RESTRICTED  
  
WT/BFA/W/568  
 
6 July 2021  
(21-5360) Page: 1/13 
Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration    
 
 
PROPOSED FULL TEXT OF THE REVISED FINANCIAL REGULATIONS OF  
THE WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION  
Below are  the proposed revised Financial  Regulations of the World Trade Organization, to be 
contained in document WT/L/156/Rev.4, with specific revisions to Financial Regulations 4, 17, 26, 
27, 29, 37, 38 and 42.  
CHAPTER I. AUTHORITY AND APPLICABILITY  
Regulation 1  
 
These Regulat ions shall govern the financial administration of the World Trade Organization (WTO).  
 
Regulation 2  
 
The Director -General shall be responsible for the implementation of these Regulations. He  or she  
may delegate to other officers of the WTO such authority a s he or she  considers necessary for the 
effective implementation of these Regulations.  
 
Regulation 3  
 
Rules made by the Director -General in order to  carry out the provisions of these Regulations shall 
be communicated to the General Council for approval .  
 
Regulation 4  
 
These regulations shall not be amended except by the General Council acting upon the advice of the 
Committee on Budget, Finance and Ad ministration (the Committee). The Committee shall review 
these Regulations at least every  five years.  
 
CHAPTER II. PREPARATION OF THE BUDGET  
Regulation 5  
 
The WTO biennium shall consist of two consecutive financial periods covering each year of the 
biennium. The financial period shall be from 1 January to 31 December.  
 
Regulation 6  
 
For each financial period, the Director -General shall prepare a budget prop osal containing estimates 
of the income and expenditure of the WTO, together with the comparable figures for the previous 
period.  
 
This budget proposal, as well as any revisions for the second year of the biennium as may be 
necessary, will be presented to  the Committee at least eight weeks prior to the last scheduled 
meeting of the year of the General Council.  
 
The budget proposal and any proposed revisions to the budget shall be presented in Swiss Francs 
(CHF).  
 WT/BFA/W/568  
 
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  Regulation 7  
 
The budget proposal shall pr esent the breakdown of expected expenditure by key categories, such 
as those for staff, temporary assistance, general services, travel or capital expenditure.  
 
In addition, the budget proposal shall set out how the Secretariat intend  to deploy the budgete d 
resources to achieve the WTO’s objectives, showing, for illustrative purposes, the breakdown of 
expected expenditure by key output areas such as dispute settlement or technical assistance.  
 
The contribution to the budget of the International Trade Centre  (ITC) shall be included as one 
category in the WTO budget proposal. The detailed ITC budget proposal as presented to the United 
Nations is presented as a separate document and is subject to a specific recommendation by the 
Committee.  
 
Expenditure specific to  the functioning of the Appellate Body and its Secretariat shall be identified 
and subject to a specific recommendation by the Committee .  
 
The budget proposal shall show the maximum number of Full Time Equivalent (FTE) Posts in each  
year of the biennium, together with anticipated changes in the distribution of the FTE Posts by grade 
and by division.  
 
The budget proposal shall be accompanied by such information annexes and explanatory statements 
as may be requested by or on behalf of the General Council, and such further annexes or statements 
as the Director -General may deem necessary or useful.  
 
Regulation 8  
 
Supplementary budget proposals for the current financial period may be submitted by the Director -
General on an exceptional basi s. 
 
The Director -General shall prepare supplementary budget proposals in a form consistent with the 
approved budget . These proposals shall follow the same examination and approval process as for 
the annual budget proposals .  
 
Regulation 9  
 
The proposed bud get expenditure shall be financed by income that consist s of: 
 
a) Contributions from Members and Observers. A draft scale of contributions to be assessed shall 
be prepared in accordance with Regulation 12; and  
b) Miscellaneous income, with an explanation of the source of each item of miscellaneous income.  
These figures should be accompanied by the comparable figures for the prior period.  
 
CHAPTER III. ADOPTION OF THE BUDGET  
Regulation 10  
 
The Committee shall examine the budget  proposal  and seek further explanatio ns and amendments 
as it deems necessary. Once the Committee has completed its examination, it shall prepare a report 
and a recommendation which shall be submitted to the General Council for adoption.  
 
Regulation 11  
 
The same procedure s set out in Regulations 6, 7, 9 and 10 shall be applied to any revision for the 
second financial period of the biennium. The Director -General may submit a revised proposal for the 
second year of the biennium when there are exceptional and unexpected changes  that could not 
have been foreseen at the time of the presentation of the budget proposal for the biennium.  
 WT/BFA/W/568  
 
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  CHAPTER IV. CONTRIBUTIONS BY MEMBERS AND OBSERVERS  
Regulation 12  
 
The draft scale of contributions to be assessed to Members is established on the basis of each 
Member’s international trade (imports plus exports) in relation to the total international trade of all 
WTO Members.  
 
Calculations of assessed contributions for a given year shall be based on international trade statistics 
over a five year pe riod. E.g. the calculations of assessed contributions for 2015 shall be based on 
international trade statistics for the years 2008 to 2012; or if these statistics are not available, for 
the last five years for which statistics are available.  
 
The statistic s used refer to trade in goods and commercial services, including intellectual property 
rights payments, derived from the balance of payments statistics of the International Monetary Fund 
(IMF). Data are based on the IMF's methodology as defined in its 5th  edition of the Balance of 
Payments Manual (BPM5) up to 2010 and as defined in the 6th edition of the Balance of Payments 
Manual (BPM6) as of 2011.  
 
Where IMF data deviate from IMF guidelines and include transactions not related to goods, services 
or intel lectual property rights, adjustments provided to the WTO by the Central Bank or the National 
Statistical Office of a Member shall be taken into account by the Secretariat when adequately 
documented and justified.  
 
If IMF data are not available, the WTO Sec retariat shall use estimates based on the best other 
available sources.  
 
A minimum contribution of 0.015 per cent of the total assessed contributions to all Members shall 
be applied to those Members whose share in the total international trade of all WTO M embers is less 
than 0.015 percent.  
 
The same minimum contribution shall also be assessed to Observers.  
 
The contributions shall be assessed and paid in CHF.  
 
Regulation 13  
 
After the General Council has adopted the budget and the scale of contributions, th e Director -General 
shall promptly notify Members and Observers of their financial obligations by providing an invoice 
and a statement of account.  
 
Members and Observers have the obligation to promptly pay their contributions . Contributions shall 
be conside red as due and payable in full upon receipt of the invoice or on 1 January of the financial 
period to which th ey relate, whichever is later. As of 1 January of the following calendar year the 
unpaid balance of such contributions shall be considered to be o ne year in arrears.  
 
With a view to encouraging Members to pay their contributions as early as possible in the year in 
which they fall due, the interest earned by investing the funds received by the Secretariat should be 
refunded to the Members pro rata, depending on the amoun t of their payments and on the date 
which they are made, as set out in Annex A. 
 
Regulation 14  
 
The Director -General shall take appropriate action with a view to ensuring that Members and 
Observers pay  their contributions promptly. The Secretariat shall report regularly to the Committee 
on the state of payment of contributions. Members and Observers with arrears shall be subject to 
Administrative Measures as defined in Annex B. 
 
Regulation 15  
 
Observers may only accede to the WTO if their contributions as Observers have been fully paid . New 
Members shall be required to make a pro rata contribution for the year in which they become WT/BFA/W/568  
 
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  Members, after any relevant deduction of their assessment as Observer which shall also be calculated 
on a pro rata basis for that year . New Members shall also be required to provide their proportion of 
the total advances to the Working Capital Fund; this advance shall be carried to the credit of the 
relevant Member . Payments made by a Member shall be credited  first to the Working Capital Fund 
and then to the contributions due.  
 
Regulation 16  
 
Any payment in respect of contributions made by a Member which has not paid in full its contribution 
for previous calendar years shall, unless the General Council decides  otherwise, be credited against 
the earliest date of such arrears.  
 
Regulation 17  
 
A Provision for contributions in arrears shall be maintained.  
 
CHAPTER V. MISCELLANEOUS INCOME  
Regulation 18  
 
Except in so far as the General Council may decide otherwise, all income other than (a) contributions 
payable by Members, (b) interest earned by investing contributions received by the Secretariat and 
not required immediately, and (c) income derived from investments of the Working Capital Fund 
shall be classed as mis cellaneous income.  
 
CHAPTER VI. VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS, GIFTS OR DONATIONS  
Regulation 19  
 
Voluntary contributions, gifts or donations from WTO Members and Observers may be accepted by 
the Director -General provided that the purposes for which the contributions are made are consistent 
with the policies, aims and activities of the WTO, and provided that the acceptance of such 
contributions which directly or indirectly involve additional financial liability for the WTO shall require 
the consent of the  Committee . Voluntary contributions, gifts or donations from Non -Governmental 
Donors are subject to the additional guidelines laid out in Annex C. 
 
Monies  accepted for purposes specified by the donor shall be treated as trust funds. A standard 
overhead fee  of up to 13% may be charged on direct expenditure incurred by trust funds to reflect 
supporting services provided by the Secretariat. The standard overhead rate can be reduced when 
implementing partners are being used and when defined in the agreement sig ned with the donor . 
The Programme Support Fund collects the overhead fees from all trust funds and pays expenditure 
incurred to support the trust funds activities. The Programme Support Fund also releases a fee 
representing 10% of its expenditure to the WT O Secretariat that will record it as miscellaneous 
income.  
 
Monies accepted in respect of which no purpose is specified shall be treated as miscellaneous income 
and reported as "gifts" in the accounts of the financial period .  
 
Monies received by a staff Member as honoria in his/her official capacity shall be remitted to the 
Organization and be credited to the WTO Staff Assistance Fund.  
 
Unless otherwise provided, such voluntary contributions, gifts or donations shall be administered in 
accordance with the  present Financial Regulations.  
 
CHAPTER VII. USE OF THE FUNDS  
Regulation 20  
 
The adoption of a budget by the General Council shall constitute an authorization to the Director -
General to incur expenditure for the purposes for which the appropriations were adopted and up to 
the amounts so adopted .  
 WT/BFA/W/568  
 
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  Regulation 21  
 
At the end of the financial period the Director -General shall report on the transfers of credits between 
sections of the expenditure budget to the General Council for approval. For items so identif ied by  
the Committee at the time of budget finalization, transfer shall not be permitted.  
 
Regulation 22  
 
The Director -General may enter into commitments for future financial periods, provided that such 
commitments:  
 
a) are for normal ongoing activities that are more effectively procured using a multi -year 
approach ; Where the total expected value of multi -year contracts with a supplier exceeds 
CHF 2 million, the Director -General shall notify, as part of the quarterly financial reporting, 
these contracts to the  Committee, including details of the goods or services procured and the 
likely amounts to be paid under the contract s; or 
b) are authorized by specific decisions of the General Council.  
CHAPTER VIII. THE SURPLUS ACCOUNT  
Regulation 23  
 
Budgetary savings shall be transferred to the Surplus Account.  Budgetary savings are defined as the 
difference between approved  expenditure  and the corresponding actual expenditure  as presented in 
the WTO financial statements for the period . The actual expenditure does not take into account the 
variations in the actuarial provisions for the long -term liabilities associated with staff pensions and 
after service health insurances if they have not be en included in the approved budget.  
 
The difference between the approved miscellaneous income  and the corresponding actual  
miscellaneous income  as presented in the WTO financial statements for the period  as well as the 
variation of the provision for contributions in arrears shall also be transfer red to the Surplus Account.  
 
If at the end of a financial period the Surplus Account shows a credit balance, the Director -General 
shall make proposals to the Committee with regard to its use which may be:  
 
a) application as income against the budget for the s econd financial period following that in which 
the surplus occurs, thereby reducing Member s' contributions;  
b) transfer to the Working Capital Fund; or  
c) use for any other purpose decided upon by the General Council.  
A deficit in the Surplus Account at the end of a financial period shall be covered, to the extent 
possible, by transfer from the Working Capital Fund . Any part of the deficit left uncovered after 
transfer from the Working Capital Fund shall be included as an appropriate credit in the budget for 
the next earliest possible financial period .  
 
CHAPTER IX. THE WORKING CAPITAL FUND  
Regulation 24  
 
The Working Capital Fund shall be constituted by:  
 
a) assessed advances made by Members. Such sums shall be carried to the credit of the Members 
which have paid the m; 
b) any sums which the General Council may cause to be paid into it from time to time. Such 
sums shall be carried to the credit of the Organization.  WT/BFA/W/568  
 
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  Regulation 25  
 
Any government acceding to the WTO shall make an advance to the Fund in accordance with the 
scale of contributions applicable to the budget for the year of its accession. The minimum advance 
to the Working Capital Fund amounts to 0.5 percent of the principal of the Fund for countries or 
separate customs territories whose share of the total tr ade of Members is 0.5 percent or less.  
 
Regulation 26  
 
The Director -General is authorized to advance from the Working Capital Fund:  
 
a) such sums as may be necessary to finance budgetary appropriations pending receipt of 
contributions;  
b) in exceptional circumst ances and subject to prior authorization of the General Council on the 
basis of a recommendation from the Committee, such sums as may be necessary to finance 
commitments relating to extraordinary expenditure.  
Regulation 27  
 
(a) Sums advanced under Regulati on 26(a) shall be reimbursed to the Working Capital Fund as soon 
as receipts from contributions are available for the purpose.  
 
(b) The replenishment of sums advanced in accordance with Regulation 26(b) will require a decision 
by the General Council, base d on a recommendation of the Committee.  
 
Regulation 28  
 
The General Council may liberate all or part of the sums constituting the Working Capital Fund, and 
the sums so liberated in so far as they are derived from monies placed in the Fund under 
Regulation  24(a) shall be returned in CHF to the Members which have contributed to the Fund in 
proportion to their respective shares in the Fund.  
 
Regulation 29  
 
Subject to a decision of the General Council, countries or separate customs territories which for any 
reason cease to be Members of the WTO shall be entitled to the reimbursement of the total amount 
of their shares in the Working Capital Fund under Regulation  24(a) provided that they have honoured 
all liabilities attributable to them.  
 
Regulation 30  
 
Interest accrued on the Working Capital Fund shall be added to the Working Capital Fund and carried 
to the credit of the Organization under Regulation 24(b) above.  
 
CHAPTER X. TREASURY MANAGEMENT  
Regulation 31  
 
The Director -General shall establish clear an d comprehensive financial rules related to treasury 
management activities engaged by the Secretariat. Funds retained by the Secretariat shall be 
securely kept or invested only with first class financial institutions.  
The Secretariat shall designate the ban ks in which the funds of the WTO shall be held. The Secretariat 
shall set criteria for the selection of banks, including a minimum credit rating, and these criteria shall 
be included in the WTO’s Financial Rules.  
The Director -General shall not engage in any speculative activities such as on exchange or interest 
rates.  Monies should only be held in CHF, with the exception of where the Secretariat reasonably 
expects or has committed to making payments in other currencies in the near future .  WT/BFA/W/568  
 
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  The investments o f monies standing to the credit of any trust funds, reserve or special account shall 
be subject to any directives of the appropriate authority.  
 
The Director -General shall include in the financial statements submitted to the General Council a 
statement of the investments currently held.  
 
Income from investments shall be credited as provided in the rules or agreement relating to each 
fund or account.  
 
CHAPTER XI. FINANCIAL REPORTING  
Regulation 32  
 
The financial statements of the Organization shall be prepare d in accordance with the International 
Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) applicable to the accounting period concerned. Any 
divergence from the use of the specified standards shall be explained in the notes to the financial 
statements.  
 
Regulation  33 
 
Appropriate separate accounts shall be maintained in respect of all trust funds, reserves and special 
accounts.  
 
Regulation 34  
 
The accounts of the Organization shall be maintained and presented in CHF. Accounting records 
may, however, be recorded in both the transaction currency and in CHF.  
 
Regulation 35  
 
The Director -General shall submit the financial statements of the WTO to t he External Auditor no 
later than the 31 March after the close of the financial period.  
 
Regulation 36  
 
The report of the External Auditor shall be transmitted to the Committee together with the audited 
financial statements  in a timely manner,  allowing suf ficient time for the Committee to examine the 
report and the audited financial statements in advance of the regular meeting of the General Council 
in July.  The Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration shall examine the financial statements 
and the a udit report with a view to making a recommendation to the General Council to approve the 
financial statements.  
 
Regulation 37  
 
The Director -General shall also provide to the Committee:  
 
a) Reports on the financial position and performance of the Organi zation for the first 6 months and 
at the end of the year  The year-end report shall include information on the financial performance 
of the Organi zation by activity (for example, technical assistance or dispute settlement).  
b) Annual reports on Human Resources with d etails on the evolution of the grade structure, salary 
adjustments , employee benefits, diversity of staff, internal mobility of staff , external recruitment 
activities and  learning and development .   
CHAPTER XII. INTERNAL CONTROL  
Regulation 38  
 
The Director -General shall:  
 
a) establish an effective system of risk management to identify and address internal and external 
risks to the Secretariat;   WT/BFA/W/568  
 
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  b) establish detailed financial rules and procedures in order to ensure effective financial 
administration and the exerc ise of economy;   
c) cause all payments to be made on the basis of appropriate supporting documents and other 
documents which ensure that the services or goods have been received and that payments 
have not previously been made;  
d) designate the officers who may receive monies, in cur obligations and make payments on 
behalf of the WTO. All payments shall require a minimum of two signatories;  
e) maintain an internal control system which shall ascertain the accomplishment of established 
operational objectives; compliance with policies, p rocedures, rules and regulations; and 
safeguarding of assets. The internal control system shall also provide for an effective current 
examination and/or review of financial transactions in order to ensure:  
• the regularity of the receipt, custody and disposa l of all funds and other financial resources 
of the WTO;  
• the conformity of obligations and expenditures with the appropriations or other financial 
provisions approved  by the General Council, or with the purposes and rules relating to 
trust funds and specia l accounts;  
• the economic use of the resources of the WTO ; and  
• the reliability and integrity of the information on which such use is based.  
f) maintain an internal oversight function, which shall be responsible for providing independent 
and objective assessmen ts of the adequacy and effectiveness of the Organi zation's internal 
control system, management practices, budgetary control and allegations of misconduct, in 
all its forms, at the WTO. For this purpose, the internal oversight function shall have 
unrestrict ed access to all functions, activities, operations, processes and information within 
the Organi zation.  
Regulation 39  
 
Commitments or obligations shall not be incurred and payments shall not be made unless an 
appropriate authorization has been made under t he authority of the Director -General.  
 
Regulation 40  
 
The Director -General may, on an exceptional basis, make such ex gratia payments as he deems to 
be necessary in the interests of the WTO. A statement of such payments shall be submitted with the 
final ac counts.  
 
Regulation 41  
 
The Director -General may, after full investigation, authorize the writing off of  losses of cash, 
supplies, equipment and other assets, other than arrears of contributions. A statement of all such 
losses written off during the financial period shall be submitted to the external auditor with the final 
accounts.  
 
Regulation 42  
 
The Dire ctor-General shall establish rules for the procurement function. The procurement function 
includes all actions necessary for the acquisition, by purchase or lease, of property, including 
products and real property, and of services, including works. The fol lowing general principles shall 
be given due consideration when exercising the procurement function of the WTO:  
 
• Efficient and effective use of the Organization's resources ; 
• Non-discriminatory, fair, open competition and equal  opportunity for vendors ; 
• Transparency ; WT/BFA/W/568  
 
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  • Best value for the money in terms of quality and price ; and  
• Accountability . 
Tenders for property and services  shall be invited by a recognized method of solicitati on, except 
where the Director -General deems that, in the interest of the WTO, a departure from this Regulation 
is desirable.  In such cases, a statement specifying the precise amount, the payee and the rationale 
for the departure from this Regulation shall be disclosed in the Financial Performance Report of the 
concerned year.  
 
CHAPTER XIII. EXTERNAL AUDIT  
Regulation 43  
 
The General Council shall appoint an External Auditor to perform the audit of the financial statements 
of the WTO and of its Pension Plan i n accordance with Regulation 4 4 for a six -year period non -
renewable.  
 
The External Auditor shall be the Supreme Audit Institution of a Member of the WTO.  
 
The Committee shall organize an open invitation to bid, define selection criteria, examine offers 
received and make a recommendation to the General Council to approve the appointment of a new 
External Auditor before the end of the mandate of the current External Auditor.  
 
The External Auditor shall not be removed during his tenure of office except by the General Council.  
 
Regulation 44  
 
The External Auditor shall be required to audit the WTO and the WTO’s Pension Plan  financial 
statements in accordance with INTOSAI Auditing Standards and other generally accepted 
international standards such as the Internat ional Standards on Auditing issued by the International 
Federation of Accountants and express an opinion thereon. The External Auditor shall be required to 
conduct itself in conformity with the INTOSAI Code of Ethics and other generally accepted 
profession al standards.  
 
The mandate of the External Auditor shall comprise regular and performance audits as defined by 
the INTOSAI Auditing  Standards .  
 
The External Auditor shall be completely independent and solely responsible for the conduct of any 
audit that it undertakes.  
 
The General Council may request the External Auditor to perform certain specific examinations and 
issue separate reports on the results.  
 
Regulation 45  
 
The Director -General shall provide the External Auditor s with the facilities they may require in the 
performance of the audit.  
 
In the event of a disagreement between the Director -General and the External Auditor on the 
facilities to be provided, the Director -General should seek guidance from the General Council.  
 
Regulation 46  
 
The Ext ernal Auditor shall issue an annual report on the audit of the financial statements to the 
Committee in a timely manner , in accordance with Regulation 36 . The External Auditor may also 
report to the Committee on financial issues, on performance audits and/ or special reports on any 
issue deemed of significance by the External Auditor, or any issue raised by the General Council in 
accordance with Regulation 4 4.  
 WT/BFA/W/568  
 
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  ANNEX A 
WTO  EARLY PAYMENT ENCOURAGEMENT SCHEME  
With a view to encouraging Members  to pay their contributions as early as possible in the year in 
which they fall due, the interest earned by investing the funds received by the Secretariat should be 
refunded to the Members  pro rata, depending on the amoun t of their payments and on the date 
which they are made . As a consequence, the miscellaneous income in the annual income budget 
estimates will no longer include the item for interest earned on investments.  
 
As a general rule, the secretariat, upon receivin g contributions, invests in short term deposits the 
funds which are not to be used immediately . Since the total interest received is a combination of 
three factors:  
a) the amount of funds held in deposit;  
b) the duration of the deposits;  
c) the interest rate;  
 
The amount to be distributed can only be known with precision at the close of the budget year . 
Therefore, the crediting operation can physically take place only after the beginning of the new 
financial year, in other words, too late in principle for the amoun t credited to be deducted from the 
contributions assessed for the new financial year . Consequently only the contributions assessed for 
the second following year would be reduced by the amount of interest accrued . The scheme would 
work as follows:  
 
• YEAR A    interest is credited; at the end of the year the allocation of interest is 
determined;  
• YEAR A + 1    the contributions assessed for year A+2 are calculated when the budget 
estimates are prepared; interest credit is taken into account and deducted from the  
contributions assessed for year A+2;  
• YEAR A + 2    payment of contribution assessed less interest credited.  
Bearing in mind that the date of payment and the amount paid are two important factors, one could 
consider that the determination of the amounts of interest to be distributed should be based on a 
formula under which these two factors would serve as a basis for the calculations of interest 
entitlements.  
 
Where a contribution was received during the year when it was due, a number of points to be 
credite d to the account of the Member  concerned would be calculated as follows;  
 
number of points   = amount X number of days to run up to the end of the year (360 days)  
         10,000  
 
For example   assuming a Member  paid CHF 200,000 on 17 March, the number of p oints crediting 
in its favor would result from the following formula:  
 
200,000 X 283  = 5,660  
            10,000       
 
Assuming further that the total number of points apportioned during the year amounted to 350,000 
and that the amount of interest to be distributed was CHF 150,000, the amount credited to the 
Member  concerned would be:  
 
150,000 X 5,660  = CHF 2,426  
   350,00 0 
 
Should the Member  have paid its contribution on 10 October (number of days to run up to the end 
of the year: 77) the amount cr edited would have been CHF 660.  WT/BFA/W/568  
 
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  ANNEX B 
ADMINISTRATIVE MEASURES FOR MEMBERS AND OBSERVERS IN ARREARS  
 
Cate-
gory Administrative Measures  
I After one but less than two full year's  assessed contributions remain outstanding at 
the end of the year:  
1. Representatives of Members will not be nominated to preside over WTO bodies  
2. Documentation will not be posted to delegations in Geneva nor to the Members' 
and Observers' capitals.  
3. At the beginning of each year, the Director -General will notify the Minister s of 
the Members and Observers responsible for the WTO of the applicable 
administrative measures.  
4. The Director -General will contact annually the Minister of the Members' and 
Observers' responsible  
for the WTO, or any other official at the appropriate leve l emphasizing the 
question of arrears.  
5. The Secretariat will report annually to the Committee on Budget, Finance and 
Administration on the implementation of administrative measures.  
6. Members and Observers will b e subject to specific reporting  at the General 
Council meetings.1 
II After two but less than three full year's  assessed contributions remain outstanding 
at the end of the year, in addition to the measures of Category I:  
1. The access of the WTO Members' web site will be discontinued.2 
2. The ability of Members to act on the recommendations by the Committee on 
Budget, F inance and Administration to the General Council on financial matters 
will be removed.  
3. Observers will be denied access to training or technical assistance.  
The Chairs of the accession working group of Observers will remind the delegation of 
Observers, duri ng their working group meeting, of their financial obligations.  
III After three full year's  assessed contributions remain outstanding at the end of the 
year, in addition to the measures of Categories I and II:  
1. Members and Observers will be designated as Inactive Members and Inactive 
Observers, respectively.  
2. Inactive Members will be denied access  to training or technical assistance other 
than that necessary to meet their WTO Article XIV -2 obligations.  
3. The accession working groups do not meet either formally or informally . 
WTO will suspend its request for annual contributions from Inactive Observer s. 
Request for annual contributions will resume the year the Observers are not 
anymore designated as Inactive.3 
4. Inactive Members and Observers taking the floor in the General Council will be 
identified as such.  
 
  
 
1 See General Council procedures.  
2 Applicable to Members and Observers. Under current policy, Observers have a differentiated access to 
documents posted on the Members' Website.  
3 To be enforced starting 1 January 2013.  WT/BFA/W/568  
 
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  GENERAL COUNCIL PROCEDURES FOR MEMBERS AND OBSERVERS  
SUBJECT TO ADMINISTRATIVE MEASURES  
 
At the beginning of each calendar year,  the Committee on Budget, Finance and 
Administration will notify to the General Council the list of Members and Observers under 
Administrative Measures, with a  recommendation that these Members and Observers be urged to 
liquidate their arrears.  
 
At the end of each meeting of the General Council , the Chairman of the Committee on 
Budget, Finance and Administration will provide information with regard to which Memb ers and 
Observers are under Administrative Measures. The Chairman of the General Council will request 
Members and Observers in Categories II and III to inform the Secretariat as to when the payment 
of arrears may be expected.  
 
Each year  the Director -General  will report on the results of his contacts with Members’ and 
Observers’ authorities on the issue of arrears.  
 
* * * * * * *  
 
 
SPECIAL PROVISIONS FOR THE SUSPENSION OF ADMINISTRATIVE MEASURES  
FOR INACTIVE MEMBERS AND OBSERVERS  
 
 
The General Council can suspend the application of Administrative Measures for Members in 
Category III which agree to, and abide by, a defined schedule o f instalment  payments aimed at 
liquidating all arrears.4 
 
Those Members with pre -1988 arrears that were assessed at the minimum contribution may 
benefit from a reduction in those arrears to the level of the 1989 minimum contribution. For each 
full payment  of an annual contribution between 1988 and 1994, any contracting party with pre -1988 
arrears may cancel an equal number of assessments for 1987 and earlier years upon payment of 
the 1989 minimum contribution amounting to CHF  19,137. The difference between  a pre -1988 
assessment and the payment of CHF  19,137 would be funded by the Miscellaneous Income of 
the WTO.5 
 
The General Council can suspend the application of Administrative Measures for Observers 
that are in Category III on 1 January 2013, which agree  to, and abide by, a defined schedule of 
installment payments aimed at liquidating all arrears.   
 
 
4 Amend earlier decisions of the General Council  in 1988 ( C/M/226 ) and 1994 (C/M/273) to reflect the 
reduced numbe r of categories.  
5 As approved by the General Council in 1994 (C/M/273).  WT/BFA/W/568  
 
- 13 - 
 
  ANNEX C 
VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS, GIFTS OR DONATIONS FROM  
NON-GOVERNMENTAL DONORS  
Given that voluntary contributions, gifts or donations (hereafter "donations ") from non -
governmental donors could be of benefit and since Members are committed to ensuring that no 
conflict of interest should arise through the acceptance of such donations, it is herein affirmed that 
the process with regard to such donations will be  governed by the following guidelines.  
 
1. Donations proposed by private individuals and non -governmental, non -profit organizations or 
foundations (non -governmental donors) may be considered. These may include donations of 
goods or services "in kind"; however , secondment of staff from non -governmental donors to the 
WTO is prohibited.  
2. Donations from non -governmental donors which are for -profit organizations or companies shall 
not be accepted.  
3. The activities, aims and motivations of the non -governmental donors mentioned under 1 above 
shall not be incompatible with the policies, aims and activities of the WTO and, as mentioned 
above, shall not give rise to a conflict of interest.  
4. While non -govern mental donors shall be encouraged to make donations to the Doha Development 
Agenda Global Trust Fund at large, the donor may specify one or more activities associated with 
WTO programs as the purpose of the donation.  
5. All proposed donations from non -governm ental donors shall be notified to the Committee on 
Budget, Finance and Administration which shall promptly consider the proposals. The Director -
General shall accept a proposed donation only after the Committee has approved the proposed 
donation and its int ended use(s). It is recognized that the Committee may wish to consider 
establishing a subsidiary working group to make recommendations to it relative to proposed 
donations.  
6. The notification shall include full details regarding the activities, aims and moti vations of the non -
governmental donors mentioned under 1 above and the intended uses(s) of the donation.  
7. All accepted donations from non -governmental donors shall be placed in a trust fund and be 
disbursed in a manner that takes into account the broad obje ctives of the Committee on Trade 
and Development, the Memorandum of Understanding Establishing the Global Trust Fund and any 
additional modalities to be established for the purpose of disbursing the resources of the trust 
fund. 
8. Donations shall not entitle non-governmental donors to use of the WTO name or logo in any way. 
Full details relative to all accepted donations from non -governmental donors and their uses shall 
be included in the Director -General ’s Budgetary and Financial Report on extra -budgetary fun ds. 
9. Information with regard to accepted donations shall also be made available on the WTO Website 
in order to ensure transparency.  
 
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