JOB/MA/145  
JOB/AG/186  
 
5 June 2020  
(20-4071) Page: 1/3 
Committee on Market Access  
Committee on Agriculture  
Special Session  Original: English  
 
 ROUND TABLE – TYPE D ISCUSSION ON ENHANCI NG TRANSPARENCY  
IN APPLIED TARIFFS  
COMMUNICATION FROM T HE RUSSIAN FEDERATIO N1 
 
The following notification dated  5 June 2020 , is being circulated at the request of the delegation of 
the Russian Federation .  
 
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1  INTRODUCTION  
1.1. The earlier communications of the Russian Federation on the topic of enhancing transparency 
in applied tariffs are contained in the documents  JOB/MA/138 - JOB/AG/154  dated 20 March 2019, 
RD/AG/70 dated 27 May 2019, RD/MA/45 dated 3 June 2019, RD/MA/49 dated 3 June 2019 . 
1.2. The Round Table -Type Discussion  on Enhancing Transparency in Applied Tariffs took place on 
31 January 2020. The Round Table was organized by the Russian Federation with a view to promot ing 
a discussion on  the possible ways to improve transparency in applied tariffs and  to exchange 
respective experien ce with the WTO Members.  
1.3. The agenda of the  Round Table  included the discussion of the following key issues : 
(i) enhancing transparency in applied tariffs; (ii) the importance of transparency and access to 
information for MSMEs; (iii) Presentation by the EU : “Transparency in applied tariffs: EU best 
practices” ; (iv) Presentation by Paraguay:  “Changes in applied tariffs: the Paraguayan case.” ; 
(v) Presentation by New Zealand:  “New Zealand experience providing tariff information to 
businesses” ; (vi) transparency in applied tariffs within the current global framework; (vii) tariff 
modification s and market transparency in the grain sector; and (viii) WTO’s Integrated Database in 
the context of MSMEs. The program of the Round Table is annexed to this submission and can be 
found on the following link.2  
1.4. The Russian Federation hereby submits a summary of the Round Table discussions.  
2  SUMMARY  
2.1. Transparency is one of the fundamental WTO principles. It enables governments and traders 
to become acquainted with their trading partners’ regulations in a timely manner. Global economic 
realities are changing at a fast pace. Ever -accelerating technological advancements  that enable 
prompt information access and exchanges, rapid development and spread of  global value chains  
(GVCs) that facilitate MSMEs’ participation in multilateral trade – are just few examples of the 
ongoing changes. Thus, it is necessary for the WTO rules to adapt to the newly emerging economic 
and digital environment.  
 
1 This document has been prepared by the delegation of the Russian Federation without prejudice to the 
positions of participants to the Round Table.  
2 https://www.wto.org/l ibrary/events/agenda_round_table_31012020_e.pdf . JOB/MA/145 • JOB/AG/186  
 
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  2.2. Today, timely an d accurate information is essential for businesses to trade with other 
countries. The availability of such information affects their decision -making, such as whether they 
should  continue their ongoing economic operations or whether they should  consider alt ernative 
supply destinations . According to the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) and the GATT provisions, 
the publication of trade regulations shall be done in a manner that would allow all interested 
stakeholders to get acquainted with such measures in a  timely manner.  TFA and the respective GATT 
provisions also stipulate that t he enforcement of such measures shall not happen before their 
publication. However, neither of the Agreements  provide for a specific time period between 
publication and entry into force of tariff changes. Currently, WTO Member can invoke changes in 
their tariff policy without violating the WTO agreements. As a result, consumers and businesses, 
primarily MSMEs, in the other WT O Members can incur unexpected additional costs .  
2.3. In 40% of cases, changes enter into force on the date of publication  of the respective 
decisions.  The v ariation s in customs import duty rates may be significant, which can therefore create 
unexpected additi onal costs for business es. In the absence of reasonable prior notice, small -sized 
firms risk facing modified duty rates while their consignments are en route. Even with enhanced  
notification obligations , including a requirement to notify changes in applied  tariff rates  immediately , 
it will not allow interested stakeholders to adjust their commercial decisions in a timely manner.  
2.4. In the framework of the Round Table discussions Members shared their national experience s 
and practices regarding the administrati on of import dut y changes, which included the following, 
among others.  
The European Union:  
- Freely accessible on-line Database, TARIC , which integrates all tariff-related information, such 
as bound  duty rate s or applied rate s of duties, including tariff preferences. TARIC  is updated 
on a daily basis.  
- EU Trade Helpdesk  - a freely accessible website that provides all the necessary trade 
information , including import duties, rules of origin, trade statistics etc.  
 
New Zealand:  
- Tariff Finder Website ( http://www.tariff -finder.govt.nz/ ), which contains information on all the 
RTAs concluded by New Zealand . For non -RTA markets ; the tariff finder provides the most 
recently available MFN rate s notified by Members to the WTO.  
 
Paraguay:  
- Application of “transitory exclusion” clause in respect of tariff increases. This clause stipulates  
that the application of tariff changes is s uspended within 60 days from the entry into force of 
respective trade regulations, upon submission of documentary proofs and meeting specific 
requirement.  
 
2.5. The International Grain Council (IGC) made a presentation on “IGC cost & freight tool: 
platform for tariff data”, which incorporates information on tariffs provided by Members to the WTO. 
It was noted that about 40% of global trade in grains and oilseeds is carried by maritime transport 
with journey duration of more than one month. Thus, consignments of these products may become 
subject to changes in tariffs while cargo is en route . Timeliness of accurate and up -to-date tariff 
information provision  would be key given that the market access information would be provided 
along with “live” daily export and f reight prices.  
 
2.6. The representative of Global Trade Solution invited attention to the  digitalization of  trade data 
and the importance of Trade Information Portals for regional trade on the African continent  (SACU, 
EAC, ECOWAS, CEMA). She said that such portals , which would include information on tariffs , were 
still under development and were to be established within regional blocks. She suggested that the 
digitalization of trade data through such portals would contribute towards the promotion of 
transparency.  
2.7. One of the speakers underscored that the lack of predictability in Members’ tariff policy, among 
the implementation of other restrictive measures, undermines MSMEs prospects for effectively JOB/MA/145 • JOB/AG/186  
 
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  integrating into GVCs. He also noted that it would be of great use to have all information on tariff 
change s hosted at  one place and in an easily accessible format,  since there were not enough human, 
time and financial resources to track Members’ tariff changes individually  through their respective 
customs W ebPages.  
 
2.8.  The discussion was also joined by the representatives of the International Trade Centre (ITC) 
and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC).  The ITC h underlined that the information on 
import tariffs constitutes  an integral part of the Globa l Help Trade Desk, which aims to facilitate 
access to trade information for small and medium enterprises. The ICC informed that the average 
time of shipment of consignments is four weeks (at least from Europe to Asia), which makes the 
possibility of tariff  changes occurring while goods were en route  to their destination very real.  
3  CONCLUSION  
3.1.  The following conclusions can be drawn from the discussions that took place during the Round 
Table on enhancing transparency in applied tariffs:  
- substantial part of tariff changes enters into force on the date of publication of respective 
decisions;  
 
- lack of predictability in tariff policy may impede the effective integration of MSMEs into GVCs;  
 
- the availability of online databases and portals is essential for facilitating access to trade 
information.  
 
3.2.   Taking into account the  results of  discussions held at the round table, the Russian Federation 
will continue to seek ways of improving transparency in applied tariffs in order to prepare concrete 
proposals  for MC-12. 
3.3.  The Russian Federation is looking forward to further discussion on this issue.   
 
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