers of phonograms or audiovisual or 
videogram fixations, and  those persons that reproduced phonograms or audiovisual or videogram 
fixations on their behalf; and (iii) legal persons or bodies that used the recording or storage media 
to assist persons with a visual or hearing disability or who had difficulties readin g. Reimbursement 
modalities were set forth in regulations. The  types of media, remuneration rates and payment 
modalities would be determined by a commission chaired by the Minister of Culture. He added that 
the authors were entitled to private copying remu neration for reproductions for strictly personal and 
private use (Article 67.1) . 
251.  Title IV (Articles 73 -82) of the Copyright Law included provisions concerning "offen ces, 
sanctions and procedures". Articles 73, 74 and 75 provided for criminal penalties. The  courts could 
impose civil penalties during a criminal trial for counterfeiting and similar offences (Article 76) .  
252.  Pursuant to Articles 80.2 and 80.3 of the Copyright Law, the president of the competent 
national court could also, by virtue of a request, o rder: (i) the suspension of any manufacturing 
operation in progress tending to the illicit reproduction of a work; (ii) the suspension of illicit public 
exhibitions or performances; (iii) the suspension of any operation to make a work available in 
violatio n of a protected right; (iv) the seizure, even on non -working days or outside of legal working 
hours, of copies already manufactured or in the course of being manufactured constituting an illicit 
reproduction of the work, the revenue received; and (v) the seizure of revenue made from any use 
of the work made in violation of copyright or related rights. In addition to suspending any operation 
of manufacturing or of making a work available, or performance, the competent national court could 
also impose a pena lty. Within 10 days of the date of the seizure report, the distrainee or garnishee 
could request the president of the competent national court to limit the effects of the seizure, or to 
authorize resumption of manufacturing operations or performances under  the authority of an 
administrator, appointed as receiver to hold the proceeds from such a manufacture or exploitation 
on behalf of the person to whom the work belonged (Article 81 -1). The president of the competent 
national court, ruling as for summary pr oceedings, could, if he/she granted a request made in 
accordance with paragraph 1 above, order the deposit of a sum for all warranty claims and claims 
for damages that the author could make (Article 81.2). If the person in whose favour the seizure 
was made  failed to refer the matter to the competent national court within 15  days of the seizure, 
the president of the court, ruling as for summary proceedings, could order the release of the seizure 
at the request of the distrainee or the garnishee (Article 82) .  
253.  Where the author, holder of a neighbouring right , or successor in title suspected the imminent 
importation or exportation of goods that infringed their rights, they could request the Directorate 
General of Customs or the president of the civil court to s uspend the free circulation of those goods. 
The public prosecutor, plaintiff, as well as the importer of the goods was to be informed forthwith by 
the customs that the goods had been detained (Article 83.2) The importer had the right to inspect 
the goods d etained by the customs authorities. Additional criminal penalties, including the possible 
confiscation and destruction of the counterfeit works and the materials used in committing the 
offence, could be considered .  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  254.  A Member asked Comoros to provide the th reshold for sanctioning counterfeiting and similar 
acts as opposed to any other type of infringement. More specifically, this Member asked whether a 
single infringing act of reproducing a work would be considered a criminal offence punishable by jail 
time or fines of at least KMF1,000,000. In response, the representative of Comoros said that 
counterfeiting and similar offences were defined by Article  80.1. According to these provisions, w here 
their rights were violated or at risk of being violated, natural or legal persons, or their successors in 
title, who were holders of the rights referred to in the Law could request a judicial police officer, a 
bailiff, or any other public official designated by national legislation to establish that there had been 
an infringement and, if necessary, seize, upon authorization of the public prosecutor or the competent 
judge, infringing copies, illegally imported copies and objects, and material used for or intended to 
be used for a performance or reproduction, installed for  such prohibited activities.  
255.  The representative of Comoros noted that, by virtue of the Berne Convention , copyright 
protection was obtained automatically without the need for registration or other formalities. He  
nevertheless pointed out that existing work s were automatically protected. Authors could entrust 
their works to the collective management organization by establishing a repertoire. The collective 
management organization was the national body authorized to manage the authors' exclusive rights .  
256.  Asked to describe the benefits available only to right holders who registered their works, the 
representative of Comoros said that these  benefits were set out in chapter III of the Copyright Law, 
in Article 7 (moral rights), Article 8 (economic rights) , and Article 9 (resale rights ).  
- Trademarks, including service marks  
257.  The representative of Comoros said that the provisions of the Bangui Agreement on 
trademarks, covered in Annex  III, had been transposed into national law by Decree No. 18/002/PR. 
Comoros r eceived technical assistance from WIPO in this regard. The  representative of Comoros was 
of the opinion that the new legislation was consistent with international agreements, including the 
TRIPS Agreement. Law No. 64 -1360 of 13  December  1964 on Trademarks and Service Marks and its 
implementing Decree No. 65 -621 of 27  July 1965, setting out measures to prevent abuse of IP rights, 
were no longer applied.  
258.  Trademarks needed to be registered with the OCPI. Trademark applications had to be 
submitted on a specific  form in one of the official languages (Comorian, Arabic or French) along with 
the required documentation, and were subsequently announced in the relevant bulletin for 
[60 days/six months] allowing for objections from anyone adversely affected. The compete nt 
institution would then examine the application. Registration of trademarks conferred ownership rights 
on the holder for the designated products and services . 
- Geographical indications, including appellations of origin  
259.  The representative of Comoros said  that the provisions of the Bangui Agreement on 
geographical indications, covered in Annex VI, had been transposed into national law by 
Decree  No. 18/002/PR. Comoros received technical assistance from WIPO in this matter. WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  The representative of Comoros was of the opinion that the new legislation was consistent with 
international agreements, including the TRIPS Agreement.  
260.  The representative of Comoros added that Book VII, Title  II of the Intellectual Property Code 
provided for geographical indications, but that the Code was no longer applied.  
261.  A Member asked if Comoros would participate in the OAPI Centre for Mediation and 
Arbitration and High Commission of Appeal for issues regarding geographical indications. 
In response, the representative of Comoros said that Comoros had never referred a dispute to the 
OAPI Centre . 
- Industrial designs  
262.  The representative of Comoros said that the provisions of the Bangui Agreement on industrial 
designs, covered in Annex  IV, had been transposed into national law by Decree No. 18/002/PR. 
Comoros received technical assistance from WIPO in this matter. The  representative of Comoros was 
of the opinion that the new legislation was consistent with international agreements, including the 
TRIPS Agreement. The term of protection was 5 years renewable up to a maximum of 25 years.  
263.  The representative of Comoros said the Law of 14  July 1909 on Designs and Models was no 
longer applied.  
- Patents  
264.  The representative of Comoros said that the provisions of the Bangui Agreement o n patents, 
covered in Annex I, had been transposed into national law by Decree No. 18/002/PR. Comoros 
received technical assistance from WIPO in this matter. The  representative of Comoros was of the 
opinion that the new legislation was consistent with inte rnational agreements, including the TRIPS 
Agreement. The term of patent protection was 20  years. Patent rights were transferable. Any transfer 
or licensing of rights needed to be communicated in writing to the OCPI . 
- Plant variety protection  
265.  The represent ative of Comoros said that the provisions of the Bangui Agreement on plant 
variety protection, covered in Annex X, had been transposed into national law by Decree 
No. 18/002/PR. Comoros received technical assistance from WIPO in this regard. Article  2 of A nnex X 
set out that a plant variety certificate would be issued to the breeder of a new plant variety upon 
registration. The owner of a plant variety certificate had the exclusive right to exploit the variety . 
- Layout Designs of Integrated Circuits  
266.  The re presentative of Comoros said that the provisions of the Bangui Agreement on 
integrated circuits, covered in Annex IX, had been transposed into national law by Decree 
No. 18/002/PR. Comoros received technical assistance from WIPO in this regard. New legisla tion 
would be shared with Members. Article  2 of Annex  IX set out that a registration could be applied for WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  only if the layout design had not yet been commercially exploited or, if it was already commercially 
exploited, had not been so for more than two year s anywhere in the world. The term of protection 
was 10 years . 
- Requirements on undisclosed information, including trade secrets and test data  
267.  The representative of Comoros said that the provisions of the Bangui Agreement on 
undisclosed information, covered in Annex  VIII, had been transposed into national law by Decree 
No. 18/002/PR. Comoros received technical assistance from WIPO in this regard. Article  6, point  1 
of Annex  VIII, set out that "any act or practice which, in the course of i ndustrial or commercial 
activities, leads to the disclosure, acquisition or use by third parties of confidential information 
without the consent of the person legally entitled to possess such information […], in a manner 
contrary to honest commercial pract ice, shall constitute an act of unfair competition ". 
- All other categories of intellectual property  
268.  The representative of Comoros said that the genetic resources or traditional knowledge and 
folklore were not covered in previous IP law. WIPO would assist Comoros in addressing both these 
areas, which would be covered in the new IP legislation.  
- MEASURES TO CONTROL ABUSE OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS  
[to be completed]  
- ENFORCEMENT  
- Civil judicial procedures and remedies  
269.  The representative of Comoros said that the seizure of infringing goods was covered in most 
annexes of the Bangui Agreement, e.g. Article  65 in Annex  I (patents), Article  51 in Annex  III 
(trademarks), and Article  33 in Annex  IV (industrial design). T he national Copyright Law (T itle II - 
Articles 88 to 103) included detailed provisions concerning "offenses, sanctions and procedures". 
The competent national court could inter alia  prohibit the continuation of the allegedly infringing acts 
(e.g. Bangui, Article  64.3, Annex I) and de termine the amount of monetary damages payments for 
injuries caused by infringement (e.g. Bangui, Article  69, Annex I)  
270.  The representative of Comoros said that civil liability, in the event of violation of the rights 
provided for in the law, was not depende nt on the bringing of criminal proceedings against the cause 
of the infringement and could therefore give rise to separate civil and criminal procedures. 
The procedures were initiated by the commissaires de police (police superintendents) and examining 
judges in response to a complaint by the author or any right holder or successor in title.  
271.  The representative of Comoros said that the new laws (namely the Law on Foreign Trade) 
included measures tailored to the country's situation and had regard to developme nts in behaviour 
and the extent and frequency of offences that were not included in the previous legislation. WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  The representative of Comoros explained that regulations would provide for repressive measures, in 
particular the establishment of a joint institu tional system (intellectual property office, fraud 
prevention, customs, gendarmerie, and police).  
272.  Concerning the availability in writing of all decisions on the merits of an intellectual property 
enforcement case (TRIPS Article 41.3), the representative of  Comoros said that all decisions on the 
merits of an intellectual property enforcement case were submitted in writing to both parties 
concerned and published in the Official Journal, which was accessible to the public.  
273.  The representative of Comoros added t hat, under the code of civil and judicial procedures , 
all parties to intellectual property enforcement cases were permitted to present relevant evidence 
and confidential information was identified and protected (TRIPS Articles  42 and 43).  
274.  A Member asked h ow Comoros' Copyright Law addressed TRIPS Article 48.2 (liability of public 
authorities and officials).  
- Provisional measures  
275.  The representative of Comoros said that provisional measures were covered in the annexes 
of the Bangui Agreement, which was the l egal instrument currently applicable in Comoros and had 
the force of law. Provisional measures would also be covered by the new national intellectual property 
laws. 
- Administrative procedures and remedies  
276.  The representative of Comoros said that no adminis trative procedures or remedies had been 
implemented under the previous legislation. The judicial services, the police and the gendarmerie 
were responsible for the protection of private property and enforcing the law through the courts. 
He added that admini strative measures would be implemented following the introduction of the new 
IP legislation.  
277.  A Member asked how laws were enforced, if enforcement was effective, and what type of 
administrative recourse was available for copyright and related rights infrin gement. 
The representative  from Comoros replied that the OCPI  stood ready to provide support, and that 
appeals should be addressed to the OCPI.  
- Special border measures  
278.  The representative of Comoros said that the Bangui Agreement empowered customs 
authori ties to withhold goods suspected to infringe intellectual property rights, e.g. as covered by 
Article  62.5, Annex II (utility models). Such measures could be authorized by the competent national 
court in cases where it was probable that the complainant's r ights were infringed or that such 
infringement was imminent.  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  - Criminal procedures  
279.  The representative of Comoros said that the Bangui Agreement set out criminal penalties for 
infringements. For instance, Article  71, Annex  I (patents) set out that infringements could be liable 
to a prison term of one to three years and a fine of 5,000,000  to 30,000,000  CFA francs or either of 
these penalties, without prejudice to civil damages. Criminal sanctions were covered under Article  91 
of Comoros' national Copyright Law.  
280.  In response to a question from a Member on whether there had been any confiscations or 
damages paid in the event of infringements, the representative of Comoros said that the courts of 
Moroni had heard and ruled on cases of infringement relating to the use of a musical work without 
the prior authorization of the authors in t he course of 2013, and that damages had been awarded.  
VI. POLICIES AFFECTING TRADE IN SERVICES  
281.  The representative of Comoros said that his Government's strategy for growth in the services 
sector was to privatize many of the service providers and to open th e market to free and fair 
competition. Comoros gave high priority to the following business service and product categories: 
(i) tourism and crafts; (ii) blue economy (fisheries); (iii) financial and logistical services; 
(iv) modernized agriculture for food  security; and (v) industrial niches for economic diversification.  
According to the Investment Code (Law No. 07 -010/AU), foreigners could invest and work in nearly 
every service sector in Comoros. He noted that the five most significant service sectors wer e 
telecommunications, construction and civil engineering, tourism and related services, transport, and 
financial services. The incentives given to foreign investors in these particular sectors were 
(i) customs incentives ; and (ii) tax incentives ( see "Inve stment regime" ). 
282.  On telecommunications, the representative of Comoros said that this sector had been opened 
up for competition pursuant to Law No.  95008/AF on the concession of State -owned companies, 
supplemented by Law No.  08007/AU of 15  January  2008 on t he information and communication 
technology sectors and by Decree No.  09064/PR of 23  May 2009 establishing the procedures for 
implementing Law No.  08007/AU. Prices in this sector were freely determined by market operators. 
While plans to privatize Comores Télécom were no longer on the table, Comores Télécom  was no 
longer  the only service provider on the local market as a licence had been granted to a new private 
telecom operator, Telma. He clarified that Huri was an official brand of Comores Télécom  used fo r 
marketing purposes.  
283.  Concerning tourism, the representative of Comoros said that the Government offered various 
incentives to help overcome obstacles to growth in this sector. The ministerial department in charge 
of investment administered incentive poli cies and instruments aimed at developing tourism through 
the National Investment Promotion Agency ( Agence Nationale pour la Promotion des 
Investissements, ANPI ). He added that Comoros had adopted a law on the supply of tourism services 
which ensured that t his sector was open.  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  284.  He considered the commercial banking sector to be fully liberalized. In addition to privatizing 
two previously State -owned banks ( Banque pour l'Industrie et le Commerce  and 
Banque  de Développement des Comores ), the State had also expa nded the supply of banking 
services by allowing two private commercial banks to set up operations locally (EXIM Bank Tanzania 
and Banque Fé dérale pour le Commerce ).  
285.  Asked to describe in greater detail the ongoing problems in the electricity services subse ctor, 
the representative of Comoros said that electricity generation in Comoros was mainly thermal 
(imported diesel) with the exception of three hydroelectric micro -stations. Problems were due to 
(i) loss-making sales; (ii) dilapidated networks; (iii) the multiplicity of power generators which ruled 
out economies of scale; (iv) unqualified personnel; (v) technical losses associated with the age of 
the networks; (vi) theft and fraud; and (vii) problems linked with customer management and debt 
collection.  To address these problems, the following measures would be put in place: (i) development 
of thermal energy production on the basis of heavy fuel oil; (ii) exploitation of the country's 
geothermal potential; (iii) development of solar energy; (iv) increase  of the hydrocarbon storage 
capacity; and (v) consolidation of the electricity network .  
286.  A member of the Working Party stated that it expected Comoros to make a commitment to 
guarantee transparency of licensing requirements and procedures, and qualificatio n requirements 
and procedures, pertaining to obtaining, extending, renewing, denying and terminating such 
authorizations required to provide services in Comoros' market and appeals of such actions consistent 
with the Reference Paper on Services Domestic Re gulation (INF/SDR/2 of 26  November  2021). 
Comoros' authorization procedures and requirements should be based on objective and transparent 
criteria, should not in themselves act as a barrier to market access, and should not be more trade 
restrictive than ne cessary. Comoros should publish a list of authorities responsible for authorising, 
approving, or regulating those service sectors in which Comoros had made specific commitments. 
Comoros should provide service suppliers the information necessary to comply w ith the requirements 
and procedures for obtaining authorization. Members also expected Comoros to make a commitment 
to guarantee that for those services included in Comoros' Schedule of Specific Commitments in 
Services, relevant regulatory authorities woul d be separate from, and not accountable to, any service 
suppliers they regulated. This Member further expected Comoros to make a commitment to 
guarantee that foreign service suppliers remain ed free to choose their partners.  
287.  The representative of Comoros re plied that Comoros was firmly convinced of the importance 
of creating a transparent and effective regulatory environment – one that provided suppliers with 
the stability and predictability needed to obtain authorization to supply their services in Comoros.  
For this reason, Comoros had been working internally to align its system with internationally 
recognized good regulatory practices that would make the economy more conducive to business. The 
Reference Paper on Services Domestic Regulation constituted a cr itical reference point  in this regard . 
To foster transparency, Comoros' regulatory authorities were striving to ensure that relevant 
requirements and procedures to obtain authorization were published, as were the timeframes within 
which decisions on author izations were to be taken. In some sectors, regulators were also working 
on establish ing a single window for the submission of applications for obtaining authorizations.  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  Furthermore, while no requirement existed that all consultations involve the public, i t was common 
practice in Comoros for stakeholder consultations to take place during the development and approval 
of a law or regulation. In addition, Comoros planned to introduce a new law requiring that (i) foreign 
trade-related draft legislation be publi shed for comments by interested parties; and (ii) that foreign 
trade-related legal instruments come into force no earlier than 30 days after official publication , 
except  in the case  of emergency measures .  
288.  The representative of Comoros confirmed that Comor os would, from the date of accession, 
fully implement the WTO General Agreement on Trade in Services, including Articles III and VI. He 
confirmed that Comoros would work to establish mechanisms for responding to enquiries from 
interested persons. He furthe r confirmed that Comoros would work to publish a list of all ministries, 
agencies, or other authorities that were responsible for authorizing, approving, or regulating service 
activities for each service sector, including non -governmental bodies exercising  powers delegated by 
governments or authorities. In addition, Comoros would undertake efforts to ensure that all of its 
authorization procedures and requirements are published in Comoros' Official Journal, and otherwise 
ensure that service suppliers or per sons seeking to supply a service are provided with the information 
necessary to comply with the requirements and procedures for obtaining authorization. He further 
confirmed that relevant regulatory authorities would be separate from, and not accountable t o, any 
service suppliers they regulated. The Working Party took note of these commitments.  
289.  The representative of Comoros also confirmed that Comoros would join the Declaration on 
the Conclusion of the Negotiations on Services Domestic Regulation (WT/L/1129 of 
2 December  2021) upon accession to the WTO. In accordance with paragraph 11 of Section I of the 
Reference Paper on Services Domestic Regulation, as a Least -Developed Country Member, Comoros 
would incorporate the disciplines on Services Domestic Regulation no later than six months in 
advance of graduation from LDC status, together with any re quired transitional periods. In the spirit 
of paragraph 11 of Section I, Comoros would continue working internally with a view to applying the 
disciplines contained in the Reference Paper as soon as possible and before graduation from LDC 
status. The Worki ng Party took note of these commitments . 
290.  With respect to foreign service suppliers' choice of partner, the representative of Comoros 
confirmed that foreign service suppliers, when entering into a joint -venture or other partnership with 
persons of Comoros, were free to choose their partner(s). The Working Party took note of this 
commitment . 
VII. TRANSPARENCY  
- Publication of information on trade  
291.  The representative of Comoros said that all new legal texts, including laws, regulation 
decrees, judicial decisions and modifications to existing legislati on were published in the Official 
Journal. The Official Journal was available to buy by the public and was available electronically free 
of charge on [www.jocomores.km]. It was also available at the Official Journal Service, attached to 
the Secretariat -General of the Government , and at the National Documentation and Scientific WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  Research Centre, which administered the National Archives. He added that administrative decisions 
of general application related to trade were available at [ http://www.comores -commerce.org ]. All 
interested stakeholders were entitled to make comments on legal texts during the drafting stage. 
Asked  about the transparency practices of Comoros' regulatory age ncies, he said that the 
Directorate -General of Customs had a website ( http://douane.gov.km ) which contained information 
on regulations, including on inspection . No other authorities wer e responsible for publishing 
information on regulations or other information such as fees for conformity assessment, the functions 
and organization of the authority, and/or procedural requirements.  
292.  The representative of Comoros confirmed that, upon accessi on, Comoros would fully and 
promptly implement Article X of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994, Article III of the 
General Agreement on Trade in Services, Article 63 of the WTO Agreement on Trade Related Aspects 
of Intellectual Property Rights , and other transparency provisions in the WTO Agreement requiring 
notification or publication. He further confirmed that no law, regulation, judicial decision, 
administrative ruling, or other measure of general application pertaining to or affecting trade  in 
goods, services, and TRIPS would become effective prior to its publication in the Official Journal, 
along with publication on the websites of the relevant ministries. The publication of such laws, 
regulations and other measures would include the effect ive date of these measures and list the goods 
and services affected by the particular measure. The Working Party took note of these commitments.  
- Notifications  
293.  The representative of Comoros said that  since February 2023  the Foreign Trade Directorate 
was the National Notification Authority. He added that all notifications to the WTO would be made 
available to the public. However, the lack of expertise relating to notifications could be considered a 
major obstacle to compl iance with the WTO notification requirements.  
294.  The representative of Comoros confirmed that, at the latest within six months of the entry 
into force of the Protocol of Accession, Comoros would submit all initial notifications required by the 
WTO Agreement. Any laws, regulations, or other measures subsequently enacted by Comoros, and 
which were required to be notified pursuant to the WTO Agreement, would also be notified in a time 
and manner consistent with WTO requirements. The Working Party took note of the se commitments.  
VIII.  TRADE AGREEMENTS  
295.  The representative of Comoros said that Comoros considered regional integration as a stage 
in its strategy of integration into the multilateral trading system. Comoros was a member of the 
Organisation of Islamic Coope ration (OIC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa 
(COMESA), the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) and the South African Development Community 
(SADC). Comoros was also a signatory to the agreement establishing the African Continental Free 
Trade Ar ea (AfCTFA) but had not yet ratified it. The ratification process was underway and the 
agreement had been brought before the National Assembly in April 2021 for review and adoption. 
While a member of the Arab League since 1993, Comoros had not yet ratified  the Greater Arab Free WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  Trade Area (GAFTA) created in 2005. The main objective of GAFTA was the elimination and gradual 
reduction of trade barriers.  
296.  He added that one of the objectives of the OIC was to strengthen intra -Islamic economic and 
trade cooperation with a view to achieving economic integration. Comoros was a party to the OIC 
General Agreement for Economic, Technical and Commercial  Cooperation  among Member States. 
Comoros implemented the COMESA free trade area since 2012 and did not apply import duties on 
products originating from COMESA member states. Negotiations on the implementation of the 
COMESA customs union were ongoing, with four countr ies yet to complete the free trade area, which 
was a prerequisite for completing the customs union. An additional factor was the establishment of 
a tripartite FTA (COMESA, AEC, SADC), which was chiefly concerned with common rules of origin. 
Comoros had alr eady adopted the COMESA categorization of goods, harmonized its Customs Code 
to that of COMESA, and incorporated the COMESA Common Tariff Nomenclature. In  his view, the 
rules governing COMESA were in line with the rules of the WTO.  
297.  The representative of C omoros said that Comoros exported to the European Union under the 
Everything but Arms (EBA) initiative. Comoros had signed an interim Economic Partnership 
Agreement (EPA) with the European Union in the framework of the Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA) 
group in July 2017. In February 2019, Comoros had ratified the interim EPA with the EU and had 
started applying it provisionally. Negotiations between the ESA group and the EU were underway on 
SPS, competition, services, investment, e -commerce, and developmen t cooperation, among others, 
with a view to reaching an agreement on a full -fledged EPA.  
298.  A Member asked Comoros to clarify whether its agreements had been concluded in 
accordance with the provisions of Article XXIV of the GATT 1994, the Enabling Clause, or  Article  V of 
the GATS. In response, the representative of Comoros said that the SADC, GAFTA and the EPA with 
the European Union had been notified under Article XXIV of the GATT 1994 .  
299.  The representative of Comoros confirmed that Comoros would observe the relevant 
provisions of the WTO Agreement, including Article XXIV of the General Agreement on Tariffs and 
Trade 1994, the 1979 GATT Decision on Differential and More Favourable Treatment, Reciprocity and 
Fuller Participation of Developing Countries (Enablin g Clause) and Article V of the General Agreement 
on Trade in Services in its trade agreements and would ensure that the applicable provisions of the 
WTO Agreement for notification, consultation, and other requirements concerning free trade areas, 
customs u nions and other preferential trade arrangements, of which Comoros was, or may become, 
a member were met from the date of accession. The Working Party took note of these commitments.  
CONCLUSIONS  
[to be completed]  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  ANNEX 1  
Laws, Regulations and other Informa tion Provided to the Working Party by Comoros  
ECONOMIC POLICIES  
• Decree No.  15-240/PR promulgating Law No.  15-012/AU of 28  December  2015 containing the 
Finance Law for the financial year 2016  
• Decree No. 16 -275/PR of 31 December 2016 promulgating Law No.16 -003/AU of 29  December 
2016 containing the Finance Law for financial year 2017  
• Law No.  06 010/AU of 2  December  2006 establishing the finance law of the Union of 
the Comoros for 2006  
• Law No.  13-/AU on Competition in the Union of the Comoros  
• Law on Economic Ci tizenship in the Union of the Comoros  
• Law on the Investment Code  
• Order No.  04-005/VP on the Creation of the National Development and Trade Policy Forum 
(FNDPC) responsible for the negotiation of EPAs  
• Decree No.  13-087/PR of 2 August 2013 promulgating Law N o. 13-005/AU on the Regulations 
governing the General Tax and Property Administration (AGID)  
• Decision No. 12 -155/CFBECIPPIPE/CAB of 25 August 2012 establishing the list of staple 
products subject to approval and price control  
• Decree No. 17 -011/PR of 24 Jan uary 2017 on the National Drug and Medical Evacuation Agency  
• Draft law on the Investment Code  
• Decree No. 11 -147/PR of 21 July 2011 enacting Law No. 11 -005/AU of 7 April 2011 on 
decentralization within the Union of the Comoros  
• Decree No. 21 -006/PR of 30 January 2021 enacting Law No. 20 -035/AU of 28  December  2020 
on the Investment Code  
FRAMEWORK FOR MAKING AND ENFORCING POLICIES  
• Law No. 17 -007/AU of 19 June 2017 on the establishment, organization and functioning of 
commercial courts in the Union of the Co moros  
• Rules of Mediation of the Court of Arbitration of the Comoros (CACOM)  
• Rules of Arbitration of the Court of Arbitration of the Comoros (CACOM)  
• Uniform Act on Arbitration under the OHADA Treaty  
• Uniform Act relating to the Commercial Companies and Econo mic Interest Groups, adopted on 
17 April 1997 and published in Official Journal OHADA No.  2 of 1  October  1997 
• Revised Uniform Act on Commercial Companies and Economic Interest Groups  of the 
Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa (OHAD A), 2014  
• Decree No. 20 -164/PR of 28 December 2020 enacting Law No. 20 -020/AU of 
12 December  2020 on the organization of the judiciary in the Union of the Comoros  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  • National Justice Sector Policy (2016 -2025) of December 2015  
IMPORT/EXPORT REGULATIONS  
• COMESA R ules of Origin  
• Customs Code of the Union of the Comoros, 2015  
• Customs Code, updated 2002 (2/84)  
• Decree No.  11-151/PR promulgating Law No.  11-007bis/AU of 3  May 2011 on the General Tax 
Code(MEIIIE/CAB  
• Ordinance No. 92 008/PR of 7 September 1992 on the Custo ms Code  
• Draft law governing foreign trade in the Union of the Comoros  
• Explanatory text: draft orders on the implementation of certain provisions of the new Customs 
Code of the Union of the Comoros  
• Draft orders on the implementation of certain provisions of  Law No. 15 -016/AU of 
28 December  2015 establishing the Customs Code of the Union of the Comoros:  
• Draft order laying down conditions for exercising the right to settlement;  
• Draft order establishing the procedure for authorizing the handling of goods placed  in 
customs warehouses;  
• Draft order establishing shorter or extended time frames for filing detailed declarations;  
• Draft order establishing implementing provisions on customs debt;  
• Draft order establishing time frames and conditions for unloading and transhipment 
operations involving ships and aircraft;  
• Draft order establishing rules for implementing the warehouse, clearance area and 
container terminal regime;  
• Draft order establishing rules for implementing the ordinary law customs transit 
procedure an d related transit bond provisions;  
• Draft order establishing procedures for the Comorianization of ships;  
• Draft order on the destination of abandoned, seized or confiscated goods and goods 
destroyed upon request;  
• Draft order establishing the concession procedure and operating conditions for customs 
warehouses (public or private);  
• Draft order establishing the concession procedure and operating conditions for special 
warehouses used to store petroleum products;  
• Draft order laying down conditions  for the application of Customs Code Article 155 on 
relief consignments;  
• Draft order laying down conditions for sampling in the context of the right to access 
premises used for professional purposes;  
• Draft order laying down conditions for filing customs de clarations electronically;  
• Draft order laying down conditions for the use and functioning of simplified clearance 
procedures;  
• Draft order on the temporary admission procedure;  
• Draft order on public auctions ; and  
• Draft order on customs value determination.  
• Draft Law supplementing and amending certain provisions of the Customs Code regarding the 
customs valuation of goods.  
• Order No. 19 -032/MFBSB/CAB of 8 October 2019 laying down the conditions for the application 
of Customs Code Article 155 on relief consignm ents 
• Order No. 19 -033/MFBSB/CAB of 8 October 2019 establishing time frames and conditions for 
unloading and transhipment operations involving ships and aircraft  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
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  • Order No. 19 -034/MFBSB/CAB of 8 October 2019 establishing the concession procedure and 
operatin g conditions for special warehouses used to store petroleum products  
• Order No. 19 -035/MFBSB/CAB of 8 October 2019 establishing rules for implementing the 
ordinary law customs transit procedure and related transit bond provisions  
• Order No. 19 -036/MFBSB/CAB of 8 October 2019 on public auctions  
• Order No. 19 -037/MFBSB/CAB of 8 October 2019 establishing shorter or extended time frames 
for filing detailed declarations  
• Order No. 19 -038/MFBSB/CAB of 8 October 2019 establishing the concession procedure and 
operating  conditions for customs warehouses (public or private)  
• Order No. 19 -039/MFBSB/CAB of 8 October 2019 laying down conditions for the use and 
functioning of simplified clearance procedures  
• Order No. 19 -040/MFBSB/CAB of 8 October 2019 on the temporary admissio n procedure  
• Order No. 19 -041/MFB/CAB of 8 October 2019 establishing rules for implementing the 
warehouse, clearance area and container terminal regime  
• Order No. 19 -043/MFBSB/CAB of 8 October 2019 laying down conditions for filing customs 
declarations elect ronically  
• Order No. 19 -044/MFBSB/CAB of 8 October 2019 on the destination of abandoned, seized or 
confiscated goods and goods destroyed upon request  
• Order No. 19 -046/MFBSB/CAB of 8 October 2019 establishing the procedure for authorizing 
the handling of goods placed in customs warehouses  
• Order No. 19 -047/MFBSB/CAB of 8 October 2019 laying down conditions for exercising the 
right to settlement  
• Order No. 19 -048/MFBSB/CAB of 8 October 2019 laying down conditions for sampling in the 
context of the  right to access premises used for professional purposes  
• Order No. 19 -049/MFBSB/CAB of 8 October 2019 on customs value determination  
• Service  note of 13 March 2018 on the discontinuation of the use of ASYCUDA++ .  
TECHNICAL BARRIERS  TO TRADE, STANDARDS AND C ERTIFICATION  
• Decree No. 13 -007/PR implementing Law No. 12 16/AU of 20 December 2012 on metrology  
• Decree No.  99-087/CE on the creation, mandate and organization of the consumer product 
standardization and quality service, dated 22  July 1999 
• Decree No. 12 -210/PR of 2 December 2012 establishing the National Standards Council (CNN)  
• Order No. 14 -028/MPEEIA/CAB appointing the members of the National Standards Council  
• Order No. 18 -016/VP -MEEIATISPAF/CAB of 16 March 2018 designating a WTO TBT national 
enquiry poin t  
• Order No. 19 -001/MEIEIETAPPG/CAB of 6 January 2020 on the structure of the WTO National 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade  
• National Quality Policy of the Union of the Comoros of December 2020  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
- 74 - 
 
  SANITARY AND PHYTOSANITARY MEASURES  
• Decree No.  06-220/PR implementing Organic Law No.  06-010/AU of 2  December  2006 
establishing plant protection in the Comoros  
• Decree No.  87-018/PR regulating animal health protection in the Federal Islamic Republic of 
the Comoros  
• Law No. 95 009/AF on the creation, organiz ation and operation of the National Institute for 
Research in Agriculture, Fisheries and the Environment (INRAPE)  
• Law No.  12-018/AU of 25  December  2012 on food legislation  
• Law No.  95-009 of 20  June 1995 on the creation, organization and operation of the 
National  Institute for Research in Agriculture, Fisheries and the Environment (INRAPE)  
• Order No. 09 013/VP establishing the National Codex Alimentarius Committee  
• Law No. 17 -004/AU of 10 June 2017 on plant protection in the Comoros  
• Law No. 17 -005/AU of 10 Jun e 2017 on food legislation in the Union of the Comoros  
GOVERNMENT  PROCUREMENT  
• Government Procurement Code dated 4  February  2012 
TRADE -RELATED  INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY REGIME  
• Act of the Bangui Agreement Establishing the African Intellectual Property Organization 
(OAPI); dated 14  December  2015 
• Decree No.  10/173/PR of 26  November  2010 on the establishment, powers, organization and 
operation of the Comorian Intellectual Property Office  
• Law of 11  March  1957 on literary and artistic property, made applicab le in the Comoros by 
order of 8  April 1957 
• Decree No. 20 -093/PR of 2 July 2020 enacting Law No. 20 -004/AU of 23  June 2020 on 
copyright and neighbouring rights in the Union of the Comoros  
• Notes of ratification No. 20 -534/PR of 8 December 2020 of the Perform ances and Phonograms 
Treaty (WPPT), known as the Internet Treaty  
• Notes of ratification No. 20 -536/PR of 8 December 2020 of the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate 
Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print 
Disable d 
• Notes of ratification No. 20 -538/PR of 8 December 2020 of the Beijing Treaty on Audiovisual 
Performances  
POLICIES AFFECTING  TRADE IN SERVICES  
• Compendium of texts on the exercise of banking and financial activities, Central Bank of the 
Comoros, dated 10 December 2015  
• Compendium of texts relating to the banking sector  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
- 75 - 
 
  • Decree No. 09 065/PR of 23 May 2009 on the creation, organization, and operation of the 
National Information and Communications Technologies Regulatory Authority  
• Decree No.  08-063/PR on the E stablishment of a National Investment Promotion Agency, dated 
5 June 2008 
• Decree No.  08-064/PR laying down the procedure for the granting of benefits under the 
Investment Code, dated 5  June 2008 
• Decree No.  12-094/PR promulgating Law No.  11-024-AU of 29  December  2011, Tourism  
• Law No.  86-017 on the Urban Planning and Habitat Code  
• Order No.  13-002 containing the statutes of the National Tourism Office  
TRADE AGREEMENTS  
• Cooperation agreement in the fields of trade between the Government of the State of Kuwait 
and the Government of the Union of the Comoros  
• Cooperation Framework Agreement between the Government of the United Republic of 
Tanzania and the Government of the Union of the Comoros  
• General Agreement for Economic, Technical and Commercial Cooperation amon g Member 
States of the Organization of the Islamic Conference  
• Partnership Agreement in the fisheries sector between the European Community and the Union 
of the Comoros of 24 November 2004  
• Technical cooperation protocol between the Union of the Comoros and the Government of the 
Republic of Turkey  
• Trade Agreement between the Comorian State and the Democratic Republic of Madagascar  
• Treaty Establishing the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA)  
• Treaty establishing the East African Community (EAC ) 
  
  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM5/Rev.5  
 
- 76 - ANNEX 2  
LICENSING REQUIREMENTS  
Type of prior import 
authorization  Approval authority  Definition  Products 
concerned  HS code  Type of regulation  
Import ation activity  
licence for alcohol and 
tobacco  Ministry of Finance and the 
Budget (Directorate -General of 
Taxation)  The purpose of this measure is to 
regulate the import, distribution 
and operation of alcoholic 
beverage outlets and all forms of 
tobacco that may be harmful to 
people's health in order to 
protect them and for socio -
cultural and public morality 
protection purposes.  Alcoholic 
beverages  
Tobacco and 
manufactured 
tobacco substitutes  2203.0010 to  
2208.9099  
2401.1000 to  
2403.9900  Order No.  14-069/VP -MFEBCEIP/CAB 
regulating the import, distribution and 
serving of alcoholic beverages 
pursuant to Law No.  13-014/AU of 
26 December  2013 on competition in 
the Union of the Comoros.  
Tax Code , Article 194  
Finance Law No.  08-43/AU  
Import licence for luxury 
rice Directorate -General of 
Taxation  A measure to regulate the import 
and marketing of luxury rice in 
order to protect consumers in 
terms of health safety.  Rice containing 0% 
to 5% of broken 
rice 
 10 06 10  10 
10 06 10 20  Tax Code, Article 199  as amended by 
Article 20 of the 2019 Finance Law  
 
Prior import 
authorization  Ministry of Production (INRAP E 
Directorate)  The purpose of this measure is to 
protect human and animal 
health.  Live animals and 
animal products  
 0101.1000 to  
0106.9000  
 Decree No.  87-024/PR regulating the 
import of animals and animal products  
Ministry of Production 
(INRAPE) and the environment 
(Environment Directorate)  Environment and conservation; 
pest prevention; plants and plant 
products (IPPC commitments)  
 Live trees and 
other plants; 
bulbs, roots and 
the like; cut 
flowers and 
ornamental foliage, 
edible vegetables 
and certain roo ts 
and tubers, and 
edible fruits and 
nuts 0601.1000 to  
0604.9900,  
0701.1000 to  
0709.9090  
0714.1000 to  
0714.9090  
09011100 to  
09109900  Plant Protection Law  
Regional plant protection agreement  
Prior import 
authorization  Ministry of Production 
(INRAPE) and the environment 
(Environment Directorate)  
Ministry of Internal Affairs, 
Ministry of Defence and 
Commissioner of Police  This measure seeks to ensure 
proper protection for wild animal 
and plant species in the 
Comoros.  Any species listed 
under t he 
Convention on 
International Trade 
in Endangered 
Species (CITES)  0507.1000 to  
0507.9000  
 
9601.1000 to  
9601.9000  
 Law No.  95-007 of 19  June 1995 on 
the environment  
Importation banned 
other than for national 
defence purposes   In order to protect national 
security, the import of arms of 
any sort into the Union of the 
Comoros is banned other than for 
national defence purposes.  Pyrotechnic 
products and 
explosives  
Swords, cutlasses, 
bayonets and 
similar arms  3601.0000 to  
3604.9090  
93011000 to  
9307.000 0 Law No.  97-009 of 21  July 1997 on 
defence and national security  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
- 77 - 
 
  ANNEX 3  
ACTIVITIES EXEMPT UNDER ARTICLE 164 OF THE TAX CODE  
The following activities are exempt under Article 164 of the Tax Code:  
1. subject to the provisions of Article 162, public or private sector employees, solely as regards 
their salaried activity;  
2. painters, sculptors, engravers, designers, musicians, sing ers, actors and dancers, regarded as 
artists and drawing income only from their individual artistic activity;  
3. authors and composers, teachers of literature, sciences and creative arts, teachers and heads 
of free schools and kindergartens;  
4. publishers of periodicals, reading room proprietors;  
5. farmers, whether individuals or grouped in cooperatives, but only for the sale and handling of 
crops and fruit from land that they own or farm, and for the sale of cattle that they breed, 
tend or fatt en; 
6. agricultural cooperative societies and their unions, mutual agricultural credit funds established 
and operating in accordance with their governing laws and regulations;  
7. provident and mutual insurance societies administered free of charge and duly  authorized;  
8. craftsmen's cooperatives and workers' production cooperatives established and operating in 
accordance with their governing laws and regulations;  
9. fishermen, whether individuals or grouped in cooperatives, selling exclusively the product of 
their fishing activity, fresh, dried, salted or smoked;  
10. doctors and dentists practising in a place where there is no other free practitioner in their 
category;  
11. midwives;  
12. small-scale cabotage and coastal navigation crew (this exemptio n does not apply to lighterage 
enterprises);  
13. consumer cooperatives which confine themselves to grouping the orders of their members 
and distributing, in their warehouses, the products and goods ordered;  
14. the French Development Agency ( Agence Françai se de Développement ). 
   WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
- 78 - 
 
  ANNEX 4 
LIST OF GOODS ELIGIBLE FOR EXEMPTION FROM CUSTOMS DUTIES UPON IMPORTATION 
SUBJECT TO USE FOR AN APPROVED ACTIVITY  
Heading  HS Code   
  Potatoes, fresh or chilled.  
 0701.1000  - Seed 
 25.23  Portland cement, aluminous cement, slag cement, supersulphate cement and 
similar hydraulic cements, whether or not coloured or in the form of clinkers.  
 2523.1000  - Cement clinkers  
  - Portland cement:  
 2523.2100  -- White cement, whether or not artificially coloured  
 2523.9000  - Other hydraulic cements  
31.02   Mineral or chemical fertilisers, nitrogenous.  
31.03   Mineral or chemical fertilisers, phosphatic.  
31.04   Mineral or chemical fertilisers, potassic.  
  -- DDT (ISO) (clofenotane (INN)), in packings of a net weight content not 
exceeding 300  g: 
 3808.5210  --- For agricultural use  
  -- Insecticides:  
 3808.9110  --- For agricultural use  
  -- Fungicides:  
 3808.9210  --- For agricultural use  
 39.09  Amino -resins, phenolic resins and polyurethanes, in primary forms.  
  II.- IRON AND NON -ALLOY STEEL  
 72.06  Iron and non -alloy steel in ingots or other primary forms  
(excluding iron of heading 72.03).  
 8408.1010  --- Outboard motors  
  Industrial or laboratory furnaces and ovens, including incinerators, non -electric.  
 8417.1000  - Furnaces and ovens for the roasting, melting or other heat -treatment of ores, 
pyrites or of metals  
 8417.2000  - Bakery ovens, including biscuit ovens  
 8418.4010  --- Designed for storing dead bodies or blood  
 8418.4020  --- Designed for scientific use and use in research and in laboratories  
 8419.2000  - Medical, surgical or laboratory sterilisers  
  -- For filtering or purifying beverages other than water:  
 8421.2210  --- Industrial type  
 8421.2910  --- Of a type used in industrial machinery (including in agriculture and in relation 
to water supply, waste water and drainage)  
  - Other appliances:   
 8424.8200  -- Agricultural or horticultural  
84.30   Other moving, grading, levelling, scraping, excavating, tamping, compacting, 
extracting or boring machinery, for earth, minerals or ores; pile -drivers and 
pile-extractors; snow -ploughs and snowblowers.  
 8432.1010  --- Single -furrow ploughs weighing at least 55 kg  
 8432.1020  --- Disc ploughs weighing at least 55 kg  
 8432.1030  --- Mouldboard ploughs weighing at least 55 kg  
 8437.1000  - Machines for cleaning, sorting or grading seed, grain or dried leguminous 
vegetables  
 8438.1000  - Bakery machinery and machinery for the manufacture of macaroni, spaghetti or 
similar products  
 8438.2000  - Machinery for the manufacture of confectionery, cocoa or chocolate  
 8438.6000  - Machinery for the preparation of fruits, nuts or vegetables  
 8443.1100  -- Offset printing machinery, reel -fed 
 8443.1200  -- Offset printing machinery, sheet -fed, office type (using sheets with one side not 
exceeding 22  cm and the other side not exceeding 36 cm in the unfolded state)  
 8443.1300  -- Other offset printing machinery  
 8443.1400  -- Letterpress printing machinery, reel fed, excluding flexographic printing  
  - Dry-cleaning machines:  
 8451.1090  --- Other  
 8451.4000  - Washing, bleaching or dyeing machines  
 8474.2000  - Crushing or grinding machines  
  - Mixing or kneading machines:  
 8474.3100  -- Concrete or mortar mixers  
 8474.3200  -- Machines for mixing mineral substances with bitumen  
  Machines and mechanical appliances having individual functions, not specified or 
included elsewhere in this Chapter.  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
- 79 - 
 
  Heading  HS Code   
  - Machinery for public works, building or the like:  
 8479.1010  --- Vibrators  
 8479.1020  --- Machines and mechanical appliances  
 8479.8200  -- Mixing, kneading, crushing, grinding, screening, sifting, homogenising, 
emulsifying or stirring machines  
 8502.3100  -- Wind-powered  
87.01   Tractors (other than tractors of heading 87.09).  
87.09   Works trucks, self -propelled, not fitted with lifting or handling equipment, of the 
type used in factories, warehouses, dock areas or airports for short distance 
transport of goods; tractors of the type used on railway station platforms; parts of 
the foregoing vehicles.  
87.13   Carriages for disabled persons, whether or not motorised or otherwise 
mechanically propelled.  
  Trailers and semi -trailers; other vehicles, not mechanically propelled; parts thereof.  
 8716.2000  - Self-loading or self -unloading trailers and semi -trailers for agricultural purposes  
89.02   Fishing vessels; factory ships and other vessels for processing or preserving fishery 
products:  
 8906.9010  --- Lifeboats  
  - Cameras specially designed for underwater use, for aerial survey or for medical 
or surgical examination of internal organs; comparison cameras for forensic or 
criminological purposes:  
 9006.3010  --- For medical or surgical examination  
 9008.5010  --- Equipment specially designed for the projection of X -ray photographs  
 9011.1010  --- Optical stereoscopic microscopes fitted with equipment specifically designed for 
the handling and transport of semiconductor wafers or reticles  
  Instruments and appliances used in medical, surgical, dental or veterinary 
sciences, including scintigraphic apparatus, other electro -medical apparatus and 
sight-testing instruments.  
  - Electro -diagnostic apparatus (including apparatus for functional exploratory 
examination or for checking physiological parameters):  
 9018.1100  -- Electro -cardiographs  
  - Other instruments and appliances:  
 9018.9010  --- Of a kind used in veterinary sciences  
90.22   Apparatus based on the use of X -rays or of alpha, beta or gamma radiations, 
whether or not for medical, surgical, dental or veterinary uses, including 
radiography or radiotherapy apparatus, X -ray tubes and other X -ray generators, 
high tension  
generators, control panels and desks, screens, examination or treatment tables, 
chairs and the like.  
  Medical, surgical, dental or veterinary furniture (for example, operating tables, 
examination tables, hospital beds with mechanical fittings, dentists' chairs); 
barbers' chairs and similar chairs, ha ving rotating as well as both reclining and 
elevating  
movements; parts of the foregoing articles.  
  - Dentists', barbers' or similar chairs and parts thereof:  
  --- Dentists' chairs and parts thereof:  
 9402.1011  ---- Dentists' chairs  
  - Other:  
 9402.9010  --- Operating tables, examination tables and hospital beds with mechanical fittings  
  Other furniture and parts thereof.  
  - Metal furniture of a kind used in offices:  
 9403.1010  --- Specialized equipment for use in laboratories or technical offices  
Note:  
• All consumables are, in principle, excluded from the list of goods eligible for customs duty exemptions.  
• Exemption from customs duties does not imply exemption from other duties and  taxes applicable to 
imports, such as:  
o Consumption tax, excise taxes, the single administrative charge (RAU), regional cooperation tax ( RCI), 
"import trade tax " (PI) , the advance tax payment, or the RCCI fee  
  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
- 80 - 
 
  ANNEX 5  
IMPLEMENTATION OF ARTICLES 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 AND 10 OF THE WTO AGREEMENT ON 
CUSTOMS VALUATION  
WTO Customs 
Valuation 
Agreement  2015 Customs Code  Order implementing the 2015 Customs Code  (Order No. 
19-049/MFBSB/CAB)  
Article 1.1(a)(i), (ii) 
and (iii), 1 .1(b), 
1.1(c) and 
1.1(d)  Article 35.1(a), (b), (c) 
and (d)  Chapter III – Acceptability of transaction value in event of sale  
Article 1.2(a), 
1.2(b)(i), (ii) and 
(iii), and 1.2(c)  Article 36.1, 36.2(a), 
(b) and (c), and 36.4  Chapter III – Acceptability of transaction value in event of sale  
Article 2.1(a), 
2.1(b), 2.2 and 2.3  Article 38.1 and 
38.2(a)  
Article 36.3  Section 2 – Transaction value of identical goods  
▪ Subsection 2 – Conditions of commercial level and 
quantity  
Article 3.1(a), 
3.1(b), 3.2 and 3.3  Article 38.1 and 
38.2(b)  
Article  36.3 Section 2 – Transaction value of identical goods  
 
▪ Subsection 2 – Conditions of commercial level and 
quantity  
Article 4  - Chapter II – The deductive method   
Article 5.1(a)(i), (ii) 
(iii) and (iv), 5.1(b) 
and 5.2  Article 38.1 and 
38.2(c)  Chapter II – The deductive method  
• Section 1 – Basis for calculation  
o Subsection 2 – Value established on the basis of 
the selling price of identical or similar imported 
goods  
o Subsection 3 – Value esta blished on the basis of 
the selling price of imported goods sold after 
processing  
▪ Elements to be deducted  
• Section 2 – Elements to be deducted  
 
Article 6.1(a), 
6.1(b), 6.1(c) and 
6.2 Article 38.1 and 
38.2(d)(i), (ii) and (iii)  • Section  2 – Elements to be taken into account  in 
determining the computed value  
o Subsection 1 – Cost or value of materials and 
fabrication employed in producing the imported 
goods (Article 38(2)(d)(i) of the Customs Code)  
Article 7.1, 7.2(a), 
7.2(b), 7.2(c), 
7.2(d), 7.2(e), 
7.2(f), 7.2(g) and 
7.3 Article 39.1(a) and (b), 
and 39.2(a), (b), (c), 
(d), (e), (f) and (g)  Chapter III – Computed value method (Article 38(2)(d) of the 
Customs Code)  
• Section  1 – General provisions  
Article 8.1(a)(i), (ii) 
and (iii), 8.1(b)(i) , 
(ii), (iii) and (iv), 
8.1(c), 8.1(d), 
8.2(a), 8.2(b), 
8.2(c), 8.3 and 8.4  Article 40  - 
Article 9.1 and 9.2  - - 
Article 10  - Title three – Alternative methods  
 
 
_______________  
 
 WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
- 81 - 
 
  - 81 - APPENDIX  
[Draft Decision  
ACCESSION OF  THE UNION OF THE  COMOROS  
Decision of […]  
 The [Ministerial Conference] [General Council],  
 Having regard to  paragraph 2 of Article  XII and paragraph 1 of Article  IX of the 
Marrakesh  Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization (the "WTO  Agreement"), and the 
Decision -Making Procedures under Articles IX and XII of the WTO  Agreement agreed by the General 
Council (WT/L/93),  
 
 [Conducting  the functions of the Ministerial Conference in the interval between meetings 
pursuant to paragraph 2 of Article IV of the WTO Agreement,]  
 
 Taking note  of the application of the Union of the Comoros for accession to the WTO 
Agreement dated [ …], 
 
 Noting  the results of the negotiations directed toward the establishment of the terms of 
accession of the Union of the Comoros  to the WTO  Agreement and having prepared a Protocol on 
the Accession of the Union of the Comoros , 
 
 Decides  as follows:  
1. The Union of the Comoros  may accede to the WTO  Agreement on the terms and conditions 
set out in the Protocol annexed to this Decision.  
_______________  
 WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
- 82 - 
 
  - 82 - DRAFT PROTOCOL  
ON THE ACCESSION OF  THE UNION OF THE COMOROS  
Preamble  
 The World Trade Organization (hereinafter referred to as the "WTO"), pursuant to the approval 
of the [Ministerial Conference][General Council] of the WTO acco rded under Article  XII of the 
Marrakesh  Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization (hereinafter referred to as the 
"WTO  Agreement"), and the Union of the Comoros , 
 Taking note  of the Report of the Working Party on the Accession of the Union of the  Comoros 
to the WTO  Agreement reproduced in document WT/ACC/ COM/[..], dated […] (hereinafter referred to 
as the "Working Party Report"),  
 Having regard  to the results of the negotiations on the accession of the Union of the Comoros  
to the WTO  Agreement,  
 Agree as follows:  
PART I - GENERAL  
1. Upon entry into force of this Protocol pursuant to paragraph 8, the Union of the Comoros  
accedes to the WTO  Agreement pursuant to Article  XII of that  Agreement and thereby becomes a 
Member of the  WTO.  
2. The WTO  Agreeme nt to which the Union of the Comoros  accedes shall be the WTO  Agreement, 
including the Explanatory Notes to that  Agreement, as rectified, amended or otherwise modified by 
such legal instruments as may have entered into force before the date of entry into f orce of this 
Protocol.  This Protocol, which shall include the commitments referred to in paragraph  […] of the 
Working Party Report, shall be an integral part of the WTO  Agreement.  
3. Except as otherwise provided for in paragraph […] of the Working Party Re port, 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 Union of the Comoros  as if it had ac cepted that  Agreement on the date of its 
entry into force.  
4. The Union of the Comoros  may maintain a measure inconsistent with paragraph  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 Annex to the GATS on Article  II Exemptio ns. 
PART II - SCHEDULES  
5. The Schedules reproduced in the Annex to this Protocol shall become the Schedule of 
Concessions and Commitments annexed to the General  Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 
(hereinafter referred to as the "GATT  1994") and the Sched ule of Specific Commitments annexed to 
the General  Agreement on Trade in Services (hereinafter referred to as "GATS") relating to the Union 
of the Comoros . The staging of the concessions and commitments listed in the Schedules shall be 
implemented as speci fied in the relevant parts of the respective Schedules.  
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 Schedule of Concessions and Commitments 
annexe d 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 Union of the 
Comoros until […] or such later date as may be decided by t he General Council.  
8. This Protocol shall enter into force on the thirtieth day following the day upon which it shall 
have been accepted by the Union of the Comoros .  WT/ACC/SPEC/COM/5/Rev.5  
 
- 83 - 
 
  - 83 - 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 Union of the Comoros  thereto pursuant to paragraph 7 to each Member of the WTO and to the 
Union of the Comoros .  
10. This Protocol shall be registered in accordance  with the provisions of Article  102 of the Charter 
of the United Nations.   
 Done at […] this […] day of […] in a single copy in the English, French and Spanish languages, 
each text being authentic, except that a Schedule annexed hereto may specify that it is authentic in 
only one of these languages, and the Working Party Report is authentic in […]. 
 
__________