G/TBT/GEN/141  
 
13 February 2013  
(13-0778)  Page: 1/5  
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade  Original: English  
 
  APPROVAL PROCEDURES AND TRANSPARENCY IN THE WORK OF THE OIML 
 This document containing information was provided by the OIML at the TBT Committee 
meeting of 27-28 November 2012 under Agenda Item 4 (Update by Observers). 
 
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1  INTRODUCTION 
1.1.  At the June 2012 meeting of the TBT Committee, the OIML made some comments concerning 
India’s submission on international standard setting (G/TBT/W/345). The OIML undertook to 
supply further information in a room document for the November 2012  meeting of the Committee. 
1.2.  The OIML is an intergovernmental treaty orga nisation working in the field of legal metrology.  
The main focus of its technical work is the development of OIML International Recommendations, which are intended for use as model technical regulations for the measuring instruments to which 
they apply.  In the context of the TBT Agreement,  they are considered as international standards 
in the field of legal metrology. 
1.3.  Participation in the OIML is open to all States which have signed or acceded to the OIML 
Convention.  These are called Member States.States or territories which cannot or do not yet wish 
to become Member States may participate in the OIML’s work as Corresponding Members. 
2  BASIS FOR DECISION MAKING IN THE OIML 2.1  OIML Convention 
2.1.  All the OIML’s activities are governed by the “Convention establishing an International 
Organisation of Legal Metrology”, dated 12 Octo ber 1955, and modified in January 1968. This 
Convention states that the Organisation comprises: 
a. an International Conference on Legal Metrology, which 
i. studies the aims of the Organisation and takes decisions with respect to them, 
ii. establishes bodies to carry out the work of the Organisation, 
iii. studies and approves reports made by these bodies; 
b. an International Committee on Legal Metrology, which 
i. is the working body of the Conference, 
ii. implements the decisions of the Conference with the Bureau; 
c. an International Bureau of Legal Metrology, which 
i. ensures the operation of the Conference and the Committee, 
ii. carries out work and studies, G/TBT/GEN/141 
 
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  iii. implements decisions of the Conference with the Committee. 
2.2.  Each of these bodies has its own decision making process defined in the OIML Convention.  
All decision making by the other technical bodies of the Organisation is based on the same r e q u i r e m e n t s  s o  a s  t o  e n s u r e  a  h a r m o n i s e d  a p p r o a c h  a t  a l l  l e v e l s  o f  t h e  O r g a n i s a t i o n  a n d  
throughout the development cycle of  all OIML pub lications. The purpose of the OIML, as defined in 
Article 1 of the OIML Convention, is 
a. to set up a documentation and information centre 
i. on the one hand, on the different national departments concerned with the 
inspection and checking of measuring instruments subject to or liable to be subject to legal regulation; 
ii. on the other hand, on the aforesaid measuring instruments considered from the 
point of view of their conception, construction and use. 
b. to translate and edit the texts of legal requirements for measuring instruments and their 
use in the different Member States, with all the interpretations stemming from the 
constitutional and administrative law of these States which are necessary to the 
complete understanding of these requirements, 
c. to determine the general principles of legal metrology, 
d. to study, with a view to unification of methods and regulations, the problems of legal 
metrology, of a legislative and regulatory character, the solution of which is of international interest, 
e. to establish model draft laws and regulations for measuring instruments and their use, 
f. to draw up a practical organisational  draft plan for a model service for the inspection 
and checking of measuring instruments, 
g. to determine the necessary and adequate characteristics and standards to which 
measuring instruments must conform in order for them to be approved by Member 
States and for their use to be  recommended internationally, 
h. to promote closer relations between the departments of Weights and Measures or other 
departments responsible for legal metrology in each of the Member States of the 
Organisation. 
2.2  International Confer ence on Legal Metrology 
2.3.  The Member States of the OIML are repres ented at the International Conference on Legal 
Metrology, which is required to meet at least every six years, but which currently meets every four 
years.  Each Member State may delegate a maximum of three official representatives to meetings of the Conference.  Only one of these representa tives may vote. Decisions of the Conference are 
only taken during its meetings, and concern “Recommendations to be made for common action by 
Member States” in the fields mentioned in 2.1 above. 
2.4.  According to Article VIII of the OIML Co nvention, for most Conference decisions to be 
effective: 
a. at least two thirds of the total number of Member States must be present at the 
meeting, 
b. at least four-fifths of the number of Member States present must cast a vote 
(abstentions and blank or null votes shall not be considered as votes cast), 
c. the proposal must be supported by at least four-fifths of the votes cast. G/TBT/GEN/141 
 
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  2.5.  Decisions are then immediately circulated to all Member States, who are “ morally obliged to 
implement these decisions as far as possible ”. 
2.6.  However, the same Article makes a special provision for decisions concerning the 
organisation, management, administration and rules of procedure of the Conference, the 
Committee and the Bureau, and similar matters.  For these decisions, th e minimum number of 
Members present and votes cast is as above, but the proposal only needs to be supported by an 
absolute majority, and the decision has immediat e effect. The vote of the Member State whose 
delegate is in the chair shall be decisive in the event of an equal division of votes. 
2.3  International Committee of Legal Metrology (CIML) 
2.7.  The CIML consists of a representative of each of the OIML’s Member States (called CIML 
Members).  It is required to meet at least every two years, but currently meets once a year.  It 
undertakes the tasks mentioned in 2.1 above, which it may delegate to working parties or 
technical or legal experts. 
2.8.  Each CIML Member is designated by their government, and is a serving official in the 
department concerned with measuring instruments or has active official functions in the field of 
legal metrology.  CIML Members have the right to take part in meetings of the Conference as advisors if they are not part of their government’s delegation. 
2.9.  Article XVII of the OIML Convention allo ws the CIML to take decisions in two ways: 
a. at meetings, in which case (unlike meetings of the Conference) CIML Members may give 
a proxy if they are unable to attend the meeting, but no one CIML Member may have more than two votes in addition to their own; 
b. “by correspondence” between meetings.  Online voting procedures are now interpreted 
as satisfying the words “by correspondence”, and are commonly used. 
2.10.  According to Article XVII of the OIML Conv ention, for CIML decisions taken during a meeting 
to be effective 
a. the number of those present and represented must  be at least three-quarters of the total 
number of CIML Members; 
b. at least four-fifths of the number of CIML  Members present or represented at the 
meeting must cast a vote (abstentions, blank and null votes are not be considered as votes cast); 
c. the proposal must be supported by a minimum of four-fifths of the votes cast. 
2.11.  According to the same Article, for CIML decisions taken between meetings to be effective 
a. all CIML Members must be asked to vote; 
b. at least two thirds of all CIML Members must cast a vote (abstentions, blank and null 
votes shall not be considered as votes cast, and failure to reply within the time limit is 
considered as an abstention), 
c. the proposal must be supported by all those voting. 
2.12.  A three month period is allowed for voting between CIML meetings. G/TBT/GEN/141 
 
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  2.4  Technical work of the OIML 
2.4.1  Procedures 2.13.  The technical work of the OIML which is needed to develop the OIML’s International 
Recommendations and other publications, is mostly conducted by Project Groups, organised into 
Technical Committees and Subcommittees.  Each Project Group is responsible for developing or 
revising one OIML publication and consists of volunteer experts from Member States and Corresponding Members.  Participants in a Project Group may be Participating members (P-
members) who are required to comment and vote on the Project Group’s work, or as Observing 
members (O-members) who may comment, but have no vote.  Only representatives of Member 
States are allowed to be P-members.  Representatives of appropriate liaison organisations are also allowed to participate under the same conditions as O-members. 
2.14.  The work of the Project Groups in follow s rules which are set out in OIML publication B 6 
Directives for OIML technical work .  A revision of B 6 was approved at the 47th CIML meeting 
which took place in Bucharest in October 2012.  In  order to improve the consistency of the OIML’s 
work, this new version of B 6 tries to make the decisions of Project Groups follow the general 
principles of the OIML Convention as far as possible, even though the Convention does not 
specifically cover any decisions taken at a lower level than the CIML. 
2.15.  The development of OIML Recommendations follows the following sequence: 
a. Working Draft; 
b. Committee Draft; 
c. Draft publication (submitted to all CIML Members for a preliminary ballot); 
d. Final Draft publication (submitted to all CIML Members for approval, either at CIML 
Meeting, or between CIML Meetings). 
2.16.  Decisions on the technical work are described below. 
2.4.2  General decisions 
2.17.  During a meeting of a Project Group, prop osals on issues other than the approval of a 
Committee Draft are approved as long as at least half of the total number of that Project Group 
votes in favour. 
2.4.3  Working Draft 2.18.  Distributed to all Project Group members for comment, but not for vote. 2.4.4  Approval of Committee Drafts 
2.19.  Successive Committee Drafts are developed, and distributed to all a Project Group’s 
members, until approved by a decision of the Project Group. 
2.20.  A Committee Draft may be approved at a Pr oject Group meeting if two-thirds of the total 
number of that Project Group’s P-members vote in favour of it. 
2.21.  A Committee Draft may be approved by correspondence (preferably electronically) outside a 
Project Group meeting as long as 
a. all that Project Group’s members are asked to comment (and P-members are asked to 
vote); 
b. two-thirds of the votes cast by that Project Group’s P-members are in favour 
(abstentions and failures to reply are not considered as votes cast). G/TBT/GEN/141 
 
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  2.22.  Three months are allowed for a vote by correspondence. 
2.4.5  Approval of Draft publications 2.23.  Once a Committee Draft has been approved by the Project Group which developed it, it is 
registered as a Draft publication, and is sent to all CIML Members for an electronic preliminary 
ballot, since this is the first time the Draft will have been seen by those countries which have not 
participated in the Project Group’s work.  A three month period is allowed for this ballot. 
2.24.  The Draft publication is approved if 
a. a majority of CIML Members has voted in favo ur (abstentions and failures to vote are not 
considered as votes cast); 
b. there are no proposals or objections requiring substantial amendments of the text. 
2.4.6  Approval of Final Draft publications 
2.25.  Once a publication has passed the CIML preliminary ballot, it is amended in the light of 
minor comments received and registered as a Final Draft publication and is circulated to all CIML Members for approval.  This may either be at a CIML meeting, or by an electronic voting 
procedure. 
2.26.  In either case, the approval process is as described for decisions of the CIML in 2.3 above. 3  TRANSPARENCY 
3.1.  Participation in the work of OIML Project Groups is open to all OIML Member States and 
Corresponding Members, as well as to registered liaison organisations. 
3.2.  All Committee Draft publications and Final Draft publications, as well as completed 
publications are freely available for download from the OIML’s web site. 
3.3.  The composition of all OIML Technical Committees and Subcommittees is freely available on 
the OIML web site.  Some Technical Committees and Subcommittees have their own web sites with details of their work 
3.4.  As from early 2013, the state of progress of all OIML Project Groups will be freely available 
on the OIML website, once work on a new database is finished.  All Project Groups, Technical Committees and Subcommittees will also have their own website.  
 
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