S/C/60  
 
4 December 2020 
(20-8727) Page: 1/9 
  
 
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN SERVICES  
TO THE GENERAL COUNCIL (20 20) 
Since its Annual Report of 201 9 to the General Council1, the Council for Trade in Services held two 
formal meetings2, respectively on  1 July and 2 October 2020.3 During the period covered by this 
report, the Council addressed the following  matters.  
1  NOTIFICATIONS MADE TO THE COUNCIL PURSUANT TO GATS ARTICLES  III:3 , V:7 AND 
VII:4  
1.1.  The Council for Trade in Services took note, altogether, of  the following notifications:  
a. Notifications pursuant to Article III:3 of the GATS  
Thailand  (S/C/N/971  - S/C/N/ 979) 
The European Union  (S/C/N/981  - S/C/N/ 985; S/C/N/1004  - 
S/C/N/ 1010 and S/C/N/1004/C orr.1, 
S/C/N/1007/ Corr.1, and 
S/C/N/1009/ Corr.1) 
Switzerland  (S/C/N/987  - S/C/N/ 988) 
The Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan,  
  Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu  (S/C/N/989  - S/C/N/ 990) 
Australia  (S/C/N/991)  
The Russian Federation  (S/C/N/1000  - S/C/N/ 1002)  
Ukraine  (S/C/N/1011  - S/C/N/ 1012)  
India  (S/C/N/1013)  
Albania  (S/C/N/1020  - S/C/N/ 1021)  
 
b. Notifications pursuant to Article V:7 of the GATS  
Iceland  (S/C/N/919/Add.1)  
Hong Kong, China;  and Australia  (S/C/N/986)  
China and Hong Kong, China  (S/C/N/264/Add.11 and 
S/C/N/264/ Add.11/ Corr.1)  
China and Macao, China  (S/C/N /265/Add.11)  
The European Union and Singapore  (S/C/N/1003)  
Peru and Australia  (S/C/N/10 15) 
The European Union and Viet Nam  (S/C/N/10 16) 
Canada, Mexico and the United States  (S/C/N/10 17) 
 
The agreements notified in these documents were referred to the Committee on Regional 
Trade Agreements for consideration.  
 
1 Document S/C/5 9. 
2 The meeting originally planned for 24 March 2020 did not take place because of the measures  
introduced to combat the COVID -19 pandemic.  
3 Reports of these meetings are contained in documents S/C/M/ 142 and S/C/M/ 143, and should be read 
in conjunction with this repo rt. S/C/60  
 
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  c. Notifications pursuant to Article V II:4 of the GATS  
Thailand  (S/C/N/980)  
The Russian Federation  (S/C/N/992  - S/C/N/ 999) 
Australia  (S/C/N/1014)  
Albania  (S/C/N/1018  - S/C/N/ 1019)  
 
1.2.  At the meeting held in July, the Council took note of the updated Secretariat Note containing 
a statistical account of the notifications made under relevant GATS provisions.4 Some  Members 
observed that , as per the information in the Note, various developing countries and LDCs had 
submitted more GATS Article III:3 notifications  than most developed countries . 
2  OPERATIONALIZATION OF THE LDC SERVICES WAIVER  
2.1.  At the meeting  of the Council  held in July, the LDC Group urged notifying Members to share 
inform ation on how they were orienting LDC service suppliers to the benefits available under the 
Waiver preferences and how LDC services were being consumed in their domestic markets, including 
during the COVID -19 pandemic . Several Members intervened to undersco re the importance of the 
Waiver.  
2.2.  At the October meeting, the LDC Group put forward some ideas to advance the discussion s on 
the operationalisation of the Waiver. First, the Group proposed that the Council organize a virtual 
workshop to bring together LDC s ervice suppliers and consumers of LDC services in preference -
granting Members. LDCs asked  the CTS Chairman  to hold consultations on the proposed workshop, 
which  they suggested  could be held in the first quarter of 2021.  Second, LDCs informed Members 
that they planned to organise, in November 2020, a webinar on the impact of COVID -19 on the 
supply of services from LDCs. Third, the Group sought the Secretariat's assistance to update the 
information on LDC services trade initially prepared for the Dedicated Session of 2019.  
2.3.  Members were generally open to discussing the LDC  Group's ideas but, given the novelty of 
the suggestions, called for more details to be provided, in writing.  
3  WORK PROGRAMME ON ELECTRONIC COMMERCE  
3.1.  In July, the Council for Trade in Services addressed a communication by a group of Members 
proposing explora tory discussions on how to support digital capability of business and consumers.5 
The document generated significant engagement, with around 40 delegations intervening. All 
Members welcomed the communication as a useful contribution to the Work Programme,  and 
numerous delegations said that it testified to the co -sponsors' commitment to the Work Programme 
and the value of continuing exploratory discussions under the same.   
3.2.  All Members underscored the crucial role of e -commerce to economic growth and develo pment 
and noted that the COVID -19 pandemic had brought this aspect further to the fore. Many delegations 
shared their own experiences and initiatives in support  of digital capabilities, and several indicated 
that they would be contributing further at futur e meetings.   
3.3.  Numerous d elegations valued the communication's focus on the need to  bridge the digital 
divide, although some argued that the development angle of the paper could have been broader.  
Several  Members called for the CTS discussions to focus especially on the numerous infrastructural 
constraints faced by developing countries and LDCs . One Member expressed its concern s with the 
parallel J oint Statement Initiative (JSI)  on e-commerce and its rule -making objective. Another 
Member underscored the importance of keeping WTO discussions trade -focused and urged Members 
not to take measures th at undermined their goal of participating effectively in digital markets.   
3.4.  The joint communication6 continued to generate substantive engagement at the October 
meeting of the CTS, with several delegations presenting detailed information  and follow -up acc ounts 
 
4 Document JOB(09)/10/Rev. 10. 
5 JOB/SERV/296/Rev.2, co -sponsored by Australia; Brazil; Canada; Colombia; Hong Kong, China; 
Japan; Mexico; New Zealand; Nigeria; Norway; Singapore and the United Kingdom.  
6 The communication was revised  in September , in JOB/SERV/296/Rev.3, to add Ukraine as a 
co-sponsor.  S/C/60  
 
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  of the initiatives  they had undertaken to support digital capability of business and consumers. One 
Member also shared  extensive  information on its efforts to promote the development of the 
e-payment sector.  
3.5.  Members  emphasised again  that e-commerce was vital to  fostering economic growth and 
development and stressed that COVID -19 had considerably highlighted this aspect. While 
acknowledging the benefits of e -commerce, a few  Members affirmed  that the Work  Programme 
discussions had not sufficiently focused on the significant challenges it posed . These Members  argued 
that exten ding the e-commerce Moratorium  would be harmful to developing countries and reiterated 
their concern s with the parallel JSI  process and its rule -making intent.  
4  UPDATE OF THE SECRETARIAT BACKGROUND NOTE ON MODE 4 
4.1.  The Council addressed this  agenda  item upon India's request . At both the July and October 
meetings , India reiterated its request that the Secretariat update the Backg round Notes on mode  4 
and on the other modes of supply.  India's suggestion was echoed by some delegations.  India could 
additionally support the preparation of a further Note by the Secretariat , on intermodal linkages.  
4.2.  While affirming  that a Note on intermo dal linkages might  be useful , one Member  stated that 
updating the old modal Notes  would be of no added value and thus could not support India's request.  
5  CYBERSECURITY  MEASURES OF CHINA AND VIET NAM  
5.1.  At the request of Japan and the United States, at its July and October meetings the Council 
addressed again various cybersecurity measures adopted and under development by China and 
Viet Nam, respectively. The two requesting delegations shared their concerns with  various aspects 
of those measures , which they  alleged could  be inconsistent with  China and Viet Nam's respective 
GATS obligations,  and sought additional information and clarity on the same. The ir concerns  were 
echoed by several  other Members .  
5.2.  In reply, China said that its measures had been drafted t ransparently and had taken 
stakeholders' comments  into consideration . China stated that the purpose of the measures was the 
protect ion of  cybersecurity , an objective that all Members  shared. At the July meeting, China also 
raised  its own concerns with a cybersecurity measure of the United States.  
5.3.  Viet Nam noted that its legislative process was open and transparent, and that stakeholders' 
comments would continue to be reviewed as the process advanced.  
6  5G-RELATED  MEASURES OF AUSTRALIA  
6.1  At the request of China, the Council addressed 5G-related measures  of Australia at its July and 
October meetings . China expressed its concerns  that the measures under discussion prevented 
Chinese companies from participating in 5G -related projects  in Austr alia and  run counter to 
Australia's WTO obligations .  
6.2  In reply, Australia stressed that its measures on 5G networks were fully consistent with its WTO 
obligations and stated that it welcomed foreign businesses into its market.  
7  RUSSIAN FEDERATION FOREIGN -LICENSED FIXED SATELLITE OPERATORS  MARKET 
ACCESS  
7.1  At the request of the United States, at its July and October meetings the Council addressed a 
measure by the Russian Federation related to market access for foreign -licenced fixed satellite 
operators . The United States  shared  its concern s that the measure in question provided a preference 
for the use of Russian satellite services over foreign ones , and sought additional information  on the 
same . The US concerns , and the possibility that the Russian Federatio n's measures could run counter 
to its WTO obligations, were echoed by two other Members.  
7.2  In reply, the Russian Federation provided some details about its measure , stating that it had 
not created any difficulties for foreign suppliers and that no Russian operators ha d been prevented 
from using the services of foreign satellite operators . S/C/60  
 
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  8  SOFTWARE PRE -INSTALLATION MANDATE OF THE  RUSSIAN FEDERATION  
8.1  At the request of the United States, the Council add ressed a measure by the Russian Federation 
on the pre-installation of software on "technically complex goods" at its July and October meetings. 
The United States shared its concern s that the measure in question  could run counter to the Russian 
Federation's WTO obligations  and sought additional clarity on the same . The US concerns were 
echoed by  three  other Members.  
8.2  In reply, the Russian Federation stated that the measure under discussion was fully consistent 
with its WTO obligations . The Russia n Federation  would continue to engage with stakeholders  and 
duly consider the ir views.  
9  MEASURES OF THE UNITED STATES RELATED TO CERTAIN  APPLICATIONS  
9.1  At the request of China, i n October  the Council addressed a series of US measures  concerning 
ByteDance and the TikTok and WeChat applications. China raised its concerns that those measures  
were trade -restrictive and inconsistent with the United States'  GATS obligations . 
9.2  In reply, the United  States stated that its actions  served to protect its national security and  had 
been taken to mitigate specific and identified national security risks. China responded that the United 
States had not provide d any  concrete evidence that its national security was being impacted.  
10  MEASURES OF INDIA RELATED TO INVESTMENT APPROVAL AND CERTAIN  
APPLICATIONS  
10.1  At the request of China, at its October  meeting the Council addressed a series of Indian  
measures  on investment appr oval and banning the use of certain  applications . China expressed its 
concerns that those measures were trade restrictive and  inconsistent with India's  GATS obligations .  
10.2  After noting that it had not receiv ed advance information of the specific concern s China 
intended to raise, India replied that its measures were fully compliant with  its WTO obligations . India  
called on China to reflect on its own record with transparency and maintaining an open trade regime 
for digital services. China responded  that it had not taken any blanket measures against services 
and service suppliers of any particular origin.  
11  THE COVID -19 PANDEMIC AND IMPLICATIONS FOR TRADE IN SERVICES  
11.1  This item had been included on the agenda of the July meeting by the Chairman, to provid e 
an opportunity for Members to exchange views on the aspects of the pandemic that related to trade 
in services. Many delegations highlight ed the importance of sharing relevant information and 
experiences , and several  mentioned  the Secretariat 's Information  Note on "Trade in services in the 
context of COVID -19".7 Some Members referred  to the Secretariat's collection of COVID -related 
services trade measures and highlighted the importance of transparency , with various delegations 
underscor ing that Members' trade -restrictive measures had to be temporary , proportionate, non -
arbitrary  and non -discriminatory .  
11.2  Transport and tourism were identified as amongst the sectors most heavily affected by the 
pandemic ; it was noted that  this had a disproportionate effect on those  developing and LDC Members 
whose services exports were concentrated in th ose sectors. At the same time, s everal  delegations 
observed  that the pandemic had resulted in an increased provision  of onl ine services , including 
across borders , and had focused attention on the need to foster a n environment  conducive to 
leveraging digital technologies. V arious Members noted, nevertheless,  that the crisis had further 
underscored the urgent need to address disparities in digital connectivity . Several delegations said 
that the pandemic was impacting developing and LDC Members particularly severely given their 
limited financial resources to support their economies.  
11.3  As requested at the July meeting , in October the Secretariat gave a present ation of  its 
Information Note on "Trade in services in the context of COVID -19". Several delegations  reiterated 
the need for Members'  COVID -related  measures affecting trade in services to be timebound , 
 
7 https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/covid19_e/services_report_e.pdf   S/C/60  
 
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  justifi able and non-arbitrary . Some Members stated that the crisis was having an asymmetric effect 
on developing countries , impacting their ability to provide fiscal stimulus  and to respond to the health 
crisis. One delegation  underscored  the importance of the cross -borde r movement of health 
personnel . 
12  I-TIP SERVICES TRADE POLICY DATABASE  
12.1  Further to a request of the Russian Federation,  at the October meeting the Secretariat 
delivered a presentation of the World Bank -WTO I -TIP Services , focusing mainly on the Services 
Trade Policy Database that had been released in January . Members expressed their  appreciati on for 
the database and considered it to be a useful tool.  
13  RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN TRADE IN SERVICES STATISTICS  
13.1.  At the October  meeti ng of the Council, the Secretariat delivered  its yearly  presentation o f 
recent developments in trade in services statistics . The Secretariat presented p reliminary estimates  
showing a marked decline of services trade during the first half of  2020, with some  sectors, such as 
travel and construction, particularly impacted  by the COVID -19 crisis, and o thers, such as ICT 
services, faring better .  
14  WORK OF THE SUBSIDIARY BODIES  
14.1.  The activities of the subsidiary bodies in 20 20 are reflected in their respective reports, which 
are annexed to this report, as follows:  
 Annex I Report of the Committee on Trade in Financial Services (S/FIN/ 35) 
 Annex II  Report of the Committee on Specific Commitments (S/CSC/ 26) 
 Annex III  Report of the Working Party on Domestic Regulation (S/WPDR/ 24) 
 Annex IV  Report of the Working Party on GATS Rules (S/W PGR/31). 
 
 
_______________  
 S/C/60  
 
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  ANNEX I  
  
 
  
S/FIN/35  
 
27 November 2020  
(20-8587) Page: 6/9 
   
 
 
 
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON TRADE IN FINANCIAL SERVICES  
TO THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN SERVICES (2020)  
 
1.1.  Since its previous Annual Report to the Council for Trade in Services1, the Committee on Trade 
in Financial Services held one formal meeting, on 14 July 2020.2  
1.2.  The purpose of the meeting was to follow -up on the thematic seminar on "FinTech: Trade, 
Financial Inclusion and Development" organized by the Committee on 13 and 14  July 2020.3 At the 
meeting, some Members shared their domestic experiences in the area of Fintech, whilst others 
suggested topics for further discussion.  
 
 
_______________  
 
 
1 S/FIN/34 , dated  21 November 2019.  
2 The report of the formal meeting is contained in document S/FIN/M/94 , and should be read in 
conjunction with this report.  
3 The revised program of t he seminar was circulated in document RD/SERV/155 . 
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  ANNEX II  
  
  
S/CSC/26  
 
2 December 2020  
(20-8687) Page: 7/9 
   
 
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON SPECIFIC COMMITMENTS  
TO THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN SERVICES (2020)  
 
1.  Since its 2019 annual report to the Council for Trade in Services1, the Committee on Specific 
Commitments (CSC) held two formal meetings, on 1 July 2020 and 1 October 2020 respectively.2 
At these meetings, the Committee considered three items: Implementation of Specific 
Commitments, Scheduling Issues, and Clas sification Issues.  
1  IMPLEMENTATION OF SPECIFIC COMMITMENTS  
2.  This item was included in the agenda upon a Communication from the United States dated 
5 March 2020.3 The United States proposed that the Committee examine conditional commitments 
contained  in the Schedules under the GATS with a view to improving transparency of commitments. 
The Committee held preliminary discussions on the proposal of the United States. At the meeting on 
1 October 2020, the Committee agreed on a step -by-step approach whereb y the Secretariat would 
first prepare a factual compilation of conditional commitments contained in Members' Schedules and 
the Committee would then consider the next steps of the proposed exercise.  
2  SCHEDULING ISSUES  
3.  The Committee considered the issu e of "Unbound*" entries in the Schedules of specific 
commitments under the GATS, which, usually inscribed under mode 1, were intended to mean "no 
commitments due to lack of technical feasibility" . Noting that many services where Members 
inscribed "Unbound* " in their Schedules became tradeable as a result of recent technological 
developments, Switzerland expressed its interest in having discussions on this issue and shared its 
practices in recent Free Trade Agreements.  
4.  The Committee continued to conside r scheduling issues under mode 4, initially identified in a 
Communication from the Kyrgyz Republic.4 India reiterated its position on these issues and 
expressed its continued interest in having further discussions in this regard.  
3  CLASSIFICATION ISSUES  
5.  The Committee did not engage in substantive discussions under this item.  
 
_______________  
  
 
1 Annual Report of the Committee on Specific Commitments to the Council for Trade in Services (2019), 
contained in document S/CSC/25 dated 21 November 2019.  
2 The reports of these meetings are contained in  documents S/CSC/M/82 and S/CSC/M/83, which should 
be read in conjunction with this report.  
3 The communication from the United States is contained in document S/CSC/W/69.  
4 The communication from the Kyrgyz Republic  is contained in document  JOB/SERV/287 . 
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  ANNEX III  
  
  
S/WPDR/24  
 
27 November 2020  
(20-8588) Page: 8/9 
 
 
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE WORKING PARTY ON DOMESTIC REGULATION  
TO THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN SERVICES (2020)  
 
1. Since its 2019 annual report to the Council for Trade in Services1, the Working Party on 
Domestic Regulation held one formal meeting, on 3 December 2019.2 
2. At the meeting, the delegations of India, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, and Zimbabwe 
raised concerns about the development of disciplines on domestic regulation through a Reference 
Paper by the Joint Initiative on Services Domestic Regulation. India's opening statement was 
circulated to all Members.3 
3. The concerns expressed were threefold: first, the Joint Initiative could not develop disciplines 
under the multilateral mandate set out in GATS Article VI:4. Second, certain provisions contained in 
the draft Reference Paper4 reduced, amended, or interpreted existing GATS obligations, hence 
affecting all Members' rights and obligations. India and co -sponsors requested that the discipli nes in 
the draft Reference Paper be made consistent with GATS provisions and all references to GATS 
Article VI:4 be removed. Third, as the disciplines contained new rules, they could exclusively be 
introduced through an amendment procedure in line with the  Marrakesh Agreement, and required 
the consensus of the full WTO Membership.  
4. Other delegations disagreed with the views expressed, and noted the open -ended, transparent 
and inclusive nature of the negotiating process that allowed all Members to partici pate at any point 
in the discussions and express their views and concerns. Some Members stated that the disciplines 
developed by the Joint Initiative left the multilateral mandate contained in Article VI:4 untouched. 
The provisions negotiated in the contex t of the Joint Initiative improved upon existing commitments 
and could not be regarded as a dilution of existing commitments or obligations. Members were 
permitted, at any time, to improve their GATS Schedules of commitments. Participants of the Joint 
Initiative indicated their willingness to consider carefully the concerns expressed and invited all 
delegations to take actively part in the process.  
 
 
_______________  
 
 
1 Annual Report of the Working Party on Domestic Regulation (20 19), S/WPDR/23 , dated 
21 November  2019.  
2 The report of the meeting is contained in document S/WPDR/M/76 , dated 13 December 2019, and  
should be read in conjunction with this annual report.  
3 RD/SERV/154 , dated 3 December 2019.  
4 INF/SDR/W/1 , dated 4 September 2019.  
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  ANNEX IV  
  
  
S/WPGR/31  
 
27 November 2020  
(20-8589) Page: 9/9 
   
 
 
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE WORKING PARTY ON GATS RULES  
TO THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN SERVICES (2020)  
 
1. This report has been prepared pursuant to the Procedures for an Annual Overview of 
WTO Activities and for Reporting Under the WTO (WT/L/105).  
2. Since its 2019 annual report to the Council for Trade in Services1, the Working Party on GATS 
Rules (WPGR) ha s held no meetings.  
__________  
 
 
1 Annual Report of the Working Party on  GATS Rules to the Council for Trade in Services (2019), 
contained in document S/WPGR/30 dated 21 November 2019.