G/ADP/Q1/BRA/43  
G/SCM/Q1/BRA/43  
G/SG/Q1/BRA/ 12 
 
26 April 2019 
(19-2876) Page: 1/3 
Comm ittee on Anti -Dumping Practices  
Committee on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures 
Committee on Safeguards  Original: English  
 
  
NOTIFICATION OF LAWS AND REGULATIONS UNDER  
ARTICLES 18.5, 32.6  AND 12.6 OF THE AGREEMENTS  
REPLIES TO QUESTIONS1 POSED BY UKRAINE  REGARDING  
THE NOTIFICATION OF BRAZ IL2 
The following c ommunication, dated 26 April 2019, is being circulated at the requ est of the 
delegation of Brazil.  
 
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Ukraine would like to pose the following questions to Brazil regarding its notification of laws and 
regulations under Article 18.5 of the WTO Agreement on Implementation of Article VI of the 
GATT  1994.  
 
Question 1  
 
According to Article 1 of Ordinance No.30, dated 8 June 2018, the proceedings of 
administrative process, the notification act, the constituting of case files, and the 
transmissio ns of pleadings conducted by DECOM shall be made through DECOM Digital 
System. At the same time, Article  2 stipulates that the access to the system shall be made 
with use of digital certificate issued under the Brazilian Public Keys Infrastructure. In our 
understanding, in order to obtain digital certificate it should be necessary for the applicant 
to visit relevant authority that is responsible for issuing digital certificates.  
 
Please, explain how interested parties outside of Brazil can obtain digital ce rtificate in 
order to have access to the DECOM Digital System?  
 
If not possible for interested parties outside of Brazil to obtain digital certificate, how in 
this case they can obtain access to the DECOM Digital System in order to fulfil their rights 
to defend their interest within the antidumping investigations?  
 
Reply  
 
The requirement of digital certification in order to access the DECOM Digital System  – DDS derives 
from the need to guarantee the authenticity, integrity and legal validity of electronic documents, in 
accordance with the provisions of Provisional Measure no. 2,200 -2 of 24 August 2001, establishing 
the Brazilian Public Key Infrastructure - ICP-Brazil.  
 
It is important  to note that foreign interested parties are be able to acquire digital certificates linked 
to their passport numbers, according to the guidelines established by the National Institute of 
Information Technology  (http://www.iti.gov.br/certificado -digital/58 -certificado -digital/87 -
como -obter ). It must be noted that foreigners not domiciled in Brazil who wish to  acquire a digital 
certificate must attend one of the hundreds of Registration Authorities located in Brazil, accompanied 
by their passport and other docum ents required by ICP-Brazil . 
                                                
1 G/ADP/Q1/BRA/39 -G/SCM/Q1/BRA/39 -G/SG/Q1/BRA/8 . 
2 G/ADP/N/1/BRA/3/Suppl.10 -G/SCM/N/1/BRA/2/Suppl.13 -G/SG/N/1/BRA/3/Suppl.4 . G/ADP/Q1/BRA/43 • G/SCM/Q1/BRA/43 • G/SG/Q1/BRA/ 12 
 
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  Another way foreign interested parties can consult or comment on a case file is by appointing of a 
legal representative  who holds  a digital certificate issued under ICP -Brazil.  
 
 
Question 2  
 
Please, clarify if it is possible to obtain access to the DECOM Digital System without digital 
certificate in case when interested party would like to observe the case and not intended 
to submit documents, for example for foreign government?  
 
Reply  
 
In accordance with SECEX Ordinance No.30, dated 8 June 2018, interested parties in trade remedy 
investigations conducted by Brazil must necessa rily use the Decom Digital System (DDS) not only 
to submit files related to the investigation, but also to have access to its contents.  
 
Since interested parties can only access the DDS with a digital certificate, it is not possible for an 
interested part y to observe an investigation or to obtain copies of the non -confidential files submitted 
by other interested parties without a digital certificate.  
 
 
Question 3  
 
A principal objective of the procedural requirements of the WTO Anti -dumping Agreement 
is to ensure transparency of proceedings, a full opportunity for parties to defend their 
interests, and adequate explanations by investigating authorities of their determinations. 
That is why authorities are required to disclose the information on which determin ations 
are to be based to interested parties and provide them with adequate opportunity to 
comment.  
 
Considering the difficulties for interested parties outside of Brazil to obtain access to the 
DECOM Digital System, please, explain how the electronic admi nistrative procedure 
related to antidumping investigations, under Ordinance No. 30, dated 8 June 2018, 
complies with principle of transparency within the meaning of the WTO relevant 
jurisprudence?  
 
Reply  
 
The DECOM Digital System was implemented by the Brazilian investigating authority in 2015. Since 
its beginning, one of its main purposes has always been to ensure increased transparency and 
greater stakeholder participation in the trade defense processes conducted by the Brazilian 
investigating authorit y. In this sense, the System allows interested parties to access the records and 
to submit documents online from anywhere in the world, without the burden of personally attending 
the Under -Secretariat of Trade Defense and Public Interest (SDCOM) premises.  
 
Another concern of SDCOM, which also derives from the provisions established in the agreements 
and jurisprudence of the World Trade Organization, is to ensure the security of data submitted via 
the internet on a confidential or restricted basis, which is why it is mandatory for interested parties 
to obtain a digital certificate in order to access the records. The digital certificate is also a means of 
ensuring that the documents were effectively submitted by the interested party or their legal 
representati ves. 
 
In addition to the fact that non -confidential case files are available online to all interested parties 
through the DDS, it should also be noted that general information about each of the ongoing 
investigations can be found on the SDCOM website ( http://www.mdic.gov.br/index.php/comercio -
exterior/defesa -comercial/851 -investigacoes -em-curso  ), as well as links to the publications in the 
Official Gazette of the administrative acts arising from these investigations.  
 
Furthermore, it must be emphasized that the current Brazilian AD regulation (Decree No 8,058, 
dated 26 July 2013) contains several WTO Plus provisions with a view to ensuring transpa rency in 
proceedings, full opportunity for parties to defend their interests and adequate explanations of the  G/ADP/Q1/BRA/43 • G/SCM/Q1/BRA/43 • G/SG/Q1/BRA/ 12 
 
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  investigating authority’s determinations. An example of such provisions is the fact that preliminary 
determinations are mandatory in Brazil and t hat all deadlines for the submission of documents are 
explicitly established in the aforementioned regulation.  
 
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